Cross-Continental Dispersal of Major HIV-1 CRF01_AE Clusters in China.

Since the 1990s, several distinct clusters of human immunodeficiency virus-type 1 (HIV-1) CRF01_AE related to a large epidemic in China have been identified, but it is yet poorly understood whether its transmission has dispersed globally. We aimed to characterize and quantify the genetic relationship of HIV-1 CRF01_AEs circulating in China and other countries. Using representative sequences of Chinese clusters as queries, all relevant CRF01_AE pol sequences in two large databases (the Los Alamos HIV sequence database and the UK HIV Drug Resistance Database) were selected with the online basic local alignment search (BLAST) tool. Phylogenetic and phylogeographic analyses were then carried out to characterize possible linkage of CRF01_AE strains between China and the rest of the world. We identified that 269 strains isolated in other parts of the world were associated with five major Chinese CRF01_AE clusters. 80.7% were located within CN.01AE.HST/IDU-2, most of which were born in Southeast Asia. 17.8% were clustered with CN.01AE.MSM-4 and -5. Two distinct sub-clusters associated with Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM) emerged in HK-United Kingdom and Japan after 2000. Our analysis suggests that HIV-1 CRF01_AE strains related to viral transmission in China were initially brought to the United Kingdom or other countries during the 1990s by Asian immigrants or returning international tourists from Southeast Asia, and then after having circulated among MSM in China for several years, these Chinese strains dispersed outside again, possibly through MSM network. This study provided evidence of regional and global dispersal of Chinese CRF01_AE strains. It would also help understand the global landscape of HIV epidemic associated with CRF01_AE transmission and highlight the need for further international collaborative study in this field

Anxiety in children attending a specialist inherited cardiac arrhythmia clinic: a questionnaire study

Objectives: Inherited cardiac arrhythmia syndromes are life-threatening conditions. There is a paucity of research examining the psychological impact of these conditions in children. This study had three main aims. The first was to explore how the Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire (CAQ) performs in a child population. The second aim was to compare the level of anxiety of children with an inherited cardiac arrhythmia syndrome and children being screened due to a family history of an inherited cardiac arrhythmia syndrome to control children. The third aim was to examine associations between a sudden cardiac death in the immediate family and levels of anxiety. Method: 47 children with an inherited cardiac arrhythmia syndrome, 78 children with a family history and 75 control children completed the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS), the Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire for Children (CAQ-C) and the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Children were between the age of 8 and 16 years. Results: The study found the CAQ-C had promising psychometric properties. There were no significant differences in total anxiety scores (as measured by the RCADS) between the three groups. There were significant differences in cardiac-focused anxiety scores between the three groups. Conclusions: The CAQ has promising psychometric properties in a child population. However, further research is needed. Children attending specialist inherited cardiac arrhythmia clinics should be targeted for routine psychological screening and offered psychological intervention where necessary

Genetic Characterization of Five Hatchery Populations of the Pacific Abalone (Haliotis discus hannai) Using Microsatellite Markers

The Pacific abalone, Haliotis discus hannai, is a popular food in Eastern Asia. Aquacultural production of this species has increased because of recent resource declines, the growing consumption, and ongoing government-operated stock release programs. Therefore, the genetic characterization of hatchery populations is necessary to maintain the genetic diversity of this species and to develop more effective aquaculture practices. We analyzed the genetic structures of five cultured populations in Korea using six microsatellite markers. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 15 to 64, with an average of 23.5. The mean observed and expected heterozygosities were 0.797 and 0.904, respectively. The inbreeding coefficient FIS ranged from 0.054 to 0.184 (mean FIS = 0.121 ± 0.056). The genetic differentiation across all populations was low but significant (overall FST = 0.009, P < 0.01). Pairwise multilocus FST tests, estimates of genetic distance, and phylogenetic and principal component analyses did not show a consistent relationship between geographic and genetic distances. These results could reflect extensive aquaculture, the exchange of breeds and eggs between hatcheries and/or genetic drift due to intensive breeding practices. Thus, for optimal resource management, the genetic variation of hatchery stocks should be monitored and inbreeding controlled within the abalone stocks that are being released every year. This genetic information will be useful for the management of both H. discus hannai fisheries and the aquaculture industry

Physics in Riemann's mathematical papers

Riemann's mathematical papers contain many ideas that arise from physics, and some of them are motivated by problems from physics. In fact, it is not easy to separate Riemann's ideas in mathematics from those in physics. Furthermore, Riemann's philosophical ideas are often in the background of his work on science. The aim of this chapter is to give an overview of Riemann's mathematical results based on physical reasoning or motivated by physics. We also elaborate on the relation with philosophy. While we discuss some of Riemann's philosophical points of view, we review some ideas on the same subjects emitted by Riemann's predecessors, and in particular Greek philosophers, mainly the pre-socratics and Aristotle. The final version of this paper will appear in the book: From Riemann to differential geometry and relativity (L. Ji, A. Papadopoulos and S. Yamada, ed.) Berlin: Springer, 2017

Plugging a hole and lightening the burden: A process evaluation of a practice education team

Aim: To investigate the perceptions of clinical and senior managers about the role of Practice Educators employed in one acute hospital in the UK. Background: Producing nurses who are fit for practice, purpose and academic award is a key issue for nurse education partnership providers in the UK. Various new models for practice learning support structures and new roles within health care institutions have been established. To sustain funding and policy support for these models, there is a need for evaluation research. Design: A process evaluation methodology was employed to determine the current value of a practice education team and to provide information to guide future direction. Methods: Data were collected through semi-structured telephone interviews using a previously designed schedule. All senior nurse managers (N=5) and a purposive sample of clinical managers (n=13) who had personal experience of and perceptions about the role of practice educators provided the data. Interview notes were transcribed, coded and a thematic framework devised to present the results. Results: A number of key themes emerged including: qualities needed for being a successful practice educator; visibility and presence of practice educators; providing a link with the university; ‘plugging a hole’ in supporting learning needs; providing relief to practitioners in dealing with ‘the burden of students’; alleviating the ‘plight of students’; and effects on student attrition. Conclusions: Findings provided evidence for the continued funding of the practice educator role with improvements to be made in dealing with stakeholder expectations and outcomes. Relevance to clinical practice: In the UK, there still remain concerns about the fitness for practice of newly registered nurses, prompting a recent national consultation by the professional regulating body. Despite fiscal pressures, recommendations for further strengthening of all systems that will support the quality of practice learning may continue to sustain practice learning support roles

Genetic diversity of Brazilian isolates of feline immunodeficiency virus

We isolated Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) from three adult domestic cats, originating from two open shelters in Brazil. Viruses were isolated from PBMC following co-cultivation with the feline T-lymphoblastoid cell line MYA-1. All amplified env gene products were cloned directly into pGL8MYA. The nucleic acid sequences of seven clones were determined and then compared with those of previously described isolates. The sequences of all of the Brazilian virus clones were distinct and phylogenetic analysis revealed that all belong to subtype B. Three variants isolated from one cat and two variants were isolated from each of the two other cats, indicating that intrahost diversity has the potential to pose problems for the treatment and diagnosis of FIV infection

The activity of the histone chaperone yeast Asf1 in the assembly and disassembly of histone H3/H4–DNA complexes

The deposition of the histones H3/H4 onto DNA to give the tetrasome intermediate and the displacement of H3/H4 from DNA are thought to be the first and the last steps in nucleosome assembly and disassembly, respectively. Anti-silencing function 1 (Asf1) is a chaperone of the H3/H4 dimer that functions in both of these processes. However, little is known about the thermodynamics of chaperone–histone interactions or the direct role of Asf1 in the formation or disassembly of histone–DNA complexes. Here, we show that Saccharomyces cerevisiae Asf1 shields H3/H4 from unfavorable DNA interactions and aids the formation of favorable histone–DNA interactions through the formation of disomes. However, Asf1 was unable to disengage histones from DNA for tetrasomes formed with H3/H4 and strong nucleosome positioning DNA sequences or tetrasomes weakened by mutant (H3K56Q/H4) histones or non-positioning DNA sequences. Furthermore, Asf1 did not associate with preformed tetrasomes. These results are consistent with the measured affinity of Asf1 for H3/H4 dimers of 2.5 nM, which is weaker than the association of H3/H4 for DNA. These studies support a mechanism by which Asf1 aids H3/H4 deposition onto DNA but suggest that additional factors or post-translational modifications are required for Asf1 to remove H3/H4 from tetrasome intermediates in chromatin

Summary of data reported to CDC's national automated biosurveillance system, 2008

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>BioSense is the US national automated biosurveillance system. Data regarding chief complaints and diagnoses are automatically pre-processed into 11 broader syndromes (e.g., respiratory) and 78 narrower sub-syndromes (e.g., asthma). The objectives of this report are to present the types of illness and injury that can be studied using these data and the frequency of visits for the syndromes and sub-syndromes in the various data types; this information will facilitate use of the system and comparison with other systems.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>For each major data source, we summarized information on the facilities, timeliness, patient demographics, and rates of visits for each syndrome and sub-syndrome.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In 2008, the primary data sources were the 333 US Department of Defense, 770 US Veterans Affairs, and 532 civilian hospital emergency department facilities. Median times from patient visit to record receipt at CDC were 2.2 days, 2.0 days, and 4 hours for these sources respectively. Among sub-syndromes, we summarize mean 2008 visit rates in 45 infectious disease categories, 11 injury categories, 7 chronic disease categories, and 15 other categories.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We present a systematic summary of data that is automatically available to public health departments for monitoring and responding to emergencies.</p

Care Seeking for Neonatal Illness in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review

Hadley Herbert and colleagues systematically review newborn care-seeking behaviors by caregivers in low- and middle-income countries