Bulletin No. 20: Tidal Marsh Invertebrates of Connecticut

36 pp. 1974. Descriptions and illustrations of over 40 species of mollusks, crustaceans, arachnids and insects found on our tidal marshes

Metabolism of gemmules from the freshwater sponge Eunapius fragilis during diapause and post-diapause states

Post-diapause gemmules of the freshwater sponge Eunapius fragilis remained quiescent when maintained at 5°C. Germination occurred within 48 to 72 h following warming to 20°-23°C, culminating with the emergence of a new sponge from the collagenous capsule. Both heat dissipation and oxygen consumption climbed steadily during germination and eventually reached 600% of the starting values. By comparison, energy flow was much lower over the same period of time in diapausing gemmules, clearly demonstrating metabolic depression during diapause. The calorimetric:respirometric (CR) ratio increased significantly from -354 kJ/mol O2 to -541 kJ/mol O2 between hours 3.5 and 56.5 of germination, with an average value across this period of about -495 kJ/mol O2. The low CR ratio at hour 12.5 (-374 ± 21; ± 1 SE, n = 3) was statistically below the oxycaloric equivalent, which suggests that gemmules may have experienced hypoxia during the more than 3 months of storage at 5°C prior to experiments. The increase in metabolism during germination could be blocked by perfusing the gemmules with nitrogen- saturated medium (nominally oxygen free). Developing gemmules were able to survive oxygen limitation for several hours at least; during that time energy flow was depressed to 6% of normoxic values. During germination, the range of values was 3.5 to 4.0 nmol/mg protein for ATP, 0.2 to 0.4 nmol/mg protein for ADP, and 0.5 to 0.8 nmol/mg protein for AMP. Because ATP was high even before gemmules were warmed to room temperature, it is unlikely that levels were severely compromised during the diapause condition

Seasonal trivalent influenza vaccination during pregnancy and the incidence of stillbirth: population-based retrospective cohort study

Concern for the safety to the fetus is a commonly cited reason for vaccine refusal during pregnancy. Results from this investigation support the safety of seasonal influenza vaccination during pregnancy and suggest seasonal influenza vaccination may be protective against stillbirth

Bulletin No. 23: Plants and Animals of the Estuary

Descriptions and illustrations of over 70 estuarine species

Protracted outbreak of S. Enteritidis PT 21c in a large Hamburg nursing home

Background: During August 2006, a protracted outbreak of Salmonella (S.) Enteritidis infections in a large Hamburg nursing home was investigated. Methods: A site visit of the home was conducted and food suppliers' premises tested for Salmonella. Among nursing home residents a cohort study was carried out focusing on foods consumed in the three days before the first part of the outbreak. Instead of relying on residents' memory, data from the home's patient food ordering system was used as exposure data. S. Enteritidis isolates from patients and suspected food vehicles were phage typed and compared. Results: Within a population of 822 nursing home residents, 94 case patients among residents (1 fatality) and 17 among staff members were counted 6 through 29 August. The outbreak peaked 7 through 9 August, two days after a spell of very warm summer weather. S. Enteritidis was consistently recovered from patients' stools throughout the outbreak. Among the food items served during 5 through 7 August, the cohort study pointed to afternoon cake on all three days as potential risk factors for disease. Investigation of the bakery supplying the cake yielded S. Enteritidis from cakes sampled 31 August. Comparison of the isolates by phage typing demonstrated both isolates from patients and the cake to be the exceedingly rare phage type 21c. Conclusion: Cake (various types served on various days) contaminated with S. Enteritidis were the likely vehicle of the outbreak in the nursing home. While the cakes were probably contaminated with low pathogen dose throughout the outbreak period, high ambient summer temperatures and failure to keep the cake refrigerated led to high pathogen dose in cake on some days and in some of the housing units. This would explain the initial peak of cases, but also the drawn out nature of the outbreak with cases until the end of August. Suggestions are made to nursing homes, aiding in outbreak prevention. Early outbreak detection is crucial, such that counter measures can be swift and drawn-out outbreaks of nosocomial food-borne infections avoided

Methods to reduce medication errors in a clinical trial of an investigational parenteral medication

AbstractThere are few evidence-based guidelines to inform optimal design of complex clinical trials, such as those assessing the safety and efficacy of intravenous drugs administered daily with infusion times over many hours per day and treatment durations that may span years. This study is a retrospective review of inpatient administration deviation reports for an investigational drug that is administered daily with infusion times of 8–24 h, and variable treatment durations for each patient. We report study design modifications made in 2007–2008 aimed at minimizing deviations from an investigational drug infusion protocol approved by an institutional review board and the United States Food and Drug Administration. Modifications were specifically aimed at minimizing errors of infusion rate, incorrect dose, incorrect patient, or wrong drug administered. We found that the rate of these types of administration errors of the study drug was significantly decreased following adoption of the specific study design changes. This report provides guidance in the design of clinical trials testing the safety and efficacy of study drugs administered via intravenous infusion in an inpatient setting so as to minimize drug administration protocol deviations and optimize patient safety

Natural carbon storage in Berlin

Städte sind Hotspots anthropogener CO2-Emissionen. Sie besitzen daher eine besondere Verantwortung für die Umsetzung von Maßnahmen und Strategien zur Vermeidung von Treibhausgasemissionen. Ein systematisches Management der C-Speicher der Berliner Stadtnatur (Boden und Vegetation) fehlt bisher – trotz großen Potenzials. Übergeordnetes Ziel des Projektes war es, den städtischen Klimaschutz über den Schutz und die Entwicklung der C-Speicher von Böden und grüner Infrastruktur (Vegetation) zu stärken. Dafür hat das Projekt ein Instrumentarium für die Bestimmung und Bewertung des C-Speichers der Böden und der Vegetation in Berlin erarbeitet. Dieses soll Entwicklungsprognosen bei städtebaulichen Projekten oder sonstiger Flächennutzungsplanung erlauben. Wesentlicher Bestandteil des Projektes war die Schaffung einer belastbaren Datengrundlage für die Beurteilung der Klimaschutzfunktion der Berliner Böden, welche eine Differenzierung nach ausgewählten Bodeneigenschaften, Schutzwürdigkeit der Böden und städtischen Nutzungsformen ermöglicht. Zudem wurden berlintypische C-Speicher und -Bilanzen (CO2-Fixierungspotenziale) der Vegetation verschiedener Nutzungsformen bestimmt. Die Boden- und Vegetationsdaten besitzen eine große Planungsrelevanz für die Stadtentwicklung mit dem Ziel „klimaneutrales Berlin 2050“.Cities are hotspots of anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Therefore, they have a special responsibility for creating strategies and implementing measures to prevent greenhouse gas emissions. A systematic management plan of the C reservoirs of Berlin's urban nature (soil and vegetation) is still lacking - despite their great potential. The overall objective of the project was to strengthen urban climate conservation through the protection and development of the C-storages of soil and green infrastructure (vegetation). To this end, the project has developed a set of instruments to determine and assess the C-storage of soils and vegetation in Berlin. This may aid forecasts for urban development projects or other land use planning. An essential component of the project was the creation of a reliable data basis of Berlin's soils. This soil data basis allows a differentiation according to selected soil properties, their protection worthiness, and forms of urban land use. In addition, typical Berlin C-reservoirs and C-balances (CO2 fixation potentials) of vegetation of various land uses were determined. The soil and vegetation data are of great relevance for urban planning and development with the aim of "climate-neutral Berlin 2050".Not Reviewe

A prospective cohort study comparing the reactogenicity of trivalent influenza vaccine in pregnant and non-pregnant women

Background: Influenza vaccination during pregnancy can prevent serious illness in expectant mothers and provide protection to newborns; however, historically uptake has been limited due to a number of factors, including safety concerns. Symptomatic complaints are common during pregnancy and may be mistakenly associated with reactions to trivalent influenza vaccine (TIV). To investigate this, we compared post-vaccination events self-reported by pregnant women to events reported by non-pregnant women receiving TIV. Methods: A prospective cohort of 1,086 pregnant women and 314 non-pregnant female healthcare workers (HCWs) who received TIV between March-May 2014 were followed-up seven days post-vaccination to assess local and systemic adverse events following immunisation (AEFIs). Women were surveyed by text message regarding perceived reactions to TIV. Those reporting an AEFI completed an interview by telephone or mobile phone to ascertain details. Logistic regression models adjusting for age and residence were used to compare reactions reported by pregnant women and non-pregnant HCWs. Results: Similar proportions of pregnant women and non-pregnant, female HCWs reported ≥1 reaction following vaccination with TIV (13.0% and 17.3%, respectively; OR = 1.2 [95% CI: 0.8-1.8]). Non-pregnant, female HCWs were more likely to report fever or headache compared to pregnant women (OR: 4.6 [95% CI 2.1-10.3] and OR: 2.2 [95% CI 1.0-4.6], respectively). No other significant differences in reported symptoms were observed. No serious vaccine-associated adverse events were reported, and less than 2% of each group sought medical advice for a reaction. Conclusions: We found no evidence suggesting pregnant women are more likely to report adverse events following influenza vaccination when compared to non-pregnant female HCWs of similar age, and in some cases, pregnant women reported significantly fewer adverse events. These results further support the safety of TIV administered in pregnant women