Northeastern Province Research Articles

Narrow-range taxa of Cerion (Mollusca: Cerionidae) in the northeastern province of Cuba

The exceedingly polytypical genus Cerion (Röding, 1798), with around 91-92 species described for Cuba is still poorly studied. The urgent need of more studies related to ecology, genetics, environmental components, morphology, conservation status plus a serious taxonomic evaluation of the genus in the archipelago is more than evident. The present paper reviews the narrow-range Cerion taxa that occur in the coastal zone of the Holguín province, in northeastern Cuba, including comments on each taxa. Additional observations related to other taxa from the same geographic coastline area are included to reinforce the importance of further research studies that the authors believe need to be conducted.

Tipografias e tipógrafos em Pernambuco, 1815-1824

O presente artigo possui como proposta analisar as características das tipografias surgidas em Pernambuco no século XIX, bem como examinar o papel desses centros propagadores de notícias e de opiniões sobre as transformações políticas e sociais que estavam ocorrendo. As condições materiais e as características da mão de obra e do funcionamento dessas tipografias são, de certa forma, apreciados nesse trabalho. O período contemplado está localizado entre os anos de 1815, quando chegou à província o aparato tipográfico que deu origem à primeira tipografia e o ano de 1824, quando diversos periódicos já circulavam na região e ocorreu um forte movimento de contestação ao poder instaurado no Rio de Janeiro, a Confederação do Equador, que encontrou nos impressos um importante meio de propagação de seus ideais.

Some representative species of the tribe Holochlorini (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) and the description of two new species from India.

In the present paper two new species of the genus Holochlora (Phaneropterinae: Holochlorini) have been described viz., Holochlora umranensis sp. nov., collected from Meghalaya, the North-eastern province, India (Ri bhoi 90°55'15 to 91°16' latitude and 25°40' to 25°21' longitude, 993 MSL) and Holochlora alsigarhensis sp. nov., collected from Southern-western, Rajasthan, (Udaipur N 24 34'17 to E 73 41' 30'' and Latitude 24.5713, Longitude 73.6915, 582 MSL), as additions to the previously known species of the genus that were earlier collected from the southern parts of India. Among these, four species are being reported for the first time from India including: H. brevifissa, H. fruhstorferi, H. japonica and Rectimarginalis profunda Liu & Kang. The key morphological characters of the head, pronotum, tenth abdominal tergite, subgenital plate, cerci, titillator and the ovipositor have been illustrated with suitable line drawings to distinguish the known, reported and new species, along with a key to the genera and species.

Socio-Demographic Risk Factors of Schistosomiasis Mansoni in Patients with Gastrointestinal Symptoms : A Seroprevalance Study in Egypt

Limited data is available on the epidemiologic status of schistosomiasis mansoni in Egypt. The present work aimed to explore the seroepidemiological status of Schistosoma inansoni infection in Egypt by screening inhabitants of different Egyptian govemorates and its correla- tion with morbid symptoms and risk factors. Health questionnaires and indirect haemagglutination test (IHAT) were performed upon a cross-sectional study of 1788 individuals from 22 govemorates. Socio-demographic varjables included sex, age, residence and.canal water contact. A multivariate regressi6n model was used to assess associations betWeen S.mansoni infection and socio-demographic variables; S.mansoni significant titre ≥ 1:160 was detected in 43% of samples. S. mansoni showed the highest prevalence in Al-Fayoum (15.2%), Kafr EI-Sheikh (11.2%) then Assiut (10.9%) while the least positiveresults were from Matrouh (0.2%). This may be the first indication to emerging foci in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Suez, Port Said and the Red Sea Govemorates. Anti-S.mansoni antibodies were least de- tected at 1 1-2Oys while they were the highest at 41-SOys, the highest titres (1/1280) were achieved by the age group 31 -4Oys.Male gender was a risk factor as 48.2% of males were IHAT +ve. Contacting canal water tends to be advantageous for schistosomiasis mansoni as 72.6% had a histoxy of canal contact and 96.7% of them achieved the highest titre. The alteration in the actual prevalence of schistosomiasis mansoni in Egypt with emergence of new foci including Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Mersa-Matrouh and the north-eastern province alongside Suez Canal that may be explained by the associated socioepidemiologic risk factors.

Spatial impacts of climate factors on regional agricultural and forestry biomass resources in north-eastern province of China

The dynamics of agricultural and forestry biomass are highly sensitive to climate change, particularly in high latitude regions. Heilongjiang Province was selected as research area in North-east China. We explored the trend of regional climate warming and distribution feature of biomass resources, and then analyzed on the spatial relationship between climate factors and biomass resources. Net primary productivity (NPP) is one of the key indicators of vegetation productivity, and was simulated as base data to calculate the distribution of agricultural and forestry biomass. The results show that temperatures rose by up to 0.37°C/10a from 1961 to 2013. Spatially, the variation of agricultural biomass per unit area changed from -1.93 to 5.85 t·km–2·a–1 during 2000–2013. More than 85% of farmland areas showed a positive relationship between agricultural biomass and precipitation. The results suggest that precipitation exerts an overwhelming climate influence on agricultural biomass. The mean density of forestry biomass varied from 10 to 30 t·km–2. Temperature had a significant negative effect on forestry biomass in Lesser Khingan and northern Changbai Mountain, because increased temperature leads to decreased Rubisco activity and increased respiration in these areas. Precipitation had a significant positive relationship with forestry biomass in south-western Changbai Mountain, because this area had a warmer climate and stress from insufficient precipitation may induce xylem cavitation. Understanding the effects of climate factors on regional biomass resources is of great significance in improving environmental management and promoting sustainable development of further biomass resource use.

SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC RISK FACTORS OF SCHISTOSOMIASIS MANSONI IN PATIENTS WITH GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS: A SEROPREVALANCE STUDY IN EGYPT

Limited data is available on the epidemiologic status of schistosomiasis mansoni in Egypt. The present work aimed to explore the seroepidemiological status of Schistosoma inansoni infection in Egypt by screening inhabitants of different Egyptian govemorates and its correla- tion with morbid symptoms and risk factors. Health questionnaires and indirect haemagglutination test (IHAT) were performed upon a cross-sectional study of 1788 individuals from 22 govemorates. Socio-demographic varjables included sex, age, residence and.canal water contact. A multivariate regressi6n model was used to assess associations betWeen S.mansoni infection and socio-demographic variables; S.mansoni significant titre ≥ 1:160 was detected in 43% of samples. S. mansoni showed the highest prevalence in Al-Fayoum (15.2%), Kafr EI-Sheikh (11.2%) then Assiut (10.9%) while the least positiveresults were from Matrouh (0.2%). This may be the first indication to emerging foci in Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Suez, Port Said and the Red Sea Govemorates. Anti-S.mansoni antibodies were least de- tected at 1 1-2Oys while they were the highest at 41-SOys, the highest titres (1/1280) were achieved by the age group 31 -4Oys.Male gender was a risk factor as 48.2% of males were IHAT +ve. Contacting canal water tends to be advantageous for schistosomiasis mansoni as 72.6% had a histoxy of canal contact and 96.7% of them achieved the highest titre. The alteration in the actual prevalence of schistosomiasis mansoni in Egypt with emergence of new foci including Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Mersa-Matrouh and the north-eastern province alongside Suez Canal that may be explained by the associated socioepidemiologic risk factors.

High-Resolution Spatial Distribution and Estimation of Access to Improved Sanitation in Kenya.

BackgroundAccess to sanitation facilities is imperative in reducing the risk of multiple adverse health outcomes. A distinct disparity in sanitation exists among different wealth levels in many low-income countries, which may hinder the progress across each of the Millennium Development Goals.MethodsThe surveyed households in 397 clusters from 2008–2009 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys were divided into five wealth quintiles based on their national asset scores. A series of spatial analysis methods including excess risk, local spatial autocorrelation, and spatial interpolation were applied to observe disparities in coverage of improved sanitation among different wealth categories. The total number of the population with improved sanitation was estimated by interpolating, time-adjusting, and multiplying the surveyed coverage rates by high-resolution population grids. A comparison was then made with the annual estimates from United Nations Population Division and World Health Organization /United Nations Children's Fund Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply and Sanitation.ResultsThe Empirical Bayesian Kriging interpolation produced minimal root mean squared error for all clusters and five quintiles while predicting the raw and spatial coverage rates of improved sanitation. The coverage in southern regions was generally higher than in the north and east, and the coverage in the south decreased from Nairobi in all directions, while Nyanza and North Eastern Province had relatively poor coverage. The general clustering trend of high and low sanitation improvement among surveyed clusters was confirmed after spatial smoothing.ConclusionsThere exists an apparent disparity in sanitation among different wealth categories across Kenya and spatially smoothed coverage rates resulted in a closer estimation of the available statistics than raw coverage rates. Future intervention activities need to be tailored for both different wealth categories and nationally where there are areas of greater needs when resources are limited.

A one-to-one telestroke network: the first Italian study of a web-based telemedicine system for thrombolysis delivery and patient monitoring

Over 10years after European approval, thrombolysis is still limited by a restricted time window and non-optimal territorial coverage. Implementation of telestroke can give a growing number of patients access to treatment. We hereby present the first Italian telemedicine study applied to both the acute and the monitoring phase of stroke care. From January 2011 to December 2013, we tested a web-based, drip, and treat interaction model, connecting the cerebrovascular specialist of one hub center to the Emergency Department of a Spoke center. We then compared thrombolysis delivered using the telestroke model with thrombolysis provided at the Hub Stroke Unit at the time when the telemedicine program was activated. Telethrombolysis data were then compared with data from the two main international telestroke projects (TEMPiS and REACH), and other European telestroke studies performed at the time of writing. We collected a total of 131 thrombolysis procedures (25 telethrombolysis and 106 thrombolysis patients at the Stroke Unit). Statistical analysis with the t test yielded no statistically significant differences between the two populations in door-to-scan, door-to-needle (DTN), and onset-to-treatment times (OTT). Our OTT and DTN pathway times were longer than the TEMPiS and REACH studies but comparable with other European telemedicine trials, despite different models of interaction and number of centers. Our study in a northeastern province of Italy confirms the potential of applying telemedicine to a cerebrovascular pathology.

Prevalence and factors influencing smoking behaviors among vocational and technical students in a North-Eastern Province of Thailand

Prevalence and factors influencing smoking behaviors among vocational and technical students in a North-Eastern Province of Thailand

Water quality assessment and zoning analysis of Dez eastern aquifer by Schuler and Wilcox diagrams and GIS

Groundwater is an important water source for drinking water and agricultural and industrial uses in the Dez area, Iran. The purpose of this study was the assessment and analysis of Dez eastern water quality for drinking and agricultural uses by Schuler and Wilcox diagrams and zoning water quality in geographic information system (GIS) environment. Data were taken through samplings from water wells in this area. Dez plain is located in the northeastern province of Khouzestan and is between the Dez river and Glala Kohnak. Twenty wells were selected for sampling according to Thiessen polygon method in a GIS environment, and the water quality of samples was analyzed, using physical and chemical parameters. To facilitate the analysis, entering data was done in environmental GIS, using Kriging interpolation method. Results showed that the quality of drinking water based on the Schuler diagram is good and acceptable. According to Wilcox diagram, water quality was a little salty but suitable for agricultural uses. information obtained using GIS maps for water quality assessment, could enhance speed and accuracy of water quality management in this area, whereas the water quality database can be updated easily.

An Exaggerated Account Of The ICSID? - A Reply To Professor Robin Broad

Professor Robin Broad in her article “Corporate Bias in the World Bank Groups ICSID: A Case Study of a Global Mining Corporation Suing El Salvador” uses the example of the pending arbitration dispute of Pac Rim Cayman LLC v Republic of El Salvador to make an increasingly compelling case for the imbalances in the current regime of the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”). The aforementioned case arose out of a Canadian-based transnational mining corporation called Pacific Rim suing El Salvador for failing to authorize an extraction permit after the company allegedly invested millions in the exploration of the El Dorado mine in the northeastern province of Cabanas. While I do share some of Professor Broad’s skepticism and believe that the ICSID system needs reforms, I find her claims lacking a significant degree of merit both as they pertain to (a) pro-corporate bias in the ICSID system; and (b) the lack of consideration for public interests by the ICSID tribunal. In this short comment, I will try to offer a critical narrative of Professor Broad’s claims and in this process highlighting some of the genuine concerns of the ICSID system and suggest reforms wherever needed.

Age-standardized Cancer Mortality Rates in Phanom Phrai District, Roi Et Province, Thailand

Cancer is the top leading cause of death in Roi Et, a northeastern province in Thailand. Common cancers based on prevalence were liver and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), breast, colon, lung, and cervical cancers. This study was conducted to estimate age-standardized rates (ASR) of cancer mortality during 2010 in Phanom Phrai, a district in Roi Et, and compare the adjusted rates with the national ASR during 2008. The study population consisted of Thai citizens who died of cancer in Phanom Phrai during 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2010. ASR were calculated using the Segi standard population. ASR of all cancers was 69 per 100,000 population (/105). ASR of colorectal cancer in Phanom Phrai during 2010 (10.0/105) was higher than that of the national ASR in 2008 (6.5/105) and ASR of this cancer among men (14.7/105) was three times higher than that of women (5.1/105). ASR of liver and ICC (22.6/105), lung (10.9/105), cervix (7.6/105), and breast (1.6/105) in Phanom Phrai during 2010 were lower than those of the national ASR in 2008. ASR can be used to calculate cancer mortality rates for all provinces, allowing comparison and epidemiologic studies for more effective intervention.

Contribution to the Vernonieae (Asteraceae) of the Cerrado: a transfer to Lessingianthus, in a new rank and with a new name

Vernonia monocephala subsp. irwinii is a member of the genus Lessingianthus and is hereby transferred to that genus with a new status and a new name, L. semirii. It differs from L. monocephalus by its subsessile to petiolate (vs. sessile) leaves, largely attenuate (vs. rounded to attenuate) leaf bases, adaxial leaf surfaces drying black (vs. greenish), tomentose to velutinous (vs. villous) abaxial leaf surface and stem indument, and number of florets per head (up to 120 vs. up to 210). Both species are native to provinces of the Cerrado Domain, but they do not occur sympatrically: L. semirii is restricted to the North-eastern floristic province (Bahia, Maranhão, Tocantins and Pará states) and northern portion of the Central-western floristic province (Mato Grosso state), whereas L. monocephalus occurs in Distrito Federal and Goiás states in the Central-western, Central and South-eastern floristic provinces. Lessingianthus semirii is hereby described and illustrated for the first time; a distribution map is provided and affinities of this species are discussed.

Livestock herd structures and dynamics in Garissa County, Kenya

In Kenya’s Northeastern Province, pastoralism is the main livestock production system and means of livelihood. However, pastoralists are facing increasing risks such as drought, insecurity, animal diseases, increasing human populations and land fragmentation. This study sought to evaluate household livestock herd structures and dynamics in view of such risks and subsistence and market demands. The study was conducted in Garissa County of Kenya, using a cross-sectional household survey. The data was analysed for descriptive statistics of household livestock status, dynamics and demographic parameters. The results showed that females of reproductive age formed over 50 % of all livestock species. Cattle had the highest turnover and all species’ mortalities accounted for the greater proportion of exits. Cattle had the highest multiplication and growth rates, but also the highest mortality, offtake, commercial offtake and intake rates. Goats had the lowest mortalities, offtake, commercial offtake and intake rates. Overall, the herds were structured to provide for both immediate and future needs in terms of milk, sales and herd replacement as well as for rapid recovery after disasters. The livestock herd dynamics indicate efforts at culling, restocking, retention of valuable categories of animals, and natural events. Livestock populations would be annihilated over time if the trends in end balances and negative growth rates were to continue and not be interrupted by the upward phases of the livestock cycles. It was recommended that the Government and development partners should undertake interventions to balance the herd dynamics in favour of entries by improvement of reproduction and reduction of mortalities, and support livelihood diversification to reduce dependence on livestock.

Stability and change through time in the dialects of a Neotropical songbird, the Rufous-collared Sparrow

Behavioural characters that are learned can show temporal variation resulting from changes introduced in new generations during the learning process. The song of the Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis) shows significant geographical variation associated with habitat, delimiting song dialects. To study the temporal stability or change in dialects of Rufous-collared Sparrows at a microgeographical scale, we compared recordings made at Reserva El Destino, in north-eastern coastal Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, during 1987 and 2000 with recordings made during 2010 and 2011. We found that the geographical boundaries of the dialects remained stable over the period of 24 years. As we did not detect gross changes in the habitat of the study area over that period, we conclude that habitat is an important factor in maintaining geographical boundaries of dialects. Within the dialects, variation in some variables detected between 1987 and 2000 persisted to 2010–11 whereas other variables showed reversal over that period. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that some changes in song were the result of neutral variation, whereby changes resulting from random factors, such as copying error, could have been maintained or introduced across generations. Our results show that comparing more than two points in time is fundamental to a better understanding of temporal variation of song and its possible causes.

Occurrence of a new species of Letana (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae:Phaneropterinae) in India.

A new species of the Oriental genus Letana, Walker (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae), proposed as Letana dentata sp. nov., collected from the North-eastern province, Meghalaya, India (Ri bhoi 90°55'15 to 91°16' latitude and 25°40' to 25°21' longitude, 993 MSL), is described together with the morphological characterization of eight reported species. Of these, Letanarubescens(Stål, 1861) collected from Shalimar, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir (India) is being reported for the first time from India. The other species of Letana include: L. atomifera, L. bulbosa, L. inflata, L. infurcata, L. pyrifera and L. rufonatata. Taxonomic and diagnostic characters with illustrations of the head, pronotum, ventral view of left tegmina to show stridulatory file teeth and the genitalia (supra-anal plate and subgenital plate) including the phallus sclerite has been given.

Legacies of Empire: State Violence and Collective Punishment in Kenya's North Eastern Province, c. 1963­–Present

This article reflects on the dual historical evolution of the use of state violence and collective punishment in Kenya, with particular reference to the Somali-inhabited North Eastern Province. The use of collective punishment began under British rule as a strategy designed to control its African population, and was central to British counterinsurgency during the 1950s Mau Mau Emergency. This system of government was then entrenched and expanded by the postcolonial elite as a means of dealing with a population that was perceived to be hostile to the interests of the state. The article provides evidence of both colonial continuities and discontinuities with regard to population control methods.

Null arguments in transitional trilingual grammars: Field observations from Misionero German

AbstractIn this field note we discuss findings from pilot research on a variety of heritage German spoken in the Northeastern Province of Misiones of Argentina. Based on sociolinguistic field interviews with 25 consultants possessing varying degrees of proficiency in the language, we show that this variant of heritage German does in fact occasionally display instances of both null subjects (e.g.

Polish Writers and their Influence on Women’s Public Activity: A Case Study of Józefa Kisielnicka and Eliza Orzeszkowa

Józefa Kisielnicka (1865–1941) created a new model of a woman in the society, a woman that is actively involved in the public life and concentrates on the charity work and educational needs of the people in their close environment. Her attitude towards women’s involvement in the public life was greatly appreciated by both men and women, especially among the gentry class. In her literary works (published, e.g., in Warsaw Courier and Daily Courier), she depicted women’s everyday life. The general image of her characters was very negative.
 Eliza Orzeszkowa (1841–1910) can be described as a great activist in initiating and developing the idea of gender issues, both in her written works and everyday life duties. Her political views, social involvement, and literary achievements were widely recognized among women representing liberal political views. Her numerous works (for example, A Few Words about Women) related to the place of the women in the society and the issues of gender equality. Eliza Orzeszkowa considered the cultural and social conditions, which influenced the possibilities of women in their pursuit of equality.
 The two women writers Józefa Kisielnicka and Eliza Orzeszkowa set a new pattern of initiating and shaping the public involvement of women in the northeastern province of Poland.

Patient adherence to prescribed artemisinin-based combination therapy in Garissa County, Kenya, after three years of health care in a conflict setting.

BackgroundCurrent day malaria cases and deaths are indicative of a lack of access to both methods of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment; an important determinant of treatment efficacy is adherence. This study is a follow up to the baseline study of adherence to artemether-lumefantrine (AL) carried out in Garissa District in 2010. The study presented evaluates any changes in adherence levels which may have occurred in the area during this period and after nearly three years of sustained use of ACT across the public health sector.MethodsThe study was carried out in Garissa County in the North Eastern Province of Kenya and included patients fitting the suspected malaria case definition and having been prescribed AL, regardless of confirmatory diagnosis. A questionnaire assessed the intake of AL via both self-reporting by the participant and observation of blister packs by the interviewer. On separate occasions exit interviews with patients and observations of prescribers were also carried out.ResultsOf the 218 participants enrolled, 195 were successfully followed up. 60% of participants were found to be adherent to the three-day AL regimen, this is 4.7% lower than the proportion of participants adherent in 2010; the result of a two-sided z-test was not significant (p = 0.23). The odds of the patient being adherent to AL increased by 65% with each additional correct statement regarding how to take AL that a patient could recall (between zero and four statements), this was the only variable significantly associated with patient adherence (p = 0.01).ConclusionSustaining the ACT adherence rates at the 2010 levels, through 2.5 years of insecurity in the study area is an achievement and suggests that if security can be improved barriers to improving health service quality and patient adherence to AL would be removed. This study, by looking specifically at anti-malarial adherence over a prolonged period and in a setting of severe conflict, provides a valuable and rare insight in to the challenges and barriers to ACT adherence in such settings.