Tradeoffs and synergies in wetland multifunctionality: A scaling issue.

Wetland area in agricultural landscapes has been heavily reduced to gain land for crop production, but in recent years there is increased societal recognition of the negative consequences from wetland loss on nutrient retention, biodiversity and a range of other benefits to humans. The current trend is therefore to re-establish wetlands, often with an aim to achieve the simultaneous delivery of multiple ecosystem services, i.e., multifunctionality. Here we review the literature on key objectives used to motivate wetland re-establishment in temperate agricultural landscapes (provision of flow regulation, nutrient retention, climate mitigation, biodiversity conservation and cultural ecosystem services), and their relationships to environmental properties, in order to identify potential for tradeoffs and synergies concerning the development of multifunctional wetlands. Through this process, we find that there is a need for a change in scale from a focus on single wetlands to wetlandscapes (multiple neighboring wetlands including their catchments and surrounding landscape features) if multiple societal and environmental goals are to be achieved. Finally, we discuss the key factors to be considered when planning for re-establishment of wetlands that can support achievement of a wide range of objectives at the landscape scale.

Individually prescribed diet is fundamental to optimize nutritional treatment in geriatric patients.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Malnutrition is a well-recognized problem in geriatric patients. Individually prescribed diet is fundamental to optimize nutritional treatment in geriatric patients. The objective of this study was to investigate routines regarding dietary prescriptions and monitoring of food intake in geriatric patients and to see how well the prescribed diet conforms to the patients' nutritional status and ability to eat. A further aim was to identify the most common reasons and factors interacting with patients not finishing a complete meal. METHODS: This study combines two methods using both qualitative and quantitative analysis. Patients (n = 43; 82.5 ± 7.5 yrs; 60% females) at four geriatric wards performed a two-day dietary record, assisted by a dietician. Nurses and assistant nurses at each ward participated in a semi-structured interview regarding prescription of diets and portion size for the patients. RESULTS: The prescribed diet differed significantly (P < 0.01) from a diet based upon the patient's nutritional status and ability to eat. Only 30% of the patients were prescribed an energy-enriched diet in contrast to 60% that was in need of it. The most common reason for not finishing the meal was lack of appetite. Diet prescription for the patient was based upon information about eating difficulties identified in the Mini Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF) at admission and the type of diet that was prescribed on a previous ward. Monitoring of the patients' food intake was described as a continuous process discussed daily between the staff. CONCLUSION: Patients' nutritional status and to what extent they were able to eat a complete meal was not routinely considered when prescribing food and monitoring food intake in this study. By making use of this information the diet could be tailored to the patients' needs, thereby improving their nutritional treatment.

The cyclic AMP system in sensitized and desensitized guinea-pig tracheal smooth muscle.

Egg albumin decreased the cyclic AMP content and the protein kinase ratio of sensitized guinea-pig tracheal smooth muscle. The effect preceded the contraction of the tracheal preparation. Antigen challenge increased cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase activity without changing the Km value. In tracheal preparations of desensitized guinea-pigs, the mechanical and metabolic effects of egg albumin were markedly reduced. These results suggest that the effects on the cyclic AMP system in response to immunological challenge might represent an important mechanism modulating the contractile response of guinea-pig tracheal smooth muscle.

Effects of SRS (slow reacting substance) on cyclic nucleotides in guinea pig tracheal muscle.

Leukotriene (SRS) appears to contribute to the prolonged phase of the tracheal contraction induced by egg albumin, indomethacin and tartrazine as this response was effectively antagonised by FPL 55712. Egg albumin, indomethacin and tartrazine reduced the cAMP level of guinea pig trachea pretreated with adrenergic, cholinergic, histaminergic and 5-hydroxytryptaminergic antagonists. Egg albumin, but not the other agents, caused a transient increase of the cGMP content. The metabolic and contractile effects were blocked by FPL 55712. It is suggested that the cAMP reduction caused by egg albumin, indomethacin and tartrazine might promote contractions ot the tracheal muscle.

Decreased Schultz-Dale reaction in airways from sensitized guinea pigs treated with threshold concentrations of egg albumin in vivo.

Treatment of egg albumin sensitized guinea pigs with repeated concentrations of egg albumin changed the Schultz-Dale response. The dose-response curve of egg albumin on the trachea was shifted to the right. Both the amount of SRS-A and histamine released by antigen exposure from sensitized or desensitized guinea pig lungs were almost similar. Regarding the number of H1-receptors in an isolated membrane fraction from the lungs of sensitized and desensitized guinea pigs, no significant difference was observed. on the contrary, the receptor-response to SRS-A was found to be decreased in desensitized trachea in comparison with sensitized trachea. The treatment of guinea pigs with repeated threshold concentrations of histamine did not change the contractile response neither to histamine nor to egg albumin. The decreased Schultz-Dale response after repeated egg albumin treatment in vivo might depend on desensitization of a hypothetical SRS-A receptor.

Potent bronchodilating effects of enprofylline and theophylline on contractions induced by egg albumin or by slow reacting substance (SRS).

Isolated sensitized guinea pig tracheal smooth muscle tone was induced by use of egg albumin or SRS-A (slow reacting substance of anaphylaxis). The dose-response relationships of theophylline and enprofylline were studied on these preparations. Enprofylline was more potent than theophylline in relaxing the egg albumin- or SRS-A-induced tracheal muscle tone. The theophylline relaxation-curve was significantly shifted to the left after addition of adenosine-deaminase to the egg albumin-contracted trachea, but this was not observed with the enprofylline relaxation-curve. In SRS-A-contracted tracheas, the addition of adenosine-deaminase did not significantly alter the relaxation curves of theophylline or enprofylline. It is therefore suggested that the relaxing effects of theophylline and enprofylline on SRS-A-induced contractions, at the therapeutically relevant concentrations demonstrated in this study, might be of importance for the anti-asthmatic effects of xanthines.

Studies of the contracting mechanism induced by slow reacting substance of anaphylaxis (SRS-A): interaction with calcium.

The present study demonstrates the Ca2+ dependency of the contractions elicited by egg albumin and SRS-A in isolated tracheal preparations from sensitized guniea-pigs. The egg albumin contraction consisted of a rapid, initial and a long lasting, tonic phase; the first phase independent and the latter dependent of extracellular Ca2+. The SRS-A contraction was completely dependent of extracellular Ca2+ ions. On the other hand, the egg albumin contraction of the parenchymal strips was not influenced by extracellular Ca2+. SRS-A released Ca2+ from a microsomal fraction of sensitized lung tissue. This effect was, however, absent in microsomes from desensitized lung tissue. It is suggested that the Ca2+ -mobilizing effect of SRS-A is of utmost importance for the initiation of contraction of the tracheal smooth muscle.

Effects of tartrazine of different contractile stimuli in guinea pig tracheal muscle.

Tracheal smooth muscle obtained from ovalbumin-sensitized guinea pigs contracted with micromolar concentrations of tartrazine and indomethacin. The contractions were slightly reduced by clemastine, but were completely blocked by the SRS-A antagonist FPL 55712. Arylsulfatase B, which is an enzyme that inactivates SRS-A, also abolished the contractions induced by tartrazine. Contractions induced by carbacholine, histamine, egg albumin and arachidonic acid were slightly reduced by indomethacin and tartrazine. Tartrazine like indomethacin inhibited the generation of thromboxanes from human platelets. We suggest that SRS-A plays an important role in the immediate hypersensitivity reactions of tartrazine and indomethacin in guinea pig trachea.

Comparative inductive responses of two beta-galactosidases of Neurospora.

The activities of the two beta-galactosidases of Neurospora increased in response to the presence of lactose or galactose. d-Xylose preferentially induced higher levels of activity in one of these enzymes. The initial period of the inductive response was examined in cultures transferred from noninducing to inducing media. Variations in the ratio of activities of these enzymes during this induction period indicate that their induction was not coordinate. The induction of the beta-galactosidases of Neurospora was less sensitive to low concentrations of inducers than was the induction of the beta-galactosidase of bacteria; the time lag of induction was greater in the eucaryotic organism, and the maximal induction of active enzyme was less than that observed in bacteria.