Role of the cyclic lipopeptide massetolide A in biological control of Phytophthora infestans and in colonization of tomato plants by Pseudomonas fluorescens

Pseudomonas strains have shown promising results in biological control of late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans. However, the mechanism(s) and metabolites involved are in many cases poorly understood. Here, the role of the cyclic lipopeptide massetolide A of Pseudomonas fluorescens SS101 in biocontrol of tomato late blight was examined. Pseudomonas fluorescens SS101 was effective in preventing infection of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) leaves by P. infestans and significantly reduced the expansion of existing late blight lesions. Massetolide A was an important component of the activity of P. fluorescens SS101, since the massA-mutant was significantly less effective in biocontrol, and purified massetolide A provided significant control of P. infestans, both locally and systemically via induced resistance. Assays with nahG transgenic plants indicated that the systemic resistance response induced by SS101 or massetolide A was independent of salicylic acid signalling. Strain SS101 colonized the roots of tomato seedlings significantly better than its massA-mutant, indicating that massetolide A was an important trait in plant colonization. This study shows that the cyclic lipopeptide surfactant massetolide A is a metabolite with versatile functions in the ecology of P fluorescens SS101 and in interactions with tomato plants and the late blight pathogen P. infestans

Sexual and gender-based violence in the European asylum and reception sector: a perpetuum mobile?

Background: Refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented migrants are at risk of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and subsequent ill-health in Europe; yet, European minimum reception standards do not address SGBV. Hence, this paper explores the nature of SGBV occurring in this sector and discusses determinants for ‘Desirable Prevention’. Methods: Applying community-based participatory research, we conducted an SGBV knowledge, attitude and practice survey with residents and professionals in eight European countries. We conducted logistic regression using mixed models to analyse the data in R. Results: Of the 562 respondents, 58.3% reported cases of direct (23.3%) or peer (76.6%) victimization. Our results indicate that when men were involved, it most likely concerned sexual perpetration (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 4.09, confidence interval [CI]: 1.2; 13.89) and physical victimization (aOR: 2.57, CI: 1.65; 4), compared with females, who then rather perpetrated emotional violence (aOR: 1.85, CI: 1.08; 3.13) and underwent sexual victimization (aOR: 7.14, CI: 3.33; 16.67). Compared with others, asylum seekers appeared more likely to perpetrate physical (aOR 7.14, CI: 4; 12.5) and endure socio-economic violence (aOR: 10, CI: 1.37; 100), whereas professionals rather bore emotional (aOR: 2.01, CI: 0.98; 4.12) and perpetrated socio-economic violence (aOR: 25.91, CI: 13.41; 50.07). When group perpetration (aOR: 2.13, CI: 1.27; 3.58) or victimization (aOR: 1.84, CI: 1.1; 3.06) occurred, it most likely concerned socio-economic violence. Conclusion: Within the European asylum reception sector, residents and professionals of both sexes experience SGBV victimization and perpetration. Given the lack of prevention policies, our findings call for urgent Desirable Prevention programmes addressing determinants socio-ecologically

"Mothers get really exhausted!" The lived experience of pregnancy in extreme heat: Qualitative findings from Kilifi, Kenya

Heat exposure in pregnancy is associated with a range of adverse health and wellbeing outcomes, yet research on the lived experience of pregnancy in high temperatures is lacking. We conducted qualitative research in 2021 in two communities in rural Kilifi County, Kenya, a tropical savannah area currently experiencing severe drought. Pregnant and postpartum women, their male spouses and mothers-in-law, community health volunteers, and local health and environment stakeholders were interviewed or participated in focus group discussions. Pregnant women described symptoms that are classically regarded as heat exhaustion, including dizziness, fatigue, dehydration, insomnia, and irritability. They interpreted heat-related tachycardia as signalling hypertension and reported observing more miscarriages and preterm births in the heat. Pregnancy is conceptualised locally as a 'normal' state of being, and women continue to perform physically demanding household chores in the heat, even when pregnant. Women reported little support from family members to reduce their workload at this time, reflecting their relative lack of autonomy within the household, but also potentially the 'normalisation' of heat in these communities. Climate change risk reduction strategies for pregnant women in low-resource settings need to be cognisant of local household gender dynamics that constrain women's capacity to avoid heat exposures

Apparent Temperature and Cause-Specific Emergency Hospital Admissions in Greater Copenhagen, Denmark

One of the key climate change factors, temperature, has potentially grave implications for human health. We report the first attempt to investigate the association between the daily 3-hour maximum apparent temperature (Tappmax) and respiratory (RD), cardiovascular (CVD), and cerebrovascular (CBD) emergency hospital admissions in Copenhagen, controlling for air pollution. The study period covered 1 January 2002−31 December 2006, stratified in warm and cold periods. A case-crossover design was applied. Susceptibility (effect modification) by age, sex, and socio-economic status was investigated. For an IQR (8°C) increase in the 5-day cumulative average of Tappmax, a 7% (95% CI: 1%, 13%) increase in the RD admission rate was observed in the warm period whereas an inverse association was found with CVD (−8%, 95% CI: −13%, −4%), and none with CBD. There was no association between the 5-day cumulative average of Tappmax during the cold period and any of the cause-specific admissions, except in some susceptible groups: a negative association for RD in the oldest age group and a positive association for CVD in men and the second highest SES group. In conclusion, an increase in Tappmax is associated with a slight increase in RD and decrease in CVD admissions during the warmer months

National Assessment of Human Health Effects of Climate Change in Portugal: Approach and Key Findings

In this study we investigated the potential impact of climate change in Portugal on heat-related mortality, air pollution–related health effects, and selected vectorborne diseases. The assessment used climate scenarios from two regional climate models for a range of future time periods. The annual heat-related death rates in Lisbon may increase from between 5.4 and 6 per 100,000 in 1980–1998 to between 8.5 and 12.1 by the 2020s and to a maximum of 29.5 by the 2050s, if no adaptations occur. The projected warmer and more variable weather may result in better dispersion of nitrogen dioxide levels in winter, whereas the higher temperatures may reduce air quality during the warmer months by increasing tropospheric ozone levels. We estimated the future risk of zoonoses using ecologic scenarios to describe future changes in vectors and parasites. Malaria and schistosomiasis, which are currently not endemic in Portugal, are more sensitive to the introduction of infected vectors than to temperature changes. Higher temperatures may increase the transmission risk of zoonoses that are currently endemic to Portugal, such as leishmaniasis, Lyme disease, and Mediterranean spotted fever

An ecological time-series study of heat-related mortality in three European cities

BACKGROUND: Europe has experienced warmer summers in the past two decades and there is a need to describe the determinants of heat-related mortality to better inform public health activities during hot weather. We investigated the effect of high temperatures on daily mortality in three cities in Europe (Budapest, London, and Milan), using a standard approach. METHODS: An ecological time-series study of daily mortality was conducted in three cities using Poisson generalized linear models allowing for over-dispersion. Secular trends in mortality and seasonal confounding factors were controlled for using cubic smoothing splines of time. Heat exposure was modelled using average values of the temperature measure on the same day as death (lag 0) and the day before (lag 1). The heat effect was quantified assuming a linear increase in risk above a cut-point for each city. Socio-economic status indicators and census data were linked with mortality data for stratified analyses. RESULTS: The risk of heat-related death increased with age, and females had a greater risk than males in age groups > or =65 years in London and Milan. The relative risks of mortality (per degrees C) above the heat cut-point by gender and age were: (i) Male 1.10 (95%CI: 1.07-1.12) and Female 1.07 (1.05-1.10) for 75-84 years, (ii) M 1.10 (1.06-1.14) and F 1.08 (1.06-1.11) for > or = or =85 years in Budapest (> or =24 degrees C); (i) M 1.03 (1.01-1.04) and F 1.07 (1.05-1.09), (ii) M 1.05 (1.03-1.07) and F 1.08 (1.07-1.10) in London (> or =20 degrees C); and (i) M 1.08 (1.03-1.14) and F 1.20 (1.15-1.26), (ii) M 1.18 (1.11-1.26) and F 1.19 (1.15-1.24) in Milan (> or =26 degrees C). Mortality from external causes increases at higher temperatures as well as that from respiratory and cardiovascular disease. There was no clear evidence of effect modification by socio-economic status in either Budapest or London, but there was a seemingly higher risk for affluent non-elderly adults in Milan. CONCLUSION: We found broadly consistent determinants (age, gender, and cause of death) of heat related mortality in three European cities using a standard approach. Our results are consistent with previous evidence for individual determinants, and also confirm the lack of a strong socio-economic gradient in heat health effects currently in Europe

Dynamic maps: a visual-analytic methodology for exploring spatio-temporal disease patterns

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Epidemiologic studies are often confounded by the human and environmental interactions that are complex and dynamic spatio-temporal processes. Hence, it is difficult to discover nuances in the data and generate pertinent hypotheses. Dynamic mapping, a method to simultaneously visualize temporal and spatial information, was introduced to elucidate such complexities. A conceptual framework for dynamic mapping regarding principles and implementation methods was proposed.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The spatio-temporal dynamics of <it>Salmonella </it>infections for 2002 in the U.S. elderly were depicted via dynamic mapping. Hospitalization records were obtained from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services. To visualize the spatial relationship, hospitalization rates were computed and superimposed onto maps of environmental exposure factors including livestock densities and ambient temperatures. To visualize the temporal relationship, the resultant maps were composed into a movie.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The dynamic maps revealed that the <it>Salmonella </it>infections peaked at specific spatio-temporal loci: more clusters were observed in the summer months and higher density of such clusters in the South. The peaks were reached when the average temperatures were greater than 83.4°F (28.6°C). Although the relationship of salmonellosis rates and occurrence of temperature anomalies was non-uniform, a strong synchronization was found between high broiler chicken sales and dense clusters of cases in the summer.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Dynamic mapping is a practical visual-analytic technique for public health practitioners and has an outstanding potential in providing insights into spatio-temporal processes such as revealing outbreak origins, percolation and travelling waves of the diseases, peak timing of seasonal outbreaks, and persistence of disease clusters.</p

Help-Seeking Behavior during Elevated Temperature in Chinese Population

The negative impact of extreme temperatures on health is well-established. Individual help-seeking behavior, however, may mitigate the extent of morbidity and mortality during elevated temperatures. This study examines individual help-seeking behavior during periods of elevated temperatures among a Chinese population. Help-seeking patterns and factors that influence behavior will be identified so that vulnerable subgroups may be targeted for health protection during heat crises. A retrospective time-series Poisson generalized additive model analysis, using meteorological data of Hong Kong Observatory and routine emergency help call data from The Hong Kong Senior Citizen Home Safety Association during warm seasons (June–September) 1998–2007, was conducted. A “U”-shaped association was found between daily emergency calls and daily temperature. About 49% of calls were for explicit health-related reasons including dizziness, shortness of breath, and general pain. The associate with maximum temperature was statistically significant (p = 0.034) with the threshold temperature at which the frequency of health-related calls started to increase being around 30–32°C. Mean daily relative humidity (RH) also had a significant U-shaped association with daily emergency health-related calls with call frequency beginning to increase with RH greater than 70–74% (10–25% of the RH distribution). Call frequency among females appeared to be more sensitive to high temperatures, with a threshold between 28.5°C and 30.5°C while calls among males were more sensitive to cold temperatures (threshold 31.5–33.5°C). Results indicate differences in community help-seeking behavior at elevated temperatures. Potential programs or community outreach services might be developed to protect vulnerable subgroups from the adverse impact of elevated temperatures