Bacterial Source Tracking to Support the Development and Implementation of Watershed Protection Plans for the Lampasas and Leon Rivers: Lampasas River Watershed Final Report

The Bacterial Source Tracking to Support the Development and Implementation of Watershed Protection Plans for the Lampasas and Leon Rivers project was developed to provide supplemental information to stakeholders engaged in the development and implementation of watershed protection plans for each watershed. The Leon River is listed as an impaired water body for elevated levels of E. coli and does not support its designated contact recreation use. The Lampasas River was also considered impaired for elevated E. coli levels until 2010 when it was determined that the data listing the segment no longer met the state’s criteria for assessment. Through the watershed protection planning process, stakeholders in each watershed will use adaptive management to refine management strategies that will mitigate bacteria loading from potential sources of pollution within the watershed

Characterization of the effluent from an intensive marine recirculating system for the culture of fin fish, and studies on effluent based culture of microalgae

Intensive recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) routinely discharge effluent that, while relatively small in volume, is particularly enriched in nutrients. The objectives of this study were two-fold; to characterize the wastes produced by an intensive marine RAS for southern flounder, and to evaluate the effluent as a nutritive base for marine algal production. Effluent from UNCW’s pilot scale RAS, containing a population of southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma) was collected monthly for a period of one year and analyzed for total phosphorous, total nitrogen, phosphate, ammonia, nitrate/nitrite, solids and biological oxygen demand. The results of this characterization revealed an effluent high in dissolved phosphorous and dissolved nitrogen concentrations. Secondary to this characterization, studies were performed to determine if this effluent would support the growth of microalgae, and if this microalgae growth would reduce the nutrient concentrations within the effluent. Laboratory-scale experiments were performed utilizing this effluent as a nutrient base for the production of Isochrysis galbana and indigenous plankton from the coastal waters of southeastern North Carolina. Four different nutrient media were used to compare the marine RAS effluent in 50 and 100% strengths to a commercial media (Guillard’s f/2) and a nutrient free seawater control. These cultures were monitored for algal growth as well as reduction in nutrient concentrations over time. The effluent proved to be a better nutrient source for the production of I. galbana and indigenous plankton than the commercially available media producing higher cell densities and a marked reduction of dissolved nutrients with phytoplankton growth. In addition to these laboratory studies, trials were performed in 1200-L outdoor bioreactors utilizing effluent from the marine RAS for the production of I. galbana and indigenous plankton. Algal growth and nutrient concentrations were measured over time and an increase in algal densities with a concurrent reduction of nutrients was observed. These studies confirmed that the effluent from a marine recirculating aquaculture system for the production of southern flounder provides an excellent nutrient source for the production of the microalgae I. galbana as well as indigenous plankton, and that microalgae was an effective means of reducing the inorganic nutrient loads associated with these fish rearing systems

Impact of Body Mass Index on Incident Hypertension and Diabetes in Chinese Asians, American Whites, and American Blacks: The People's Republic of China Study and the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study

Researchers have hypothesized that the impact of body mass index on chronic disease may be greater in Asians than in Whites; however, most studies are cross-sectional and have no White comparison group. The authors compared the associations with body mass index in Chinese Asians (n = 5,980), American Whites (n = 10,776), and American Blacks (n = 3,582) using prospective data from the People’s Republic of China Study (1983–1994) and the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (1987–1998). Slopes of risk differences over body mass index levels were compared among the three ethnic groups in adjusted analyses. The authors found larger associations with body mass index in Chinese Asians compared with American Whites and Blacks for hypertension (p < 0.05). The increase in the incidence of hypertension associated with a one-unit increase in body mass index over approximately 8 years of follow-up was 2.5, 1.7, and 1.8 percentage points for Chinese Asians, American Whites, and American Blacks, respectively. For diabetes, the estimates were 1.7, 1.1, and 1.6 percentage points for the same groups— higher in Chinese Asians than in American Whites (p < 0.05) but similar between Chinese Asians and American Blacks. Given the ethnic differences in associations, the results support advocacy of public health and medical actions toward obesity prevention and treatment in China

Constraining a Historical Black Carbon Emission Inventory of the United States for 1960–2000

We present an observationally constrained United States black carbon emission inventory with explicit representation of activity and technology between 1960 and 2000. We compare measured coefficient of haze data in California and New Jersey between 1965 and 2000 with predicted concentration trends and attribute discrepancies between observations and predicted concentrations among several sources based on seasonal and weekly patterns in observations. Emission factors for sources with distinct fuel trends are then estimated by comparing fuel and concentration trends and further substantiated by in‐depth examination of emission measurements. We recommend (1) increasing emission factors for preregulation vehicles by 80–250%; (2) increasing emission factors for residential heating stoves and boilers by 70% to 200% for 1980s and before; (3) explicitly representing naturally aspired off‐road engines for 1980s and before; and (4) explicitly representing certified wood stoves after 1985. We also evaluate other possible sources for discrepancy between model and measurement, including bias in modeled meteorology, subgrid spatial heterogeneity of concentrations, and inconsistencies in reported fuel consumption. The updated U.S. emissions are higher than the a priori estimate by 80% between 1960 and 1980, totaling 690 Gg/year in 1960 and 620 Gg/year in 1970 (excluding open burning). The revised inventory shows a strongly decreasing trend that was present in the observations but missing in the a priori inventory.Key PointsSystematic evaluation of long‐term U.S. black carbon observations identifies a small number of poorly estimated emission sourcesUpdated black carbon emission is higher than the previous estimate by 80% for 1960–1980, showing a decreasing trend as found in observationEmission factors for preregulation vehicles, off‐road engines, and residential heating stoves in 1980 and before should be increasedPeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/149266/1/jgrd55339_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/149266/2/jgrd55339.pd

Interactions Between Obesity, Parental History of Hypertension, and Age on Prevalent Hypertension: The People’s Republic of China Study

Age, family history, and body mass index (BMI) influence the prevalence of hypertension, but very little is known about the interplay of these factors in Chinese populations. The authors examined this issue in Chinese adults (n = 4104) in the People’s Republic of China Study. In young adults (24–39 years), the prevalence of hypertension/1000 persons (95% confidence interval [CI]) at the referent BMI was greater among subjects with a parental history of hypertension (35; 15–54) compared with those without (7; 3–11). Among middle-aged (40–71 years) adults, the prevalence of hypertension was similar regardless of parental history; however, the effect of BMI was modified by parental history status. For example, at BMI = 25 kg/m2, the prevalence difference/1000 persons was 375 (95% CI = 245–506) and 97 (95% CI = 51–144) among subjects with and without a parental history, respectively. These large differences call for further investigation of the genetic and environmental factors that could be driving this interaction

Health promotion and screening for people with an intellectual disability

People with intellectual disability have significantly worse health than those without, and have a higher level of complex health needs. The life expectancy for men and women is 13 and 20 years shorter, respectively, than the general population. The increasing role of general practice in delivering and coordinating care across health and social care settings requires expert generalist skills to implement an integrated approach to care. This article explores how general practice can improve the health of people with intellectual disability, by making reasonable adjustments within health promotion, disease prevention, screening and detection

Associations of body mass index with incident hypertension in American white, American black and Chinese Asian adults in early and middle adulthood: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) study

The association of body mass index (BMI) with blood pressure may be stronger in Asian than non-Asian populations, however, longitudinal studies with direct comparisons between ethnicities are lacking. We compared the relationship of BMI with incident hypertension over approximately 9.5 years of follow-up in young (24-39 years) and middle-aged (45-64 years) Chinese Asians (n=5354), American Blacks (n=6076) and American Whites (n=13451). We estimated risk differences using logistic regression models and calculated adjusted incidences and incidence differences. To facilitate comparisons across ethnicities, standardized estimates were calculated using mean covariate values for age, sex, smoking, education and field center, and included the quadratic terms for BMI and age. Weighted least-squares regression models with were constructed to summarize ethnic-specific incidence differences across BMI. Wald statistics and p-values were calculated based on chi-square distributions. The association of BMI with the incidence difference for hypertension was steeper in Chinese (p<0.05) than in American populations during young and middle-adulthood. For example, at a BMI of 25 vs 21 kg/m2 the adjusted incidence differences per 1000 persons (95% CI) in young adults with a BMI of 25 vs those with a BMI of 21 was 83 (36-130) for Chinese, 50 (26-74) for Blacks and 30 (12-48) for Whites; among middle-aged adults it was 137 (77-198) for Chinese, 49 (9-88) for Blacks and 54 (38-69) for Whites. Whether hypertension carries the same level of risk of stroke or cardiovascular disease across national or ethnic groups remains uncertain

Global sea-surface iodide observations, 1967-2018

The marine iodine cycle has significant impacts on air quality and atmospheric chemistry. Specifically, the reaction of iodide with ozone in the top few micrometres of the surface ocean is an important sink for tropospheric ozone (a pollutant gas) and the dominant source of reactive iodine to the atmosphere. Sea surface iodide parameterisations are now being implemented in air quality models, but these are currently a major source of uncertainty. Relatively little observational data is available to estimate the global surface iodide concentrations, and this data has not hitherto been openly available in a collated, digital form. Here we present all available sea surface (<20 m depth) iodide observations. The dataset includes values digitised from published manuscripts, published and unpublished data supplied directly by the originators, and data obtained from repositories. It contains 1342 data points, and spans latitudes from 70°S to 68°N, representing all major basins. The data may be used to model sea surface iodide concentrations or as a reference for future observations