Norovirus GII.17 Associated with a Foodborne Acute Gastroenteritis Outbreak in Brazil, 2016

Foodborne transmission gastroenteritis (AGE) outbreak occurred during a celebration lunch in July, 2016, Brazil. All stool samples tested were positive for noroviruses (NoV) and phylogenetic analysis revealed that strains were genetically close to GII.17 Kawasaki_2014. These findings indicated circulation of NoV GII.17 Kawasaki_2014 in the Brazilian population, associated with AGE outbreak.     

Mercury in an ultraoligotrophic North Patagonian Andean lake(Argentina):Concentration patterns in different components of the water column

The deep, ultraoligotrophic piedmont lakes of Northern Patagonia (Argentina) are located in pristine and barely impacted areas, along a wide latitudinal range. Several studies have reported moderate to high total mercury (Hg) concentrations and contrasting methylmercury (CH3Hg+) production in different lake compartments. Sources of Hg for western Patagonian terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems are still not clear; while point sources can be ruled out and atmospheric deposition is a plausible source, along with contribution from active volcanic areas of the Andes. In this investigation, we reported a noticeably seasonal, spatial (between lake branches), and vertical (between water column strata) heterogeneity in the total Hg concentrations found in the pelagic zone of Lake Moreno. Sterile water samples taken in a depth profile of the lake showed moderate to high concentrations of CH3Hg+ in autumn with a decreasing trend with depth. Our results indicated that Hg is largely allocated in the plankton fraction between 10–53 μm; which dominated within the euphotic (epilimnetic) zone of the lake due to the high densities attained by two species of the dinoflagellate Gymnodinium. The 53–200 μm planktonic size fraction (comprising rotifers, ciliates and immature stages of crustaceans) and the 200 μm fraction (calanoid copepods and cladocerans) were found to bear strikingly lower total Hg concentrations, suggesting that the magnification of Hg at the planktonic consumer level is negligible.     

Functional identity and functional structure change through succession in a rocky intertidal marine herbivore assemblage

Despite the great interest in characterizing the functional structure and resilience of functional groups in natural communities, few studies have examined in which way the roles and relationships of coexisting species change during community succession, a fundamental and natural process that follows the release of new resources in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Variation in algal traits that characterize different phases and stages of community succession on rocky shores are likely to influence the magnitude, direction of effects, and the level of redundancy and complementarity in the diverse assemblage of herbivores. Two separate field experiments were conducted to quantify per capita and population effects and the functional relationship (i.e., redundancy or complementarity) of four herbivore species found in central Chile during early and late algal succession. The first experiment examined grazer effects on the colonization and establishment of early-succession algal species. The second experiment examined effects on the late-successional, dominant corticated alga Mazzaella laminarioides. Complementary laboratory experiments with all species and under natural environmental conditions allowed us to further characterize the collective effects of these species. We found that, during early community succession, all herbivore species had similar effects on the ephemeral algae, ulvoids, but only during the phase of colonization. Once these algae were established, only a subset of the species was able to control their abundance. During late succession, only the keyhole limpet Fissurella crassa could control corticated Mazzaella. The functional relationships among these species changed dramatically from redundant effects on ephemeral algae during early colonization, to a more complementary role on established early-successional algae, to a dominant (i.e., keystone) effect on late succession. This study highlights that functional relationship within consumer assemblages can vary at different phases and times of community succession. Differentiation in herbivore roles emphasizes the need to evaluate consumer's impacts through different times of community succession, and through experimental manipulations to make even broad predictions about the resilience or vulnerability of diverse intertidal assemblages to human disturbances.     

Residential radon concentration in the Abruzzo region (Italy): a different perspective for identifying radon prone areas

Indoor radon is an important risk factor for human health. Indeed radon inhalation is considered the second cause of lung cancer after smoking. During the last decades, in many countries huge efforts have been made in order to measuring, mapping and predicting radon levels in dwellings. Various researches have been devoted to identify those areas within the country where high radon concentrations are more likely to be found. Data collected through indoor radon surveys have been analysed adopting various statistical approaches, among which hierarchical Bayesian models and geostatistical tools are worth noting. The essential goal of this paper regards the identification of high radon concentration areas (the so-called radon prone areas) in the Abruzzo Region (Italy). In order to accurately pinpoint zones deserving attention for mitigation purpose, we adopt spatial cluster detection techniques, traditionally employed in epidemiology. As a first step, we assume that indoor radon measurements do not arise from a continuous spatial process; thus the geographic locations of dwellings where the radon measurements have been taken can be viewed as a realization of a spatial point process. Following this perspective, we adopt and compare recent cluster detection techniques: the simulated annealing scan statistic, the case event approach based on distance regression on the selection order and the elliptic spatial scan statistic. The analysis includes data collected during surveys carried out by the Regional Agency for the Environment Protection of Abruzzo (ARTA) in 1,861 random sampled dwellings across 277 municipalities of the Abruzzo region. The radon prone areas detected by the selected approaches are provided along with the summary statistics of the methods. Finally, the methodologies considered in this paper are tested on simulated data in order to evaluate their power and the precision of cluster location detection.     

A novel method to apply Importance and Sensitivity Analysis to multiple Fault-trees

The unavailability/frequency analysis of critical failure states of complex industrial systems is normally conducted by using the Fault-tree methodology. The number of Fault-trees describing the system is given by the number of system’s failure states (i.e. Top-events). For each Top-event characterised by unacceptable occurrence probability, some design improvements should be made. Importance and Sensitivity Analysis (ISA) is normally applied to identify the weakest parts of the system. By selecting these parts for design improvement, the overall improvement of the system is made more effective. In current practice, ISA is normally applied sequentially to all Fault-trees. The sequence order is subjectively selected by the analyst, based on several criteria as for instance the severity of the associated Top-event. This approach has the clear limitation of not ensuring the identification of the most cost-effective design solution to improve safety. The present paper describes an alternative approach which consists of concurrently analysing all relevant system’s Fault-trees with the objective of overcoming the above limitations and to identify the most cost-effective solution. In addition, the proposed method extends the ISA application to “over-reliable” system functions, if any, on which the reliability/maintainability characteristics of the involved components can be relaxed, with a resulting cost saving. The overall outcome of the analysis is a uniformly protected system, which satisfies the predefined design goals. A point to note is that the overall cost of the analysis of the proposed approach is significantly lower if compared with the sequential case.     

An approach for restoration of the water quality with emphasis on the removal of organochlorine pesticides and eutrophic conditions in tropical rivers

This work deals with an approach for the water quality restoration with emphasis on the removal of organochlorine pesticides and eutrophic conditions in tropical rivers, causing influence on the management of the central-regional aqueduct, as a source of water supply for human consumption (4 million people) and industrial production in the states of Carabobo, Cojedes and Aragua, Venezuela, testing the phytoremediation techniques through Vetiveria zizanioides (VZ) species and coupled bioreactors, Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) followed by an Upflow Anaerobic Filter in Three Separate Stages (UAF-3SS). Five rivers are involved known as Chirgua, Paito Guacara, Ereigüe, and Tucutunemo, whose waters have been classified as hypereutrophic, and containing organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). As a sample, for Tucutunemo River, OCPs included to DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) and its isomers and DRINs (Aldrin, Endrin and Dieldrin) dissolved in water and sorbed on sediments, which were measured during the dry and rainy seasons in the period 2013 to 2016, in three monitoring stations distributed in a reach of 15 km. The results indicated that p.p′-DDT concentration dissolved in water was increased up to 10 times from rainy to dry seasons, indicating that a permanent use of it is being carried out by farmers in the agricultural activity development. Steady concentrations of the DTT isomers (e.g., p.p′-DDD and p.p′-DDE) and Aldrin isomers (e.g., Dieldrin) demonstrated that the anaerobic and aerobic biodegradation processes occurred along the river and between climatic seasons. At experimental scale, VZ hydroponic system developed over a period of 6 months for the removal of nutrients demonstrated moderately low to high removal efficiencies. With respect coupled bioreactors, each bioreactor has been experimentally tested, demonstrating satisfactory performance in Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) removal from industrial wastewater containing recalcitrant and inhibitory substances (46%–98%), which was estimated in the influent ranging from 3500 to 5500 mg/L, evidencing that coupling of bioreactors might lead to a effluent COD complying with environmental regulations.     

Effect of the pesticide lindane on the biomass of the microalgae Nannochloris oculata

This study assesses the growth of the microalgae Nannochloris oculata in the presence of lindane and the ability of N. oculata to remove lindane from media. Algal biomass increased with 0.1 and 0.5 mg L^?1 of lindane, and lindane concentrations in the media decreased. N. oculata removed 73% and 68.2% of lindane in the 0.1 and 0.5 mg L^?1 media concentrations, respectively. Algal biomass decreased to the level of the control at lindane concentrations greater than 2.5 mg L^?1, probably due to toxicity. N. oculata removed lindane from the media at concentrations lower than 1.0 mg L^?1. Thus, N. oculata may be useful for lindane bioremediation in contaminated aquatic systems.     

Resolving the Conflict Between Ecosystem Protection and Land Use in Protected Areas of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas,Mexico

Livelihoods of people living in many protected areas (PAs) around the world are in conflict with biodiversity conservation. In Mexico, the decrees of creation of biosphere reserves state that rural communities with the right to use buffer zones must avoid deforestation and their land uses must become sustainable, a task which is not easily accomplished. The objectives of this paper are: (a) to analyze the conflict between people’s livelihoods and ecosystem protection in the PAs of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas (SMC), paying special attention to the rates and causes of deforestation and (b) to review policy options to ensure forest and ecosystem conservation in these PAs, including the existing payments for environmental services system and improvements thereof as well as options for sustainable land management. We found that the three largest PAs in the SMC are still largely forested, and deforestation rates have decreased since 2000. Cases of forest conversion are located in specific zones and are related to agrarian and political conflicts as well as growing economic inequality and population numbers. These problems could cause an increase in forest loss in the near future. Payments for environmental services and access to carbon markets are identified as options to ensure forest permanence but still face problems. Challenges for the future are to integrate these incentive mechanisms with sustainable land management and a stronger involvement of land holders in conservation.