Detecting the presence of fish farm-derived organic matter at the seafloor using stable isotope analysis of phospholipid fatty acids

The expansion of global aquaculture activities is important for the wellbeing of future generations in terms of employment and food security. Rearing animals in open-exchange cages permits the release of organic wastes, some of which ultimately reaches the underlying sediments. The development of rapid, quantitative and objective monitoring techniques is therefore central to the environmentally sustainable growth of the aquaculture industry. Here, we demonstrate that fish farm-derived organic wastes can be readily detected at the seafloor by quantifying sediment phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) and their carbon stable isotope signatures. Observations across five farms reveal that farm size and/or distance away from it influence the spatial distribution of the generated organic wastes and their effect on benthic bacterial biomass. Comparison to the isotopic signatures of fish feed-derived PLFAs indicates that 16:0 and 18:1(n-9) are potential biomarkers for fish farm-derived organic wastes. Our results suggest that stable isotope analysis of sediment PLFAs has potential for monitoring the environmental performance of aquaculture activities, particularly given the increasing prevalence of terrigenous organic matter in aquaculture feed stocks because it is isotopically district to marine organic matter

Resource utilisation and costs in predementia and dementia: a systematic review protocol

Introduction Dementia is the fastest growing major cause of disability globally with a mounting social and financial impact for patients and their families but also to health and social care systems. This review aims to systematically synthesise evidence on the utilisation of resources and costs incurred by patients and their caregivers and by health and social care services across the full spectrum of dementia, from its preceding preclinical stage to end of life. The main drivers of resources used and costs will also be identified. Methods and analysis A systematic literature review was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CDSR, CENTRAL, DARE, EconLit, CEA Registry, TRIP, NHS EED, SCI, RePEc and OpenGrey between January 2000 and beginning of May 2017. Two reviewers will independently assess each study for inclusion and disagreements will be resolved by a third reviewer. Data will be extracted using a predefined data extraction form following best practice. Study quality will be assessed with the Effective Public Health Practice Project quality assessment tool. The reporting of costing methodology will be assessed using the British Medical Journal checklist. A narrative synthesis of all studies will be presented for resources used and costs incurred, by level of disease severity when available. If feasible, the data will be synthesised using appropriate statistical techniques. Ethics and dissemination Included articles will be reviewed for an ethics statement. The findings of the review will be disseminated in a related peer-reviewed journal and presented at conferences. They will also contribute to the work developed in the Real World Outcomes across the Alzheimer’s disease spectrum for better care: multi-modal data access platform (ROADMAP)

Metal-macrofauna interactions determine microbial community structure and function in copper contaminated sediments

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Risk of mortality among inpatients with COVID-19 and type 2 diabetes: national data from Kuwait

Introduction To investigate type 2 diabetes as a risk factor for COVID-19 death following hospital admission in Kuwait. Methods A retrospective cohort study using data from a central hospital that cared for all hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Kuwait. We investigated the association between type 2 diabetes, with COVID-19 mortality using multiply imputed logistic regression and calculated the population attributable fraction. Results A total of 5333 patients were admitted with COVID-19, of whom 244 died (4.6%). Diabetes prevalence was 24.8%, but 53.7% of those who died had diabetes. After adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity and other comorbidities, diabetes was associated with death (OR 1.70 [95% CI 1.23, 2.34]) and admission to the intensive care unit more than 3 days after initial admission (OR 1.78 [95% CI 1.17, 2.70]). Assuming causality, the population attributable fraction for type 2 diabetes in COVID-19 death was 19.6% (95% CI 10.8, 35.6). Conclusion Type 2 diabetes is a strong risk factor for COVID-19 death in the Middle East. Given the high prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the Middle East, as well as many Western countries, the public health implications are considerable

Adsorption of phosphate by halloysite (7 angstrom) nanotubes (HNTs)

The adsorption and retention of phosphates in soil systems is of wide environmental importance, and understanding the surface chemistry of halloysite (a common soil clay mineral) is also of prime importance in many emerging technological applications of halloysite nanotubes (HNTs). The adsorption of phosphate anions on tubular halloysite (7 angstrom) has been studied to gain a greater understanding of the mechanism and kinetics of adsorption on the surface of HNTs. Two well-characterized tubular halloysites with differing morphologies have been studied: one polygonal prismatic and one cylindrical, where the cylindrical form has a greater surface area and shorter tube length. Greater phosphate adsorption of up to 42 mu mol g(-1) is observed on the cylindrical halloysite when compared to the polygonal prismatic sample, where adsorption reached a maximum of just 15 mu mol g(-1) compared to a value for platy kaolinite (KGa-2) of 8 mu mol g(-1). Phosphate adsorption shows strong pH dependence, and the differences in phosphate sorption between the prismatic and cylindrical morphologies suggest that phosphate absorption does not occur at the same pH-dependent alumina edge sites and that the lumen may have a greater influence on uptake for the cylindrical form

Direct grafting of carbon nanotubes with ethylenediamine

Singlewall and multiwall carbon nanotubes were covalently functionalised with ethylenediamine (EDA) in a simple one-pot process providing a good surface coverage. The successful grafting of EDA on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) was shown by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared and Raman spectroscopies and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These functionalised CNTs with terminal amino groups were shown to form composite polyamide materials with uniform CNT distribution in the polymer matrix