414 research outputs found

    Introduction: The Archaeology of Nineteenth-Century Farmsteads in Northeastern Canada and the United States

    Get PDF
    This introduction to this joint volume discusses the importance of 19th century farmstead sites as discussed at the 1997 annual CNEHA meeting in Altoona, Pennsylvania. This meeting examined the current issues associated with the approach to archaeological investigations of 19th-century farmsteads

    Addressing an Historic Preservation Dilemma: The Future of Nineteenth-Century Farmstead Archaeology in the Northeast

    Get PDF
    This summary article identifies the goals of the volume and a framework for evaluating, interpreting, and preserving farmstead sites. The article also discusses how to apply this framework and mentions the roles of the government, academia, and the public

    A System for Ranking the Research Potential of 19th- and 20th- Century Farmstead Sites

    Get PDF
    There is a need to establish a systematic and objective process for evaluating the research potential of farmstead sites so that intelligent choices can be made in deciding which sites should be investigated and managed and which should not. We propose the use of a checklist of traits that measure a site\u27s research potential. Each of the traits in the checklist is assigned a score based on its value in providing important data for analyzing a site. The proposed checklist is a tool for organizing our observations and permitting comparisons from one site to the next as well as one project to the next. Applying the proposed ranking system involves documentary research and some archaeological fieldwork. This checklist approach is put forward in the hopes of generating discussion and suggestions on how best to deal with these types of sites in terms of immediate needs of compliance with federal and state historic preservation laws and regulations

    The Archaeology of 19th-Century Farmsteads: The Results of a Workshop Held at the 1997 Annual Meeting of the Council for Northeast Historical Archaeology

    Get PDF
    A workshop was held at the 1997 annual meeting of the Council for Northeast Historical Archaeology (CNEHA) to address the question What do we do with 19th-century farmsteads in the Northeast? The workshop involved several brainstorming sessions in which the participants examined topics and problems associated with current approaches to the archaeological investigation of farmstead sites. These brainstorming sessions examined questions such as: What is a 19th-century farmstead? What are the research and public values of these sites? Which sites should be examined? and How should these sites be investigated? The workshop ended with the development of an action agenda with recommendations on how we as a discipline, and CNEHA as an organization, should proceed with the research, interpretation, and preservation of these types of sites

    Hypertriglyceridemic Waist Phenotype Predicts Increased Visceral Fat in Subjects With Type 2 Diabetes

    Get PDF
    OBJECTIVE: Greater accumulation of visceral fat is strongly linked to risk of cardiovascular disease. However, elevated waist circumference by itself does not always identify individuals with increased visceral fat. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We examined 375 subjects with type 2 diabetes from the CHICAGO cohort for presence of hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotype (waist circumference >90 cm in men or >85 cm in women, in conjunction with a plasma triglyceride concentration of ≥177 mg/dl) to determine its usefulness for identifying subjects with increased amounts of visceral fat. We divided subjects into three groups: group 1 (low waist circumference and low triglycerides; waist circumference ≤90 cm in men or ≤85 cm in women and triglyceride <177 mg/dl, n = 18), group 2 (high waist circumference and low triglycerides; waist circumference >90 cm in men or >85 cm in women and triglycerides <177 mg/dl, n = 230), and group 3 (high waist circumference and high triglycerides; waist circumference >90 cm in men or >85 cm in women and triglycerides ≥177 mg/dl, n = 127). RESULTS: Subjects in group 3 had significantly higher visceral fat (P < 0.0001), A1C (P < 0.01), and coronary artery calcium (P < 0.05) compared with group 2, despite similar age, BMI, and waist circumference. The relationship of the phenotype to atherosclerosis, however, was attenuated by adjustment for HDL cholesterol, triglyceride-rich lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, or LDL particle number. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotype in subjects with type 2 diabetes identifies a subset with greater degree of visceral adiposity. This subset also has greater degree of subclinical atherosclerosis that may be related to the proatherogenic lipoprotein changes.Takeda Global Research and Development; National Institutes of Health (DK 71711); University of Illinois at Chicag

    The AFHSC-Division of GEIS Operations Predictive Surveillance Program: a multidisciplinary approach for the early detection and response to disease outbreaks

    Get PDF
    The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, Division of Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System Operations (AFHSC-GEIS) initiated a coordinated, multidisciplinary program to link data sets and information derived from eco-climatic remote sensing activities, ecologic niche modeling, arthropod vector, animal disease-host/reservoir, and human disease surveillance for febrile illnesses, into a predictive surveillance program that generates advisories and alerts on emerging infectious disease outbreaks. The program’s ultimate goal is pro-active public health practice through pre-event preparedness, prevention and control, and response decision-making and prioritization. This multidisciplinary program is rooted in over 10 years experience in predictive surveillance for Rift Valley fever outbreaks in Eastern Africa. The AFHSC-GEIS Rift Valley fever project is based on the identification and use of disease-emergence critical detection points as reliable signals for increased outbreak risk. The AFHSC-GEIS predictive surveillance program has formalized the Rift Valley fever project into a structured template for extending predictive surveillance capability to other Department of Defense (DoD)-priority vector- and water-borne, and zoonotic diseases and geographic areas. These include leishmaniasis, malaria, and Crimea-Congo and other viral hemorrhagic fevers in Central Asia and Africa, dengue fever in Asia and the Americas, Japanese encephalitis (JE) and chikungunya fever in Asia, and rickettsial and other tick-borne infections in the U.S., Africa and Asia

    Species composition, larval habitats, seasonal occurrence and distribution of potential malaria vectors and associated species of Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) from the Republic of Korea

    Get PDF
    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Larval mosquito habitats of potential malaria vectors and related species of <it>Anopheles </it>from three provinces (Gyeonggi, Gyeongsangbuk, Chungcheongbuk Provinces) of the Republic of Korea were surveyed in 2007. This study aimed to determine the species composition, seasonal occurrence and distributions of <it>Anopheles </it>mosquitoes. Satellite derived normalized difference vegetation index data (NDVI) was also used to study the seasonal abundance patterns of <it>Anopheles </it>mosquitoes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Mosquito larvae from various habitats were collected using a standard larval dipper or a white plastic larval tray, placed in plastic bags, and were preserved in 100% ethyl alcohol for species identification by PCR and DNA sequencing. The habitats in the monthly larval surveys included artificial containers, ground depressions, irrigation ditches, drainage ditches, ground pools, ponds, rice paddies, stream margins, inlets and pools, swamps, and uncultivated fields. All field-collected specimens were identified to species, and relationships among habitats and locations based on species composition were determined using cluster statistical analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In about 10,000 specimens collected, eight species of <it>Anopheles </it>belonging to three groups were identified: Hyrcanus Group - <it>Anopheles sinensis</it>, <it>Anopheles kleini</it>, <it>Anopheles belenrae</it>, <it>Anopheles pullus</it>, <it>Anopheles lesteri</it>, <it>Anopheles sineroides</it>; Barbirostris Group - <it>Anopheles koreicus</it>; and Lindesayi Group - <it>Anopheles lindesayi japonicus</it>. Only <it>An. sinensis </it>was collected from all habitats groups, while <it>An. kleini, An. pullus </it>and <it>An. sineroides </it>were sampled from all, except artificial containers. The highest number of <it>Anopheles </it>larvae was found in the rice paddies (34.8%), followed by irrigation ditches (23.4%), ponds (17.0%), and stream margins, inlets and pools (12.0%). <it>Anopheles sinensis </it>was the dominant species, followed by <it>An. kleini, An. pullus </it>and <it>An. sineroides</it>. The monthly abundance data of the <it>Anopheles </it>species from three locations (Munsan, Jinbo and Hayang) were compared against NDVI and NDVI anomalies.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The species composition of <it>Anopheles </it>larvae varied in different habitats at various locations. <it>Anopheles </it>populations fluctuated with the seasonal dynamics of vegetation for 2007. Multi-year data of mosquito collections are required to provide a better characterization of the abundance of these insects from year to year, which can potentially provide predictive capability of their population density based on remotely sensed ecological measurements.</p

    Germ Line Origin and Somatic Mutations Determine the Target Tissues in Systemic AL-Amyloidosis

    Get PDF
    BACKGROUND: Amyloid is insoluble aggregated proteins deposited in the extra cellular space. About 25 different proteins are known to form amyloid in vivo and are associated with severe diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, prion diseases and type-2 diabetes. Light chain (AL) -amyloidosis is unique among amyloid diseases in that the fibril protein, a monoclonal immunoglobulin light chain, varies between individuals and that no two AL-proteins with identical primary structures have been described to date. The variability in tissue distribution of amyloid deposits is considerably larger in systemic AL-amyloidosis than in any other form of amyloidosis. The reason for this variation is believed to be based on the differences in properties of the amyloidogenic immunoglobulin light chain. However, there is presently no known relationship between the structure of an AL-protein and tissue distribution. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We compared the pattern of amyloid deposition in four individuals with amyloid protein derived from variable light chain gene O18-O8, the source of a high proportion of amyloidogenic light chains, and in whom all or most of the fibril protein had been determined by amino acid sequencing. In spite of great similarities between the structures of the proteins, there was a pronounced variability in deposition pattern. We also compared the tissue distribution in these four individuals with that of four other patients with AL-amyloid derived from the L2-L16 gene. Although the interindividual variations were pronounced, liver and kidney involvement was much more evident in the latter four. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We conclude that although the use of a specific gene influences the tissue distribution of amyloid, each light chain exhibits one or more determinants of organ-specificity, which originate from somatic mutations and post-translational modifications. Eventual identification of such determinants could lead to improved treatment of patients with AL amyloidosis

    Malaria and other vector-borne infection surveillance in the U.S. Department of Defense Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center-Global Emerging Infections Surveillance program: review of 2009 accomplishments

    Get PDF
    Vector-borne infections (VBI) are defined as infectious diseases transmitted by the bite or mechanical transfer of arthropod vectors. They constitute a significant proportion of the global infectious disease burden. United States (U.S.) Department of Defense (DoD) personnel are especially vulnerable to VBIs due to occupational contact with arthropod vectors, immunological naiveté to previously unencountered pathogens, and limited diagnostic and treatment options available in the austere and unstable environments sometimes associated with military operations. In addition to the risk uniquely encountered by military populations, other factors have driven the worldwide emergence of VBIs. Unprecedented levels of global travel, tourism and trade, and blurred lines of demarcation between zoonotic VBI reservoirs and human populations increase vector exposure. Urban growth in previously undeveloped regions and perturbations in global weather patterns also contribute to the rise of VBIs. The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center-Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System (AFHSC-GEIS) and its partners at DoD overseas laboratories form a network to better characterize the nature, emergence and growth of VBIs globally. In 2009 the network tested 19,730 specimens from 25 sites for Plasmodium species and malaria drug resistance phenotypes and nearly another 10,000 samples to determine the etiologies of non-Plasmodium species VBIs from regions spanning from Oceania to Africa, South America, and northeast, south and Southeast Asia. This review describes recent VBI-related epidemiological studies conducted by AFHSC-GEIS partner laboratories within the OCONUS DoD laboratory network emphasizing their impact on human populations
    corecore