BACKGROUND: The built environment, as a critical factor influencing residents\' cardiovascular health, has a significant potential impact on the incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).
METHODS: Taking Xixiangtang District in Nanning City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China as a case study, we utilized the geographic location information of CVD patients, detailed road network data, and urban points of interest (POI) data. Kernel density estimation (KDE) and spatial autocorrelation analysis were specifically employed to identify the spatial distribution patterns, spatial clustering, and spatial correlations of built environment elements and diseases. The GeoDetector method (GDM) was used to assess the impact of environmental factors on diseases, and geographically weighted regression (GWR) analysis was adopted to reveal the spatial heterogeneity effect of environmental factors on CVD risk.
RESULTS: The results indicate that the built environment elements and CVDs samples exhibit significant clustering characteristics in their spatial distribution, with a positive correlation between the distribution density of environmental elements and the incidence of CVDs (Moran\'s I > 0, p < 0.01). Further factor detection revealed that the distribution of healthcare facilities had the most significant impact on CVDs (q = 0.532, p < 0.01), followed by shopping and consumption (q = 0.493, p < 0.01), dining (q = 0.433, p < 0.01), and transportation facilities (q = 0.423, p < 0.01), while the impact of parks and squares (q = 0.174, p < 0.01) and road networks (q = 0.159, p < 0.01) was relatively smaller. Additionally, the interaction between different built environment elements exhibited a bi-factor enhancement effect on CVDs. In the local analysis, the spatial heterogeneity of different built environment elements on CVDs further revealed the regional differences and complexities.
CONCLUSIONS: The spatial distribution of built environment elements is significantly correlated with CVDs to varying degrees and impacts differently across regions, underscoring the importance of the built environment on cardiovascular health. When planning and improving urban environments, elements and areas that have a more significant impact on CVDs should be given priority consideration.

Characterized by early construction periods, as the concentration of low-income populations and a high level of aging, affordable housing communities face prominent challenges such as incongruence between age-friendly construction and the needs of the older adult population. It is urgent to provide pathways and tools for identifying age-friendly issues and optimizing the built environment. The systematic evaluation of age-friendly communities serves as the foundation for implementing intervention measures by developers. Therefore, the construction of a scientifically systematic evaluation system becomes an objective necessity for age-friendly community development. Building upon existing research, this study systematically outlines the subjects, processes, methods, and content involved in constructing an age-friendly community evaluation system. By the methods such as factor analysis and analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the study focuses on the public spaces of affordable housing communities in Shenzhen as a case for constructing an age-friendly evaluation system. The empirical validation of the indicator system is conducted, and the application results are resulted into concrete improvement recommendations and action items, aiming to provide a practical, quantitative tool for community age-friendliness evaluation. The study reveals that adhering to an effective evaluation process, exploring collaborations among multiple stakeholders, determining hierarchical evaluation criteria, and adopting diversified evaluation methods are key to constructing an age-friendly evaluation system for communities. Additionally, the specificity of the evaluation system is influenced by regional demographic structures, policy backgrounds, and the built environment.

As the elderly population grows, there is a greater concern for their safety on the roads. This is particularly important for elderly pedestrians who are more vulnerable to accidents. In Spain, one of the most aged countries in the world, the elderly accounted for 70% of all pedestrian deaths in 2019. In this study, the focus was on analysing the occurrence of elderly pedestrian-vehicle collisions in Spanish municipalities and how it is related to the built environment. The study used the hurdle negative binomial model to analyse the number of elderly and non-elderly pedestrian accidents per municipality in 2016-2019. The exploratory analysis showed that cities above 50,000 inhabitants were safer for the elderly, and larger provincial capitals had lower elderly pedestrian traffic accident rates. The occurrence of all pedestrian traffic accidents was linked to the socio-demographic features. For elderly pedestrians, land use was found to be influential, with a lower proportion of land covered by manufacturing and service activities linked to a smaller number of accidents. Results showed that improving road safety for older pedestrians may not necessarily compromise the situation for the rest of population. Hence, policymakers should focus on infrastructure improvements adapted to the needs of elderly pedestrians.

Humans are exposed to diverse communities of microbes every day. With more time spent indoors by humans, investigations into the communities of microbes inhabiting occupied spaces have become important to deduce the impacts of these microbes on human health and building health. Studies so far have given considerable insight into the communities of the indoor microbiota humans interact with, but mainly focus on sampling surfaces or indoor dust from filters. Beneath the surfaces though, building envelopes have the potential to contain environments that would support the growth of microbial communities. But due to design choices and distance from ground moisture, for example, the temperature and humidity across a building will vary and cause environmental gradients. These microenvironments could then influence the composition of the microbial communities within the walls. Here we present a case study designed to quantify any patterns in the compositions of fungal and bacterial communities existing in a building envelope and determine some of the key variables, such as cardinal direction, distance from floor or distance from wall joinings, that may influence any microbial community composition variation. By drilling small holes across walls of a house, we extracted microbes onto air filters and conducted amplicon sequencing. We found sampling height (distance from the floor) and cardinal direction the wall was facing caused differences in the diversity of the microbial communities, showing that patterns in the microbial composition will be dependent on sampling location within the building. By sampling beneath the surfaces, our approach provides a more complete picture of the microbial condition of a building environment, with the significant variation in community composition demonstrating a potential sampling bias if multiple sampling locations across a building are not considered. By identifying features of the built environment that promote/retard microbial growth, improvements to building designs can be made to achieve overall healthier occupied spaces.

The construction sector plays a significant role in contributing to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, necessitating effective and practical solutions. This study addresses the underutilization of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in the construction sector and demonstrates its benefits as a decision-making tool for mitigating embodied carbon. The research focuses on a G+2 building in Dubai, UAE, conducting LCA during the construction phases to assess embodied carbon levels. Results indicate that the careful selection of construction materials and involvement of LCA at the early stages of construction resulted in a 26 % reduction in the building\'s embodied carbon. The study recognizes the limitations of LCA but emphasizes its value and recommends future research to enhance its coverage of sustainability aspects. The findings highlight the construction sector\'s potential to overcome anthropogenic challenges through green solutions. Policymakers\' support is crucial for implementing strategies that reduce the construction industry\'s carbon footprint and embrace a circular economy. The study contributes to the literature by bridging the gap in understanding the application of LCA in construction decision-making. It emphasizes the importance of transitioning to sustainable practices and circularity in the construction sector. By using LCA as a tool, construction professionals can make informed choices to reduce embodied carbon. This study underscores the urgency for adopting greener practices in the construction sector, leading to a more sustainable and low-carbon future.

BACKGROUND: Daily stressors are associated with cognitive decline and increased risk of heart disease, depression, and other debilitating chronic illnesses in midlife adults. Daily stressors tend to occur at home or at work and are more frequent in urban versus rural settings. Conversely, spending time in natural environments such as parks or forests, or even viewing nature-themed images in a lab setting, is associated with lower levels of perceived stress and is hypothesized to be a strong stress \"buffer,\" reducing perceived stress even after leaving the natural setting. However, many studies of daily stress have not captured environmental contexts and relied on end-of-day recall instead of in-the-moment data capture. With new technology, these limitations can be addressed to enhance knowledge of the daily stress experience.
OBJECTIVE: We propose to use our novel custom-built Stress Reports in Variable Environments (STRIVE) ecological momentary assessment mobile phone app to measure the experience of daily stress of midlife adults in free-living conditions. Using our app to capture data in real time will allow us to determine (1) where and when daily stress occurs for midlife adults, (2) whether midlife adults\' daily stressors are linked to certain elements of the built and natural environment, and (3) how ecological momentary assessment measurement of daily stress is similar to and different from a modified version of the popular Daily Inventory of Stressful Events measurement tool that captures end-of-day stress reports (used in the Midlife in the United States [MIDUS] survey).
METHODS: We will enroll a total of 150 midlife adults living in greater Indianapolis, Indiana, in this study on a rolling basis for 3-week periods. As those in underrepresented minority groups and low-income areas have previously been found to experience greater levels of stress, we will use stratified sampling to ensure that half of our study sample is composed of underrepresented minorities (eg, Black, American Indian, Hispanic, or Native Pacific Islanders) and approximately one-third of our sample falls within low-, middle-, and high-income brackets.
RESULTS: This project is funded by the National Institute on Aging from December 2022 to November 2024. Participant enrollment began in August 2023 and is expected to finish in July 2024. Data will be spatiotemporally analyzed to determine where and when stress occurs for midlife adults. Pictures of stressful environments will be qualitatively analyzed to determine the common elements of stressful environments. Data collected by the STRIVE app will be compared with retrospective Daily Inventory of Stressful Events data.
CONCLUSIONS: Completing this study will expand our understanding of midlife adults\' experience of stress in free-living conditions and pave the way for data-driven individual and community-based intervention designs to promote health and well-being in midlife adults.
UNASSIGNED: DERR1-10.2196/51845.

Sustainable aquaculture relies on multiple factors, including water quality, fish diets, and farmed fish. Replacing fishmeal (FM) with alternative protein sources is key for improving sustainability in aquaculture and promoting fish health. Indeed, great research efforts have been made to evaluate novel feed formulations, focusing especially on the effects on the fish gut microbiome. Few studies have explored host-environment interactions. In the present study, we evaluated the influence of novel insect-based (Tenebrio molitor) fish diets on the microbiome at the water-fish interface in an engineered rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) farming ecosystem. Using 16S rRNA gene metabarcoding, we comprehensively analyzed the microbiomes of water, tank biofilm, fish intestinal mucus, fish cutis, and feed samples.
Core microbiome analysis revealed the presence of a highly reduced core shared by all sample sources, constituted by Aeromonas spp., in both the control and novel feed test groups. Network analysis showed that samples were clustered based on the sample source, with no significant differences related to the feed formulation tested. Thus, the different diets did not seem to affect the environment (water and tank biofilm) and fish (cutis and intestinal mucus) microbiomes. To disentangle the contribution of feed at a finer scale, we performed a differential abundance analysis and observed differential enrichment/impoverishment in specific taxa, comparing the samples belonging to the control diet group and the insect-based diet group.
Omic exploration of the water-fish interface exposes patterns that are otherwise undetected. These data demonstrate a link between the environment and fish and show that subtle but significant differences are caused by feed composition. Thus, the research presented here is a step towards positively influencing the aquaculture environment and its microbiome.

The emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from interior materials can significantly impact people\'s health and daily activities, necessitating effective management. In the construction of the interior built environment, plants serve as a suitable means to enhance air quality. They not only function as ecological living materials for air purification and VOCs removal but are also valued for their aesthetic appeal. However, often the emphasis in designing green infrastructure is placed more on the aesthetics of planting design rather than considering plants\' ecological properties. This research examines the ability of 12 plant species used in the interior green wall design at Harvard University\'s Smith Center as a case study to decompose and absorb VOCs through experimental studies. By integrating ecological properties and key factors such as spatial and budget constraints into the design process, this research explores the potential of using an algorithmic model to select plant species capable of reducing interior VOC pollution in green wall design. The significance of this study lies in its contribution to indoor environmental health and environmental management practices through providing a potential plant selection model and suggesting a relevant workflow for interior planting design with the goal of controlling VOC emissions. By leveraging the knowledge gained from experiments on the VOC removal abilities of selected plant species, this study offers a valuable resource for practitioners seeking to create innovative indoor air cleaning and decontamination technologies.

The aim of this study was to examine the influencing pathways of the neighborhood built environment on children\'s outdoor leisure activities and obesity.
A total of 378 elementary school students from 10 schools in central Shanghai were selected by a convenient sampling method for questionnaire survey and accelerometer tracking.
1) The neighborhood built environment could affect children\'s obesity not only through direct effect (β = 0.15, p < 0.05), but also through the mediating effect of outdoor leisure activities (β = 0.19, p < 0.05). 2) For boys, the neighborhood built environment could affect children\'s obesity not only through direct effect (β = 0.17, p < 0.05), but also through the mediating effect of outdoor leisure activities (β = 0.26, p < 0.05). For girls, the neighborhood built environment could affect children\'s obesity only through the mediating effect of outdoor leisure activities (β = 0.13, p < 0.05).
The neighborhood built environment and outdoor leisure activities are important influencing factors in children\'s obesity. The neighborhood built environment and outdoor leisure activities could have direct and indirect effects on children\'s obesity, while there are gender differences in the influencing pathways of the neighborhood built environment on children\'s obesity. This study suggests that improving the neighborhood built environment and promoting outdoor leisure activities in children have important value for influencing children\'s obesity.

Nursing stations are important features of medical centers that are constantly in use. As nursing is an inherently stressful occupation, nursing stations should be designed to minimize stress on those who must spend time there.
This study evaluated the effect of environmental design factors on mitigating the stress levels on nurses in nursing stations by determining the environmental factors that most influence the perceptual senses that affect physical and psychological comfort.
A quantitative approach was used to evaluate the parameters that affect the sensory perceptions of nurses in nursing stations at four hospitals in Tehran. A survey was conducted to identify environmental design parameters that affect the visual, auditory, tactile, kinesthetic, and olfactory senses.
The results revealed that the olfactory category scored highest, followed by the auditory, visual and tactile categories, which had similar scores, and kinesthetic was ranked last.
A connection was revealed between the educational level of the nurses and environmental factors affecting their sensory perception in terms of materials, aesthetics and the appropriate number of windows as a visual sense, and ergonomics as a kinesthetic sense. Significantly, the gender variable differed in the Furniture variable based on comfort of seating with respect structure. Based on the results of this study, a combination of olfactory, visual, and auditory factors should be required at the nursing stations to decrease the stress level of nurses.