The evaluation of greenhouse gas emissions from sewage treatment with urbanization: Understanding the opportunities and challenges for climate change mitigation in China's low-carbon pilot city, Shenzhen.

Sewage treatment provides a pathway for anthropogenic water purification that can address the growth in domestic sewage volumes due to urbanization and protect the aquatic environment. However, the process can also generate greenhouse gases (GHGs), which are sometimes termed "unrestricted" GHG emissions and are neglected by low carbon policies. A combination of a life cycle analysis (LCA), data envelopment analysis (DEA), and questionnaire survey was used to evaluate sewage treatment related GHG emissions and assess the GHG emission reduction efficiencies during 2005-2020, as well as determine the opinions of environmental managers regarding the threats to climate change mitigation posed by sewage treatment in the low carbon pilot city of Shenzhen, China. There were four main results. (1) GHG emissions from sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Shenzhen increased gradually from 0.22 Mt. CO2-eq in 2005 to 1.16 Mt. CO2-eq in 2020 with an emission intensity ranging from 0.41 to 0.58 kg CO2-eq/m3, mainly due to the indirect emissions from sludge disposal (35-57 %). Longgang administrative district was the hotspot of these GHG emissions during the study period. (2) Reductions in GHG emissions were achieved in most years since 2012 with the greatest efficiency observed in 2020. (3) Beyond the environmental managers' perceptions of the challenges in GHG mitigation, future sewage treatment may create the potential for more substantial GHG emission growth compared to the emissions from energy combustion, due to policy deficiencies, growth in sewage volumes, and the enforcement of stricter effluent quality control. (4) Several opportunities to overcome these barriers were considered including innovational environmental management, planting of constructed wetlands, and the promotion of water-saving behavior. This case study of Shenzhen has valuable implications for the synergistic governance of water pollution and climate change mitigation in megacities in China and elsewhere, enabling a move towards a future carbon-neutral society.

Effects of inorganic and organic selenium sources on the growth performance of broilers in China: A meta-analysis.

This study aims to investigate the effects of different selenium (Se) sources on the growth performance of Chinese broilers and provide a scientific rationale for adding Se additives to broiler feed. Relevant studies that meet standard inclusion criteria were identified and extracted from China National Knowledge Infrastructure and Wanfang and Chinese Scientific Journal (VIP) databases. A total of 9 studies with 539 subjects were included. A meta-analysis was performed with STATA15.0 to estimate the combined standardized mean difference (SMD) with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Heterogeneity test of articles was examined by Q-test, and the results showed that P values of feed conversion ratio, average daily gain (ADG), and average daily intake were all less than 0.05, suggesting a strong heterogeneity among the selected literature. Therefore, the random effect model is selected to calculate the SMD of the three indexes. The combined SMDs (95% CI) of feed:gain, ADG, and average daily feed intake (ADFI) were -0.39 (-1.03, 0.25), 0.26 (-0.29, 0.81), and -1.45 (-3.09, 0.20), respectively, and the P values were all less than 0.05. This study shows that the absolute differences in the growth performance (feed:gain, ADG, and ADFI) of broilers fed with either organic or inorganic Se supplements at the same dose were quite small. The P values of Egger's test were 0.770, 0.089, and 0.426, respectively, for the above indexes, showing no significant publication bias. Sensitivity analysis ensured the stability and reliability of the results. In summary, the effects of organic and inorganic Se in feed on the growth performance of broilers are statistically equal.

Transforming growth factor ß1 signal is crucial for dedifferentiation of cancer cells to cancer stem cells in osteosarcoma.

Human osteosarcoma harbors a small subpopulation of cancer stem cells (CSCs) that is believed to be associated with tumor metastasis, radioresistance/chemoresistance, local invasion, and poor clinical outcome. In this study, we found that transforming growth factor ß1 (TGF-ß1) signaling and a hypoxic environment dramatically induced self-renewal capacity in non-stem osteosarcoma cells, which in turn promoted chemoresistance, tumorigenicity, neovasculogenesis, and metastatic potential. Furthermore, blocking the TGF-ß1 signaling pathway resulted in the inhibition of the dedifferentiation and clonogenicity of osteosarcoma cells, and the reduction of CSC self-renewal capacity and hypoxia-mediated dedifferentiation. These findings demonstrate that stem cells and non-stem cells exist in a dynamic equilibrium within the osteosarcoma cell population, and that CSCs may develop de novo from differentiated cancer cells. Hierarchical models of mammalian CSCs, therefore, should be considered to serve as bidirectional interconversion between the stem and non-stem cell components of the tumor.

Measurement of behavioral objectives for weight management.

Measurement of specific behaviors involved in weight management is essential to understanding the behavior change process. This study presents measures of common behavioral objectives for weight management interventions. The relationships between these measures and conventional outcomes of weight management are described. Data are from a survey of 407 adults in the rural Midwest ages 23 to 88. Analyses involved bivariate and multivariate statistical tests. Relationships were stronger when limited to diet or physical activity outcomes as opposed to body mass index or waist circumference. Diet-related strategies were more strongly correlated with diet-related outcomes than physical activity-related outcomes and vice versa. Measures of social interactions and self-monitoring for both diet and physical activity were consistently related to outcomes. The measures show promise as reliable and valid indicators of behavior that could be useful in the evaluation of interventions. Intervention studies are needed to further characterize their value and sensitivity to change over time.

Stage of change for healthful eating and use of behavioral strategies.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the distribution of behavioral strategy use across stage of change for healthful eating, and to determine if baseline stage predicts change in use of strategies over 1 year in the absence of intervention. DESIGN: Cross-sectional assessment and 1-year follow-up with no intervention. SUBJECTS/SETTING: Adult men and women in two rural Midwest communities. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Multiple regression, with tests for group difference and trend, controlling for age and sex. RESULTS: Use of behavioral strategies as measured by six scales (self-monitoring, planning, preparation and buying, portion control, social interactions, and cognitive strategies) followed a clear linear trend across stages of change for healthful eating. Strategy use was more strongly related to stage than energy intake, fat intake, and fruit and vegetable servings as measured via food frequency questionnaire. Baseline stage of change showed some relationship to change in strategy use over time, although most group differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Use of a range of behavioral strategies is strongly related to stage of change for healthful eating, and more closely associated with stage than dietary intake. In the absence of intervention, baseline stage only weakly predicted changes in strategy use. Programs with the goal of encouraging a range of healthful eating behaviors may find these measures of strategy use to be helpful in defining stage of change, and possibly in tracking behavior change over time.

Weight management strategies reported by rural men and women in Iowa.

OBJECTIVE: This study compares the specific behavioral strategies that rural men and women use when trying to lose weight. DESIGN: A cross-sectional, in-person survey. SETTING: Participants were part of a larger study in rural Iowa (n = 407) intended to identify community health promotion issues. PARTICIPANTS: 184 adults (56 men, 128 women) who reported currently trying to lose weight VARIABLES MEASURED: Measures capture strategies for dealing with the social environment, food choice and preparation, physical activity planning, social support, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, dietary intake and physical activity level. ANALYSIS: T-tests, chi-square, Cronbach alpha, descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Women reported greater use of nearly all strategies measured. Men reported more social support for diet, whereas women reported more social support for physical activity. Results for self-efficacy and outcome expectations were mixed. No gender differences were found for fat intake, fruit and vegetable servings, or physical activity level. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Men and women differ in the specific strategies they use to lose weight, including those related to the social environment. Practitioners planning weight management programs should be aware that men and women may have different levels of experience in using specific behavioral strategies.