[Health services in faraway regions].
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Arctic Regions↗
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[Reactivity to normal intestinal microflora in persons continuously residing in the Far North].
The titers of antibodies to the common allergenically active fraction of enterobacterial antigens in clinically healthy males aged 20-35 years, constantly living at the moderate (Kazan) and high (Norilsk) latitudes, were studied. The most essential changes in the character of the titer distribution were revealed in the populations of persons who had been constant residents of the Arctic regions for 5-10 years. This was manifested by an increase in the number of sera with excessively high (exceeding 1:5120) and low (less than or equal to 1:20) titers. The average indices of the reactivity to intestinal automicroflora were significantly higher in the residents of the Arctic regions than in the corresponding control group. In persons living in the North for still longer periods, as well as in those who lived at high latitudes since their birth, such shifts in the reactivity to enterobacteria were less pronounced.
Adult↗
Respiratory changes due to extreme cold in the Arctic environment.
Effects of acute exposure and acclimatisation to cold stress on respiratory functions were investigated in healthy tropical Indian men (n = 10). Initial baseline recordings were carried out at Delhi and thereafter serially thrice at the arctic region and once on return to Delhi. For comparison the respiratory functions were also evaluated on Russian migrants (RM; n = 7) and Russian natives (RN; n = 6). The respiratory functions were evaluated using standard methodology on a Vitalograph: In Indians, there was an initial decrease in lung vital capacity (VC), forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume 1st s (FEV1), peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV) on acute exposure to cold stress, followed by gradual recovery during acclimatisation for 4 weeks and a further significant improvement after 9 weeks of stay at the arctic region. On return to India all the parameters reached near baseline values except for MVV which remained slightly elevated. RM and RN showed similar respiratory functions at the beginning of acute cold exposure at the arctic zone. RN showed an improvement after 10 weeks of stay whereas RM did not show much change. The respiratory responses during acute cold exposure are similar to those of initial altitude responses.
Acclimatization↗
Potential impacts of climate change on infectious diseases in the Arctic.
Climate change could cause changes in the incidence of infectious diseases in Arctic regions. Higher ambient temperatures in the Arctic may result in an increase in some temperature sensitive foodborne diseases such as gastroenteritis, paralytic shellfish poisoning and botulism. An increase in mean temperature may also influence the incidence of infectious diseases of animals that are spread to humans (zoonoses) by changing the population and range of animal hosts and insect vectors. An increase in flooding events may result in outbreaks of waterborne infection, such as Giardia lamblia or Cryptospordium parvum. A change in rodent and fox populations may result in an increase in rabies or echinococcosis. Temperature and humidity influence the distribution and density of many arthropod vectors which in turn may influence the incidence and northern range of vectorborne diseases such as West Nile virus. Recommendations include: the strenghtening of public health systems, disease surveillance coordinated with climate monitoring, and research into the detection, prevention, control and treatment of temperature-sensitive infectious diseases.
Animals↗
Temporomandibular disorders, headaches, and cervical pain among females in a Sami population.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence and co-morbidity of long-standing, intense, and frequent symptoms of pain and dysfunction in the jaw-face, head, and cervical region among adult females drawn from the Sami population in northern Sweden. METHODS: A total of 487 females, taken from the register of the Swedish Sami Parliament or registered as reindeer owners or reindeer herders in the Swedish Board of Agriculture and living in the Arctic region of northern Sweden, participated in a questionnaire study. RESULTS: The prevalence of pain and/or dysfunction in the jaw-face region was 32%, of headaches 61%, and of pain in the cervical region 56%. When the criterion of frequent symptoms (once a week or more often) was used, prevalence dropped to 17%, 19%, and 30%, respectively, and when that of intense symptoms, defined as 5 or more on an 11-point numerical rating scale, was added, prevalence dropped further to 8%, 11%, and 20%, respectively. The majority reported long-standing symptoms (67-98% depending on symptom). A high statistically significant relationship was found between frequent symptoms of pain and/or dysfunction in the jaw-face, frequent headaches, and frequent cervical pain (p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Symptoms in the jaw-face, headaches, and cervical pain were frequently reported among a sample of Sami females living in the Swedish Arctic region. The prevalence of symptoms was strongly dependent on criteria of frequency and intensity.
Adult↗
The effects of temperature on growth of four high Arctic soil fungi in a three-phase system.
The effect of temperature on the growth of Chrysosporium pannorum, Cylindrocarpon sp., Penicillium janthinellum, and Phoma herbarum, isolated from tundra soils, was studied. The growth in two systems, glucose-mineral agar plates and sand, moistened with glucose-mineral broth, was compared. All isolates showed an exponential increase in mass (measured as protein increase) in sand and a linear rate of extension on agar. Radial increase on agar was shown not to be a good index of growth in sand. Trends in growth rates in the sand cultures indicated that all four fungi can grow at low temperatures. The growth rate for Penicillium janthinellum at 15 degrees C was higher than at 20 degrees C, and Cylindrocarpon sp. and Phoma herbarum had higher growth rates at 2.5 degrees C than at 5 degrees C. These data suggest that there may be some adaptation by these fungi to growth in Arctic regions.
Arctic Regions↗
Temporal trends of organochlorines in Northern Europe, 1967-1995. Relation to global fractionation, leakage from sediments and international measures.
The time trend monitoring of organochlorine pollution was carried out in Sweden since the late 1960s. This report presents data on concentrations of DDT, PCB, HCHs and HCB in biota samples collected and analysed annually. All the matrices and compounds studied show a significant decrease over time. The data cover severely polluted Swedish marine and fresh water in southern Sweden as well as locally unpolluted waters in remote northern Arctic regions of Sweden. A total of 13 time series representing different locations and species are presented for the different pollutants. The period studied covers the time when pollution was serious as well as the time of recovery. All monitoring activities were carried out at the same laboratories over the entire study period, which means that comparability over time is good in the sets of data presented. The various time trends show a convincing agreement with trends and annual change over time, although the concentrations differ between the species and locations investigated, the highest concentrations being in the south. Since the annual changes are normally similar regardless of locations and species, spatial variations in concentrations remain over time, although concentrations are lower today. The onset of changes in concentrations over time can be related to international measures or other circumstances that lowered releases into the environment. Similarities in the annual changes, as well as the time when changes began, are discussed with respect to suggested hypotheses on the fate of the investigated organochlorines. It was not possible to verify that the oxygenation of anoxic sediments mobilised old pollution in Baltic sediments. Neither was it possible to conclude that eutrophication has caused a measurable effect on the rate and timing of the decreases. Finally, long-range transport to Arctic regions seems to be due more to a one step transport than to the 'Grass-hopper' effect. The comprehensive database used, clearly shows how important it is to have datasets big enough to describe between-year variation before attempting to evaluate the time trend. In addition, if between-year variation is not known, it is then also difficult to evaluate spatial variation on the basis of single year observations.
Journal Article↗
OBLIGATELY PSYCHROPHILIC YEASTS FROM THE POLAR REGIONS.
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Antarctic Regions↗
Molecular epidemiological study of Arctic rabies virus isolates from Greenland and comparison with isolates from throughout the Arctic and Baltic regions.
We report a molecular epidemiological study of rabies in Arctic countries by comparing a panel of novel Greenland isolates to a larger cohort of viral sequences from both Arctic and Baltic regions. Rabies virus isolates originating from wildlife (Arctic/red foxes, raccoon-dogs and reindeer), from domestic animals (dogs/cats) and from two human cases were investigated. The resulting 400 bp N-gene sequences were compared with isolates representing neighbouring Arctic or Baltic countries from North America, the former Soviet Union and Europe. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated similarities between sequences from the Arctic and Arctic-like viruses, which were distinct from rabies isolates originating in the Baltic region of Europe, the Steppes in Russia and from North America. The Arctic-like group consist of isolates from India, Pakistan, southeast Siberia and Japan. The Arctic group was differentiated into two lineages, Arctic 1 and Arctic 2, with good bootstrap support. Arctic 1 is mainly comprised of Canadian isolates with a single fox isolate from Maine in the USA. Arctic 2 was further divided into sub-lineages: 2a/2b. Arctic 2a comprises isolates from the Arctic regions of Yakutia in northeast Siberia and Alaska. Arctic 2b isolates represent a biotype, which is dispersed throughout the Arctic region. The broad distribution of rabies in the Arctic regions including Greenland, Canada and Alaska provides evidence for the movement of rabies across borders.
Animals↗
Phylogeography of lemmings (Lemmus): no evidence for postglacial colonization of Arctic from the Beringian refugium.
Beringia is considered as an important glacial refugium that served as the main source for colonization of formerly glaciated Arctic regions. To obtain high resolution views of Arctic refugial history, we examined mitochondrial cytochrome b phylogeography in the northern genus of rodents, Lemmus (true lemmings), sampled across its circumpolar distribution. Strong phylogeographical structure suggests vicariant separation over several glacial-interglacial periods and does not provide evidence supporting the importance of Beringia for extensive colonization of formerly glaciated regions. Rather than a source of postglacial colonization, Beringia represents an area of intraspecific endemism previously undetected by biogeographical analysis. Existing phylogeographical structure suggests that vicariant separation by glacial barriers was an important factor generating genetic divergence and, thus, increasing genetic diversity in lemmings on continental and circumpolar scales. However, there is little evidence for the direct effect of the last glaciation on the level of genetic variation and allele genealogy in lemmings on a regional geographical scale. This finding implies that the population genetic models of postglacial colonization suggested for temperate taxa might have limited applicability for Arctic species.
Animals↗
Sources and transport of persistent pollutants to the Arctic.
During the last two decades the importance of long-range transport as a contaminant source for the pristine Arctic regions has been proven. Models are developed in order to predict spatial, seasonal and structural dependent patterns in the distribution of antropogenic pollutants. The most accepted theory today describes the transport of semi-volatile persistent organic pollutants as a temperature and weather dependent repeated deposition and remobilization process between the atmosphere and the ocean and land surface, with a final deposition in the cold northern region. Results also indicate possible new local sources of pesticides in the European Arctic in addition to the long-range transport from more temperate areas.
Air Pollutants↗
Multiple glacial refugia in the North American Arctic: inference from phylogeography of the collared lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus).
Cryptic northern refugia beyond the ice limit of the Pleistocene glaciations may have had significant influence on the current pattern of biodiversity in Arctic regions. In order to evaluate whether northern glacial refugia existed in the Canadian Arctic, we examined mitochondrial DNA phylogeography in the northernmost species of rodents, the collared lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus) sampled across its range of distribution in the North American Arctic and Greenland. The division of the collared lemming into the Canadian Arctic and eastern Beringia phylogroups does not support postglacial colonization of the North American Arctic from a single eastern Beringia refugium. Rather, the phylogeographical structure and sparse fossil records indicate that, during the last glaciation, some biologically significant refugia and important sources of postglacial colonization were located to the northwest of the main ice sheet in the Canadian Arctic.
Animals↗
Drugs and drug administration in extreme environments.
Emergency medicine must often cope with harsh climates far below freezing point or high temperatures, and sometimes, an alternative to the normal route of drug administration is necessary. Most of this information is not yet published. Therefore, we summarized the information about these topics for most drugs used in medical emergencies by combining literature research with extensive personal communications with the heads of the drug safety departments of the companies producing these drugs. Most drugs can be used after temperature stress of limited duration. Nevertheless, we recommend replacing them at least once per year or after extreme heat. Knowledge about drugs used in extreme environments will be of increasing importance for medical personnel because in an increasingly mobile society, more and more people, and especially elderly -often with individual medical risks-travel to extreme regions such as tropical or arctic regions or to high altitude, and some of them need medical care during these activities. Because of this increasing need to use drugs in harsh climates (tourism, expeditions, peace corps, military, etc) the actual International Congress of Harmonization recommendations should be added with stability tests at +50 degrees C, freezing and oscillating temperatures, and UV exposure to simulate the storage of the drugs at "outdoor conditions."
Climate↗
The Mid-Canada Radar Line and First Nations' people of the James Bay region, Canada: an evaluation using log-linear contingency modelling to analyze organochlorine frequency data.
Abandoned radar line stations in the North American arctic and sub-arctic regions are point sources of contamination, especially for PCBs. Few data exist with respect to human body burden of organochlorines (OCs) in residents of communities located in close proximity to these radar line sites. We compared plasma OC concentration (unadjusted for total lipids) frequency distribution data using log-linear contingency modelling for Fort Albany First Nation, the site of an abandoned Mid-Canada Radar Line station, and two comparison populations (the neighbouring community of Kashechewan First Nation without such a radar installation, and Hamilton, a city in southern Ontario, Canada). This type of analysis is important as it allows for an initial investigation of contaminant data without imputing any values. The two-state log-linear model (employing both non-detectable and detectable concentration frequencies and applicable to PCB congeners 28 and 105 and cis-nonachlor) and the four-state log-linear model (using quartile concentration frequencies for Aroclor 1260, PCB congeners [99,118,138,153,156,170,180,183,187], beta-HCH, p,p'-DDT +p,p'-DDE, HCB, mirex, oxychlordane, and trans-nonachlor) revealed that the effects of subject gender were inconsequential. Significant differences (p < 0.05) between the groups examined were attributable to the effect of location on the frequency of detection of OCs or on their differential distribution among the concentration quartiles. In general, people from Hamilton had higher frequencies of non-detections and of concentrations in the first quartile (p < 0.05) for most OCs compared to people from Fort Albany and Kashechewan (who consume a traditional diet of wild meats that does not include marine mammals). An unexpected finding was that, for Kashechewan males, the frequency of many OCs was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in the 4th concentration quartile than that predicted by the four-state log-linear model, but significantly lower than expected in the 1st quartile for beta-HCH. The levels of PCBs found for women in Fort Albany and Kashechewan were greater than those reported for Dene (First Nation people) and Métis (mixed heritage) of the western Northwest Territories (NWT) who did not consume marine mammals, and for Inuit living in the central NWT (occasional consumers of marine mammals). Moreover, the levels of total p,p'-DDT were greater for Fort Albany and Kashechewan women compared to these same aboriginal groups.
Animals↗
Subtropical Arctic Ocean temperatures during the Palaeocene/Eocene thermal maximum.
The Palaeocene/Eocene thermal maximum, approximately 55 million years ago, was a brief period of widespread, extreme climatic warming, that was associated with massive atmospheric greenhouse gas input. Although aspects of the resulting environmental changes are well documented at low latitudes, no data were available to quantify simultaneous changes in the Arctic region. Here we identify the Palaeocene/Eocene thermal maximum in a marine sedimentary sequence obtained during the Arctic Coring Expedition. We show that sea surface temperatures near the North Pole increased from 18 degrees C to over 23 degrees C during this event. Such warm values imply the absence of ice and thus exclude the influence of ice-albedo feedbacks on this Arctic warming. At the same time, sea level rose while anoxic and euxinic conditions developed in the ocean's bottom waters and photic zone, respectively. Increasing temperature and sea level match expectations based on palaeoclimate model simulations, but the absolute polar temperatures that we derive before, during and after the event are more than 10 degrees C warmer than those model-predicted. This suggests that higher-than-modern greenhouse gas concentrations must have operated in conjunction with other feedback mechanisms--perhaps polar stratospheric clouds or hurricane-induced ocean mixing--to amplify early Palaeogene polar temperatures.
Animals↗
The evolution of polar fish hemoglobin: a phylogenetic analysis of the ancestral amino acid residues linked to the root effect.
Originating from a benthic ancestor, the suborder Notothenioidei (the dominant fish fauna component of the Antarctic sea) underwent a remarkable radiation, which led notothenioids to fill several niches. The ecological importance of notothenioids in Antarctica and their biochemical adaptations have prompted great efforts to study their physiology and phylogeny, with special attention to the evolutionary adaptation of the oxygen-transport system. We herewith report the evolutionary history of alpha- and beta-globins under the assumption of the molecular clock hypothesis as a basis for reconstructing the phylogenetic relationships among species. These studies have been extended to fish species of other latitudes, including the Arctic region. The northern and southern polar oceans have very different characteristics; indeed, in many respects the Antarctic and Arctic ichthyofaunas are more dissimilar than similar. Our results show that the inferred phylogeny of Arctic and Antarctic globins is different. Taking advantage of the wealth of information collected on structure and function of hemoglobins, we have attempted to investigate the evolutionary history of an important physiological feature in fish, the Root effect. The results suggest that the amino acid residues reported to play a key role in the Root effect may be regarded as ancestor characters, but the lack of this effect in extant species can hardly be associated with the presence of synapomorphies.
Adaptation, Physiological↗
Numerical evaluation of the PCBs transport over the Northern Hemisphere.
The numerical evaluation of selected PCB congener (28, 118, 153, 180) transport over the Northern Hemisphere is carried out for 1996 using MSCE-POP model. This model is a multicompartment three-dimensional one and includes various environmental media such as the atmosphere, soil, vegetation, seawater, and sea ice. The spatial resolution is 2.5 degrees x2.5 degrees for all media except marine one (1.25 degrees x1.25 degrees ). The main model output information is deposition fluxes, spatial distribution of concentrations in environmental media, pathways and source-receptor relationships. Calculation results are analysed for the whole hemisphere and the Arctic region. In particular, this gives an opportunity to estimate the contributions of individual emission source groups to the Arctic pollution. The reliability of the model assessment is analysed by comparison between calculated and observed data.
Air Pollutants↗
[Arctic pigmented mycobacteria and their role in the oxidation of petroleum hydrocarbons].
Red-orange Mycobacterium species (the rhodochrous group) were isolated from the water of the Arctic regions; they were described, and the structure of lipids and the assimilation of oil products of low temperatures were comparatively studied in the arctic water and soil Mycobacterium species. The composition of usual fatty and mycolic acids was studied in two strains growing in a medium with hexadecane. Palmitic acid prevailed among fatty acids in the both strains; mycolic acids were represented by the compounds C34:0 and C34:1 (Mycobacterium brevicale) and C32:0 and C:34:0 (Mycobacterium sp.). The presence of unsaturated mycolic acids in the cells correlated with their capability to assimilate hydrocarbons at low temperatures.
Arctic Regions↗