First Report of Laurel Wilt Disease Caused by Raffaelea lauricola on Sassafras in Virginia

Laurel wilt is a lethal vascular disease affecting native Lauraceae in North America. The causal fungus, Raffaelea lauricola T.C. Harr., Fraedrich & Aghayeva and its symbiont, redbay ambrosia beetle, Xyleborus glabratus Eichhoff are native to Asia (Fraedrich et al. 2008, Harrington et al. 2008). Since their introduction near Savannah, Georgia in 2002 (Fraedrich et al. 2008), laurel wilt has spread rapidly, resulting in extensive mortality of native redbay (Persea borbonia [L.] Spreng.) [Hughes et al. 2017] and is a threat to other native Lauraceae, such as sassafras (Sassafras albidum [Nutt.] Nees) (Bates et al. 2013) and northern spicebush (Lindera benzoin [L.] Blume) [Olatinwo et al. 2021]. In June 2021 a sassafras sapling showing wilt and dieback was observed along a roadside in Scott County, Virginia, which borders a laurel wilt-positive Tennessee county (Loyd et al. 2020). The trunk (approximately 5 cm diameter) was submitted to the Virginia Tech Plant Clinic. Although beetle holes were observed, X. glabratus was not found. Discolored sapwood chips were excised and plated on malt extract agar amended with cycloheximide (200 ppm) and streptomycin (100 ppm) [CSMA]. A fungus was consistently recovered and the morphology of conidiophores and conidia, and presence of blastoconidia and mucoid growth, aligned with the description of R. lauricola (Harrington et al. 2008). Two R. lauricola-specific primer sets (Dreaden et al. 2014) were used to amplify DNA extracted from a representative isolate (0248-2021) and confirm R. lauricola. For further confirmation, the LSU region of the rDNA was sequenced (Lloyd et al. 2020). The sequence of the isolate (GenBank accession no. OL583842) showed 100% identity (573/573 bp) to R. lauricola ex-type strain sequence, CBS 121567 (accession no. MH877762) (Harrington et al. 2008, Vu et al. 2018). The isolate was also confirmed by the National Identification Services by sequencing. To confirm pathogenicity, 15 sassafras seedlings (height = 60-100 cm, diameter = 8-10 mm) were inoculated with a conidial suspension harvested from 10-day CSMA cultures of 0248-2021, as follows: two 0.4 mm diameter holes were drilled 10 cm above the soil line at a 45° angle on opposite sides of the stem, leaving at least 3 cm between holes. Ten µl of the conidial suspension (5 x 107/ml) was transferred into each hole and sealed with parafilm. Two sassafras seedlings were inoculated with sterile water. Seedlings were maintained with 12 h photoperiod at 27° ± 2° C. Off-color foliage and loss of turgor were observed 10 days post-inoculation on conidia-inoculated seedlings; at two weeks, these were completely wilted and had sapwood discoloration. Water-inoculated plants showed no symptoms. Sapwood from 15 cm above the inoculation point was excised from 0248-2021-inoculated plants (n=2) and water-inoculated plants (n=1) and plated on CSMA. R. lauricola was recovered from symptomatic plants, but not from water-inoculated plants. The identity of the recovered fungus was confirmed with two species-specific primers sets (Dreaden et al. 2014). It is likely that laurel wilt is more prevalent in the area of the roadside find. Both sassafras and northern spicebush are widespread in Virginia and their range extends into the northeastern US and lower Canada. Laurel wilt poses a serious threat to these species and their ecosystems. For example, spicebush and sassafras are primary hosts of the native spicebush swallowtail butterfly (Papilio troilus L.) [Nitao et al. 1991].

Qualitative Study of African-American Women’s Intergenerational Dialogue for HIV Prevention

Despite the many established strategies designed to prevent Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) transmission in the United States, African-American (AA) women are disproportionately affected by the virus. This descriptive qualitative study explored AA women’s experiences of Intergenerational Dialogues (IGD) about HIV prevention. Study participants included 30 AA women representing four generational cohorts (the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials). Recruitment occurred in Scott County, Mississippi. Data were collected through in-person, in-depth interviews. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis. Four themes emerged from using conventional content analysis: Acknowledging the Importance of Community Connections; Helping Others by Sharing; Using Self-Knowledge as a Preventive Strategy; and Encouraging Others to Manage Intimate Relationships. Findings suggest that intergenerational dialogues may be an effective strategy to help AA women manage intimate relationships and potentially contribute to preventing HIV transmission.

Making Bourbon

Kentucky distillers have produced bourbon and rye whiskeys for more than two centuries. Part I of this book examines the complexities associated with nineteenth-century distilling’s evolution from an artisanal craft practiced by farmers and millers to a large-scale mechanized industry that adopted increasingly refined production techniques. The change from waterpower to steam engines permitted the relocation of distilleries away from traditional sites along creeks or at large springs. Commercial-scale distilling was accompanied by increasing government taxes and oversight controls. Mechanized distilleries readily expanded production and increased their demand for labor, grains, cooperage, copper stills, and other metal fixtures. Improved transportation—turnpikes, steamboats, trains, and dams and locks—allowed distillers to extend their reach for grains and equipment while distributing their product to national and international markets. Industrial production produced large amounts of spent grains, or slop, which had to be disposed of by feeding it to livestock or dumping it in sinkholes and creeks. Industrialization also increased the risk of fire, explosions, personal injury, and livestock diseases. Overproduction during the last third of the nineteenth century, among other problems, forced many distilleries to stop production or close. The temperance movement eventually led to Prohibition, which was in effect nationwide from 1920 to 1933. A small number of distillers survived that period by making medicinal whiskey. Part II consists of two case studies that provide detailed information on the general process of mechanization and industrialization: the Henry McKenna Distillery in Nelson County, and James Stone’s Elkhorn Distillery in Scott County. Part III examines the process of claiming product identity through naming, copyright law, and the acknowledgment that tradition and heritage can be employed by contemporary distillers to market their whiskey. Distillers venerate the “old,” and reconstructing the past as a marketing strategy has demonstrated that the industry’s heritage resides on the landscape—much of it established in the nineteenth century in the form of historic buildings, traditional routes, distillery towns, and other features that can be conserved through historic preservation and utilized by contemporary whiskey makers.

Building James Stone’s Elkhorn Distillery

On the eve of the Civil War, Scott County farmer James M. Stone owned twenty-three enslaved people, farmed 137 acres of improved land along South Elkhorn Creek, and was one of the most prosperous farmers in the county. By 1867, his industrial distillery produced about thirty barrels of whiskey per week. He entered into a business partnership with James H. Shropshire, who assisted with management and provided some of the capital for expansion. Stone made extensive modifications to his works to comply with the new federal requirements imposed by the 1868 revenue law, including building a state-of-the-art stack-type warehouse of brick, with a metal roof and iron window shutters. Cooper Adam Michaels made barrels for Elkhorn and other distilleries. Elkhorn’s transport connections for grain, construction materials, fuel, and whiskey were unimproved roads and a track-side depot on the railroad some two and a half miles distant. Logistics proved to be problematic for the duration of Elkhorn’s operations. Elkhorn consumed more grain than was produced locally and required shipments from Outer Bluegrass counties; barley malt came from Canada, and hops arrived from brokers in Lexington and Cincinnati. Most grain was shipped in sacks. New mechanical equipment often proved unreliable or unsuited for its application, necessitating ad hoc repairs. The distillery operation included a large pen where hogs were fed slop.

21st Century Approach: Using data and novel technologies to address the opioid crisis

ObjectiveTo use novel technologies to develop a rapid response framework to reach opioid overdose patients in an area which is challenging from both a geography and population distribution standpoint.IntroductionClark County, Indiana is geographically located in between the urban area of Louisville, Kentucky and Scott County, Indiana. Scott County is the site for the largest HIV outbreak in the history of the United States, directly related to high rates of IV drug abuse. The unique geographic location of Clark County in combination with the recent HIV and Hepatitis C outbreaks in Clark and neighboring counties has greatly informed the development of an effective response to overdoses and the opioid epidemic in general. Furthermore, Clark County has a unique population distribution, with a population of over 125,000 and a land area of over 300 square miles. Despite this large area, over 80% of the population lives within 9 miles of the southern border of the county. This leads to a mix of both urban and rural challenges. There are several areas of the county that have greater than 15 minute emergency response times, which is often the difference between life and death in an overdose situation. These factors led to the development of the Clark County Rapid Response Project. The rapid response project is a community-based, multidisciplinary framework to address the opioid addicted patient, from initial use to successful recovery. The project uses data driven technology to initiate the care of opiate overdose patients and administer lifesaving interventions.MethodsClark County has partnered with the Indiana State Department of Health utilizing the early notification system that monitors statewide overdose activity. Once an alert is sent out, the response involves the use of two early notification systems. Everbridge is a one touch notification system that allows rapid dissemination of information to various community partners to allow them to initiate the appropriate response. Pulse Point is a smart phone application that allows CPR and trained community laypeople to respond to a cardiac arrest or overdose patient in a public place. It provides directions to the patient as well as to the nearest AED. Clark County has also simultaneously instituted a county-wide CPR training initiative and offered Narcan training as well. This is a major paradigm shift, as prior methods of deployment of trained laypeople essentially relied on the chance that an overdose will be reached by a first responder.ResultsEverbridge has allowed for the rapid notification of county entities and deployment of resources to overdose ‘hot spot’ areas. The Pulse Point initiative has dramatically increased the number of CPR and Narcan trained responders and provided means of delivering them to the appropriate patient population in a timely manner. Both these technologies have dramatically increased the delivery of resources to the overdose patient and decreased response times to the delivery of care.ConclusionsUsing data driven technology to inform how Clark County Health Department and first responders collectively address the opioid crisis is a novel approach. Since January 2018, Clark County Health Department has used ESSENCE (Electronic Surveillance System for the Early Notification of Community-based Epidemics) to determine where and when an increase of drug overdose activity is occurring throughout the county. This affords county health officials the ability to inform in “near real-time” first responders, the emergency department and other community stakeholders, relevant information thus allowing for the rapid deployment of county resources to the areas most affected. Our collective efforts to save lives is further enhanced by the county using of novel technologies like Pulse Point which is used to deploy both CPR and Narcan trained laypersons directly to sites in the community where overdoses are occurring. In a community, which is in large part considered rural and, in many places, has a greater than 15 minute emergency response time, using Pulse Point and Everbridge technologies has uniquely positioned Clark County to be on the cutting edge of saving lives as we leverage data and technology to address the opioid epidemic in our communities. This has markedly improved access to treatment and response times to overdose patients in Clark County, Indiana.

Implementation of Syringe Services Programs to Prevent Rapid Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transmission in Rural Counties in the United States: A Modeling Study

Background Syringe services programs (SSPs) are effective venues for delivering harm-reduction services to people who inject drugs (PWID). However, SSPs often face significant barriers to implementation, particularly in the absence of known human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) outbreaks. Methods Using an agent-based model, we simulated HIV transmission in Scott County, Indiana, a rural county with a 1.7% prevalence of injection drug use. We compared outcomes arising in the absence of an SSP, in the presence of a pre-existing SSP, and with implementation of an SSP after the detection of an HIV outbreak among PWID over 5 years following the introduction of a single infection into the network. Results In the absence of an SSP, the model predicted an average of 176 infections among PWID over 5 years or an incidence rate of 12.1/100 person-years. Proactive implementation averted 154 infections and decreased incidence by 90.3%. With reactive implementation beginning operations 10 months after the first infection, an SSP would prevent 107 infections and decrease incidence by 60.8%. Reductions in incidence were also observed among people who did not inject drugs. Conclusions Based on model predictions, proactive implementation of an SSP in Scott County had the potential to avert more HIV infections than reactive implementation after the detection of an outbreak. The predicted impact of reactive SSP implementation was highly dependent on timely implementation after detecting the earliest infections. Consequently, there is a need for expanded proactive SSP implementation in the context of enhanced monitoring of outbreak vulnerability in Scott County and similar rural contexts.

The Scott County School Board: A Case in Group Dysfunction

Over the past few years, the Scott County School Board has experienced a number of interpersonal and procedural issues during the conduct of its business. In addition to incivility of communication, the board has experienced conflict, challenges to its leadership, and questionable actions on the part of the board chairperson. This case raises a number of questions: What are the problems facing this school board and what can be done to improve its performance? What policies does a school board need and how should they be stated? How should perceived policy violations be handled? How much authority and discretion should a board chairperson have? This case can be useful in graduate courses to generate discussion of proper school board operations and ethical behavior in educational leadership and administration.

A meta-barcoding census of freshwater planktonic protists in Appalachia – Natural Tunnel State Park, Virginia, USA

The purpose of our study was to survey the freshwater planktonic protists within an inland natural preserve in the Ridge and Valley physiographic province of the Appalachian Region using metabarcoding. Microbial eukaryotes are essential primary producers and predators in small freshwater ecosystems, yet they are often overlooked due to the difficulty of identification. This has been remedied, in part, by the cost reduction of high throughput DNA sequencing and the growth of barcode databases, making the identification and analysis of microorganisms by way of metabarcoding surveys in complex ecosystems increasingly feasible. Water samples were collected from five sites at the Natural Tunnel State Park in Scott County, VA (USA), representing three common bodies of water found in this region. Samples were initially collected during a Bioblitz event in April 2016 and then seven and fourteen weeks afterwards. Metabarcode analysis of the 23S and 18S genes identified 3663 OTUs representing 213 family level and 332 genus level taxa. This study provides an initial barcode census within a region that has a reputation as a temperate biodiversity “hotspot”. The overall protist diversity was comparably high to other temperate systems, but not unusually high; the microalgal diversity, however, was higher than that reported for other temperate regions. The three types of water bodies had their own distinctive protist biomes despite close proximity.