Timing of snowshoe hare winter color swap may leave them exposed in changing climate, study finds

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

 

IMAGE: SNOWSHOE HARE IN WINTER COAT IN A SNOWY LANDSCAPE IN KLUANE, YUKON, CANADA. PURE WHITE WINTER COAT PROVIDES CAMOUFLAGE AGAINST SNOW, WHICH REDUCES RISK OF BEING SEEN AND CAUGHT BY PREDATORS. view more 

CREDIT: ALICE KENNEY

Like many animals in the far north, snowshoe hares change their coats from brown to white each autumn. Come winter, these all-white hares are harder for predators to spot against the snowy landscape, helping ensure their survival.

But as global warming reduces snowfall in the region, will the hares’ seasonal color swap continue to keep them safe?

Scientists from the University of Florida and Canada are beginning to answer that question. Their new study, which used 44 years of data on snowshoe hares in Canada’s Yukon Territory, shows that as the region has warmed, hares are waiting longer to turn pure white.

However, the data also suggest that waiting too long can be deadly. The scientists found that hares that were more brown than white in autumn were less likely to survive the winter  

“When it comes to the switch from brown to white, which we call molting, timing is everything. We can see in this study that climate change is making it harder for the hares to get that timing just right.” said Madan Oli, first author of the study and a professor in the UF/IFAS wildlife ecology and conservation department.  “Hares begin to change color based on environmental cues such as temperature and snow depth, but the change doesn’t happen overnight. The whole molting process takes about a month. So, if hares are beginning to molt later in the year, there is a greater chance they will not be fully white by the time their environment is white. These hares are then more vulnerable to predators.”

Snowshoe hares are what ecologists call a keystone species because so many other animals depend on them for food, said Charles Krebs, senior author of the study and a professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia.

If the snowshoe hare population takes a nosedive, this could affect the entire ecosystem, he said.

“Practically everything eats snowshoe hares in the boreal forest. A big change in the number that survive the winter impacts their ability to replenish themselves over the summer breeding season, which could disrupt the whole food web,” Krebs said. The boreal forest, or taiga, rings the norther part of the globe and includes parts of Alaska, Canada, Europe and Asia. 

Snowshoe hares are among 21 bird and mammal species in boreal forest that turn white for winter, which scientists call seasonal molting. This study is the first to track how seasonal molting has shifted with rising global temperatures.

The decades of data collection by Krebs and colleagues also makes the study unique, Krebs said.

“When you look over a forty-four-year span, you can really document a pattern. This study demonstrates the value and importance of long-term ecological monitoring,” Krebs said.

Between 1977 and 2021, Krebs and his collaborators went to the Kluane National Park and Reserve in Canada’s Yukon Territory each autumn and spring to study snowshoe hares. In the remote, often extremely cold wilderness they trapped snowshoe hares, recorded the percentage of white and brown in each hare’s coat, tagged each hare (or noted if it was already tagged) and set it free.

The researchers recorded observations for nearly 4,500 hares, with some caught multiple times over the years. Oli, who specializes in evaluating animal populations from a statistical and modeling perspective, and then wildlife ecology doctoral candidate Vratika Chaudhary, analyzed this massive dataset. The current study presents the results of that analysis.  

The team isn’t done studying snowshoe hares in the Yukon, Krebs said. The scientists are currently recording the hare coat color and behavior using motion activated cameras. Images captures by these cameras will show how much — or how little — the hares coats are helping them match their environment in real time.

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JOURNAL

Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences

DOI

10.1098/rspb.2022.1421 

ARTICLE TITLE

Does coat colour influence survival? A test in a cyclic population of snowshoe hares

A mismatched snowshoe hare in winter coat in a snow-free landscape in Kluane, Yukon, Canada. Pure white winter coat against snow-free landscape makes snowshoe hares easily detectable by predators, which can reduce their survival during the winter. The study found, however, that hares that wait longer to turn white in autumn face the greatest chance of being eaten by predators during the winte

White snowshoe hare.

CREDIT

Photo credit: Lance Goodwin

Brown snowshoe hare. Hares turn brown for the summer when the snows recede.

Brown snowshoe hare. Hares turn brown for the summer when the snows recede.

CREDIT

Photo credit: Alice Kenney

Contaminated drinking water alerts cause up to 10% school absence rates in Jackson, Mississippi

A Brown-led research team compared boil water alerts and unexcused absence rates in Jackson’s public schools to show the wide-ranging negative effects of water contamination on children’s health.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BROWN UNIVERSITY

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — When a team led by researchers from Brown University’s School of Public Health tried to gather data about the health effects of the longstanding water contamination crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, little was available, even on the toxicity of the water supply.

So they turned to two sources that were accessible — school attendance records and public safety alerts that advised residents to boil water before use.

Now, the team’s analysis of this information in a study published in Nature Water shows how boil water alerts significantly disrupted student learning: Each time an alert was issued, unexcused absence rates in Jackson’s public schools increased between 1% and 10%.

Chronic school absenteeism impacts not only a child’s academic record, but also their health and well-being, said lead author Erica Walker, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Brown. Research shows that chronic absenteeism is associated with increased likelihood of poverty and decreases in mental and physical health. 

“We’re talking about much larger repercussions than gastrointestinal illness from drinking unsafe water,” Walker said. “These findings show how chronic exposure to contaminated water over time can negatively affect the trajectory of a child’s life.”

The water crisis in Jackson has made global headlines as a major environmental catastrophe, impacting the health and well-being of residents. The researchers focused on the city’s most vulnerable population: its children.

To conduct the study, the team used data on boil water alerts issued by the City of Jackson’s Water and Sewer Business Administration Office between 2015 and 2021, daily school attendance data from Jackson’s Public School District and demographic data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

The data showed that each time a boil water alert was issued, unexcused absence rates increased by 1 to 10%.

They also showed decreases in unexcused absences in schools where much of the student body receives free and reduced lunches — likely, Walker said, because the water contamination disrupts at-home meal preparation, so families may instead count on schools to safely provide lunch for children that day.

As the director of the Community Noise Lab at Brown, Walker originally wanted to study the effects of noise pollution on public health in Jackson. However, when the community made clear that the water contamination was a more pressing concern, Walker shifted focus.

She organized a team, which included graduate students from Brown, to set up mobile laboratories across the city to test tap water quality — work that remains ongoing. Separately, Walker partnered with researchers from the University of Mississippi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University and Salem State University to learn more about the effects of contaminated water on community health. They recognized that the ubiquity of boil water alerts would make them an accessible metric that would be understandable to the public.

In the study, the researchers concluded that their analysis highlights the urgency of addressing the root causes of the poor water quality in Jackson. They provide suggestions for how municipalities can more effectively spread the word about contaminated water, including social media posts, voicemails or conducting door-to-door outreach when resources enable it. They also suggested that the Mississippi Department of Health publish a sample press release for local water systems that includes information about the cause of the boil water alert, the population and public schools impacted, and what precautions to take.

The team said the findings could benefit other cities struggling with poor water infrastructure and shed light on the many issues directly and indirectly caused by boil water alerts. Team members from MIT created a data visualization to engage the community both within Jackson and across the world about the research findings.

A personal connection to a community project

This issue is personal for Walker, who grew up in Jackson. She said she does not remember hearing about boil water alerts when she was a child. Yet in 2020 alone, Walker said, the City of Jackson issued approximately 500 boil water advisories because of unsafe drinking water. These interruptions ranged from a few hours to weeks long.

In a commentary for Nature Water that accompanied the study, Walker imagined what it would be like to live with the water crisis in Jackson.

“When a boil water advisory is issued, families with school-aged children living in the impacted communities must boil their water before any consumption, making necessary school preparation chores that we normally take for granted like brushing teeth, taking medications, and preparing meals difficult, if not impossible,” Walker wrote.

Walker’s essay explored her nostalgia for the Jackson of her youth, and her feelings of survivor’s guilt. She wrote, “Would I be who I am now if I lived in the Jackson that exists today?”

Walker said that the team helped train community members as well as students at the Piney Woods School, a historically Black co-educational private boarding school in Mississippi, how to test water for contaminants. As next steps, the team hopes to use the information from the mobile testing labs to examine the biological effects of contaminated water. They created an activity book for children and adults to explain the current water situation in Jackson and how drinking water comes from its source — “so that the next time people get a boil water notice, they’ll have a better understanding of what it means and how it affects them,” Walker said.

“Hopefully,” she said, “this community research partnership will lead to education, empowerment and advocacy around the issue of contaminated water and how it impacts public health.”

The research was supported in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Carl Kawaja and Wendy Holcombe Endowed Fund.

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JOURNAL

Nature Water

DOI

10.1038/s44221-023-00062-z 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Meta-analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Boil water alerts and their impact on the unexcused absence rate in public schools in Jackson, Mississippi.

Diphtheria outbreak – updates from Europe, UK, Germany, Austria

Reports and Proceedings

EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES

**Note: the release below from the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2023, Copenhagen, 15-18 April). Please credit the conference if you use this story**

Various European countries experienced outbreaks of diphtheria mostly linked to incoming migrants.

Europe 

Dr Helena Seth-Smith (University of Zurich), Dr Sylvain Brisse (Institut Pasteur - Paris (France) and collaborators from across Europe including the European Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC) assessed cases of diphtheria in migrants that had arrived in 10 European countriesSwitzerland (52 cases), Germany (118), UK (59), Austria (69), France (30), Belgium (21), Norway (8), The Netherlands (5), Italy (3), and Spain (1).

For their short report, click here

Dr Helena Seth-Smith, University of Zurich, Swtizerland. E) hsethsmith@imm.uzh.ch

Dr Sylvain Brisse, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France. T) +33 6 77 94 65 34

E) sylvain.brisse@pasteur.fr

This press release is based on abstract 2670 at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) annual meeting. The material has been peer reviewed by the congress selection committee.  The research has been not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication.

For full poster, click here

UK

Linked to an increase in migrant arrivals via small boat in the Summer of 2022, the UK experienced a sharp increase in diphtheria cases caused by toxigenic Corynebacterium diphtheriae last year, recording 73 when the annual average for previous years (including cases due to toxigenic C. ulcerans) was 12 cases. A further single case has been recorded in 2023.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has two abstracts and posters containing all the relevant information about the outbreak (see links below) Steps taken by UK health authorities included recommending mass administration of antibiotic prophylaxis and vaccination in initial reception centres and other accommodation settings for recent arrivals. UKHSA preliminary data as of 18 January 2023 estimates approximately 40% and 88% of eligible arrivals received prophylactic antibiotics and vaccination, respectively, since implementation.

For further information on diphtheria in the UK, please contact the UKHSA Press Office. T) +44 20 7654 8400 E) ukhsa-pressoffice@ukhsa.gov.uk 

Alternative contact Tony Kirby in the ECCMID Media Centre. T) +44 7834 385827 E) tony.kirby@tonykirby.com

This press release is based on abstract 5308 and late breaker abstract LB103 at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) annual meeting. The material has been peer reviewed by the congress selection committee.  The research has been not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication.

For full 5308 abstract click here, for full poster click here

For full LB103 abstract click here, for full poster click here

Twitter (for when embargo lifts): @escmid #ECCMID2023

Germany

In Germany, experts are continuing to track an outbreak of imported diphtheria that began in Summer 2022, and as of March 2023 affected 169 migrants that had arrived in Germany, mostly from Afghanistan and Syria. This is despite the fact that diphtheria incidence and vaccination coverage in Afghanistan and Syria has remained mostly unchanged over the last few years

Whole genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis at the National Consiliary Laboratory for Diphtheria (Oberschleissheim, Germany) and migration route analysis at the Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany, suggests that migrants affected had acquired toxigenic Corynebacterium diphtheriae neither in their home country nor in Germany, but in between while migrating – mainly along the Balkan route which includes, among other countries, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia.

Franziska Badenschier, based at the Department for Infectious Disease Epidemiology at the Robert Koch Institute, and her colleagues were able to detect this outbreak within six weeks of the first cases being reported. It then became clear that this outbreak in Germany was part of an international outbreak in Europe.

Badenschier also explains that some cases were initially thought to be mpox, until testing dismissed this and confirmed the cases as diphtheria. She and her colleagues conclude that, for better and more timely diagnosis of diphtheria, clinicians, microbiologists, and institutions working with migrants shall raise awareness and intensify sample collection from wounds with subsequent laboratory diagnostics.

Since the outbreak is ongoing and the sources of it have not been identified yet, Badenschier and her co-authors suggest active case finding and outbreak detection in countries along the Balkan route.

Franziska Badenschier, Department for Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany. T) +49 (0)30 18754-2069 E) badenschierf@rki.de

This press release is based on late breaker abstract LB096 at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) annual meeting. The material has been peer reviewed by the congress selection committee.  The research has been not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication.

 For full poster, click here

Austria

 

Population study shows one third of people not adequately protected against diphtheria

Tests on blood samples of some 16,000 people in Austria show one third of the population have insufficient immunity against diphtheria. The research is presented at this year’s European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2023, Copenhagen, 15-18 April) and is by Prof Ursula Wiedermann-Schmidt and Angelika Wagner, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Australia, and colleagues. 

Various European countries, including the UK, Germany and Austria, reported an unusual increase in diphtheria cases in 2022, with around 80% of these cases in migrants arriving in those countries from countries such as Syria and Afghanistan.  Austria reported 62 cases of diphtheria in 2022. The authors, concerned about possible onward transmission of this disease among the general population, aimed to estimate the level of immunity (seroprotection) against diphtheria among people living in Austria.

The authors analysed antibody concentrations against diphtheria toxoid from all individuals requesting voluntary antibody testing at the Austrian reference laboratory at the Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine (ISPTM) at the Medical University of Vienna between March 1, 2010 and January 31, 2022.  Individuals requesting such testing are usually doing so to check their immunity to see if they need a booster to maintain protection. 

In total, the authors included diphtheria-toxoid (DT) specific antibody concentration results from 15 852 individuals and of those 12 539 individuals also requested determination of tetanus-toxoid (TT) specific antibodies. Individuals requesting antibody testing were mainly located in the eastern Austrian provinces (Table 1), with around half the total participants coming from the Vienna Province. Antibody concentrations of under 0.01 IU/mL were considered as non-protective; between 0.01 and 0.1 IU/mL as inadequately protective and 0.1 IU/mL and above as adequately protective.

When looked at as three distinct age groups, the results showed individuals aged 60 years and over had the lowest antibody concentrations compared to those under 15 years and those between 15 and 60 years (Figure 2). Those aged under 15 years also had lower protection when compared with those aged 15-60 years. Participants aged above 60 years had the highest proportion of non-protected (4.8%) and insufficiently protected individuals (40.7%) (Figure 3).

Overall, 33% of individuals lacked seroprotection against diphtheria (Figure 3, Table 3). When stratified further according to age (0-6 years 6-15 years, 15-25, 25-35, 35-45, 45-55, 55-65, 65-75, and above 75 years) and sex, the data showed those aged 6-15 years and age groups 55 years and over as having the lowest protection.

Regarding tetanus antibody levels, young individuals had lowest median tetanus antibody concentrations (compared to 15-60 years old and 60 years and over). Interestingly, tetanus levels did not differ between the 15-60 years group and those over 60 years old.

The authors conclude: “Our data show insufficient seroprotection against diphtheria in all age groups, while seroprotection rate against tetanus is higher throughout all age groups. Thus, awareness for regular booster vaccination with combination vaccines (including diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough) needs to be urgently increased as recommended every 10 years (5 years in those aged over 60 years), according to the Austrian National Immunization Plan. The fact that tetanus antibody levels and seroprotection are generally higher and longer lasting, illustrates the necessity to reintroduce of monovalent diphtheria vaccines for diphtheria catch-up vaccination. In addition, the use of higher diphtheria vaccine doses - as used for primary immunisation – for adult booster vaccinations, might be an option to close gaps in diphtheria seroprotection.”

Prof Ursula Wiedermann-Schmidt, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Austria.  T) +43 1 40160 38290 E) ursula.wiedermann-schmidt@meduniwien.ac.at

Angelika Wagner, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Austria. Please email to arrange interview. E)

This press release is based on abstract 6915 (Late breaker LB119) at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) annual meeting. The material has been peer reviewed by the congress selection committee.  The research has been not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication.

For full abstract click here

For full poster click here

 

First-in-Canada clinical RNA sequencing platform may improve rare disease diagnostics in pediatrics

A clinical RNA sequencing platform at SickKids, the first of its kind in Canada, offers insights into complex genetic conditions and the future of precision diagnostics

Peer-Reviewed Publication

THE HOSPITAL FOR SICK CHILDREN

 

IMAGE: DR. KYOKO YUKI AND DR. LIANNA KYRIAKOPOULOU ARE MOVING THE NEEDLE ON PRECISION DIAGNOSTICS FOR RARE DISEASES THROUGH A NEW CLINICAL RNA SEQUENCING PLATFORM AT SICKKIDS. view more 

CREDIT: THE HOSPITAL FOR SICK CHILDREN (SICKKIDS)

A new clinical RNA sequencing platform at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) is helping to facilitate research into rare genetic conditions and carve a path for Precision Child Health, a movement at SickKids to deliver individualized care for every patient.

RNA sequencing provides a different way of looking at the genes, by looking at how the body interprets the genetic code rather than looking directly at the genetic code itself. While DNA-based tests like genome sequencing take a picture of a person’s genetic code, scientists can better understand how the DNA is being read by also looking at RNA, which carries instructions for making proteins in our body.

Across the SickKids Research Institute, scientists have been working closely together over the last six years to build and incorporate RNA sequencing into the research pipeline. Now, championed by Dr. Lianna Kyriakopoulou, a Clinical Laboratory Director in the Division of Genome Diagnostics, and Laboratory Specialist Dr. Kyoko Yuki, this technology is, for the first time in Canada, validated to be used in the clinical space as a new tool for precision diagnostics.

“The clinical RNA sequencing platform at SickKids is helping to move the needle in achieving a diagnosis for patients with rare genetic conditions through patient-centred care, or what SickKids calls Precision Child Health,” says Dr. Lianna Kyriakopoulou. “Used together, genome sequencing and RNA sequencing can potentially further inform which findings are relevant to help guide clinical decision-making.”

Combined DNA and RNA sequencing offers improved diagnostic information for complex genetic conditions

Using this clinical RNA sequencing platform, a team of SickKids researchers, in collaboration with Dr. Panagiota Klentrou at Brock University, performed genome sequencing and RNA sequencing on 97 individuals from 39 different families in the Complex Care Program, a clinical program focused on diagnosis and care of children with unexplained medical complexity.

In a study published in the American Journal of Human Genetics, the RNA analysis provided useful diagnostic information for an additional eight per cent of the patients whose diagnosis was not confirmed using genome sequencing alone, either confirming or ruling out the impact of a DNA variant identified during genome sequencing.

“Our findings demonstrate a clear benefit to pairing RNA sequencing with genome sequencing in a cohort of children who are suspected to have a genetic diagnosis,” explains co-first author Dr. Ashish Deshwar, a resident physician in Medical Genetics & Genomics.  

This study is also one of the first to examine the utility of a trio-approach to RNA sequencing, a process which involves conducting RNA sequencing on the affected individual and both parents. While trio RNA sequencing with this population did not uncover any new genetic variants, it decreased the amount of time researchers needed to spend reviewing results and made the analysis more efficient.

Deshwar, alongside other first-authors Yuki and Dr. Huayun Hou, a Bioinformatician in the Wilson Lab, also noticed inherited RNA patterns between family members and are optimistic about its potential use in further research. 

“We hope that the results of our study will help support the inclusion of clinical based RNA-testing in diagnostic workflows for children with rare conditions,” say co-leads and physician-scientists Drs. Gregory Costain and Jim Dowling, Scientist-Track Investigator and Senior Scientist (respectively) in the Genetics & Genome Biology program.  

RNA sequencing platform sparks new research into genetic conditions

The study is just one of the many research programs harnessing RNA sequencing at SickKids.  

At The Centre for Applied Genomics (TCAG) in the SickKids Research Institute, automated screening platforms are also available to researchers thanks to a collaborative effort including the Wilson Lab, Dowling Lab, Costain Lab, Shlien Lab, Brudno Lab, and others as well as the equipment and expertise at The Centre for Computational Medicine (CCM).

Current research already underway includes the study of allergic responses with Dr. Thomas Eiwegger and blood samples from individuals with lupus with Dr. Linda Hiraki.

Bridging clinical and research for the future of Precision Child Health

As more research is done into the benefits of RNA sequencing, scientists and clinicians are excited to better define the scenarios where clinical RNA sequencing can provide real insights for patients with rare genetic conditions, as well as other patient groups. This will be essential to providing the evidence needed to inform decisions about making RNA sequencing more broadly available for precision diagnostics.

“We have built a strong bridge between the research and clinical labs at SickKids which will benefit ongoing and future studies contributing to precision medicine becoming standard of care, as well as patients throughout the hospital,” says Dr. Michael Wilson, a Senior Scientist in the Genetics & Genome Biology program, who previously held a Canada Research Chair in Comparative Genomics. “By carefully sequencing and analysing RNA from diverse populations of sick and healthy children we have the potential to improve how we find diagnoses for patients with rare genetic conditions.” 

This research was funded by Genome Canada, SickKids Centre for Genetic Medicine, SickKids Research Institute and the University of Toronto McLaughlin Centre. Additional funding for the development of the RNA sequencing platform was provided by SickKids Innovators Fund.

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JOURNAL

American Journal of Human Genetics

DOI

10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.03.006 

ARTICLE TITLE

Trio RNA sequencing in a cohort of medically complex children

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

Shift to ‘flash droughts’ as climate warms

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON

Thursday, 13 April 2023

‘Flash droughts’ have become more frequent due to human-caused climate change and this trend is predicted to accelerate in a warmer future, according to research published today [13 April 2023] involving the University of Southampton.

The research published in Science shows that flash droughts, which start and develop rapidly, are becoming ‘the new normal’ for droughts, making forecasting and preparing for their impact more difficult.

Flash droughts can develop into severe droughts within a few weeks. They are caused by low precipitation and high evapotranspiration, which quickly depletes the soil of water. While they start quickly, the droughts can last for months, damaging vegetation and ecosystems, and triggering heat waves and wildfires.

A multinational group of researchers wanted to understand if there had been a transition from conventional ‘slow’ droughts to flash droughts and how this trend will develop under different carbon emission scenarios.

“Climate change has effectively sped up the onset of droughts,” says Professor Justin Sheffield, Professor of Hydrology and Remote Sensing at the University of Southampton and co-author of the paper.

“While it varies between different regions, there has been a global shift towards more frequent flash droughts during the past 64 years.”

The transition to flash droughts is most notable over East and North Asia, Europe, the Sahara, and the west coast of South America. Some areas, such as eastern North America, Southeast Asia and North Australia, saw fewer flash and slow droughts, but the speed of drought onset had increased. In the Amazon and West Africa, there was no evidence of a transition to flash droughts; the Amazon saw an increase in slow droughts and West Africa saw an increase in the frequency and extremity of both fast and slow droughts.

Professor Justin Sheffield added: “As we head towards a warmer future, flash droughts are becoming the new normal. Our models show that higher-emission scenarios would lead to a greater risk of flash droughts with quicker onset which pose a major challenge for climate adaptation.”

The transition to flash droughts may have irreversible impacts on ecosystems as they may not have enough time to adapt to a sudden lack of water and extreme heat. Forecasting flash droughts is also difficult as current approaches to predicting droughts use longer time scales.

The researchers say new approaches are needed to provide early warnings of flash droughts, as well as a better understanding of how natural ecosystems and humans will be impacted.

A global transition to flash droughts under climate change is published in Science.

Funding for the research was provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the National Key R&D Program of China, the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province for Distinguished Young Scholars, and the UK-China Research & Innovation Partnership Fund through the Met Office Climate Science for Service Partnership (CSSP) China as part of the Newton Fund.

ENDS

Notes for Editors

1. A global transition to flash droughts under climate change will be published by Science in print on Friday, 14 April 2023 and online at 19:00 (7:00 pm) BST on Thursday, 13 April 2023. More information, including a copy of the paper, can be found online at the Science press package at https://www.eurekalert.org/press/scipak/
2. For further information and interviews with Professor Justin Sheffield, Professor of Hydrology and Remote Sensing at the University of Southampton, please contact: Steve Williams, Media Relations, University of Southampton. press@soton.ac.uk 023 8059 3212.
3. The University of Southampton drives original thinking, turns knowledge into action and impact, and creates solutions to the world’s challenges. We are among the top 100 institutions globally (QS World University Rankings 2023). Our academics are leaders in their fields, forging links with high-profile international businesses and organisations, and inspiring a 22,000-strong community of exceptional students, from over 135 countries worldwide. Through our high-quality education, the University helps students on a journey of discovery to realise their potential and join our global network of over 200,000 alumni. www.southampton.ac.uk
    

www.southampton.ac.uk/news/contact-press-team.page

Follow us on twitter: http://twitter.com/unisouthampton

Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/unisouthampton

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JOURNAL

Science

DOI

10.1126/science.abn6301 

ARTICLE TITLE

A global transition to flash droughts under climate change

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

14-Apr-2023

Free trade deal is a major threat to UK public health, warn experts

New deal will make it harder for the UK to regulate tobacco and alcohol or ban products like those containing harmful pesticides

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BMJ

The UK’s decision to join one of the world’s largest free trade agreements, known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement on Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), poses a major threat to UK public health, warn experts in The BMJ today.

In acceding to the CPTPP, the government hopes to boost trade, improve economic growth, and strengthen the UK’s strategic position as a global rule setter. 

But Courtney McNamara and colleagues argue that free trade deals have serious and wide ranging implications for public health and policy making, as they commit countries to certain regulatory and legal obligations. 

As such, they call on the government to commission a health impact assessment before signing takes place later in 2023 to evaluate the potential benefits and harms of this deal.

The CPTPP poses several threats to public health in the UK, they explain. For example, it is likely to make it more difficult to enact policies to cut consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and unhealthy food and drinks through clauses that allow foreign corporations to contest any such regulations.

It also contains provisions that effectively rule out a precautionary approach to food safety, meaning that bans on products like those containing harmful pesticides can be challenged.

And while some workers might benefit from a boost in exports and demand, which might increase wages, they argue that those working in industries that are undercut by cheaper imports and unable to compete are likely to experience economic insecurity and potentially job losses, which carry huge consequences for health.

The UK government has said the agreement will not mean lower health or food standards in the UK, and the authors acknowledge that the gross domestic product (GDP) boosting consequences of a free trade agreement could conceivably have positive health effects.

Based on the UK government’s own calculations, however, they point out that the economic case for joining the CPTPP “amounts to no more than a 0.08% increase in the country’s GDP over a 15 year period.”

More problematically, the government’s calculations fail to account for the implementation costs of joining the agreement, they add. “To our knowledge, no national evaluation has been done to account for implementation costs with respect to changes in regulatory and dispute settlement rules.”

“If a priority of the government is to do no harm, a commitment made explicit during Brexit negotiations, then it should take account of the health implications of its trade policies,” they write.

“Even if it is unlikely that, given the government’s poor track record on public health, the findings would influence its decision to sign, evidence produced by the assessment will still be extremely valuable by pointing to populations at risk and communities whose health might be safeguarded during the agreement’s implementation,” they add.

If the government fails to undertake a health impact assessment, it will fall to public health scholars, professionals, and advocates to mobilise and act to undertake this important work, they conclude.

[Ends] 

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JOURNAL

The BMJ

DOI

10.1136/bmj-2022-073302 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Content analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

The CPTPP trade deal is a major threat to public health and warrants a health impact assessment

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

12-Apr-2023

The hidden culprit behind nitrogen dioxide emissions

Peer-Reviewed Publication

POHANG UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY (POSTECH)

 

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CREDIT: POSTECH

Nitrogen dioxide is one of the criteria air pollutants that plays an important role as a precursor gas of fine particulate matter and ozone. NO2 emissions are known to be primarily generated by industrial facilities or vehicle exhausts. Recently, a research team from POSTECH analyzed satellite remote sensing data from the European Space Agency (ESA) and released results showing that food processing facilities and high-rise apartments that are 10 stories or higher are significant sources of NO2 emissions. Their findings have drawn attention from NASA.

 

A POSTECH research team led by Professor Hyung Joo Lee used the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI), an instrument on an Earth observation satellite that can monitor atmospheric composition, to analyze NO2 emissions from various types of properties in California. Their analysis suggests that NO2 emissions were highest at food processing facilities and residential complexes with high population density.   

 

The team estimated average NO2 concentrations at the spatial resolution of 500 m in California between 2018 and 2019 and assessed whether NO2 concentrations measured at ground monitors were representative of population exposures to NO2 in each county. They also evaluated which property types showed the highest NO2 emissions and therefore exposures. Their assessment revealed that the highest NO2 exposures were attributed to food processing facilities and high-rise apartments that are 10 stories or higher. The same results were obtained when traffic was taken into consideration.

 

Such high residential emissions are presumed to be attributed to combustion sources within the apartments, such as water boilers, space heaters, and other indoor-generated emissions vented outdoors. Residential combustion sources have not been considered significant sources of air pollution in previous research.

 

POSTECH Professor Hyung Joo Lee explained, “Highly populated residential areas, specifically high-rise apartments, have not been extensively studied. However, the research indicates that these areas should be regarded as crucial contributors to NO2 emissions in the formulation of environmental policies.”

 

He emphasized the significance of the research by stating, “The research demonstrates that satellite remote sensing can be effectively used to inform air quality management.”

 

The research was published in Science of the Total Environment, one of the most prestigious environmental journals, and was introduced in NASA Earth Observatory.

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JOURNAL

Science of The Total Environment

DOI

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159342 

ARTICLE TITLE

Neighborhood-scale ambient NO2 concentrations using TROPOMI NO2 data: Applications for spatially comprehensive exposure assessment