Evaluation of earlier versus later dietary management in long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase or mitochondrial trifunctional protein deficiency::a systematic review

Background: Mitochondrial trifunctional protein (MTP) and long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCHAD) deficiencies are rare fatty acid β-oxidation disorders. Without dietary management the conditions are life-threatening. We conducted a systematic review to investigate whether pre-symptomatic dietary management following newborn screening provides better outcomes than treatment following symptomatic detection. Methods: We searched Web of Science, Medline, Pre-Medline, Embase and the Cochrane Library up to 23rd April 2018. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts and full texts for eligibility and quality appraised the studies. Data extraction was performed by one reviewer and checked by another. Results: We included 13 articles out of 7483 unique records. The 13 articles reported on 11 patient groups, including 174 people with LCHAD deficiency, 18 people with MTP deficiency and 12 people with undifferentiated LCHAD/MTP deficiency. Study quality was moderate to weak in all studies. Included studies suggested fewer heart and liver problems in screen-detected patients, but inconsistent results for mortality. Follow up analyses compared long-term outcomes of (1) pre-symptomatically versus symptomatically treated patients, (2) screened versus unscreened patients, and (3) asymptomatic screen-detected, symptomatic screen-detected, and clinically diagnosed patients in each study. For follow up analyses 1 and 2, we found few statistically significant differences in the long-term outcomes. For follow up analysis 3 we found a significant difference for only one comparison, in the incidence of cardiomyopathy between the three groups. Conclusions: There is some evidence that dietary management following screen-detection might be associated with a lower incidence of some LCHAD and MTP deficiency-related complications. However, the evidence base is limited by small study sizes, quality issues and risk of confounding. An internationally collaborative research effort is needed to fully examine the risks and the benefits to pre-emptive dietary management with particular attention paid to disease severity and treatment group.</p

The Effect of Parental Monitoring on Diabetes Management in Adolescents: A Systematic Review of the Literature

poster abstractObjective: Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes require parental guidance when it comes to the management of their glycemic control. Little is known regarding how parental monitoring affects adolescents’ diabetes control. A systematic review of the literature was performed to gain more insight into how parental monitoring influences glycemic control in adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes. Methods: Databases used to identify articles included: CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Web of Science. Search terms used were teenagers, adolescents, young adults, Type 1 Diabetes, parental monitoring, diabetes management and glycemic control. Inclusion criteria included: peer-reviewed research articles published between 2000 and 2013; involved a sample of adolescents (ages 8-18); conducted in the United States; written in English; and identified parental monitoring as the main independent variable. Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria. Six studies were longitudinal and three were cross-sectional. Seven studies collected data from the adolescent and parent while the other two studies collected data only from the adolescent. Sample sizes ranged from n=81-376. The most common glycemic control outcome factors measured were: hemoglobin A1C scores, adherence and glucose monitoring. Findings showed that parental monitoring is positively associated with adolescents’ adherence to diabetes management. There was mixed evidence regarding the father’s role. One study showed the father’s parental monitoring had significant impact on the adolescent adherence and A1C scores; however, another study reported the opposite. Overall, adolescents’ perception of positive parental monitoring provided better adherence. Conclusion: From the nine studies reviewed, it seems that there is some evidence that parental monitoring is positively associated with beneficial outcomes in glycemic control. However, future research is needed and should examine long-term effects of parental monitoring. Additionally, greater attention is needed on diverse populations such as single parent homes, families from different ethnic backgrounds, families of differing socioeconomic statuses and adolescents without parental figures

Prospective Relations among Low-Income African American Adolescents’ Maternal Attachment Security, Self-Worth, and Risk Behaviors

It is clear that education has an important effect on wages paid in the labour market However it not clear whether this is due to the role that education plays in raising the productivity of workers (the human capital explanation) or whether education simply reflects the ability of the worker (through a signalling role). In this paper we describe and implement, using a variety of UK datasets, a number of tests from the existing literature for discriminating between the two explanations. We find little support for signalling ideas in these tests. However, we have severe reservations about these results because our doubts about the power of these tests and the appropriateness of the data. We propose an alternative test, based on the response of some individuals to a change in education incentives offered to other individuals caused by the changes in the minimum school leaving age in the seventies. Using this idea we find that data in the UK appears to strongly support the human capital explanation

Prospective Relations among Low-Income African American Adolescents’ Maternal Attachment Security, Self-Worth, and Risk Behaviors

This study examined prospective mediating relations among mother-adolescent attachment security, self-worth, and risk behaviors, including substance use and violence, across ages 13–17 in a sample of 901 low-income African American adolescents. Path analyses revealed that self-worth was a significant mediator between attachment security and risk behaviors, such that earlier attachment security predicted self-worth 1 year later, which in turn, predicted substance use, weapon carrying, and fighting in the 3rd year. Implications for the role of the secure base concept within the context of urban poverty are discussed

The Collegiate Dancer as an Athlete: An Argument for Athletic Strength & Conditioning in Collegiate Dance Programs

Most collegiate sports athletes participate in compulsory athletic strength and conditioning; however, such requirements are not prevalent in university dance programs. Designed as arts degree programs, most requirements revolve around technique, history, pedagogy, theoretical understandings of composition, rehearsals, dance anatomy, and in certain cognates, education. The growing incorporation and paradigm shift of dance as a sport, as well as an art, supports the inclusion of collegiate dance programs into similar considerations, regulations, and requirements as competitive collegiate sports teams. As such, this is an argument and recommendation for the inclusion of athletic strength and conditioning in collegiate dance programs

An Exploration of Middle School Teachers’ Utilization of Culturally Responsive Teaching

Culturally responsive teaching (CRT) can be used as a means for effectively teaching and managing students and decreases the achievement gap between students of Color and their White counterparts. This qualitative study with an ethnographic design examines the utilization of culturally responsive teaching strategies of two middle school teachers and two principals in public schools on the Southwest side of Chicago. The study is guided by one research question: What aspects of culturally responsive teaching practices are teachers using in their teaching strategies? The study has two purposes: To analyze the effectiveness of two middle school teachers’ utilization of culturally responsive teaching principles within the public school district and determine if cultural awareness contributes to the use of CRT. The data was collected using the following methods for five weeks: teacher observations, teacher interviews, self-assessment surveys, principal questionnaires, and classroom resources. The results of the study reported that the two teachers utilized validating, comprehensive and inclusive, multidimensional, empowering, and transformative from Gay’s (2018) CRT framework. The principal’s questionnaire revealed that the teachers must have ongoing professional development opportunities on CRT in order for their teaching strategies to effectively accommodate the changing demographics of their students

Exercise training in group 2 pulmonary hypertension: which intensity and what modality

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) due to left-sided heart disease (LSHD) is a common and disconcerting occurrence. For example, both heart failure (HF) with preserved and reduced ejection fraction (HFpEF and HFrEF) often lead to PH as a consequence of a chronic elevation in left atrial filling pressure. A wealth of literature demonstrates the value of exercise training (ET) in patients with LSHD, which is particularly robust in patients with HFrEF and growing in patients with HFpEF. While the effects of ET have not been specifically explored in the LSHD–PH phenotype (i.e., composite pathophysiologic characteristics of patients in this advanced disease state), the overall body of evidence supports clinical application in this subgroup. Moderate intensity aerobic ET significantly improves peak oxygen consumption, quality of life and prognosis in patients with HF. Resistance ET significantly improves muscle strength and endurance in patients with HF, which further enhance functional capacity. When warranted, inspiratory muscle training and neuromuscular electrical stimulation are becoming recognized as important components of a comprehensive rehabilitation program. This review will provide a detailed account of ET programing considerations in patients with LSHD with a particular focus on those concomitantly diagnosed with PH

The role of Gai in the Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor inhibition of cell proliferation

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-78).The activation of Gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRHR) by the GnRH ligand has been shown to mediate antiproliferative effects in extra-pituitary cells and in reproductive cancer cell lines. The GnRHR couples to G&#945;q in pituitary gonadotropes. However, the GnRHR expressed in reproductive cancer cell lines is thought to couple to G&#945;i. Recent evidence also suggests that the antiproliferative effects may be mediated via G&#945;q in these cells. Therefore our study involved determining the role of G&#945;i in the antiproliferative effects mediated by the GnRHR. The results suggest that the G&#945;i pathway could play a role in mediating the antiproliferative effects of GnRH

Widespread winners and narrow-ranged losers: land use homogenizes biodiversity in local assemblages worldwide

Human use of the land (for agriculture and settlements) has a substantial negative effect on biodiversity globally. However, not all species are adversely affected by land use, and indeed, some benefit from the creation of novel habitat. Geographically rare species may be more negatively affected by land use than widespread species, but data limitations have so far prevented global multi-clade assessments of land-use effects on narrow-ranged and widespread species. We analyse a large, global database to show consistent differences in assemblage composition. Compared with natural habitat, assemblages in disturbed habitats have more widespread species on average, especially in urban areas and the tropics. All else being equal, this result means that human land use is homogenizing assemblage composition across space. Disturbed habitats show both reduced abundances of narrow-ranged species and increased abundances of widespread species. Our results are very important for biodiversity conservation because narrow-ranged species are typically at higher risk of extinction than widespread species. Furthermore, the shift to more widespread species may also affect ecosystem functioning by reducing both the contribution of rare species and the diversity of species’ responses to environmental changes among local assemblages

A novel isolator-based system promotes viability of human embryos during laboratory processing

In vitro fertilisation (IVF) and related technologies are arguably the most challenging of all cell culture applications. The starting material is a single cell from which one aims to produce an embryo capable of establishing a pregnancy eventually leading to a live birth. Laboratory processing during IVF treatment requires open manipulations of gametes and embryos, which typically involves exposure to ambient conditions. To reduce the risk of cellular stress, we have developed a totally enclosed system of interlinked isolator-based workstations designed to maintain oocytes and embryos in a physiological environment throughout the IVF process. Comparison of clinical and laboratory data before and after the introduction of the new system revealed that significantly more embryos developed to the blastocyst stage in the enclosed isolator-based system compared with conventional open-fronted laminar flow hoods. Moreover, blastocysts produced in the isolator-based system contained significantly more cells and their development was accelerated. Consistent with this, the introduction of the enclosed system was accompanied by a significant increase in the clinical pregnancy rate and in the proportion of embryos implanting following transfer to the uterus. The data indicate that protection from ambient conditions promotes improved development of human embryos. Importantly, we found that it was entirely feasible to conduct all IVF-related procedures in the isolator-based workstations