Evaluation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Pollution From the HMS Royal Oak Shipwreck and Effects on Sediment Microbial Community Structure

Despite many shipwrecks containing oil there is a paucity of studies investigating their impact on surrounding environments. This study evaluates any potential effect the World War II shipwreck HMS Royal Oak is having on surrounding benthic sediments in Scapa Flow, Scotland. HMS (Her Majesty’s Ship) Royal Oak sank in 1939, subsequently leaked oil in the 1960s and 1990s, and is estimated to still hold 697 tonnes of fuel oil. In this study, sediments were analysed, over a 17.5 cm depth profile, along a 50–950 m cruciform transect away from the shipwreck. Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) revealed low concentrations (205.91 ± 50.15 μg kg‾¹ of dry sediment), which did not significantly differ with either distance from the shipwreck or sediment depth. PAH concentrations were well below the effects-range low (ERL) for the OSPAR (Oslo/Paris convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic) maritime area. The average Pyrogenic Index, in sediments around HMS Royal Oak, was 1.06 (±0.34), indicating PAHs were pyrogenic rather than petrogenic. Moreover, analysis of sediment microbiomes revealed no significant differences in bacterial community structure with distance from the shipwreck, with extremely low levels of obligate hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria (OHCB; 0.21% ± 0.54%). Both lines of evidence suggest that sampled sediments are not currently being impacted by petrogenic hydrocarbons and show no long-term impact by previous oil-spills from HMS Royal Oa

A Review of the Tools Used for Marine Monitoring in the UK: Combining Historic and Contemporary Methods with Modeling and Socioeconomics to Fulfill Legislative Needs and Scientific Ambitions

Marine environmental monitoring is undertaken to provide evidence that environmental management targets are being met. Moreover, monitoring also provides context to marine science and over the last century has allowed development of a critical scientific understanding of the marine environment and the impacts that humans are having on it. The seas around the UK are currently monitored by targeted, impact-driven, programmes (e.g., fishery or pollution based monitoring) often using traditional techniques, many of which have not changed significantly since the early 1900s. The advent of a new wave of automated technology, in combination with changing political and economic circumstances, means that there is currently a strong drive to move toward a more refined, efficient, and effective way of monitoring. We describe the policy and scientific rationale for monitoring our seas, alongside a comprehensive description of the types of equipment and methodology currently used and the technologies that are likely to be used in the future. We contextualize the way new technologies and methodologies may impact monitoring and discuss how whole ecosystems models can give an integrated, comprehensive approach to impact assessment. Furthermore, we discuss how an understanding of the value of each data point is crucial to assess the true costs and benefits to society of a marine monitoring programme

Subgingival lipid A profile and endotoxin activity in periodontal health and disease.

OBJECTIVES: Regulation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) chemical composition, particularly its lipid A domain, is an important, naturally occurring mechanism that drives bacteria-host immune system interactions into either a symbiotic or pathogenic relationship. Members of the subgingival oral microbiota can critically modulate host immuno-inflammatory responses by synthesizing different LPS isoforms. The objectives of this study were to analyze subgingival lipid A profiles and endotoxin activities in periodontal health and disease and to evaluate the use of the recombinant factor C assay as a new, lipid A-based biosensor for personalized, point-of-care periodontal therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Subgingival plaque samples were collected from healthy individuals and chronic periodontitis patients before and after periodontal therapy. Chemical composition of subgingival lipid A moieties was determined by ESI-Mass Spectrometry. Endotoxin activity of subgingival LPS extracts was assessed using the recombinant factor C assay, and their inflammatory potential was examined in THP-1-derived macrophages by measuring TNF-α and IL-8 production. RESULTS: Characteristic lipid A molecular signatures, corresponding to over-acylated, bi-phosphorylated lipid A isoforms, were observed in diseased samples. Healthy and post-treatment samples were characterized by lower m/z peaks, related to under-acylated, hypo-phosphorylated lipid A structures. Endotoxin activity levels and inflammatory potentials of subgingival LPS extracts from periodontitis patients were significantly higher compared to healthy and post-treatment samples. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to consider structure-function-clinical implications of different lipid A isoforms present in the subgingival niche and sheds new light on molecular pathogenic mechanisms of subgingival biofilm communities. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Subgingival endotoxin activity (determined by lipid A chemical composition) could be a reliable, bacterially derived biomarker and a risk assessment tool for personalized periodontal care

Para-infectious brain injury in COVID-19 persists at follow-up despite attenuated cytokine and autoantibody responses

To understand neurological complications of COVID-19 better both acutely and for recovery, we measured markers of brain injury, inflammatory mediators, and autoantibodies in 203 hospitalised participants; 111 with acute sera (1–11 days post-admission) and 92 convalescent sera (56 with COVID-19-associated neurological diagnoses). Here we show that compared to 60 uninfected controls, tTau, GFAP, NfL, and UCH-L1 are increased with COVID-19 infection at acute timepoints and NfL and GFAP are significantly higher in participants with neurological complications. Inflammatory mediators (IL-6, IL-12p40, HGF, M-CSF, CCL2, and IL-1RA) are associated with both altered consciousness and markers of brain injury. Autoantibodies are more common in COVID-19 than controls and some (including against MYL7, UCH-L1, and GRIN3B) are more frequent with altered consciousness. Additionally, convalescent participants with neurological complications show elevated GFAP and NfL, unrelated to attenuated systemic inflammatory mediators and to autoantibody responses. Overall, neurological complications of COVID-19 are associated with evidence of neuroglial injury in both acute and late disease and these correlate with dysregulated innate and adaptive immune responses acutely

Evaluating Clinical Utility of Subgingival and Salivary Endotoxin Activity Levels as Periodontal Biomarkers

OBJECTIVES: The use of periodontal biomarkers for identification and monitoring of unique patient populations could foster better stratification of at-risk groups, increase access to treatment for those most in need, facilitate preventive measures and improve personalised care plans. The aim of this study was to examine the diagnostic and prognostic utility of oral lipopolysaccharides as bacterially-derived periodontal biomarkers. METHODS: Periodontal parameters were recorded, and saliva and subgingival plaque samples were collected at the beginning of the study from periodontally healthy volunteers and periodontitis patients, and three months after completion of conventional periodontal treatment in the periodontitis group. Endotoxin activity in the samples was measured using the recombinant factor C assay. Associations between clinical periodontal parameters and subgingival and salivary endotoxin activities were analysed using a multivariate regression model, while the ROC curve was applied to estimate the sensitivity, specificity and c-statistics for salivary and subgingival endotoxin activities as diagnostic biomarkers for periodontitis. RESULTS: Significant correlations were found between subgingival endotoxin activities, probing pocket depth and periodontal diagnosis, which were independent from patients' age, gender and smoking status. In addition, subgingival endotoxin levels had high specificity and sensitivity in detecting periodontal health and disease (0.91 and 0.85 respectively). Salivary endotoxin activity was positively associated with periodontal diagnosis, mean probing pocket depth, percentages of sites over 4 mm and full mouth bleeding score. However, it was inferior in discriminating patients with stable periodontium from those with periodontitis (sensitivity = 0.69, specificity = 0.61) compared to subgingival endotoxin activity. CONCLUSIONS: Subgingival endotoxin activity has good diagnostic and prognostic values as a site-specific periodontal biomarker and is not influenced by the patient's age, gender or smoking status. In contrast, salivary endotoxin activity, as a patient-level biomarker, is dependent on patient's age, has poorer diagnostic and prognostic capability, but shows good correlations with disease susceptibility and both its extent and severity

Appendicitis risk prediction models in children presenting with right iliac fossa pain (RIFT study): a prospective, multicentre validation study.

Background Acute appendicitis is the most common surgical emergency in children. Differentiation of acute appendicitis from conditions that do not require operative management can be challenging in children. This study aimed to identify the optimum risk prediction model to stratify acute appendicitis risk in children. Methods We did a rapid review to identify acute appendicitis risk prediction models. A prospective, multicentre cohort study was then done to evaluate performance of these models. Children (aged 5\u201315 years) presenting with acute right iliac fossa pain in the UK and Ireland were included. For each model, score cutoff thresholds were systematically varied to identify the best achievable specificity while maintaining a failure rate (ie, proportion of patients identified as low risk who had acute appendicitis) less than 5%. The normal appendicectomy rate was the proportion of resected appendixes found to be normal on histopathological examination. Findings 15 risk prediction models were identified that could be assessed. The cohort study enrolled 1827 children from 139 centres, of whom 630 (34\ub75%) underwent appendicectomy. The normal appendicectomy rate was 15\ub79% (100 of 630 patients). The Shera score was the best performing model, with an area under the curve of 0\ub784 (95% CI 0\ub782\u20130\ub786). Applying score cutoffs of 3 points or lower for children aged 5\u201310 years and girls aged 11\u201315 years, and 2 points or lower for boys aged 11\u201315 years, the failure rate was 3\ub73% (95% CI 2\ub70\u20135\ub72; 18 of 539 patients), specificity was 44\ub73% (95% CI 41\ub74\u201347\ub72; 521 of 1176), and positive predictive value was 41\ub74% (38\ub75\u201344\ub74; 463 of 1118). Positive predictive value for the Shera score with a cutoff of 6 points or lower (72\ub76%, 67\ub74\u201377\ub74) was similar to that of ultrasound scan (75\ub70%, 65\ub73\u201383\ub71). Interpretation The Shera score has the potential to identify a large group of children at low risk of acute appendicitis who could be considered for early discharge. Risk scoring does not identify children who should proceed directly to surgery. Medium-risk and high-risk children should undergo routine preoperative ultrasound imaging by operators trained to assess for acute appendicitis, and MRI or low-dose CT if uncertainty remains. Funding None