Small-Scale Food Animal Production and Antimicrobial Resistance: Mountain, Molehill, or Something in-between?

SummarySmall-scale food animal production is widely practiced around the globe, yet it is often overlooked in terms of the environmental health risks. Evidence suggests that small-scale food animal producers often employ the use of antimicrobials to improve the survival and growth of their animals, and that this practice leads to the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) that can potentially spread to humans. The nature of human-animal interactions in small-scale food animal production systems, generally practiced in and around the home, likely augments spillover events of AMR into the community on a scale that is currently unrecognized and deserves greater attention. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP2116

Determinants of Childhood Zoonotic Enteric Infections in a Semirural Community of Quito, Ecuador.

Domestic animals in the household environment have the potential to affect a child's carriage of zoonotic enteric pathogens and risk of diarrhea. This study examines the risk factors associated with pediatric diarrhea and carriage of zoonotic enteric pathogens among children living in communities where smallholder livestock production is prevalent. We conducted an observational study of children younger than 5 years that included the analysis of child (n = 306) and animal (n = 480) fecal samples for Campylobacter spp., atypical enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Salmonella spp., Yersinia spp., Cryptosporidium parvum, and Giardia lamblia. Among these seven pathogens, Giardia was the most commonly identified pathogen among children and animals in the same household, most of which was found in child-dog pairs. Campylobacter spp. was also relatively common within households, particularly among child-chicken and child-guinea pig pairs. We used multivariable Poisson regression models to assess risk factors associated with a child being positive for at least one zoonotic enteric pathogen or having diarrhea during the last week. Children who interacted with domestic animals-a behavior reported by nearly three-quarters of households owning animals-were at an increased risk of colonization with at least one zoonotic enteric pathogen (prevalence ratio [PR] = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.00-2.42). The risk of diarrhea in the last seven days was elevated but not statistically significant (PR = 2.27, CI: 0.91, 5.67). Interventions that aim to reduce pediatric exposures to enteric pathogens will likely need to be incorporated with approaches that remove animal fecal contamination from the domestic environment and encourage behavior change aimed at reducing children's contact with animal feces through diverse exposure pathways

Soliton pair creation in classical wave scattering

We study classical production of soliton-antisoliton pairs from colliding wave packets in (1+1)-dimensional scalar field model. Wave packets represent multiparticle states in quantum theory; we characterize them by energy E and particle number N. Sampling stochastically over the forms of wave packets, we find the entire region in (E,N) plane which corresponds to classical creation of soliton pairs. Particle number is parametrically large within this region meaning that the probability of soliton-antisoliton pair production in few-particle collisions is exponentially suppressed.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figures, journal version; misprint correcte

Equality of Participation Online Versus Face to Face: Condensed Analysis of the Community Forum Deliberative Methods Demonstration

Online deliberation may provide a more cost-effective and/or less inhibiting environment for public participation than face to face (F2F). But do online methods bias participation toward certain individuals or groups? We compare F2F versus online participation in an experiment affording within-participants and cross-modal comparisons. For English speakers required to have Internet access as a condition of participation, we find no negative effects of online modes on equality of participation (EoP) related to gender, age, or educational level. Asynchronous online discussion appears to improve EoP for gender relative to F2F. Data suggest a dampening effect of online environments on black participants, as well as amplification for whites. Synchronous online voice communication EoP is on par with F2F across individuals. But individual-level EoP is much lower in the online forum, and greater online forum participation predicts greater F2F participation for individuals. Measured rates of participation are compared to self-reported experiences, and other findings are discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 10 tables, to appear in Efthimios Tambouris, Panos Panagiotopoulos, {\O}ystein S{\ae}b{\o}, Konstantinos Tarabanis, Michela Milano, Theresa Pardo, and Maria Wimmer (Editors), Electronic Participation: Proceedings of the 7th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, ePart 2015 (Thessaloniki, August 30-September 2), Springer LNCS Vol. 9249, 201

Docetaxel-carboplatin as first line chemotherapy for epithelial ovarian cancer

A prospective, non-randomized, multicentre, open, dose-finding study of a carboplatin-docetaxel (C-D) combination as first-line chemotherapy in FIGO stage Ic–IV epithelial ovarian cancer. C-D was given 3-weekly for 6 planned cycles, with a 3-day prophylactic dexamethasone regimen (8 mg b.i.d.). 139 eligible patients (Pts) (median age 56 years, range 28–85) were given a total of 750 cycles of chemotherapy in 5 cohorts: Co1, 32 pts, 169 cycles (C at AUC 5 + D 60 mg/m2); Co2, 22 pts, 122 cycles (5 + 75), Co3, 29 pts, 156 cycles (6 + 75), Co4, 27 pts, 146 cycles (7 + 75), Co5, 30 pts, 157 cycles (6 + 85). 110 patients (79%) completed 6 cycles; 17 (12%) stopped due to toxicity. 104 patients (75%) had CTC grade IV neutropenia, and 5 patients (4%) had this associated with fever. There were 2 probable treatment-related deaths. Only 8 patients (6%) experienced grade II–III neurotoxicity (all sensory; no motor > grade I). The maximum tolerated dose was reached in cohorts 4 and 5, and the dose limiting toxicities were myelosuppression and diarrhoea. The overall response rate for the study was 66% (49/74); CA125 response was 75% (70/93). Median progression-free survival was 16.6 months (95% CI 13.3–19.1). Recommended doses are carboplatin AUC 5 (via51 Cr EDTA) or AUC 6 (if calculated) plus docetaxel 75 mg/m2. A randomized trial comparing this regimen with carboplatin-paclitaxel has just completed recruitment. © 2001 Cancer Research Campaign http://www.bjcancer.co

Willingness to participate in future HIV prevention studies among gay and bisexual men in Scotland, UK: a challenge for intervention trials

This article examines willingness to participate in future HIV prevention research among gay and bisexual men in Scotland, UK. Anonymous, self-complete questionnaires and Orasure Gäó oral fluid samples were collected in commercial gay venues. 1,320 men were eligible for inclusion. 78.2% reported willingness to participate in future HIV prevention research; 64.6% for an HIV vaccine, 57.4% for a behaviour change study, and 53.0% for a rectal microbicide. In multivariate analysis, for HIV vaccine research, greater age, minority ethnicity, and not providing an oral fluid sample were associated with lower willingness; heterosexual orientation and not providing an oral fluid sample were for microbicides; higher education and greater HIV treatment optimism were for behaviour change. STI testing remained associated with being more willing to participate in microbicide research and frequent gay scene use remained associated with being more willing to participate in behaviour change research. Having an STI in the past 12 months remained significantly associated with being willing to participate in all three study types. There were no associations between sexual risk behaviour and willingness. Although most men expressed willingness to participate in future research, recruitment of high-risk men, who have the potential to benefit most, is likely to be more challenging

The NeuARt II system: a viewing tool for neuroanatomical data based on published neuroanatomical atlases

BACKGROUND: Anatomical studies of neural circuitry describing the basic wiring diagram of the brain produce intrinsically spatial, highly complex data of great value to the neuroscience community. Published neuroanatomical atlases provide a spatial framework for these studies. We have built an informatics framework based on these atlases for the representation of neuroanatomical knowledge. This framework not only captures current methods of anatomical data acquisition and analysis, it allows these studies to be collated, compared and synthesized within a single system. RESULTS: We have developed an atlas-viewing application ('NeuARt II') in the Java language with unique functional properties. These include the ability to use copyrighted atlases as templates within which users may view, save and retrieve data-maps and annotate them with volumetric delineations. NeuARt II also permits users to view multiple levels on multiple atlases at once. Each data-map in this system is simply a stack of vector images with one image per atlas level, so any set of accurate drawings made onto a supported atlas (in vector graphics format) could be uploaded into NeuARt II. Presently the database is populated with a corpus of high-quality neuroanatomical data from the laboratory of Dr Larry Swanson (consisting 64 highly-detailed maps of PHAL tract-tracing experiments, made up of 1039 separate drawings that were published in 27 primary research publications over 17 years). Herein we take selective examples from these data to demonstrate the features of NeuArt II. Our informatics tool permits users to browse, query and compare these maps. The NeuARt II tool operates within a bioinformatics knowledge management platform (called 'NeuroScholar') either as a standalone or a plug-in application. CONCLUSION: Anatomical localization is fundamental to neuroscientific work and atlases provide an easily-understood framework that is widely used by neuroanatomists and non-neuroanatomists alike. NeuARt II, the neuroinformatics tool presented here, provides an accurate and powerful way of representing neuroanatomical data in the context of commonly-used brain atlases for visualization, comparison and analysis. Furthermore, it provides a framework that supports the delivery and manipulation of mapped data either as a standalone system or as a component in a larger knowledge management system

Quantifying children's aggregate (dietary and residential) exposure and dose to permethrin: application and evaluation of EPA's probabilistic SHEDS-Multimedia model

Reliable, evaluated human exposure and dose models are important for understanding the health risks from chemicals. A case study focusing on permethrin was conducted because of this insecticide's widespread use and potential health effects. SHEDS-Multimedia was applied to estimate US population permethrin exposures for 3- to 5-year-old children from residential, dietary, and combined exposure routes, using available dietary consumption data, food residue data, residential concentrations, and exposure factors. Sensitivity and uncertainty analyses were conducted to identify key factors, pathways, and research needs. Model evaluation was conducted using duplicate diet data and biomonitoring data from multiple field studies, and comparison to other models. Key exposure variables were consumption of spinach, lettuce, and cabbage; surface-to-skin transfer efficiency; hand mouthing frequency; fraction of hand mouthed; saliva removal efficiency; fraction of house treated; and usage frequency. For children in households using residential permethrin, the non-dietary exposure route was most important, and when all households were included, dietary exposure dominated. SHEDS-Multimedia model estimates compared well to real-world measurements data; this exposure assessment tool can enhance human health risk assessments and inform children's health research. The case study provides insights into children's aggregate exposures to permethrin and lays the foundation for a future cumulative pyrethroid pesticides risk assessment