Pesticide residues in honey bee (Apis mellifera) pollen collected in two ornamental plant nurseries in Connecticut: Implications for bee health and risk assessment.

Honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) are one of the most important managed pollinators of agricultural crops. While potential effects of agricultural pesticides on honey bee health have been investigated in some settings, risks to honey bees associated with exposures occurring in the plant nursery setting have received little attention. We sought to identify and quantify pesticide levels present in honey bee-collected pollen harvested in two ornamental plant nurseries (i.e., Nursery A and Nursery B) in Connecticut. From June to September 2018, pollen was collected weekly from 8 colonies using bottom-mounted pollen traps. Fifty-five unique pesticides (including related metabolites) were detected: 24 insecticides, 20 fungicides, and 11 herbicides. Some of the pesticide contaminants detected in the pollen had not been applied by the nurseries, indicating that the honey bee colonies did not exclusively forage on pollen at their respective nursery. The average number of pesticides per sample was similar at both nurseries (i.e., 12.9 at Nursery A and 14.2 at Nursery B). To estimate the potential risk posed to honey bees from these samples, we utilized the USEPA's BeeREX tool to calculate risk quotients (RQs) for each pesticide within each sample. The median aggregate RQ for nurse bees was 0.003 at both nurseries, well below the acute risk level of concern (LOC) of ≥0.4. We also calculated RQs for larvae due to their increased sensitivity to certain pesticides. In total, 6 samples had larval RQs above the LOC (0.45-2.51), resulting from the organophosphate insecticide diazinon. Since 2015, the frequency and amount of diazinon detected in pollen increased at one of our study locations, potentially due to pressure to reduce the use of neonicotinoid insecticides. Overall, these data highlight the importance of considering all life stages when estimating potential risk to honey bee colonies from pesticide exposure.

A new lipid formulation of low dose ibuprofen shows non-inferiority to high dose standard ibuprofen: the FLARE study (flaring arthralgia relief evaluation in episodic flaring knee pain) - a randomised double-blind study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate short-term efficacy and safety of a novel lipid ibuprofen formulation 1200 mg/day compared with standard ibuprofen 1200 mg/day and 2400 mg/day in episodic knee arthralgia/flaring pain. DESIGN: Multicentre, randomised, double-blind, 3-arm, non-inferiority trial conducted at 27 primary care centres. Adults with ≥1 knee flare episode within 12 months were recruited within 24 h of new flare with pain severity ≥5 on a 0-10 numerical rating scale (NRS). Primary outcome was change from baseline in WOMAC pain subscale over 5 days. Main secondary outcome was Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) change from baseline. Other endpoints included assessment of WOMAC total subscale scores and self-reported NRS for pain, subject nominated activity, stiffness and swelling. RESULTS: 462 patients were enrolled (58.9% males; mean age 52.2 years). Treatment allocation comprised 148 lipid 1200 mg, 155 soft-gel 1200 mg, 159 soft-gel 2400 mg. WOMAC pain subscale scores decreased in all groups, with lipid 1200 mg being non-inferior to soft-gel 1200 mg (adjusted mean difference -0.26 [95% confidence interval [CI] -0.69, 0.17]) and to soft-gel 2400 mg (difference 0.19 [95% CI -0.24, 0.62]). No differences were seen in mean GSRS total scores. NRS secondary endpoints suggested greater improvements in the lipid 1200 mg group compared to soft-gel 1200 mg, with similar results to soft-gel 2400 mg. The most frequent drug-related adverse events (AEs) were gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, with statistically fewer events for lipid 1200 mg vs soft-gel 2400 mg (P = 0.01, post-hoc analysis). CONCLUSIONS: Ibuprofen 1200 mg/day lipid formulation was non-inferior to standard ibuprofen soft-gel capsules 1200 mg and 2400 mg/day in relieving flaring knee pain. NRS endpoints showed lipid 1200 mg was numerically similar to soft-gel 2400 mg. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: EudraCT number: 2014-004254-33.

Altered regional loading patterns on articular cartilage following meniscectomy are not fully restored by autograft meniscal transplantation.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the changes in regional dynamic loading patterns on tibial articular cartilage during simulated walking following medial meniscectomy and meniscal transplantation. METHODS: Seven fresh frozen human cadaveric knees were tested under multidirectional loads mimicking the activity of walking, while the contact stresses on the tibial plateau were synchronously recorded using an electronic sensor. Each knee was tested for three conditions: intact meniscus, medial meniscectomy, and meniscal transplantation. The loading profiles at different locations were assessed and common loading patterns were identified at different sites of the tibial plateau using an established numerical algorithm. RESULTS: Three regional patterns were found on the tibial plateau of intact knees. Following medial meniscectomy, the area of the first pattern which was located at the posterior aspect of the medial plateau was significantly reduced, while the magnitude of peak load was significantly increased by 120%. The second pattern which was located at the central-posterior aspects of the lateral plateau shifted anteriorly and laterally without changing its magnitude. The third pattern in the cartilage-to-cartilage contact region of the medial plateau was absent following meniscectomy. Meniscal transplantation largely restored the first pattern, but it did not restore the other two patterns. CONCLUSION: There are site-dependent changes in regional loading patterns on both the medial and lateral tibial plateau following medial meniscectomy. Even when a meniscal autograft is used where the geometry and material properties are kept constant, the only region in which the loading pattern is restored is at posterior aspect of the medial plateau.

Applying fluorescence based technology to the recovery and isolation of Cryptosporidium and Giardia from industrial wastewater streams.

As increasing water shortages continue, water re-use is posing new challenges with treated wastewater becoming a significant source of non-potable water. Rapid detection strategies that target waterborne pathogens of concern to industry are gaining importance in the assessment of water quality. This study reports on the ability to recover spiked Cryptosporidium and Giardia from a variety of industrial wastewater streams of varied water quality. Incorporation of an internal quality control used commonly in finished water-enabled quantitative assessments of pathogen loads and we describe successful analysis of pre- and part-treated wastewater samples from four industrial sites. The method used combined calcium carbonate flocculation followed by flow cytometry and epifluorescence microscopy. Our focus will now aim at characterising the ambient parasites isolated from industrial wastewater with the objective of developing a suite of highly specific platform detection technologies targeted to industrial needs.

Effect of transport time, temperature, and concentration on the survival of group B streptococci in amies transport medium.

The impact of transport time and temperature on survival of group B streptococci (GBS) in Amies transport medium was evaluated. Viability of 10 or more CFU of GBS was maintained for 4 days at 24 or 3 degrees C. However, there was a significant decrease in viability for GBS held at 30 degrees C for 4 days.

Improving glycemic control: can techniques used in a managed care setting be successfully adapted to a rural fee-for-service practice?

The objective of this work was to improve glycemic control using case management supported by electronic diabetes care monitoring. Information for patients with diagnosed diabetes in a rural community was maintained in the Diabetes Care Monitoring System. In September 1998, counseling and medication management for glycemic control was intensified during individual office visits. And, from September 1998 to February 1999, 2-hour cluster visits modeled after a successful urban program were offered for groups of patients with elevated HbA1c values. The median (and 75th percentile) HbA1c values for the patient population decreased from 8.7% (10.9%) in March 1998 (N = 173) to 7.5% (9.3%) in March 1999 (N = 182) and was maintained at 7.5% (9.1%) through March 2000 (N = 182). Case management, including cluster visits, can be accomplished in a rural physician's office with the support of an electronic diabetes care monitoring system. This intensified approach decreased and sustained the HbA1c level by more than a percentage point for the patient population.

Effect of Compost Amendment or Straw Mulch on Potato Early Dying Disease.

Single potato plants (Solanum tuberosum) cv. Superior were grown in field microplots to evaluate the effects of spent mushroom compost or straw mulch on early dying of potato caused by Verticillium dahliae and/or Pratylenchus penetrans. Prior to planting, soil was fumigated, placed in field microplots, and then infested with pathogens. Area under the senescence progress curve (AUSPC) was greater for plots infested with V. dahliae and/or P. penetrans than for noninfested plots. Plants grown in soil infested with both pathogens developed symptoms earlier than plants grown in soil infested with a single pathogen. Both V. dahliae and P. penetrans reduced yields; the combination of pathogens reduced marketable tuber yields by 22 to 44% (A- and B-sized tubers). Although the total number of tubers of all sizes was not affected by cultural or pathogen treatments, the addition of compost increased marketable tuber weight and decreased AUSPC. Soil amendment with spent mushroom compost may be a means of reducing the effects of potato early dying and increasing tuber yield when one or both pathogens are present.

The Influence of Compost Amendment or Straw Mulch on the Reduction of Gas Exchange in Potato by Verticillium dahliae and Pratylenchus penetrans.

Single potato plants (Solanum tuberosum cv. Superior) were grown in microplots in soil that was fumigated and then infested with Verticillium dahliae, Pratylenchus penetrans, or both to evaluate the effects of these pathogens and of cultural treatments with spent mushroom compost or straw mulch on gas exchange of potato leaves. Photosynthesis and transpiration of terminal leaflets of a cohort of similar-aged leaves were measured once a week from the time of expansion until they senesced. Over all measurements, gas exchange per unit leaf area was less for plants in microplots infested with V. dahliae or P. penetrans than for those in uninfested plots. For leaves that expanded in early June, gas exchange was similar immediately after leaf expansion but declined more quickly when microplots were infested with one or both pathogens compared to no infestation. Overall, leaf gas exchange was increased by compost amendment but not affected by straw mulch. Compost amendment prevented some of the decline in gas exchange due to infestation by one or both pathogens. For leaves that expanded in July, compost increased the gas exchange immediately after expansion in both infested and non-infested plots.

Fluvoxamine maleate in the treatment of depression: a single-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled comparison with imipramine in outpatients.

The efficacy and safety of fluvoxamine maleate, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, was compared with placebo and imipramine in patients with major depressive disorder. Previous literature has cited a dose range of 100 to 300 mg/day of fluvoxamine maleate for the treatment of major depression; however, this study demonstrates that a dose range of 50 to 150 mg/day is as effective as imipramine (80-240 mg/day). After a 1- to 2-week, single-blind, placebo washout phase, 150 depressed outpatients were randomized to double-blind treatment with fluvoxamine maleate (50-150 mg/day), imipramine (80-240 mg/day), or placebo for 6 weeks. Fluvoxamine produced a significant therapeutic benefit over placebo (p < or = 0.05) as assessed by the total score on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression; imipramine (80-240 mg/day) produced similar results. The secondary outcome variables (i.e., Clinical Global Impression severity of illness item and 56-Item Hopkins Symptom Checklist depression factor) also showed significant differences between fluvoxamine maleate and placebo during three of the four final weeks of the study. Both fluvoxamine maleate and imipramine appeared to be safe and well tolerated by the majority of patients. As expected from the pharmacology of these agents, the imipramine groups reported more anticholinergic effects (dry mouth, dizziness, and urinary retention) and electrocardiographic effects, whereas the fluvoxamine group reported more nausea, somnolence, and abnormal ejaculation. The majority of these adverse events were mild to moderate and, with the exception of dry mouth (imipramine) and abnormal ejaculation (fluvoxamine), were transient. The data clearly demonstrate the antidepressant activity and tolerability of fluvoxamine maleate (50-150 mg/day) as compared with placebo; it is also as effective as the tricyclic antidepressant imipramine (80-240 mg/day) in patients with major depressive disorder.

Dental pathology in Pongo satyrus borneensis.

The Selenka orangutan collection obtained from 1892 to 1896 from wild-shot specimens in West Borneo, provides an excellent opportunity to examine dental pathology in free-ranging primates. Two hundred and twenty-three skulls from this collection were analyzed for dental conditions, including carious lesions, local infections (infra-alveolar and periapical osseous defects), horizontal bone loss, and premortem tooth loss. Specimens were sexed, divided into three broad age groups, and compared to ascertain sex-related or age-related differences in occurrence of dental pathology. None of the subadults displays any evidence of dental disease. One individual (2%) in the young adult group has a periapical osseous defect and evidence of horizontal bone loss, and another (2%) has two adjacent interproximal carious lesions. The old adults have a much higher prevalence of individuals afflicted with dental pathologies, including 6% carious lesions, 26% local infections, 23% horizontal bone loss, and 3% premortem tooth loss. The differences between the young and old adults in number of individuals afflicted with dental pathologies is statistically significant for local infections and horizontal bone loss. When compared by sex, the old adult group reveals that females have a higher occurrence of dental pathologies than males in all types of lesions recorded and these differences are statistically significant for local infections and horizontal bone loss. Considering the importance diet plays in the development of dental disease, it is suggested that ecological separation of the sexes, with the subsequent dietary differences, could be an important factor determining the higher prevalence of dental lesions observed in female orangutans. Additionally, the importance of local ecological factors, which may affect dietary patterns, are recognized as a potential source of variation in dental pathologies among different samples of orangutans.

Applying the criteria for the development of health promotion and education programs to AIDS risk reduction programs for gay men.

As a result of the AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) epidemic, many community health agencies are faced with the task of planning and implementing programs to prevent or reduce the risks of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) infection. Furthermore, the urgency of AIDS will force community groups to develop prevention programs prior to an analysis of substantial data relating to intervention efficacy. By using the five criteria for the development of health promotion and education programs enumerated by the American Public Health Association, planners can benefit from the experience of past health promotion initiatives, and insure a comprehensive approach to planning. The authors describe, using specific examples, how these criteria were used to develop and implement an AIDS risk reduction program for gay and bisexual men.