Workshop report: Toward the development of a human whole stool reference material for metabolomic and metagenomic gut microbiome measurements

Abstract Introduction To date, there has been little effort to develop standards for metabolome-based gut microbiome measurements despite the significant efforts toward standard development for DNA-based microbiome measurements. Objectives The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), The BioCollective (TBC), and the North America Branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI North America) are collaborating to extend NIST’s efforts to develop a Human Whole Stool Reference Material for the purpose of method harmonization and eventual quality control. Methods The reference material will be rationally designed for adequate quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) for underlying measurements in the study of the impact of diet and nutrition on functional aspects of the host gut microbiome and relationships of those functions to health. To identify which metabolites deserve priority in their value assignment, NIST, TBC, and ILSI North America jointly conducted a workshop on September 12, 2019 at the NIST campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The objective of the workshop was to identify metabolites for which evidence indicates relevance to health and disease and to decide on the appropriate course of action to develop a fit-for-purpose reference material. Results This document represents the consensus opinions of workshop participants and co-authors of this manuscript, and provides additional supporting information. In addition to developing general criteria for metabolite selection and a preliminary list of proposed metabolites, this paper describes some of the strengths and limitations of this initiative given the current state of microbiome research. Conclusions Given the rapidly evolving nature of gut microbiome science and the current state of knowledge, an RM (as opposed to a CRM) measured for multiple metabolites is appropriate at this stage. As the science evolves, the RM can evolve to match the needs of the research community. Ultimately, the stool RM may exist in sequential versions. Beneficial to this evolution will be a clear line of communication between NIST and the stakeholder community to ensure alignment with current scientific understanding and community needs.

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A Risk-Based Strategy for Evaluating Mitigation Options for Process-Formed Compounds in Food

International Journal of Toxicology ◽

10.1177/1091581816640262 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 35 (3) ◽

pp. 358-370 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Paul Hanlon ◽

Gregory P. Brorby ◽

Mansi Krishan

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Decision Tree ◽

Scientific Community ◽

Life Sciences ◽

Technical Committee ◽

Global Approach ◽

Chemical Safety ◽

The Public ◽

The North ◽

The Impact

Processing (eg, cooking, grinding, drying) has changed the composition of food throughout the course of human history; however, awareness of process-formed compounds, and the potential need to mitigate exposure to those compounds, is a relatively recent phenomenon. In May 2015, the North American Branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI North America) Technical Committee on Food and Chemical Safety held a workshop on the risk-based process for mitigation of process-formed compounds. This workshop aimed to gain alignment from academia, government, and industry on a risk-based process for proactively assessing the need for and benefit of mitigation of process-formed compounds, including criteria to objectively assess the impact of mitigation as well as research needed to support this process. Workshop participants provided real-time feedback on a draft framework in the form of a decision tree developed by the ILSI North America Technical Committee on Food and Chemical Safety to a panel of experts, and they discussed the importance of communicating the value of such a process to the larger scientific community and, ultimately, the public. The outcome of the workshop was a decision tree that can be used by the scientific community and could form the basis of a global approach to assessing the risks associated with mitigation of process-formed compounds.

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Novel Highly Pathogenic Avian A(H5N2) and A(H5N8) Influenza Viruses of Clade 2.3.4.4 from North America Have Limited Capacity for Replication and Transmission in Mammals

mSphere ◽

10.1128/msphere.00003-16 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Bryan S. Kaplan ◽

Marion Russier ◽

Trushar Jeevan ◽

Bindumadhav Marathe ◽

Elena A. Govorkova ◽

...

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Avian Influenza ◽

North American ◽

Influenza Viruses ◽

Morbidity And Mortality ◽

Avian Influenza Viruses ◽

Highly Pathogenic ◽

The North ◽

Domestic Poultry ◽

The Impact

ABSTRACT Highly pathogenic H5 influenza viruses have been introduced into North America from Asia, causing extensive morbidity and mortality in domestic poultry. The introduced viruses have reassorted with North American avian influenza viruses, generating viral genotypes not seen on other continents. The experiments and analyses presented here were designed to assess the impact of this genetic diversification on viral phenotypes, particularly as regards mammalian hosts, by comparing the North American viruses with their Eurasian precursor viruses. Highly pathogenic influenza A(H5N8) viruses from clade 2.3.4.4 were introduced to North America by migratory birds in the fall of 2014. Reassortment of A(H5N8) viruses with avian viruses of North American lineage resulted in the generation of novel A(H5N2) viruses with novel genotypes. Through sequencing of recent avian influenza viruses, we identified PB1 and NP gene segments very similar to those in the viruses isolated from North American waterfowl prior to the introduction of A(H5N8) to North America, highlighting these bird species in the origin of reassortant A(H5N2) viruses. While they were highly virulent and transmissible in poultry, we found A(H5N2) viruses to be low pathogenic in mice and ferrets, and replication was limited in both hosts compared with those of recent highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 viruses. Molecular characterization of the hemagglutinin protein from A(H5N2) viruses showed that the receptor binding preference, cleavage, and pH of activation were highly adapted for replication in avian species and similar to those of other 2.3.4.4 viruses. In addition, North American and Eurasian clade 2.3.4.4 H5NX viruses replicated to significantly lower titers in differentiated normal human bronchial epithelial cells than did seasonal human A(H1N1) and highly pathogenic A(H5N1) viruses isolated from a human case. Thus, despite their having a high impact on poultry, our findings suggest that the recently emerging North American A(H5N2) viruses are not expected to pose a substantial threat to humans and other mammals without further reassortment and/or adaptation and that reassortment with North American viruses has not had a major impact on viral phenotype. IMPORTANCE Highly pathogenic H5 influenza viruses have been introduced into North America from Asia, causing extensive morbidity and mortality in domestic poultry. The introduced viruses have reassorted with North American avian influenza viruses, generating viral genotypes not seen on other continents. The experiments and analyses presented here were designed to assess the impact of this genetic diversification on viral phenotypes, particularly as regards mammalian hosts, by comparing the North American viruses with their Eurasian precursor viruses.

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The Grief and Bereavement Experiences of Informal Caregivers: A Scoping Review of the North American Literature

Journal of Palliative Care ◽

10.1177/08258597211052269 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 082585972110522

Author(s):

Neerjah Skantharajah ◽

Carol Barrie ◽

Sharon Baxter ◽

M. Carolina Borja ◽

Anica Butters ◽

...

Keyword(s):

American Literature ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Informal Caregivers ◽

Exclusion Criteria ◽

The North ◽

Current State ◽

Grief And Bereavement ◽

Hospice And Palliative Care ◽

The Impact

Background Informal caregivers are a significant part of the hospice and palliative care landscape as members of the interdisciplinary care team. Despite this, little is known about the impact this responsibility has on informal caregivers’ experiences of grief and bereavement. To address this, a scoping review of the literature was conducted to explore the current state of knowledge toward grief and bereavement of informal caregivers of adult/geriatric patients in the hospice and palliative/end-of-life care realm within North America. Methods Using Arksey and O’Malley's 5-step framework, key electronic health care and social sciences databases (eg, CINAHL, MEDLINE, ProQuest Sociological Abstracts, PsycINFO) alongside gray literature sources were searched and screened against inclusion and exclusion criteria. A thematic content analysis was used to identify key themes. Results 29 articles met the final inclusion criteria with 3 central themes emerging: (1) mediators of grief, (2) grief experiences, and (3) types of grief. Discussion Informal caregivers encounter unique grief and bereavement experiences: The range of psychosocial outcomes, both negative and positive, can be affected by various mediators such as caregiver burden, demographics, disease type of the patient being cared for, etc. Bereavement interventions must be designed with the mediators of grief in mind. Conclusions Understanding the nuances of informal caregivers’ experiences with grief and bereavement will inform and advance practice, policy, and research. Practitioners/clinicians should be further educated on how to properly acknowledge the complexity of grief and bereavement for informal caregivers, specifically paying attention to mediators. Further research needs to consider the role of culture.

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The Impact of Environmental Chemicals on the Gut Microbiome

Toxicological Sciences ◽

10.1093/toxsci/kfaa065 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 176 (2) ◽

pp. 253-284 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Karen Chiu ◽

Genoa Warner ◽

Romana A Nowak ◽

Jodi A Flaws ◽

Wenyan Mei

Keyword(s):

Gut Microbiome ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Environmental Chemicals ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Multiple Factors ◽

Microbiome Research ◽

Health Related ◽

Exogenous Factors ◽

The Impact ◽

Insight Into

Abstract Since the surge of microbiome research in the last decade, many studies have provided insight into the causes and consequences of changes in the gut microbiota. Among the multiple factors involved in regulating the microbiome, exogenous factors such as diet and environmental chemicals have been shown to alter the gut microbiome significantly. Although diet substantially contributes to changes in the gut microbiome, environmental chemicals are major contaminants in our food and are often overlooked. Herein, we summarize the current knowledge on major classes of environmental chemicals (bisphenols, phthalates, persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals, and pesticides) and their impact on the gut microbiome, which includes alterations in microbial composition, gene expression, function, and health effects in the host. We then discuss health-related implications of gut microbial changes, which include changes in metabolism, immunity, and neurological function.

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Unconventional gas: local supply, global implications

The APPEA Journal ◽

10.1071/aj10059 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 51 (2) ◽

pp. 679

Author(s):

Craig McMahon

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Gas Production ◽

Coal Bed ◽

Unconventional Gas ◽

Policy Makers ◽

The North ◽

Local Supply ◽

Sharp Growth ◽

Gas Market ◽

The Impact

The sharp growth in unconventional gas production in North America has turned the gas market on its head. Unconventional gas (coal bed methane, tight gas and shale gas) is present in large volumes throughout the world—it offers the potential to continue to reshape global gas dynamics. Many expect the North America experience of sharp unconventional gas growth to be repeated elsewhere and are forecasting the perpetuation of a global gas surplus. Is this likely? We consider the impact of its development, identify some of the issues that will constrain its growth and address some of the implications for upstream suppliers, resource holders, buyers and policy makers. No post-Conference paper or slides are available for this presentation.

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Ecogeography and the Great American Interchange

Paleobiology ◽

10.1017/s0094837300010605 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 17 (3) ◽

pp. 266-280 ◽

Cited By ~ 156

Author(s):

S. David Webb

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

South America ◽

North American ◽

Mammalian Fauna ◽

The South ◽

Land Bridge ◽

Southern Mexico ◽

The North ◽

Land Mammal ◽

The Impact

When the isthmian land bridge triggered the Great American Interchange, a large majority of land-mammal families crossed reciprocally between North and South America at about 2.5 Ma (i.e., Late Pliocene). Initially land-mammal dynamics proceeded as predicted by equilibrium theory, with roughly equal reciprocal mingling on both continents. Also as predicted, the impact of the interchange faded in North America after about 1 m.y. In South America, contrary to such predictions, the interchange became decidedly unbalanced: during the Pleistocene, groups of North American origin continued to diversify at exponential rates. Whereas only about 10% of North American genera are derived from southern immigrants, more than half of the modern mammalian fauna of South America, measured at the generic level, stems from northern immigrants. In addition, extinctions more severely decimated interchange taxa in North America, where six families were lost, than in South America, where only two immigrant families became extinct.This paper presents a two-phase ecogeographic model to explain the asymmetrical results of the land-mammal interchange. During the humid interglacial phase, the tropics were dominated by rain forests, and the principal biotic movement was from Amazonia to Central America and southern Mexico. During the more arid glacial phase, savanna habitats extended broadly right through tropical latitudes. Because the source area in the temperate north was six times as large as that in the south, immigrants from the north outnumbered those from the south. One prediction of this hypothesis is that immigrants from the north generally should reach higher latitudes in South America than the opposing contingent of land-mammal taxa in North America. Another prediction is that successful interchange families from the north should experience much of their phylogenetic diversification in low latitudes of North America before the interchange. Insofar as these predictions can be tested, they appear to be upheld.

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The Impact of Large-Scale Orography on Northern Hemisphere Winter Synoptic Temperature Variability

Journal of Climate ◽

10.1175/jcli-d-19-0129.1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 32 (18) ◽

pp. 5799-5814 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Nicholas J. Lutsko ◽

Jane Wilson Baldwin ◽

Timothy W. Cronin

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Northern Hemisphere ◽

North American ◽

Large Scale ◽

Temperature Variability ◽

Temperature Gradients ◽

Northwest Pacific ◽

Near Surface ◽

The North ◽

The Impact

Abstract The impact of large-scale orography on wintertime near-surface (850 hPa) temperature variability on daily and synoptic time scales (from days to weeks) in the Northern Hemisphere is investigated. Using a combination of theory, idealized modeling work, and simulations with a comprehensive climate model, it is shown that large-scale orography reduces upstream temperature gradients, in turn reducing upstream temperature variability, and enhances downstream temperature gradients, enhancing downstream temperature variability. Hence, the presence of the Rockies on the western edge of the North American continent increases temperature gradients over North America and, consequently, increases North American temperature variability. By contrast, the presence of the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas on the eastern edge of the Eurasian continent damps temperature variability over most of Eurasia. However, Tibet and the Himalayas also interfere with the downstream development of storms in the North Pacific storm track, and thus damp temperature variability over North America, by approximately as much as the Rockies enhance it. Large-scale orography is also shown to impact the skewness of downstream temperature distributions, as temperatures to the north of the enhanced temperature gradients are more positively skewed while temperatures to the south are more negatively skewed. This effect is most clearly seen in the northwest Pacific, off the east coast of Japan.

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Sick Individuals and Sick (Microbial) Populations: Challenges in Epidemiology and the Microbiome

Annual Review of Public Health ◽

10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040119-094423 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (1) ◽

pp. 63-80 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Audrey Renson ◽

Pamela Herd ◽

Jennifer B. Dowd

Keyword(s):

Gut Microbiome ◽

Human Microbiome ◽

Specific Area ◽

Microbial Populations ◽

Current State ◽

New Frontier ◽

Microbiome Research ◽

Race Ethnicity ◽

Robust Measures ◽

Review Current

The human microbiome represents a new frontier in understanding the biology of human health. While epidemiology in this area is still in its infancy, its scope will likely expand dramatically over the coming years. To rise to the challenge, we argue that epidemiology should capitalize on its population perspective as a critical complement to molecular microbiome research, allowing for the illumination of contextual mechanisms that may vary more across populations rather than among individuals. We first briefly review current research on social context and the gut microbiome, focusing specifically on socioeconomic status (SES) and race/ethnicity. Next, we reflect on the current state of microbiome epidemiology through the lens of one specific area, the association of the gut microbiome and metabolic disorders. We identify key methodological shortcomings of current epidemiological research in this area, including extensive selection bias, the use of noncompositionally robust measures, and a lack of attention to social factors as confounders or effect modifiers.

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NAFTA's Impact on Korean Exports

International Studies Review ◽

10.1163/2667078x-00601002 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 35-55

Author(s):

Kye Woo Lee

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Free Trade Agreement ◽

Trade Agreement ◽

Trade Diversion ◽

Gravity Models ◽

External Trade ◽

Asian Countries ◽

The North ◽

Trading Market ◽

The Impact

Many Asian countries arc concerned that as the negotiations for the propa;el Free T rale Agreement of the Americas (FT AA) are concluded in 2005, it may erode their share of the largest trading market, North America. As a first step roward assessing the impact of the FTAA on Asian countries, rhis paper evaluates rhe effects of FTAA's predecessor, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), on Korean external trade. Analys.as of the shifi: in shares, rrade intensity indices, and gravity models are used to assess the impact at a macro level, while trade diversion aod crearion effects are tested at sub-industty levels. Some lessons for future action are also drawn.

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Case studies of ozone transport between North America and Europe in summer 2000

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions ◽

10.5194/acpd-5-6127-2005 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 6127-6184 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

G. Guerova ◽

I. Bey ◽

J.-L. Attié ◽

R. V. Martin

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

North American ◽

North Atlantic Ocean ◽

Conveyor Belt ◽

Tropospheric Chemistry ◽

Pollution Transport ◽

The North ◽

Range Transport ◽

European Mountain ◽

The Impact

Abstract. This paper reports on Long Range Transport (LRT) of ozone and related species over the North Atlantic ocean and its impact on Europe. Measurements of NO2 and O3 columns from the GOME and MOPITT satellite instruments are first used in conjunction with the GEOS-CHEM global model of transport and tropospheric chemistry to identify the major events of LRT that reach Europe over the course of the summer 2000. Model simulations are then used to examine surface O3 observations at a European mountain site and O3 vertical profiles over several European cities to quantify the impact of the LRT events on the European ozone distributions. Over the course of summer 2000, we identified nine major episodes of pollution transport between North America and Europe, which are in majority associated with WCB/post-frontal outflow (7 events) and zonal transport (2 events). We find that on average three episodes occur per month with the strongest ones being in June. The number and frequency of LRT events that reach Europe after leaving North America is strongly driven by the position and strength of the Azores anticyclone. After leaving North America, the plumes can either i) travel in the North American cyclones, mostly in the Warm Conveyor Belt (WCB), tracking poleward and thus reach Europe at high latitudes; ii) be transported zonally between 40° and 55° N directly to Europe; iii) be incorporated into the Azores anticyclone and reach Europe at mid-latitudes. Based on model sensitivity simulation it can be concluded that on average the North American sources of ozone contribute between 2–8 ppb in PBL and 10–13 ppb in FT. During particular episodes the North American sources resulted in O3 enhancement up to 25–28 ppb in the layer between 800–600 hPa and 10–12 ppb in PBL. For some episodes a substantial North American contribution (30% or higher) does not translate into a well marked enhancement of the total O3.

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