Door-to-door measurement of household waste arisings in selected towns in Malaysia

To establish the per capita household waste arisings, door-to-door measurement of discharged waste was carried out. Survey was done in four 2-week phases over a period of 13 months. A questionnaire survey was also carried out to obtain data on household size and other household characteristics as well as the extent of reduce and recycle activities. The results showed that there is a big variance among households on waste arisings, and that household size is an important socio-economic factor in determining per capita waste generation.     

Association between psychosocial,organizational and personal factors and prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in office workers

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between organizational and personal (individual) factors with the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in office workers of the Iranian Gas Transmission Company. The participants rated two questionnaires – the standardized Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire to measure the prevalence of MSDs, and the Veterans Healthcare Administration All Employee Survey questionnaire (2004 version) – to measure psychosocial, organizational and individual aspects of job satisfaction and workplace climate. The highest prevalence of MSDs was found in the lower back (49.7%) and neck (49.0%) regions. Results of the logistic regression models showed that some psychosocial and organizational factors and also some individual factors were associated with prevalence of MSDs (p < 0.05).These ?ndings illustrate the need to consider all elements of the work system as a whole in future studies and in organizational planning.     

Underutilization of occupant restraint systems in motor vehicle injury crashes: A quantitative analysis from Qatar

Introduction: Restraint systems (seat belts and airbags) are important tools that improve vehicle occupant safety during motor vehicle crashes (MVCs). We aimed to identify the pattern and impact of the utilization of passenger restraint systems on the outcomes of MVC victims in Qatar.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted for all admitted patients who sustained MVC-related injuries between March 2011 and March 2014 inclusive.

Results: Out of 2,730 road traffic injury cases, 1,830 (67%) sustained MVC-related injuries, of whom 88% were young males, 70% were expatriates, and 53% were drivers. The use of seat belts and airbags was documented in 26 and 2.5% of cases, respectively. Unrestrained passengers had greater injury severity scores, longer hospital stays, and higher rates of pneumonia and mortality compared to restrained passengers (P = .001 for all). There were 311 (17%) ejected cases. Seat belt use was significantly lower and the mortality rate was 3-fold higher in the ejected group compared to the nonejected group (P = .001). The overall mortality was 8.3%. On multivariate regression analysis, predictors of not using a seat belt were being a front seat passenger, driver, or Qatari national and young age. Unrestrained males had a 3-fold increase in mortality in comparison to unrestrained females. The risk of severe injury (relative risk [RR] = 1.82, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.49–2.26, P = .001) and death (RR = 4.13, 95% CI, 2.31–7.38, P = .001) was significantly greater among unrestrained passengers.

Conclusion: The nonuse of seat belts is associated with worse outcomes during MVCs in Qatar. Our study highlights the lower rate of seat belt compliance in young car occupants that results in more severe injuries, longer hospital stays, and higher mortality rates. Therefore, we recommend more effective seat belt awareness and education campaigns, the enforcement of current seat belt laws, their extension to all vehicle occupants, and the adoption of proven interventions that will assure sustained behavioral changes toward improvements in seat belt use in Qatar.     

Greenbelt conservation as a component of ecosystem,ecological benefits and management services: evidence from Peshawar City,Pakistan

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Conservation of greenbelts is the most enduringly successful and popular basic need for today to protect green land, preserve ecological landscape and...     

Developing an indicator set for measuring sustainable development in India

The global agenda of sustainable development (SD) will get a major boost from the successful implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in developing countries. This requires effective planning and understanding of the SDGs at the national level and developing sound SDG indicators that account for country priorities. Currently, there is no formal SDG indicator set in India, but the process for it is underway. This paper has attempted to propose a unique technique for identifying the most representative indicator set for SD measurement in India based on the SDGs. Considering the needs and preferences of the country, a three‐stage process is proposed to develop the priority indicator set. The application of the approach has been presented for SDG 7, which relates to energy. This is supported with a background on India's SD progress. The proposed technique is simple yet effective, and can be easily replicated by other developing countries.     

Juvenile sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L.) DNA strand breaks and lipid peroxidation response following 17beta-estradiol two mode of exposures

Juvenile Dicentrarchus labrax L. (sea bass) were exposed to water diluted 17beta-estradiol (E2) (200 ng/L and 2000 ng/L) and treated with intraperitoneal (i.p) injection E2 (0.5 mg/kg and 5 mg/kg) during 10 days in order to study its genotoxicity and peroxidative damage, measured as gill, blood, liver and kidney DNA integrity decrease using DNA strand breaks assay as well as liver, gill and kidney lipid peroxidation (LPO) respectively. Juvenile sea bass gill DNA integrity was significantly decreased for all E2 exposure conditions. However, no differences were detected either between different exposure routes or tested concentrations. Blood DNA integrity was significantly decreased by E2 5 mg/kg as well as by both water diluted E2 exposure conditions. The highest E2 dose (5 mg/kg) also promoted liver DNA integrity decrease. Liver and gill LPO significantly increased at the highest E2 i.p treatment. An increasing trend of gill and liver LPO, though statistically insignificant, was observed in D. labrax exposed to water diluted E2 in both tested concentrations. The current results demonstrated that DNA damage in juvenile sea bass is affected by the E2 exposure conditions, such as water diluted E2 versus i.p E2 injection since i.p E2 injection promoted higher genotoxicity effect, in terms of affected organs than water diluted E2. Moreover, the organ sensitivity to E2 was different, since gill showed more susceptibility than blood, liver and kidney. Concerning kidney LPO and DNA integrity no differences were found between treated and controls juvenile sea bass groups.     

Salicylic acid minimizes nickel and/or salinity-induced toxicity in Indian mustard (Brassica juncea) through an improved antioxidant system

Introduction  

This study was hypothesized that salicylic acid elevates the level of antioxidant system that will protect plants from the stress generated by nickel and/or salinity.     

Elevated blood lead levels and cytogenetic markers in buccal epithelial cells of painters in India

Background, aim, and scope  

Lead, a major contaminant, is highly used in paint manufacturing due to its anticorrosive properties. Recent reports indicated high lead content among Indian paints used for commercial purposes. Painters are continuously exposed to these lead containing paints during painting of both commercial as well as residential buildings. Lead is well-known for its genotoxicty in occupational workers; however, in Indian painters the genotoxic effects of lead have not been reported to date. Therefore we aimed to study the genotoxic end points in painters due to their long-term exposure to these high lead-containing Indian paints.     

Anticlastogenic action of vitamin C against genotoxicity of estrogenic drug diethylstilbestrol (DES) in the human lymphocyte chromosomes

Several sex steroids and estrogenic drugs are genotoxic in varying conditions and cause oxidative stress, which has been a field of interest to study the molecular mechanism of the genetic damage. Among the estrogenic drugs, a strong toxic effect is exerted by diethylstilbestrol (DES). In the present study it has been attempted to study its genotoxic effects in human lymphocyte assay system along with ameliorative or anticlastogenic effects of vitamin C. The drug was used with different dosage of concentrations on human lymphocytes administered in vitro. The parameters used were Sister Chromatid Exchanges (SCEs) and Chromosomal Aberrations (CAs). Higher levels of clastogeny and SCEs have been observed indicating significant damaging effect by the drug. Interesting ameliorating effects were observed in the presence of vitamin C which is a well-known antioxidant. The results support the possibility of practical application of natural protectors against the mutagenic/oenotoxic action of chemical mutagens.