First countrywide survey of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli from broilers, swine, and cattle in Switzerland

The herd prevalence of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli (3GC-R-Ec) was determined for broilers (25.0% [95% confidence interval (CI) 17.6-33.7%]), pigs (3.3% [(95% CI 0.4-11.5%]), and cattle (3.9% [95% CI 0.5-13.5%]), using a sampling strategy that was representative of the livestock population slaughtered in Switzerland between October 2010 and April 2011. The 3GC-R-Ec isolates were characterized by the measurement of the MICs of various antibiotics, microarray analyses, analytical isoelectric focusing, polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing for bla genes, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and multilocus sequence typing. CMY-2 (n = 12), CTX-M-1 (n = 11), SHV-12 (n = 5), TEM-52 (n = 3), CTX-M-15 (n = 2), and CTX-M-3 (n = 1) producers were found. The majority of CMY-2 producers fell into 1 PFGE cluster, which predominantly contained ST61, whereas the CTX-M types were carried by heterogeneous clones of E. coli, as shown by the numerous PFGE profiles and STs that were found. This is the first national Swiss study that focuses on the spread of 3GC-R Enterobacteriaceae among slaughtered animals.

Chagas disease: current epidemiological trends after the interruption of vectorial and transfusional transmission in the Southern Cone countries

Chagas disease, named after Carlos Chagas who first described it in 1909, exists only on the American Continent. It is caused by a parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi, transmitted to humans by blood-sucking triatomine bugs and by blood transfusion. Chagas disease has two successive phases, acute and chronic. The acute phase lasts 6 to 8 weeks. After several years of starting the chronic phase, 20% to 35% of the infected individuals, depending on the geographical area will develop irreversible lesions of the autonomous nervous system in the heart, esophagus, colon and the peripheral nervous system. Data on the prevalence and distribution of Chagas disease improved in quality during the 1980's as a result of the demographically representative cross-sectional studies carried out in countries where accurate information was not available. A group of experts met in Brasília in 1979 and devised standard protocols to carry out countrywide prevalence studies on human T. cruzi infection and triatomine house infestation. Thanks to a coordinated multi-country program in the Southern Cone countries the transmission of Chagas disease by vectors and by blood transfusion has been interrupted in Uruguay in1997, in Chile in 1999, and in 8 of the 12 endemic states of Brazil in 2000 and so the incidence of new infections by T. cruzi in the whole continent has decreased by 70%. Similar control multi-country initiatives have been launched in the Andean countries and in Central America and rapid progress has been recorded to ensure the interruption of the transmission of Chagas disease by 2005 as requested by a Resolution of the World Health Assembly approved in 1998. The cost-benefit analysis of the investments of the vector control program in Brazil indicate that there are savings of US$17 in medical care and disabilities for each dollar spent on prevention, showing that the program is a health investment with good return. Since the inception in 1979 of the Steering Committee on Chagas Disease of the Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases of the World Health Organization (TDR), the objective was set to promote and finance research aimed at the development of new methods and tools to control this disease. The well known research institutions in Latin America were the key elements of a world wide network of laboratories that received - on a competitive basis - financial support for projects in line with the priorities established. It is presented the time line of the different milestones that were answering successively and logically the outstanding scientific questions identified by the Scientific Working Group in 1978 and that influenced the development and industrial production of practical solutions for diagnosis of the infection and disease control.

A discrete forest in a continuous landscape : investigating interactions between natural resource management and sustainable development

Summary Forests are key ecosystems of the earth and associated with a large range of functions. Many of these functions are beneficial to humans and are referred to as ecosystem services. Sustainable development requires that all relevant ecosystem services are quantified, managed and monitored equally. Natural resource management therefore targets the services associated with ecosystems. The main hypothesis of this thesis is that the spatial and temporal domains of relevant services do not correspond to a discrete forest ecosystem. As a consequence, the services are not quantified, managed and monitored in an equal and sustainable manner. The thesis aims were therefore to test this hypothesis, establish an improved conceptual approach and provide spatial applications for the relevant land cover and structure variables. The study was carried out in western Switzerland and based primarily on data from a countrywide landscape inventory. This inventory is part of the third Swiss national forest inventory and assesses continuous landscape variables based on a regular sampling of true colour aerial imagery. In addition, land cover variables were derived from Landsat 5 TM passive sensor data and land structure variables from active sensor data from a small footprint laserscanning system. The results confirmed the main hypothesis, as relevant services did not scale well with the forest ecosystem. Instead, a new conceptual approach for sustainable management of natural resources was described. This concept quantifies the services as a continuous function of the landscape, rather than a discrete function of the forest ecosystem. The explanatory landscape variables are therefore called continuous fields and the forest becomes a dependent and function-driven management unit. Continuous field mapping methods were established for land cover and structure variables. In conclusion, the discrete forest ecosystem is an adequate planning and management unit. However, monitoring the state of and trends in sustainability of services requires them to be quantified as a continuous function of the landscape. Sustainable natural resource management iteratively combines the ecosystem and gradient approaches. Résumé Les forêts sont des écosystèmes-clés de la terre et on leur attribue un grand nombre de fonctions. Beaucoup de ces fonctions sont bénéfiques pour l'homme et sont nommées services écosystémiques. Le développement durable exige que ces services écosystémiques soient tous quantifiés, gérés et surveillés de façon égale. La gestion des ressources naturelles a donc pour cible les services attribués aux écosystèmes. L'hypothèse principale de cette thèse est que les domaines spatiaux et temporels des services attribués à la forêt ne correspondent pas à un écosystème discret. Par conséquent, les services ne sont pas quantifiés, aménagés et surveillés d'une manière équivalente et durable. Les buts de la thèse étaient de tester cette hypothèse, d'établir une nouvelle approche conceptuelle de la gestion des ressources naturelles et de préparer des applications spatiales pour les variables paysagères et structurelles appropriées. L'étude a été menée en Suisse occidentale principalement sur la base d'un inventaire de paysage à l'échelon national. Cet inventaire fait partie du troisième inventaire forestier national suisse et mesure de façon continue des variables paysagères sur la base d'un échantillonnage régulier sur des photos aériennes couleur. En outre, des variables de couverture ? terrestre ont été dérivées des données d'un senseur passif Landsat 5 TM, ainsi que des variables structurelles, dérivées du laserscanning, un senseur actif. Les résultats confirment l'hypothèse principale, car l'échelle des services ne correspond pas à celle de l'écosystème forestier. Au lieu de cela, une nouvelle approche a été élaborée pour la gestion durable des ressources naturelles. Ce concept représente les services comme une fonction continue du paysage, plutôt qu'une fonction discrète de l'écosystème forestier. En conséquence, les variables explicatives de paysage sont dénommées continuous fields et la forêt devient une entité dépendante, définie par la fonction principale du paysage. Des méthodes correspondantes pour la couverture terrestre et la structure ont été élaborées. En conclusion, l'écosystème forestier discret est une unité adéquate pour la planification et la gestion. En revanche, la surveillance de la durabilité de l'état et de son évolution exige que les services soient quantifiés comme fonction continue du paysage. La gestion durable des ressources naturelles joint donc l'approche écosystémique avec celle du gradient de manière itérative.

Current epidemiological trends for Chagas disease in Latin America and future challenges in epidemiology, surveillance and health policy

Chagas disease, named after Carlos Chagas, who first described it in 1909, exists only on the American Continent. It is caused by a parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi, which is transmitted to humans by blood-sucking triatomine bugs and via blood transfusion. Chagas disease has two successive phases: acute and chronic. The acute phase lasts six-eight weeks. Several years after entering the chronic phase, 20-35% of infected individuals, depending on the geographical area, will develop irreversible lesions of the autonomous nervous system in the heart, oesophagus and colon, and of the peripheral nervous system. Data on the prevalence and distribution of Chagas disease improved in quality during the 1980s as a result of the demographically representative cross-sectional studies in countries where accurate information was not previously available. A group of experts met in Brasilia in 1979 and devised standard protocols to carry out countrywide prevalence studies on human T. cruzi infection and triatomine house infestation. Thanks to a coordinated multi-country programme in the Southern Cone countries, the transmission of Chagas disease by vectors and via blood transfusion was interrupted in Uruguay in 1997, in Chile in 1999 and in Brazil in 2006; thus, the incidence of new infections by T. cruzi across the South American continent has decreased by 70%. Similar multi-country initiatives have been launched in the Andean countries and in Central America and rapid progress has been reported towards the goal of interrupting the transmission of Chagas disease, as requested by a 1998 Resolution of the World Health Assembly. The cost-benefit analysis of investment in the vector control programme in Brazil indicates that there are savings of US$17 in medical care and disabilities for each dollar spent on prevention, showing that the programme is a health investment with very high return. Many well-known research institutions in Latin America were key elements of a worldwide network of laboratories that carried out basic and applied research supporting the planning and evaluation of national Chagas disease control programmes. The present article reviews the current epidemiological trends for Chagas disease in Latin America and the future challenges in terms of epidemiology, surveillance and health policy.

Updating the geographical distribution and frequency of Aedes albopictus in Brazil with remarks regarding its range in the Americas

The geographical distribution of Aedes albopictus in Brazil was updated according to the data recorded across the country over the last eight years. Countrywide house indexes (HI) for Ae. albopictus in urban and suburban areas were described for the first time using a sample of Brazilian municipalities. This mosquito is currently present in at least 59% of the Brazilian municipalities and in 24 of the 27 federal units (i.e., 26 states and the Federal District). In 34 Brazilian municipalities, the HI values for Ae. albopictus were higher than those recorded for Ae. aegypti, reaching figures as high as HI = 7.72 in the Southeast Region. Remarks regarding the current range of this mosquito species in the Americas are also presented. Nineteen American countries are currently infested and few mainland American countries have not confirmed the occurrence of Ae. albopictus. The large distribution and high frequency of Ae. albopictus in the Americas may become a critical factor in the spread of arboviruses like chikungunya in the new world.

A data-driven approach to disease control

As our world becomes increasingly interconnected, diseases can spread at a faster and faster rate. Recent years have seen large-scale influenza, cholera and ebola outbreaks and failing to react in a timely manner to outbreaks leads to a larger spread and longer persistence of the outbreak. Furthermore, diseases like malaria, polio and dengue fever have been eliminated in some parts of the world but continue to put a substantial burden on countries in which these diseases are still endemic. To reduce the disease burden and eventually move towards countrywide elimination of diseases such as malaria, understanding human mobility is crucial for both planning interventions as well as estimation of the prevalence of the disease. In this talk, I will discuss how various data sources can be used to estimate human movements, population distributions and disease prevalence as well as the relevance of this information for intervention planning. Particularly anonymised mobile phone data has been shown to be a valuable source of information for countries with unreliable population density and migration data and I will present several studies where mobile phone data has been used to derive these measures.

Paz en el territorio: dinámica de expansión geográfica del accionar colectivo por la paz en colombia 1978-2003

This article is an attempt to make an introduction, both empirical grounded and descriptive, of the dynamic that the collective action for peace shows in the Colombian society, with special emphasis in the geographical dimension. The article is developed in two main parts: firstly, the key characteristics of such social mobilization for peace are presented (an important and massive mobilization, which displays a varied repertoire of action forms and reaches a countrywide scale). Secondly, using the data of the Cinep’s collective action for peace database (Datapaz), the process of geographical expansion of those actions are showed. Tour periods of time are considered: the antecedents of the peace mobilization (1978-1985),the activation of the peace mobilization (1986-1992), the blossoming of the peace organizations and massive demonstrations (1993-1999), and, finally, the crisis of the massive demonstrations but a great dynamism at the local level (2000-2003). Summarizing, the article starts to elaborate which can be called a geography of peace; that is to say, it is an analysis that shows the geographical dynamic of the collective efforts for peace in the Colombian society. It aims to demonstrate that the Colombian reality is not only armed conflict, but also a growing confluence of initiatives and efforts towards finding alternatives to violence.

The role of the Madden-Julian Oscillation in the El Nino and Indian drought of 2002

In 2002 India experienced a severe drought, one among the five worst droughts since records began in 1871, notable for its countrywide influence. The drought was primarily due to an unprecedented break in the monsoon during July, which persisted for almost the whole month and affected most of the sub-continent. The failure of the monsoon in 2002 was not predicted and India was not prepared for the devastating impacts on, for example, agriculture. This paper documents the evolution of the 2002 Indian summer monsoon and considers the possible factors that contributed to the drought and the failure of the forecasts. The development of the 2002/2003 El Nino and the unusually high levels of Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) activity during the monsoon season are identified as the central players. The 2002/2003 El Nino was characterised by very high sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) in the central Pacific that developed rapidly during the monsoon season. It is suggested that the unusual character of the developing El Nino was associated with the MJO and was a consequence of the eastward extension of the West Pacific Warm Pool, brought about primarily by a series of westerly wind events (WWEs) as part of the eastward movement of the active phase of the MJO. During the boreal summer, the MJO is usually characterised by northward movement, but in 2002 the northward component of the MJO was weak and the MJO was dominated by a strong eastward component, probably driven by the abnormally high SSTs in the central Pacific. It is suggested that a positive feedback existed between the developing El Nino and the eastward component of the MJO, which weakened the active phases of the monsoon. In particular, the unprecedented monsoon break in July could be associated with the juxtaposition of strong MJO activity with a developing El Nino, both of which interfered constructively with each other to produce major perturbations to the distribution of tropical heating. Subsequently, the main impact of the developing El Nino was a modulation of the Walker circulation that led to the overall suppression of the Indian monsoon during thess latter part of the season. It is argued that the unique combination of a rapidly developing El Nino and strong MJO activity, which was timed within the seasonal cycle to have maximum impact on the Indian summer monsoon, meant that prediction of the prolonged break in July and the seasonally deficient rainfall was a challenge for both the empirical and dynamical forecasting systems. Copyright (C) 2006 Royal Meteorological Society.

Obesity, diabetes and longevity in the Gulf: is there a Gulf Metabolic Syndrome?

The Gulf is experiencing a pandemic of lifestyle-induced obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), with rates exceeding 50 and 30%, respectively. It is likely that T2DM represents the tip of a very large metabolic syndrome iceberg, which precedes T2DM by many years and is associated with abnormal/ectopic fat distribution, pathological systemic oxidative stress and inflammation. However, the definitions are still evolving with the role of different fat depots being critical. Hormetic stimuli, which include exercise, calorie restriction, temperature extremes, dehydration and even some dietary components (such as plant polyphenols), may well modulate fat deposition. All induce physiological levels of oxidative stress, which results in mitochondrial biogenesis and increased anti-oxidant capacity, improving metabolic flexibility and the ability to deal with lipids. We propose that the Gulf Metabolic Syndrome results from an unusually rapid loss of hormetic stimuli within an epigenetically important time frame of 2-3 generations. Epigenetics indicates that thriftiness can be programmed by the environment and passed down through several generations. Thus this loss of hormesis can result in continuation of metabolic inflexibility, with mothers exposing the foetus to a milieu that perpetuates a stressed epigenotype. As the metabolic syndrome increases oxidative stress and reduces life expectancy, a better descriptor may therefore be the Lifestyle-Induced Metabolic Inflexibility and accelerated AGEing syndrome – LIMIT-AGE. As life expectancy in the Gulf begins to fall, with perhaps a third of this life being unhealthy – including premature loss of sexual function, it is vital to detect evidence of this condition as early in life as possible. One effective way to do this is by detecting evidence of metabolic inflexibility by studying body fat content and distribution by magnetic resonance (MR). The Gulf Metabolic Syndrome thus represents an accelerated form of the metabolic syndrome induced by the unprecedented rapidity of lifestyle change in the region, the stress of which is being passed from generation to generation and may be accumulative. The fundamental cause is probably due to a rapid increase in countrywide wealth. This has benefited most socioeconomic groups, resulting in the development of an obesogenic environment as the result of the rapid adoption of Western labour saving and stress relieving devices (e.g. cars and air conditioning), as well as the associated high calorie diet.

O modelo gerencial do controle interno governamental: as melhores práticas de Pernambuco

Diante da importância do tema relacionado à atividade de controle interno governamental, no cenário nacional e internacional, tendo em vista o aumento da corrupção e a ineficiência administrativa no alcance dos resultados voltados para os cidadãos e ainda, da escassez de pesquisas exploratórias acerca da atividade de controle com enfoque na efetividade em busca da melhoria do gasto público, este estudo procurou identificar práticas da gestão do controle interno governamental que repercutem efetivamente na melhoria da qualidade do gasto público. Para isso procurou conceituar a qualidade do gasto relacionada à atuação do controle interno governamental e avaliar o modelo gerencial de controle interno adotado pelo Estado de Pernambuco, diagnosticando as práticas que estão diretamente relacionadas à melhoria da qualidade na aplicação do recurso público. A escolha do órgão de controle interno governamental do Estado de Pernambuco para o objeto deste estudo deve-se ao fato deste órgão ter sido palco de grandes mudanças na sua gestão com vistas à renovação e adaptação à nova demanda da sociedade que clama pela transparência e qualidade na aplicação do recurso público. Dos resultados apresentados foi possível identificar práticas decorrentes da ação do órgão de controle interno na gestão pública que indicaram um ganho financeiro para o Estado, ficando assim o recurso disponível para a ampliação de benefícios destinados à sociedade. Salientou-se, ainda, o custo da estrutura organizacional do órgão de controle, fato que apontou para um resultado econômico positivo decorrente das ações do órgão de controle interno. O estudo concluiu pela existência de alinhamento do órgão de controle de Pernambuco com os princípios mais modernos de gestão a partir do enfoque no resultado das ações. No entanto, apesar de estar na direção certa, ficou evidente a necessidade de grandes avanços com o fim de potencializar as ações de controle na gestão pública estadual.

Trabalho e formação dos educadores de creche em Botucatu: reflexões críticas

Considerando a recente preocupação de estabelecer programas de formação em serviço para educadores de creche, estudamos oito creches municipais de Botucatu (SP). O objetivo foi conhecer as condições de trabalho e de formação dos educadores com base em dados que permitissem avaliar os procedimentos de educação inicial e continuada a que foram submetidos, as concepções subjacentes à sua prática profissional, suas expectativas sobre os programas de formação em serviço, assim como as efetivas necessidades a que esses programas precisam responder em vista dos parâmetros de qualidade estabelecidos para a educação infantil. A partir dos resultados obtidos, traçamos um panorama e esboçamos sugestões que possam subsidiar uma proposta de formação inicial e continuada para esses educadores, valendo-nos de algumas contribuições da teoria histórico-cultural enriquecidas com reflexões críticas e recentes na área, e do contraponto com as propostas defendidas por documentos oficiais em vigor propalados nacionalmente.

Carbon pools and poverty peaks in Lao PDR

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation and enhancing forest carbon stocks in developing countries (REDD+) is heavily promoted in Laos. REDD+ is often perceived as an opportunity to jointly address climate change and poverty and, therefore, could come timely for Laos to combine its prominent national target of poverty eradication with global climate mitigation efforts. Countrywide planning of the right approaches to REDD+ combined with poverty alleviation requires knowledge of the spatial combination of poverty and carbon stocks at the national level. This study combined spatial information on carbon stored in vegetation and on poverty and created carbon-poverty typologies for the whole country at the village level. We found that 11% of the villages of Laos have high to very high average village-level carbon stock densities and a predominantly poor population. These villages cover 20% of the territory and are characterized by low population density. Shifting cultivation areas in the northwestern parts of the country have a higher carbon mitigation potential than areas in the central and eastern highlands due to a more favorable climate. Finally, we found that in Laos the majority (58%) of poor people live in areas with low carbon stock densities without major potential to store carbon. Accordingly, REDD+ cannot be considered a core instrument for poverty alleviation. The carbon-poverty typologies presented here provide answers to basic questions related to planning and managing of REDD+. They could serve as a starting point for the design of systems to monitor both socioeconomic and environmental development at the national level.

[Insurance in Illinois].

Title supplied by cataloger.

Relación entre el nivel de escolaridad alcanzado y el patrón de actividad física en una población de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina

Introducción. Los hábitos y estilos de vida caracterizan el perfil de riesgo para las enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles. La actividad física regular es un componente importante para configurar una vida saludable pero existen condicionamientos socioculturales para mantener un estilo de vida activo. Objetivo. Conocer los patrones de actividad física de una población e identificar la relación entre el nivel de actividad física y los años de escolaridad alcanzados. Material y método. Población 2177 individuos entre 15 y 64 años de edad de ambos sexos distribuidos en 5 rangos etarios. Se aplicóun cuestionario estructurado autoadministrado, basado en recomendaciones del Countrywide Integrated non comunicable diseases Intervention (CINDI) Programe, de la OMS. Variables analizadas: Nivel educacional, grado de dependencia laboral, actividad física laboral (AFL), actividad física de tiempo libre (AFTL), actividad física de transporte (AFT). Las variables cualitativas fueron probadas por el test de chi cuadrado. Resultados. El nivel de escolaridad alcanzado muestra una relación significativa con el nivel de AFTL. La prevalencia de AFTL baja en varones fue del 65 y en mujeres del 69. Conclusión. La población es mayormente inactiva en su tiempo libre. Los años de escolaridad se relacionan inversamente con el nivel de actividad física laboral y directamente con el nivel de actividad física de tiempo libre

Relación entre el nivel de escolaridad alcanzado y el patrón de actividad física en una población de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina

Introducción. Los hábitos y estilos de vida caracterizan el perfil de riesgo para las enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles. La actividad física regular es un componente importante para configurar una vida saludable pero existen condicionamientos socioculturales para mantener un estilo de vida activo. Objetivo. Conocer los patrones de actividad física de una población e identificar la relación entre el nivel de actividad física y los años de escolaridad alcanzados. Material y método. Población 2177 individuos entre 15 y 64 años de edad de ambos sexos distribuidos en 5 rangos etarios. Se aplicóun cuestionario estructurado autoadministrado, basado en recomendaciones del Countrywide Integrated non comunicable diseases Intervention (CINDI) Programe, de la OMS. Variables analizadas: Nivel educacional, grado de dependencia laboral, actividad física laboral (AFL), actividad física de tiempo libre (AFTL), actividad física de transporte (AFT). Las variables cualitativas fueron probadas por el test de chi cuadrado. Resultados. El nivel de escolaridad alcanzado muestra una relación significativa con el nivel de AFTL. La prevalencia de AFTL baja en varones fue del 65 y en mujeres del 69. Conclusión. La población es mayormente inactiva en su tiempo libre. Los años de escolaridad se relacionan inversamente con el nivel de actividad física laboral y directamente con el nivel de actividad física de tiempo libre