Examining the effects of green infrastructure on residential sales prices in Omaha, Nebraska.

Green infrastructure (GI), practices consisting of using vegetation and soil to manage stormwater runoff (e.g., rain gardens, vegetated roofs, bioswales, etc.), has been adopted by cities across the world to help address aging water infrastructure, water quality, excess water quantity, and urban planning needs. Although GI's contribution to stormwater control and management has been extensively studied, the economic value of its benefits is less known. In Omaha, NE, GI projects have been completed in several public parks. Using a repeat-sales model based on 2000-2018 housing data, we examined the effect of GI on the value of single-family homes within various buffer distances of parks where GI was installed. After controlling for changes associated with home deterioration and renovation, non-stationary location effects, and time-invariant characteristics, we did not find any statistically significant relationships between housing values and GI. This finding is consistent with the notion that homeowners place little value on modifications to existing greenspace, but may also stem from homeowners' lack of familiarity with GI practices or data limitations.

Ineffectiveness of 3,4-diaminopyridine as a therapy for type C botulism.

Clostridium botulinum neurotoxins inhibit acetylcholine release at neuromuscular junctions. Agents stimulating neurotransmitter efflux, such as 3,4-diaminopyridine (3,4-DAP), could be useful for botulism therapy. Treatment with 3,4-DAP (8 mg/kg hourly, beginning 3 hr after toxin injection) failed to increase the survival times of mice receiving 10, 20 or 40 LD50 type C, but did prolong the survival of those receiving 20 LD50 type A. This difference in 3,4-DAP efficacy may reflect variations in the molecular mechanism of action of types A and C botulinum neurotoxins.

Persistence of Pasteurella multocida in Nebraska wetlands under epizootic conditions.

Gleason Basin, a marsh located in the western part of the Rainwater Basin in Nebraska, was selected during the 1980 spring waterfowl migration as a study site to determine the presence and persistence of virulent Pasteurella multocida. Avian cholera mortality in migratory waterfowl using the Basin increased during a 2-wk period of a die-off beginning the first week of March when 2,409 carcasses were collected from the marsh. Study sites within the marsh were established for sampling water associated with and not associated with intact and scavenged carcasses. Isolations of virulent P. multocida were made from five of six study sites associated with either intact or scavenged carcasses for 3 days and from three of five non-carcass-associated study sites for 2 days. Recovery of these bacteria from this environment suggested a possible source of infection for susceptible waterfowl using the contaminated site.

Pasteurella multocida serotype 1 isolated from a lesser snow goose: evidence of a carrier state.

Pharyngeal swabs were collected from 298 lesser snow geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) at Banks Island (Northwest Territories. Canada) in the summer of 1994. Pasteurella multocida serotype 1 was isolated from an adult male bird and P. multocida serotype 3 was isolated from an adult female goose. Pathogenicity of the serotype 1 isolate was confirmed by inoculation in Pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos). The serotype 3 isolate was non-pathogenic in Pekin ducks. This is the first documented isolation of pathogenic P. multocida serotype 1 from apparently healthy wild snow geese.

Antibodies against Pasteurella multocida in snow geese in the western Arctic.

To determine if lesser snow geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) are a potential reservoir for the Pasteurella multocida bacterium that causes avian cholera, serum samples and/or pharyngeal swabs were collected from > 3,400 adult geese breeding on Wrangel Island (Russia) and Banks Island (Canada) during 1993-1996. Pharyngeal swab sampling rarely (> 0.1%) detected birds that were exposed to P. multocida in these populations. Geese with serum antibody levels indicating recent infection with P. multocida were found at both breeding colonies. Prevalence of seropositive birds was 3.5% at Wrangel Island, an area that has no recorded history of avian cholera epizootics. Prevalence of seropositive birds was 2.8% at Banks Island in 1994, but increased to 8.2% during 1995 and 1996 when an estimated 40,000-60,000 snow geese were infected. Approximately 50% of the infected birds died during the epizootic and a portion of the surviving birds may have become carriers of the disease. This pattern of prevalence indicated that enzootic levels of infection with P. multocida occurred at both breeding colonies. When no avian cholera epizootics occurred (Wrangel Island, Banks Island in 1994), female snow geese (4.7%) had higher antibody prevalence than males (2.0%).