Nutrition in Chronic Conditions

The effects of nutrition on chronic conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia and stroke, continue to generate interest among researchers. This is based on the fact that diet is a modifiable risk factor for these diseases, which manifest either as single entities or in co-morbid states in individuals and populations around the world. In particular, the prevalence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease is on the increase, especially in developed countries, but also in developing economies, partly due to lifestyle changes, including diet. For example, ischaemic heart disease is the leading cause of death globally. When combined with stroke, they accounted for 15 million deaths in 2015 and are the world’s greatest killers (WHO, 2017). Furthermore, WHO (2016) reported that there were an estimated 422 million adults living with diabetes in 2014. This is significantly higher than the 108 million in 1980, representing a rise in worldwide diabetes prevalence from 4.7% in 1980 to 8.5% in 2014 among the adult population. These chronic conditions and their associated complications have significant implications for morbidity and mortality, not to mention huge costs to the health services around the world. The composition of the diet, the proportion and types of macronutrients and micronutrients present in the diet are major contributors to these diseases. In addition, the beneficial effects of nutritional interventions have been well documented although differences remain among researchers with respect to their overall impact. The evaluation of the role of nutrition in chronic conditions draws on its effect on body weight and body composition, glycaemic and insulin excursions and vascular remodelling. The effect of the diet in modulating gut microbiota dysbiosis is also an evolving area of research. Therefore, this Special Issue Book on “Nutrition and Chronic Conditions” is aimed at examining the effect of nutrition in the development, care and management of chronic conditions

Using Video Activity Reports to Support Remote Project-Based Learning

Distance learning has been expanding. Learner engagement is particularly important in project-based learning (PBL), but the interaction between teacher and learner and the understanding of learner status, including engagement, is not easy. This study aims to support teacher-learner communication based on learner engagement for remote PBL. In this paper, we propose the use of video activity reports by learners to estimate and understand learner engagement and to demonstrate its feasibility on the basis of the relationship between verbal and nonverbal information that can be obtained from video activity reports and learner engagement. Analysis of 232 video activity reports submitted by eight graduate students while working on remote research-based PBLs reveals that learner engagement decreases (1) when the report contained negative words, (2) when filled pauses were frequent or long, and (3) when silent pauses were infrequent or short. Furthermore, the feasibility of an AI-based support system is demonstrated through the design and implementation of a prototype

Effective and Acceptable Eco-Driving Guidance for Human-Driving Vehicles: A Review

Eco-driving guidance refers to courses, warnings, or suggestions provided to human drivers to improve driving behaviour to enable less energy use and emissions. This paper reviews existing eco-driving guidance studies and identifies challenges to tackle in the future. We summarize two categories of current guidance systems, static and dynamic, distinguished by whether real-world driving records are used to generate behaviour guidance or not. We find that influencing factors, such as the content of suggestions, the display methods, and drivers’ socio-demographic characteristics, have varied effects on the guidance results across studies. Drivers are reported to have basic eco-driving knowledge, while the question of how to motivate the acceptance and practice of such behaviour, especially in the long term, is overlooked. Adaptive driving suggestions based on drivers’ individual habits can improve the effectiveness and acceptance while this field is under investigation. In-vehicle assistance presents potential safety issues, and visualized in-vehicle assistance is reported to be most distractive. Given existing studies focusing on the operational level, a common agreement on the guidance design and associated influencing factors has yet to be reached. Research on the systematic and tactical design of eco-driving guidance and in-vehicle interaction is advised

The specificity of B-cell response in multiple sclerosis

PhDOne of the pathological features of multiple sclerosis (MS) is the presence of a long lived chronic inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS) with presence of oligoclonal IgG and IgM bands (OCBs) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) derived from clonally expanded B cells. In my PhD I have tested the hypothesis that the intrathecal B cells response is antigen driven and screened putative candidate antigenic epitopes. Materials and methods: Brain tissues were supplied from The UK Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank. Total RNA was extracted from the brain tissues from 14 patients with MS after homogenization of the snap frozen blocks and cDNA obtained. VH and VL fragments were amplified from IgM and IgG and cloned in an in house vector to build a phage display single chain fragment variable (scFv) antibody library. The library was used to analyse the VH and VL usage, somatic mutation and clonal expansion in the MS brain and to select for scFv specific to putative autoantigens candidates. Results and discussion: Two libraries of VH only and VH plus VL gene segments from MS brain’s B cells were built. The sequences analysis has revealed a biased usage of VH and VL and evidence of clonal expansion thus supporting an antigen driven response. The auto-antigen candidates chosen for screening the libraries were the myelin basic protein (MBP)-proteolipid protein (PLP) fusion protein MP4 and specific binders were selected as highlighted with monoclonal phage ELISA. Conclusion: A MS disease specific phage display antibody library was built to facilitate the analysis of the disease specific V gene usage in the MS brain. Selection using this library has provided a proof of concept that this library is functional. The library will be used in the future to identify human antibody fragments against candidate autoantigens either for diagnostic or therapeutic applications

INVESTIGATING THE VALIDITY OF A MATURITY MODEL FOR STAGING ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY OF NONPROFIT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of a maturity model for staging the capacity of nonprofit community organizations to implement or sustain social interventions or demonstration programs. During the period 1999 to 2001, a five-stage maturity model was synthesized using knowledge and experience derived from diverse fields, and applied to small nonprofit organizations in an iterative process of (a) application, (b) analysis, (c) revision, and (d) re-application. Two raters with organizational experience, in addition to the developer, were trained to use the instrument. They participated in all phases of the formative development of the maturity model. The resulting estimation of the instrument's validity is based on convergent results of four analyses; (a) content validation by comparison of the new instrument with existing instruments assessing capacity to determine the extent to which it assesses important dimensions of organizational capacity, (b) construct validation by comparison of an early version of the model with a later version to assess its evolution, (c) estimates of interrater reliability among three raters, and (d) construct validation through feedback from agency staff and governing board members and feedback from staff involved in funding those agencies. The results of these analyses are mixed, not establishing statistical conclusion validity, but showing promise for the instrument in its formative stage of development