“Beyond Black and Blue” Intimate Partner Violence as a form of Family Violence Against Women and Common Mental Disorders in Mumbai informal settlements

The thesis investigates family violence against women living in informal settlements in Mumbai, and its associations with mental health. Globally and in India, a third of women experience violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime, an estimate that would be higher if it accounted for other perpetrators within the family. The thesis includes qualitative and quantitative studies. The quantitative study was a survey of 482 women that investigated violence in detail, including its types, perpetrators, and timescales. Symptoms of common mental disorders were assessed with the General Health Questionnaire-12 and levels of self-esteem with the Rosenberg self-esteem questionnaire. Associations were explored through multivariable linear and ordinal logistic regression, adjusted for socio-demographic covariates. The qualitative study included semi-structured individual interviews and focus group discussions with 33 women, exploring narratives of violence, responses, coping, and resilience. Analysis took a Framework approach. The prevalence of violence was high - 44% over a lifetime - but in line with other national surveys. More women reported emotional violence than other forms. In-laws were the main perpetrators of emotional and economic violence, and husbands of physical and sexual violence. Emotional violence showed the strongest positive association with symptoms of common mental disorders and lower self-esteem. In the qualitative study, women described patterns of violence that often included the marital family as perpetrators. Responses to violence included feelings, thoughts, and behaviours ranging between active and passive. Women described a ceiling of tolerance that influenced their responses to violence and was informed by their context and previous experiences. The thesis adds to the current literature by exploring violence in detail and combining survey data with women’s narratives. It highlights the need to further investigate family violence and emotional violence, particularly in other South Asian settings where patterns of patrilocal residence and joint families are common

The Impact of Drone Technology on Precision Agriculture at The Morehead State University Farm

https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/student_scholarship_posters/1227/thumbnail.jp

Peer-facilitated community-based interventions for adolescent health in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Adolescents aged 10-19 represent one sixth of the world's population and have a high burden of morbidity, particularly in low-resource settings. We know little about the potential of community-based peer facilitators to improve adolescent health in such contexts. METHODS: We did a systematic review of peer-facilitated community-based interventions for adolescent health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). We searched databases for randomised controlled trials of interventions featuring peer education, counselling, activism, and/or outreach facilitated by young people aged 10-24. We included trials with outcomes across key areas of adolescent health: infectious and vaccine preventable diseases, undernutrition, HIV/AIDS, sexual and reproductive health, unintentional injuries, violence, physical disorders, mental disorders and substance use. We summarised evidence from these trials narratively. PROSPERO registration: CRD42016039190. RESULTS: We found 20 studies (61,014 adolescents). Fourteen studies tested interventions linked to schools or colleges, and 12 had non-peer-facilitated components, e.g. health worker training. Four studies had HIV-related outcomes, but none reported reductions in HIV prevalence or incidence. Nine studies had clinical sexual and reproductive health outcomes, but only one reported a positive effect: a reduction in Herpes Simplex Virus-2 incidence. Three studies had violence-related outcomes, two of which reported reductions in physical violence by school staff and perpetration of physical violence by adolescents. Seven studies had mental health outcomes, four of which reported reductions in depressive symptoms. Finally, we found eight studies on substance use, four of which reported reductions in alcohol consumption and smoking or tobacco use. There were no studies on infectious and vaccine preventable diseases, undernutrition, or injuries. CONCLUSIONS: There are few trials on the effects of peer-facilitated community-based interventions for adolescent health in LMICs. Existing trials have mixed results, with the most promising evidence supporting work with peer facilitators to improve adolescent mental health and reduce substance use and violence

Improving the mental health of women intimate partner violence survivors: Findings from a realist review of psychosocial interventions

Background Intimate partner violence (IPV) is highly prevalent and is associated with a range of mental health problems. A broad range of psychosocial interventions have been developed to support the recovery of women survivors of IPV, but their mechanisms of action remain unclear. Methods Realist review following a prospectively published protocol in PROSPERO (CRD42018114207) and reported using the Realist and Meta-narrative Evidence Synthesis: Evolving Standards (RAMSES) guidelines. Results Evidence was extracted from 60 reviews and triangulated in expert consultations. Mechanisms of action were categorised as either associated with intervention design and delivery or with specific intervention components (access to resources and services; safety, control and support; increased knowledge; alterations to affective states and cognitions; improved self-management; improved family and social relations). Conclusions Findings suggest that psychosocial interventions to improve the mental health of women survivors of IPV have the greatest impact when they take a holistic view of the problem and provide individualised and trauma-informed support

Improving the mental health of women intimate partner violence survivors: Findings from a realist review of psychosocial interventions

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is highly prevalent and is associated with a range of mental health problems. A broad range of psychosocial interventions have been developed to support the recovery of women survivors of IPV, but their mechanisms of action remain unclear

Blocking endothelial apoptosis revascularises the retina in a model of ischemic retinopathy

Aberrant, neovascular retinal blood vessel growth is a vision-threatening complication in ischemic retinal diseases. It is driven by retinal hypoxia frequently caused by capillary nonperfusion and endothelial cell (EC) loss. We investigated the role of EC apoptosis in this process using a mouse model of ischemic retinopathy, in which vessel closure and EC apoptosis cause capillary regression and retinal ischemia followed by neovascularization. Protecting ECs from apoptosis in this model did not prevent capillary closure or retinal ischemia. Nonetheless, it prevented the clearance of ECs from closed capillaries, delaying vessel regression and allowing ECs to persist in clusters throughout the ischemic zone. In response to hypoxia, these preserved ECs underwent a vessel sprouting response and rapidly reassembled into a functional vascular network. This alleviated retinal hypoxia, preventing subsequent pathogenic neovascularization. Vessel reassembly was not limited by VEGFA neutralization, suggesting it was not dependent on the excess VEGFA produced by the ischemic retina. Neutralization of ANG2 did not prevent vessel reassembly, but did impair subsequent angiogenic expansion of the reassembled vessels. Blockade of EC apoptosis may promote ischemic tissue revascularization by preserving ECs within ischemic tissue that retain the capacity to reassemble a functional network and rapidly restore blood supply

Establishment and characterization of two novel patient-derived lines from canine high-grade glioma.

High-grade glioma is an aggressive cancer that occurs naturally in pet dogs. Canine high-grade glioma (cHGG) is treated with radiation, chemotherapy or surgery, but has no curative treatment. Within the past eight years, there have been advances in our imaging and histopathology standards as well as genetic charactereization of cHGG. However, there are only three cHGG cell lines publicly available, all of which were derived from astrocytoma and established using methods involving expansion of tumour cells in vitro on plastic dishes. In order to provide more clinically relevant cell lines for studying cHGG in vitro, the goal of this study was to establish cHGG patient-derived lines, whereby cancer cells are expanded in vivo by injecting cells into immunocompromized laboratory mice. The cells are then harvested from mice and used for in vitro studies. This method is the standard in the human field and has been shown to minimize the acquisition of genetic alterations and gene expression changes from the original tumour. Through a multi-institutional collaboration, we describe our methods for establishing two novel cHGG patient-derived lines, Boo-HA and Mo-HO, from a high-grade astrocytoma and a high-grade oligodendroglioma, respectively. We compare our novel lines to G06-A, J3T-Bg, and SDT-3G (traditional cHGG cell lines) in terms of proliferation and sensitivity to radiation. We also perform whole genome sequencing and identify an NF1 truncating mutation in Mo-HO. We report the characterization and availability of these novel patient-derived lines for use by the veterinary community

Agency, ‘good motherhood’ and ‘a load of mush’: Constructions of baby-led weaning in the press

In this age of ‘intensive motherhood’, new mothers are flooded with information on the best ways in which to raise their children. One of the key issues is infant feeding, in particular, the timing and method of weaning their children onto solid food. This paper examines a new approach called ‘baby-led weaning’ (BLW) in which the child feeds themselves instead of being spoon-fed, that came into popular parenting culture in recent years, considering the ways in which it is represented in National and International newspapers. The media search database Proquest International Newsstand, was searched for ‘baby-led weaning’, producing an eventual sample of 78 articles from a number of countries. The articles were subjected to a critical discursive psychological analysis. The key themes that emerged from the newspapers focused around two main areas; the infant as agentive in their eating behaviours; and, constructions of maternal identities and resisting ‘good motherhood’

Differential cellular and humoral immune responses in immunocompromised individuals following multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations

Introduction: The heterogeneity of the immunocompromised population means some individuals may exhibit variable, weak or reduced vaccine-induced immune responses, leaving them poorly protected from COVID-19 disease despite receiving multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations. There is conflicting data on the immunogenicity elicited by multiple vaccinations in immunocompromised groups. The aim of this study was to measure both humoral and cellular vaccine-induced immunity in several immunocompromised cohorts and to compare them to immunocompetent controls. Methods: Cytokine release in peptide-stimulated whole blood, and neutralising antibody and baseline SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific IgG levels in plasma were measured in rheumatology patients (n=29), renal transplant recipients (n=46), people living with HIV (PLWH) (n=27) and immunocompetent participants (n=64) post third or fourth vaccination from just one blood sample. Cytokines were measured by ELISA and multiplex array. Neutralising antibody levels in plasma were determined by a 50% neutralising antibody titre assay and SARS-CoV-2 spike specific IgG levels were quantified by ELISA. Results: In infection negative donors, IFN-γ, IL-2 and neutralising antibody levels were significantly reduced in rheumatology patients (p=0.0014, p=0.0415, p=0.0319, respectively) and renal transplant recipients (p<0.0001, p=0.0005, p<0.0001, respectively) compared to immunocompetent controls, with IgG antibody responses similarly affected. Conversely, cellular and humoral immune responses were not impaired in PLWH, or between individuals from all groups with previous SARS-CoV-2 infections. Discussion: These results suggest that specific subgroups within immunocompromised cohorts could benefit from distinct, personalised immunisation or treatment strategies. Identification of vaccine non-responders could be critical to protect those most at risk