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The Fukushima nuclear accident in March 2011 generated a 3000 km$^{2}$ plume of soils heavily contaminated with $^{137}$Cs. Decontamination was completed early in 2019. Typhoon Hagibis was the first extreme event that occurred in the region after decontamination. Its impact on sediment sources and sediment $^{137}$Cs contamination was investigated through the application of a sediment fingerprinting procedure using spectrocolorimetry and geochemical properties. Sediment deposits ($n=24$) were collected in the Mano and Niida River catchments after the 2019 typhoons, and their signature was compared to that of potential sources (e.g., cropland, forests, and subsurface; $n=57$). Results demonstrate the dominance of cropland as the main source of sediment (mean: 54%) followed by forests (41%) with much lower contributions of subsurface material (5%). Overall, $^{137}$Cs concentrations in sediment were on average 84%–93% lower than the levels recorded after the accident in 2011, which demonstrates the effectiveness of cropland decontamination.

Following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in 2011, most of the released 137Cs remained in the litter and surface soil of the adjacent forest floor. However, 137Cs absorption by large soil invertebrates near this site has not been estimated. The aim of this study was to understand the role of soil macroinvertebrates in 137Cs uptake from forest litter into forest ecosystems. Breeding experiments were conducted using scarab beetle larvae (Protaetia orientalis). Dissection experiments revealed that 85% of the total 137Cs was concentrated in the digestive tract of larvae, while a low proportion was absorbed into the skin and muscle tissues. The 137Cs absorption rate, indicating the transfer of 137Cs from consumed litter to larval tissue, was low (0.39%). 137Cs concentrations decreased to one-fourth from larva to imago, possibly due to excretion from the digestive tract and during eclosion. In the elimination experiment, biological half-lives were 0.26–0.64 and 0.11–0.47 days and 3.35–48.30 and 4.01–17.70 days for the digestive tract and muscle/skin tissues in the fast and slow components, respectively, corresponding to 137Cs discharge from the gastrointestinal tract and physiological clearance. In the sequential extraction experiment, litter digestion by flower chafer larvae significantly reduced the bioavailable fraction of 137Cs including water-soluble, exchangeable, oxidized, and organic forms, from 23.2% in litter to 17.7% in feces. Residual 137Cs was not reduced by digestion, probably because it was fixed in soil clay. Our study on breeding experiments of the Scarabaeidae beetle confirmed the low bioavailability of 137Cs in the litter in Fukushima. However, litter feeders may play an important role in transferring 137Cs to higher trophic levels in the forest ecosystem by extracting the bioavailable fraction of the vast stock of 137Cs on the forest floor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collection and cooking of wild vegetables have provided seasonal enjoyments for Japanese local people as provisioning and cultural ecosystem services. However, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in March 2011 caused extensive radiocesium contamination of wild vegetables. Restrictions on commercial shipments of wild vegetables have been in place for the last 10 years. Some species, including buds of Aralia elata, are currently showing radiocesium concentrations both above and below the Japanese reference level for food (100 Bq/kg), implying that there are factors decreasing and increasing the 137Cs concentration. Here, we evaluated easy-to-measure environmental variables (dose rate at the soil surface, organic soil layer thickness, slope steepness, and presence/absence of decontamination practices) and the 137Cs concentrations of 40 A. elata buds at 38 locations in Fukushima Prefecture to provide helpful information on avoiding collecting highly contaminated buds. The 137Cs concentrations in A. elata buds ranged from 1 to 6,280 Bq/kg fresh weight and increased significantly with increases in the dose rate at the soil surface (0.10–6.50 μSv/h). Meanwhile, the 137Cs concentration in A. elata buds were not reduced by decontamination practices. These findings suggest that measuring the latest dose rate at the soil surface at the base of A. elata plants is a helpful way to avoid collecting buds with higher 137Cs concentrations and aid in the management of species in polluted regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The effects of hydrocortisone (HDC) administration to extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants on later development remain unclear. This study examined the association between HDC dosage during neonatal period and neurodevelopmental outcomes in ELBW infants. Methods: This study was a retrospective cohort study conducted in eight centers in Japan. The subjects of this study were ELBW infants born between April 2015 and March 2017. The association between postnatal total HDC dosage up to 36 weeks postmenstrual age and the developmental quotient (DQ) at 3 years of age was examined. Multiple linear regression evaluated the association, adjusting for weeks of gestation, birth weight, and the presence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, late-onset circulatory collapse, intracranial hemorrhage, necrotizing enterocolitis, and sepsis. Results: This study included 218 ELBW infants, of whom 144 underwent a developmental test at 3 years of age. Simple linear regression analysis revealed a significant association between total HDC dosage and DQ at 3 years of age (coefficients: −2.65, 95% CI: −3.73, −1.57). Multiple linear regression analysis adjusted for the presence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia and late-onset circulatory collapse also revealed a significant association between total HDC dosage and DQ at 3 years of age (coefficients: −2.66, 95% CI: −3.89, −1.42). Conclusion: Higher total HDC dosage up to 36 weeks postmenstrual age in ELBW infants was associated with impaired neurodevelopmental outcomes. Although HDC is often needed in the treatment of ELBW infants, clinicians should be aware that an increased dose of HDC may be associated with impaired neurodevelopmental outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community health centers are uniquely positioned to address disparities in colorectal cancer (CRC) screening as they have addressed other disparities. In 2012, the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, which is the funding agency for the health center program, added a requirement that health centers report CRC screening rates as a standard performance measure. These annually reported, publically available data are a major strategic opportunity to improve screening rates for CRC. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act enacted provisions to expand the capacity of the federal health center program. The recent report of the Institute of Medicine on integrating public health and primary care included an entire section devoted to CRC screening as a target for joint work. These developments make this the ideal time to integrate lifesaving CRC screening into the preventive care already offered by health centers. This article offers 5 strategies that address the challenges health centers face in increasing CRC screening rates. The first 2 strategies focus on improving the processes of primary care. The third emphasizes working productively with other medical providers and institutions. The fourth strategy is about aligning leadership. The final strategy is focused on using tools that have been derived from models that work.

The aggregated transfer factor (Tag) is commonly used to represent the actual transfer of radiocesium from soil to wild edible plants, but the values have shown substantial variation since the Fukushima nuclear accident. To elucidate the factors causing this variation, we investigated the effects of spatial scale and vertical 137Cs distribution in the soil on the variation of Tag-137Cs values for one of the most severely contaminated wild edible plants, Eleutherococcus sciadophylloides Franch. et Sav. (Koshiabura). The variation in Tag-137Cs values was not reduced by direct measurement of 137Cs deposition in soil samples from the Koshiabura habitat, as a substitute for using spatially averaged airborne survey data at the administrative district scale. The 137Cs activity concentration in Koshiabura buds showed a significant positive correlation with the 137Cs inventories only in the organic horizon of soil from the Koshiabura habitat. The ratio of 137Cs inventories in the organic horizon to the total 137Cs deposition in soil exhibited substantial variation, especially in broad-leaved deciduous forests that Koshiabura primarily inhabits. This variation may be the cause of the wide range of Tag-137Cs values observed in Koshiabura buds when calculated from the total 137Cs deposition in soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]