Prenatal diagnosis of congenital cytomegalovirus infection in 189 pregnancies with known outcome

An Erratum has been published for this article in Prenatal Diagnosis 21(7) 2001, 605. Prenatal diagnosis (PD) of fetal cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection was performed in 242 pregnancies, with known outcome in 189 cases. In 141/189 pregnancies, PD was carried out on account of suspicious maternal CMV serology up to gestational week (WG) 23, and in 48 cases on account of abnormal ultrasonic findings detected between WG 18 and 39. Chorionic villus samples (n=6), amniotic fluid (AF, n=176) and/or fetal blood specimens (n=80) were investigated for detection of virus by cell culture, shell vial assay, PCR and/or CMV-specific IgM antibodies. Of 189 fetuses correctly evaluated by CMV detection either in fetal tissue following therapeutic abortion/stillbirth (n=24) or in urine of neonates within the first 2 weeks of life (n=33), 57 were congenitally infected. In women with proven or suspected primary infection, the intrauterine transmission rates were 20.6% (7/34) and 24.4% (10/41), respectively. Of the congenitally infected live-born infants, 57.6% (19/33) had symptoms of varying degree. The overall sensitivity of PD in the serologic and ultrasound risk groups was 89.5% (51/57). A sensitivity of 100% was achieved by combining detection of CMV-DNA and CMV-specific IgM in fetal blood or by combined testing of AF and fetal blood for CMV-DNA or IgM antibodies. There was no instance of intrauterine death following the invasive procedure. The predictive value of PD for fetal infection was 95.7% (132/138) for negative results and 100% (51/51) for positive results. Correct results for congenital CMV infection by testing AF samples can be expected with samples obtained after WG 21 and after a time interval of at least 6 weeks between first diagnosis of maternal infection and PD. In case of negative findings in AF or fetal blood and the absence of ultrasound abnormalities at WG 22–23, fetal infection and neonatal disease could be excluded with high confidence. Positive findings for CMV infection in AF and/or fetal blood in combination with CMV suspicious ultrasound abnormalities predicted a high risk of cytomegalic inclusion disease (CID). Furthermore, detection of specific IgM antibodies in fetal blood was significantly correlated with severe outcome for the fetus or the newborn (p=0.0224). However, normal ultrasound of infected fetuses at WG 22–23 can neither completely exclude an abnormal ultrasound at a later WG and the birth of a severely damaged child nor the birth of neonates which are afflicted by single manifestations at birth or later and of the kind which are not detectable by currently available ultrasonographic techniques. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

HOW MUCH UNDERGROUND WATER STORAGE CAPACITY DOES TEXAS HAVE?1

Water imported into Texas under the Texas Water Plan must be stored in surface or underground reservoirs. Ground-water levels are being drawn down heavily in many parts of Texas. This is causing a shift of much water from a surface- to a groundwater environment. The lowering water tables have resulted in a great reduction in wastage of water through evapotranspiration and spring and well flow. The methods used in estimating the quantities of underground storage capacity available in Texas are discussed. Some problems will be encountered in the use of dewatered underground storage capacity by artificial recharge. In spite of these problems, probably 60 to 70 percent of the dewatered storage capacity of Texas aquifers can be reused for groundwater storage. Most of this capacity is located where it can be used in conjunction with the Texas Water Plan.     

Inorganic element uptake by barley from soil supplemented with flue-gas desulphurisation waste and fly-ash

Fresh snow and streamwater samples were collected on a daily basis throughout the winter and spring periods of 1984 and 1985 at a remote, upland catchment located within the Cairngorm Mountains, Scotland. Laboratory based partial-melt experiments undertaken on the snow samples demonstrated that both fractionation and preferential elution of trace-elements occur during melting, with the concentrations being 1.3 to 5.4 times greater than in the first 10 percent meltwater fractions than in the bulk snow (Abrahamset al., in press). At the onset of snowpack melting, the ions may be mobilised and redistributed within the snow profile, concentrating at depths from where they may be quickly removed during the early spring run-offf. The raised major- (Ca, Mg, Na, Cl, NO3 and SO4) and trace-element (Al, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn and Pb) concentrations recorded in the streamwaters during the acid-flush episodes at the time of the first major periods of snow-melt, reflect both the meltwater composition and the influence of the catchment soils (Abrahamset al., submitted for publication). Differences in streamwater chemistry during the two periods of snow-melt which were studies can probably be related to the fact that snow-melt occurs under a variety of circumstances with significant variations in the sequence of precipitation, melt-events, temperature and snowcover occurring from year to year, even in the same catchment. The high concentrations of Al (up to 330 g L^–1) in the sireamwaters at the time of snow-melt, probably reflect leaching of this element from the soil. These elevated concentrations, in combination with other streamwater parameters, may prove toxic to aquatic life-forms at this time of year.     

Fungi and wind strongly influence the temporal availability of logs in an old-growth spruce forest.

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is a key habitat for many species in forest ecosystems. To ensure the long-term survival of such species, forest management regimes must include measures that promote dead wood dynamics similar to those of natural forests. Thus, information on CWD dynamics under natural conditions is required, including data pertaining to the underlying agents of disturbance. This study examines modes of mortality, decay rates, and temporal patterns in the availability of Picea abies logs in a Swedish old-growth forest affected by internal, small-scale disturbance. All 684 logs in a 6.6-ha plot were mapped and classified into one of six decay classes. Logs in the early stages of decay were examined for the presence of heart-rot fungi. Six years later all logs were re-inventoried, including newly formed logs. Matrix models based on the transition rates between decay classes showed that it took about 60 years for 90% of the logs to decay beyond class 6 (a deformed trunk with soft wood). Large logs (> 26 cm) decayed 40% more slowly than small logs (< 25 cm). The initial volume of logs was 37.6 m3/ha but increased to 44.8 m3/ha after six years. In addition, there was a large shift in the decay-class distribution. The volume of logs in early and late decay classes increased by 71% and 45%, respectively, while the volume of logs in the intermediate decay classes decreased by 32%. The fluctuations appear to result from pulses in mortality, driven by a combination of strong winds and the heart-rot fungus, Phellinus chrysoloma, which was present in more than 30% of all logs at an early stage of decay. These results show that large temporal fluctuations in dead wood also occur in the absence of large-scale disturbance, and that heart-rot fungi are important factors driving the overall dynamics of dead wood. Since many wood-inhabiting species are naturally rare and have very specific substrate demands, such temporal variability in dead wood availability may have effects on biodiversity and should be taken into account when designing small, protected forest areas.     

Management of pikeperch migrating over management areas in a Baltic archipelago area

Pikeperch Sander lucioperca (L.) were tagged in an area where ten small independent management units regulate fisheries, in order to analyze the relevance of migrations for the management. A total of 465 fishes were tagged in connection with the spawning migration. The number of recaptures was 96. The distribution of recaptures between areas and that of total catches, estimated from questionnaire to housholds and, individuals in the survey area, were correlated. The comparison of tagging and recapture dates showed that the same pikeperch migrated to the spawning areas at the same time in two subsequent years, indicating the existence of individual spawning behavior. A modified yield/recruit-model demonstrated that in situations where the dispersal area of a pikeperch stock overlaps with several management areas, the risk of overfishing is very high. Management of this kind of fisheries needs cooperation between units as well as sound data on the movements of pikeperch to define the effects of fishing regulations.     

Recovery from acidification in European surface waters: a view to the future

There is now overwhelming documentation of large-scale chemical recovery from surface water acidification in Europe, but to date there has been little documentation of biological recovery. Modelling studies based on current emission reduction plans in Europe indicate that there will be further chemical recovery. The uncertainties in these scenarios mainly relate to the future behavior of nitrogen in the ecosystem and the effects of climate change. Four major climate-related confounding factors that may influence the chemical and biological recovery process are: i) increased frequency and severity of sea-salt episodes; ii) increased frequency and severity of drought; iii) increased turnover of organic carbon; iv) increased mineralization of nitrogen. International cooperative work to abate acidification has so far been very successful, but there is still a long way to go, and many potential setbacks. It is essential that future development of water chemistry and aquatic biota in acidified waterbodies continue to be monitored in relation to further emission reductions of S and N and future effects of climate change.     

Landscape trajectory of natural boreal forest loss as an impediment to green infrastructure

Loss of natural forests by forest clearcutting has been identified as a critical conservation challenge worldwide. This study addressed forest fragmentation and loss in the context of the establishment of a functional green infrastructure as a spatiotemporally connected landscape-scale network of habitats enhancing biodiversity, favorable conservation status, and ecosystem services. Through retrospective analysis of satellite images, we assessed a 50- to 60-year spatiotemporal clearcutting impact trajectory on natural and near-natural boreal forests across a sizable and representative region from the Gulf of Bothnia to the Scandinavian Mountain Range in northern Fennoscandia. This period broadly covers the whole forest clearcutting period; thus, our approach and results can be applied to comprehensive impact assessment of industrial forest management. The entire study region covers close to 46,000 km² of forest-dominated landscape in a late phase of transition from a natural or near-natural to a land-use modified state. We found a substantial loss of intact forest, in particular of large, contiguous areas, a spatial polarization of remaining forest on regional scale where the inland has been more severely affected than the mountain and coastal zones, and a pronounced impact on interior forest core areas. Salient results were a decrease in area of the largest intact forest patch from 225,853 to 68,714 ha in the mountain zone and from 257,715 to 38,668 ha in the foothills zone, a decrease from 75% to 38% intact forest in the inland zones, a decrease in largest patch core area (assessed by considering 100-m patch edge disturbance) from 6114 to 351 ha in the coastal zone, and a geographic imbalance in protected forest with an evident predominance in the mountain zone. These results demonstrate profound disturbance of configuration of the natural forest landscape and disrupted connectivity, which challenges the establishment of functional green infrastructure. Our approach supports the identification of forests for expanded protection and conservation-oriented forest landscape restoration.     

Food: From Commodity to Commons

Our food and farming system is not socially, economically or ecologically sustainable. Many of the ills are a result of market competition driving specialization and linear production models, externalizing costs for environmental, social and cultural degradation. Some propose that market mechanisms should be used to correct this; improved consumer choice, internalization of costs and compensation to farmers for public goods. What we eat is determined by the path taken by our ancestors, by commercialization and fierce competition, fossil fuels and demographic development. Based on those, governments and the food industry are the choice architects who determine what we eat; consumer choice plays a marginal role. Using market mechanisms to internalize cost and compensate farmers for public goods has been proposed for decades but little progress has been made. There are also many practical, ethical and theoretical objections to such a system. The market is not a good master for a sustainable food system. Instead we need to find new ways of managing the food system based on food as a right and farming as a management system of the planet Earth. The solutions should be based on relocalization of food production and de-commodification of food and our symbionts, the plants and animals we eat.     

A cross-country comparison of short- and long-term effects of an ergonomic intervention on musculoskeletal discomfort, eyestrain and psychosocial stress in VDT operators: selected aspects of the international project.

Three groups of data entry female visual display terminal (VDT) workers from Norway (n = 30), Poland (n = 33) and the USA (n = 29) were compared. Before intervention, the Norwegian group reported more neck pain compared with the Polish group. The Polish group reported less shoulder pain than both the U.S. and the Norwegian groups. The clinical examination documented fewer symptoms and signs of musculoskeletal illness among the Polish participants compared with the Norwegian and the U.S. groups. After intervention, the Norwegian group reported a reduction in neck pain while the U.S. group reported a reduction in shoulder pain. The Polish group reported an increase in neck, shoulder and forearm pain at follow-up compared to after intervention. The Polish group recorded higher flexion of the upper arm at follow-up parallel with an increase of pain in the upper part of the body. Visual discomfort showed variable results in the 3 countries.     

Effects of wind-driven circulation on river intrusion in Lake Tegel: modeling study with projection on transport of pollutants

Prediction of mixing intensity of water masses in riverine Lake Tegel (Berlin, Germany) can be used to trace the fate of pollutants that enter the lake through several inflows. Because the contributions of each inflow have not yet been quantified and because the lake features complex bathymetry and numerous islands, a hydrodynamic circulation model with high spatial resolution and dynamic wind forcing is useful. We applied the two-dimensional version of the Princeton Ocean Model to separate the influences of wind and river discharge on the currents and mass transport in Lake Tegel. For model validation, we compared the simulation results with 1?year of electrical conductivity data, which was used as a conservative tracer to distinguish between water from the River Havel and water supplied by a smaller second inflow. Calculation of currents alone is insufficient to investigate water exchanges between rivers and lakes, especially when several islands create multiple pathways for river intrusion. Therefore, mass transport simulations are applied. Our calculations based on archetypical scenarios indicate that the proportion of (polluted) water from the River Havel in the main basin of Lake Tegel fluctuates with river discharge and wind, which either amplify or neutralize each other.