Zooplankton stresnih područja uzduž obale Damietta (Egipat) u Sredozemnom moru

The spatial pattern of zooplankton communities at Damietta coast, southeastern Mediterranean was studied to assess the impact of human activities on the abundance and community structure. Twenty-five stations from five different stressed sites were sampled in June-July 2014. Thirty-four zooplankton taxa were recorded, in addition to the larvae of copepods and meroplankton. Copepoda was the most abundant group among which, Oithona nana, Euterpina acutifrons, and Parvocalanus cirrostratus were the most frequent. The calanoid copepod Pseudodiaptomus trihamatus is a new record for the Mediterranean Sea that may have been introduced via ballast water. Multivariate/Univariate analyses demonstrated that 1) the environmental variables and zooplankton communities represented significant differences among five sites; 2) the spatial variations of community structure were undoubtedly due to land-based effluents; and 3) among all environmental variables, salinity and phytoplankton biomass had the major determining effects on the spatial patterns of zooplankton categories. The results indicates that not only the discharged water makes the Damietta coast at risk, but also the ballast water is not less dangerous. Hence, we emphasize the need for activation of the ballast water management to reduce the risk of future species invasions.Istraživana je prostorna struktura zooplanktonskih zajednica na obali Damietta (Egipat, jugoistočni Mediteran) kako bi se procijenio utjecaj ljudskih aktivnosti na obilje i strukturu zajednice. U lipnju i srpnju 2014. uzorkovano je na dvadeset pet postaja s pet različitih mjesta izloženih zagađenju. Uz larve veslonožaca i meroplanktona zabilježene su 34 zooplanktonske vrste.Veslonošci se bili najbrojnija skupina među kojima su najčešći Oithona nana, Euterpina acutifrons i Parvocalanus cirrostratus. Kalanoidni veslonožac Pseudodiaptomus trihamatus je novi nalaz za Sredozemno more, a vjerojatno je da je možda unesen putem balastnih voda. Multivarijatne / jednosmjerne analize pokazale su da 1) varijable okoliša i zooplanktonske zajednice predstavljaju značajne razlike između pet mjesta; 2) prostorne varijacije strukture zajednice nedvojbeno su posljedica tehnoloških otpadnih voda (pročišćenih i nepročišćenih) sa kopna; i 3) između svih varijablia okoliša, saliniteta i biomase fitoplanktona imali su glavne utjecaje na prostorne obrasce kategorija zooplanktona. Rezultati pokazuju da je samo ne ispuštena voda rizična za obalu Damiette, već i balastna voda, koja nije nimalo manje opasna. Stoga se naglašava potreba za aktivacijom upravljanja balastnim vodama kako bi se smanjio rizik unosa invazivnih vrsta

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with paediatric cancer in low-income, middle-income and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, observational cohort study

OBJECTIVES: Paediatric cancer is a leading cause of death for children. Children in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) were four times more likely to die than children in high-income countries (HICs). This study aimed to test the hypothesis that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected the delivery of healthcare services worldwide, and exacerbated the disparity in paediatric cancer outcomes between LMICs and HICs. DESIGN: A multicentre, international, collaborative cohort study. SETTING: 91 hospitals and cancer centres in 39 countries providing cancer treatment to paediatric patients between March and December 2020. PARTICIPANTS: Patients were included if they were under the age of 18 years, and newly diagnosed with or undergoing active cancer treatment for Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, Wilms' tumour, sarcoma, retinoblastoma, gliomas, medulloblastomas or neuroblastomas, in keeping with the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: All-cause mortality at 30 days and 90 days. RESULTS: 1660 patients were recruited. 219 children had changes to their treatment due to the pandemic. Patients in LMICs were primarily affected (n=182/219, 83.1%). Relative to patients with paediatric cancer in HICs, patients with paediatric cancer in LMICs had 12.1 (95% CI 2.93 to 50.3) and 7.9 (95% CI 3.2 to 19.7) times the odds of death at 30 days and 90 days, respectively, after presentation during the COVID-19 pandemic (p<0.001). After adjusting for confounders, patients with paediatric cancer in LMICs had 15.6 (95% CI 3.7 to 65.8) times the odds of death at 30 days (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected paediatric oncology service provision. It has disproportionately affected patients in LMICs, highlighting and compounding existing disparities in healthcare systems globally that need addressing urgently. However, many patients with paediatric cancer continued to receive their normal standard of care. This speaks to the adaptability and resilience of healthcare systems and healthcare workers globally

Twelve-month observational study of children with cancer in 41 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Childhood cancer is a leading cause of death. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted childhood cancer mortality. In this study, we aimed to establish all-cause mortality rates for childhood cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the factors associated with mortality