Edible crabs “Go West”: migrations and incubation cycle of Cancer pagurus revealed by electronic tags

Crustaceans are key components of marine ecosystems which, like other exploited marine taxa, show seasonable patterns of distribution and activity, with consequences for their availability to capture by targeted fisheries. Despite concerns over the sustainability of crab fisheries worldwide, difficulties in observing crabs’ behaviour over their annual cycles, and the timings and durations of reproduction, remain poorly understood. From the release of 128 mature female edible crabs tagged with electronic data storage tags (DSTs), we demonstrate predominantly westward migration in the English Channel. Eastern Channel crabs migrated further than western Channel crabs, while crabs released outside the Channel showed little or no migration. Individual migrations were punctuated by a 7-month hiatus, when crabs remained stationary, coincident with the main period of crab spawning and egg incubation. Incubation commenced earlier in the west, from late October onwards, and brooding locations, determined using tidal geolocation, occurred throughout the species range. With an overall return rate of 34%, our results demonstrate that previous reluctance to tag crabs with relatively high-cost DSTs for fear of loss following moulting is unfounded, and that DSTs can generate precise information with regards life-history metrics that would be unachievable using other conventional means

Asking questions can help: development and preliminary evaluation of a question prompt list for palliative care patients

Question prompt lists (QPLs) have been shown to be an inexpensive and effective communication tool for patients in oncology consultations. We aimed to develop and pilot a QPL for palliative care (PC) patients. In order to identify suitable questions for inclusion in the QPL, we conducted focus groups and individual interviews with 19 patients, 24 carers and 22 PC health professionals. A further 21 health professionals reviewed the draft document. The draft QPL was piloted in 23 patients. In total, 112 questions were identified and grouped into eight categories. All participants felt that the QPL, in booklet form, could be a useful tool. Out of 23 patients in the pilot study, 22 agreed that the QPL was helpful, contained useful questions, was easy to understand and would be useful in the future. State anxiety (STAI) decreased after receiving the booklet and seeing the doctor in 16 out of 19 patients (overall anxiety decreased by a median of 8, IQR 1-13). Participants in the pilot study endorsed the inclusion of end-of-life issues in the QPL, despite some reservations expressed about this by health professionals in the individual interviews. We have identified a specific QPL that might facilitate useful dialogue between PC patients and their doctor. The QPL has strong support from patients, their carers and relevant health professionals

Hygienic characteristics of radishes grown in soil contaminated with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia

Background: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a plant growth-promoter. This bacterium is also implicated in human diseases. Thus, after the use of this bacterium in agriculture, the safety of the final products has to be verified. Due to the ubiquitous presence of S. maltophilia in soil, in this study a massive contamination was simulated to evaluate the growth and safety of Raphanus sativus L.. Results: Different inoculums and soil treatment conditions were tested. Soils were analysed weekly and the radishes at harvest for their microbial loads and presence/persistence of S. maltophilia LMG 6606. The concentration of the bacterium added in the different trials decreased during the first week, but increased thereafter and determined a significant increase of growth parameters of radishes. Conclusions: The addition of S. maltophilia LMG 6606 to non-autoclaved soil enhanced the productivity of radishes. The bacterium did not internalize in the hypocotyls, but colonized the external surface ensuring the safety of the products. Thus, a sanitizing bath of hypocotyls before consumption is necessary

Arm-in-cage testing of natural human-derived mosquito repellents

BACKGROUND: Individual human subjects are differentially attractive to mosquitoes and other biting insects. Previous investigations have demonstrated that this can be attributed partly to enhanced production of natural repellent chemicals by those individuals that attract few mosquitoes in the laboratory. The most important compounds in this respect include three aldehydes, octanal, nonanal and decanal, and two ketones, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one and geranylacetone [(E)-6,10-dimethylundeca-5,9-dien-2-one]. In olfactometer trials, these compounds interfered with attraction of mosquitoes to a host and consequently show promise as novel mosquito repellents. METHODS: To test whether these chemicals could provide protection against mosquitoes, laboratory repellency trials were carried out to test the chemicals individually at different concentrations and in different mixtures and ratios with three major disease vectors: Anopheles gambiae, Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes aegypti. RESULTS: Up to 100% repellency was achieved depending on the type of repellent compound tested, the concentration and the relative composition of the mixture. The greatest effect was observed by mixing together two compounds, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one and geranylacetone in a 1:1 ratio. This mixture exceeded the repellency of DEET when presented at low concentrations. The repellent effect of this mixture was maintained over several hours. Altering the ratio of these compounds significantly affected the behavioural response of the mosquitoes, providing evidence for the ability of mosquitoes to detect and respond to specific mixtures and ratios of natural repellent compounds that are associated with host location. CONCLUSION: The optimum mixture of 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one and geranylacetone was a 1:1 ratio and this provided the most effective protection against all species of mosquito tested. With further improvements in formulation, selected blends of these compounds have the potential to be exploited and developed as human-derived novel repellents for personal protection

Compliance and persistence with osteoporosis medications: A critical review of the literature

It is widely acknowledged that compliance and persistence with oral osteoporosis medications, particularly with bisphosphonates, is poor. Several excellent reviews have been written on compliance and persistence with osteoporosis medications and have discussed improvements seen with extended dosing intervals. This review begins with studies on extended dosing intervals to examine the limitations of administrative claims data. It also looks at compliance and persistence across multiple medical conditions, examining the importance of prescription fulfillment, intentional choice, causation and possible interventions

An Open Access Database of Genome-wide Association Results

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The number of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) is growing rapidly leading to the discovery and replication of many new disease loci. Combining results from multiple GWAS datasets may potentially strengthen previous conclusions and suggest new disease loci, pathways or pleiotropic genes. However, no database or centralized resource currently exists that contains anywhere near the full scope of GWAS results.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We collected available results from 118 GWAS articles into a database of 56,411 significant SNP-phenotype associations and accompanying information, making this database freely available here. In doing so, we met and describe here a number of challenges to creating an open access database of GWAS results. Through preliminary analyses and characterization of available GWAS, we demonstrate the potential to gain new insights by querying a database across GWAS.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using a genomic bin-based density analysis to search for highly associated regions of the genome, positive control loci (e.g., MHC loci) were detected with high sensitivity. Likewise, an analysis of highly repeated SNPs across GWAS identified replicated loci (e.g., <it>APOE</it>, <it>LPL</it>). At the same time we identified novel, highly suggestive loci for a variety of traits that did not meet genome-wide significant thresholds in prior analyses, in some cases with strong support from the primary medical genetics literature (<it>SLC16A7, CSMD1, OAS1</it>), suggesting these genes merit further study. Additional adjustment for linkage disequilibrium within most regions with a high density of GWAS associations did not materially alter our findings. Having a centralized database with standardized gene annotation also allowed us to examine the representation of functional gene categories (gene ontologies) containing one or more associations among top GWAS results. Genes relating to cell adhesion functions were highly over-represented among significant associations (p < 4.6 × 10^-14), a finding which was not perturbed by a sensitivity analysis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We provide access to a full gene-annotated GWAS database which could be used for further querying, analyses or integration with other genomic information. We make a number of general observations. Of reported associated SNPs, 40% lie within the boundaries of a RefSeq gene and 68% are within 60 kb of one, indicating a bias toward gene-centricity in the findings. We found considerable heterogeneity in information available from GWAS suggesting the wider community could benefit from standardization and centralization of results reporting.</p

Osteoporosis-related fracture case definitions for population-based administrative data

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Population-based administrative data have been used to study osteoporosis-related fracture risk factors and outcomes, but there has been limited research about the validity of these data for ascertaining fracture cases. The objectives of this study were to: (a) compare fracture incidence estimates from administrative data with estimates from population-based clinically-validated data, and (b) test for differences in incidence estimates from multiple administrative data case definitions.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty-five case definitions for incident fractures of the hip, wrist, humerus, and clinical vertebrae were constructed using diagnosis codes in hospital data and diagnosis and service codes in physician billing data from Manitoba, Canada. Clinically-validated fractures were identified from the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos). Generalized linear models were used to test for differences in incidence estimates.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For hip fracture, sex-specific differences were observed in the magnitude of under- and over-ascertainment of administrative data case definitions when compared with CaMos data. The length of the fracture-free period to ascertain incident cases had a variable effect on over-ascertainment across fracture sites, as did the use of imaging, fixation, or repair service codes. Case definitions based on hospital data resulted in under-ascertainment of incident clinical vertebral fractures. There were no significant differences in trend estimates for wrist, humerus, and clinical vertebral case definitions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The validity of administrative data for estimating fracture incidence depends on the site and features of the case definition.</p

Development of a battery of instruments for detailed measurement of health status in patients with COPD in routine care: the Nijmegen Clinical Screening Instrument

Contains fulltext : 80284.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)PURPOSE: To compose a battery of instruments that provides a detailed assessment of health status (HS) in COPD but that is applicable and clinically meaningful in routine care. METHODS: In a previous study, we developed the Nijmegen Integral Assessment Framework (NIAF) that organizes existing tests and instruments by the sub-domains of HS they measure. Based on clinical and statistical criteria (correlation coefficients and Cronbach alpha's) we selected for each sub-domain instruments from the NIAF. A COPD-study group was used to determine c-scores, and two control groups were used to determine the score ranges indicating normal functioning versus clinically relevant problems for each sub-domain. Existing questionnaire completion software (TestOrganiser) was adapted to enhance clinical applicability. RESULTS: The NCSI measures eleven sub-domains of physiological functioning, symptoms, functional impairment, and quality of life. The TestOrganiser automatically processes the data and produces the graphical PatientProfileChart, which helps to easily interpret results. This envisages the problem areas and discrepancies between the different sub-domains. CONCLUSION: The NCSI provides a valid and detailed picture of a patient's HS within 15-25 min. In combination with the PatientProfileChart, the NCSI can be used perfectly in routine care as screening instrument and as a guide in patient-tailored treatment

Cancer screening and preventative care among long-term cancer survivors in the United Kingdom

BACKGROUND: Long-term cancer survivors in the United Kingdom are mostly followed up in a primary care setting by their general practitioner; however, there is little research on the use of services. This study examines whether cancer survivors receive adequate screening and preventative care in UK primary care. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We identified a cohort of long-term survivors of breast, colorectal and prostate cancer with at least a 5-year survival using the General Practice Research Database, with controls matched for age, gender and practice. We compared adherence with cancer screening and the use of preventative care between cancer survivors and controls. RESULTS: The cancer survivors' cohort consisted of 18 612 breast, 5764 colorectal and 4868 prostate cancer survivors. Most cancer survivors receive cancer screening at the same levels as controls, except for breast cancer survivors who were less likely to receive a mammogram than controls (OR=0.78, 95% CI: 0.66-0.92). Long-term cancer survivors received comparable levels of influenza vaccinations and cholesterol tests, but breast (OR 0.81, 95% CI: 0.74-0.87) and prostate cancer survivors (OR=0.70, 95% CI: 0.57-0.87) were less likely to receive a blood pressure test. All survivors were more likely to receive bone densitometry. CONCLUSION: The provision and uptake of preventive care in a primary care setting in the United Kingdom is comparable between the survivors of three common cancers and those who have not had cancer. However, long-term breast cancer survivors in this cohort were less likely to receive a mammogra