Incorporating productive use into water systems in urban Nigeria

Recent studies have shown that millions of lowincome households use their limited water supplies for activities such as productive uses as well as domestic needs. Such productive uses of water may not really thrive or even take off unless the required quantity of water is available. Such activities often generate numerous benefits to households involved. An understanding of how productive uses of water could successfully be mainstreamed into urban water systems in Nigeria was studied. Water supplies to households by the water utilities in Nigeria have traditionally been confined within what is known as domestic water needs. The quantity of water supplied has often been meant to cover basic needs such as drinking, cooking and personal sanitation needs etc. However this has not been a true reflection of the use of this limited amount of water supplied. A social survey was made of households and institutions in Owerri, Nigeria; where productive uses of water is already real, particularly in activities such as home gardening, horticulture and livestock rearing etc. In view of the persisting problem in water supplies in Nigeria, where water utilities such as the Imo State Water Corporation (ISWC) is still enmeshed in intermittent supplies; the paper explores the implications for households, especially the productive water users; alternative water suppliers and the government. The aim is to identify how supply sustainability for these activities could be maximized as a veritable tool vital in the fight against poverty. Given the importance of the urban water system to low income productive water users, a functional and efficient utility as well as an appropriate policy framework has been identified as being imperative in order to maximize income and employment benefits for urban productive water users

African Water: Supporting African involvement in the EU Framework Programme.

Water researchers in developing countries have yet to take full advantage of the funding and collaborative research opportunities presented by the EU Framework Programme. There are a variety of reasons for this, such as insufficient information and a lack of previous experience. The African Water initiative aims to increase the involvement of African water researchers through a range of activities including communication and dissemination, capacity building and development, and complementary initiatives. The project has demonstrated that there is a demand for such sector-specific support activities. However, African Water is a small component of a much larger process of partnership between the developed and the less-developed countries of the world, involving many different European and African organisations working across political, institutional and technical domains, and complementing the wide range of actions already being undertaken

Coupling utility performance targets with catchment management

Institutional reform of state-owned water utilities serving urban areas has often set out to turn them into effective and efficient organisations, so that they can become excellent service providers. However, the pursuit of such objectives, which are often based on commercial targets, woefully ignores efficient catchment management. In view of this, this study reviews the case of the Cross State Water Board (CRSWB) Ltd in Calabar, eastern Nigeria. It identifies the serial neglect of the local watershed as a factor responsible for its operational and maintenance costs. It therefore argues for the need to develop and integrate catchment or ecosystem indicators into overall performance indicators currently used in setting and monitoring performance by the water utility as well as other utilities elsewhere, their owners or regulators. Such socio-ecological considerations as manifest in a catchment, according to the paper, are vital in building appropriate resilience against hazard risks such as flooding, land erosion, land inundation and salt water intrusion which currently plague the CRSWB, hence offering a bold and sustainable road map towards service efficiency and effectiveness for the growing urban population under a variable climate

Irrigation distribution networks' vulnerability to climate change

Climate change will lead to changed demands on ex isting irrigation systems. This paper presents a methodology for investigating the performance of irrigation networks under climate change, and applies this to an irrigation network in Cordoba , southern Spain. The methodology uses emission scenarios (A2 and B2) developed by the Interg overnmental Panel on Climate Change. A global climate model (HadCM3) is used with downscali ng to predict climate variables for 2050 and 2080 under the emission scenarios. Euro pean agricultural policy scenario s are used to predict future cropping patterns. Irrigation water requirements are th en estimated for various combinations of these climate and cropping pattern scenarios, and the perfo rmance of the irrigation network is evaluated in terms of the equity and adequacy of pressure at the outlets, using EPANET. The methodology was applied to the Fuente Palmera irrigation district, which supplies water on-demand for drip irrigation. The results show that climate change would have a major impact on network performance with the existing cropping pattern, but that expected chang es in cropping pattern would reduce this impact

The functional response of a generalist predator

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Quantitative fetal fibronectin and cervical length to predict preterm birth in asymptomatic women with previous cervical surgery.

BACKGROUND: Quantitative fetal fibronectin testing has demonstrated accuracy for prediction of spontaneous preterm birth in asymptomatic women with a history of preterm birth. Predictive accuracy in women with previous cervical surgery (a potentially different risk mechanism) is not known. OBJECTIVE: We sought to compare the predictive accuracy of cervicovaginal fluid quantitative fetal fibronectin and cervical length testing in asymptomatic women with previous cervical surgery to that in women with 1 previous preterm birth. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a prospective blinded secondary analysis of a larger observational study of cervicovaginal fluid quantitative fetal fibronectin concentration in asymptomatic women measured with a Hologic 10Q system (Hologic, Marlborough, MA). Prediction of spontaneous preterm birth (<30, <34, and <37 weeks) with cervicovaginal fluid quantitative fetal fibronectin concentration in primiparous women who had undergone at least 1 invasive cervical procedure (n = 473) was compared with prediction in women who had previous spontaneous preterm birth, preterm prelabor rupture of membranes, or late miscarriage (n = 821). Relationship with cervical length was explored. RESULTS: The rate of spontaneous preterm birth <34 weeks in the cervical surgery group was 3% compared with 9% in previous spontaneous preterm birth group. Receiver operating characteristic curves comparing quantitative fetal fibronectin for prediction at all 3 gestational end points were comparable between the cervical surgery and previous spontaneous preterm birth groups (34 weeks: area under the curve, 0.78 [95% confidence interval 0.64-0.93] vs 0.71 [95% confidence interval 0.64-0.78]; P = .39). Prediction of spontaneous preterm birth using cervical length compared with quantitative fetal fibronectin for prediction of preterm birth <34 weeks of gestation offered similar prediction (area under the curve, 0.88 [95% confidence interval 0.79-0.96] vs 0.77 [95% confidence interval 0.62-0.92], P = .12 in the cervical surgery group; and 0.77 [95% confidence interval 0.70-0.84] vs 0.74 [95% confidence interval 0.67-0.81], P = .32 in the previous spontaneous preterm birth group). CONCLUSION: Prediction of spontaneous preterm birth using cervicovaginal fluid quantitative fetal fibronectin in asymptomatic women with cervical surgery is valid, and has comparative accuracy to that in women with a history of spontaneous preterm birth

IPSE, an abundant egg-secreted protein of the carcinogenic helminth Schistosoma haematobium, promotes proliferation of bladder cancer cells and angiogenesis

Background Schistosoma haematobium, the helminth causing urogenital schistosomiasis, is a known bladder carcinogen. Despite the causal link between S. haematobium and bladder cancer, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. S. haematobium oviposition in the bladder is associated with angiogenesis and urothelial hyperplasia. These changes may be pre-carcinogenic events in the bladder. We hypothesized that the Interleukin-4-inducing principle of Schistosoma mansoni eggs (IPSE), an S. haematobium egg-secreted “infiltrin” protein that enters host cell nuclei to alter cellular activity, is sufficient to induce angiogenesis and urothelial hyperplasia. Methods: Mouse bladders injected with S. haematobium eggs were analyzed via microscopy for angiogenesis and urothelial hyperplasia. Endothelial and urothelial cell lines were incubated with recombinant IPSE protein or an IPSE mutant protein that lacks the native nuclear localization sequence (NLS-) and proliferation measured using CFSE staining and real-time monitoring of cell growth. IPSE’s effects on urothelial cell cycle status was assayed through propidium iodide staining. Endothelial and urothelial cell uptake of fluorophore-labeled IPSE was measured. Findings: Injection of S. haematobium eggs into the bladder triggers angiogenesis, enhances leakiness of bladder blood vessels, and drives urothelial hyperplasia. Wild type IPSE, but not NLS-, increases proliferation of endothelial and urothelial cells and skews urothelial cells towards S phase. Finally, IPSE is internalized by both endothelial and urothelial cells. Interpretation: IPSE drives endothelial and urothelial proliferation, which may depend on internalization of the molecule. The urothelial effects of IPSE depend upon its NLS. Thus, IPSE is a candidate pro-carcinogenic molecule of S. haematobium. Summary Schistosoma haematobium acts as a bladder carcinogen through unclear mechanisms. The S. haematobium homolog of IPSE, a secreted schistosome egg immunomodulatory molecule, enhances angiogenesis and urothelial proliferation, hallmarks of pre-carcinogenesis, suggesting IPSE is a key pro-oncogenic molecule of S. haematobium