Brief for GSDR - Emerging Contaminants in urban stormwater: Challenges and perspectives for sustainable water use

Emerging contaminants (ECs) are chemical compounds commonly present in water. It is only recently that this family of compounds is being recognized as significant water pollutants (. ECs include a wide variety of chemicals such as pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs), pesticides, hydrocarbons and hormones, among others, that once released into the environment exert adverse impacts on the human and wildlife endocrine system. Natural attenuation and conventional treatment processes are not capable of removing these micro-pollutants detected in wastewater influent and effluent and surface and drinking water. The main challenges related with presence of ECs in stormwater in the context of reuse are: a) Development of suitable laboratory test methodologies and protocols for ECs identification and quantification b) Identification of the sources of ECs in the urban environment; c) Understanding their impacts on human and/or ecosystem health; and d). Development of cost-effective removal technologies which are appropriate for large as well as small-scale application.

Glutamatergic Modulation of Cue-Induced Drug-Seeking Behavior in the Rat

The characteristics of drug addiction include compulsive drug use despite negative consequences and re-occurring relapses, returns to drug use after a period of abstinence. Therefore, relapse prevention is one of the major challenges for the treatment of drug addiction. There are three main factors capable of inducing craving for drugs and triggering relapse long after cessation of drug use and dissipation of physical withdrawal signs: stress, re-exposure to the drug, and environmental stimuli (cues) that have been previously associated with drug use. The neurotransmitters dopamine and glutamate have been implicated in the modulation of drug-seeking behavior. The aim of this project was to examine the role of glutamatergic neurotransmission in relapse triggered by conditioned drug-associated stimuli. The focus was on clarifying whether relapse to drug seeking can be attenuated by blockade of glutamate receptors. In addition, as the nucleus accumbens has been proposed to participate in the modulation of drug-seeking behavior, the effects of glutamate receptor blockade in this brain structure on cue-induced relapse were investigated. The studies employed animals models in which rats were trained to press a lever in a test cage to obtain alcohol or intravenous cocaine. Drug availability was paired with distinct olfactory, auditory, or visual stimuli. This phase was followed by extinction training, during which lever presses did not result in the presentation of the drug or the drug-associated stimuli. Extinction training led to a gradual decrease in the number of lever presses during test sessions. Relapse was triggered by presenting the rats with the drug-associated stimuli in the absence of alcohol or cocaine. The drug-associated stimuli were alone capable of inducing resumption of lever pressing and maintaining this behavior during repeated testing. The number of lever presses during a session represented the intensity of drug-seeking and relapse behavior. The results suggest that glutamatergic neurotransmission is involved in the modulation of drug-seeking behavior. Both alcohol and cocaine relapse were attenuated by systemic pretreatment with glutamate receptor antagonists. However, differences were found in the ability of ionotropic AMPA/kainate and NMDA receptor antagonists to regulate drug-seeking behavior. The AMPA/kainate antagonists CNQX and NBQX, and L-701,324, an antagonist with affinity for the glycine site of the NMDA receptor, attenuated cue-induced drug seeking, whereas the competitive NMDA antagonist CGP39551 and the NMDA channel blocker MK-801 were without effect. MPEP, an antagonist at metabotropic mGlu5 glutamate receptors, also decreased drug seeking, but its administration was found to lead to conditioned suppression of behavior during subsequent treatment sessions, suggesting that MPEP may have undesirable side effects. The mGluR2/3 agonist LY379268 and the mGluR8 agonist (S)-3,4-DCPG decreased both cue-induced relapse to alcohol drinking and alcohol consumption. Control experiments showed however that administration of the agonists was accompanied by motor suppression limiting their usefulness. Administration of the AMPA/kainate antagonist CNQX, the NMDA antagonist D-AP5, and the mGluR5 antagonist MPEP into the nucleus accumbens resulted also in a decrease in drug-seeking behavior, suggesting that the nucleus accumbens is at least one of the anatomical sites regulating drug seeking and mediating the effects of glutamate receptor antagonists on this behavior.

Effects of turbidity on feeding and distribution of fish

In aquatic systems, the ability of both the predator and prey to detect each other may be impaired by turbidity. This could lead to significant changes in the trophic interactions in the food web of lakes. Most fish use their vision for predation and the location of prey can be highly influenced by light level and clarity of the water environment. Turbidity is an optical property of water that causes light to be scattered and absorbed by particles and molecules. Turbidity is highly variable in lakes, due to seasonal changes in suspended sediments, algal blooms and wind-driven suspension of sediments especially in shallow waters. There is evidence that human activity has increased erosion leading to increased turbidity in aquatic systems. Turbidity could also play a significant role in distribution of fish. Turbidity could act as a cover for small fish and reduce predation risk. Diel horizontal migration by fish is common in shallow lakes and is considered as consequences of either optimal foraging behaviour for food or as a trade-off between foraging and predator avoidance. In turbid lakes, diel horizontal migration patterns could differ since turbidity can act as a refuge itself and affect the predator-prey interactions. Laboratory experiments were conducted with perch (Perca fluviatilis L.) and white bream (Abramis björkna (L.)) to clarify the effects of turbidity on their feeding. Additionally to clarify the effects of turbidity on predator preying on different types of prey, pikeperch larvae (Sander lucioperca (L.)), Daphnia pulex (Leydig), Sida crystallina (O.F. Müller), and Chaoborus flavicans (Meigen) were used as prey in different experiments. To clarify the role of turbidity in distribution and diel horizontal migration of perch, roach (Rutilus rutilus (L.)) and white bream, field studies were conducted in shallow turbid lakes. A clear and a turbid shallow lake were compared to investigate distribution of perch and roach in these two lakes in a 15-year study period. Feeding efficiency of perch and white bream was not significantly affected with increasing clay turbidity up to 50 NTU. The perch experiments with pikeperch larvae suggested that clay turbidity could act as a refuge especially at turbidity levels higher than 50 NTU. Perch experiments with different prey types suggested that pikeperch larvae probably use turbidity as a refuge better compared to Daphnia. Increase in turbidity probably has stronger affect on perch predating on plant-attached prey. The main findings of the thesis show that turbidity can play a significant role in distribution of fish. Perch and roach could use turbidity as refuge when macrophytes disappear while small perch may also use high turbidity as refuge when macrophytes are present. Floating-leaved macrophytes are probably good refuges for small fish in clay-turbid lakes and provide a certain level of turbidity and not too complex structure for refuge. The results give light to the predator-prey interactions in turbid environments. Turbidity of water should be taken in to account when studying the diel horizontal migrations and distribution of fish in shallow lakes.

Dynamic pressure modulation for solar desalination system

Obtaining drinking water from seawater is usually done through the process of desalination. The conventional desalination processes at present are centralized, require huge capital cost, and enormous amount of concentrated energy from fossil fuel. Issues like optimal chamber pressure, pressure control and energy savings for desalination are not adequately addressed. This paper proposes a novel pressure control method by means of dynamic pressure modulation within the evaporation chamber. A performance index is proposed that results in a dynamic optimal external pressure and maximum energy saving for a specific flow rate. Experimental results from the laboratory setup that validate the proposed concepts are presented in the paper. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Functional Outcome after Free Flap Reconstructions in Oral and Pharyngeal Cancer

Oral cancer ranks among the 10 most common cancers worldwide. Since it is commonly diagnosed at locally advanced stage, curing the cancer demands extensive tissue resection. The emergent defect is reconstructed generally with a free flap transfer. Repair of the upper aerodigestive track with maintenance of its multiform activities is challenging. The aim of the study was to extract comprehensive treatment outcomes for patients having undergone microvascular free flap transfer because of large oral cavity or pharyngeal cancer. Ninety-four patients were analyzed for postoperative survival and complications. Forty-four patients were followed-up and analyzed for functional outcome, which was determined in terms of quality of life, speech, swallowing, and intraoral sensation. Quality of life was assessed using the University of Washington Head and Neck Questionnaire. Speech was analyzed for aerodynamic parameters and for nasal acoustic energy, as well as perceptually for articulatory proficiency, voice quality, and intelligibility. Videofluorography was performed to determine the swallowing ability. Intraoral sensation was measured by moving 2-point discrimination. The 3-year overall survival was over 40%. The 1-year disease-free survival was 43%. Postoperative complications arose in over half of the patients. Flap success rate was high. Perioperative mortality varied between 2% and 11%. Unemployment and heavy drinking were the strongest predictors of survival. Sociodemographic factors were found to associate with quality of life. The global quality of life score deteriorated and did not return to the preoperative level. Significant reduction was detectable in the domains measuring chewing and speech, and in appearance and shoulder function. The basic elements necessary for normal speech were maintained. Speech intelligibility reduced and was related to the misarticulations of the /r/ and /s/ phonemes. Deviant /r/ and /s/ persisted in most patients. Hoarseness and hypernasality occurred infrequently. One year postoperatively, 98% of the patients had achieved oral nutrition and half of them were on a regular masticated diet. Overt and silent aspiration was encountered throughout the follow-up. At 12-month swallow test, 44% of the patients aspirated, 70% of whom silently. Of these patients, 15% presented with pulmonary changes referring to aspiration. Intraoral sensation weakened but was unrelated to oral functions. The results provide new data for oral reconstructions and highlight the importance of the functional outcome of the treatment for an oral cancer patient. The mouth and the pharynx encompass a unit of utmost functional complexity. Surgery should continue to make progress in this area, and methods that lead to good function should be developed. Operational outcome should always be evaluated in terms of function.

Assessment of motivation to control alcohol use: The motivational thought frequency and state motivation scales for alcohol control

Introduction The Elaborated Intrusion Theory of Desire holds that desires for functional and dysfunctional goals share a common form. Both are embodied cognitive events, characterised by affective intensity and frequency. Accordingly, we developed scales to measure motivational cognitions for functional goals (Motivational Thought Frequency, MTF; State Motivation, SM), based on the existing Craving Experience Questionnaire (CEQ). When applied to increasing exercise, MTF and SM showed the same three-factor structure as the CEQ (Intensity, Imagery, Availability). The current study tested the internal structure and concurrent validity of the MTF and SM Scales when applied to control of alcohol consumption (MTF-A; SM-A). Methods Participants (N = 417) were adult tertiary students, staff or community members who had recently engaged in high-risk drinking or were currently trying to control alcohol consumption. They completed an online survey comprising the MTF-A, SM-A, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), Readiness to Change Questionnaire (RCQ) and demographics. Results Confirmatory Factor Analysis gave acceptable fit for the MTF-A, but required the loss of one SM-A item, and was improved by intercorrelations of error terms. Higher scores were associated with more severe problems on the AUDIT and with higher Contemplation and Action scores on the RCQ. Conclusions The MTF-A and SM-A show potential as measures of motivation to control drinking. Future research will examine their predictive validity and sensitivity to change. The scales' application to both increasing functional and decreasing dysfunctional behaviours is consistent with EI Theory's contention that both goal types operate in similar ways.

Ischemic Stroke in Young Adults

Stroke is the second leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability worldwide. Of all strokes, up to 80% to 85% are ischemic, and of these, less than 10% occur in young individuals. Stroke in young adults—most often defined as stroke occurring under the age of 45 or 50—can be particularly devastating due to long expected life-span ahead and marked socio-economic consequences. Current basic knowledge on ischemic stroke in this age group originates mostly from rather small and imprecise patient series. Regarding emergency treatment, systematic data on use of intravenous thrombolysis are absent. For this Thesis project, we collected detailed clinical and radiological data on all consecutive patients aged 15 to 49 with first-ever ischemic stroke between 1994 and 2007 treated at the Helsinki University Central Hospital. The aims of the study were to define demographic characteristics, risk factors, imaging features, etiology, and long-term mortality and its predictors in this patient population. We additionally sought to investigate, whether intravenous thrombolysis is safe and beneficial for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke in the young. Of our 1008 patients, most were males (ratio 1.7:1), who clearly outnumbered females after the age of 44, but females were preponderant among those aged <30. Occurrence increased exponentially. The most frequent risk factors were dyslipidemia (60%), smoking (44%), and hypertension (39%). Risk factors accumulated in males and along aging. Cardioembolism (20%) and cervicocerebral artery dissection (15%) were the most frequent etiologic subgroups, followed by small-vessel disease (14%), and large-artery atherosclerosis (8%). A total of 33% had undetermined etiology. Left hemisphere strokes were more common in general. Posterior circulation infarcts were more common among those aged <45. Multiple brain infarcts were present in 23% of our patients, 13% had silent infarcts, and 5% had leukoaraiosis. Of those with silent brain infarcts, majority (54%) had only a single lesion, and most of the silent strokes were located in basal ganglia (39%) and subcortical regions (21%). In a logistic regression analysis, type 1 diabetes mellitus in particular predicted the presence of both silent brain infarcts (odds ratio 5.78, 95% confidence interval 2.37-14.10) and leukoaraiosis (9.75; 3.39-28.04). We identified 48 young patients with hemispheric ischemic stroke treated with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator, alteplase. For comparisons, we searched 96 untreated control patients matched by age, gender, and admission stroke severity, as well as 96 alteplase-treated older controls aged 50 to 79 matched by gender and stroke severity. Alteplase-treated young patients recovered more often completely (27% versus 10%, P=0.010) or had only mild residual symptoms (40% versus 22%, P=0.025) compared to age-matched controls. None of the alteplase-treated young patients had symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage or died within 3-month follow-up. Overall long-term mortality was low in our patient population. Cumulative mortality risks were 2.7% (95% confidence interval 1.5-3.9%) at 1 month, 4.7% (3.1-6.3%) at 1 year, and 10.7% (9.9-11.5%) at 5 years. Among the 30-day survivors who died during the 5-year follow-up, more than half died due to vascular causes. Malignancy, heart failure, heavy drinking, preceding infection, type 1 diabetes, increasing age, and large-artery atherosclerosis causing the index stroke independently predicted 5-year mortality when adjusted for age, gender, relevant risk factors, stroke severity, and etiologic subtype. In sum, young adults with ischemic stroke have distinct demographic patterns and they frequently harbor traditional vascular risk factors. Etiology in the young is extremely diverse, but in as many as one-third the exact cause remains unknown. Silent brain infarcts and leukoaraiosis are not uncommon brain imaging findings in these patients and should not be overlooked due to their potential prognostic relevance. Outcomes in young adults with hemispheric ischemic stroke can safely be improved with intravenous thrombolysis. Furthermore, despite their overall low risk of death after ischemic stroke, several easily recognizable factors—of which most are modifiable—predict higher mortality in the long term in young adults.

Prognostic markers in head and neck carcinoma

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the sixth most common cancer worldwide. Well-known risk factors include tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption. Overall survival has improved, but is still low especially in developing countries. One reason for this is the often advanced stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis, but also lack of reliable prognostic tools to enable individualized patient treatment to improve outcome. To date, the TNM classification still serves as the best disease evaluation criterion, although it does not take into account the molecular basis of the tumor. The need for surrogate molecular markers for more accurate disease prediction has increased research interests in this field. We investigated the prevalence, physical status, and viral load of human papillomavirus (HPV) in HNSCC to determine the impact of HPV on head and neck carcinogenesis. The prevalence and genotyping of HPV were assessed with an SPF10 PCR microtiter plate-based hybridization assay (DEIA), followed by a line probe-based genotyping assay. More than half of the patients had HPV DNA in their tumor specimens. Oncogenic HPV-16 was the most common type, and coinfections with other oncogenic and benign associated types also existed. HPV-16 viral load was unevenly distributed among different tumor sites; the tonsils harbored significantly greater amounts of virus than other sites. Episomal location of HPV-16 was associated with large tumors, and both integrated and mixed forms of viral DNA were detected. In this series, we could not show that the presence of HPV DNA correlated with survival. In addition, we investigated the prevalence and genotype of HPV in laryngeal carcinoma patients in a prospective Nordic multicenter study based on fresh-frozen laryngeal tumor samples to determine whether the tumors were HPV-associated. These patients were also examined and interviewed at diagnosis for known risk factors, such as tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption, and for several other habituations to elucidate their effects on patient survival. HPV analysis was performed with the same protocols as in the first study. Only 4% of the specimens harbored HPV DNA. Heavy drinking was associated with poor survival. Heavy drinking patients were also younger than nonheavy drinkers and had a more advanced stage of disease at diagnosis. Heavy drinkers had worse oral hygiene than nonheavy drinkers; however, poor oral hygiene did not have prognostic significance. History of chronic laryngitis, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and orogenital sex contacts were rare in this series. To clarify why vocal cord carcinomas seldom metastasize, we determined tumor lymph vessel (LVD) and blood vessel (BVD) densities in HNSCC patients. We used a novel lymphatic vessel endothelial marker (LYVE-1 antibody) to locate the lymphatic vessels in HNSCC samples and CD31 to detect the blood microvessels. We found carcinomas of the vocal cords to harbor less lymphatic and blood microvessels than carcinomas arising from sites other than vocal cords. The lymphatic and blood microvessel densities did not correlate with tumor size. High BVD was strongly correlated with high LVD. Neither BVD nor LVD showed any association with survival in our series. The immune system plays an important role in tumorigenesis, as neoplastic cells have to escape the cytotoxic lymphocytes in order to survive. Several candidate HLA class II alleles have been reported to be prognostic in cervical carcinomas, an epithelial malignancy resembling HNSCC. These alleles may have an impact on head and neck carcinomas as well. We determined HLA-DRB1* and -DQB1* alleles in HNSCC patients. Healthy organ donors served as controls. The Inno-LiPA reverse dot-blot kit was used to identify alleles in patient samples. No single haplotype was found to be predictive of either the risk for head and neck cancer, or the clinical course of the disease. However, alleles observed to be prognostic in cervical carcinomas showed a similar tendency in our series. DRB1*03 was associated with node-negative disease at diagnosis. DRB1*08 and DRB1*13 were associated with early-stage disease; DRB1*04 had a lower risk for tumor relapse; and DQB1*03 and DQB1*0502 were more frequent in controls than in patients. However, these associations reached only borderline significance in our HNSCC patients.

Enhanced adsorption capacity of activated alumina by impregnation with alum for removal of As(V) from water

Alum-impregnated activated alumina (AIAA) was investigated in the present work as an adsorbent for the removal of As(V) from water by batch mode. Adsorption study at different pH values shows that the efficiency of AIAA is much higher than as such activated alumina and is suitable for treatment of drinking water. The adsorption isotherm experiments indicated that the uptake of As(V) increased with increasing As(V) concentration from 1 to 25 mg/l and followed Langmuir-type adsorption isotherm. Speciation diagram shows that in the pH range of 2.8–11.5, arsenate predominantly exists as H2AsO4− and HAsO42− species and hence it is presumed that these are the major species being adsorbed on the surface of AIAA. Intraparticle diffusion and kinetic studies revealed that adsorption of As(V) was due to physical adsorption as well as through intraparticle diffusion. Effect of interfering ions revealed that As(V) sorption is strongly influenced by the presence of phosphate ion. The presence of arsenic on AIAA is depicted from zeta potential measurement, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive analysis of X-ray (EDAX) mapping study. Alum-impregnated activated alumina successfully removed As(V) to below 40 ppb (within the permissible limit set by WHO) from water, when the initial concentration of As(V) is 10 mg/l.

Water quality: Indicators, human impact and environmental health

This book provides an overview of state of the art assessments of water quality; with an understanding how water quality is affected, and improving water quality for irrigation, drinking and recreation activities.

The relationships between work stressors and organizational performance in long-term care for elderly residents

This study investigates the relationships between work stressors and organizational performance in terms of the quality of care provided by the long-term care facilities. Work stressors are first examined in relation to the unit's structural factors, resident characteristics, and to the unit specialization. The study is completed by an investigation into the associations of work stressors such as job demands or time pressure, role ambiguity, resident-related stress, and procedural injustice to organizational performance. Also the moderating effect of job control in the job demands organizational performance relationship is examined. The study was carried out in the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES). Survey data were drawn from 1194 nursing employees in 107 residential-home and health-center inpatient units in 1999 and from 977 employees in 91 units in 2002. Information on the unit resident characteristics and the quality of care was provided by the Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI). The results showed that large unit size or lower staffing levels were not consistently related to work stressors, whereas the impairments in residents' physical functioning in particular initiated stressful working conditions for employees. However, unit specialization into dementia and psychiatric residents was found to buffer the effects that the resident characteristics had on employee appraisals of work stressors, in that a high proportion of behavioral problems was related to less time pressure and role conflicts for employees in specialized units. Unit specialization was also related to improved team climates and the organizational commitment of employees. Work stressors associated with problems in care quality. Time pressure explained most of the differences between units in how the employees perceived the quality of physical and psychosocial care they provide for the residents. A high level of job demands in the unit was also found to be related to some increases in all clinical quality problems. High job control buffered the effects of job demands on the quality of care in terms of the use of restraints on elderly residents. Physical restraint and especially antipsychotic drug use were less prevalent in units that combined both high job demands and high control for employees. In contrast, in high strain units where heavy job demands coincided with a lack of control for employees, quality was poor in terms of the frequent use of physical restraints. In addition, procedural injustice was related to the frequent use of antianxiety of hypnotic drugs for elderly residents. The results suggest that both job control and procedural justice may have improved employees' abilities to cope when caring for the elderly residents, resulting in better organizational performance.

Just say no? The influence of personal goals, beliefs, psychosocial adjustment, and parental relationships in drug use by adolescents

The study in its entirety focused on factors related to adolescents decisions concerning drug use. The term drug use is taken here to include the use of tobacco products, alcohol, narcotics, and other addictive substances. First, the reasons given for drug use (attributions) were investigated. Secondly, the influence of personal goals, the beliefs involved in decision making, psychosocial adjustment including body image and involvement with peers, and parental relationships on drug use were studied. Two cohorts participated in the study. In 1984, a questionnaire on reasons for drug use was administered to a sample of adolescents aged 14-16 (N=396). A further questionnaire was administered to another sample of adolescents aged 14-16 (N=488) in 1999. The results for both cohorts were analyzed in Articles I and II. In Articles III and IV further analysis was carried out on the second cohort (N=488). The research report presented here provides a synthesis of all four articles, together with material from a further analysis. In a comparison of the two cohorts it was found that the attributions for drug use had changed considerably over the intervening fifteen-year period. In relation to alcohol and narcotics use an increase was found in reasons involving inner subjective experiences, with mention of the good feeling and fun resulting from alcohol and narcotics use. In addition, the goals of alcohol consumption were increasingly perceived as drinking to get drunk, and for its own sake. The attributions for the adolescents own smoking behavior were quite different from the attributions for smoking by others. The attributions were only weakly influenced by the participants gender or by their smoking habits, either in 1984 or 1999. In relation to participants own smoking, the later questionnaire elicited more mention of inner subjective experiences involving "good feeling. In relation to the perceived reasons for other people s smoking, it elicited more responses connected with the notion of "belonging. In the second sample, the results indicated that the levels of body satisfaction among adolescent girls are lower than those among adolescent boys. Overall, dissatisfaction with one's physical appearance seemed to relate to drug use. Girls were also found to engage in more discussions than boys; this applied to (i) discussion with peers (concerning both intimate and general matters), and (ii) discussion with parents (concerning general matters). However, more than a quarter of the boys (out of the entire population) reported only low intimacy with both parents and peers. If both drinking and smoking were considered, it seemed that girls in particular who reported drinking and smoking also reported high intimacy with parents and peers. Boys who reported drinking and smoking reported only medium intimacy with parents and peers. In addition, having an intimate relationship with one's peers was associated with a greater tendency to drink purely in order to get drunk. Overall, the results seemed to suggest that drug use is connected with a close relationship with peers and (surprisingly) with a close relationship with parents. Nevertheless, there were also indications that to some extent peer relationships can also protect adolescents from smoking and alcohol use. The results, which underline the complexity of adolescent drug use, are taken up in the Discussion section. It may be that body image and/or other identity factors play a more prominent role in all drug use than has previously been acknowledged. It does appear that in the course of planning support campaigns for adolescents at risk of drug use, we should focus more closely on individuals and their inner world. More research on this field is clearly needed, and therefore some ideas for future research are also presented.

Pathways to health : Determinants of health, health behaviour and health inequalities in early adulthood

There is increasing evidence that the origins of poor adult health and health inequalities can be traced back to circumstances preceding current socioeconomic position and living conditions. The life-course approach to examining the determinants of health has emphasised that exposure to adverse social and economic circumstances in earlier life or concurrent adverse circumstances due to unfavourable living conditions in earlier life may lead to poor health, health-damaging behaviour, disease or even premature death in adulthood. There is, however, still a lack of knowledge about the contribution of social and economic circumstances in childhood and youth to adult health and health inequalities, and even less is known about how environmental and behavioural factors in adulthood mediate the effects of earlier adverse experiences. The main purpose of this study was to deepen our understanding of the development of poor health, health-damaging behaviours and health inequalities during the life-course. Its aim was to find out which factors in earlier and current circumstances determine health, the most detrimental indicators of health behaviour (smoking, heavy drinking and obesity as a proxy for the balance between nutrition and exercise), and educational health differences in young adults in Finland. Following the ideas of the social pathway theory, it was assumed that childhood environment affects adult health and its proximal determinants via different pathways, including educational, work and family careers. Early adulthood was studied as a significant phase of life when many behavioural patterns and living conditions relevant to health are established. In addition, socioeconomic health inequalities seem to emerge rapidly when moving into adulthood; they are very small or non-existent in childhood and adolescence, but very marked by early middle age. The data of this study were collected in 2000 2001 as part of the Health 2000 Survey (N = 9,922), a cross-sectional and nationally representative health interview and examination survey. The main subset of data used in this thesis was the one comprising the age group 18 29 years (N = 1,894), which included information collected by standardised structured computer-aided interviews and self-administered questionnaires. The survey had a very high participation rate at almost 90% for the core questions. According to the results of this study, childhood circumstances predict the health of young adults. Almost all the childhood adversities studied were found to be associated with poor self-rated health and psychological distress in early adulthood, although fewer associations were found with the somatic morbidity typical of young adults. These effects seemed to be more or less independent of the young adult s own education. Childhood circumstances also had a strong effect on smoking and heavy drinking, although current circumstances and education in particular, played a role in mediating this effect. Parental smoking and alcohol abuse had an influence on the corresponding behaviours of offspring. Childhood circumstances had a role in the development of obesity and, to a lesser extent, overweight, particularly in women. The findings support the notion that parental education has a strong effect on early adult obesity, even independently of the young adult s own educational level. There were marked educational differences in self-rated health in early adulthood: those in the lowest educational category were most likely to have average or poorer health. Childhood social circumstances seemed to explain a substantial part of these educational differences. In addition, daily smoking and heavy drinking contributed substantially to educational health differences. However, the contribution of childhood circumstances was largely shared with health behaviours adopted by early adulthood. Employment also shared the effects of childhood circumstances on educational health differences. The results indicate that childhood circumstances are important in determining health, health behaviour and health inequalities in early adulthood. Early recognition of childhood adversities followed by relevant support measures may play an important role in preventing the unfortunate pathways leading to the development of poor health, health-damaging behaviour and health inequalities. It is crucially important to recognise the needs of children living in adverse circumstances as well as children of substance abusing parents. In addition, single-parent families would benefit from support. Differences in health and health behaviours between different sub-groups of the population mean that we can expect to see ever greater health differences when today s generation of young adults grows older. This presents a formidable challenge to national health and social policy as well as health promotion. Young adults with no more than primary level education are at greatest risk of poor health. Preventive policies should emphasise the role of low educational level as a key determinant of health-damaging behaviours and poor health. Keywords: health, health behaviour, health inequalities, life-course, socioeconomic position, education, childhood circumstances, self-rated health, psychological distress, somatic morbidity, smoking, heavy drinking, BMI, early adulthood

Finnish cattle as reservoir of Campylobacter spp.

The reported incidence of human campylobacteriosis in Finland is higher than in most other European countries. A high annual percentage of sporadic infections is of foreign origin, although a notable proportion of summer infections is domestically acquired. While chickens appear to be a major source of campylobacters for humans in most countries, the prevalence of campylobacters is very low in chicken slaughter batches in Finland. Data on other potential animal reservoirs of human pathogenic campylobacters in Finland are scarce. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the status of Finnish cattle as a potential source of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. and antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter jejuni for human sporadic campylobacter infections of domestic origin. A survey of the prevalence of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in Finnish cattle studied bovine rectal faecal samples (n=952) and carcass surface samples (n=948) from twelve Finnish slaughterhouses from January to December 2003. The total prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in faecal samples was 31.1%, and in carcass samples 3.5%. Campylobacter jejuni, the most common species, was present in 19.5% of faecal samples and in 3.1% of carcasses. In addition to thermophilic Campylobacter spp., C. hyointestinalis ssp. hyointestinalis was present in bovine samples. The prevalence of campylobacters was higher among beef cattle than among dairy cattle. Using the enrichment method, the number of positive faecal samples was 7.5 times higher than that obtained by direct plating. The predominant serotypes of faecal C. jejuni, determined by serotyping with a set of 25 commercial antisera for heat-stable antigens (Penner), were Pen2 and Pen4-complex, which covered 52% of the samples. Genotyping with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) using SmaI restriction yielded a high diversity of C. jejuni subtypes in cattle. Determining the minimum inhibitory concentrations of ampicillin, enrofloxacin, erythromycin, gentamicin, nalidixic acid, and oxytetracycline among bovine C. jejuni isolates using a commercial broth microdilution method yielded 9% of isolates resistant to at least one of the antimicrobials examined. No multiresistant isolates were found among the bovine C. jejuni strains. The study of the shedding patterns of Campylobacter spp. among three Finnish dairy cattle herds included the examination of fresh faecal samples and tank milk samples taken five times, as well as samples from drinking troughs taken once during the one-year study. The semiquantitative enrichment method detected C. jejuni in 169 of the 340 faecal samples, mostly at low levels. In addition, C. jejuni was present in one drinking trough sample. The prevalence between herds and sampling occasions varied widely. PFGE, using SmaI as restriction enzyme, identified only a few subtypes in each herd. In two 2 of the herds, two subtypes persisted throughout the sampling. Individual animals presented various shedding patterns during the study. Comparison of C. jejuni isolates from humans, chickens and cattle included the design of primers for four new genetic markers selected from completely sequenced C. jejuni genomes 81-176, RM1221 and NCTC 11168, and the PCR examination of domestic human isolates from southern Finland in 1996, 2002 and 2003 (n=309), chicken isolates from 2003, 2006 and 2007 (n=205), and bovine isolates from 2003 (n=131). The results revealed that bovine isolates differed significantly from human and chicken isolates. In particular, the - glutamyl transpeptidase gene was uncommon among bovine isolates. The PFGE genotyping of C. jejuni isolates, using SmaI and KpnI restriction enzymes, included a geographically representative collection of isolates from domestic sporadic human infections, chicken slaughter batches, and cattle faeces and carcasses during the seasonal peak of campylobacteriosis in the summer of 2003. The study determined that 55.4% of human isolates were indistinguishable from those of chickens and cattle. Temporal association between isolates from humans and chickens was possible in 31.4% of human infections. Approximately 19% of the human infections may have been associated with cattle. However, isolates from bovine carcasses and human cases represented different PFGE subtypes. In conclusion, this study suggests that Finnish cattle is a notable reservoir of C. jejuni, the most important Campylobacter sp. in human enteric infections. Although the concentration of these organisms in bovine faeces appeared to be low, excretion can be persistent. The genetic diversity and presence or absence of marker genes support previous suggestions of host-adapted C. jejuni strains, and may indicate variations in virulence between strains from different hosts. In addition to chickens, Finnish cattle appeared to be an important reservoir and possible source of C. jejuni in domestic sporadic human infections. However, sources of campylobacters may differ between rural and urban areas in Finland, and in general, the transmission of C. jejuni of bovine origin probably occurs via other routes than food.

Development of Nonsocial Behaviour in the Asiatic Elephant

The elephant calf, a defended follower is completely dependent on adults till the age of 3 months. It begins to explore and attempts to feed at 3 to 6 months, and then becomes partially independent with some feeding on its own. The characteristics of behavior in adults are examined and the development of this pattern in the calf is traced by analyis of duration, transition and clustering of the behavioural elements. Essential activities like suckling, locomotion and lying down for rest appear soon after birth whereas elements of feeding, grooming and play appear only at a later stage. The calf takes the initiative in suckling and its termination, drinking directly by mouth till the age of 6 months. The first element of feeding appears at about a week in attempts to pick up and hold objects in the trunk. Co-ordination of limb, trunk and mouth movement is achieved by about 1 month. The calf is strong enough to pull out plants by 6 months when independent feeding begins. In about a year feeding, drinking and dusting patterns are well developed.