Australia's coastal fisheries and farmed seafood: An ecological basis for determining sustainability

In response to consumer concerns about the sustainability of Australian-sourced seafood we derive a set of criteria within an explicit decision-process that can be used to determine whether locally farmed and wild-caught Australian seafood products meet standards of ecological sustainability and Ecologically Sustainable Development. These criteria substantially address the ecological deficiencies we identified in other systems commonly used for assessing seafood sustainability. The criteria address the issues that are relevant to local seafood production, and are populated with indicators (metrics) and benchmarks relevant to the Australian context. The indicators establish performance thresholds drawn from public domain data about the products, including observed empirical data and proxies, and include default decisions to be applied in the absence of adequate information. This decision structure is set within a peer-reviewed expert jury decision-making process. The criteria, decision process and decision outcomes from assessment of a number of pilot products were tested in a real seafood market (Melbourne), where we found a high level of producer, reseller and consumer acceptance of the judgements and ratings. The use of ecologically-derived standards results in several outcomes that differ from those of other seafood assessment systems, especially those assessments more focused on production standards, such as government, industry and NGO-supported programs, popularly used in Australia and worldwide. We conclude that despite high levels of uncertainty surrounding many of the population parameters, ecological patterns and processes, empirical cost-effective proxies can be used to reasonably estimate a form of sustainability that matches consumer interests/expectations for production of fresh local seafood. Despite the plethora of industry and government programs, there remains a significant but presently unmet consumer demand for ecologically-based, technically robust, independently derived, and readily available information about the local sustainability attributes of Australian wild-caught and farmed fresh seafood

An assessment of road-verge grass as a feedstock for farm-fed anaerobic digestion plants

Cuttings from road-verge grass could provide biomass for energy generation, but currently this potential is not exploited. This research assessed the technical, practical and financial feasibility of using grass harvested from road verges as a feedstock in farm-fed anaerobic digestion (AD) plants. The methane potential (191 mL CH4 gDM−1) and digestion characteristics of verge grass were similar to those of current farm feedstocks; indicating suitability for AD. Ensiling had no significant impact on the biomethane generated. Testing co-digestions of verge grass with current farm feedstocks showed enhanced methane yields, suggesting that verge grass could be a valuable addition to AD feedstock mixes. In a case study of the UK county of Lincolnshire, potential volumes and locations of verge grass biomass were estimated, with capacities and locations of existing AD plants, to assess the potential to supply practical grass volumes. Grass harvesting costs were modelled and compared with other feedstock costs. Finally, the attitudes of AD operators to using verge grass were investigated to understand whether a market for verge grass exists. In a small survey all operators were willing to use it as a feedstock and most were prepared to pay over the estimated harvesting cost. If verge grass was legally recognised as a waste product it could be attractive to AD operators especially where financial incentives to use waste feedstocks are in place. In rural areas, verge grass could be harvested and co-digested by existing farm-fed AD plants, potentially reducing the cost of road verge maintenance and increasing biodiversity

The Evolutionary Status of Clusters of Galaxies at z ~ 1

Combined HST, X-ray, and ground-based optical studies show that clusters of galaxies are largely "in place" by $z \sim 1$, an epoch when the Universe was less than half its present age. High resolution images show that elliptical, S0, and spiral galaxies are present in clusters at redshifts up to $z \sim 1.3$. Analysis of the CMDs suggest that the cluster ellipticals formed their stars several Gyr earlier, near redshift 3. The morphology--density relation is well established at $z\sim1$, with star-forming spirals and irregulars residing mostly in the outer parts of the clusters and E/S0s concentrated in dense clumps. The intracluster medium has already reached the metallicity of present-day clusters. The distributions of the hot gas and early-type galaxies are similar in $z\sim1$ clusters, indicating both have largely virialized in the deepest potentials wells. In spite of the many similarities between $z\sim1$ and present-day clusters, there are significant differences. The morphologies revealed by the hot gas, and particularly the early-type galaxies, are elongated rather than spherical. We appear to be observing the clusters at an epoch when the sub-clusters and groups are still assembling into a single regular cluster. Support for this picture comes from CL0152 where the gas appears to be lagging behind the luminous and dark mass in two merging sub-components. Moreover, the luminosity difference between the first and second brightest cluster galaxies at $z\sim1$ is smaller than in 93% of present-day Abell clusters, which suggests that considerable luminosity evolution through merging has occurred since that epoch. Evolution is also seen in the bolometric X-ray luminosity function.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures, to appear in Penetrating Bars through Masks of Cosmic Dust: the Hubble Tuing Fork Strikes a New Note, eds. D.L. Block, K.C. Freeman, I. Puerari & R. Groess. Figures degraded to meet astroph size limit; a version with higher resolution figures may be downloaded from: http://acs.pha.jhu.edu/~jpb/z1clusters/ford_clusters.pd

Spectroscopy of z ∼ 6 i-dropout galaxies : frequency of Lyα emission and the sizes of Lyα-emitting galaxies

We report on deep spectroscopy, using LRIS on Keck I and FORS2 on the VLT, of a sample of 22 candidate z similar to 6 Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) selected by the (i)775 - z(850) > 1: 3 dropout criterion. Redshifts could be measured for eight objects. These redshifts are all in the range z = 5: 5-6.1, confirming the efficiency of the i775 - z850 color selection technique. Six of the confirmed galaxies show Ly alpha emission. Assuming that the 14 objects without redshifts are z similar to 6 LBGs that lack detectable Ly alpha emission lines, we infer that the fraction of Ly alpha-emitting LBGs with Ly alpha equivalent widths greater than 20 angstrom among z similar to 6 LBGs is approximate to 30%, similar to that found at z similar to 3. Every Ly alpha-emitting object in our sample is compact, with half-light radii r(hl) 97% confidence. We speculate that the small sizes of the Ly alpha-emitting LBGs are due to these objects being less massive than other LBGs at z similar to 6

Potential impact of the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline on high blood pressure in normotensive patients with stable coronary artery disease: insights from the CLARIFY registry

Aims: The 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guideline on high blood pressure (BP) lowered the threshold defining hypertension and BP target in high-risk patients to 130/80 mmHg. Patients with coronary artery disease and systolic BP 130-139 mmHg or diastolic BP 80-89 mmHg should now receive medication to achieve this target. We aimed to investigate the relationship between BP and cardiovascular events in 'real-life' patients with coronary artery disease considered as having normal BP until the recent guideline. Methods and results: Data from 5956 patients with stable coronary artery disease, no history of hypertension or heart failure, and average BP <140/90 mmHg, enrolled in the CLARIFY registry (November 2009 to June 2010), were analysed. In a multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards model, after a median follow-up of 5.0 years, diastolic BP 80-89 mmHg, but not systolic BP 130-139 mmHg, was associated with increased risk of the primary endpoint, a composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke (hazard ratio 2.15, 95% confidence interval 1.22-3.81 vs. 70-79 mmHg and 1.12, 0.64-1.97 vs. 120-129 mmHg). No significant increase in risk for the primary endpoint was observed for systolic BP <120 mmHg or diastolic BP <70 mmHg. Conclusion: In patients with stable coronary artery disease defined as having normal BP according to the 140/90 mmHg threshold, diastolic BP 80-89 mmHg was associated with increased cardiovascular risk, whereas systolic BP 130-139 mmHg was not, supporting the lower diastolic but not the lower systolic BP hypertension-defining threshold and treatment target in coronary artery disease. ClinicalTrials identifier: ISRCTN43070564

The social construction of leadership studies: Representations of rigour and relevance in textbooks

Considerations of rigour and relevance rarely acknowledge students, learning or the textbooks many of the academic community use to frame education. Here we explore the construction of meaning around rigour and relevance in four leadership studies textbooks – the two most globally popular leadership textbooks and two recent additions to the field – to explore how these ideas are represented. We read the four texts narratively for structure, purpose, style and application. We further embed the analysis by considering the cultural positioning of the textbook-as-genre within leadership studies as a field more generally. This exploration of the textbook raises critical questions about rigour, relevance and the relationship constructed between them. From this, we argue for a re-commitment to the genuine ‘text-book’ written to engage students in understanding leadership as a continuing conversation between practices, theories and contexts, rather than as a repository of rigorous and/or relevant content that lays claim to represent an objective science of leadership studies

Replication of LDL SWAs hits in PROSPER/PHASE as validation for future (pharmaco)genetic analyses

&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Background:&lt;/b&gt; The PHArmacogenetic study of Statins in the Elderly at risk (PHASE) is a genome wide association study in the PROspective Study of Pravastatin in the Elderly at risk for vascular disease (PROSPER) that investigates the genetic variation responsible for the individual variation in drug response to pravastatin. Statins lower LDL-cholesterol in general by 30%, however not in all subjects. Moreover, clinical response is highly variable and adverse effects occur in a minority of patients. In this report we first describe the rationale of the PROSPER/PHASE project and second show that the PROSPER/PHASE study can be used to study pharmacogenetics in the elderly.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Methods:&lt;/b&gt; The genome wide association study (GWAS) was conducted using the Illumina 660K-Quad beadchips following manufacturer's instructions. After a stringent quality control 557,192 SNPs in 5,244 subjects were available for analysis. To maximize the availability of genetic data and coverage of the genome, imputation up to 2.5 million autosomal CEPH HapMap SNPs was performed with MACH imputation software. The GWAS for LDL-cholesterol is assessed with an additive linear regression model in PROBABEL software, adjusted for age, sex, and country of origin to account for population stratification.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Results:&lt;/b&gt; Forty-two SNPs reached the GWAS significant threshold of p = 5.0e-08 in 5 genomic loci (APOE/APOC1; LDLR; FADS2/FEN1; HMGCR; PSRC1/CELSR5). The top SNP (rs445925, chromosome 19) with a p-value of p = 2.8e-30 is located within the APOC1 gene and near the APOE gene. The second top SNP (rs6511720, chromosome 19) with a p-value of p = 5.22e-15 is located within the LDLR gene. All 5 genomic loci were previously associated with LDL-cholesterol levels, no novel loci were identified. Replication in WOSCOPS and CARE confirmed our results.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Conclusion:&lt;/b&gt; With the GWAS in the PROSPER/PHASE study we confirm the previously found genetic associations with LDL-cholesterol levels. With this proof-of-principle study we show that the PROSPER/PHASE study can be used to investigate genetic associations in a similar way to population based studies. The next step of the PROSPER/PHASE study is to identify the genetic variation responsible for the variation in LDL-cholesterol lowering in response to statin treatment in collaboration with other large trials.&lt;/p&gt

Prevalence of diabetic and impact on cardiovascular events and mortality in patients with chronic coronary syndromes, across multiple geographical regions and ethnicities

Background: In contrast with the setting of acute myocardial infarction, there are limited data regarding the impact of diabetes mellitus on clinical outcomes in contemporary cohorts of patients with chronic coronary syndromes. We aimed to investigate the prevalence and prognostic impact of diabetes according to geographical regions and ethnicity. Methods: CLARIFY is an observational registry of patients with chronic coronary syndromes, enrolled across 45 countries in Europe, Asia, America, Middle East, Australia and Africa in 2009-2010, and followed-up yearly for 5 years. Chronic coronary syndromes were defined by ≥1 of the following criteria: prior myocardial infarction, evidence of coronary stenosis >50%, proven symptomatic myocardial ischemia, or prior revascularisation procedure. Results: Among 32,694patients, 9502 (29%) had diabetes, with a regional prevalence ranging from below 20% in Northern Europe to approximately 60% in the Gulf countries. In a multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards model, diabetes was associated with increased risks for the primary outcome(cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction or stroke)with an adjusted hazard ratio of1.28(95% CI 1.18-1.39) and for all secondary outcomes (all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure and coronary revascularization). Differences on outcomes according to geography and ethnicity were modest. Conclusion: In patients with chronic coronary syndromes, diabetes is independently associated with mortality and cardiovascular events, including heart failure, which is not accounted by demographics, prior medical history, left ventricular ejection fraction, or use of secondary prevention medication. This is observed across multiple geographic regions and ethnicities, despite marked disparities in the prevalence of diabetes

Lack of insurance coverage and urgent care use for asthma: A retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND: Asthma is a common chronic disease with profound impacts upon individuals and the US health care system. Inadequate health care coverage has been associated with more frequent and severe exacerbations of the disease. We examined the relationship between adequacy of health care coverage and use of emergent care of adults with asthma. METHODS: The 2001 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System was the source of data on adults with current asthma. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression analysis modeled identifiable factors in predicting urgent or emergent care. RESULTS: Key variables included demographics and information on self-reported gaps in health care coverage. The primary outcome was emergency room or urgent care visits for worsening of asthma symptoms. Of 16,234 subjects nationally with current asthma, 2,195 from eight states had valid responses to a supplemental module asking about emergency room use or urgent care visits because of asthma. Thirty four percent of these individuals required such care in the previous year. Having an interruption in health care coverage in the past year was associated with an increased risk of needed urgent or emergent care (crude Odds Ratio [OR] 1.48, 95% confidence intervals [CI]1.03, 2.1). The association was not statistically significant in the adjusted multivariate model including race/ethnicity, employment status, gender, age, education and the ability to identify a primary physician (adjusted OR 1.2, 95% CI 0.8, 1.8). CONCLUSION: This study provides population-level, generalizable evidence of increased risk of exacerbations of asthma in adults and (1) their demographic characteristics, and (2) continuous adequate health care coverage