scholarly journals Temporal and spatial limitations in global surveillance for bat filoviruses and henipaviruses

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Becker ◽  
Daniel E. Crowley ◽  
Alex D. Washburne ◽  
Raina K. Plowright

AbstractSampling reservoir hosts over time and space is critical to detect epizootics, predict spillover, and design interventions. However, because sampling is logistically difficult and expensive, researchers rarely perform spatiotemporal sampling of many reservoir hosts. Bats are reservoirs of many virulent zoonotic pathogens such as filoviruses and henipaviruses, yet the highly mobile nature of these animals has limited optimal sampling of bat populations. To quantify the frequency of temporal sampling and to characterize the geographic scope of bat virus research, we here collated data on filovirus and henipavirus prevalence and seroprevalence in wild bats. We used a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to next assess temporal and spatial variation in bat virus detection estimates. Our analysis shows that only one in four bat virus studies report data longitudinally, that sampling efforts cluster geographically (e.g., filovirus data are available across much of Africa and Asia but are absent from Latin America and Oceania), and that sampling designs and reporting practices may affect some viral detection estimates (e.g., filovirus seroprevalence). Within the limited number of longitudinal bat virus studies, we observed high heterogeneity in viral detection estimates that in turn reflected both spatial and temporal variation. This suggests that spatiotemporal sampling designs are essential to understand how zoonotic viruses are maintained and spread within and across wild bat populations, which in turn could help predict and preempt risks of zoonotic viral spillover.

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 20190423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Becker ◽  
Daniel E. Crowley ◽  
Alex D. Washburne ◽  
Raina K. Plowright

Sampling reservoir hosts over time and space is critical to detect epizootics, predict spillover and design interventions. However, because sampling is logistically difficult and expensive, researchers rarely perform spatio-temporal sampling of many reservoir hosts. Bats are reservoirs of many virulent zoonotic pathogens such as filoviruses and henipaviruses, yet the highly mobile nature of these animals has limited optimal sampling of bat populations. To quantify the frequency of temporal sampling and to characterize the geographical scope of bat virus research, we here collated data on filovirus and henipavirus prevalence and seroprevalence in wild bats. We used a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to next assess temporal and spatial variation in bat virus detection estimates. Our analysis shows that only one in four bat virus studies report data longitudinally, that sampling efforts cluster geographically (e.g. filovirus data are available across much of Africa and Asia but are absent from Latin America and Oceania), and that sampling designs and reporting practices may affect some viral detection estimates (e.g. filovirus seroprevalence). Within the limited number of longitudinal bat virus studies, we observed high heterogeneity in viral detection estimates that in turn reflected both spatial and temporal variation. This suggests that spatio-temporal sampling designs are important to understand how zoonotic viruses are maintained and spread within and across wild bat populations, which in turn could help predict and preempt risks of zoonotic viral spillover.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  

The potential of microsatellite markers to detect the spatial and temporal genetic structure of reef fish populations within a linear distance of 300 km in the absence of geographic barriers was tested in the Bohol Sea, central Philippines, using the three-spot damselfish Dascyllus trimaculatus. A total of 672 samples from 7 populations in the Bohol Sea were processed to determine temporal and spatial patterns of genetic variability using ten previously developed and tested microsatellite markers. The extent of differentiation was determined based on a variance-based measure of population structure FST and RST, and genetic distances Ds , DA, and dm2, each of which makes different assumptions on the process of migration, mutation, selection, and genetic drift. Patterns of temporal and spatial variation were consistent among 36 possible pairs of populations. Reef groups are defined as (1) the Mantigue-Dinagat on the northeast edge of the Bohol Sea; (2) the Selinog and Dapitan islands, to the southwest and central Bohol sea populations (3) Apo and (4) Sumilon to the west, and (5) Balicasag group to the northwest. The presence of structure in the absence of geographic barriers suggests the influence of strong surface circulation patterns that differ from the east to the west side of the region. The consistency of a population’s genetic signatures over multiple temporal sampling dates implies strong habitat selection for genotypes. Genetic breaks were detected at a distance 4x greater than the marine protected area’s average size, suggesting a minimum linear distance for networking of MPAs should be expanded to this scale. KEYWORDS: Conservation, Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, marine protected area, microsatellite markers, population genetics, reef fish


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timo Sander ◽  
Joly Ghanawi ◽  
Emma Wilson ◽  
Sajjad Muhammad ◽  
Malcolm Robert Macleod ◽  
...  

Background: Heterogeneity of results of exact same research experiments oppose a significant socio-economic burden. In vitro research presents the early step of basic science and drug development projects. Insufficient methodological reporting is likely to be one of the contributors to results heterogeneity, however, little knowledge on reporting habits of in vitro cancer research and their effects on results reproducibility is available. Glioblastoma is a form of brain cancer with largely unmet clinical need. Methods: Here we use systematic review to describe reporting practices in in vitro glioblastoma research using the U87-MG cell line and perform multilevel random-effects meta-analysis followed by meta-regression to explore sources of heterogeneity within that literature, and any associations between reporting characteristics and reported findings. Results: In 137 identified articles, the overall methodological reporting is disappointing, e.g., the control type, mediums glucose level and cell density are reported in only 36.5, 21.2 and 16.8 percent of the articles, respectively. After adjustments for different drug concentrations and treatment durations, a three-level meta-analysis proves meaningful results heterogeneity across the studies (I2 = 70.1%). Conclusions: Our results further support the ongoing efforts of establishing consensus reporting practices to elevate durability of results. By doing so, we hope that this work will raise awareness of how stricter reporting may help to improve the frequency of successful translation of preclinical results into human application, not only in neuro-oncology. Funding: We received no specific funding for this project.


2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (12) ◽  
pp. 2675-2686 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan M Utz ◽  
Kyle J Hartman

Stream-dwelling salmonids in eastern North America are often restricted to headwater watersheds, where productivity is low and thus feeding conditions are poor. We sought to quantify how energy intake varies with spatial and temporal variation by monitoring feeding rates in multiple sites over the course of two years. Daily rations were calculated for 939 fish by examining stomach contents. Maintenance rations were compared with daily rations using a bioenergetics model. Consumption peaked in spring, dropped substantially in summer, and remained low until the following spring. A minority of fish fed at very high levels during all seasons, elevating the mean consumption of the population. Fish occupying large sites with low trout densities consistently consumed more energy than fish in smaller streams with high trout densities. A direct relationship between trout density and mean consumption was observed during summer, when feeding conditions were poorest. Our findings suggest that within a headwater watershed, larger reaches of streams where fewer trout are found act as important feeding areas and thus may be important habitat for brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis).


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Stewart ◽  
Scott A. Taylor

Hybrid zones are important windows into evolutionary processes and our understanding of their significance and prevalence in nature has expanded quickly. Yet most hybridization research has restricted temporal and spatial resolution, limiting our ability to draw broad conclusions about evolutionary and conservation related outcomes. Here, we argue rapidly advancing environmental DNA (eDNA) methodology should be adopted for studies of hybrid zones to increase temporal sampling (contemporary and historical), to refine and geographically expand sampling density, and to collect data for taxa that are difficult to directly sample. Genomic data in the environment offer the potential for near real-time biological tracking and eDNA provides broad, as yet untapped potential to address eco-evolutionary questions.


Author(s):  
X. C. Lin ◽  
J. J. Chen ◽  
P. Q. Lou

Abstract. Drought is an extremely complex natural disaster phenomenon. Sustained drought will lead to the aggravation of water shortage, food production reduction, land desertification and ecological crisis, which will have a great impact on social and economic development, industrial and agricultural production and ecological environment. In recent years, human activities have intensified, the global climate has been warming, and the frequency and intensity of extreme events such as drought have been continuously strengthened, which has been widely concerned by scholars at home and abroad. The Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, as the political and cultural center of China, is seriously affected by the drought, which has a certain impact on the social economy of the region. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to carry out remote sensing drought monitoring and understand the temporal and spatial characteristics of drought. Based on MOD13A2 and MOD11A2 in MODIS products, this paper constructed the NDVI-Ts feature space to obtain the Temperature Vegetation Dryness Index (TVDI) in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and analyzed the spatial and temporal variation characteristics of drought in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region from 2001 to 2014 with TVDI as the drought index. The results showed that: (1) the NDVI-Ts feature space in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region showed that when the value of NDVI rose from 0 to 1, the maximum temperature of the surface gradually decreased, while the minimum temperature gradually rose. Both of them had a linear relationship with NDVI, and their spatial shape was similar to a triangle, indicating that the study of drought in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei was effective by using this spatial feature; (2) the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region experienced drought every year in the period of 2001–2014, and the drought was more serious in 2001, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012; (3) The drought in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region was widespread, and the severely arid regions were mainly concentrated in the southern and central regions. In terms of drought intensity, the most frequent occurrences in the period of 2001–2014 were Xingtai, Hengshui, Shijiazhuang, and Handan, and the annual drought in 14 years; the least number of occurrences was Chengde, a total of 4 times; the number of occurrences was second only to Chengde, Tangshan, Zhangjiakou, Qinhuangdao, a total of 7 times. Our results indicated that the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region was prone to drought and the drought degree was severe.


BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. e026037 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian Sandra Gould ◽  
Laura Twyman ◽  
Leah Stevenson ◽  
Gabrielle R Gribbin ◽  
Billie Bonevski ◽  
...  

BackgroundPregnancy is an opportunity for health providers to support women to stop smoking.ObjectivesIdentify the pooled prevalence for health providers in providing components of smoking cessation care to women who smoke during pregnancy.DesignA systematic review synthesising original articles that reported on (1) prevalence of health providers’ performing the 5As (‘Ask’, ‘Advise’, ‘Assess’, ‘Assist’, ‘Arrange’), prescribing nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and (2) factors associated with smoking cessation care.Data sourcesMEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO databases searched using ‘smoking’, ‘pregnancy’ and ‘health provider practices’.Eligibility criteria for selecting studiesStudies included any design except interventions (self-report, audit, observed consultations and women’s reports), in English, with no date restriction, up to June 2017.ParticipantsHealth providers of any profession.Data extraction, appraisal and analysisData were extracted, then appraised with the Hawker tool. Meta-analyses pooled percentages for performing each of the 5As and prescribing NRT, using, for example, ‘often/always’ and ‘always/all’. Meta-regressions were performed of 5As for ‘often/always’.ResultsOf 3933 papers, 54 were included (n=29 225 participants): 33 for meta-analysis. Health providers included general practitioners, obstetricians, midwives and others from 10 countries. Pooled percentages of studies reporting practices ‘often/always’ were: ‘Ask’ (n=9) 91.6% (95% CI 88.2% to 95%); ‘Advise’ (n=7) 90% (95% CI 72.5% to 99.3%), ‘Assess’ (n=3) 79.2% (95% CI 76.5% to 81.8%), ‘Assist (cessation support)’ (n=5) 59.1% (95% CI 56% to 62.2%), ‘Arrange (referral)’ (n=6) 33.3% (95% CI 20.4% to 46.2%) and ‘prescribing NRT’ (n=6) 25.4% (95% CI 12.8% to 38%). Heterogeneity (I2) was 95.9%–99.1%. Meta-regressions for ‘Arrange’ were significant for year (p=0.013) and country (p=0.037).ConclusionsHealth providers ‘Ask’, ‘Advise’ and ‘Assess’ most pregnant women about smoking. ‘Assist’, ‘Arrange’ and ‘prescribing NRT’ are reported at lower rates: strategies to improve these should be considered.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42015029989.


2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-209
Author(s):  
Richard E. Hohn ◽  
Kathleen L. Slaney ◽  
Donna Tafreshi

As meta-analytic studies have come to occupy a sizable contingent of published work in the psychological sciences, clarity in the research and reporting practices of such work is crucial to the interpretability and reproducibility of research findings. The present study examines the state of research and reporting practices within a random sample of 384 published psychological meta-analyses across several important dimensions (e.g., search methods, exclusion criteria, statistical techniques). In addition, we surveyed the first authors of the meta-analyses in our sample to ask them directly about the research practices employed and reporting decisions made in their studies, including the assessments and procedures they conducted and the guidelines or materials they relied on. Upon cross-validating the first author responses with what was reported in their published meta-analyses, we identified numerous potential gaps in reporting and research practices. In addition to providing a survey of recent reporting practices, our findings suggest that (a) there are several research practices conducted by meta-analysts that are ultimately not reported; (b) some aspects of meta-analysis research appear to be conducted at disappointingly low rates; and (c) the adoption of the reporting standards, including the Meta-Analytic Reporting Standards (MARS), has been slow to nonexistent within psychological meta-analytic research.


Atmosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 197
Author(s):  
Naseri ◽  
Samuelsen

Marine icing is considered a major concern for vessels operating in the Arctic Ocean. Interaction between vessels and waves is the major source of sea spray that, under certain conditions, can lead to ice accretion on the vessels and thus create hazardous situations. Various models have been developed for the estimation of ice accretion rate using meteorological and oceanographic parameters. Various data sets are also available containing observations of spray icing events for different Arctic offshore regions. However, there is limited climatological information that can be used for providing decision-makers with the necessary information on optimal options and solutions in advance for assessing, managing, and mitigating the risks imposed by spray icing. In this study, a Marine-Icing model for the Norwegian Coast Guard (MINCOG) is adapted to study and analyze ice accretion on vessels operating in sea areas between Northern Norway and Spitsbergen, their temporal and spatial variations, as well as their statistical distributions over the region. This study uses NOrwegian ReAnalysis 10 km data (NORA10) of atmosphere and ocean parameters as input to the icing model from 1980 to 2012. The developed spray icing maps representing spatial and temporal variation of icing severity and spray-ice accretion rate, as well as the probability of the occurrence of icing events at different junctures and periods, can be used for risk-based decision-making tasks involved in industrial activities including shipping and offshore logistics operations in these sea areas.


2010 ◽  
Vol 108-111 ◽  
pp. 893-897 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong Qiong Huang ◽  
Shu Lan Lin ◽  
Tian Hao Tang ◽  
Ji Fang Li

Based on the idea of the neural network, intelligent computing methods are used to analyze temporal and spatial data. We present the temporal and spatial autocorrelation moving average (STARMA) model based on the in-depth systematic study on time sequence of hybrid model. Firstly this paper uses radial basis function neural network to extract the temporal and spatial sequence which is non-stationary caused by large-scale non-linear trend, secondly this paper presents STARMA modeling of small-scale random spatial and temporal variation. Comparative analysis between the original data and the forecasting data shows that proposed hybrid model has better performance of fitting and generalization.


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