Significant Explanatory Variables Research Articles

Rock glacier inventory and predictive modeling in the Mackenzie Mountains: predicting rock glacier likelihood with a generalized additive model

Rock glaciers have been the subject of extensive research in recent years due to their potential to serve as indicators of past and present climate conditions and their potential impacts on water resources. Location and descriptive rock glacier data within the Mackenzie Mountains were used to build a rock glacier inventory that will serve as a valuable resource for future research and monitoring efforts. Additionally, this study maps the likelihood of rock glacier presence using extracted variables in a generalized additive model (GAM). The model incorporates attribute data, including potential incoming solar radiation (PISR), topographic position index (TPI), slope, elevation, and lithology as controls for rock glacier development. Topographic data were compiled for three study regions of the Mackenzie Mountains from a 30 m digital elevation model (DEM). The analysis of the GAM showed that the most significant explanatory variables were PISR, elevation, slope, and TPI. The GAM model had an accuracy of 0.87 with a sensitivity of 0.92. This study provides important insights into the controls, distribution, and dynamics of rock glaciers in the Mackenzie Mountains, as well as both the limitations and the potential of statistical models in predicting their occurrence.

Predictive accuracy of the logit model to determine factors affecting delivery and postnatal care services utilization in Tanzania

PurposeThis paper examines factors affecting the delivery care (DC) and postnatal care (PNC) services utilization in Tanzania using the predictive accuracy of the binary logit model by including DC as among the predictors of PNC utilization.Design/methodology/approachThe study used secondary data from the Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey and Malaria Indicator Survey (2022) based on a sample of 13,266 women aged 15–49. Binary logit was used to analyze the association between independent variables and each binary dependent variable, followed by a stepwise likelihood ratio test for binary logistic regression analysis to select the most important predictors associated with DC and PNC. Odds ratios were used to predict the likelihood of the occurrence of significant explanatory variables in explaining the outcomes.FindingsThe results showed that the type of place of residence, wealth index, region, highest educational level, husband/partner’s level of education and respondent’s occupation were significant predictors of DC utilization. In contrast, the woman’s age, region, highest educational level, wealth index, DC and husband/partner’s educational level were significant predictors of PNC utilization. Public health interventions are needed to promote and increase the utilization of delivery and postal care services. The targets should be poor women and those residing in rural or remote areas.Originality/valueIncluding DC as a predictor variable (which was not used before) in PNC utilization improved the predictive power of the model and the robustness of the results.

Factors influencing language performance in boys and girls at age 2 in the French ELFE birth cohort

Different environmental and biological variables affect the rhythm of language acquisition in children. A substantial amount of literature has shown that girls overtake boys, at least in the early stages of language acquisition. The goal of this study is to investigate how different factors affect language scores in girls and boys. The parents of 6415 two-year-old French children from the ELFE cohort completed a parental questionnaire assessing language development. Our results show that girls do indeed display higher scores. In order to explore the impact of different variables – such as child characteristics, parental characteristics, the extent to which parents have interactions, such as reading and singing with children – on girls’ and boys’ scores, we tested logistic regressions contrasting children with very low scores with those with average or high scores. We found that sex remained a highly significant explanatory variable. Finally, we analyzed the extent to which there are differences between girls and boys in terms of the variables associated with a low score. Strictly exposed to the same unfavorable factors, girls with very low scores at two years master more words than boys with very low scores. Although different variables are significantly associated with a low score, sex remains a highly significant explanatory variable. Hence, our work contributes significantly to the debated issue of sex/gender influence on language acquisition.

Variability of Biodegradation Rates of Commercial Chemicals in Rivers in Different Regions of Europe.

Biodegradation is one of the most important processes influencing the fate of organic contaminants in the environment. Quantitative understanding of the spatial variability in environmental biodegradation is still largely uncharted territory. Here, we conducted modified OECD 309 tests to determine first-order biodegradation rate constants for 97 compounds in 18 freshwater river segments in five European countries: Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, and Greece. All but two of the compounds showed significant spatial variability in rate constants across European rivers (ANOVA, P < 0.05). The median standard deviation of the biodegradation rate constant between rivers was a factor of 3. The spatial variability was similar between pristine and contaminated river segments. The longitude, total organic carbon, and clay content of sediment were the three most significant explanatory variables for the spatial variability (redundancy analysis, P < 0.05). Similarities in the spatial pattern of biodegradation rates were observed for some groups of compounds sharing a given functional group. The pronounced spatial variability presents challenges for the use of biodegradation simulation tests to assess chemical persistence. To reflect the variability in the biodegradation rate, the modified OECD 309 test would have to be repeated with water and sediment from multiple sites.

Variable selection of partially functional linear spatial autoregressive model with a diverging number of parameters

In this article, we consider variable selection of partially functional linear spatial autoregressive model with a diverging number of parameters, in which the explanatory variables include infinite dimensional predictor procedure, treated as functional data, and multiple real valued scalar variate. By combining series approximation method, two-stage least squares method and a class of non convex penalty function, we propose a variable selection method to simultaneously select significant explanatory variables in the parametric component and estimate the corresponding parameter related to spatial lag of the response variable. Under appropriate conditions, we derive the rate of convergence of the series estimator of the functional and parametric component, and show that the proposed variable selection method processes the oracle property. That is, it can estimate the zero components as exact zero with high probability, and estimate the non zero components as efficiently as if the true model was known beforehand. Simulation result show that our proposed variable selection method has better finite sample property.Notably, in the case where the correlation among the explanatory variables in the parametric component is low, the proposed variable selection method performs well. An application of the proposed variable selection method serves as a practical illustration.

The moderating effects of environmental and regulatory quality on financial development to promote sustainable FDI inflows in Canada

Stimulating sustainable FDI through the connection of financial development and its moderating relationships with environmental quality and regulatory quality emerges as a crucial agenda nowadays. This study investigates into this relationship using quarterly data from 1990Q1 to 2022Q4 for Canada; employing ARDL bound tests, Granger Causality, and FM-OLS econometric models. Foreign direct investment is the dependent variable of this study. The findings confirm significant long-run relationships among financial development, stock market development, and the moderating effects of environmental and regulatory quality on FDI inflows in the Canadian economy. Conversely, in the short run, financial development, stock market development, and economic growth exhibit bidirectional causal links with FDI, while environmental quality, regulatory quality, and trade openness demonstrate unidirectional causal links with FDI. The error correction mechanism indicates that all variables quickly return to equilibrium except trade openness. Robustness checks further confirm that all the variables have fully modified co-integrating relationship with FDI inflows including the moderating effects of environmental and regulatory quality which is the innovation in the FDI-Growth existing literature. Thus, policymakers are urged to prioritize environmental quality and regulatory quality, alongside other significant explanatory variables identified in this study to promote sustainable FDI inflows.

An Analysis Through to Congruence Between Real and Self-Perceived Body Mass Index in Nursing Students.

Overweight and obesity are growing concerns that also affect nursing staff, healthcare professionals that play a critical role in public health awareness and intervention. This study aimed to define the health parameters associated with body weight, analyze if there is an erroneous self-perception of overweight/obesity through the distortion of body weight perception, and determine the predictive factors of body weight distortion. A cross-sectional study of 224 nursing students gathered anthropometric and demographic data. Self-perceived body weight was assessed using Stunkard and Stellar's scale. Descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression identified significant predictors of weight distortion. The analysis found that men reported greater weight discrepancies than women. Specifically, 57% of the men (28 of 49 participants) underestimated their real BMI, while only 23% of the women (40 of 175 participants) did so. Age, sex, and weight classification emerged as significant explanatory variables for the distortion of body weight perception. The findings indicate a significant vulnerability among nursing students to the misperception of their own body weight status, highlighting the need for targeted training strategies. These strategies should focus on correcting misperceptions of obesity among health professionals throughout their working life to improve future obesity prevention efforts for society.

Impact of antiplatelet and anticoagulant drugs on postoperative bleeding in reverse total shoulder arthroplasty

BackgroundThe decision to withdraw or continue antiplatelet and anticoagulant drugs would be balanced on the bleeding risk and the cardiovascular risk. The purpose of this study was to investigate perioperative bleeding in reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA) to determine the impact of oral antiplatelet and anticoagulant medications in the absence of drug withdrawal. The hypothesis was that the continuation of antiplatelet and anticoagulant drugs would increase postoperative bleeding but to a limited extent. MethodsDuring the study period, RSA cases were prospectively included and retrospectively reviewed. Cases of revision for arthroplasty, proximal fracture, and cemented stem fixation were excluded. Cases with dual therapy of aspirin and clopidogrel and cases with heparin bridges were also excluded. Age, gender, height, weight, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status anesthesia risk (ASA), smoking status, preoperative diagnosis, preoperative blood sampling data within one month of surgery (estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), Prothrombin Time-International Normalized Ratio (PT-INR), and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT)), surgical time, stem length (standard or short stem), and use of tranexamic acid were identified. The presence of diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, and hypertension were confirmed as comorbidities. Hemoglobin (Hb) and hematocrit (Ht) values were recorded preoperatively and on the third postoperative day, and estimated blood loss was calculated by Gross formula using the change in preoperative Ht and postoperative day 3 Ht values. Multiple regression models were used to determine predictors of the estimated blood loss. P values less than .05 were considered statistically significant. Results315 RSA cases were analyzed (172 females, a mean age of 77.2 years). The estimated blood loss was 819 ml. The regression equation was statistically significant (P < .0001, R2=0.21), and aspirin, direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC), tranexamic acid, height, and surgery time were statistically significant explanatory variables, showing the predicted changes in bleeding volume for each drug were +283 ml for aspirin, +180 ml for DOAC, and -237 ml for tranexamic acid, respectively. Warfarin and cilostazol were not employed due to P values and Akaike's Information Criterion. Two blood transfusions (without antiplatelet or anticoagulant medications) were administered. One patient on aspirin had a cardiovascular event. ConclusionsThe current study showed that the use of aspirin and DOAC were significant predictors of increased perioperative blood loss, but the amount of increase was in the acceptable range, suggesting that continued antiplatelet and anticoagulant were relatively safe in primary RSA. Administration of tranexamic acid was shown to reduce bleeding significantly.

Spatial patterns and associated factors of HIV testing and counselling (HTC) as a component of antenatal care services in Ethiopia

Background While HIV testing and counselling play a crucial role in preventing mother-to-child transmission, numerous pregnant women did not receive these services. Understanding the spatial variation of HIV testing and counselling and its associated factors during antenatal care in Ethiopia remains limited. Thus, this study was aimed at assessing the spatial patterns and factors associated with HIV testing and counselling during antenatal care visits in Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional study design was employed with a two-stage stratified cluster sampling technique. A total of 2,789 women who gave birth in the two years prior to the survey and had at least one antenatal care visit were included in the study. Stata version 16 and ArcGIS version 10.8 software were used for analysis. A multilevel robust Poisson regression model was fitted to identify significantly associated factors since the prevalence of HIV testing and counselling was higher than 10%. A statistically significant association was declared based on multivariable multilevel robust Poisson regression analysis using an adjusted prevalence ratio with its 95% confidence interval at a p-value &lt; 0.05. Spatial regression analysis was conducted, and the local coefficients of statistically significant spatial covariates were visualised. Results In Ethiopia, the overall prevalence of HIV testing and counselling during antenatal care visits was 29.5% (95% CI: 27.8%, 31.2%). Significant spatial clustering was observed (Global Moran’s I = 0.138, p-value &lt;0.001). In the spatial regression analysis, high and comprehensive knowledge related to HIV, and comprehensive knowledge on the prevention of mother-to-child transmission were significant explanatory variables for the spatial variation of HIV testing and counselling. In the multivariable multilevel robust Poisson regression analysis, education, household wealth, media exposure, number of antenatal care visits, comprehensive knowledge on mother-to-child transmission, comprehensive knowledge on prevention of mother-to-child transmission, and region were significantly associated factors. Conclusion The prevalence of HIV testing and counselling during antenatal care visits was low. Empowering women through education, promoting mass media exposure, increasing numbers of antenatal care visits, and enhancing women’s knowledge related to HIV and mother-to-child transmission by targeting cold spot areas could improve HIV testing and counselling service uptake among pregnant women in Ethiopia.

Complex stands in forested tropical landscapes harbor more endemic biodiversity and ecosystem functions

Transformation of forests into agricultural lands threatens biodiversity and ecosystem functions globally. In the biodiversity hotspot Madagascar, key ecosystem functions along with highly endemic flora and fauna are under threat. Comprehensive studies identifying determinants of biodiversity and ecosystem function losses are lacking, with no studies accounting for endemic species richness across multiple taxa. We assess how plot-scale stand structural attributes (basal area, leaf area index, diameter diversity, and tree species richness) and landscape-scale forest cover influence biodiversity (species richness of butterflies, ants, birds, reptiles, amphibians, herbaceous plants, and multidiversity) and ecosystem functions (soil organic carbon, predation rate, acoustic diversity, and multifunctionality) in the tropical mosaic landscape of northeastern Madagascar. Complexly structured stands with a larger basal area and/or a higher tree species richness promoted greater endemic multidiversity (R² = 0.70), soil organic carbon, and acoustic diversity. However, our models did not indicate significant explanatory variables for multidiversity (R² = 0.25) and multifunctionality (R² = 0.43). Landscape-scale forest cover significantly favored endemic bird species richness. Our findings highlight that a simplified stand structure, resulting from land-use change, substantially reduces endemic biodiversity and ecosystem functions in this historically forested region. Conservation actions should aim at maintaining complex stand structure in forests and agroforests, while restoration interventions should focus on re-building such structures.

Intramuscular condition of swallowing-related muscles using shear-wave elastography: A preliminary study in healthy adults.

Assessing the internal condition of swallowing-related muscles and muscle strength and size is important because their deterioration may lead to dysphagia. However, there are few reports on stiffness of swallowing-related muscles measured using shear-wave elastography (SWE) and their qualitative characteristics. We measured stiffness of swallowing-related muscles using SWE to investigate the relationship between muscle stiffness and body composition as well as other relevant variables in healthy adults. Thirty healthy adults were included in this cross-sectional study. We evaluated stiffness of the genioglossus muscle (GGM) and geniohyoid muscle (GHM) using SWE. Skeletal muscle mass index, body mass index (BMI), handgrip strength, tongue pressure, and cross-sectional areas of the muscles were measured, and we determined their relationship with muscle stiffness. For muscle stiffness, the mean value for the middle GGM was 7.08 ± 1.92 kPa, that for the posterior GGM was 9.31 ± 2.68 kPa, and that for the GHM was 8.84 ± 2.15 kPa. In multiple regression analysis, with stiffness of the posterior GGM as the dependent variable, BMI (β = -.473, p = .039) was a significant negative explanatory variable. However, with the GHM stiffness as the dependent variable, BMI (β = .419, p = .033) was a significant positive explanatory variable. Stiffness of the posterior GGM was positively correlated with BMI and that of the GHM was negatively correlated with BMI. Stiffness, as measured using SWE, has the potential to capture the intramuscular characteristics of swallowing-related muscles, particularly the posterior GGM.

Impaired Saltiness Perception Contributes to Higher Sodium Intake Among Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease: A Cross-Sectional Two-Center Study

Dietary sodium restriction is important in the prognosis of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The association between saltiness perception and sodium intake among CKD patients is unclear, and the factors that influence saltiness are also not fully understood. We evaluated saltiness perception in CKD patients employing a cost-effective saltiness perception test using sodium solutions and evaluated the association between saltiness perception, sodium intake, and the influencing factors. CKD outpatients not undergoing dialysis were enrolled from two medical centers and underwent saltiness perception tests together with 24-hour urine collections to measure daily sodium intake. Participants who perceived saltiness using the test solution containing 25mM sodium were regarded to have "preserved" saltiness perception, while those unable to perceive saltiness were regarded as having "impaired" saltiness perception. Of the total 132 participants, the median daily sodium intake was 3.36g (range; 0.51-9.95g/day), and 43 (32.6%) were ex- or current smokers. When participants were divided into 3 groups (G) according to daily sodium intake level: low (G1; 0.51-2.61g/day), middle (G2; 2.62-3.99g/day), and high (G3; 4.06-9.95g/day), there was an obvious difference in impaired saltiness perception between three groups: 6.8% in G1, 50.0% in G2 and 86.4% in G3 (P value=8.035 × 10-14, Cochran-Armitage test). In a multiple regression analysis in which the saltiness perception was adopted as a subjective variable, smoking habit (ex- or current smoker) and nonadherence to dietary sodium restriction were identified as significant explanatory variables. We revealed the clear relationship between higher daily sodium intake and impaired saltiness perception that is related to nonadherence to dietary sodium restriction and smoking habit, both of which could be intervened by nutritional counseling and public health education.

Socio-economic Challenges Deterring Sustainable Pastoralism Among Women Pastoralists in the Sahel Region of Northern Nigeria

Female pastoralists exhibit great strength in the drive to make a dependable livelihood from livestock tending. This is not without challenges that are gender- specific. This paper examines the socio-economic and environmental challenges faced by women pastoralists in the Sahelian Region of Northern Nigeria. Primary data were derived from an interview of 2,290 adult female household members in 6 local government areas in Bauchi and Gombe States in Nigeria. A stepwise regression analysis determined that amongst 23 socio-economic variables, 14 were significant explanatory or predictive variables (p &amp;lt; 0.05) for the socio-economic status of women, as a measure of their capacity to sustain pastoralism. The results indicate that the length of time or experience in pastoralism had the most predictive power (β = 0.31; p &amp;lt; 0.05), and contributed 13% (R 2 = 0.13) in enhancing the socio- economic status of pastoralist women. This was followed by other socio-economic factors such as the level of formal educational attained, participation in household livestock raising, ownership of large livestock, climate change awareness, prevalence of out-of-school children within the household, availability of household transportation means, category of health care facility accessed, involvement in non- agricultural economic sectors, involvement in food crop farming, ownership of small livestock, amount of rest/sleep affordable, membership of community development groups, and age. The paper recommends support for female education in pastoral communities, access to health care in remote areas, and upgrading community development groups to cooperative or self-help groups that can provide affordable loans to assist pastoralist women in thriving better in a supposedly male-dominated profession.

The prevalence of adolescent fatherhood and its associated factors in East African countries

BackgroundIn developing nations, the phenomenon of adolescent fatherhood poses significant challenges, including increased risk of poverty, limited educational opportunities, and potential negative health outcomes for both the young fathers and their children. However, an overwhelming majority of research has concentrated on teenage motherhood. Adolescent fatherhood in poor nations has been the subject of little research. Few public health initiatives address adolescent fatherhood, in contrast to adolescent motherhood. Although there is currently more being done in industrialized nations to recognize adolescent fatherhood in clinical settings and the academic community. Undeveloped nations such as East Africa still have more problems that need to be resolved. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of and factors contributing to adolescent fatherhood in East Africa.MethodsData from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), collected between 2011 and 2022 in 12 East African nations, were used in this analysis. For a weighted sample of 36,316 male adolescents aged 15–24 years, we examined variables, as well as the prevalence of adolescent fatherhood. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify candidate factors and significant explanatory variables associated with the outcome variable. The results are presented using adjusted odds ratios (AORs) at 95% confidence intervals (CIs). P values of ≤ 0.2 and < 0.05 were used to investigate statistically significant factors in the univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses, respectively.ResultsThe overall prevalence of adolescent fatherhood was 11.15% (95% CI = 10.83,11.48) in East Africa. Age at first sex 20–24 years (AOR = 0.44, 95% CI:0.41,0.48), age–20–24 years old (AOR = 17.03,95% CI = 15.01,19.33), secondary/higher education (AOR = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.49,0.67), poor wealth (AOR = 2.27, 95% CI = 2.05,2.52), middle wealth (AOR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.51,1.90), employed (AOR = 3.92, 95% CI = 3.40,4.54), utilized modern contraceptives (AOR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.69,0.81), and female household heads (AOR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.39,0.48) were associated with adolescent fatherhood.ConclusionsAdolescent fatherhood is more prevalent, in East Africa. These findings highlight the complexity of adolescent fatherhood and suggest that multiple factors, including socio-demographic characteristics and reproductive health behaviors, play a role in determining the likelihood of becoming an adolescent father. Understanding these associations can inform targeted interventions and policies aimed at reducing adolescent fatherhood rates and addressing the specific needs and challenges faced by young fathers in East Africa. Further research and interventions should focus on promoting education, economic opportunities, and access to modern contraceptives, while also addressing gender dynamics and social norms that contribute to adolescent fatherhood in the region.

Factors associated with work engagement among specialist nurses in china: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundThe positive impacts of work engagement among specialist nurses on retention, organizational commitment, and quality of care are well-documented. However, there is a lack of research on the specific differences in work engagement among specialist nurses. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to assess the level of work engagement among specialist nurses in China and identify its influencing factors.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in China from April to July, 2023, with 724 nurses selected from 22 hospitals through convenience sampling involved. The survey was conducted by using self-administered general information questionnaires and work engagement scales. Questionnaire Star was employed as the online data collection tool. The collected data was analyzed by using descriptive statistics and stepwise regression analysis to draw meaningful conclusions from the study.ResultsAmong specialist nurses in Xiamen, China, who had a response rate of 97.10%, an average work engagement score is 140.35 (SD=18.17), with the highest score for the work attitude at 4.65 (SD=0.52) and the lowest score for the work recognition at 4.09 (SD=0.85). It was shown through regression analysis that factors such as career satisfaction, involvement in challenging case discussions, marital status, gender, presence of promotion advantage and title accounted for 14.5% of the total variance in the model and were significant explanatory variables that could predict work engagement.ConclusionIt is shown that specialist nurses in Xiamen, China have a high level of work engagement. It is imperative for nursing managers to prioritize the work engagement of specialist nurses, provide the specialist nurses with ample development opportunities and room for growth, and effectively promote the overall development of specialist nurses by improving work engagement in various aspects.

Forecasting the UK top 1% income share in a shifting world

AbstractUK top income shares have varied hugely over the past two centuries, ranging from more than 30% to less than 7% of pre‐tax national income allocated to the top 1 percentile. We build a congruent dynamic linear regression model of the top 1% income share allowing for economic, political and social factors. Saturation estimation is used to model outliers and trend breaks, proxying underlying structural changes driving income inequality in the UK. We use the model to forecast the top 1% income share over the last 15 years, and compare to a range of forecast devices. Despite a well‐specified constant parameter model conditioning on significant explanatory variables, the best performing forecasts are obtained from a random walk and a smoothed random walk. These results are explained by the presence of shifts in the income share over the forecast period, resulting in forecasts from equilibrium correction models converging to the wrong equilibrium. Our best prediction for 2026 based on the most recent data from 2021 (a 5‐year ahead projection) is that the pre‐tax top 1% income share will remain at the most recent realized value of 12.7%, but there is a large degree of uncertainty, with a 95% confidence band ranging from 10% to 15.7%.

Determinants of the success of participatory budgets in Poland

Abstract The present paper aims to determine what factors affect the success of participatory budgets in Polish cities and what factors affect the size of these budgets. The study covered all 66 cities with powiat rights from 2016 to 2021. A panel data model was used. The first research hypothesis states that the success of participatory budgeting depends on the economic condition of the cities implementing it. The second one states that the success of participatory budgeting depends on the characteristics of the LGUs’ residents. The first hypothesis was confirmed, while the second was partially confirmed. Analyzing four different models with different explanatory variables, it was found that the statistically significant explanatory variables were population, material situation, demographic structure measures, and residents’ economic situation.

Dynamic population changes during a bioaugmented sewage sludge composting process: Improvement of pharmaceutical active compounds degradation and conversion into an organic soil amendment

Bioaugmentation has resulted in an interesting tool to improve the remotion of emerging contaminants through composting technologies in sewage sludge, whose microbial population dynamics might play a critical role during degradation. It was hypothesized that the two-step bioaugmentation-composting technology can guarantee both, an effective addition of specific inoculants and the enhancement of the degradation activity in relation to their application and their interactions with indigenous communities. Following this hypothesis, this study aimed to define the changes of fungal and bacterial populations during microbial bioaugmentation of sewage sludge with two different inoculants (Penicillium oxalicum XD 3.1 and an enriched consortium) and throughout the composting process of the bioaugmented sludge. To do so, microbial DNA was obtained from the natural consortium and from the composite samples (at key stages of the process). The amplicon sequencing of 16S rRNA genes and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region for bacteria and fungi was then performed using an Illumina Platform. The results highlighted the importance of the inoculation per se plays an important role in determining the success of microbial inoculation during the two-step composting. Thus, correctly addressing the degradation potential as well as the competitive ability of the inoculants to persist alongside native populations by enhancing the abundance, diversity and richness of fungi and bacterial taxa related with degradation processes. Moreover, various physicochemical parameters altered by the bioaugmentation equally explained the microbial diversity changes. Redundancy analyses of β-diversity revealed the asynchronous interaction with all physicochemical parameters that varied according to the composting stage.

Fifty years of monitoring changes in the abundance of invertebrates in the cereal ecosystem of the Sussex Downs, England

Abstract Changes in insect abundance are receiving much attention, with agricultural intensification considered to be one of the main drivers of decline. We report on changes in invertebrates collected in cereal fields in Sussex, Southern England, UK, from 1970 to 2019. Samples were taken using D‐vac suction sampling in the third week of June from an average of 95 cereal fields per year (4757 samples in total, comprising 2,983,124 individual invertebrates identified mainly to family level). The study area comprises 12 farms, whose land use, crop rotations and intensity of pesticide use were also recorded, showing marked changes over time. Overall invertebrate abundance declined by 37% across all taxa, and by 48% when excluding the most numerous taxa (Collembola, Aphididae and Thysanoptera). Declines in abundance were identified for 47% of 51 non‐overlapping taxa at the order or family level, increases for 16% and no change for 37%. Most declines occurred in the first decade of the study, most increases in the 1990s. Latterly there have been further declines from 2010. As functional groups, mycetophages, phytophages, predators (both aphid‐specific and polyphagous), parasitoids and cophrophages declined significantly, while there was no detectable change in pollinators. Four of five measures of avian chick‐food invertebrate abundance declined significantly, while one (corn bunting chick‐food index) showed no detectable change. A multivariate constrained redundancy analysis revealed that cropping, field size, pesticide use and weather all significantly explained the variation in the abundance of the 51 non‐overlapping taxa. For functional groups, significant explanatory variables were weather and pesticide use. Changes in farming practices and adoption of measures such as integrated pest management, regenerative farming, agri‐environmental scheme options and intercropping could help to mitigate the factors associated with decline.

Oral Frailty as a Risk Factor for Fall Incidents among Community-Dwelling People.

Identifying older adults with a high risk of falling and providing them with appropriate intervention are vital measures for preventing fall incidents. Scholars report that oral frailty, a decline in oral function, is related to physical function; thus, it bears a potential association with fall risks. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between fall incidents and the status of physical and oral frailty among a sample of residents in Osaka Prefecture. This study targeted community-dwelling people aged 50 years and older who responded to an annual questionnaire survey using a health app for 2 consecutive years, namely, 2020 and 2021. This study analyzed responses from 7591 (62 ± 7 years) participants and determined the status of their oral frailty and comprehensive and physical frailty using the Kihon Checklist. In the 2020 and 2021 surveys, 17% and 19% of the participants exhibited oral frailty and experienced a fall in the previous year, respectively. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that oral frailty (adjusted odds ratio: 1.553) and physical frailty as well as low levels of awareness of frailty were significant explanatory variables of the occurrence of fall incidents during the subsequent year. Future studies are required to elucidate the mechanisms by which oral frailty induces fall incidents.