Antenatal detection of neural tube defects: Comparison of biochemical and immunofluorescence methods

The aim of this study was to determine whether identification of glial cells in amniotic fluid samples could form a useful supplementary test in the antenatal diagnosis of neural tube defects (NTDs). In a 5-year study, 1452 samples of middle trimester amniotic fluid were examined blind to the results of other antenatal diagnostic tests and to the outcome of pregnancy. Reasons for amniocentesis included raised serum alpha-fetoprotein (329), previous NTD (73), and a family history of NTDs (71). Duplicate cytospin preparations were stained with Giemsa and an antibody to glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and on this basis a prediction of fetal NTD status was made which was not communicated to clinicians. Subsequent management of pregnancies was influenced only by the results of routine antenatal testing for NTDs. Twenty cases of NTDs occurred among the 1406 cases in which the outcome was subsequently known. Of these 20 cases, only five (four anencephalic, one spina bifida) were correctly predicted by immunofluorescent identification of GFAP-positive cells in the amniotic fluid. The remaining 15 cases (two anencephalic, 13 spina bifida) were not so identified. In a further 18 cases, apparently GFAP-positive cells were identified in the absence of NTDs. We conclude that GFAP immunofluorescence examination of routine amniocentesis samples of amniotic fluid is not a useful predictive test for NTDs.     

US Energy Conservation and Efficiency: Benefits and Costs

With increased energy conservation plus the adoption of diverse energy efficient technologies, the US economy could save about 32 quads or about 33% of its current energy consumption, if sound conservation energy use policies were implemented over approximately 10 years. This potential of 32 quads is slightly greater than the current US oil imports. The systems that have the greatest potential to provide major energy savings are transportation, residential energy use, and the food system. Not only saving energy has merit in itself, but it would save US citizens approximately $438 billion per year, helping support the US economy, a high standard of living, and energy security. In addition, this analysis suggests that reducing the $40 billion in taxpayer money spent on subsidies of the energy industries would further increase conservation.     

Economic impacts of soil fertility degradation by traces of iron from drinking water treatment

Environment, Development and Sustainability - The most common drinking water clarification technology worldwide is based on precipitation using the floccules of iron(III) oxide-hydroxide FeO(OH)....     

拉普拉塔河流域以及巴塔哥尼亚地区及相关海域水生态栖息地的改变

本文描述了南美大陆南部陆地和东南沿海地区环境特性及水生栖息地和群落的现状(GIWA巴塔哥尼亚大陆架亚区),结果来自一项GIWA项目框架任务所完成的一份全面评估,绝大部分依据的是公开发表的数据.分析主要集中在跨边界水资源目前的情况和人类活动带来的影响.内陆水体的栖息地和群落变化主要是由为发电和其他用途而建的水坝和水库引起的.从活水环境到净水环境影响了生境,造成了生物群落的改变.在拉普拉塔(La Plata)河流域,外来入侵物种使本地物种消失.过度捕捞和污染影响了生物多样性,造成了海洋栖息地质量下降.本篇文章讨论了相关的原因,讨论了布宜诺斯艾利斯省和渔业资源由两国共享的阿根廷-乌拉圭公共渔业区对沿海生态环境的政策选择.     

Biochemical analysis of meconium in fetuses presumed to have cystic fibrosis

A series of proteins (albumin, transferrin, a₁- antitrypsin, alpha-fetoprotein and pancreatic oncofetal antigen) and enzymes (γ-glutamyltranspeptidase, aminopeptidase M, alkaline phosphatase, a-glucosidase and protease) was measured in fetal meconium extracts. There were 19 fetuses thought to have cystic fibrosis (CF), 13 with neural tube defects, three with chromosome abnormalities and 19 normal controls, all with gestational ages between 18 and 21 weeks. With the exception of alpha-fetoprotein, all the proteins and enzymes were significantly elevated in the CF meconium extracts. The most definitive indicator of a CF fetus was the albumin concentration, where the mean level was five times that found in the control groups. However, five of 19 fetuses assumed to have CF had albumin in the normal range. In these cases the meconium protease levels were grossly elevated. Furthermore, in the same five fetuses meconium concentration of pancreatic oncofetal antigen, a protein synthesized in the fetal pancreas, was also greatly raised. We suggest that post-mortem examination of a fetus thought to have CF should include measurement of meconium albumin, protease and pancreatic oncofetal antigen.     

Using forest inventory data to assess fisher resting habitat suitability in California.

The fisher (Martes pennanti) is a forest-dwelling carnivore whose current distribution and association with late-seral forest conditions make it vulnerable to stand-altering human activities or natural disturbances. Fishers select a variety of structures for daily resting bouts. These habitat elements, together with foraging and reproductive (denning) habitat, constitute the habitat requirements of fishers. We develop a model capable of predicting the suitability of fisher resting habitat using standard forest vegetation inventory data. The inventory data were derived from Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA), a nationwide probability-based sample used to estimate forest characteristics. We developed the model by comparing vegetation and topographic data at 75 randomly selected fisher resting structures in the southern Sierra Nevada with 232 forest inventory plots. We collected vegetation data at fisher resting locations using the FIA vegetation sampling protocol and centering the 1-ha FIA plot on the resting structure. To distinguish used and available inventory plots, we used nonparametric logistic regression to evaluate a set of a priori biological models. The top model represented a dominant portion of the Akaike weights (0.87), explained 31.5% of the deviance, and included the following variables: average canopy closure, basal area of trees <51 cm diameter breast height (dbh), average hardwood dbh, maximum tree dbh, percentage slope, and the dbh of the largest conifer snag. Our use of routinely collected forest inventory data allows the assessment and monitoring of change in fisher resting habitat suitability over large regions with no additional sampling effort. Although models were constrained to include only variables available from the list of those measured using the FIA protocol, we did not find this to be a shortcoming. The model makes it possible to compare average resting habitat suitability values before and after forest management treatments, among administrative units, across regions and over time. Considering hundreds of plot estimates as a sample of habitat conditions over large spatial scales can bring a broad perspective, at high resolution, and efficiency to the assessment and monitoring of wildlife habitat.     

Quecksilbergasfeinreinigung mittels metall- und salzpartikelbelegter Trägermaterialien (G/S-Reaktor) Ökotoxizität von Quecksilber und seiner Verbindungen

Waste and process gases from thermal power and metallurgical plants or such products from alkali-chloride industries contain metallic, inorganic and organic mercury. Widespread processes applied to remove the greatest amount of mercury are absorption and adsorption. Caused by the lowering of the emission limit from 200 to 50 μg/m³ [STP] by national and European legislators, considerable efforts have been made to enhance the efficiency of the main separation units of flue gas cleaning plants by applying the appropriate technological measures. This article is focused on the removal of mercury from waste gases. The state of engineering is described, especially with regard to enhancing the efficiency of separation in the raw gas, in wet, dry and quasi-dry processes as well as in tail-end process units. Specially impregnated ceramic carriers can be used for the selective separation of metallic, inorganic and organic mercury. Amalgamation has been investigated as a possible separation mechanism both experimentally and in theory. Using the ceramic reactor, removal rates for gaseous mercury and its compounds can be achieved which are even lower than 50 μg/m³ [STP]. The technology, the separation mechanisms and the ecological advantages through the use of ceramic reactors are presented in the article as well.     

Preliminary patterns of distribution and abundance of loggerhead sea turtles,<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Caretta caretta</Emphasis>, around Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve,Spanish Mediterranean

Aerial surveys were conducted to estimate the abundance and distribution of loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve and surrounding waters (western Mediterranean). Four surveys were carried out during 2000 and 2001, following the line transect methodology. Loggerheads appeared to be present at high densities in the area throughout the whole year, although density varied between seasons, being more abundant during the spring. Mean density in the study area was 0.322 turtles/km² (range 0.200–0.516) and the mean abundance was 1,324 turtles (range 825–2,124). The turtles were distributed homogeneously throughout the study area, we found no difference in loggerhead density between the water around the reserve and that in the rest of the study area. Current conservation measures planned by the local authorities, which include increasing the area of the reserve, would be very positive for the conservation of this stock.Communicated by S.A. Poulet, Roscoff