Enteric Viruses in a Large Waterborne Outbreak of Acute Gastroenteritis in Finland

In Nokia city about 450,000 l of treated sewage water was for 2 days allowed to run into the drinking water supplies of the city due to a personal error of one employee. Within the next 5 weeks about 1,000 people sought care at the municipal health centre or regional hospital because of gastroenteritis. Here we report the results of viral analyses performed by gene amplification assays from the earliest water and sewage samples as well as from close to 300 patient samples. The contaminating treated sewage was shown to harbour several enteric viruses known to cause acute gastroenteritis. Likewise, the drinking water sample was positive for noro-, astro-, rota-, entero- and adenoviruses. Noroviruses were also found in 29.8% of stool samples from affected patients, while astro-, adeno-, rota- and enteroviruses were detected in 19.7, 18.2, 7.5 and 3.7% of the specimens, respectively. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Injuries in special transportation services for elderly and disabled--a multi-methodology approach to estimate incidence and societal costs

OBJECTIVE: Previous research has shown that elderly and disabled travelers using Special Transportation Services (STS) are injured without being involved in a vehicle crash. In order to estimate the true costs for these vehicle-related injuries, the focus needs to be adjusted towards an incident/traveler-oriented perspective. The aim of the project was thus to utilize such a perspective, in order to make a best estimation of the true costs for injury incidents, related to STS in Sweden. METHODS: In order to address the chosen perspective, a mixed-method approach was used, involving quantitative as well as qualitative research methods applied on four different sets of data, the hospital-based material (n=32), two sets of STS material (n=127), and interview-based material (n=1,000). RESULTS: The results showed that the injury incidence rate in STS is considerable, i.e., 3.2 per 100,000 trips (ranging from 1.5-1.9 in STS taxis and 3.6-5.6 in STS special vehicles). However, this high incidence rate is not due to road traffic crashes, but to non-collision injury incidents involving elderly and frail passengers, easily sustaining injuries from minor to moderate external violence. Typically, this violence is affecting an older female STS user, while entering and exiting the vehicle. The true costs were estimated to be $35 million per annum or $2.6 per trip. CONCLUSION: Future injury prevention measures should thus focus on safety in entering and exiting procedures.     

Identification and pattern of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) isomers in human serum and plasma

Human serum and plasma from Sweden (n=17), the United Kingdom (the UK) (n=13) and Australia (n=40) were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. The objective was to identify different perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) isomers. Similar isomer patterns typical for the electrochemical fluorination (ECF) process were found for all samples. The linear PFOS (L-PFOS) was the major isomer found (58-70%) followed by the monosubstituted PFOS isomers 1/6-CF(3)-PFOS (18-22%) and 3/4/5-CF(3)-PFOS (13-18%). Disubstituted isomers were also detected. The percentage of L-PFOS found in the serum and plasma samples was lower compared to a standard PFOS product (76-79%). The pattern of PFOS isomers in human serum and plasma may be suggestive concerning potential isomeric discrimination since PFOS is only produced by ECF. Possibilities for such isomer discrimination are discussed. Significant higher content of L-PFOS (68%) in Swedish samples compared to Australia and the UK (59%) was also found, which may suggest differences in exposure sources for humans.     

Effects of ethylenediurea and ozone on the antioxidative systems in beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

To study the biochemical mechanism of EDU protection against ozone injury, peroxidase, ascorbate-dependent peroxidase, and catalase activities, and the contents of ascorbic acid, dehydroascorbic acid, malondialdehyde and soluble protein were measured in Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Lit exposed to ozone and ethylenediurea (EDU) in open-top chambers. Plants not treated with EDU showed foliar bronzing due to ozone, while EDU-treated plants were not affected. EDU application modified the reaction of biochemical parameters to ozone. Soluble protein content was elevated by EDU. Peroxidase activity increased with ozone exposure in untreated plants only, while ascorbate-dependent peroxidase activity was lower in EDU treated plants. Catalase activity decreased in EDU-untreated plants. The ratio of ascorbic acid to dehydroascorbic acid was significantly increased in EDU treated plants. These results suggest that EDU might induce ascorbic acid synthesis and therefore provide the plant with a very potent antioxidant. Or the content of hydrogen peroxide was reduced due to other unknown processes and caused a delay in foliar senescence, regardless of whether these processes were ozone-induced or due to natural aging processes.     

Environmental impact of ferrochrome slag in road construction

Vargon Alloys in Western Sweden is one of the largest producers of ferrochrome slag in Europe. Ferrochrome slag is a by-product from the production of ferrochrome, an essential component in stainless steel. Extensive tests have been carried out on the physical properties of the ferrochrome slag from Vargon Alloys and it was found to be highly suitable as road construction material. The composition and leaching tests of the ferrochrome slag show that the chromium content is high, 1-3%, although leaching under normal conditions is very low. With the exception of potassium (K), which had a potential leaching capacity (availability test) of around 16%, the leaching of chromium, nickel, zinc and other elements was just a few per cent. However, all these tests were conducted in the laboratory. What happens out in the field, under the influence of acid rain and biological activity, and how does this compare with the laboratory results? To answer this question an investigation was carried out to study the environmental impact of ferrochrome slag in roads that were built in 1994. The investigation includes soil sampling (total content and leachable amounts of metals) and groundwater analysis (filtered and non-filtered samples). In addition, a new method involving the bio-uptake of chromium and other metals by the roots of the dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) was tested. The results show that there was a low migration of particles from the slag to the underlying soil and that the leaching into the groundwater was also low for all the elements analysed. However, there seemed to be a significant uptake of Cr by plants growing with their roots in the slag. An investigation of plant uptake was an important complement to laboratory leaching tests on alternative materials.     

Investigations into the PCDD contamination of topsoil,river sediments and kaolinite clay in Queensland,Australia

Recent findings of elevated PCDDs from an unknown source in the coastal marine environment of Queensland, Australia has instigated further investigations into the distribution of, and environments associated with the PCDD contamination. This study presents data for OCDD concentrations in the coastal, mountainous and inland environment of Queensland. Additionally, full 2,3,7,8-substituted polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofuran (PCDD/F) profiles from different land-use types and environments in the coastal region were analysed. Distinct east–west gradients were detected in topsoil collected from various bushland regions with elevated OCDD concentrations confined to the coastal region. However, PCDD/F results from topsoil and river sediments collected in the Queensland coastal region suggest that elevated OCDD concentrations cannot be attributed to any of the environments, land-use or industry types investigated. PCDD/F congener profiles from select samples were remarkably similar to those previously described in marine sediments collected along the entire Queensland coastline. In addition, kaolinite clay samples from Queensland exhibited elevated OCDD concentrations, and PCDD/F profiles in these samples were similar to those detected in kaolinite clays elsewhere. Natural formation processes have been hypothesised as the source of elevated PCDDs in Queensland and other locations, where similar PCDD/F profiles and the general lack of anthropogenic sources are evident. This study presents additional data supporting this hypothesis and provides further information that may assist in the identification of the processes involved in the natural formation of PCDDs.     

Between Ideals and Reality: Development and Implementation of Fairness Standards in the Organic Food Sector

The organic sector is in an ongoing, but somewhat ambiguous, process of differentiation. Continuing growth has also entailed intensified competition and the emergence of conventional structures within the sector. Producers are under pressure to adapt their terms of production to these developments, bearing the risk that the original values and principles of organic farming may become irrelevant. To confront these tendencies and maintain their position on the market, organic producers and processors have launched a number of organic–fair initiatives. As some consumers attach importance to ethical aspects of consumption, these actors sense market opportunities in such quality differentiation. This article presents results of a study on current organic–fair criteria, as formulated by such initiatives. All of them define standards of distributive, procedural and informational fairness, with fair prices for producers and processors and long-term agreements being core standards. We show that distributive and procedural fairness are closely linked. Although organic–fair initiatives and their main protagonists focus on external fairness, such as fair prices for farmers, thus far internal concerns, such as minimum wages or employee involvement, are of less importance. The initiatives exemplify the differentiation of quality-oriented organic food producers in highly competitive markets. They have the potential to revitalise the original values of the sector and contribute significantly to ethical standardization therein. In order to make a substantial contribution to future development of the sector, a critical examination of aspects of internal fairness as well as the formulation of appropriate standards in this field is recommended.     

Male coalitions and female behaviour affect male mating success independent of dominance rank and female receptive synchrony in wild Barbary macaques

Dominant mammalian males should gain a reproductive advantage due to their greater fighting abilities. However, the extent to which they can monopolise access to females varies across species. In primates and recently other mammalian species, the Priority of Access (PoA) model is commonly used to measure the degree to which male rank and female receptive synchrony affect mating skew. Few studies have examined the factors which lead to deviations from the expectations of the model. Here, we investigate male mating skew in wild Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus). We examined four of the main factors which affect male mating success: the roles of male rank, female receptive synchrony, coalitionary activity and female behaviour. We found that male mating was skewed up the hierarchy, but there was a large deviation from the PoA model's expectations with high-ranked males not gaining as big a share as expected. Females frequently initiated sexual encounters, predominantly with mid-ranked males, increasing their mating success. Male coalitionary activity independently increased mating success. Frequent associations with females were costly to males as they were the targets of bridging coalitions, decreasing future mating opportunities for the targets. High-ranking males did not increase their mating success directly through bridging coalitions but acted to dilute the effects of female behaviour. By examining different factors affecting mating skew, we are able to show that alternative male and female mating strategies are effective in reducing the monopolisation potential of the dominant male.