Exotic species have become increasingly significant management problems in parks and reserves and frequently complicate restoration projects. At the same time there may be circumstances in which ...their removal may have unforeseen negative consequences or their use in restoration is desirable. We review the types of effects exotic species may have that are important during restoration and suggest research that could increase our ability to set realistic management goals. Their control and use may be controversial; therefore we advocate consideration of exotic species in the greater context of community structure and succession and emphasize areas where ecological research could bring insight to management dilemmas surrounding exotic species and restoration. For example, an understanding of the potential transience of exotics in a site and the role particular exotics might play in changing processes that influence the course of succession is essential to setting removal priorities and realistic management goals. Likewise, a greater understanding of the ecological role of introduced species might help to reduce controversy surrounding their purposeful use in restoration. Here we link generalizations emerging from the invasion ecology literature with practical restoration concerns, including circumstances when it is practical to use exotic species in restoration.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The ability to rapidly detect viable pathogens in food is important for public health and food safety reasons. Culture-based detection methods, the traditional means of demonstrating microbial ...viability, tend to be laborious, time consuming and slow to provide results. Several culture-independent methods to detect viable pathogens have been reported in recent years, including both nucleic acid–based (PCR combined with use of cell viability dyes or reverse-transcriptase PCR to detect messenger RNA) and phage-based (plaque assay or phage amplification and lysis plus PCR/qPCR, immunoassay or enzymatic assay to detect host DNA, progeny phages or intracellular components) methods. Some of these newer methods, particularly phage-based methods, show promise in terms of speed, sensitivity of detection and cost compared with culture for food testing. This review provides an overview of these new approaches and their food testing applications, and discusses their current limitations and future prospects in relation to detection of viable pathogens in food.
Key points
• Cultural methods may be ‘gold standard’ for assessing viability of pathogens, but they are too slow.
• Nucleic acid–based methods offer speed of detection but not consistently proof of cell viability.
• Phage-based methods appear to offer best alternative to culture for detecting viable pathogens.
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CEKLJ, DOBA, EMUNI, FZAB, GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
It is commonly believed that diverse communities better resist invasion by exotic species than do simple communities. We examined the history of this notion, and evaluated theoretical and empirical ...work linking diversity and invasions. We found that much of the historical work that has contributed to the perception that diverse communities are less invasible, including Elton's observations and MacArthur's species-packing and diversity-stability models, is based on controversial premises. Nevertheless, more recent theoretical studies consistently supported the predicted negative relationship between diversity and invasibility. The results of empirical studies, however, were decidedly mixed. Constructed community studies directly manipulating diversity found both positive and negative effects of diversity on invasibility in both field and microcosm settings. Other empirical studies tracking the assembly of ecological communities generally suggested that communities decline in invasibility as species accumulate over time, though the role of diversity itself was often ambiguous. Studies of the spatial correlation between diversity and invasion and studies experimentally adding invaders to natural systems indicated that diverse communities tend to be more invasible. We argue that these results most likely reflect environmental factors spatially covarying with diversity in natural communities (e.g. resources, disturbance), and not the effects of diversity itself as uncovered by constructed community studies. Nevertheless, the consistent positive relationship between exotic species abundance and resident species diversity found in spatial pattern studies suggests that invaders and resident species are more similar than often believed, and the implications of this for theories of invasion are discussed.
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BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
In the United States, kidney transplant rates vary significantly across end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) networks. We conducted a population‐based cohort study to determine whether there was ...variability in kidney transplant rates across renal programs in a health care system distinct from the United States. We included incident chronic dialysis patients in Ontario, Canada, from 2003 to 2013 and determined the 1‐, 5‐, and 10‐year cumulative incidence of kidney transplantation in 27 regional renal programs (similar to U.S. ESRD networks). We also assessed the cumulative incidence of kidney transplant for “healthy” dialysis patients (aged 18–50 years without diabetes, coronary disease, or malignancy). We calculated standardized transplant ratios (STRs) using a Cox proportional hazards model, adjusting for patient characteristics (maximum possible follow‐up of 11 years). Among 23 022 chronic dialysis patients, the 10‐year cumulative incidence of kidney transplantation ranged from 7.4% (95% confidence interval CI 4.8–10.7%) to 31.4% (95% CI 16.5–47.5%) across renal programs. Similar variability was observed in our healthy cohort. STRs ranged from 0.3 (95% CI 0.2–0.5) to 1.5 (95% CI 1.4–1.7) across renal programs. There was significant variation in kidney transplant rates across Ontario renal programs despite patients having access to the same publicly funded health care system.
A population‐based cohort study finds significant variation in kidney transplant rates across Ontario, Canada, renal programs despite patients having access to the same publicly funded healthcare system.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
During the next 50 years, which is likely to be the final period of rapid agricultural expansion, demand for food by a wealthier and 50% larger global population will be a major driver of global ...environmental change. Should past dependences of the global environmental impacts of agriculture on human population and consumption continue, 109hectares of natural ecosystems would be converted to agriculture by 2050. This would be accompanied by 2.4- to 2.7-fold increases in nitrogen- and phosphorus-driven eutrophication of terrestrial, freshwater, and near-shore marine ecosystems, and comparable increases in pesticide use. This eutrophication and habitat destruction would cause unprecedented ecosystem simplification, loss of ecosystem services, and species extinctions. Significant scientific advances and regulatory, technological, and policy changes are needed to control the environmental impacts of agricultural expansion.
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BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
7.
Zika Virus Outbreak, Bahia, Brazil Campos, Gubio S; Bandeira, Antonio C; Sardi, Silvia I
Emerging infectious diseases,
10/2015, Volume:
21, Issue:
10
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, ODKLJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Human management activities have altered the frequency and intensity of ecosystem disturbance often with enormous impacts on landscape structure and composition. One additional and under-appreciated ...way in which humans have altered disturbance regimes is through the introduction of invasive non-native species, themselves capable of modifying existing disturbance regimes or introducing entirely new disturbances. In many cases, modifications of disturbance regimes results in maintenance of ecosystems in a new or transitional state. There is now evidence that alteration of disturbance regime may be the most profound effect that a species or functional group can have on ecosystem structure and function.
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IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Summary Hypothyroidism is a common condition of thyroid hormone deficiency, which is readily diagnosed and managed but potentially fatal in severe cases if untreated. The definition of hypothyroidism ...is based on statistical reference ranges of the relevant biochemical parameters and is increasingly a matter of debate. Clinical manifestations of hypothyroidism range from life threatening to no signs or symptoms. The most common symptoms in adults are fatigue, lethargy, cold intolerance, weight gain, constipation, change in voice, and dry skin, but clinical presentation can differ with age and sex, among other factors. The standard treatment is thyroid hormone replacement therapy with levothyroxine. However, a substantial proportion of patients who reach biochemical treatment targets have persistent complaints. In this Seminar, we discuss the epidemiology, causes, and symptoms of hypothyroidism; summarise evidence on diagnosis, long-term risk, treatment, and management; and highlight future directions for research.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
Epicardial adipose tissue is an unusual visceral fat depot with anatomical and functional contiguity to the myocardium and coronary arteries. Under physiological conditions, epicardial adipose tissue ...displays biochemical, mechanical and thermogenic cardioprotective properties. Under pathological circumstances, epicardial fat can locally affect the heart and coronary arteries through vasocrine or paracrine secretion of proinflammatory cytokines. What influences this equilibrium remains unclear. Improved local vascularization, weight loss, and targeted pharmaceutical interventions could help to return epicardial fat to its physiological role. This review focuses on the emerging physiological and pathophysiological aspects of the epicardial fat and its numerous and innovative clinical applications. Particular emphasis is placed on the paracrine/endocrine properties of epicardial fat and its role in the development and progression of atherosclerosis.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
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