An analysis of Australia's carbon pollution reduction scheme

The authors review the decision-making since the Labour Government came into office (November 2007). The Australian Government’s ‘Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme’ White Paper (15 December 2008) proposes that an Australian Emissions Trading Scheme (AETS) be implemented in mid-2010. Acknowledging that the scheme is comprehensive, the paper finds that in many cases, Australia will take a softer approach to climate change through the AETS than the European Union ETS(EUETS). The paper assesses key issues in the White Paper such as emissions reduction targets, GHG coverage, sectoral coverage, inclusion of unlimited quantities of offsets from Kyoto international markets and exclusion of deforestation activities

The bending of cell sheets - from folding to rolling

The bending of cell sheets plays a major role in multicellular embryonic morphogenesis. Recent advances are leading to a deeper understanding of how the biophysical properties and the force-producing behaviors of cells are regulated, and how these forces are integrated across cell sheets during bending. We review work that shows that the dynamic balance of apical versus basolateral cortical tension controls specific aspects of invagination of epithelial sheets, and recent evidence that tissue expansion by growth contributes to neural retinal invagination in a stem cell-derived, self-organizing system. Of special interest is the detailed analysis of the type B inversion in Volvox reported in BMC Biology by Höhn and Hallmann, as this is a system that promises to be particularly instructive in understanding morphogenesis of any monolayered spheroid system

Household modifications after the indoor residual spraying (IRS) campaign in Mozambique reduce the actual spray coverage and efficacy

Indoor residual spraying of insecticides (IRS) is a key malaria vector control strategy. Whilst human attitude towards IRS is monitored before or shortly after implementation, human activities leading to the modification of insecticide-treated walls post-IRS are not. This could inadvertently reduce the protective effects of IRS. We monitored the extent of modifications to the sprayed indoor wall surfaces by household owners for six months post-IRS campaigns in two districts targeted for malaria elimination in southern Mozambique. In parallel, we assessed building of any additional rooms onto compounds, and mosquito net use. We quantified the contribution of wall modifications, added rooms, prolonged spray campaigns, and product residual efficacies on actual IRS coverage and relative mosquito bite reduction, using a mechanistic approach. Household owners continually modified insecticide-treated walls and added rooms onto compounds. Household surveys in southern Mozambique showed frequent modification of indoor walls (0–17.2% of households modified rooms monthly) and/or added rooms (0–16.2% of households added rooms monthly). Actual IRS coverage reduced from an assumed 97% to just 39% in Matutuine, but only from 96% to 91% in Boane, translating to 43% and 5.8% estimated increases in relative daily mosquito bites per person. Integrating post-IRS knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) surveys into programmatic evaluations to capture these modification and construction trends can help improve IRS program efficiency and product assessment

The fate of the homoctenids (Tentaculitoidea) during the Frasnian-Famennian mass extinction (Late Devonian)

The homoctenids (Tentaculitoidea) are small, conical-shelled marine animals which are amongst the most abundant and widespread of all Late Devonian fossils. They were a principal casualty of the Frasnian-Famennian (F-F, Late Devonian) mass extinction, and thus provide an insight into the extinction dynamics. Despite their abundance during the Late Devonian, they have been largely neglected by extinction studies. A number of Frasnian-Famennian boundary sections have been studied, in Poland, Germany, France, and the United States. These sections have yielded homoctenids, which allow precise recognition of the timing of the mass extinction. It is clear that the homoctenids almost disappear from the fossil record during the latest Frasnian “Upper Kellwasser Event”. The coincident extinction of this pelagic group, and the widespread development of intense marine anoxia within the water column, provides a causal link between anoxia and the F-F extinction. Most notable is the sudden demise of a group, which had been present in rock-forming densities, during this anoxic event. One new species, belonging to Homoctenus is described, but is not formally named here

Unintentional injuries in children with disabilities:a systematic review and meta-analysis

Children with disabilities are thought to have an increased risk of unintentional injuries, but quantitative syntheses of findings from previous studies have not been done. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether pre-existing disability can increase the risk of unintentional injuries among children when they are compared to children without disability. We searched 13 electronic databases to identify original research published between 1 January 1990 and 28 February 2013. We included those studies that reported on unintentional injuries among children with pre-existing disabilities compared with children without disabilities. We conducted quality assessments and then calculated pooled odds ratios of injury using random-effects models. Fifteen eligible studies were included from 24,898 references initially identified, and there was a total sample of 83,286 children with disabilities drawn from the eligible studies. When compared with children without disabilities, the pooled OR of injury was 1.86 (95 % CI 1.65-2.10) in children with disabilities. The pooled ORs of injury were 1.28, 1.75, and 1.86 in the 0-4 years, 5-9 years, and ≥10 years of age subgroups, respectively. Compared with children without disabilities, the pooled OR was 1.75 (95 % CI 1.26-2.43) among those with International Classification of Functioning (ICF) limitations. When disability was defined as physical disabilities, the pooled OR was 2.39 (95 % CI 1.43-4.00), and among those with cognitive disabilities, the pooled OR was 1.77 (95 % CI 1.49-2.11). There was significant heterogeneity in the included studies. Compared with peers without disabilities, children with disabilities are at a significantly higher risk of injury. Teens with disabilities may be an important subgroup for future injury prevention efforts. More data are needed from low- and middle-income countries

Barrier bednets target malaria vectors and expand the range of usable insecticides

Transmission of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites occurs when nocturnal Anopheles mosquito vectors feed on human blood. In Africa, where malaria burden is highest, bednets treated with pyrethroid insecticide were highly effective in preventing mosquito bites and reducing transmission, and essential to achieving unprecedented reductions in malaria until 2015 (ref. ). Since then, progress has stalled , and with insecticidal bednets losing efficacy against pyrethroid-resistant Anopheles vectors , methods that restore performance are urgently needed to eliminate any risk of malaria returning to the levels seen before their widespread use throughout sub-Saharan Africa . Here, we show that the primary malaria vector Anopheles gambiae is targeted and killed by small insecticidal net barriers positioned above a standard bednet in a spatial region of high mosquito activity but zero contact with sleepers, opening the way for deploying many more insecticides on bednets than is currently possible. Tested against wild pyrethroid-resistant A. gambiae in Burkina Faso, pyrethroid bednets with organophosphate barriers achieved significantly higher killing rates than bednets alone. Treated barriers on untreated bednets were equally effective, without significant loss of personal protection. Mathematical modelling of transmission dynamics predicted reductions in clinical malaria incidence with barrier bednets that matched those of 'next-generation' nets recommended by the World Health Organization against resistant vectors. Mathematical models of mosquito-barrier interactions identified alternative barrier designs to increase performance. Barrier bednets that overcome insecticide resistance are feasible using existing insecticides and production technology, and early implementation of affordable vector control tools is a realistic prospect

Assessing the variability in experimental hut trials evaluating insecticide-treated nets against malaria vectors.

Experimental hut trials (EHTs) are used to evaluate indoor vector control interventions against malaria vectors in a controlled setting. The level of variability present in the assay will influence whether a given study is well powered to answer the research question being considered. We utilised disaggregated data from 15 previous EHTs to gain insight into the behaviour typically observed. Using simulations from generalised linear mixed models to obtain power estimates for EHTs, we show how factors such as the number of mosquitoes entering the huts each night and the magnitude of included random effects can influence study power. A wide variation in behaviour is observed in both the mean number of mosquitoes collected per hut per night (ranging from 1.6 to 32.5) and overdispersion in mosquito mortality. This variability in mortality is substantially greater than would be expected by chance and should be included in all statistical analyses to prevent false precision of results. We utilise both superiority and non-inferiority trials to illustrate our methodology, using mosquito mortality as the outcome of interest. The framework allows the measurement error of the assay to be reliably assessed and enables the identification of outlier results which could warrant further investigation. EHTs are increasingly playing an important role in the evaluation and regulation of indoor vector control interventions so it is important to ensure that these studies are adequately powered. [Abstract copyright: © 2023 The Authors.

Systematic review of the entomological impact of insecticide-treated nets evaluated using experimental hut trials in Africa.

Resistance of anopheline mosquitoes to pyrethroid insecticides is spreading rapidly across sub-Saharan Africa, diminishing the efficacy of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) - the primary tool for preventing malaria. The entomological efficacy of indoor vector control interventions can be measured in experimental hut trials (EHTs), where hut structures resemble local housing, but allow the collection of mosquitoes that entered, exited, blood-fed and/or died. There is a need to understand how the spread of resistance changes ITN efficacy and to elucidate factors influencing EHT results, including differences in experimental hut design, to support the development of novel vector control tools. A comprehensive database of EHTs was compiled following a systematic review to identify all known trials investigating ITNs or indoor residual spraying across sub-Saharan Africa. This analysis focuses on EHTs investigating ITNs and uses Bayesian statistical models to characterise the complex interaction between ITNs and mosquitoes, the between-study variability, and the impact of pyrethroid resistance. As resistance rises, the entomological efficacy of ITNs declines. They induce less mortality and are less likely to deter mosquitoes from entering huts. Despite this, ITNs continue to offer considerable personal protection by reducing mosquito feeding until resistance reaches high levels. There are clear associations between the different entomological impacts of ITNs, though there is still substantial variability between studies, some of which can be accounted for by hut design. The relationship between EHT outcomes and the level of resistance (as measured by discriminating dose bioassays) is highly uncertain. The meta-analyses show that EHTs are an important reproducible assay for capturing the complex entomological efficacy of ITNs on blood-feeding mosquitoes. The impact of pyrethroid resistance on these measures appears broadly consistent across a wide geographical area once hut design is accounted for, suggesting results can be extrapolated beyond the sites where the trials were conducted. Further work is needed to understand factors influencing EHT outcomes and how the relationship between outcomes and resistance varies when different methods are used to assess the level of resistance in wild mosquito populations. This will allow more precise estimates of the efficacy of these important vector control tools

Disability, Home Physical Environment and Non-Fatal Injuries among Young Children in China

We compared the patterns of medically attended injuries between children with and without disabilities and explored the residential environment risks in five counties of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China by a 1:1 matched case-control study based on the biopsychosocial model of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health--ICF.1201 children aged 1-14 with disabilities and 1201 their healthy counterparts matched as having the same gender, same age, and lived in the same neighborhood were recruited in our study. Characteristics of injuries in the past 12 months were compared between children with and without disabilities. The associations among disability status, home environment factors and injuries were examined in logistic regression analysis taking into account sociodemographic factors.Children with disabilities had a significantly higher prevalence of injury than children without disabilities (10.2% vs. 4.4%; P<.001). The two groups differed significantly in terms of number of injury episodes, injury place and activity at time of injury. Falls were the leading mechanism of injury regardless of disability status. Most of the injury events happened inside the home and leisure activities were the most reported activity when injured for both groups. The univariate OR for injury was 4.46 (2.57-7.74) for the disabled children compared with the non-disabled children. Disabled children whose family raised cat/dog(s) were 76% more likely to be injured during the last 12 months (OR = 1.76; 95% CI = 1.02, 3.02), comparing with those whose family did not have any cat/dog. And for children without disabilities, those whose family had cat/dog(s) were over 3 times more likely to having injuries comparing with those whose family did not have any cat/dog.Children with disabilities had a significantly increased risk for injury. Interventions to prevent residential injury are an important public health priority in children with disabilities

Understanding the impact of antibiotic therapies on the respiratory tract resistome: A novel pooled-template metagenomic sequencing strategy

Determining the effects of antimicrobial therapies on airway microbiology at a population-level is essential. Such analysis allows, for example, surveillance of antibiotic-induced changes in pathogen prevalence, the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance, and the transmission of multi-resistant organisms. However, current analytical strategies for understanding these processes are limited. Culture- and PCR-based assays for specific microbes require the a priori selection of targets, while antibiotic sensitivity testing typically provides no insight into either the molecular basis of resistance, or the carriage of resistance determinants by the wider commensal microbiota. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing provides an alternative approach that allows the microbial composition of clinical samples to be described in detail, including the prevalence of resistance genes and virulence traits. While highly informative, the application of metagenomics to large patient cohorts can be prohibitively expensive. Using sputum samples from a randomised placebo-controlled trial of erythromycin in adults with bronchiectasis, we describe a novel, cost-effective strategy for screening patient cohorts for changes in resistance gene prevalence. By combining metagenomic screening of pooled DNA extracts with validatory quantitative PCR-based analysis of candidate markers in individual samples, we identify population-level changes in the relative abundance of specific macrolide resistance genes. This approach has the potential to provide an important adjunct to current analytical strategies, particularly within the context of antimicrobial clinical trials