Average Daily Relative Humidity Research Articles

Analysis on influencing factors of deaths from severe heat stroke in Shanghai, 2013-2017

Objective: To explore the related factors of death from severe heat stroke in Shanghai from 2013 to 2017. Methods: The data of 1 152 patients with severe heat stroke who were divided into survival (n=1 037) and death (n=115) groups including gender, age and heat stroke type (heat cramp, heat exhaustion, heat apoplexy and the mixed type) were collected from meteorological bureau and case report system for high temperature heat stroke in Shanghai from 2013 to 2017. Meanwhile, the meteorological data of the onset date of severe heat stroke cases were collected, including maximum temperature, minimum temperature, daily temperature, relative humidity, air pressure, precipitation and wind speed. The differences of individual and meteorological factors between the two groups were compared, and multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the related factors of death from severe heat stroke. Results: Among 1 152 cases, the mean±SD of age was (56.29±18.95) years old, 843 (73.18%)were male, 962 (83.51%) were in the heat wave period; 322 cases (27.95%) were heat cramp, 170 cases (14.76%) were heat exhaustion, 533 cases (46.27%) were heat apoplexy and 114 cases (9.90%) were the mixed type. Daily average temperature ((32.81±1.99) ℃), daily maximum and minimum temperatures ((38.20±2.24) ℃ and (29.22±1.94) ℃) in survival group were lower than those in death group (all P values<0.001), which were (33.76±1.17) ℃, (39.19±1.31) ℃ and (29.72±1.66) ℃. Daily average relative humidity ((60.36±9.75)%) and daily minimum relative humidity ((41.26±9.71)%) in survival group were higher than those in death group(allP values <0.05), which were (54.59±6.89)% and (35.60±7.24)%. The results of logistic regression analysis suggested that compared with the cases with daily average humidity <60% and a mixed type heat stroke, the death OR (95%CI) values of cases with daily average humidity >60%, heat cramp, heat exhaustion and heat apoplexy were 0.31 (0.18,0.54), 0.13 (0.05,0.34), 0.68 (0.58,2.30) and 0.87 (0.48,1.58). Conclusion: The temperature, relative humidity and the type of heat stroke were the main related factors affecting the prognosis of severe heat stroke.

The impact of persistent high ambient fine particulate matters exposures on mortality in the 40 districts/counties of China, 2013-2015

Objective: To investigate the impact of persistent high ambient fine particulate matters (PM(2.5)) exposures on mortality in the polluted areas of 40 districts/counties in China. Methods: Using a convenient sampling method, we selected 40 districts/counties as research sites from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Metropolitan Region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and Heilongjiang, Shanxi, and Sichuan province. The daily concentrations of PM(2.5), meteorological data and population death data from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2015 were collected. The six persistent PM(2).5 pollution episode scenarios were defined by the average daily concentration of PM(2.5) (75 μg/m(3), P(75) and P(90) of the average daily concentration of each district/county respectively) and the duration (≥2 days or 3 days). Generalized linear models and meta analyses were used to explore the impact of PM(2.5) pollution episodes on mortality in 40 districts/counties. Results: The mean±SD and P(50) (P(25), P(75)) of average daily temperature, relative humidity and PM(2.5) were (15.26±10.48) ℃, 17.20 (7.50, 23.70) ℃, (67.31±19.26)%, 72.00% (57.00%, 81.00%), (72.81±60.93) μg/m(3) and 55.38 (33.77, 91.45) μg/m(3), respectively in 40 districts/counties during 2013-2015. The average number of non-accidental, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases deaths per day were (12±7), (5±4) and (2±2) in each district/county, respectively. When the daily concentrations of PM(2.5) were ≥75 μg/m(3) (≥2 days), ≥P(75) (≥2 days), ≥P(90) (≥2 days), ≥75 μg/m(3) (≥3 days), and ≥P(75) (≥3 days), the excess risk (95%CI) of the total non-accidental deaths and cardiovascular diseases deaths were 1.77% (0.89%,2.66%), 2.69% (1.06%,4.35%), 1.67% (0.59%,2.76%), 2.31% (0.67%, 3.97%), 0.71% (-0.75%, 2.20%), 1.95% (0.08%, 3.86%), 1.15% (0.12%, 2.18%), 1.85% (0.25%, 3.47%), 1.39% (0.15%, 2.64%), 2.29% (0.39%, 4.23%), respectively. Conclusion: Persistently high PM(2.5) exposures were associated with total non-accidental deaths and cardiovascular disease deaths.

Climatic Experiment on Guizhou Red Heart Kiwifruit Ulcer Disease

Using the climatic data, such as extreme minimum temperature and relative humidity, in 15 bases in the main planting area of Guizhou Red Heart Kiwifruit from December 1st to next April 30th, respectively, from 2010 to 2018, combined with the monitoring of red heart kiwifruit ulcer disease, we analyze the occurrence and prevalence of meteorological factors and dynamic characteristics of the red heart kiwifruit ulcer disease in Guizhou, China. The results showed that the main period of occurrence and prevalence of red heart kiwifruit ulcer was from March to April. In winter, when the daily average temperature of 5 d and above is ≤2°C, the daily extreme minimum temperature is ≤−2°C, and the daily average relative humidity is ≥75%, it is beneficial for the ulcer pathogen to lurk and propagate in the plant. It is suggested that this meteorological condition should be used as an early warning indicator for the prevention of ulcer disease of red heart kiwifruit, in order to actively organize prevention after the emergence of early warning indicators to improve the prevention and treatment effect. In spring, the average daily temperature of 5 d and above is ≤18°C, and the daily average relative humidity is ≥80%, which is easy to induce ulcer disease. It can be seen that the first is the winter climatic conditions to meet the breeding of ulcer disease, and then the spring climatic conditions must also meet the rapid propagation of ulcer disease, ulcer disease can occur, develop and popularize. It is of great practical significance to carry out experiments on the relationship between the occurrence of ulcer disease in Guizhou red heart kiwifruit and meteorological conditions.

Models for Estimating Precipitable Water Vapour and Variation of Dew Point Temperature with Other Parameters at Owerri, South Eastern, Nigeria

Precipitable water vapour (PWV) is a vital component of the atmosphere and appreciably controls many atmospheric processes. The PWV is not easy to measure with sufficient spatial and time resolution under all weather conditions. In this paper, three precipitable water vapour models; the Smith, Won and Leckner’s models were evaluated and compared for Owerri (Latitude 5.48°N, Longitude 7.00°E, and 91 m above sea level) using meteorological parameters of monthly average daily maximum temperature, minimum temperature and relative humidity during the period of sixteen years (2000-2015). The Leckner’s model was found most suitable and therefore recommended for estimating PWV for the location with range between 3.253 and 4.662 cm. The highest PWV occurred in June for Won and Leckner’s models while for Smith’s model it occurred in September; the lowest PWV occurred in January for all the evaluated models. The result showed that high values of dew point temperature (Tdew), PWV and relative humidity (RH) were observed during the raining season and low values in the dry season; this is an indication that the dew point temperature is a reflection of the PWV and RH. The dew point temperature is an opposite reflection of the virtual temperature (Tvirtual), potential temperature (Tpotential) and mean temperature (Tmean). The dew point temperature increases and decreases with mean temperature in the months from January to March and in July respectively for the location under investigation. The values of the dew point temperature indicated that the air is stable signifying no development of severe weather condition like thunderstorms. The maximum and minimum virtual temperature correction of 3.3246°C and 2.3371°C occurred in June and January respectively while for the dew point depression, it occurred in the months of January and September with 8.7514°C and 2.1094°C. The descriptive statistical analysis shows that the dew point temperature, potential temperature, mean temperature and virtual temperature correction data spread out more to the left of their mean value (negatively skewed), while the virtual temperature and dew point depression data spread out more to the right of their mean value (positively skewed). The dew point temperature and the virtual temperature correction data have positive kurtosis which indicates a relatively peaked distribution and possibility of a leptokurtic distribution while the virtual temperature, potential temperature, mean temperature and dew point depression data have negative kurtosis which indicates a relatively flat distribution and possibility of platykurtic distribution.

Performance Analysis of Tropospheric Radio Refractivity on Radio Field Strength and Radio Horizon Distance and Its Variation with Meteorological Parameters over Osogbo, Nigeria

Radio refractivity estimation is paramount in the planning and design of radio link/systems for the purpose of achieving optimal performances. In this study, the monthly average daily atmospheric pressure, relative humidity and temperature data obtained from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the period of twenty two years (July 1983 – June 2005) for Osogbo (Latitude 7.47 0N, Longitude 4.29 0E, and 302.0 m above sea level) were used to estimate the monthly tropospheric radio refractivity and to investigate its variation with other meteorological parameters of monthly average daily atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, absolute temperature, saturation vapour pressure and radio refractive index. The field strength variability (FSV) and the radio horizon distance were also computed. The monthly variation of FSV using two years of data (2003 – 2004) was also investigated. The results of this study revealed that the values of radio refractivity are more during the rainy season than in the dry season. It was found that the maximum average value of tropospheric radio refractivity of 370.98 N-units and the minimum average value of 332.36 N-units occurred in the months of May and January during the rainy and dry seasons respectively. 71.45 % of the total value of the radio refractivity was contributed by the dry term while the major variation is by the wet term radio refractivity. The average refractivity gradient computed for the study area under investigation was −42.69 N-units/km and the average effective earth radius (k – factor) was 1.37 which corresponds to the conditions of super refraction. The annual maximum mean value of FSV is 7.72 dB and the minimum monthly mean value of 0.07 dB was obtained for the study area. The implication of this FSV values is that the output of a receiving antenna in Osogbo may generally be subjected to changes not less than 0.07 dB in a year and not greater than 7.72 dB. The descriptive statistical analysis shows that the radio refractivity, relative humidity, absolute temperature and radio refractive index data spread out more to the left of their mean value (negatively skewed), while the atmospheric pressure data spread out more to the right of their mean value (positively skewed). The radio refractivity, relative humidity and radio refractive index data have positive kurtosis which indicates a relatively peaked distribution and the possibility of a leptokurtic distribution. The atmospheric pressure and absolute temperature data have negative kurtosis which indicates a relatively flat distribution and possibility of platykurtic distribution.

Impact of weather on the risk of surgical site infections in a tropical area

We studied the impact of average daily temperature and relative humidity on the risk of surgical site infections in 36,429 surgeries performed in a hospital in inner Brazil. Adjusted Poisson regression models found an association between surgical site infections and temperature (rate ratio [RR], 1.013; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.001-1.025). The effect was concentrated on clean wound procedures and was greater over the 75th (RR, 1.109; 95% CI, 1.015-1.212) and 90th (RR, 1.196; 95% CI, 1.055-1.355) percentiles of daily temperature.

A long-term study on the effect of agroclimatic variables on olive scab in Spain

Olive scab (OS), caused by Venturia oleaginea, is the most widespread disease in all olive growing regions. However, there is not much information about critical agroclimatic conditions for OS development under natural conditions. To cover this lack of knowledge, the OS severity (OSS) of 92 epidemics, from 14 locations, 16 years and 11 olive cultivars, was annually evaluated. Epidemics were divided in three periods of years: from 1994 to 1998 (period I), from 2002 to 2008 (period II) and from 2010 to 2013 (period III). OSS was compared among periods. Also, Pearson's (r) or Spearman's rank (ρ) correlation coefficients were calculated between OSS and monthly weather variables, cultivar resistance categories and OSS value in the previous epidemic year. The OSS in period III was higher than the OSS in the other two periods. Resistance categories and OSS in the previous year were highly correlated with OSS. Relative humidity (RH) and rainfall (R) were the weather variables positively correlated with OSS in all periods. OSS in the previous year, daily average RH (RHm) in July, average of daily maximum temperature (Tmx) in November, average of daily maximum RH (RHmx) in December and average of daily minimum temperature (Tmn) in March were selected as agroclimatic variables to develop a linear regression model that relates them with OSS. The present study provides relevant information about the long-term factors that affect the OS development.

Life table and predation rate of Amblyseius swirskii (Acari: Phytoseiidae) fed on Eotetranychus frosti (Tetranychidae) and Cenopalpus irani (Tenuipalpidae)

The life history and predation rate of Amblyseius swirskii Athias-Henriot feeding on Eotetranychus frosti (McGregor) (Tetranychidae) or Cenopalpus irani Dosse (Tenuipalpidae) were determined at 25±1°C, with 16:8 h L: D, at an average daily relative air humidity of 60±10% on apple leaves. A. swirskii successfully completed development, oviposition, and survival on both diets. Individuals of predator reared on E. frosti prey showed improved performance as compared to C. irani prey. The results indicated that its average duration of all immature stages on E. frosti and C. irani were 6.94 and 7.48 days, respectively. The adult female longevities were 39.81 and 32.41 days on the E. frosti and C. irani diets, respectively; also females laid a total of 34.69 and 25.96 eggs on the two different prey species, respectively. The intrinsic rates of increase (r) and net reproductive rate (R0) on E. frosti and C. irani were 0.179 and 0.140 day−1 and 18.50 and 11.68 female offspring, respectively. The transformation rate (Qp), stable predation rate (ψ), and finite predation rate (ω) of A. swirskii were higher on C. irani than when fed on E. frosti diet due to their higher predation rate. The transformation rate (Qp) of the predatory mite was 20.20 and 32.28 prey on E. frosti and C. irani, respectively. The net predation rate (C0) was not significantly different for A. swirskii on the two diets. The results of this study suggested that A. swirskii can successfully complete its life cycle on both preys and have excellent performance as biological control agent against both pest species.

Effect of dietary supplementation of betaine on productive performance, egg quality and jejunal tight junction-related gene expression in laying hens raised under hot environmental conditions

The objective of this experiment was to investigate the effect of dietary supplementation of betaine on productive performance, egg quality, and jejunal tight junction-related gene expression in laying hens raised under hot environmental conditions. A total of 216 laying hens of 32 weeks of age were allotted to 1 of 3 dietary treatments with 6 replicates and 12 hens per replicate in a completely randomized design. A commercial-type basal diet was prepared, and 3.0 or 6.0 g/kg of betaine was supplemented to the basal diet. Diets were fed to hens for 6 weeks. Hens were raised during the hot season (the end of July to the middle of September), and the average daily room temperature and relative humidity were 25.8 ± 2.0 °C and 74.8 ± 7.3%, respectively. At the end of the experiment, 2 hens per replicate were euthanized to collect jejunal mucosa samples. Results indicated that a tendency (linear, P = 0.094) for increased hen-day egg production was observed as inclusion amounts of betaine in diets were increased. Increasing inclusion amounts of betaine in diets decreased (linear, P < 0.05) broken and shell-less egg production. Egg quality was not influenced by dietary treatments, except for a quadratic increase (P < 0.05) in eggshell strength by increasing inclusion amounts of betaine in diets. Increasing inclusion amounts of betaine in diets increased the expressions of occludin (OCLN; linear, P < 0.01) and claudin-1 (CLDN-1; linear, P = 0.062), but decreased the expressions of zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1; linear and quadratic, P < 0.05) and junctional adhesion molecule B (JAM-2; linear and quadratic, P < 0.01) in the jejunal mucosa. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of betaine improves laying performance and selectively modifies in jejunal tight junction-related gene expressions in laying hens raised under hot environmental conditions.

Lunar and climatic effects on boar ejaculate traits

There is evidence that phases of the moon affect wild animal behaviors including reproduction. There is, however, little evidence of moon phase effects on domestic livestock reproduction. This study investigated the effects of moon phase and climatic variables on boar ejaculate traits. Records of 4149 semen collections from boars of nine different breeds at one boar stud were used. The response variables were volume of ejaculate, concentration of sperm in the ejaculate, and number of doses obtained per ejaculate. Moon phase, greatest daily temperature (T), least daily T, average daily relative humidity (RH), temperature-humidity index (THI), season and the interaction of moon phase with season were analyzed at the day of collection and 45 days prior to date of collection as a proxy of initiation of spermatogenesis. For both dates analyzed season and the interaction of season with moon had significant effects (P < 0.05) on the volume of the ejaculate. Moon phase had a significant effect (P < 0.05) on volume of ejaculate at the day of collection. Sperm concentration was affected (P < 0.05) by the interaction of moon phase with season, high and low temperature, THI, RH and breed. Season had an effect (P < 0.01) on concentration of sperm at the initiation of spermatogenesis. For doses that could be used for AI that were obtained/ejaculate, there were effects of moon phase, season, the interaction between season and moon phase and breed (P < 0.05) at collection day and at the initiation of spermatogenesis. There was an interaction (P < 0.0001) between season and moon phase for volume of ejaculate, sperm concentration and number of doses obtained per ejaculate at date of collection and at day of initiation of spermatogenesis. The significant interaction of season and moon phase on boar semen traits suggests that to maximize productivity of modern swine production systems determining a collection schedule in some seasons relative to moon phase may be advantageous.

EFFECT OF SUPPLEMENTAL MANNAN OLIGOSACCHARIDE TO RABBIT DIETS ON PRODUCTIVE AND REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF DOES DURING SUMMER SEASON IN EGYPT

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary mannan oligosaccharide (Bio-Mos) supplementation on reproductive, productive performance and milk production of APRI line rabbit does under high ambient temperature. A total of 40 APRI line rabbit does, 8-9 months old, were divided into four experimental treatments (10 each). Rabbit does were fed ad libitum the basal diet supplemented without (control), with 0.5, 1 or 1.5 g mannan oligosaccharide (Bio-Mos) /kg diet. Animals were provided with water freely. The average daily temperature and relative humidity inside the rabbitry were 31.6±3.8 °C and 77.5±4.8%, respectively. Under heat stress conditions, does weight gain at gestation significantly increased (P<0.001) with increasing dietary MOS supplementation. Pregnant rabbit does given diet containing 1.5 g MOS /kg diet showed the highest weight gain than those fed other dietary MOS levels during the pregnancy period.Daily feed intake of pregnant and lactating rabbit does increased (P<0.05) with increasing dietary MOS level, where rabbit does fed diet containing 1.5 g MOS /kg diet recorded the highest values. The feed conversion ratio was significantly improved (P<0.001) with rabbit does fed diets containing different MOS level (0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 g) during lactation period. The mortality rate of the pups during the lactation period was higher in the control diet compared to diets with 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 g MOS (32.11 % vs. 25.82, 18.37 and 17.77%; P<0.01, respectively), which could be due to lower milk yield of rabbit does fed unsupplemented diet. Rabbit does fed 1.0 and 1.5 g MOS/kg diet recorded the highest values of letters weights, during the first three weeks. The same trend was obtained at weaning. Rabbit does fed 1.5 g MOS/kg diet recorded the highest net revenue, followed by those fed 1.0 g MOS/kg diet. It could be concluded that supplementing MOS in rabbit does diet significantly improve the overall productive and reproductive performance of rabbits does during pregnancy and lactation periods, in addition to depressing the mortality of pups under high ambient temperature during summer season in Egypt. Therefore, it could be recommended providing rabbit does diet with MOS up to 1.5 g/kg diet is advisable in hot climates, Egypt.

Spatiotemporal pattern of peste des petits ruminants and its relationship with meteorological factors in China

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a severe infectious viral disease of domestic and wild small ruminants, and it threatens food security and livelihood of farmers across the world. In China, 292 PPR cases have been reported since it was first reported in 2007. Aiming to display the spatiotemporal patterns of PPR outbreaks and to understand its relationship with meteorological factors, we conducted a direction test, directional distribution analysis, and logistic regression analysis. The results showed that the spread of disease had a significant directional spread (P<0.05). Daily average temperature (DAT) [OR 0.063 (95% CI 0.047–0.076)], daily average relative humidity (DARH) [OR 0.871 (95% CI 0.804–0.944)], and daily hours of sunshine (DHS) [OR 0.411 (95% CI 0.389–0.582)] were inversely associated with the risk of PPR outbreak, while a positive association was observed for daily average air pressure (DAAP) [OR 1.211 (95% CI 1.036–1.417). Our findings indicate that meteorological factors may be important variables for affecting PPR transmission, and should be taken into account in the future monitoring programs for PPR.

Effect of dietary β-mannanase on productive performance, egg quality, and utilization of dietary energy and nutrients in aged laying hens raised under hot climatic conditions.

ObjectiveThe objective of this experiment was to investigate the effect of dietary β-mannanase on productive performance, egg quality, and utilization of dietary energy and nutrients in aged laying hens raised under hot climatic conditions.MethodsA total of 320 84-wk-old Hy-line Brown aged laying hens were allotted to one of four treatments with eight replicates in a completely randomized design. Two dietary treatments with high energy (HE; 2,800 kcal/kg nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy [AMEn]) and low energy (LE; 2,700 kcal/kg AMEn) were formulated. Two additional diets were prepared by adding 0.04% (MN4) or 0.08% β-mannanase (MN8) to LE treatment diets. The feeding trial was conducted for 28 d, covering a period from July to August in South Korea. The average daily room temperature and relative humidity were 29.2°C and 83%, respectively.ResultsProductive performance, egg quality, and cloacal temperature were not influenced by dietary treatments. The measured AMEn values for MN8 diets were similar to those for HE diets, which were greater (p<0.05) than those for LE and MN4 diets. However, the AMEn values for MN8 diets did not differ from those for LE and MN4 diets.ConclusionThe addition of β-mannanase to low energy diets increases energy values for diets fed to aged laying hens. However, this increase has little positive impacts on performance and egg quality. These results indicate that dietary β-mannanase does not mitigate the heat stress of aged laying hens raised under hot climatic conditions.

Utilization of Greenhouse (Lean-to Structural Frame) as a Solar Dryer for Drying Lemon Fruits Part I: Drying Process under High Air Temperature.

A solar lean-to greenhouse dryer was designed, constructed and tested for drying lemon fruits at the experiments and researches field, Faculty of Agriculture, MansouraUniversity (latitude and longitude angles, respectively, are 31.04ᵒN and 31.35ᵒE, and 6.72 m mean altitude above the sea level). In this study a new concept has been taken into consideration to maximize the greenhouse effect (thermal trapping) by using architectural form of lean-to greenhouse structural frame. The experimental work was carried out from 21st to 26th of August 2016. The obtained results showed that, using the northern wall reflector caused in increasing both the intensity of solar radiation inside the dryer and the indoor air temperature by 36.30% and 60.90%, respectively. The daily average solar radiation incident outside and inside the solar dryer were 5.188 and 3.383 kWh, respectively with effective transmittance of 65.21%. Using the northern reflector wall increased the daily average indoor solar radiation by 36.12%. The daily average outdoor and indoor air temperatures were 30.1 and 48.4oC, respectively. Accordingly, the solar dryer increased the indoor air temperature over the outdoor by 60.80%. These conditions of solar dryer caused in decreasing the daily average air relative humidity from 67.31 to 28.38% with reduction percentage of 38.93%. Three different shapes of lemon fruits (slices, half and whole lemon) was dried from initial moisture content of 87.04% (w.b.) to the final moisture of 17.30, 17.38 and 17.69% (w.b) within 3, 5, and 6 days, respectively.

Effects of Climatic Conditions on Bovine Semen Characteristics

The present study assessed the effects of climatic conditions and year‑period (month) on both qualitative and quantitative characteristics of bovine semen in Czech Republic. The semen was collected twice a week using artificial vagina at artificial insemination center Hradištko in period 2011 – 2013. The effects of collection month, average daily ambient temperature and average daily relative humidity on volume, sperm concentration and progressive motility above head of collected semen and also on number of produced artificial insemination straws of required quality were analyzed using statistical analysis (procedures: UNIVARIATE, STEPWISE, GLM) in software SAS 9.3 (SAS/STAT® 9.3, 2011). Collection month, average daily ambient temperature, average daily relative humidity, and breed had a significant effect (P &lt; 0.05) on all evaluated characteristics. The maximum values of motility and sperm concentration were found in March and in April. The highest volume of collected semen was found in July and in September and the lowest in November, when also the lowest number of straws was produced. Motility and sperm concentration were significantly influenced by average daily ambient temperature and average daily relative humidity, where the maximum values were recorded in average daily ambient temperature over 14.85 °C and average daily relative humidity over 72.05 %. The results are important to the management of artificial insemination center responsible for planning of semen collection, processing and artificial insemination straws production.

Influence of Temperature-Humidity Relations During Years on Milk Production and Quality

The aim of this study was to evaluate influence of climatic conditions represented by daily air temperature and relative air humidity on indicators of Holstein cows’ milk quality and production. The first dataset represented individual milk production in day of milk performance recording (milk kg, fat %, protein %, and somatic cells count thous.*ml−1). The second dataset represented total daily milk characteristics of herd (milk kg, fat %, protein % and somatic cells count thous.*ml−1). A total of 654 Holstein cows were observed and evaluated. Both datasets were evaluated in relation to selected external influences (year, month, average daily air temperature, and average daily relatively air humidity). Statistical analysis was performed using SAS 9.3, and UNIVARIATE, REG and GLM procedure. Three groups of daily air temeperature (&lt; 4.4 °C; 4.4 – 13.2 °C; &gt; 13.2 °C), and daily relative air humidity (&lt; 65.3 %; 65.3 – 80.4 %; &gt; 80.4 %) were conducted for evaluation. Significant (P &lt; 0.05) linear regressions were computed among daily air temperature and all milk production indicators, except of somatic cells count attribute. The highest individual daily milk production (35.94 kg, P &lt; 0.01), and protein content (3.41 %, P &lt; 0.01) were achieved with the highest average daily air temperature. Opposite results were observed for milk yield of herd as well as protein content. Average daily relative air humidity had lower influence on individual and bulk milk samples. The better results were achieved for both datasets (individual and bulk samples) in groups (65.3 – 80.4 %; &gt; 80.4 %) of average daily relative air humidity. Obtained results point out importance of outdoor climatic parameters monitoring and preventive measures of climatic conditions in the stable.

Thermal performance study of a multi-pass solar air heating collector system for drying of Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa)

This article presents a study on the performance of a forced convective multi-pass solar air heating collector (MPSAHC) system assisted with granite as a sensible energy storing matrix. Experimental drying of Roselle was carried out in August 2015 at Solar Energy Research Site of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia (4.385693° N and 100.979203 S). The present investigation was conducted under the daily average relative humidity, solar irradiance, ambient temperature and wind speed of 64.5%, 635.49 Wm−2, 32.24 °C, and 0.81 ms−1, respectively. An average drying rate of 33.57 g (kg m2 h)−1 was achieved while the system optical efficiency, collector efficiency, drying efficiency and moisture pickup efficiency of 70.53%, 64.08%, 36.22% and 66.95% were obtained, respectively. MPSAHC dryer was 21 h faster with fair color retention when compared to open sun drying approach (OSDA) that was conducted together under the same weather condition. Techno economic analysis reflected a payback period of 2.14 years. However, drying efficiency could be improved if the inlet air humidity can be controlled to favor drying operation.

Effects of Dietary Protein Content on Milk Composition of Mixed Parity Lactating Sows in a Tropical Humid Climate

Eighteen multiparous Large White sows were used to determine the effects of dietary protein content and lactation stage on milk composition during a 28-d lactation under humid tropical climatic conditions. This study was conducted at the INRA facilities in Guadeloupe, French West Indies (latitude 16°N, longitude 61°W). The average minimum and maximum ambient temperatures and average daily relative humidity during the trial were 22.7 and 29.4°C, and 93.7%, respectively. The dietary experimental treatments were a normal protein (NP, 17.3%) diet and a low protein (LP, 14.1%) diet supplemented with essential amino acids. The ADFI tended to be higher for the sows fed the LP diets when compared with the NP treatment (i.e., +9%, P 0.10). The treatments did not influence (P>0.10) sow body weight loss during lactation. The sows fed LP diets tended to show lower backfat thickness losses when compared to the sows fed NP diets (2.4 vs. 6.3 mm, respectively; P 0.10). Milk dry matter and ash contents linearly increased according to lactation stage (17.6 to 19.9%, and 0.72 vs. 97%, respectively from d 7 to d 27; P 0.10) by lactation stage. Maternal BW loss during lactation was negatively correlated with the average daily feed intake (r=-0.76; P<0.05) and positively correlated with backfat thickness loss (r=0.55; P<0.05). A positive correlation between milk production and body reserves mobilisation (r=0.82; P<0.05) was also observed. Polyunsaturated fatty acid content in milk fat was positively correlated with ADFI and negatively correlated to maternal BW loss (r=0.62 and r=-0.60; P<0.05). In conclusion, reducing dietary protein content can be an alternative to attenuate the negative effects of heat stress by increasing ADFI. Milk composition changes significantly according to lactation stage and the ability of sows to produce milk will depend on their capacity to mobilize body reserve for providing milk precursors.

Short-term effects of meteorological factors on pediatric hand, foot, and mouth disease in Guangdong, China: a multi-city time-series analysis.

BackgroundLiterature shows inconsistency in meteorological effects on Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) in different cities. This multi-city study aims to investigate the meteorological effects on pediatric HFMD occurrences and the potential effect modification by geographic factors.MethodsBased on daily time-series data in eight major cities in Guangdong, China during 2009–2013, mixed generalized additive models were employed to estimate city-specific meteorological effects on pediatric HFMD. Then, a random-effect multivariate meta-analysis was conducted to obtain the pooled risks and to explore heterogeneity explained by city-level factors.ResultsThere were a total of 400,408 pediatric HFMD cases (children aged 0–14 years old) with an annual incidence rate of 16.6 cases per 1,000 children, clustered in males and children under 3 years old. Daily average temperature was positively associated with pediatric HFMD cases with the highest pooled relative risk (RR) of 1.52 (95 % CI: 1.30–1.77) at the 95th percentile of temperature (30.5 °C) as compared to the median temperature (23.5 °C). Significant non-linear positive effects of high relative humidity were also observed with a 13 % increase (RR = 1.13, 95 % CI: 1.00–1.28) in the risk of HFMD at the 99th percentile of relative humidity (86.9 %) as compared to the median value (78 %). The effect estimates showed geographic variations among the cities which was significantly associated with city’s latitude and longitude with an explained heterogeneity of 32 %.ConclusionsDaily average temperature and relative humidity had non-linear and delayed effects on pediatric HFMD and the effects varied across different cities. These findings provide important evidence for comprehensive understanding of the climatic effects on pediatric HFMD and for the authority to take targeted interventions and measures to control the occurrence and transmission of HFMD.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-016-1846-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Development of a Fire Weather Index Using Meteorological Observations within the Northeast United States

AbstractA fire weather index (FWI) is developed using wildfire occurrence data and Automated Surface Observing System weather observations within a subregion of the northeastern United States (NEUS) from 1999 to 2008. Average values of several meteorological variables, including near-surface temperature, relative humidity, dewpoint, wind speed, and cumulative daily precipitation, are compared on observed wildfire days with their climatological average (“climatology”) using a bootstrap resampling approach. Average daily minimum relative humidity is significantly lower than climatology on wildfire occurrence days, and average daily maximum temperature and average daily maximum wind speed are slightly higher on wildfire occurrence days. Using the potentially important weather variables (relative humidity, temperature, and wind speed) as inputs, different formulations of a binomial logistic regression model are tested to assess the potential of these atmospheric variables for diagnosing the probability of wildfire occurrence. The FWI is defined using probabilistic output from the preferred binomial logistic regression configuration. Relative humidity and temperature are the only significant predictors in the binomial logistic regression. The binomial logistic regression model is reliable and has more probabilistic skill than climatology using an independent verification dataset. Using the binomial logistic regression output probabilities, an FWI is developed ranging from 0 (minimum potential) to 3 (high potential) and is verified independently for two separate subdomains within the NEUS. The climatology of the FWI reproduces observed fire occurrence probabilities between 1999 and 2008 over a subdomain of the NEUS.