PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) is Superior to Culture and Serology in Detecting Haemophilus Infection in Rats and Guinea Pigs

Based on partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene V-factor dependent Pasteurellaceae (Haemophilus),  strains from rat and guinea pig were assigned to the Rodent cluster or the Haemophilus parainfluenzae  complex. PCRs for the detection of biotype Heyl or Jawetz [P.] pneumotropica detected none of the strains and only  two Haemophilus strains assigned to the Rodent cluster respectively. All Haemophilus strains were positive  by a PCR developed for detection of all Pasteurellaceae taxa. The Pasteurellaceae PCR detected infection in all 76 rats and 40 guinea pigs from 3 and 6 colonies respectively  reported to be free from Pasteurellaceae infection.  ELISAs, using two Haemophilus antigens and culture, detected infection with similar frequency but both  methods were inferior to PCR. The Pasteurellaceae PCR should be the new ‘gold standard’ for comparison of the sensitivity of other test  methods for Pasteurellaceae infection in rodents.

fNIRS neuroimaging in olfactory research: A systematic literature review

There are a number of key features which make olfaction difficult to study; subjective processes of odor detection, discrimination and identification, and individualistic odor hedonic perception and associated odor memories. In this systematic review we explore the role functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) has played in understanding olfactory perception in humans. fNIRS is an optical neuroimaging technique able to measure changes in brain hemodynamics and oxygenation related to neural electrical activity. Adhering to PRISMA guidelines, results of this search found that generally the majority of studies involving healthy adult subjects observed increased activity in response to odors. Other population types were also observed, such as infants, individuals with autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dysosmia. fNIRS coverage heavily favored the prefrontal cortex, temporal and parietal regions. This review finds that odor induced cortical activation is dependent on multiple factors, such as odorant type, gender and population type. This review also finds that there is room for improvement in areas such as participant diversity, use of wearable fNIRS systems, physiological monitoring and multi-distance channels

Goals and outcomes of hospitalised older people:does the current hospital care match the needs of older people?

Background Due to the rising number of acutely hospitalised older people in the coming years, there is increased interest in tailoring care to the individual goals and preferences of patients in order to reach patient-centred care. Aims To investigate the goals of older hospitalised patients and the extent to which these goals were reached during hospitalisation. Methods A single-centre prospective cohort study was performed in The Netherlands between December 2017 and January 2018. Participants aged 70 years or older were included. In the first 3 days of hospitalisation, a semi-structured interview was conducted to assess the patient goals regarding the hospital admission. At 1-2 weeks after discharge, patients were asked to what extent the recent hospitalisation had contributed to reaching their goals. Results One hundred and four patients were included and follow up was completed for 86 patients. The main goals reported at hospital admission were 'remaining alive' (72.1%), 'feeling better' (71.2%) and 'improving condition' (65.4%). Hospitalisation seemed to have a positive contribution to reaching the goals 'remaining alive', 'knowing what is wrong', 'feeling better', 'reducing pain' and 'controlling disease'. Hospitalisation seemed to contribute little to reaching the goals in the categories 'enjoying life', 'independency and freedom', 'improving daily functioning', 'hobbies and work' and 'social functioning'. Conclusions It is important for healthcare professionals to know the goals of their patients. The majority of these goals were not achieved at hospital discharge. It is important to be aware of this, so sufficient aftercare can be arranged and patients can be prepared

Supporting employees with chronic conditions to stay at work:perspectives of occupational health professionals and organizational representatives

Contains fulltext : 231735.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Background: Supporting employees with chronic conditions can prevent work-related problems and facilitate sustainable employment. Various stakeholders are involved in providing support to these employees. Understanding their current practices and experienced barriers is useful for the development of an organizational-level intervention to improve this support. The aim of this study was to explore the current practices of occupational physicians and organizational representatives, identifying both barriers to providing support and opportunities for improvement. Methods: Two focus groups with sixteen occupational physicians and seven semi-structured interviews with organizational representatives were held between January and June 2018. Data was analyzed using thematic content analysis. Results: Several barriers to offer support were identified, including barriers at the organizational level (negative organizational attitudes towards employees with chronic conditions), the employee level (employees' reluctance to collaborate with employers in dealing with work-related problems), and in the collaboration between occupational physicians and organizational representatives. In addition, barriers in occupational health care were described, e.g. occupational physicians' lack of visibility and a lack of utilization of occupational physicians' support. Opportunities to optimize support included a shared responsibility of all stakeholders involved, actively anchoring prevention of work-related problems in policy and practice and a more pronounced role of the health care sector in preventing work-related problems. Conclusions: Preventing work-related problems for employees with chronic conditions can be achieved by addressing the identified barriers to provide support. In addition, both occupational physicians and organizational representatives should initiate and secure preventive support at the organizational level and in occupational health care. These insights are helpful in developing an intervention aimed at supporting employees with chronic conditions to stay at work.13 p

Relativistic ponderomotive force, uphill acceleration, and transition to chaos

Starting from a covariant cycle-averaged Lagrangian the relativistic oscillation center equation of motion of a point charge is deduced and analytical formulae for the ponderomotive force in a travelling wave of arbitrary strength are presented. It is further shown that the ponderomotive forces for transverse and longitudinal waves are different; in the latter, uphill acceleration can occur. In a standing wave there exists a threshold intensity above which, owing to transition to chaos, the secular motion can no longer be described by a regular ponderomotive force. PACS number(s): 52.20.Dq,05.45.+b,52.35.Mw,52.60.+hComment: 8 pages, RevTeX, 3 figures in PostScript, see also http://www.physik.th-darmstadt.de/tqe

Implementation of the participatory approach for supervisors to prevent sick leave: a process evaluation

To perform a process evaluation of a multifaceted strategy to implement the participatory approach for supervisors to prevent sick leave in three organisations. The implementation strategy incorporated a working group meeting with stakeholder representatives, supervisor training, and optional supervisor coaching. Context, recruitment, reach, dose delivered, dose received, fidelity, and satisfaction with the strategy were assessed at organisational and supervisor level using questionnaires and registration forms. At least 4 out of 6 stakeholders were represented in the working group meetings, and 11 % (n = 116) of supervisors could be reached. The working group meetings and supervisor training were delivered and received as planned and were well appreciated within all three organisations. Three supervisors made use of coaching. At 6-month follow-up, 11 out of 41 supervisors (27 %) indicated that they had applied the participatory approach at least one time. The implementation strategy was largely carried out as intended. However, reach of both supervisors and department managers should be improved. Future studies should consider targeting employees with the strategy

Does habitat stability structure intraspecific genetic diversity? It’s complicated...

Regional phylogeographic studies have long been conducted in the southeastern United States for a variety of species. With some exceptions, many of these studies focus on single species or single clades of organisms, and those considering multiple species tend to focus on deep historical breaks causing differentiation. However, in many species more recent factors may be influencing genetic diversity. To understand the roles of historic and contemporary processes in structuring genetic diversity, we reanalyzed existing genetic data from Southeast of North America using approaches gleaned from phylogeographic and landscape genetic literature that were implemented across species including AMOVAs, PCoAs, Species Distribution Modelling, and tests of isolation by distance, environment, and habitat instability. Genetic variance was significantly partitioned by ecoregions, watersheds, and across phylogeographic breaks in the majority of species. Similarly, genetic variation was significantly associated with some combination of geographic or environmental distance or habitat instability in most species. Patterns of genetic variation were largely idiosyncratic across species. While habitat instability over time is significantly correlated with genetic diversity in some species, it appears generally less important than isolation by geographic or environmental distance. Our results suggest that many factors, both historical and contemporary, impact genetic diversity within a species, and more so, that these patterns aren’t always similar in closely related species. This supports the importance of species- specific factors and cautions against assumptions that closely related species will respond to historical and contemporary forces in similar ways