Variability in the central equatorial Pacific, 1985–1989

We describe variability in the equatorial Pacific Ocean near 160°W during the 5‐year period 1985–1989, encompassing “normal”, El Niño, and La Niña conditions. This description is based on conductivity‐temperature‐depth and acoustic Doppler current profiler data acquired during five cruises between 21°N and 4°S and on dynamic‐height time series from an array based mainly on the Line Islands. At Jarvis Island, near the equator, the time series of dynamic height and near‐surface temperature go back to 1981 and show the 1986–1987 El Niño anomalies starting later in the year and having longer duration than those of the 1982–1983 El Niño. Dynamic‐height anomaly was less strong for the 1986–1987 event, but the near‐surface temperature anomaly was of similar magnitude for the two El Niños. The Jarvis near‐surface temperature drop from 1986–1987 El Niño maximum to 1988–1989 La Niña minimum was 8°C. Empirical orthogonal function analysis of the time series shows that interannual and interseasonal variability in dynamic height was dominated by a mode with meridional form similar to a first‐vertical‐mode Kelvin wave, while intraseasonal variability had a primary mode with a single peak at 6°N and a secondary mode with peak at 6°N and trough at 2°N. While the equatorial thermocline deepened to the east and shoaled to the west during the 1986–1987 El Niño, at 160°W it did not change depth during either this El Niño or the subsequent La Niña. Nevertheless, just before El Niño and just after La Niña, the thermocline was observed to be about 50 m deeper than at other times. The South Equatorial Current and North Equatorial Countercurrent had markedly reduced (increased) transports during this El Niño (La Niña). However, the Northern Tsuchiya Jet strengthened during El Niño and weakened during La Niña

Loop Current Eddy Formation and Baroclinic Instability

The formation of three Loop Current Eddies, Ekman, Franklin, and Hadal, during the period April 2009 through November 2011 was observed by an array of moored current meters and bottom mounted pressure equipped inverted echo sounders. The array design, areal extent nominally 89° W to 85° W, 25° N to 27° N with 30–50 km mesoscale resolution, permits quantitative mapping of the regional circulation at all depths. During Loop Current Eddy detachment and formation events, a marked increase in deep eddy kinetic energy occurs coincident with the growth of a large-scale meander along the northern and eastern parts of the Loop Current. Deep eddies develop in a pattern where the deep fields were offset and leading upper meanders consistent with developing baroclinic instability. The interaction between the upper and deep fields is quantified by evaluating the mean eddy potential energy budget. Largest down-gradient heat fluxes are found along the eastern side of the Loop Current. Where strong, the horizontal down-gradient eddy heat flux (baroclinic conversion rate) nearly balances the vertical down-gradient eddy heat flux indicating that eddies extract available potential energy from the mean field and convert eddy potential energy to eddy kinetic energy

Understanding the basis of a novel fruit type in Brassicaceae: conservation and deviation in expression patterns of six genes

Background Variation in fruit morphology is important for plant fitness because it influences dispersal capabilities. Approximately half the members of tribe Brassiceae (Brassicaceae) exhibit fruits with segmentation and variable dehiscence, called heteroarthrocarpy. The knowledge of the genetics of fruit patterning in Arabidopsis offers the opportunity to ask: (1) whether this genetic pathway is conserved in taxa with different fruit morphologies; (2) how the pathway may be modified to produce indehiscence; and (3) whether the pathway has been recruited for a novel abscission zone. Methods We identified homologs of ALCATRAZ, FRUITFULL, INDEHISCENT, SHATTERPROOF, and REPLUMLESS from two taxa, representing different types of heteroarthrocarpy. Comparative gene expression of twelve loci was assessed to address how their expression may have been modified to produce heteroarthrocarpy. Results Studies demonstrated overall conservation in gene expression patterns between dehiscent segments of Erucaria erucarioides and Arabidopsis, with some difference in expression of genes that position the valve margin. In contrast, indehiscence in heteroarthrocarpic fruit segments was correlated with the elimination of the entire valve margin pathway in Erucaria and Cakile lanceolata as well as its absence from a novel lateral abscission zone. Conclusions These findings suggest that modifications in the valve margin positioning genes are responsible for differences between heteroarthrocarpic and Arabidopsis-like fruits and support the hypothesis that heteroarthrocarpy evolved via repositioning the valve margin. They also highlight conservation in the dehiscence pathway across Brassicaceae.Organismic and Evolutionary Biolog

Asthma in Inner-City Children at 5–11 Years of Age and Prenatal Exposure to Phthalates: The Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health Cohort

Background: Studies suggest that phthalate exposures may adversely affect child respiratory health. Objectives: We evaluated associations between asthma diagnosed in children between 5 and 11 years of age and prenatal exposures to butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and diethyl phthalate (DEP). Methods: Phthalate metabolites were measured in spot urine collected from 300 pregnant inner-city women. Children were examined by an allergist or pulmonologist based on the first parental report of wheeze, other respiratory symptoms, and/or use of asthma rescue/controller medication in the preceding 12 months on repeat follow-up questionnaires. Standardized diagnostic criteria were used to classify these children as either having or not having current asthma at the time of the physician examination. Children without any report of wheeze or the other asthma-like symptoms were classified as nonasthmatics at the time of the last negative questionnaire. Modified Poisson regression analyses were used to estimate relative risks (RR) controlling for specific gravity and potential confounders. Results: Of 300 children, 154 (51%) were examined by a physician because of reports of wheeze, other asthma-like symptoms, and/or medication use; 94 were diagnosed with current asthma and 60 without current asthma. The remaining 146 children were classified as nonasthmatic. Compared with levels in nonasthmatics, prenatal metabolites of BBzP and DnBP were associated with a history of asthma-like symptoms (p 70% higher among children with maternal prenatal BBzP and DnBP metabolite concentrations in the third versus the first tertile. Conclusion: Prenatal exposure to BBzP and DnBP may increase the risk of asthma among inner-city children. However, because this is the first such finding, results require replication. Citation: Whyatt RM, Perzanowski MS, Just AC, Rundle AG, Donohue KM, Calafat AM, Hoepner LA, Perera FP, Miller RL. 2014. Asthma in inner-city children at 5–11 years of age and prenatal exposure to phthalates: the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health Cohort. Environ Health Perspect 122:1141–1146; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.130767

Prenatal phthalate and early childhood bisphenol A exposures increase asthma risk in inner-city children

To the Editor: We previously reported that inner-city childhood asthma was independently associated with measures of early childhood exposure to bisphenol A (BPA)1 and prenatal, but not childhood, exposures to di-n-butyl phthalate and butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP). 2 Here, we evaluate whether these 2 classes of endocrine-disrupting chemicals interact to increase the risk of asthma. We evaluated 292 inner-city women and their children aged 5 to 11 years from the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health birth cohort of pregnant women who delivered between 1998 and 2006. Enrollment, exclusion criteria, and a description of the cohort have been reported previously.3 Subjects were selected for the present study on the basis of the availability of (1) measurements of phthalates in spot urine collected from the mother during pregnancy (33.9 ± 3.1 weeks' gestation) and BPA in child urine at ages 3 (n = 237), 5 (259), and/or 7 (n = 161) years; (2) data on child asthma and wheeze-related outcomes; and (3) availability of model covariates. Demographic characteristics of Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health subjects are provided in Table E1 in this article's Online Repository at www.jacionline.org. All participants gave written informed consent

Prenatal and postnatal bisphenol A exposure and asthma development among inner-city children

Background Bisphenol A (BPA) is used widely to manufacture food container linings. Mouse models suggest exposure to BPA might increase allergic inflammation. Objectives We hypothesized that BPA exposure, as assessed based on urinary BPA concentrations, would be associated with increased odds of wheeze and asthma and increased fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (Feno) values in children. Methods The Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health recruited pregnant women for a prospective birth cohort study (n = 568). Mothers during the third trimester and children at ages 3, 5, and 7 years provided spot urine samples. Total urinary BPA concentrations were measured by using online solid-phase extraction, high-performance liquid chromatography, isotope-dilution tandem mass spectrometry. Wheeze in the last 12 months was measured by using questionnaires at ages 5, 6, and 7 years. Asthma was determined by a physician once between ages 5 and 12 years. Feno values were measured at ages 7 to 11 years. Results Prenatal urinary BPA concentrations were associated inversely with wheeze at age 5 years (odds ratio [OR], 0.7; 95% CI, 0.5-0.9; P = .02). Urinary BPA concentrations at age 3 years were associated positively with wheeze at ages 5 years (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.1-1.8; P = .02) and 6 years (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.0-1.9; P = .03). BPA concentrations at age 7 years were associated with wheeze at age 7 years (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.0-1.9; P = .04) and Feno values (β = 0.1; 95% CI, 0.02-0.2; P = .02). BPA concentrations at ages 3, 5, and 7 years were associated with asthma (OR, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.1-2.0], P = .005; OR, 1.4 [95% CI, 1.0-1.9], P = .03; and OR, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.0-2.1], P = .04, respectively). Conclusions This is the first report of an association between postnatal urinary BPA concentrations and asthma in children

Classifying Chronic Lower Respiratory Disease Events in Epidemiologic Cohort Studies

Rationale: One in 12 adults has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma. Acute exacerbations of these chronic lower respiratory diseases (CLRDs) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Valid approaches to classifying cases and exacerbations in the general population are needed to facilitate prevention research

Understanding Evolutionary Impacts of Seasonality: An Introduction to the Symposium

Seasonality is a critically important aspect of environmental variability, and strongly shapes all aspects of life for organisms living in highly seasonal environments. Seasonality has played a key role in generating biodiversity, and has driven the evolution of extreme physiological adaptations and behaviors such as migration and hibernation. Fluctuating selection pressures on survival and fecundity between summer and winter provide a complex selective landscape, which can be met by a combination of three outcomes of adaptive evolution: genetic polymorphism, phenotypic plasticity, and bet-hedging. Here, we have identified four important research questions with the goal of advancing our understanding of evolutionary impacts of seasonality. First, we ask how characteristics of environments and species will determine which adaptive response occurs. Relevant characteristics include costs and limits of plasticity, predictability, and reliability of cues, and grain of environmental variation relative to generation time. A second important question is how phenological shifts will amplify or ameliorate selection on physiological hardiness. Shifts in phenology can preserve the thermal niche despite shifts in climate, but may fail to completely conserve the niche or may even expose life stages to conditions that cause mortality. Considering distinct environmental sensitivities of life history stages will be key to refining models that forecast susceptibility to climate change. Third, we must identify critical physiological phenotypes that underlie seasonal adaptation and work toward understanding the genetic architectures of these responses. These architectures are key for predicting evolutionary responses. Pleiotropic genes that regulate multiple responses to changing seasons may facilitate coordination among functionally related traits, or conversely may constrain the expression of optimal phenotypes. Finally, we must advance our understanding of how changes in seasonal fluctuations are impacting ecological interaction networks. We should move beyond simple dyadic interactions, such as predator prey dynamics, and understand how these interactions scale up to affect ecological interaction networks. As global climate change alters many aspects of seasonal variability, including extreme events and changes in mean conditions, organisms must respond appropriately or go extinct. The outcome of adaptation to seasonality will determine responses to climate change

The scientific and societal uses of global measurements of subsurface velocity

© The Author(s), 2019. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Szuts, Z. B., Bower, A. S., Donohue, K. A., Girton, J. B., Hummon, J. M., Katsumata, K., Lumpkin, R., Ortner, P. B., Phillips, H. E., Rossby, H. T., Shay, L. K., Sun, C., & Todd, R. E. The scientific and societal uses of global measurements of subsurface velocity. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6, (2019): 358, doi:10.3389/fmars.2019.00358.Ocean velocity defines ocean circulation, yet the available observations of subsurface velocity are under-utilized by society. The first step to address these concerns is to improve visibility of and access to existing measurements, which include acoustic sampling from ships, subsurface float drifts, and measurements from autonomous vehicles. While multiple programs provide data publicly, the present difficulty in finding, understanding, and using these data hinder broader use by managers, the public, and other scientists. Creating links from centralized national archives to project specific websites is an easy but important way to improve data discoverability and access. A further step is to archive data in centralized databases, which increases usage by providing a common framework for disparate measurements. This requires consistent data standards and processing protocols for all types of velocity measurements. Central dissemination will also simplify the creation of derived products tailored to end user goals. Eventually, this common framework will aid managers and scientists in identifying regions that need more sampling and in identifying methods to fulfill those demands. Existing technologies are capable of improving spatial and temporal sampling, such as using ships of opportunity or from autonomous platforms like gliders, profiling floats, or Lagrangian floats. Future technological advances are needed to fill sampling gaps and increase data coverage.This work was supported by the National Science Foundation, United States, Grant Numbers 1356383 to ZBS, OCE 1756361 to ASB at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and 1536851 to KAD and HTR; the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, United States, Ocean Observations and Monitoring Division and Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory to RL; Royal Caribbean Cruise Ltd., to PBO; the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy National Environmental Science Programme and Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes to HEP; and the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Grant V-487 to LS