A contribution to the limnology of Swartvlei: the effect of physico-chemical factors upon primary and secondary production in the pelagic zone

From Resumé: The effect of physico-chemical factors on the biology of the upper reaches of Swartvlei has been investigated during 1971-1972. Physico-chemical data have shown that Swartvlei was characterized by an extremely labile ectogenic meromixis. This instability was due to three factors : (1) the inflow of freshwater, (2) the inflow of sea water, and (3) wind stress. The magnitude of the effects of these factors upon the physics, chemistry and biology of the upper reaches was dependent upon whether or not the estuary mouth was open or closed. The phytoplankton of the pelagic zone of Swartvlei was dominated by nannoplankton. Three major categories were recorded: dinoflagellates, flagellates and diatoms. The major factor regulating their productivity in the upper reaches was light. As a result of humate staining and suspended detrital matter light conditions in Swartvlei were comparable to those in extremely eutrophic northern hemisphere lakes. A maximum integral primary productivity of 39.66 mg C m⁻² h⁻¹ was recorded in November 1972. The aerobic heterotrophic bacterial population in Swartvlei was usually less than 300 col. ml⁻¹ (plate counts). The activity of the total microbial population was measured with ¹⁴C techniques. Uptake of acetate was dominated by flagellates and one species of dinoflagellate when they were present. Glucose uptake was due to bacteria as was acetate uptake in the absence of heterotrophic phytoplankton. Glucose uptake was usually greatest in the anaerobic zone. This, and the presence of H₂S, suggested that a large active photosynthetic and chemosynthetic bacterial population may have been present in the monimolimnion. The possible importance of these bacterial processes in the total productivity of the pelagic zone of Swartvlei was discussed. Daytime zooplankton population size was statistically correlated with the size of the flagellate population. The zooplankton was dominated by Acartia and Halicyclops. These two animals were found in the anaerobic bottom of Swartvlei after October 1971. This corresponded to the disappearance of the flagellate population from the water column. The dominance of these animals in the zooplankton population may have been related to their ability to live in anaerobic water where the bacterial population appeared to be considerably more abundant than in the aerobic zone. Further implications of the results are discussed in reference to phytoplankton cell size and heterotrophy indicating a possible adaptive significance of these factors in Swartvlei

Professional duties are now considered legal duties of care within genomic medicine

Abstract: The legal duty to protect patient confidentiality is common knowledge amongst healthcare professionals. However, what may not be widely known, is that this duty is not always absolute. In the United Kingdom, both the General Medical Council governing the practice of all doctors, as well as many other professional codes of practice recognise that, under certain circumstances, it may be appropriate to break confidentiality. This arises when there is a wider duty to protect the health of others, and when the risk of non-disclosure outweighs the potential harm from breaking confidentiality. We discuss this situation specifically in relation to genomic medicine where relatives in a family may have differing views on the sharing of familial genetic information. Overruling a patient’s wishes is predicated on balancing the duty of care towards the patient versus protecting their relative from serious harm. We discuss the practice implications of a pivotal legal case that concluded recently in the High Court of Justice in England and Wales, ABC v St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust & Ors. Professional guidance is already clear that genetic healthcare professionals must undertake a balancing exercise to weigh up contradictory duties of care. However, the judge has provided a new legal weighting to these professional duties: ‘The scope of the duty extends not only to conducting the necessary balancing exercise but also to acting in accordance with its outcome’ [1: 189]. In the context of genomic medicine, this has important consequences for clinical practice

Professional duties are now considered legal duties of care within genomic medicine

Abstract: The legal duty to protect patient confidentiality is common knowledge amongst healthcare professionals. However, what may not be widely known, is that this duty is not always absolute. In the United Kingdom, both the General Medical Council governing the practice of all doctors, as well as many other professional codes of practice recognise that, under certain circumstances, it may be appropriate to break confidentiality. This arises when there is a wider duty to protect the health of others, and when the risk of non-disclosure outweighs the potential harm from breaking confidentiality. We discuss this situation specifically in relation to genomic medicine where relatives in a family may have differing views on the sharing of familial genetic information. Overruling a patient’s wishes is predicated on balancing the duty of care towards the patient versus protecting their relative from serious harm. We discuss the practice implications of a pivotal legal case that concluded recently in the High Court of Justice in England and Wales, ABC v St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust & Ors. Professional guidance is already clear that genetic healthcare professionals must undertake a balancing exercise to weigh up contradictory duties of care. However, the judge has provided a new legal weighting to these professional duties: ‘The scope of the duty extends not only to conducting the necessary balancing exercise but also to acting in accordance with its outcome’ [1: 189]. In the context of genomic medicine, this has important consequences for clinical practice

Water quality monitoring in the former Soviet Union and the Russian Federation : Assessment of analytical methods

Monitoring of surface water quality in the former Soviet Union (FSU) and the present-day Russian Federation historically held an important place in the hierarchy of science, legal framework and relations between agencies. Sadly, the gap between the intentions, qualification of managers and effective programmes has always been sizeable. Since disintegration of the FSU this gap has become a formidable barrier for collecting reliable monitoring information and producing effective water quality management decisions in the Russian Federation. Updating the federal system for freshwater quality monitoring in the Russian Federation is complicated by several unresolved problems. The principal issues are political, technical, institutional and financial. The existing Russian model of water chemistry data collection inherited from the FSU has proved unreliable, outdated and unrelated to modern national issues of water management. The quality of produced data is one of the greatest weaknesses of the federal monitoring system both in the Russian Federation and in other states of the FSU. A significant cause of the low reliability of the produced information is the analytical methods used in monitoring, their inappropriate use, non-compliance to laboratory practices when following expert recommendations, insufficient training level of managers and laboratory personnel and under-funding of the federal monitoring system. The growing national priorities in the field of surface water quality control and improvement conflict with the capacity of the Russian Federation to provide necessary information of guaranteed high quality. Here we make the first attempt to present a critical analysis of the analytical methods used to assess and control surface water quality, to show the main errors arising when applying the recommended analytical methods, and to assess the degree of reliability of produced monitoring information from 1977-1978 and to the present. Our overall objective is to summarize the current situation in order to facilitate implementation of future improvements

Members of the public in the USA, UK, Canada and Australia expressing genetic exceptionalism say they are more willing to donate genomic data

Funder: State Government of Victoria (Victorian Government); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004752Funder: Victorian State GovernmentAbstract: Public acceptance is critical for sharing of genomic data at scale. This paper examines how acceptance of data sharing pertains to the perceived similarities and differences between DNA and other forms of personal data. It explores the perceptions of representative publics from the USA, Canada, the UK and Australia (n = 8967) towards the donation of DNA and health data. Fifty-two percent of this public held ‘exceptionalist’ views about genetics (i.e., believed DNA is different or ‘special’ compared to other types of medical information). This group was more likely to be familiar with or have had personal experience with genomics and to perceive DNA information as having personal as well as clinical and scientific value. Those with personal experience with genetics and genetic exceptionalist views were nearly six times more likely to be willing to donate their anonymous DNA and medical information for research than other respondents. Perceived harms from re-identification did not appear to dissuade publics from being willing to participate in research. The interplay between exceptionalist views about genetics and the personal, scientific and clinical value attributed to data would be a valuable focus for future research

Effects of Atmospheric Change and Agriculture on the Biogeochemistry and Microbial Ecology of Prairie Wetlands

Relatively little is known about the factors which regulate in water biogeochemical processes and food chains in prairie wetlands. Climatic warming, increased UV-radiation and agricultural activities will have interacting effects on these wetlands. We examined the effects of these processes on prairie wetland functioning and productivity with particular emphasis on production and cycling of organic carbon, especially dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Autotrophic and heterotrophic production are temperature dependent and temperature increases or decreases could affect production under more extreme climate change scenarios. DOC concentrations could decrease with increasing bacterial production and photolysis, leading to increases in UV-radiation penetration. This is pertinent to prairie wetlands because of their general shallowness. Considering the potential consequences of climatic warming, increased UV-radiation and agricultural activity on biogeochemistry and food chains, it is imperative that we obtain an understanding of the major rate processes in prairie wetlands and how these may be affected by external processes

The Rise of Educational Science in America

223 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1963.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD