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Human granulocytic anaplasmosis, a tickborne disease caused by the bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum, was first identified during 1994 and is now an emerging public health threat in the United States. New York state (NYS) has experienced a recent increase in the incidence of anaplasmosis. We analyzed human case surveillance and tick surveillance data collected by the NYS Department of Health for spatiotemporal patterns of disease emergence. We describe the epidemiology and growing incidence of anaplasmosis cases reported during 2010–2018. Spatial analysis showed an expanding hot spot of anaplasmosis in the Capital Region, where incidence increased >8-fold. The prevalence of A. phagocytophilum increased greatly within tick populations in the Capital Region over the same period, and entomologic risk factors were correlated with disease incidence at a local level. These results indicate that anaplasmosis is rapidly emerging in a geographically focused area of NYS, likely driven by localized changes in exposure risk.

Anaplasmosis, caused by the tickborne bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum, is an emerging public health threat in the United States. In the northeastern United States, the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) transmits the human pathogenic genetic variant of A. phagocytophilum (Ap-ha) and a nonpathogenic variant (Ap-V1). New York has recently experienced a rapid and geographically focused increase in cases of anaplasmosis. We analyzed A. phagocytophilum-infected I. scapularis ticks collected across New York during 2008-2020 to differentiate between variants and calculate an entomological risk index (ERI) for each. Ap-ha ERI varied between regions and increased in all regions during the final years of the study. Space-time scan analyses detected expanding clusters of Ap-ha located within documented anaplasmosis hotspots. Ap-ha ERI was more positively correlated with anaplasmosis incidence than non-genotyped A. phagocytophilum ERI. Our findings help elucidate the relationship between the spatial ecology of A. phagocytophilum variants and anaplasmosis.

This paper examines the life-course trajectories of NZ adults across different literacy and numeracy skill levels. This is done by using skill information for the working-age adult population (aged 16-65 years) collected in the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC). This sample is then linked with administrative data to track their life-course outcomes from 2008 to 2020. The outcomes of the one-fifth of NZ working-age adults who were assessed at below Level 2 in either literacy or numeracy (or both) are compared with those at or above this baseline. It finds that adults with low measured skills have less favourable outcomes in a number of areas. They have lower rates of educational attainment, lower employment rates and average earnings, higher rates of hospitalisation, and higher rates of criminal offending and convictions. In addition, outcomes for Maori and Pacific peoples in both the low-skills and above-baseline groups are generally less favourable than those of their NZ European counterparts. For example, even among those with above-baseline skills, Maori and Pacific peoples have lower average earnings than NZ Europeans. These results provide a quantifiable evidence base regarding the role of literacy and numeracy skills with respect to a range of wellbeing outcomes over the course of an individual's life.

Aotearoa New Zealand (Aotearoa), like many countries, experienced widespread demand for health services, threatening to collapse the health system. In addition to stringent border control, isolation policies for those with COVID-19, and instituting lockdowns, the government imposed a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for groups of essential workers, including healthcare professionals. Some literature argues that the COVID-19 vaccine mandates restrict individuals' freedoms through the loss of employment, income, and status as a healthcare professional. This qualitative research explored how COVID-19 vaccine mandates impacted healthcare professionals. Data from eight in-depth interviews with former healthcare professionals who experienced termination of their employment, and four managers or business owners were thematically analysed. The theme, Mandate-Induced Traumatic Decision-Making and Loss and two sub-themes, A Change in Attitudes and Ongoing Impacts on Lives, were identified. We found the COVID-19 vaccine mandates had detrimental impacts on those healthcare professionals affected by their decision not to have or complete COVID-19 vaccinations. Despite what participants believed were legitimate reasons for not being vaccinated, they experienced ongoing trauma and psychological, unemployment, and financial harm. The findings question the public good benefits of the vaccine mandate when it restricts the freedom, autonomy, and agency of much-needed healthcare professionals, which provide useful insights.

Human granulocytic anaplasmosis (HGA) and human babesiosis are tick-borne diseases spread by the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis Say, Acari: Ixodidae) and are the result of infection with Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia microti, respectively. In NewYork State (NYS), incidence rates of these diseases increased concordantly until around 2013, when rates of HGA began to increase more rapidly than human babesiosis, and the spatial extent of the diseases diverged. Surveillance data of tick-borne pathogens (2007 to 2018) and reported human cases of HGA (n = 4,297) and human babesiosis (n = 2,986) (2013–2018) from the NewYork State Department of Health (NYSDOH) showed a positive association between the presence/temporal emergence of each pathogen and rates of disease in surrounding areas. Incidence rates of HGA were higher than human babesiosis among White and non-Hispanic/non-Latino individuals, as well as all age and sex groups. Human babesiosis exhibited higher rates among non-White individuals. Climate, weather, and landscape data were used to build a spatially weighted zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) model to examine and compare associations between the environment and rates of HGA and human babesiosis. HGA and human babesiosis ZINB models indicated similar associations with forest cover, forest land cover change, and winter minimum temperature; and differing associations with elevation, urban land cover change, and winter precipitation. These results indicate that tick-borne disease ecology varies between pathogens spread by I. scapularis.

I- Tev I, a member of the GIY-YIG family of homing endonucleases, consists of an N-terminal catalytic domain and a C-terminal DNA-binding domain joined by a flexible linker. The GIY-YIG motif is in the N-terminal domain of I- Tev I, which corresponds to a phylogenetically widespread catalytic cartridge that is often associated with mobile genetic elements. The crystal structure of the catalytic domain of I- Tev I, the first of any GIY-YIG endonuclease, reveals a novel α/β-fold with a central three-stranded antiparallel β-sheet flanked by three helices. The most conserved and putative catalytic residues are located on a shallow, concave surface and include a metal coordination site. Similarities in the three-dimensional arrangement of the catalytically important residues and the cation-binding site with those of the His-Cys box endonuclease I- Ppo I suggest the possibility of mechanistic relationships among these different families of homing endonucleases despite completely different folds.

Owing to past structural reforms, Costa Rica has enjoyed robust GDP growth and productivity levels are gradually converging towards the OECD average. However, large GDP per capita and productivity gaps persist. In addition, not everyone has benefited from this growth. Inequality has increased and labour market conditions are a concern. Costa Rica has a lower share of employed workers in the population than almost all OECD countries, unemployment remains well above its pre-global-financial-crisis level, labour market participation has decreased and the share of informal jobs is high. Recognising these challenges, Costa Rica has accelerated its structural reform momentum recently, with policy reforms underway or planned in several areas that present win-win opportunities to boost both productivity and inclusion. These include efforts to tackle labour market informality, simplify the minimum wage structure, increase competition and reduce regulatory burdens. In addition to further reforms in these priority areas, structural policy improvements are also needed to increase outcomes and reduce inequalities in education and address significant transport infrastructure gaps.

Owing to past structural reforms, Costa Rica has enjoyed robust GDP growth and productivity levels are gradually converging towards the OECD average. However, large GDP per capita and productivity gaps persist. In addition, not everyone has benefited from this growth. Inequality has increased and labour market conditions are a concern. Costa Rica has a lower share of employed workers in the population than almost all OECD countries, unemployment remains well above its pre-global-financial-crisis level, labour market participation has decreased and the share of informal jobs is high. Recognising these challenges, Costa Rica has accelerated its structural reform momentum recently, with policy reforms underway or planned in several areas that present win-win opportunities to boost both productivity and inclusion. These include efforts to tackle labour market informality, simplify the minimum wage structure, increase competition and reduce regulatory burdens. In addition to further reforms in these priority areas, structural policy improvements are also needed to increase outcomes and reduce inequalities in education and address significant transport infrastructure gaps.

A stylized fact in criminology holds that those who commit crimes are more likely to be victims of crime, and vice versa. We use population-level administrative data of all police investigations in New Zealand to examine the possibility of this victim-offender overlap. Two-way fixed effects and dynamic panel models explore intertemporal relationships between victimization and offending. This analysis reveals that victim-offender overlap predominantly reflects population heterogeneity. However, a dynamic relationship does exist, and is primarily driven by 1) criminal incidents occurring close together in time and 2) simultaneous incidents where individuals are both offenders and victims (e.g., mutually combative assaults).