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Recent advances in spectral imaging technology have enabled the development of models that estimate various crop parameters from spectral imagery data. We developed partial least square (PLS) models to predict fruit yield of Satsuma mandarin using airborne hyperspectral imagery obtained several months before harvesting. Hyperspectral images in the 72 visible and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths (from 407 to 898 nm) were acquired over a citrus orchard during the early growing seasons of 2003, 2004 and 2005. The canopy features of individual trees were identified using pixel-based average spectral reflectance values for all 72 wavelengths from the acquired images. The acquired canopy features were then used as prediction variables to develop yield prediction models. These were developed using three techniques: (1) normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), simple ratio (SR) and photochemical reflectance index (PRI), (2) conventional multiple linear regression (MLR) models, and (3) PLS regression models. As we intended to predict yield several months before the harvesting season (generally late December), the conventional techniques (vegetation indices and MLR) did not predict well. In contrast, PLS models gave successful predictions for the three years. These results confirmed the hypothesized correlation between canopy features and citrus yield. The successful forecasting of yields several months or even one year ahead of the harvest season is expected to contribute to planning harvest schedules, generating prescription maps for dealing with fluctuations of yield in specific trees, control measures, and management practices.

SUMMARYIn 2002, the Chinese central government created a new rural cooperative medical system (NCMS), ensuring that both central and local governments partner with rural residents to reduce their copayments, thus making healthcare more affordable. Yet, significant gaps in health status and healthcare utilization persisted between urban and rural communities. Therefore, in 2009, healthcare reform was expanded, with (i) increased government financing and (ii) sharply reduced individual copayments for outpatient and inpatient care. Analyzing data from China's Ministry of Health, the Rural Cooperative Information Network, and Statistical Yearbooks, our findings suggest that healthcare reform has reached its preliminary objectivesgovernment financing has grown significantly in most rural provinces, especially those in poorer western and central China, and copayments in most rural provinces have been reduced. Significant intraprovincial inequality of support remains. The central government contributes more money for poor provinces than for rich ones; however, NCMS schemes operate at the county level, which vary significantly in their level of economic development and per capital gross domestic products (GDP) within a province. Data reveal that the compensation ratios for both outpatient and inpatient care are not adjusted to compensate for a rural county's level of economic development or per capita GDP. Consequently, a greater financial burden for healthcare persists among persons in the poorest rural regions. A recommendation for next step in healthcare reform is to pool resources at prefectural/municipal level and also adjust central government contributions according to the GDP level at prefectural/municipal level.

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We found some evidence for an effect of air pollutants on stroke attack risk.

The present study aimed to investigate the association between genetic polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) and susceptibility to ulcerative colitis (UC) in central China. The prevalence of GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1 gene polymorphisms were examined using polymerase chain reaction methods in 270 consecutive UC patients and 623 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. The frequencies of the GSTM1(null) and GSTT1(null) as well as GSTP1 (Val/Val) genotypes were significantly higher in UC patients than in the controls (70.74% vs. 41.74%, P = 0.0001; 64.82% vs. 47.19%, P = 0.0001; and 48.89% vs. 34.35%, P = 0.0004, respectively). When the UC patients were stratified according to clinical features, we found that the frequencies of the GSTT1(null) and GSTP1 (Val/Val) genotypes but not the GSTM1(null) genotype were significantly higher in patients with distal colitis than in extensive colitis (P = 0.0007, P = 0.001, and P = 0.271, respectively). However, these variant GST genotypes were not significantly linked to severity of the disease (P > 0.05). GST variant genotypes are strongly correlated with prevalence and extent but not with severity of UC in the Hubei Han population in central China.