Parameterization of Albedo over Heterogeneous Surfaces in Coupled Land-Atmosphere Schemes for Environmental Modeling. Part I: Theoretical Background

In grid-based environmental models, the underlying surface consists of patches of solid and liquid parts and different plant communities, creating a very heterogeneous picture in the grid cell. In these cases, numerical modelers usually use a simple arithmetic average to determine the grid-cell albedo, a key variable in the parameterization of the land-surface radiative transfer over the grid cell. The object of this paper is to consider the assumptions for aggregating the albedo over a very heterogeneous surface where various surfaces occur at different heights, and, then propose a method for deriving a general expression for it. The suggested expression for the albedo is compared with the conventional approach, for the two-patches grid-cell with a simple geometrical distribution and different heights of its components. A numerical test is performed to compare the two approaches by numerical simulation of the evolution of the surface temperature over the particular grid-cell. Specifically, a one-dimensional land-surface model was applied to an isolated rocky grid-cell with a hole in the center; the model was forced with meteorological observations taken on July 17, 1999 in Philadelphia, PA.     

First Serological Study of Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Backyard Pigs from Serbia

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype 3 infections in pigs and humans have been lately reported in Europe. In the present study, the prevalence of anti-HEV IgG antibodies in swine was investigated, for the first time, in Serbia by means of an ELISA based on a recombinant open reading frame 2 protein of HEV genotype 3. A total of 315 serum samples from 3 to 4 months-old healthy backyard pigs, collected in 63 herds from 28 towns and villages of 4 different districts of the Vojvodina province, in the northern part of Serbia, were tested. A 34.6% (109/315) of the sera tested were positive. The prevalence of anti-HEV antibodies varied widely between municipalities (range 16.7–75.0%) and herds (range 0–100%). These data indicate that HEV infection is widespread in Serbian backyard pigs.     

Virological Quality of Irrigation Water in Leafy Green Vegetables and Berry Fruits Production Chains

This study condenses data acquired during investigations of the virological quality of irrigation water used in production of fresh produce. One hundred and eight samples of irrigation water were collected from five berry fruit farms in Finland (1), the Czech Republic (1), Serbia (2), and Poland (1), and sixty-one samples were collected from three leafy green vegetable farms in Poland, Serbia, and Greece. Samples were analyzed for index viruses of human or animal fecal contamination (human and porcine adenoviruses, and bovine polyoma viruses), and human pathogenic viruses (hepatitis A virus, hepatitis E virus, and noroviruses GI/GII). Both index and pathogenic viruses were found in irrigation water samples from the leafy green vegetables production chain. The data on the presence of index viruses indicated that the highest percentage of fecal contamination was of human origin (28.1 %, 18/64), followed by that of porcine (15.4 %, 6/39) and bovine (5.1 %, 2/39) origins. Hepatitis E virus (5 %, 1/20) and noroviruses GII (14.3 %, 4/28) were also detected. Samples from berry fruit production were also positive for both index and pathogenic viruses. The highest percentage of fecal contamination was of human origin (8.3 %, 9/108), followed by that of porcine, 4.5 % (4/89) and bovine, 1.1 % (1/89) origins. Norovirus GII (3.6 %, 2/56) was also detected. These data demonstrate that irrigation water used in primary production is an important vehicle of viral contamination for fresh produce, and thus is a critical control point which should be integrated into food safety management systems for viruses. The recommendations of Codex Alimentarius, as well as regulations on the use of water of appropriate quality for irrigation purposes, should be followed.     

Harmonised Investigation of the Occurrence of Human Enteric Viruses in the Leafy Green Vegetable Supply Chain in Three European Countries

Numerous outbreaks have been attributed to the consumption of raw or minimally processed leafy green vegetables contaminated with enteric viral pathogens. The aim of the present study was an integrated virological monitoring of the salad vegetables supply chain in Europe, from production, processing and point-of-sale. Samples were collected and analysed in Greece, Serbia and Poland, from ??general?? and ??ad hoc?? sampling points, which were perceived as critical points for virus contamination. General sampling points were identified through the analysis of background information questionnaires based on HACCP audit principles, and they were sampled during each sampling occasion where as-ad hoc sampling points were identified during food safety fact-finding visits and samples were only collected during the fact-finding visits. Human (hAdV) and porcine (pAdV) adenovirus, hepatitis A (HAV) and E (HEV) virus, norovirus GI and GII (NoV) and bovine polyomavirus (bPyV) were detected by means of real-time (RT-) PCR-based protocols. General samples were positive for hAdV, pAdV, HAV, HEV, NoV GI, NoV GII and bPyV at 20.09?% (134/667), 5.53?% (13/235), 1.32?% (4/304), 3.42?% (5/146), 2?% (6/299), 2.95?% (8/271) and 0.82?% (2/245), respectively. Ad hoc samples were positive for hAdV, pAdV, bPyV and NoV GI at 9?% (3/33), 9?% (2/22), 4.54?% (1/22) and 7.14?% (1/14), respectively. These results demonstrate the existence of viral contamination routes from human and animal sources to the salad vegetable supply chain and more specifically indicate the potential for public health risks due to the virus contamination of leafy green vegetables at primary production.