Subjective Well-Being in Two Himalayan Communities, Post Road Development

Although the first road to ever be built into Humla, Nepal is still under construction, it has already spurred numerous sociocultural and economic changes, including an increased integration into the market economy, changing access to market-purchased foods, and new kinds of health-seeking behavior. This paper is part of a larger research project where we examined changing health and nutrition outcomes co-synchronous with the arrival of this road. In this paper, we focus on whether and how the road is affecting villagers’ subjective well-being (SWB). We studied this while living and working with people from two Humli villages, one that is on the road, and one that is far from it. In these villages, we developed two local models of SWB, using the villagers’ own conceptual frameworks and sense of the factors that play a role in wellbeing. Our analyses showed that villagers’ conceptualization of SWB varied substantially according to road proximity. Additionally, we quantified indices from villagers’ SWB assessments and tested which variables were significant determinants of wellbeing. We discovered a significant relationship between an individual’s well-being level and two variables: available resources per household and levels of social support. The purpose of this paper is threefold: to better understand how villagers from Upper Humla define SWB, to identify which subset of the population is not benefitting in terms of their SWB from the new road, and to present a mixed-methods, anthropologically-based approach for the development of a locally meaningful measure of SWB

Dataset associated with the manuscript: “Long-term compost amendment modulates wheat genotype differences in belowground carbon allocation, rhizosphere recruitment and nitrogen acquisition”

Format of data files – .csv; Location where data were collected – Fort Collins, CO; Time period during which data were collected - 2021; File Information – Total number of files: 3 Kelly_2021_Wheat_Genotype_Wheat.Genotype.Soil.Treatment _Datafile.csv – processed primary biogeochemical and plant data used for data analysis of referenced manuscript. README_Kelly_2021_Wheat.Genotype.Soil.Treatment.pdf – Description of data and associated publication Codebook.csv – description of variable names in Datafile.The implementation of soil health-promoting practices, such as cover crops and compost additions, has important implications for nutrient cycling regimes in agroecosystems. At the same time, plant belowground carbon (C) allocation patterns can influence nutrient cycling and availability in soil, but the effects may depend on the crop genotype and management practices in place. The relationship between root exudation, rhizosphere communities and the processes they regulate is likely influenced by a range of soil conditions, including soil organic matter (SOM) content, nutrient status, and overall soil biological activity, but such interactions remain poorly understood. To better understand the potential role of long-term soil management (that alters of SOM) and crop genotype in regulating rhizosphere microbial communities and associated nitrogen (N) cycling processes, we collected soils from two treatments in a 10-year field trial, one with high compost inputs (108.7 Mg ha-1 every 2 years) and a control (no nutrient inputs). We then used stable isotopes to measure belowground C allocation patterns in two genotypes of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) with distinct rooting and exudation strategies. We also measured microbial community structure and function in the rhizosphere and quantified uptake of residue-derived N from 15N-labeled residues. We found an interactive effect between soil management and genotype, where the high-exudation genotype modified its exudation more in response to soil management and was relatively better at accessing residue N in the compost-amended soils than the low-exudation genotype. The high-exudation genotype also demonstrated selection of specific rhizosphere microbial taxa, with several taxa conserved across soil treatments. Our results suggest that the high-exudation strategy influences the microbial community, and this strategy is more successful in soils with higher SOM. Understanding the relationship between crop genotype, soil management, and microbial function can help inform crop production and breeding strategies in systems seeking to leverage improved soil health and biological nutrient cycling.USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (Award No. 2018-67013-27398)

Causes of severe pneumonia requiring hospital admission in children without HIV infection from Africa and Asia: the PERCH multi-country case-control study

Background Pneumonia is the leading cause of death among children younger than 5 years. In this study, we estimated causes of pneumonia in young African and Asian children, using novel analytical methods applied to clinical and microbiological findings. Methods We did a multi-site, international case-control study in nine study sites in seven countries: Bangladesh, The Gambia, Kenya, Mali, South Africa, Thailand, and Zambia. All sites enrolled in the study for 24 months. Cases were children aged 1–59 months admitted to hospital with severe pneumonia. Controls were age-group-matched children randomly selected from communities surrounding study sites. Nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal (NP-OP), urine, blood, induced sputum, lung aspirate, pleural fluid, and gastric aspirates were tested with cultures, multiplex PCR, or both. Primary analyses were restricted to cases without HIV infection and with abnormal chest x-rays and to controls without HIV infection. We applied a Bayesian, partial latent class analysis to estimate probabilities of aetiological agents at the individual and population level, incorporating case and control data. Findings Between Aug 15, 2011, and Jan 30, 2014, we enrolled 4232 cases and 5119 community controls. The primary analysis group was comprised of 1769 (41·8% of 4232) cases without HIV infection and with positive chest x-rays and 5102 (99·7% of 5119) community controls without HIV infection. Wheezing was present in 555 (31·7%) of 1752 cases (range by site 10·6–97·3%). 30-day case-fatality ratio was 6·4% (114 of 1769 cases). Blood cultures were positive in 56 (3·2%) of 1749 cases, and Streptococcus pneumoniae was the most common bacteria isolated (19 [33·9%] of 56). Almost all cases (98·9%) and controls (98·0%) had at least one pathogen detected by PCR in the NP-OP specimen. The detection of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), parainfluenza virus, human metapneumovirus, influenza virus, S pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), H influenzae non-type b, and Pneumocystis jirovecii in NP-OP specimens was associated with case status. The aetiology analysis estimated that viruses accounted for 61·4% (95% credible interval [CrI] 57·3–65·6) of causes, whereas bacteria accounted for 27·3% (23·3–31·6) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis for 5·9% (3·9–8·3). Viruses were less common (54·5%, 95% CrI 47·4–61·5 vs 68·0%, 62·7–72·7) and bacteria more common (33·7%, 27·2–40·8 vs 22·8%, 18·3–27·6) in very severe pneumonia cases than in severe cases. RSV had the greatest aetiological fraction (31·1%, 95% CrI 28·4–34·2) of all pathogens. Human rhinovirus, human metapneumovirus A or B, human parainfluenza virus, S pneumoniae, M tuberculosis, and H influenzae each accounted for 5% or more of the aetiological distribution. We observed differences in aetiological fraction by age for Bordetella pertussis, parainfluenza types 1 and 3, parechovirus–enterovirus, P jirovecii, RSV, rhinovirus, Staphylococcus aureus, and S pneumoniae, and differences by severity for RSV, S aureus, S pneumoniae, and parainfluenza type 3. The leading ten pathogens of each site accounted for 79% or more of the site's aetiological fraction. Interpretation In our study, a small set of pathogens accounted for most cases of pneumonia requiring hospital admission. Preventing and treating a subset of pathogens could substantially affect childhood pneumonia outcomes

After the Road Came: Insights into the Nexus of Food Security and Malnutrition in Northwestern Nepal

The United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016–2025 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development call on all countries and stakeholders to work together to prevent all forms of malnutrition by 2030. In Nepal, these considerations are at the forefront of the country's Sustainable Development Goals. To aid in this effort, this article presents a case study from the mountainous Humla District, Nepal, that was designed to better understand how the arrival of the first road in this area is affecting food security and nutritional status, and how these 2 variables are interrelated. Data from participant observation, interviews, the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale questionnaire, and a region-specific food frequency questionnaire suggest that while the road provides more reliable access to market-sourced food than before, villagers' intake of many micronutrients remains below recommended levels, as most of the market-purchased foods are nutrient poor. Data also suggest that this population is experiencing the double burden of malnutrition: simultaneous cases of underweight and overweight. High food security levels among those in the malnourished/overweight group could easily mask this emerging public health concern. This study provides an analytical framework to better understand the nexus of food security and nutrition, and offers evidence-based recommendations for decreasing food insecurity and malnutrition in mountainous regions, which will help achieve the goal of preventing all forms of malnutrition by 2030

The role of soil characteristics on temperature sensitivity of soil organic matter

The uncertainty associated with how projected climate change will affect global C cycling could have a large impact on predictions of soil C stocks. The purpose of our study was to determine how various soil decomposition and chemistry characteristics relate to soil organic matter (SOM) temperature sensitivity. We accomplished this objective using long-term soil incubations at three temperatures (15, 25, and 35°C) and pyrolysis molecular beam mass spectrometry (py-MBMS) on 12 soils from 6 sites along a mean annual temperature (MAT) gradient (2–25.6°C). The Q10 values calculated from the CO2 respired during a long-term incubation using the Q10-q method showed decomposition of the more resistant fraction to be more temperature sensitive with a Q10-q of 1.95 ± 0.08 for the labile fraction and a Q10-q of 3.33 ± 0.04 for the more resistant fraction. We compared the fit of soil respiration data using a two-pool model (active and slow) with first-order kinetics with a three-pool model and found that the two and three-pool models statistically fit the data equally well. The three-pool model changed the size and rate constant for the more resistant pool. The size of the active pool in these soils, calculated using the two-pool model, increased with incubation temperature and ranged from 0.1 to 14.0% of initial soil organic C. Sites with an intermediate MAT and lowest C/N ratio had the largest active pool. Pyrolysis molecular beam mass spectrometry showed declines in carbohydrates with conversion from grassland to wheat cultivation and a greater amount of protected carbohydrates in allophanic soils which may have lead to differences found between the total amount of CO2 respired, the size of the active pool, and the Q10-q values of the soils

Dataset associated with the manuscript: “Divergent belowground allocation patterns of winter wheat shape rhizosphere microbial communities and nitrogen cycling activities”

Purpose and scope: The purpose of this research was to investigate the role of wheat root exudation/rhizodeposition on the cycling and availability of added plant residue nitrogen. The purpose of this dataset is to provide the raw data collected from the experiment. This dataset includes biogeochemical values, mainly soil and plant carbon and nitrogen concentrations. Time period: This dataset deals with the data from one greenhouse experiment conducted in the spring of 2018. The experiment lasted ~ 50 days, and the data provided here was collected from destructive sampling of the experimental pots at the completion of the experiment. Areas of Investigation: Plant biomass, nitrogen cycling, enzyme activities, stable isotopes, biogeochemistry, exudation, soil organic matter priming, crop nutrition, root architecture, exudation, microbial biomass carbon, soil carbon, inorganic nitrogen, residue decomposition, nitrogen cycling, belowground plant carbon allocation.Plant roots add carbon (C) -rich rhizodeposits to the soil, which can alter microbial activity and nitrogen (N) cycling with implications for N availability and uptake by plants. We evaluated root architecture, rhizodeposit C, and microbial community structure and function across a breeding gradient of twelve winter wheat genotypes and examined how these rhizosphere traits were related to the availability and uptake of N from fresh cover crop residues in the soil. We traced wheat-derived C into soil and microbial pools using continuous isotopic labelling (13C-CO2) and applied 15N labelled plant residues to quantify plant and microbial uptake of residue-derived N. Wheat genotypes differed in root C allocation patterns, influencing N cycling. Thicker roots released more C into soil, which enhanced N mineralization through stimulation of the microbial biomass. Microbial biomass increased N-cycling enzyme activity and residue N-uptake by wheat. Microbial communities did not differ between wheat genotypes but were strongly related to patterns in root C allocation, and several genera showed strong relationships with root C deposition and N uptake. The microbial community associated with extractable root-derived C was structurally different from the community associated with residue N uptake, indicating the N-cycling response to exudation was not necessarily carried out by the same microbial community members as those stimulated by rhizosphere C inputs. Our results indicate that differential patterns of rhizodeposition and associated belowground C allocation strategies in winter wheat can alter microbial communities and influence cycling and plant availability of residue N. Ecologically-based nutrient management in agricultural systems should consider the role of crop root traits and associated microbiomes to optimize soil nutrient dynamics.This work was supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (Award No. 2018-67013-27398)

Experimental warming shows that decomposition temperature sensitivity increases with soil organic matter recalcitrance

Soil C decomposition is sensitive to changes in temperature, and even small increases in temperature may prompt large releases of C from soils. But much of what we know about soil C responses to global change is based on short-term incubation data and model output that implicitly assumes soil C pools are composed of organic matter fractions with uniform temperature sensitivities. In contrast, kinetic theory based on chemical reactions suggests that older, more-resistant C fractions may be more temperature sensitive. Recent research on the subject is inconclusive, indicating that the temperature sensitivity of labile soil organic matter (OM) decomposition could either be greater than, less than, or equivalent to that of resistant soil OM. We incubated soils at constant temperature to deplete them of labile soil OM and then successively assessed the CO2-C efflux in response to warming. We found that the decomposition response to experimental warming early during soil incubation (when more labile C remained) was less than that later when labile C was depleted. These results suggest that the temperature sensitivity of resistant soil OM pools is greater than that for labile soil OM and that global change-driven soil C losses may be greater than previously estimated