Human Health Implications of Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids in Blubber of the Bowhead Whale (Balaena mysticetus)

Concerns exist regarding the health and nutrition of subsistence-based communities in Alaska. An apparent increase in diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and other disease conditions among Alaska Natives has accompanied their change from a traditional diet to a more “Western” diet. In northern Alaska, the meat, maktak (epidermis and blubber), and other products of bowhead whales provide important components of Native diets. This study assessed the fatty acid constituents of bowhead whale blubber to evaluate their possible health benefits. Working with hunters in Barrow, Alaska, we acquired samples for chemical analysis from five blubber depths at each of six body locations. We used gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of fatty-acid picolinyl esters to confirm the fatty-acid composition of samples. Analyses indicated that bowhead blubber contains relatively high levels of omega-3 fatty acids and that, on average, blubber samples from sites at the umbilical girth contain more omega-3 fatty acids than do samples from a girth 1 m caudal to the blowhole (roughly at the axillary girth). Omega-6 fatty acids were rare or undetectable in all samples. Omega-3 fatty acids have been suggested or shown to be important in the treatment or prevention of many diseases, including elevated blood pressure and cholesterol, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, depression, and some cancers. Beyond the cultural benefits associated with subsistence hunting of bowhead whales, consumption of bowhead whale blubber provides some important health and nutritional benefits.Il existe des inquiétudes quant à la santé et à l’alimentation des collectivités basées sur la subsistance en Alaska. L’augmentation apparente du diabète, des maladies cardiaques, des cas d’obésité et d’autres maladies chez les Autochtones de l’Alaska va de pair avec leur passage d’un régime alimentaire traditionnel à un régime plus « occidental ». Dans le nord de l’Alaska, la viande, maktak (épiderme et petit lard), et d’autres produits de la baleine boréale représentent d’importantes composantes du régime alimentaire des Autochtones. Dans le cadre de cette étude, nous nous sommes penchés sur les composants en acides gras du petit lard de la baleine boréale et ce, afin de déterminer leurs bienfaits possibles sur la santé. De concert avec des chasseurs de Barrow, en Alaska, nous avons prélevé des échantillons de cinq épaisseurs de petit lard provenant de chacun de six endroits différents du corps afin d’en faire l’analyse chimique. Nous avons utilisé la chromatographie en phase gazeuse et la spectrométrie de masse d’esters picoliniques d’acides gras pour confirmer la composition en acides gras des échantillons. Les analyses laissaient supposer que le petit lard de la baleine boréale a une teneur relativement élevée en acides gras oméga-3 et, qu’en moyenne, les échantillons de petit lard provenant des endroits situés à la hauteur ombilicale renferment de plus grandes quantités d’acides gras oméga-3 que les échantillons provenant d’un endroit situé 1 m de la queue jusqu’à l’évent (environ à la hauteur axillaire). Dans tous les échantillons, les acides gras oméga-6 se faisaient rares, voire même indécelables. Certaines recherches portent à croire ou démontrent que les acides gras oméga-3 jouent un rôle important dans le traitement ou la prévention de nombreuses maladies, dont l’hypertension artérielle, le taux de cholestérol élevé, les maladies du coeur, les accidents cérébrovasculaires, le diabète, l’arthrite, la dépression et certains cancers. En plus des avantages culturels liés à la chasse de subsistance de la baleine boréale, la consommation du petit lard de la baleine boréale présente d’importants avantages du point de vue de la santé et de l’alimentation

WFPC2 Observations of Compact Star Cluster Nuclei in Low Luminosity Spiral Galaxies

We have used the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 aboard the Hubble Space Telescope to image the compact star cluster nuclei of the nearby, late-type, low-luminosity spiral galaxies NGC 4395, NGC 4242, and ESO 359-029. We also analyze archival WFPC2 observations of the compact star cluster nucleus of M33. A comparative analysis of the structural and photometric properties of these four nuclei is presented. All of the nuclei are very compact, with luminosity densities increasing at small radii to the resolution limit of our data. NGC 4395 contains a Seyfert 1 nucleus with a distinct bipolar structure and bright associated filaments which are likely due to [OIII] emission. The M33 nucleus has a complex structure, with elongated isophotes and possible signatures of weak activity, including a jet-like component. The other two nuclei are not known to be active, but share similar physical size scales and luminosities to the M33 and NGC 4395 nuclei. The circumnuclear environments of all four of our program galaxies are extremely diffuse, have only low-to-moderate star formation, and appear to be devoid of large quantities of dust. The central gravitational potentials of the galaxies are also quite shallow, making the origin of these types of `naked' nuclei problematic.Comment: to appear in the July 1999 Astronomical Journal; 38 pages (Latex), 5 tables (postscript), 21 figures (gif); postscript versions of the figures may be obtained via anonymous ftp at ftp://ftp.cv.nrao.edu/NRAO-staff/lmatthew/lanl-nucle

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

Outcomes from elective colorectal cancer surgery during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

This study aimed to describe the change in surgical practice and the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on mortality after surgical resection of colorectal cancer during the initial phases of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

Identifying associations between diabetes and acute respiratory distress syndrome in patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure: an analysis of the LUNG SAFE database

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a common co-existing disease in the critically ill. Diabetes mellitus may reduce the risk of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), but data from previous studies are conflicting. The objective of this study was to evaluate associations between pre-existing diabetes mellitus and ARDS in critically ill patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF). Methods: An ancillary analysis of a global, multi-centre prospective observational study (LUNG SAFE) was undertaken. LUNG SAFE evaluated all patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) over a 4-week period, that required mechanical ventilation and met AHRF criteria. Patients who had their AHRF fully explained by cardiac failure were excluded. Important clinical characteristics were included in a stepwise selection approach (forward and backward selection combined with a significance level of 0.05) to identify a set of independent variables associated with having ARDS at any time, developing ARDS (defined as ARDS occurring after day 2 from meeting AHRF criteria) and with hospital mortality. Furthermore, propensity score analysis was undertaken to account for the differences in baseline characteristics between patients with and without diabetes mellitus, and the association between diabetes mellitus and outcomes of interest was assessed on matched samples. Results: Of the 4107 patients with AHRF included in this study, 3022 (73.6%) patients fulfilled ARDS criteria at admission or developed ARDS during their ICU stay. Diabetes mellitus was a pre-existing co-morbidity in 913 patients (22.2% of patients with AHRF). In multivariable analysis, there was no association between diabetes mellitus and having ARDS (OR 0.93 (0.78-1.11); p = 0.39), developing ARDS late (OR 0.79 (0.54-1.15); p = 0.22), or hospital mortality in patients with ARDS (1.15 (0.93-1.42); p = 0.19). In a matched sample of patients, there was no association between diabetes mellitus and outcomes of interest. Conclusions: In a large, global observational study of patients with AHRF, no association was found between diabetes mellitus and having ARDS, developing ARDS, or outcomes from ARDS. Trial registration: NCT02010073. Registered on 12 December 2013

Epidemiology and patterns of tracheostomy practice in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome in ICUs across 50 countries

Background: To better understand the epidemiology and patterns of tracheostomy practice for patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), we investigated the current usage of tracheostomy in patients with ARDS recruited into the Large Observational Study to Understand the Global Impact of Severe Acute Respiratory Failure (LUNG-SAFE) study. Methods: This is a secondary analysis of LUNG-SAFE, an international, multicenter, prospective cohort study of patients receiving invasive or noninvasive ventilation in 50 countries spanning 5 continents. The study was carried out over 4 weeks consecutively in the winter of 2014, and 459 ICUs participated. We evaluated the clinical characteristics, management and outcomes of patients that received tracheostomy, in the cohort of patients that developed ARDS on day 1-2 of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, and in a subsequent propensity-matched cohort. Results: Of the 2377 patients with ARDS that fulfilled the inclusion criteria, 309 (13.0%) underwent tracheostomy during their ICU stay. Patients from high-income European countries (n = 198/1263) more frequently underwent tracheostomy compared to patients from non-European high-income countries (n = 63/649) or patients from middle-income countries (n = 48/465). Only 86/309 (27.8%) underwent tracheostomy on or before day 7, while the median timing of tracheostomy was 14 (Q1-Q3, 7-21) days after onset of ARDS. In the subsample matched by propensity score, ICU and hospital stay were longer in patients with tracheostomy. While patients with tracheostomy had the highest survival probability, there was no difference in 60-day or 90-day mortality in either the patient subgroup that survived for at least 5 days in ICU, or in the propensity-matched subsample. Conclusions: Most patients that receive tracheostomy do so after the first week of critical illness. Tracheostomy may prolong patient survival but does not reduce 60-day or 90-day mortality. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02010073. Registered on 12 December 2013

Improving the Integration of Restoration and Conservation in Marine and Coastal Ecosystems: Lessons from the Deepwater Horizon Disaster

In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, much has been learned about the biological, ecological, physical, and chemical conditions of the Gulf of Mexico. In parallel, the research community has also gained insight about the social and organizational structures and processes necessary for oil spill response and subsequent marine and coastal restoration. However, even with these lessons from both the Deepwater Horizon and previous spills, including 1989’s Exxon Valdez and the Ixtoc 1 in 1979, our understanding of how to avoid future crises has not advanced at the same pace as offshore oil and gas development. We argue that this progress deficit indicates a continued devaluing of marine and coastal resources. We believe that we must, instead, advance a proactive conservation ethic based on the precautionary principle and an appropriately placed burden of proof—strategies that will help reduce our reliance on costly restoration and protect marine and coastal ecosystems

Marine mammal conservation

Marine mammals face an uncertain fate in our rapidly changing world. Despite human fascination with these species and protective legislation in many countries, conservation efforts for marine mammals have achieved mixed results to date: some species have experienced a degree of recovery following centuries of exploitation, whereas others have perished or are on the brink of extinction. To avoid or at least to minimize further losses, human societies must be willing to assess and alter their values and activities that compete with, or otherwise contribute to, the demise of marine mammals and marine ecosystems. The value of conservation must be elevated from an aesthetically pleasing concept championed when convenient to a fundamental construct of our lives and futures. This new paradigm will require a clear vision of future conservation goals and the roles of societies in achieving them, long-term planning and commitment of funding/resources, rigorous science to resolve critical uncertainties, precautionary protection of habitats and ecosystems in the face of such uncertainty, and an interdisciplinary, comprehensive approach to conservation that engages the social sciences and humanities to elevate the value of conservation over short-term economic gain and many other competing values. Without the social will to make such changes, the future for marine mammals looks bleak

Location of manatee deaths attributed to cold stress, 1999–2011.

<p>Location of manatee deaths attributed to cold stress, 1999–2011.</p

Proportions of manatees in the upper St. Johns River and Northwest Florida subpopulations at power plants, natural springs, thermal basins, and other sites during synoptic surveys from 1999 to 2011.

<p>(Bars indicate the number of manatees counted each year over the 13-year study period; no survey was conducted in 2008.)</p