Floating treatment wetlands (FTW) are nature-based solutions for the purification of open water systems such as rivers, ponds, and lakes polluted by diffuse sources as untreated or partially treated domestic wastewater and agricultural run-off. Compared with other physicochemical and biological technologies, FTW is a technology with low-cost, simple configuration, easy to operate; has a relatively high efficiency, and is energy-saving, and aesthetic. Water remediation in FTWs is supported by plant uptake and the growth of a biofilm on the water plant roots, so the selection of the macrophyte species is critical, not only to pollutant removal but also to the local ecosystem integrity, especially for full-scale implementation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Stigma and discrimination are important barriers to HIV epidemic control. We implemented a multi-pronged facility-level intervention to reduce stigma and discrimination at health facilities across three high-burden provinces. Key components of the intervention included measurement of stigma, data review and use, participatory training of healthcare workers (HCWs), and engagement of people living with HIV and key populations in all stigma reduction activities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDevelopment of a robust technical assistance system is an essential component of a sustainable HIV response. Vietnam's National HIV Program is transitioning from a largely donor-funded programme to one primarily supported by domestic resources. Telehealth interventions are increasingly being used for training, mentoring and expert consultation in high-resource settings and hold significant potential for use as a tool to build HIV health worker capacity in low and middle-income countries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOutbreaks of contagious diseases, including White spot syndrome virus (WSSV), occur more frequently due to environment changes and as commercial shrimp production becomes intensified. The over-arching aim of this study was to examine new traits to improve disease resistance of Whiteleg shrimp, Liptopenaeus vannamei, to WSSV. Specifically, we made a compressive evaluation of the breeding population to determine a suitable selection criterion for improved WSSV resistance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhite Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) is the most damaging pathogen in terms of production and economic losses for the shrimp sector world-wide. Estimation of heritability for WSSV resistance was made in this study to obtain necessary parameter inputs for broadening the breeding objectives of an ongoing selective breeding programme for Whiteleg shrimp () that has focussed exclusively on improving growth performance since 2014. The present study involved a disease challenge test experiment using a total of 15,000 shrimps from 150 full- and half-sib families (100 individuals per family).
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