bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The TPLATE complex mediates membrane bending during plant clathrin–mediated endocytosis
Authors: Johnson Alexander , Dahhan Dana A. , Gnyliukh Nataliia , Kaufmann Walter A. , Zheden Vanessa , Costanzo Tommaso , Mahou Pierre , Hrtyan Mónika , Wang Jie , Aguilera-Servin Juan , Van Damme Daniël , Beaurepaire Emmanuel , Loose Martin , Bednarek Sebastian Y. , Friml Jiří
Published: December 2021

Significance

Endocytosis transports cargos inside the cell by creating spherical vesicles from the plasma membrane. This membrane remodeling requires proteins to generate force to bend the membrane inwards, overcoming the high-turgor pressure in plant cells. However, as plants create clathrin-coated vesicles without actin, the machinery to bend membranes during endocytosis is entirely unknown and appears distinct from other model systems. Here, we refine the physiological role of the plant-specific and essential endocytic TPLATE complex. We find it localizes outside of clathrin-coated vesicles and mediates membrane bending, contrasting with previous predictions. We further demonstrate that the TPLATE complex contains protein domains which have intrinsic membrane-bending activity; thus, we identify a component of the unique endocytosis membrane-bending machinery in plants.
Hyperentanglement teleportation through external momenta states
Authors: Ali Liaqat , -ul-Islam Rameez , Ikram Manzoor , Abbas Tasawar , Ahmad Iftikhar
Published: December 2021

The conventional teleportation protocol requires a state entangled in only one degree of freedom (DOF), while hyperteleportation requires more than single DOF to complete the task. The hyperteleportation schematics are demonstrated only for the photonic systems, where in the present paper we extend the idea to a hyperteleportation protocol involving the atomic internal and external states. The protocol is deterministically engineered through resonant and off-resonant atomic Bragg diffraction involving two-level neutral atoms under standard cavity-QED working environment. Moreover, the longer interaction time Bragg’s regime with well separated transverse momenta states as an output of the neutral atoms guarantees the high enough engineering fidelities with reduced decoherence rates. The experimental parameters for the demonstration of the proposed scheme are also elucidated briefly describing the optimistic feasibility for the experimental execution of the proposed schematics.
Active and accurate temperature control of terahertz functional devices using a micro-hotplate system
Authors: Zhang Yuting , Hao Xiaoyuan , Huang Wei , Zhang Wentao , Wang Jiaqi
Published: December 2021

Based on the problem where the intensity of an excitation source is not easy to regulate using the traditional active control method, this paper presents an accurate temperature control system based on a micro-hotplate for the first time. This system realizes the active control of terahertz functional devices, and implements various functions by using the proposed accurate temperature control process. The temperature control characteristics of the micro-hotplate are introduced into the design of terahertz functional devices by taking a vanadium dioxide (VO2) terahertz absorber as an example. In this design, a silicon-based micro-hotplate is used to heat the terahertz absorber. According to the phase transition characteristics of VO2, the alteration of temperature leads to a conductivity change, so as to realize the active control of the absorber. At the same time, this paper also analyzes the heating and cooling time of the micro-hotplate. The simulation results show that, by using the micro-hotplate to heat the terahertz functional devices, the temperature adjustment speed is reasonably high and the controllable performance is excellent. The test results show that the surface temperature can be controlled between 40 °C and 80 °C, and the temperature difference of the working area can be kept within 1 °C. The temperature control of the micro-hotplate is accurately controlled, resulting in excellent performance of the terahertz functional devices.
A reliability evaluation framework for smart meters based on AGG-ARIMA and PFR
Authors: Ma Lisha , Meng Zhiqiang , Teng Zhaosheng , Qiu Wei
Published: December 2021

The unavoidable outliers and the characteristics of the small sample dataset affect the performance of the failure rate (FR) prediction and reliability analysis model of smart meters (SMs). To solve these problems, we choose the basic error (BE) as the performance index of the equipment and propose a reliability evaluation framework for SMs by combining adaptive Gauss genetic-algorithm-autoregressive integrated moving average (AGG-ARIMA) and proportional FR (PFR) for the first time. First, the ARIMA model is used to predict the BEs to describe the performance of SMs. Then, an AGG is used to optimize the order of ARIMA and a PFR model is established to analyze the reliability of batch SMs through the BE predictions. Finally, actual datasets from four companies are used to verify the effectiveness of our evaluation framework. The experimental results show that our framework has better reliability assessment performance for SMs under small sample conditions, and has strong adaptability to the analysis of individual meters.
Confinement improvement during detached phase with RMP application in deuterium plasmas of LHD
Authors: Kobayashi M. , Seki R. , Hayashi Y. , Oishi T. , Tanaka K. , Takemura Y. , Ida K. , Kinoshita T. , Mukai K. , Morita S. , Masuzaki S.
Published: December 2021

In order to explore the compatibility of good core plasma performance with divertor heat load mitigation, the interaction between cold edge plasma and core plasma transport, including the edge transport barrier (ETB), has been analysed in the divertor detachment discharges of deuterium plasmas in LHD with resonant magnetic perturbation (RMP) field application. The RMP application introduces a widened edge stochastic layer and sharp boundary in the magnetic field structure between the confinement region and the edge stochastic layer. The widened edge stochastic layer enhances impurity radiation and provides stable detachment operation as compared with the case without RMP. It is found that ETB is formed at the confinement boundary at the onset of detachment transition. However, as the detachment deepens, the resistive pressure gradient-driven MHD mode is excited, which degrades the ETB. At the same time, however, the core transport decreases to keep global plasma stored energy (W
p) unchanged, showing clear core-edge coupling. After a gradual increase of density fluctuation during the MHD activity, a spontaneous increase of W
p and the recovery of ETB are observed while the detachment is maintained. Then, the coherent MHD mode ceases and ELM-like bursts appear. In the improved mode, impurity decontamination occurs, and the divertor heat load increases slightly. Key controlling physical processes in the interplay between core and cold edge plasma are discussed. A comparison between deuterium and hydrogen plasmas shows that hydrogen plasmas exhibit similar features to the deuterium ones in terms of density and magnetic fluctuations, impurity decontamination towards higher confinement, etc. But most of the features are modest in the hydrogen plasmas and thus no clear confinement mode transition with clear ETB formation is defined. Better global confinement is obtained in the deuterium plasmas than the hydrogen ones at a higher radiation level.
Single-trial detection of EEG error-related potentials in serial visual presentation paradigm
Authors: Parashiva Praveen K , Vinod A P
Published: December 2021

When the outcome of an event is not the same as expected, the cognitive state that monitors performance elicits a time-locked brain response termed as Error-Related Potential (ErrP). Objective—In the existing work, ErrP is not recorded when there is a disassociation between an object and its description. The objective of this work is to propose a Serial Visual Presentation (SVP) experimental paradigm to record ErrP when an image and its label are disassociated. Additionally, this work aims to propose a novel method for detecting ErrP on a single-trial basis. Method—The method followed in this work includes designing of SVP paradigm in which labeled images from six categories (bike, car, flower, fruit, cat, and dog) are presented serially. In this work, a text (visual) or an audio clip describing the image in one word is presented as the label. Further, the ErrP is detected on a single-trial basis using novel electrode-averaged features. Results - The ErrP data recorded from 11 subjects’ have consistent characteristics compared to existing ErrP literature. Detection of ErrP on a single-trial basis is carried out using a novel feature extraction method on two type labeling types separately. The best average classification accuracy achieved is

69.09
±
4.70
%

and

63.33
±
4.56
%

for the audio and visual type of labeling the image, respectively. The proposed feature extraction method achieved higher classification accuracy when compared with two existing feature extraction methods. Significance - The significance of this work is that it can be used as a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) system for quantitative evaluation and treatment of mild cognitive impairment. This work can also find non-clinical BCI applications such as image annotation.
The year in cardiovascular medicine 2021: digital health and innovation
Authors: Vardas Panos E. , Asselbergs Folkert W. , van Smeden Maarten , Friedman Paul
Published: December 2021

This article presents some of the most important developments in the field of digital medicine that have appeared over the last 12 months and are related to cardiovascular medicine. The article consists of three main sections, as follows: (i) artificial intelligence-enabled cardiovascular diagnostic tools, techniques, and methodologies, (ii) big data and prognostic models for cardiovascular risk protection, and (iii) wearable devices in cardiovascular risk assessment, cardiovascular disease prevention, diagnosis, and management. To conclude the article, the authors present a brief further prospective on this new domain, highlighting existing gaps that are specifically related to artificial intelligence technologies, such as explainability, cost-effectiveness, and, of course, the importance of proper regulatory oversight for each clinical implementation.
Reflections on the usefulness of today’s atrial fibrillation ablation procedure endpoints and patient-reported outcomes
Authors: Blomström-Lundqvist Carina , Svedung Wettervik Victoria
Published: December 2021

The improvement of Patient-reported outcomes, such as health-related quality of life, is the main indication for atrial fibrillation ablation. Despite this guideline derived indication for an AF ablation procedure the current standardized primary endpoint in AF ablation trials is still rhythm-related, and primarily a 30-second long AF episode. The review presents reflections on the non-rational arguments of using rhythm related endpoints rather than Patient-reported outcomes in AF ablation procedure trials despite the mismatch between many of the rhythm related variables and symptoms. Arguments for health-related quality of life as the most optimal primary endpoint in clinical trials are presented while atrial fibrillation burden is presented as the most optimal electrical complementary endpoint, apart from being the major variable in mechanistic trials.
School-based routine screenings of electrocardiograms for the diagnosis of long QT syndrome
Authors: Fukuyama Megumi , Horie Minoru , Aoki Hisaaki , Ozawa Junichi , Kato Koichi , Sawayama Yuichi , Tanaka-Mizuno Sachiko , Makiyama Takeru , Yoshinaga Masao , Nakagawa Yoshihisa , Ohno Seiko
Published: December 2021

Aims

School-based routine screenings of electrocardiograms (ECGs) have been performed upon admission to primary school (PS), junior high school (JHS), and high school (HS) in Japan. Though ECGs with prolonged QT intervals are occasionally found, the role of regular ECG screening tests in identifying long QT syndrome (LQTS) remains to be determined. We investigated the usefulness of the ECG screenings by comparing the results of genetic tests between students who showed QT-prolongation in the screenings and patients with LQTS.

Methods and results

We genetically screened 341 students (106 PS, 173 JHS, and 62 HS). Of these, 230 subjects showed QT-prolongation during regular screenings (S-S group), and the other 111 patients were clinically consulted with suspected LQTS by paediatricians (C-C group). Genotype–phenotype relationships were compared between the two groups. The positive rates in the genetic tests were comparable among the two groups; however, symptomatic subjects were significantly fewer in the S-S group than the C-C group (3% vs. 70%). Compared to the genotype-negative subjects, the positive subjects showed significantly longer QTc (P < 0.0001) and more frequently presented LQTS risk scores with ≥3.5 points (P < 0.0001). Lethal arrhythmic events (LAE) occurred only in the C-C group; 18 subjects experienced LAE and 83% of them were found to carry variant(s) in the LQTS-related genes.

Conclusion

The school-based ECG screenings are effective in identifying young patients with LQTS who require genetic analysis. If individuals are screened at a younger age, we can identify patients at risk earlier and provide preventative treatments.
PS interferometric imaging condition for microseismic source elastic time-reversal imaging
Authors: Zhou Yicheng , Zhang Qingshan , Zhang Wei
Published: December 2021

The time-reversal imaging method utilizes the wave equation to back-propagate recorded seismic data and a proper imaging condition to locate a passive seismic source. For an explosive source, the reconstructed wavefield is focused at the seismic source location and origin time. Although the elastic time-reversal wavefield for a moment tensor source may not exhibit a maximum at the true location at the origin time, it does exhibit a quasi-symmetrical spatial distribution around the source location that represents the radiation pattern of the moment tensor source. We propose the use of an interferometric imaging condition to solve the radiation pattern problem, which is combined with elastic PS cross-correlation imaging condition (referred to as the PS interferometric cross-correlation imaging condition) to locate a moment tensor source using elastic time-reversal imaging method. 2-D and 3-D numerical tests demonstrate that our proposed method can identify the moment tensor source location in complex velocity models with a high noise level. In tests of the sensitivity of the method to the accuracy of the velocity model, we find that the method can still get focused images under about 10–25 per cent random perturbations in P- and S-wave velocities, but only under about 5 per cent correlated perturbation of global P- and S-wave velocities with a potential bias in the location.
Conflict and synergy in health promotion partnerships: a Danish case study
Authors: Holt Ditte Heering , Højlund Holger , Jensen Heidi A R
Published: December 2021

Intersectoral partnerships constitute a central approach in health promotion. By combining different perspectives, knowledge and resources from different sectors, partnerships are important for addressing complex health problems. When successful, intersectoral partnerships create synergy, which is suggested to be a proximal outcome that links partnership functioning to health effects. Nonetheless, partnerships are also difficult and time-consuming and may result in conflicts, hostility and power struggles. Such antagonist outputs are expected to produce negative results. However, conflicts may also be a source of valuable learning. This article explores the relationship between conflict and synergy in health promotion partnerships. The empirical material is derived from an evaluation of a 4-year Danish government partnership program. Data consist of survey data collected from 35 partnerships and in-depth qualitative case studies of 10 partnerships. The analysis was inspired by realist evaluation. The qualitative data were coded, and cases written up. Cross-case analysis was conducted and triangulated with survey data. Surprisingly, disagreements and conflicts of interests between partners were common and associated with synergy creation. Moreover, the partnerships’ experiences of synergy were often linked to their attribution of differences rather than to common goals or value congruences. The study identifies that a potential for synergy lays in the productive confrontation between partners different perspectives. Moreover, a key mechanism enabling productive conflicts was inclusive dialog, in which the partners’ differences were valued, and all voices were included. The study thus builds on the existing synergy literature and adds nuance to the understanding of conflicts in health promotion partnerships.
The scope and concerns of public health
Authors: Detels Roger , Tan Chorh Chuan
Published: December 2021

Public health is the art and science of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through the organized efforts of society. The goal of public health is the biological, physical, and mental well-being of all members of society. Thus, public health must address the challenge of confronting health problems, as well as political, social, and economic factors affecting health, not only at the community, state, and national levels, but also at the global level. This chapter introduces the reader to the scope and current major concerns of public health in the twenty-first century, giving examples of each. It is the goal of this chapter to assist the reader in understanding the conceptual framework of the field, which will help them in placing the subsequent more detailed chapters into the context of the entire field of public health.
The history and development of public health in developed countries
Authors: Szreter Simon
Published: December 2021

It has been conventional to locate the origins of public health in early efforts to combat epidemics and to regulate the sanitary environment accompanying urban life and to trace its history in the gradual evolution of such measures in relation to politics, administrative practices, public laws, and medical science’s changing aetiology. Such an historical account provides important insights and understanding but it is also de-limited in one significant sense. Public health is cast in a responsive role in relation to the processes of economic development. However, the nature of the relationship between public health and global economic development can appear very differently when it is viewed over the long-term, encompassing the whole process of modern economic transformation from the singular matrix of its origins in the early modern society and economy of England, c.1600–1800. This chapter will show that state policies to promote the social order, security, and health of the population in fact pre-date and crucially underpinned the process through which the modern world’s economic transformation originated—in early modern England.
Globalization
Authors: Lee Kelley
Published: December 2021

Globalization, defined as the closer interconnectedness of human societies across national borders and geographies, through a mixture of spatial, temporal, and cognitive changes, is having wide-ranging impacts on public health. This interconnectedness is characterized by restructuring of the world economy, increased population mobility, and advances in information and communication technology, all of which can have profound impacts on health determinants and outcomes. Contemporary globalization creates new opportunities to enhance human health and well-being, but can also be a potential source of negative externalities. In addition, the costs and benefits to health from globalization have been inequitably distributed. A ‘global public health’ approach seeks to better understand the changing patterns of health and disease, and their determinants, arising from globalization, and the interventions needed to effectively manage them. This requires greater attention to achieving collective action, underpinned by legal and regulatory frameworks, across populations and societies to tackle transboundary health determinants and outcomes. More effective global health governance, in turn, will contribute to more sustainable forms of globalization.
Reducing health inequalities in developing countries
Authors: Paes-Souza Romulo , Buss Paulo M. , Barreto Mauricio L.
Published: December 2021

In the current international context of economic globalization, discussions have not only highlighted inequalities within individual countries, but also inequalities between countries. Inequalities between countries are related to the differences in economic and social development achieved by different countries, which are generated by the position that these countries have occupied during different phases of history within the global production system. The latter reflect historical aspects, and the international economic and political environments in relation to each country’s share of global resources and development opportunities. Policies for fighting poverty and inequality require local, national, and global approaches, but funding issues often hamper their feasibility.
Genomics and public health
Authors: Ramsuran Veron , Oliveira Tulio de
Published: December 2021

The discipline of ‘public health genomics’ emerged as a need to provide ‘responsible and effective translation of genome-based knowledge and technologies for the benefit of the population’. It is becoming increasingly accepted that the one size fits all approach is going to be outdated soon. Targeted personalized medicines, therapies, and interventions approach will be the preferred form of treatment in the not too distant future. The fields of public health genomics, precision medicine, and precision public health have proven important aspects in improving population health. However, despite the advancements made, there are still improvements that need to be implemented to significantly improve health, especially within the developing countries. In this chapter we discuss the advancements made within the field and highlight challengers or future directions.
How access to healthcare affects population health
Authors: Inall Yvonne , Hunter Rachel Lamdin , Leeder Stephen , Beaton Angela
Published: December 2021

This chapter explores access to healthcare—the timely availability of professional health services to prevent, diagnose, and treat illnesses and to preserve or improve the health of individuals—and its consequences. The ethical context in which access is considered includes the human rights and social justice concepts of ‘a right to healthcare’ and ‘equity of access’. Conscious that these concepts differ from country to country, we offer working definitions. Countries and their governments vary in their political and social attitudes to access. Those with a strong social welfare agenda might focus attention and budgets on social factors such as education and social welfare; these not only determine health, but also access to care. Others, regarding healthcare as the individual’s concern, might give these factors less weight. Despite this complexity and much national variation, access depends, in general, most often on good primary healthcare, public investment, and political will, availability of data to guide resourcing decisions, and the development of a well-trained, integrated workforce with appropriate supporting infrastructure.
Health policy in developing countries
Authors: Htay Thein T. , Saw Yu Mon , Levinson James , Kadri S.M. , Brady Ailbhe Helen , Acquin Cecilia S. , Htet Aung Soe
Published: December 2021

The purpose of this chapter is to underscore the role of an integrated stewardship process and decentralization of healthcare services through high standards of governance towards effective health policies in developing countries. Changing disease patterns and challenging health status in developing countries calls for a rigorous monitoring and evaluation of prevailing health systems so that their new health policies be able to tackle these emerging health needs. Three stages of health transition and globalization have highlighted their impacts on health problems and health policies. The optimal composition and interactions of actors in health policy have influenced the strategic directions and policy implementation. In implementing the global and national health policies within the context of health system strengthening, national policies will better assure that health priorities in local settings are addressed and country-led while international assistance supports the health sector priorities. With the creation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and now the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), more attention is being given in these countries to policies and programmes which are results- and outcome-oriented. Possible strategies to improve health policy and the overall status of health in developing countries are recommended including Universal Health Coverage and the SDGs, among others.
Cross-sectional studies
Authors: Kogevinas Manolis , Chatzi Leda
Published: December 2021

This chapter will first describe the uses of cross-sectional studies in epidemiological and public health research and then discuss methodological issues concerning the design, the main biases of these studies including response rates, and how to improve participation. In recent years these studies have also incorporated the collection of biospecimens. In aetiological research, cross-sectional studies are suitable epidemiological means for studying non-fatal diseases and effects on physiological variables that do not have a clear time of onset. However, the design of cross-sectional studies makes them less appropriate than other study designs for investigating causal associations. The chapter will finally discuss issues related to the statistical analysis of cross-sectional studies. Many of these issues are also relevant to other epidemiological designs.
Natural and quasi-experiments
Authors: Craig Peter
Published: December 2021

Natural experiments, defined as events or processes outwith the control of a researcher, which divide a population into exposed and unexposed groups, have long been used in epidemiology and public health. Evaluation methods that rely on observational rather than experimental data are classified as second best in conventional hierarchies of evidence. Natural experimental approaches have attracted renewed interest from public health researchers and decision-makers because they widen the range of interventions that can usefully be evaluated beyond those that are politically, ethically, or practically amenable to testing in randomized controlled trials. This chapter argues for seeing trials and natural experiments as part of a common toolkit for producers and users of evidence about the effectiveness of policies and programmes. It describes the most commonly used natural experimental approaches to evaluating population health interventions, and provides examples of their use in a wide range of countries and policy settings.
Clinical epidemiology
Authors: Stanaway Fiona F. , Noguchi Naomi , Loy Clement , Reid Sharon , Craig Jonathan C.
Published: December 2021

Clinical epidemiology is a science that extends the principles and methods of epidemiology to clinical practice and clinical research. In this chapter, we provide an overview of clinical epidemiological methods and how these approaches can be used to improve global public health. We have focused primarily on using evidence in decision-making in this chapter, rather than study design and conduct elements, such as randomized controlled trials, which are covered in detail elsewhere. Consequently, we have provided a framework for critical appraisal and reporting of relevant study designs (how to use and report), rather than a detailed discussion about how such studies should be designed and conducted (how to do).
Sexuality and public health
Authors: Parker Richard , Garcia Jonathan , Muñoz-Laboy Miguel , Sommer Marni , Wilson Patrick
Published: December 2021

This chapter seeks to provide an overview of this rapidly growing body of work in public health. It describes the initial public health response to sexuality in the context of HIV and AIDS, as well as the ways in which that response has been gradually broadened over time in order to provide a more comprehensive approach to sexual health and well-being. It also focuses on both the local and the global dimensions of this work, in both developed and developing countries, and as much in the work of local communities struggling to respond to the needs of their own populations, as well as on the part of a range of international agencies that are increasingly seeking to address a range of challenges to sexual health.
Economic appraisal in public healthcare: assessing efficiency and equity
Authors: Parkin David , Morris Stephen , Devlin Nancy
Published: December 2021

This chapter is an introduction to economic appraisal. It explains underlying concepts, describes methods used, and discusses the application to public health. Economic appraisal comprises techniques that weigh up the costs of an action, such as providing a public health intervention to an at-risk population group, against the benefits that it provides. Important underlying principles are opportunity cost, social versus private costs and benefits, marginal costs and benefits, efficiency, and equity. There are different types of economic appraisal, each of which measures the costs and benefits of options being compared. Measuring costs involves identifying and describing resource use changes, quantifying them in physical units and valuing them. Issues in cost measurement include use of macro or micro-costing and dealing with inflation and time preference. There are several approaches that can be used to measure benefits depending on the type of economic appraisal being used; a measure of special interest is quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). Modelling is often used in economic appraisal to combine data on the costs and benefits of an intervention. Given the inherent uncertainties involved in economic appraisal it is good practice to undertake sensitivity analyses that investigate the impact of uncertainty. Methodological challenges in undertaking economic appraisals of public health interventions include the importance of equity and inequality considerations, establishing robust evidence of the effect of public health programmes, the relevance of QALYs, and accounting for multisectoral costs and benefits.
Urbanization and health
Authors: Corburn Jason
Published: December 2021

A majority the world’s population (4.2 billion) are now living in cities and municipal regions. According to the UN, 55% of the world was living in cities in 2018 and over 68% were expected to live in urban areas by 2050. Urbanization is a dynamic and evolving physical, social, and economic transformation that shapes the health and well-being of populations living in cities and around the world. City living can be healthy, since they can offer more population groups the health benefits of life-supporting infrastructure such as clean water and sanitation, education, and social services, as well as greater cultural, religious, and political expression and freedoms. This chapter briefly reviews the historical debates around the connections between human health and urbanization and highlights some challenges for addressing twenty-first century urbanization. Twenty-first century urbanization presents new challenges for urban health.
Cancer epidemiology and public health
Authors: Boffetta Paolo , Zhang Zuo-Feng , Vecchia Carlo La
Published: December 2021

Neoplasms continue to dominate globally as one of the major sources of human disease and death. There are multiple modifiable causes of cancer and understanding their attributable risk factors for each cancer is of importance. This chapter covers the role of cellular and molecular mechanisms as well as the experimental and epidemiological approaches as determinants of the main cancers. Even if major discoveries in the clinical management of cancer patients will be accomplished in the near future, the changes will mainly affect the affluent part of the world population. Promising approaches focused on prevention of the known causes, reducing its consequences, notably in resource-constrained settings are highlighted.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma
Authors: Riley Craig M. , Bon Jessica , Morris Alison
Published: December 2021

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma are highly prevalent, non-malignant respiratory conditions that have increased dramatically in the past half century, both in high-income and low-middle-income countries. COPD is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide, and both COPD and asthma have a profound impact on quality of life for patients and their families. Tobacco smoke remains the single most important cause of COPD, but occupational and indoor exposures have increasingly been recognized as risk factors, especially among middle- and low-income individuals. Different patterns of genetic susceptibility independent of exposure result in variability of disease expression with many patients not developing clinical COPD, although they may still develop respiratory symptoms. COPD prevalence differs greatly between countries even when controlling for smoking rates. While much progress has been made in understanding biological pathways involved in asthma, the understanding of why asthma initially develops remains elusive. Although a large number of potential risk factors have been identified, none can explain the global increases in asthma prevalence observed over the last few decades. Prevalence trends between countries have also varied, with some countries continuing to experience increases in asthma rates and some rates levelling off or even declining. These trends cannot be explained by divergent epidemiological methods or population makeup alone. Asthma control, especially for severe asthmatics and for those with non-allergic phenotypes, remains a public health problem with more efficient interventions needed to encourage smoking cessation, improve air quality, and reduce allergen exposure.
Diabetes mellitus
Authors: Naz Khan Farah , Izhar Shaikh Nida , Venkat Narayan K.M. , Ali Mohammed K.
Published: December 2021

Diabetes is an increasingly common, progressive metabolic disorder that results in a range of distressing symptoms, altered daily functioning, social and psychological impacts on individuals and their families, high healthcare expenditures, lost productivity, and premature mortality. Prevalence and absolute numbers of people with diabetes has grown worldwide, with no country or region spared. In this chapter, we review the data regarding diabetes burdens, describing patterns observed in low- and middle-income countries, and in high-income countries. We describe the major gaps that must be addressed, both in research and in implementation, to better detect, prevent, and treat diabetes. We describe what is known and yet unknown about vulnerable populations and describe efforts to address disparities in diabetes.
Tuberculosis
Authors: Rustomjee Roxana
Published: December 2021

The failure to control tuberculosis (TB) in recent times stems, at least in part, from complacency towards TB control in the 1970s and 1980s and the subsequent devastating impact of the HIV-1 pandemic, the rising emergence of drug resistance as well as the growing disparity in disease burden between developed and developing countries. Progress has also been hindered by the slow development of more effective tools such as point-of-care diagnostics and treatments for active and latent disease, preventive vaccines, and laboratory assays of disease progression, immune protection, and cure. This lack of progress is, in turn, related to a poor understanding of the fundamental relationship between Mycobacterium tuberculosis and the human host and especially the nature of what is referred to as ‘latent TB infection’. An increased focus on understanding the mechanics and drivers of transmission together with a concerted effort to translate research findings into policy and practice contextualized to local needs and resources is required. This chapter reviews recent advances in tackling tuberculosis, highlighting key unmet needs and strategies for an accelerated effort to achieve control.
Viral alcoholic and fatty liver diseases
Authors: Zigmond Ehud , Shouval Daniel
Published: December 2021

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections, alcohol, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are major risk factors in the development of chronic liver disease (CLD), cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Various estimates have been proposed regarding the global prevalence of HBV and HCV carriers. According to a recent Polaris Observatory HCV Collaborators and the World Health Organization (WHO) burden estimates that 257 and 71 million people are living in the world with HBV and HCV infection, respectively, leading to an annual death from cirrhosis/liver failure and HCC of ~900,000 and ~400,000, respectively. Alcohol consumption, which is a major risk factor for CLD and HCC, is responsible for about 3.3 million deaths annually worldwide and for 5.1% of the global burden of disease as measured in disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). In recent years NAFLD and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) associated with the metabolic syndrome, have captured the attention of hepatologists, public health experts, and the pharma industry alike. Indeed, the incidence of NAFLD and NASH and its complications including cirrhosis and HCC, is rising to epidemic proportions in the Western population, and constitute a major health problem worldwide.
Genetic epidemiology
Authors: Young Elizabeth H. , Sandhu Manjinder S.
Published: December 2021

The integration of epidemiological methods with genome-wide technologies has provided unprecedented insights into the complex biological mechanisms of traits and diseases in human populations. These advances have revolutionized the scope and scale of what can be done, ranging from studies of single gene variants measured in small samples through to the emergence of high-throughput genotyping, genome-wide association studies, and next-generation whole genome sequencing technologies which produce information on millions of genetic variants in thousands of individuals. In parallel, as these genomic technologies provide new opportunities to better understand disease biology, it is becoming increasingly apparent that a knowledge of genomic medicine will be essential for public health practitioners in meeting the public’s future healthcare needs.

As our understanding of disease aetiology and its underlying biological mechanisms increases, there is the potential for new drug development and improved therapeutic strategies to manage disease at the population level. At the same time, there is growing interest in the use of these genetic variants to predict individual disease risk over and above classical risk factors, and to develop stratified and personalized approaches to diagnosis and disease management. The public health community has a central role to play in critically and systematically evaluating these discoveries for their potential use in disease management. Thus, in this 21st century era of genetic epidemiology and genomic science, public health practitioners cannot overlook the global relevance of genetic epidemiology on our understanding of models of disease, personalized medicine, and the relationship between individuals and populations, treatment, and prevention strategies.
Health of older people
Authors: Sinha Samir K. , Ellis Brittany
Published: December 2021

Declines in mortality and fertility have largely contributed to population ageing and an accompanying epidemiological transition from infectious to chronic diseases. Significant improvements in life expectancy have occurred overall, although these have not been equally distributed between socioeconomic groups or across countries. Ageing is associated with increased health and social care needs due to the increased risk and prevalence of chronic diseases, dementia, multimorbidity, and disability that demand different types of and approaches to care. Older people benefit from a wide range of preventive interventions that reduce morbidity earlier in life, and prevent disability later on, as well as gerontological and geriatric expertise related to the delivery of care, support, and services to meet their unique needs. This chapter considers the phenomenon of population ageing, the unique health needs of older people, and specific approaches to providing health and social care to them.
The political economy of non-communicable diseases
Authors: Thow Anne Marie , Lencucha Raphael , Reddy K. Srinath
Published: December 2021

Non-communicable diseases are the major cause of death and disability globally, but are largely preventable. The five major modifiable risk factors are tobacco use, alcohol use, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity, and air pollution—all of which have a strong environmental component. Implementation of policy to address non-communicable diseases (NCDs), however, has focused on individual responsibility rather than creating supportive environments for health promotion and NCD prevention, in part because of industry influence. A political economy perspective is helpful in considering how economic interests intersect with political decisions to shape the environments in which individuals live. When ‘environments of risk’ are considered from a political economy perspective, it enables us to critically assess sociopolitical factors that generate product environments characterized by health-harming products, built environments that condition physical inactivity over physical activity, and marginalization of pollution reduction. The enormous size and reach of these ‘industries of risk’ translates into significant political power. Industry actively exerts power in formal decision-making forums (‘decision-making power’), shapes the agenda in political debates (‘non-decision-making power’), and exercises ideological power in ways that are contrary to NCD prevention. Despite the power wielded by industry interests in the policy process, there has been innovation and meaningful policy change for NCD prevention. Key strategies include: assembling strong, local evidence to underpin policy; developing strong coalitions of actors with public health interests; preparing for push-back from industry; and developing specific proposals for healthier economic policy.
Principles of infectious disease control
Authors: Kim-Farley Robert J.
Published: December 2021

Infectious diseases remain a leading cause of morbidity, disability, and mortality worldwide. Lower respiratory infections are the third leading causes of death worldwide and their control is a constant challenge that faces health workers and public health officials in both industrialized and developing countries. This chapter provides a global and comprehensive view of the principles of infectious disease control through examination of the magnitude of disease burden, the chain of infection (agent, transmission, and host) of infectious diseases, the varied approaches to their prevention and control (measures applied to the host, vectors, infected humans, animals, environment, and agents), and the factors conducive to their eradication as well as emergence and re-emergence.
Global health in the era of sustainable development
Authors: Fleck Fiona
Published: December 2021

This chapter provides an overview of progress made in public health during the first two decades of the twenty-first century and charts the way forward to further improvements. It introduces the World Health Organization’s (WHO) current 5-year strategy, explains how this strategy is aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and how impact will be measured at the national level. Based on the Sustainable Development Goals, the WHO has set its triple billion targets to achieve by 2023. These are: one billion more people benefitting from universal health coverage; one billion more people better protected from health emergencies; and one billion more people enjoying better health and well-being. Components of each of these goals are described here, and the chapter concludes with the cross-cutting areas of monitoring and evaluation, and data and innovation that are vital to achieving measurable health impact in every country, regardless of income level.
Detection of pairwise kSZ effect with DESI galaxy clusters and Planck
Authors: Chen Ziyang , Zhang Pengjie , Yang Xiaohu , Zheng Yi
Published: December 2021

We report a 5σ detection of the pairwise kinematic Sunyaev–Zel’dovich (kSZ) effect, combining galaxy clusters in DESI imaging surveys and the Planck temperature maps. The detection is facilitated by both improvements in the data and in the analysis method. For the data, we adopt the recently released DESI galaxy group catalog with ∼106 robustly identified groups, and construct various galaxy cluster samples for the kSZ measurement. The DESI group catalogue also provides estimation of halo mass, which further improves the kSZ measurement by $\sim 10{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$. For the analysis method, we derive an optimal estimator of pairwise kSZ through the maximum likelihood analysis. It also handles potential systematic errors self-consistently. The baseline cluster sample, containing the 1.2 × 105 richest galaxy clusters of typical mass ∼1014 M⊙/h at typical redshift 0.2–0.5, rules out the null hypothesis at 5σ. When fitting with a pairwise kSZ template from simulations, the signal is detected at 4.7σ and the average optical depth is constrained as $\bar{\tau }_e=(1.66\pm 0.35)\times 10^{-4}$. We perform various internal checks, with different cluster selection criteria, different sky coverage, and redshift range, different CMB maps, different filter sizes, different treatments of potential systematics, and the covariance matrix. The kSZ effect is consistently detected with 2.5 ≤S/N≤5.6 and acceptable $\chi ^2_{\rm min}$, across a variety of cluster samples. The S/N is limited by both the Planck resolution and the photo-z accuracy, and therefore, can be significant improved with DESI spectroscopic redshift information and with other CMB experiments.
The cosmic environment overtakes the local density in shaping galaxy star formation
Authors: Ren Jian , Pan Zhizheng , Zheng X Z , Qin Jianbo , Shi D D , Gonzalez Valentino , Bian Fuyan , Huang Jia-Sheng , Fang Min , Liu Wenhao , Wen Run , Zhang Yuheng , Qiao Man , Liu Shuang
Published: December 2021

The gas supply from the cosmic web is the key to sustain star formation in galaxies. It remains to be explored how the cosmic large-scale structure (LSS) effects on galaxy evolution at given local environments. We examine galaxy-specific star formation rate as a function of local density in a LSS at z = 0.735 in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South. The LSS is mapped by 732 galaxies with R < 24 mag and redshift at 0.72 ≤ z ≤ 0.75 collected from the literature and our spectroscopic observations with Magellan/IMACS, consisting of five galaxy clusters/groups and surrounding filaments over an area of 23.9 × 22.7 co-moving Mpc2. The spread of spectroscopic redshifts corresponds a velocity dispersion of 494 km s−1, indicating the LSS likely to be a thin sheet with a galaxy density ≳ 3.9 times that of the general field. These clusters/groups in this LSS mostly exhibit elongated morphologies and multiple components connected with surrounding filaments. Strikingly, we find that star-forming galaxies in the LSS keep star formation at the same level as field, and show no dependence on local density but stellar mass. Meanwhile, an increasing fraction of quiescent galaxies is detected at increasing local density in both the LSS and the field, consistent with the expectation that galaxy mass and local dense environment hold the key to quench star formation. Combined together, we conclude that the cosmic environment of the LSS overtakes the local environment in remaining galaxy star formation to the level of the field.