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Nature Food Mar 2024Cropland fragmentation contributes to low productivity and high abandonment risk. Using spatial statistics on a detailed land use map, we show that 10% of Chinese...
Cropland fragmentation contributes to low productivity and high abandonment risk. Using spatial statistics on a detailed land use map, we show that 10% of Chinese croplands have no potential to be consolidated for large-scale farming (>10 ha) owing to spatial constraints. These fragmented croplands contribute only 8% of total crop production while using 15% of nitrogen fertilizers, leading to 12% of fertilizer loss in China. Optimizing the cropping structure of fragmented croplands to meet animal food demand in China can increase animal food supply by 19%, equivalent to increasing cropland proportionally. This crop-switching approach would lead to a 10% and 101% reduction in nitrogen and greenhouse gas emissions, respectively, resulting in a net benefit of US$ 7 billion yr. If these fragmented croplands were relocated to generate large-scale farming units, livestock, vegetable and fruit production would be increased by 8%, 3% and 14%, respectively, and reactive nitrogen and greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by 16% and 5%, respectively, resulting in a net benefit of US$ 44 billion yr. Both solutions could be used to achieve synergies between food security, economic benefits and environmental protection through increased agricultural productivity, without expanding the overall cropland area.
Topics: Animals; Greenhouse Gases; Agriculture; Crop Production; Vegetables; Nitrogen
PubMed: 38528241
DOI: 10.1038/s43016-024-00938-7 -
Brazilian Journal of Biology = Revista... 2024Accumulation of heavy metals in soil can lead to the deterioration of soil quality, reduce soil fertility and crop yields, and thus threaten human and animal health. The...
Accumulation of heavy metals in soil can lead to the deterioration of soil quality, reduce soil fertility and crop yields, and thus threaten human and animal health. The study aimed to assess the potential ecological risk of heavy metal contamination of agricultural soils in Kazakhstan. The study was carried out in 2021 on the soils of the Zhdanovskoye owner-operated farm in the Sokolovsko-Sarybai district of the Kostanay region. The quantitative content of heavy metals, such as lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), and cadmium (Cd), was determined, and concentrations of trace elements, such as zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and manganese (Mn), were calculated for the considered contaminated lands. The potential ecological risk index (RI) proposed by L. Hakanson was used in the study concerning heavy metal contamination of soil. As a result, the presence of trace elements and heavy metals in the considered areas of the Kostanay region was shown. The RI values for all sites ranged from 137 to 447, corresponding to the level of ecological risk grading from low to high. The average RI for As, Cd, Hg, Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cu amounted to 328, which indicates a high ecological risk. Detected levels of As, Cd, Zn, and Pb in long-term abandoned mining areas were well above national thresholds, indicating the impending need to fully investigate and assess the suitability of the land for further agricultural use. The availability of such data will allow predicting cluster-based development of processing infrastructures in the vicinity of agricultural lands.
Topics: Humans; Soil; Cadmium; Trace Elements; Kazakhstan; Lead; Soil Pollutants; Environmental Monitoring; Risk Assessment; Metals, Heavy; Mercury
PubMed: 38511781
DOI: 10.1590/1519-6984.280583 -
Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology :... May 2024Long-term outcomes of sterile lead management strategies of lead abandonment (LA) or transvenous lead extraction (TLE) remain unclear.
BACKGROUND
Long-term outcomes of sterile lead management strategies of lead abandonment (LA) or transvenous lead extraction (TLE) remain unclear.
METHODS
We performed a retrospective study of a population residing in southeastern Minnesota with follow-up at the Mayo Clinic and its health systems. Patients who underwent LA or TLE of sterile leads from January 1, 2000, to January 1, 2011, and had follow-up for at least 10 years or until their death were included.
RESULTS
A total of 172 patients were included in the study with 153 patients who underwent LA and 19 who underwent TLE for sterile leads. Indications for subsequent lead extraction arose in 9.1% (n = 14) of patients with initial LA and 5.3% (n = 1) in patients with initial TLE, after an average of 7 years. Moreover, 28.6% of patients in the LA cohort who required subsequent extraction did not proceed with the extraction, and among those who proceeded, 60% had clinical success and 40% had a clinical failure. Subsequent device upgrades or revisions were performed in 18.3% of patients in the LA group and 31.6% in the TLE group, with no significant differences in procedural challenges (5.2% vs. 5.3%). There was no difference in 10-year survival probability among the LA group and the TLE group (p = .64).
CONCLUSION
An initial lead abandonment strategy was associated with more complicated subsequent extraction procedures compared to patients with an initial transvenous lead extraction strategy. However, there was no difference in 10-year survival probability between both lead management approaches.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Device Removal; Retrospective Studies; Aged; Minnesota; Defibrillators, Implantable; Pacemaker, Artificial; Treatment Outcome; Middle Aged; Electrodes, Implanted
PubMed: 38488756
DOI: 10.1111/pace.14940 -
Traffic Injury Prevention 2024The history of airbags for occupant protection in frontal crashes is reviewed from the perspective of a former Senior Executive at NHTSA from the early 1970's to the... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
The history of airbags for occupant protection in frontal crashes is reviewed from the perspective of a former Senior Executive at NHTSA from the early 1970's to the late 1980's. This paper summarizes the factors that led to regulatory delays as well as those that led to voluntary adoption of airbags by several manufacturers.
METHODS
The regulatory history and interactions with airbag suppliers and vehicle manufactures is recounted citing key steps in the evolution of frontal airbags.
RESULTS
When the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Standard 208, "Occupant Protection" was issued on July 2, 1969 the Safety Agency anticipated that the industry response would provide automatic frontal crash protection from airbags that deployed to protect all front seat occupants from injury in severe frontal crashes. It was not until, September 1, 1998 that airbags were required in all cars and light trucks. The interim 29 years involved a series of stops and starts during which most of the original airbag suppliers lost interest and abandoned the airbag market. The issues associated with airbags and their place in Standard 208 were directly influenced by interventions from the President, the Congress, the Supreme Court, Secretaries of Transportation, NHTSA Administrators, the Presidents of US Auto Companies and Senior Executives of Insurance Companies.
CONCLUSION
In 1966, there was support from the US auto industry for a single source of safety regulations that apply to new vehicles sold in the US. This is evidenced by the unanimous passage by the House of Representatives and Senate of the Law that created the Federal auto safety regulatory framework. The Law also required seatbelts in new cars and prohibited States from making separate safety rules. However, the large safety benefits offered by seatbelts were negated because they were rarely used. Consequently, finding ways of providing high levels of protection without requiring action by occupants became a goal of the new Safety Agency. The airbag offered the possibility of achieving that goal.From the initial airbag notice of proposed rulemaking on July 2, 1969, Safety Agency required 2 years to resolve objections before a final Standard 208 could be issued (on July 8,1971). The subsequent industry opposition to the Standard 208 employed Presidential influence and Court suits to cause a 5½ year delay until the Coleman Decision on December 6, 1976. Changes in regulatory approach of the Ford, Carter, and Reagan Administrations and associated Court suits caused another 7½ year delay until the Dole Decision on July 17, 1984. It required another 7 ½, until December 18, 1991, for market forces to reduce industry opposition to airbags and permit Congress to pass a law that mandated them. Another 6½ years of lead time was required before all cars and light trucks were required to meet the airbag standard. During the mid and late 1980's vehicle safety ratings, seatbelt use laws, and Vince and Larry PSA's had all acted to increase safety awareness and safety belt use. Consequently, added public demand for vehicle safety features slowly developed. Changes in economic incentives encouraged a number of vehicle lines to install driver airbags as standard equipment and the feature was being widely advertised by Chrysler. This combination of events made it possible for Congress to pass and President Bush 41 to sign legislation requiring airbags in cars and light trucks by September 1, 1998 - more than 29 years after the initial rulemaking notice in 1969.
Topics: Humans; Air Bags; Accidents, Traffic; Motor Vehicles; Automobiles; Advertising
PubMed: 38477980
DOI: 10.1080/15389588.2024.2317410 -
Animals : An Open Access Journal From... Feb 2024The historical relationship between humans and dogs has involved selective breeding for various purposes, such as hunting, guarding, and service roles. However, over... (Review)
Review
The historical relationship between humans and dogs has involved selective breeding for various purposes, such as hunting, guarding, and service roles. However, over time, there has been a shift in preferences from functionality to aesthetics, which has influenced the diverse sizes, shapes, and coats of dog breeds. This review looks at fashionable dog breeding and questions the ethics of prioritising looks over health and behaviour. It aims to alert potential owners, breeders, and regulators to the importance of considering a dog's overall well-being, not just its appearance, which has resulted in fad breeding, leading to genetic disorders, health issues, and a loss of biodiversity. Ethical concerns arise from breeding brachycephalic breeds with respiratory conditions, inbreeding causing inherited disorders, and overbreeding popular breeds while shelter dogs remain unadopted. Additionally, the impact of cosmetic surgeries on popular dog breeds, as well as the neglect of behavioural traits in favour of physical characteristics and strict breeding practices are also considered. The current breeding model can have a negative impact on the emotional and cognitive well-being of dogs, resulting in issues such as aggression, anxiety, and other behavioural problems that can significantly reduce their overall quality of life. Unregulated breeding practices and the demand for rare breeds can lead to illegal breeding, compromising animal welfare. Prospective owners, veterinarians, kennel clubs, and legislators all need to play a responsible role in protecting animals.
PubMed: 38473141
DOI: 10.3390/ani14050756 -
American Journal of Obstetrics and... Mar 2024The third stage of labor is defined as the time period between delivery of the fetus through delivery of the placenta. During a normal third stage, uterine contractions... (Review)
Review
The third stage of labor is defined as the time period between delivery of the fetus through delivery of the placenta. During a normal third stage, uterine contractions lead to separation and expulsion of the placenta from the uterus. Postpartum hemorrhage is a relatively common complication of the third stage of labor. Strategies have been studied to mitigate the risk of postpartum hemorrhage, leading to the widespread implementation of active management of the third stage of labor. Initially, active management of the third stage of labor consisted of a bundle of interventions including administration of a uterotonic agent, early cord clamping, controlled cord traction, and external uterine massage. However, the effectiveness of these interventions as a bundle has been questioned, leading to abandonment of some components in recent years. Despite this, upon review of selected international guidelines, we found that the term "active management of the third stage of labor" was still used, but recommendations for and against individual interventions were variable and not necessarily supported by current evidence. In this review, we: (1) examine the physiology of the third stage of labor, (2) present evidence related to interventions that prevent postpartum hemorrhage and promote maternal and neonatal health, (3) review current global guidelines and recommendations for practice, and (4) propose future areas of investigation. The interventions in this review include pharmacologic agents to prevent postpartum hemorrhage, cord clamping, cord milking, cord traction, cord drainage, early skin-to-skin contact, and nipple stimulation. Treatment of complications of the third stage of labor is outside of the scope of this review. We conclude that current evidence supports the use of effective pharmacologic postpartum hemorrhage prophylaxis, delayed cord clamping, early skin-to-skin contact, and controlled cord traction at delivery when feasible. The most effective uterotonic regimens for preventing postpartum hemorrhage after vaginal delivery include oxytocin plus ergometrine; oxytocin plus misoprostol; or carbetocin. After cesarean delivery, carbetocin or oxytocin as a bolus are the most effective regimens. There is inconsistent evidence regarding the use of tranexamic acid in addition to a uterotonic compared with a uterotonic alone for postpartum hemorrhage prevention after all deliveries. Because of differences in patient comorbidities, costs, and availability of resources and staff, decisions to use specific prevention strategies are dependent on patient- and system-level factors. We recommend that the term "active management of the third stage of labor" as a combined intervention no longer be used. Instead, we recommend that "third stage care" be adopted, which promotes the implementation of evidence-based interventions that incorporate practices that are safe and beneficial for both the woman and neonate.
Topics: Pregnancy; Female; Infant, Newborn; Humans; Postpartum Hemorrhage; Oxytocin; Oxytocics; Labor, Obstetric; Evidence-Based Practice
PubMed: 38462248
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2022.11.1298 -
Journal of Korean Medical Science Mar 2024Considering the interactions between heavy metals, a comprehensive evaluation of the effects of exposure to various types of co-interacting heavy metals on health is...
BACKGROUND
Considering the interactions between heavy metals, a comprehensive evaluation of the effects of exposure to various types of co-interacting heavy metals on health is required. This study assessed the association between dyslipidemia markers and blood mercury, lead, cadmium, iron, zinc, and nickel levels in residents of an abandoned refinery plant.
METHODS
A total of 972 individuals (exposed group: 567, control group: 405) living near the Janghang refinery plant in the Republic of Korea were included. Blood mercury, lead, cadmium, iron, zinc, nickel, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels were measured. The combined effect of the six heavy metals on dyslipidemia markers was evaluated using a Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) model and compared with the results of a linear regression analysis. The BKMR model results were compared using a stratified analysis of the exposed and control groups.
RESULTS
In the BKMR model, the combined effect of the six heavy metals was significantly associated with total cholesterol (TC) levels both below the 45th percentile and above the 55th percentile in the total population. The combined effect range between the 25th and 75th percentiles of the six metals on TC levels was larger in the exposed group than that in the total population. In the control group, the combined effects of the changes in concentration of the six heavy metals on the TC concentration were not statistically significant.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that the cholesterol levels of residents around the Janghang refinery plant may be elevated owing to exposure to multiple heavy metals.
Topics: Humans; Cadmium; Nickel; Bayes Theorem; Metals, Heavy; Zinc; Iron; Republic of Korea; Dyslipidemias; Mercury
PubMed: 38442720
DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2024.39.e77 -
Journal of Environmental Management Mar 2024Active and passive approaches to rewilding and ecological restoration are increasingly considered to promote nature recovery at scale. However, historical data on...
Active and passive approaches to rewilding and ecological restoration are increasingly considered to promote nature recovery at scale. However, historical data on vegetation trajectories have rarely been used to inform decisions on whether active or passive management is most appropriate to aid recovery of a specific ecosystem, which can lead to sub-optimal approaches being deployed and reduced biodiversity benefits. To demonstrate how understanding past changes can inform future management strategies, this study used satellite remote sensing data to analyse the changes in land cover and primary productivity within the Greater Côa Valley in Portugal, which has experienced wide-scale land abandonment. Results show that some areas in the Valley regenerated well following land abandonment in the region, leading to a more heterogeneous landscape of habitats for wildlife, whereas in other areas passive recovery was slow. As Rewilding Portugal intensifies its nature recovery efforts in the region, this study calls for strategic deployment of passive and active approaches to maximise conservation benefits. More broadly, our results highlight how baseline vegetational trajectories and contextual information can help inform whether active or passive management approaches may be suitable on a site-by-site basis for both rewilding and restoration projects.
Topics: Animals; Ecosystem; Conservation of Natural Resources; Biodiversity; Animals, Wild; Portugal
PubMed: 38442655
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120413 -
Nature Communications Mar 2024Directed evolution of computationally designed enzymes has provided new insights into the emergence of sophisticated catalytic sites in proteins. In this regard, we have...
Directed evolution of computationally designed enzymes has provided new insights into the emergence of sophisticated catalytic sites in proteins. In this regard, we have recently shown that a histidine nucleophile and a flexible arginine can work in synergy to accelerate the Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) reaction with unrivalled efficiency. Here, we show that replacing the catalytic histidine with a non-canonical N-methylhistidine (MeHis23) nucleophile leads to a substantially altered evolutionary outcome in which the catalytic Arg124 has been abandoned. Instead, Glu26 has emerged, which mediates a rate-limiting proton transfer step to deliver an enzyme (BH1.8) that is more than an order of magnitude more active than our earlier MBHase. Interestingly, although MeHis23 to His substitution in BH1.8 reduces activity by 4-fold, the resulting His containing variant is still a potent MBH biocatalyst. However, analysis of the BH1.8 evolutionary trajectory reveals that the MeHis nucleophile was crucial in the early stages of engineering to unlock the new mechanistic pathway. This study demonstrates how even subtle perturbations to key catalytic elements of designed enzymes can lead to vastly different evolutionary outcomes, resulting in new mechanistic solutions to complex chemical transformations.
Topics: Histidine; Arginine; Biological Evolution; Catalysis; Engineering; Methylhistidines
PubMed: 38438341
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46123-z -
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Feb 2024: The nature of multilevel lead-related venous stenosis/occlusion (MLVSO) and its influence on transvenous lead extraction (TLE) as well as long-term survival remains...
: The nature of multilevel lead-related venous stenosis/occlusion (MLVSO) and its influence on transvenous lead extraction (TLE) as well as long-term survival remains poorly understood. : A total of 3002 venograms obtained before a TLE were analyzed to identify the risk factors for MLVSO, as well as the procedure effectiveness and long-term survival. : An older patient age at the first system implantation (OR = 1.015; < 0.001), the number of leads in the heart (OR = 1.556; < 0.001), the placement of the coronary sinus (CS) lead (OR = 1.270; = 0.027), leads on both sides of the chest (OR = 7.203; < 0.001), and a previous device upgrade or downgrade with lead abandonment (OR = 2.298; < 0.001) were the strongest predictors of MLVSO. : The presence of MLVSO predisposes patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) to the development of infectious complications. Patients with multiple narrowed veins are likely to undergo longer and more complex procedures with complications, and the rates of clinical and procedural success are lower in this group. Long-term survival after a TLE is similar in patients with MLVSO and those without venous obstruction. MLVSO probably better depicts the severity of global venous obstruction than the degree of vein narrowing at only one point.
Topics: Humans; Defibrillators, Implantable; Pacemaker, Artificial; Vascular Diseases; Heart; Risk Factors; Constriction, Pathologic; Treatment Outcome; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 38399623
DOI: 10.3390/medicina60020336