The Lunar Orbital Prospector

The establishment of lunar bases will not end the need for remote sensing of the lunar surface by orbiting platforms. Human and robotic surface exploration will necessarily be limited to some proximate distance from the support base. Near real-time, high-resolution, global characterization of the lunar surface by orbiting sensing systems will continue to be essential to the understanding of the Moon's geophysical structure and the location of exploitable minerals and deposits of raw materials. The Lunar Orbital Prospector (LOP) is an orbiting sensing platform capable of supporting a variety of modular sensing packages. Serviced by a lunar-based shuttle, the LOP will permit the exchange of instrument packages to meet evolving mission needs. The ability to recover, modify, and rotate sensing packages allows their reuse in varying combinations. Combining this flexibility with robust orbit modification capabilities and near real-time telemetry links provides considerable system responsiveness. Maintenance and modification of the LOP orbit are accomplished through use of an onboard propulsion system that burns lunar-supplied oxygen and aluminum. The relatively low performance of such a system is more than compensated for by the elimination of the need for Earth-supplied propellants. The LOP concept envisions a continuous expansion of capability through the incorporation of new instrument technologies and the addition of platforms

Limited HIV-1 superinfection in seroconverters from the CAPRISA 004 Microbicide trial.

CAPRISA, 2014.HIV-1 superinfection (SI) occurs when an infected individual acquires a distinct new viral strain. The rate of superinfection may be reflective of the underlying HIV risk in a population. The Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) 004 clinical trial demonstrated that women who used a tenofovir-containing microbicide gel had lower rates of HIV infection than women using a placebo gel. Women who contracted HIV-1 during the trial were screened for the occurrence of superinfection by next-generation sequencing of the viral gag and env genes. There were two cases (one in each trial arm) of subtype C superinfection identified from the 76 women with primary infection screened at two time points (rate of superinfection, 1.5/100 person-years). Both women experienced a >0.5-log increase in viral load during the window when superinfection occurred. The rate of superinfection was significantly lower than the overall primary HIV incidence in the microbicide trial (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 0.20; P=0.003). The women who seroconverted during the trial reported a significant increase in sexual contact with their stable partner 4 months after seroconversion (P<0.001), which may have lowered the risk of superinfection in this population. The lower frequency of SI compared to the primary incidence is in contrast to a report from a general heterosexual African population but agrees with a study of high-risk women in Kenya. A better understanding of the rate of HIV superinfection could have important implications for ongoing HIV vaccine research

Physical, psychological, and social sequelae following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a review of the literature

Objective: This article reviews recent literature on adults' quality of life following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Methods: We identified 22 prospective reports with at least 20 participants at baseline through a search of databases (Medline and PsycInfo) and handsearching of articles published from 2002 to October 2007. If longitudinal data were not available or were scarce for a particular topic or time point, cross-sectional studies were reviewed. Results: Although physical, psychological, and social aspects of quality of life tend to improve during the years following transplantation, a significant proportion of HSCT survivors experience persistent anxiety and depressive symptoms, fatigue, sexual dysfunction, and fertility concerns. Despite ongoing treatment side effects, the majority of HSCT survivors resume their work, school, or household activities. Conclusion: We conclude that theory-driven research with larger samples is needed to identify subgroups of HSCT survivors with adjustment difficulties. Such research would examine survivors' evolving standards and definitions of quality of life to improve the accuracy and meaningfulness of assessment and incorporate biological, psychological, and contextual factors that may contribute to positive adjustment. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Quality of life concerns and depression among hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors

Purpose This study examined quality of life, transplant-related concerns, and depressive symptoms and their demographic and medical correlates at 1 to 3 years following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Methods HSCT survivors (N = 406) completed telephone-administered questionnaires that assessed demographic variables, functional status, quality of life, transplant-related concerns, and depressive symptoms. Results The most prevalent concerns among HSCT survivors included physical symptoms (e.g., fatigue and pain), maintaining current health status and employment, changes in appearance, and lack of sexual interest and satisfaction. In addition, almost one-third (32%) of survivors age 40 years and younger reported concern about their ability to have children. Unemployed survivors and those with lower incomes and worse functional status were more likely to experience poorer quality of life in multiple domains. Fifteen percent of the sample reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms, and these symptoms were higher among allogeneic transplant recipients and those with lower functional status. Conclusions Results suggest that interventions are needed to address physical symptoms, coping with an uncertain future, infertility, and sexual issues during the early phase of HSCT survivorship

Therapeutic alliance in telephone-administered cognitive–behavioral therapy for hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors.

A strong therapeutic alliance has been found to predict psychotherapeutic treatment success across a variety of therapeutic modalities and patient populations. However, only a few studies have examined therapeutic alliance as a predictor of psychotherapy outcome among cancer survivors, and none have examined this relation in telephone administered cognitive behavioral therapy (T-CBT). This study evaluated the extent to which therapeutic alliance affected psychotherapy outcomes in survivors of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), a treatment for some cancers

Mapping pervasive selective logging in the south-west Brazilian Amazon 2000–2019

Tropical forests harbour the highest biodiversity on the planet and are essential to human livelihoods and the global economy. However, continued loss and degradation of forested landscapes, coupled with a rapidly rising global population is placing incredible pressure on forests globally. The United Nations has developed the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) programme in response to the challenges facing tropical forests and in recognition of the role they can play in climate mitigation. REDD+ requires consistent and reliable monitoring of forests, however, national-level methodologies for measuring degradation are often bespoke and, because of an inability to track degradation effectively, the majority of countries combine reporting for deforestation and forest degradation into a single value. Here, we extend a recent analysis that enabled the detection of selective logging at the scale of a logging concession to a regional-scale estimation of selective logging activities. We utilized logging records from across Brazil to train a supervised classification algorithm for detecting logged pixels in Landsat imagery then predicted the extent of logging over a 20 year period throughout Rondônia, Brazil. Approximately one-quarter of the forested lands in Rondônia were cleared between 2000 and 2019. We estimate that 11.0% of the forest area present in 2000 had been selectively logged by 2019, comprising >11,500 km2 of forest. In general, rates of selective logging were twice as high in the first decade relative to the last decade of the period. Our approach is a considerable advance in developing an operationalized selective logging monitoring system capable of detecting subtle forest disturbances over large spatial scales

Heterogeneity of HIV incidence : a comparative analysis between fishing communities and in a neighbouring rural general population, Uganda, and implications for HIV control

Objectives To describe HIV heterogeneity in rural Uganda using incidence data collected between January 2012 and December 2014 among fishing cohort (FC) and in an adjacent rural general population cohort (GPC). Methods In the FC, eligible HIV high-risk adults aged 18+ years were enrolled, followed and HIV tested every 3 months. Demographic and sexual behaviour data were also collected. The GPC, approximately 47 km away from the FC, was followed through annual surveys, and sociodemographic and behavioural data collected. A subset of GPC with comparable risk profiles to the FC was selected. We presented sociodemographic and risk profiles and also computed stratified HIV incidence. Cox regression was used to assess factors associated with HIV incidence. Results Overall HIV incidence was higher in the FC than in the ‘high-risk’ GPC, 6.04 and 0.56 per 100 person years at risk, respectively, with a rate ratio (RR) of 10.83 (95% CI 6.11 to 19.76). This was higher among those aged 18–24 years, unmarried and those with more than two sex partners in the past year, RR of 15.44, 22.99 and 19.29, respectively. In the FC, factors associated with high incidence in multivariate analysis were duration in the community and unprotected sex. The factors in the GPC were ethnicity, marital status and duration in the community. Conclusions We have observed a substantial heterogeneity in HIV incidence. The high incidence in fishing communities is contributing greatly to the overall HIV burden in Uganda, and thus urgent combination prevention efforts are needed towards national goal to reduce HIV epidemic

Family Planning Decisions, Perceptions and Gender Dynamics among Couples in Mwanza, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study.

Contraceptive use is low in developing countries which are still largely driven by male dominated culture and patriarchal values. This study explored family planning (FP) decisions, perceptions and gender dynamics among couples in Mwanza region of Tanzania. Twelve focus group discussions and six in-depth interviews were used to collect information from married or cohabiting males and females aged 18-49. The participants were purposively selected. Qualitative methods were used to explore family planning decisions, perceptions and gender dynamics among couples. A guide with questions related to family planning perceptions, decisions and gender dynamics was used. The discussions and interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analyzed manually and subjected to content analysis. Four themes emerged during the study. First, "risks and costs" which refer to the side effects of FP methods and the treatment of side -effects as well as the costs inherit in being labeled as an unfaithful spouse. Second, "male involvement" as men showed little interest in participating in family planning issues. However, the same men were mentioned as key decision-makers even on the number of children a couple should have and the child spacing of these children. Third, "gender relations and communication" as participants indicated that few women participated in decision-making on family planning and the number of children to have. Fourth, "urban-rural differences", life in rural favoring having more children than urban areas therefore, the value of children depended on the place of residence. Family Planning programs should adapt the promotion of communication as well as joint decision-making on FP among couples as a strategy aimed at enhancing FP use