Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa), native to Southeast Asia, has traditionally been consumed as fresh leaves or teas. Under those conditions, exposure to 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH)-a potent μ-opioid receptor agonist-is minimal, as it occurs only at trace levels in leaf material. By contrast, the U.S. market offers chemically enriched or semi-synthetic 7-OH products, often marketed as 'kratom' yet chemically distinct from botanical preparations. '7-OH', '7-hydroxymitragynine', and 'kratom' were used as keywords; relevant literature was obtained from PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Pharmacological studies consistently identify 7-OH as a partial μ-opioid receptor agonist with nanomolar affinity, greater efficacy than mitragynine, and often exceeding the potency of morphine. Animal experiments demonstrate robust antinociceptive effects, respiratory depression, tolerance, dependence, and reinforcing properties characteristic of opioids. Human pharmacokinetic studies show systemic exposure after kratom ingestion, but concentrated 7-OH products bypass metabolic formation, producing markedly higher exposures. Regulatory surveillance, poison-center data, and marketplace audits confirm a rapid increase in availability and use of these products. State health departments have reported severe intoxications and fatalities. Clinical cases describe escalating use, medically managed withdrawal, and psychiatric destabilization, while forensic investigations document postmortem concentrations consistent with fatal opioid toxicity. Pediatric risk is amplified by developmental susceptibility, absence of age restrictions, and marketing in confectionary formats. Emerging analogues such as MGM-15 further extend this trajectory. Collectively, the evidence demonstrates that concentrated 7-OH products are pharmacologically and toxicologically distinct from kratom leaf and pose significant risks of morbidity and mortality under typical conditions of use.

Climate change presents multiple challenges to rural communities. Here, we investigated the toxicological potential of the six types of particulate matter most common to rural Arkansas: soil, road, and agricultural dusts, pollen, traffic exhaust, and particles from biomass burning in human small airway epithelial cells (SAECs). Biomass burning and agricultural dust demonstrated the most potent toxicological responses, exhibited as significant (p < 0.05) up-regulation of HMOX1 (oxidative stress) and TNFα (inflammatory response) genes as well as epigenetic alterations (altered expression of DNA methyltransferases DNMT1, DNMT3A, and DNMT3B, enzymatic activity, and DNA methylation of alpha satellite elements) that were evident at both 24 h and 72 h of exposure. We further demonstrate evidence of aridification in the state of Arkansas and the presence of winds capable of transporting agricultural dust- and biomass burning-associated particles far beyond their origination. Partnerships in the form of citizen science projects may provide important solutions to prevent and mitigate the negative effects of the rapidly evolving climate and improve the well-being of rural communities. Furthermore, the identification of the most toxic types of particulate matter could inform local policies related to agriculture, biomass burning, and dust control.

Advances in remote sensing and small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) have been applied to various precision agriculture applications. However, there has been limited research on the accuracy of real-time kinematic (RTK) sUAS photogrammetric elevation surveys, especially in preparation for precision agriculture practices that require precise topographic surfaces, such as increasing irrigation system efficiency. These practices include, but are not limited to, precision land grading, placement of levees, multiple inlet rice irrigation, and computerized hole size selection for furrow irrigation. All such practices rely, in some way, on the characterization of surface topography. While agro-terrestrial (ground-based) surveying is the dominant method of agricultural surveying, aerial surveying is emerging and attracting potential early adopters. This is the first study of its kind to assess the accuracy, precision, time, and cost efficiency of RTK sUAS surveying in comparison to traditional agro-terrestrial techniques. Our findings suggest sUAS are superior to ground survey methods in terms of relative elevation and produce much more precise raster surfaces than ground-based methods. We also showed that this emergent technology reduces costs and the time it takes to generate agricultural elevation surveys.