Life cycle assessment of biosolids land application and evaluation of the factors impacting human toxicity through plants uptake

Due to the increasing environmental concerns in the wastewater treatment sector, the environmental impacts of organic waste disposal procedures require careful evaluation. However, the impacts related to the return of organic matter to agricultural soils are difficult to assess. The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of land application of two types of biosolids (dried and composted, respectively) from the same wastewater treatment plant in France, and to improve the quantification of human toxicity. A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was carried out on a case study based on validated data from an actual wastewater treatment plant. Numerous impacts were included in this analysis, but a particular emphasis was laid on human toxicity via plant ingestion. For six out of the height impact categories included in the analysis, the dried biosolids system was more harmful to the environment than the composting route, especially regarding the consumption of primary energy. Only human toxicity via water, soil and air compartments and ozone depletion impacts were higher with the composted biosolids

End point determination for spent nuclear fuel drying operations

When spent nuclear fuel is being dried ahead of either interim storage or long term disposal it is necessary to be able to confirm that the required level of dryness has been achieved. This has typically involved a vacuum rebound test however this method has certain limitations in terms of both reliability of the result and also by introducing an additional step that is time consuming and depending on the drying system used requires additional equipment at high system cost. It would be preferable if the end point and requisite dryness could be confirmed from online data readings recorded during the drying process. This paper presents the results of a number of vacuum drying tests using a benchtop drying rig in which online dew point, temperature, pressure and mass flow rate readings were compared to the results of vacuum rebound tests. Mass flow rate, pressure and dew point readings all showed cliff edge behaviour as the drying process progressed. Flow rate provided a good indicator of progress however it was clear from the behaviour that the resolution of the instrument was not sufficient to confirm dryness. Neither pressure nor dew point readings alone were capable of indicating whether a test would be passed successfully however it was found that in combination an envelope existed in which a vacuum rebound test was always passed. Testing of the same techniques for flowed gas drying methods was limited due to the lack of a suitable way of confirming whether dryness was achieved however there was an indication that dew point measurements would be capable of confirming that a set level of dryness had been achieved

Interferon Alpha Induces Sustained Changes in NK Cell Responsiveness to Hepatitis B Viral Load Suppression In Vivo

This work was supported by funding from The NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowship scheme and a Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Training fellowship (107389/Z/15/Z) awarded to USG; a Wellcome Trust Senior Investigator award (101848/Z/ 13/Z) to MKM and a Barts and The London Charity award (No. 723/1795) to PTFK

Dramatic Increases in Obesity and Overweight Prevalence and Body Mass Index Among Ethnic-Immigrant and Social Class Groups in the United States, 1976–2008

This study examined trends in US obesity and overweight prevalence and body mass index (BMI) among 30 immigrant groups, stratified by race/ethnicity and length of immigration, and among detailed education, occupation, and income/poverty groups from 1976 to 2008. Using 1976–2008 National Health Interview Surveys, differentials in obesity, overweight, and BMI, based on self-reported height and weight, were analyzed by using disparity indices, logistic, and linear regression. The obesity prevalence for the US population aged ≥18 tripled from 8.7% in 1976 to 27.4% in 2008. Overweight prevalence increased from 36.9% in 1976 to 62.0% in 2008. During 1991–2008, obesity prevalence for US-born adults increased from 13.9 to 28.7%, while prevalence for immigrants increased from 9.5 to 20.7%. While immigrants in each ethnic group and time period had lower obesity and overweight prevalence and BMI than the US-born, immigrants’ risk of obesity and overweight increased with increasing duration of residence. In 2003–2008, obesity prevalence ranged from 2.3% for recent Chinese immigrants to 31–39% for American Indians, US-born blacks, Mexicans, and Puerto Ricans, and long-term Mexican and Puerto Rican immigrants. Between 1976 and 2008, the obesity prevalence more than quadrupled for those with a college education or sales occupation. Although higher prevalence was observed for lower education, income, and occupation levels in each period, socioeconomic gradients in obesity and overweight decreased over time because of more rapid increases in prevalence among higher socioeconomic groups. Continued immigrant and socioeconomic disparities in prevalence will likely have substantial impacts on future obesity trends in the US

TRAIL regulatory receptors constrain human hepatic stellate cell apoptosis

This work was funded by UCLH NIHR BRC (sample collection), Wellcome Trust Investigator award (MKM) and Clinical Research Training Fellowship (USG); Medical Research Council grant (MKM) and Clinician Scientist Fellowship (DP); EASL fellowship (IO); National Health and Medical Research Council Australia (KPS)

Conceptualizing pathways linking women's empowerment and prematurity in developing countries.

BackgroundGlobally, prematurity is the leading cause of death in children under the age of 5. Many efforts have focused on clinical approaches to improve the survival of premature babies. There is a need, however, to explore psychosocial, sociocultural, economic, and other factors as potential mechanisms to reduce the burden of prematurity. Women's empowerment may be a catalyst for moving the needle in this direction. The goal of this paper is to examine links between women's empowerment and prematurity in developing settings. We propose a conceptual model that shows pathways by which women's empowerment can affect prematurity and review and summarize the literature supporting the relationships we posit. We also suggest future directions for research on women's empowerment and prematurity.MethodsThe key words we used for empowerment in the search were "empowerment," "women's status," "autonomy," and "decision-making," and for prematurity we used "preterm," "premature," and "prematurity." We did not use date, language, and regional restrictions. The search was done in PubMed, Population Information Online (POPLINE), and Web of Science. We selected intervening factors-factors that could potentially mediate the relationship between empowerment and prematurity-based on reviews of the risk factors and interventions to address prematurity and the determinants of those factors.ResultsThere is limited evidence supporting a direct link between women's empowerment and prematurity. However, there is evidence linking several dimensions of empowerment to factors known to be associated with prematurity and outcomes for premature babies. Our review of the literature shows that women's empowerment may reduce prematurity by (1) preventing early marriage and promoting family planning, which will delay age at first pregnancy and increase interpregnancy intervals; (2) improving women's nutritional status; (3) reducing domestic violence and other stressors to improve psychological health; and (4) improving access to and receipt of recommended health services during pregnancy and delivery to help prevent prematurity and improve survival of premature babies.ConclusionsWomen's empowerment is an important distal factor that affects prematurity through several intervening factors. Improving women's empowerment will help prevent prematurity and improve survival of preterm babies. Research to empirically show the links between women's empowerment and prematurity is however needed

Vapour transfer in unsaturated compacted bentonite

Results of an experimental and theoretical investigation of heat and moisture movement in unsaturated MX-80 bentonite are presented. A thermo-hydraulic cell that allows measurement of transient temperatures and facilitates the determination of pseudo-transients of moisture content, dry density and chemical composition has been used to perform thermal gradient tests. Results of a number of tests are presented, and observation of the accumulation of chloride ions near the hot end clearly indicates that there is a cycle of vapour and liquid moisture movement, with vapour moving from hotter to cooler regions, condensing, and then moving as liquid towards the hotter regions. An empirical method is applied to calculate approximate vapour fluxes using measured variations in chloride ion concentration and moisture content with time. The vapour fluxes calculated empirically are found to be lower than those determined by some existing vapour flow theories. Subsequently, an existing vapour flow model is modified to represent the observed vapour fluxes more closely

Therapeutic tissue regenerative nanohybrids self-assembled from bioactive inorganic core / chitosan shell nanounits

Natural inorganic/organic nanohybrids are a fascinating model in biomaterials design due to their ultra-microstructure and extraordinary properties. Here, we report unique-structured nanohybrids through self-assembly of biomedical inorganic/organic nanounits, composed of bioactive inorganic nanoparticle core (hydroxyapatite, bioactive glass, or mesoporous silica) and chitosan shell - namely Chit@IOC. The inorganic core thin-shelled with chitosan could constitute as high as 90%, strikingly contrasted with the conventional composites. The Chit@IOC nanohybrids were highly resilient under cyclic load and resisted external stress almost an order of magnitude effectively than the conventional composites. The nanohybrids, with the nano-roughened surface topography, could accelerate the cellular responses through stimulated integrin-mediated focal adhesions. The nanohybrids were also able to load multiple therapeutic molecules in the core and shell compartment and then release sequentially, demonstrating controlled delivery systems. The nanohybrids compartmentally-loaded with therapeutic molecules (dexamethasone, fibroblast growth factor 2, and phenamil) were shown to stimulate the anti-inflammatory, pro-angiogenic and osteogenic events of relevant cells. When implanted in the in vivo calvarium defect model with 3D-printed scaffold forms, the therapeutic nanohybrids were proven to accelerate new bone formation. Overall, the nanohybrids self-assembled from Chit@IOC nanounits, with their unique properties (ultrahigh inorganic content, nano-topography, high resilience, multiple-therapeutics delivery, and cellular activation), can be considered as promising 3D tissue regenerative platforms

First insights into the phylogenetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Nepal

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem in Nepal. Strain variation in Mycobacterium tuberculosis may influence the outcome of TB infection and disease. To date, the phylogenetic diversity of M. tuberculosis in Nepal is unknown. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We analyzed 261 M. tuberculosis isolates recovered from pulmonary TB patients recruited between August 2009 and August 2010 in Nepal. M. tuberculosis lineages were determined by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) typing and spoligotyping. Drug resistance was determined by sequencing the hot spot regions of the relevant target genes. Overall, 164 (62.8%) TB patients were new, and 97 (37.2%) were previously treated. Any drug resistance was detected in 50 (19.2%) isolates, and 16 (6.1%) were multidrug-resistant. The most frequent M. tuberculosis lineage was Lineage 3 (CAS/Delhi) with 106 isolates (40.6%), followed by Lineage 2 (East-Asian lineage, includes Beijing genotype) with 84 isolates (32.2%), Lineage 4 (Euro-American lineage) with 41 (15.7%) isolates, and Lineage 1 (Indo-Oceanic lineage) with 30 isolates (11.5%). Based on spoligotyping, we found 45 different spoligotyping patterns that were previously described. The Beijing (83 isolates, 31.8%) and CAS spoligotype (52, 19.9%) were the dominant spoligotypes. A total of 36 (13.8%) isolates could not be assigned to any known spoligotyping pattern. Lineage 2 was associated with female sex (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.58, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.42-4.67, p = 0.002), and any drug resistance (aOR 2.79; 95% CI 1.43-5.45; p = 0.002). We found no evidence for an association of Lineage 2 with age or BCG vaccination status. CONCLUSIONS: We found a large genetic diversity of M. tuberculosis in Nepal with representation of all four major lineages. Lineages 3 and 2 were dominating. Lineage 2 was associated with clinical characteristics. This study fills an important gap on the map of the M. tuberculosis genetic diversity in the Asian reg

Development and validation of a high-density SNP genotyping array for African Oil Palm

High-density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping arrays are powerful tools that can measure the level of genetic polymorphism within a population. To develop a whole-genome SNP array for oil palms, SNP discovery was performed using deep resequencing of eight libraries derived from 132 Elaeis guineensis and Elaeis oleifera palms belonging to 59 origins, resulting in the discovery of >3 million putative SNPs. After SNP filtering, the Illumina OP200K custom array was built with 170 860 successful probes. Phenetic clustering analysis revealed that the array could distinguish between palms of different origins in a way consistent with pedigree records. Genome-wide linkage disequilibrium declined more slowly for the commercial populations (ranging from 120 kb at r2 = 0.43 to 146 kb at r2 = 0.50) when compared with the semi-wild populations (19.5 kb at r2 = 0.22). Genetic fixation mapping comparing the semi-wild and commercial population identified 321 selective sweeps. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) detected a significant peak on chromosome 2 associated with the polygenic component of the shell thickness trait (based on the trait shell-to-fruit; S/F %) in tenera palms. Testing of a genomic selection model on the same trait resulted in good prediction accuracy (r = 0.65) with 42% of the S/F%variation explained. The first high-density SNP genotyping array for oil palm has been developed and shown to be robust for use in genetic studies and with potential for developing early trait prediction to shorten the oil palm breeding cycle