23 research outputs found
Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research
Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4
While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge
of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In
the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of
Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus
crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced
environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian
Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by
2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status,
much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research
Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost
ERICA: prevalĂŞncia de sĂndrome metabĂłlica em adolescentes brasileiros
OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in Brazilian adolescents. METHODS We evaluated 37,504 adolescents who were participants in the Study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents (ERICA), a cross-sectional, school-based, national study. The adolescents, aged from 12 to 17 years, lived in cities with populations greater than 100,000 inhabitants. The sample was stratified and clustered into schools and classes. The criteria set out by the International Diabetes Federation were used to define metabolic syndrome. Prevalences of metabolic syndrome were estimated according to sex, age group, school type and nutritional status. RESULTS Of the 37,504 adolescents who were evaluated: 50.2% were female; 54.3% were aged from 15 to 17 years, and 73.3% were from public schools. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 2.6% (95%CI 2.3-2.9), slightly higher in males and in those aged from 15 to 17 years in most macro-regions. The prevalence was the highest in residents from the South macro-region, in the younger female adolescents and in the older male adolescents. The prevalence was higher in public schools (2.8% [95%CI 2.4-3.2]), when compared with private schools (1.9% [95%CI 1.4-2.4]) and higher in obese adolescents when compared with nonobese ones. The most common combinations of components, referring to 3/4 of combinations, were: enlarged waist circumference (WC), low HDL-cholesterol (HDL-c) and high blood pressure; followed by enlarged WC, low HDL-c and high triglycerides; and enlarged WC, low HDL-c, high triglycerides and blood pressure. Low HDL was the second most frequent component, but the highest prevalence of metabolic syndrome (26.8%) was observed in the presence of high triglycerides. CONCLUSIONS ERICA is the first Brazilian nation-wide study to present the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and describe the role of its components. Despite the prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome being low, the high prevalences of some components and participation of others in the syndrome composition shows the importance of early diagnosis of this changes, even if not grouped within the metabolic syndrome.OBJETIVO Determinar a prevalĂŞncia de sĂndrome metabĂłlica e de seus componentes em adolescentes brasileiros. MÉTODOS Foram avaliados 37.504 adolescentes, participantes do Estudo de Riscos Cardiovasculares em Adolescentes (ERICA), estudo transversal de âmbito nacional e de base escolar. Os adolescentes, de 12 a 17 anos de idade, residiam em municĂpios com mais de 100 mil habitantes. A amostra foi estratificada e conglomerada em escolas e turmas. Os critĂ©rios da International Diabetes Federation foram utilizados para definir sĂndrome metabĂłlica. PrevalĂŞncias de sĂndrome metabĂłlica foram estimadas segundo sexo, faixa etária, tipo de escola e estado nutricional. RESULTADOS Dos 37.504 adolescentes, 50,2% eram do sexo feminino; 54,3% tinham de 15 a 17 anos e 73,3% estudavam em escolas pĂşblicas. A prevalĂŞncia nacional de sĂndrome metabĂłlica foi 2,6% (IC95% 2,3-2,9), discretamente maior no sexo masculino e naqueles de 15 a 17 anos na maioria das macrorregiões. A prevalĂŞncia foi a maior nos residentes na macrorregiĂŁo Sul, nas adolescentes mais jovens e nos adolescentes mais velhos. A prevalĂŞncia foi maior nas escolas pĂşblicas (2,8% [IC95% 2,4-3,2]) que nas escolas privadas (1,9% [IC95% 1,4-2,4]) e nos adolescentes obesos em comparação aos nĂŁo obesos. As combinações de componentes mais frequentes, respondendo por 3/4 das combinações, foram: circunferĂŞncia de cintura elevada, HDL-colesterol baixo e pressĂŁo arterial elevada, seguida de circunferĂŞncia da cintura elevada, lipoproteĂna de alta densidade (HDL-c) baixo e triglicerĂdeos elevados, e wpor circunferĂŞncia da cintura elevada, HDL baixa e triacilglicerĂłis e pressĂŁo arterial elevados. A HDL baixa foi o segundo componente mais frequente, mas a maior prevalĂŞncia de sĂndrome metabĂłlica (26,8%) foi observada na presença de triglicerĂdeos elevado. CONCLUSĂ•ES O ERICA Ă© o primeiro estudo nacional a apresentar prevalĂŞncias de sĂndrome metabĂłlica e descrever a participação dos seus componentes. Apesar de a prevalĂŞncia da sĂndrome metabĂłlica ter sido baixa, as altas prevalĂŞncias de alguns componentes e de participação de outros na composição da sĂndrome torna importante o diagnĂłstico precoce de tais alterações, mesmo que nĂŁo agrupadas na sĂndrome metabĂłlica.50suppl