Differential pathways to adult metabolic dysfunction following poor nutrition at two critical developmental periods in sheep

Epidemiological and experimental studies suggest early nutrition has long-term effects on susceptibility to obesity, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Small and large animal models confirm the influence of different windows of sensitivity, from fetal to early postnatal life, on offspring phenotype. We showed previously that undernutrition in sheep either during the first month of gestation or immediately after weaning induces differential, sex-specific changes in adult metabolic and cardiovascular systems. The current study aims to determine metabolic and molecular changes that underlie differences in lipid and glucose metabolism induced by undernutrition during specific developmental periods in male and female sheep. Ewes received 100% (C) or 50% nutritional requirements (U) from 1–31 days gestation, and 100% thereafter. From weaning (12 weeks) to 25 weeks, offspring were then fed either ad libitum (CC, UC) or were undernourished (CU, UU) to reduce body weight to 85% of their individual target. From 25 weeks, all offspring were fed ad libitum. A cohort of late gestation fetuses were studied after receiving either 40% nutritional requirements (1–31 days gestation) or 50% nutritional requirements (104–127 days gestation). Post-weaning undernutrition increased in vivo insulin sensitivity, insulin receptor and glucose transporter 4 expression in muscle, and lowered hepatic methylation at the delta-like homolog 1/maternally expressed gene 3 imprinted cluster in adult females, but not males. Early gestational undernutrition induced lower hepatic expression of gluconeogenic factors in fetuses and reduced in vivo adipose tissue insulin sensitivity in adulthood. In males, undernutrition in early gestation increased adipose tissue lipid handling mechanisms (lipoprotein lipase, glucocorticoid receptor expression) and hepatic methylation within the imprinted control region of insulin-like growth factor 2 receptor in adulthood. Therefore, undernutrition during development induces changes in mechanisms of lipid and glucose metabolism which differ between tissues and sexes dependent on the period of nutritional restriction. Such changes may increase later life obesity and dyslipidaemia risk

The clinical and cost-effectiveness of a Victim Improvement Package (VIP) for the reduction of chronic symptoms of depression or anxiety in older victims of common crime (the VIP trial): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Older people are vulnerable to sustained high levels of psychosocial distress following a crime. A cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)-informed psychological therapy, the Victim Improvement Package (VIP) may aid recovery. The VIP trial aims to test the clinical and cost-effectiveness of the VIP for alleviating depressive and anxiety symptoms in older victims of crime. METHODS/DESIGN: People aged 65 years or more who report being a victim of crime will be screened by Metropolitan Police Service Safer Neighbourhood Teams within a month of the crime for distress using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 and the Generalised Anxiety Disorder-2. Those who screen positive will be signposted to their GP for assistance, and re-screened at 3 months. Participants who screen positive for depression and/or anxiety at re-screening are randomised to a CBT informed VIP added to treatment as usual (TAU) compared to TAU alone. The intervention consists of 10 individual 1-h sessions, delivered weekly by therapists from the mental health charity Mind. The primary outcome measure is the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), used as a composite measure, assessed at 6 months after the crime (post therapy) with a 9-month post-crime follow-up. Secondary outcome measures include the EQ-5D, and a modified Client Service Receipt Inventory. A total of 226 participants will be randomised VIP:TAU with a ratio 1:1, in order to detect a standardised difference of at least 0.5 between groups, using a mixed-effects linear-regression model with 90% power and a 5% significance level (adjusting for therapist clustering and potential drop-out). A cost-effectiveness analysis will incorporate intervention costs to compare overall health care costs and quality of life years between treatment arms. An embedded study will examine the impact of past trauma and engagement in safety behaviours and distress on the main outcomes. DISCUSSION: This trial should provide data on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a CBT-informed psychological therapy for older victims of crime with anxiety and/or depressive symptoms and should demonstrate a model of integrated cross-agency working. Our findings should provide evidence for policy-makers, commissioners and clinicians responding to the needs of older victims of crime. TRIAL REGISTRATION: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trials Number, ID: ISRCTN16929670. Registered on 3 August 2016

Heart rate, startle response, and intrusive trauma memories

The current study adopted the trauma film paradigm to examine potential moderators affecting heart rate (HR) as an indicator of peritraumatic psychological states and as a predictor of intrusive memories. We replicated previous findings that perifilm HR decreases predicted the development of intrusive images and further showed this effect to be specific to images rather than thoughts, and to detail rather than gist recognition memory. Moreover, a group of individuals showing both an atypical sudden reduction in HR after a startle stimulus and higher trait dissociation was identified. Only among these individuals was lower perifilm HR found to indicate higher state dissociation, fear, and anxiety, along with reduced vividness of intrusions. The current findings emphasize how peritraumatic physiological responses relate to emotional reactions and intrusive memory. The moderating role of individual difference in stress defense style was highlighted

Heart rate, startle response, and intrusive trauma memories

Abstract The current study adopted the trauma film paradigm to examine potential moderators affecting heart rate (HR) as an indicator of peritraumatic psychological states and as a predictor of intrusive memories. We replicated previous findings that perifilm HR decreases predicted the development of intrusive images and further showed this effect to be specific to images rather than thoughts, and to detail rather than gist recognition memory. Moreover, a group of individuals showing both an atypical sudden reduction in HR after a startle stimulus and higher trait dissociation was identified. Only among these individuals was lower perifilm HR found to indicate higher state dissociation, fear, and anxiety, along with reduced vividness of intrusions. The current findings emphasize how peritraumatic physiological responses relate to emotional reactions and intrusive memory. The moderating role of individual difference in stress defense style was highlighted

Characterising the geomorphological and physicochemical effects of water injection dredging on estuarine systems

Dredging is a globally important aquatic system management activity, used for navigation improvement, contamination removal, aggregate production and/or flood risk mitigation. Despite widespread application, understanding of the environmental effects of some dredging types remains limited. Field campaigns in 2016 and 2017 in the River Parrett estuary, UK, therefore investigated the geomorphic and physicochemical effects of Water Injection Dredging (WID), a poorly studied hydrodynamic dredging technology. WID, applied to restore channel capacity for the maintenance of flood water conveyance in the tidal River Parrett, influenced surface elevations but not grain-size characteristics of dredged bed sediments. Topographic alterations due to the 2016 WID operation were short-lived, lasting less than 10 months, although benefits of the 2017 WID operation, in terms of volumetric change, outlasted the ≈ 12-month study period. Dredging had a significant impact on water physicochemistry (pH, dissolved oxygen, total suspended solids and turbidity) when comparing pre- and during- dredging conditions within the dredge reach, although time-series analysis found dredging effects were comparable in magnitude to tidal effects for some parameters. WID is typically targeted at the thalweg and not the banks, rendering the geomorphic signature of the method different to those of other, often more invasive dredging technologies (e.g. mechanical dredging methods). Further, thalweg not bankside dredging may have potential positive ecological implications, particularly where the majority of biomass is located within the channel margins, as in the tidal River Parrett. Collectively, data suggest WID can be an effective method for sediment dispersal within tidal systems although regular application may be required to maintain cross sectional areas, particularly where management precedes periods of low flows and/or high rates of sediment accumulation. In future, more work is required to better understand both the physical and ecological implications of WID as a flood risk management tool in estuaries and rivers

Geographical variation in the carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus content of blue mussels, Mytilus edulis

Shellfish farming contributes to nutrient removal in coastal and estuarine systems, as bivalves incorporate nutrients into their tissues and shells, which is removed from the marine system on harvest. Fourteen locations around the UK were surveyed to explore geographic variation in carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus content of tissue and shell in blue mussels. Phosphorus in tissue had a significant negative relationship with mean annual seawater temperature for both rope and bottom cultured sites. Per tonne of live mussel, rope culture removed significantly more nitrogen (8.50 ± 0.59 kg) and phosphorus (0.95 ± 0.07 kg) than bottom cultured (5.00 ± 0.013 kg nitrogen and 0.43 ± 0.01 kg phosphorus). Bottom culture, however, provides significantly more C removal in shell (60.15 ± 0.77 kg) than in rope cultured (46.12 ± 1.69 kg). Further studies are required to examine the effect of growth rate, on the nitrogen and phosphorus remediation, and carbon stored in shell, of rope culture and bottom cultured mussel aquaculture

Challenges in integrative approaches to modelling the marine ecosystems of the North Atlantic: Physics to Fish and Coasts to Ocean

It has long been recognized that there are strong interactions and feedbacks between climate, upper ocean biogeochemistry and marine food webs, and also that food web structure and phytoplankton community distribution are important determinants of variability in carbon production and export from the euphotic zone. Numerical models provide a vital tool to explore these interactions, given their capability to investigate multiple connected components of the system and the sensitivity to multiple drivers, including potential future conditions. A major driver for ecosystem model development is the demand for quantitative tools to support ecosystem-based management initiatives. The purpose of this paper is to review approaches to the modelling of marine ecosystems with a focus on the North Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent shelf seas, and to highlight the challenges they face and suggest ways forward. We consider the state of the art in simulating oceans and shelf sea physics, planktonic and higher trophic level ecosystems, and look towards building an integrative approach with these existing tools. We note how the different approaches have evolved historically and that many of the previous obstacles to harmonisation may no longer be present. We illustrate this with examples from the on-going and planned modelling effort in the Integrative Modelling work package of the EURO-BASIN programme

A high-tech, low-cost, Internet of Things surfboard fin for coastal citizen science, outreach, and education

Coastal populations and hazards are escalating simultaneously, leading to an increased importance of coastal ocean observations. Many well-established observational techniques are expensive, require complex technical training, and offer little to no public engagement. Smartfin, an oceanographic sensor–equipped surfboard fin and citizen science program, was designed to alleviate these issues. Smartfins are typically used by surfers and paddlers in surf zone and nearshore regions where they can help fill gaps between other observational assets. Smartfin user groups can provide data-rich time-series in confined regions. Smartfin comprises temperature, motion, and wet/dry sensing, GPS location, and cellular data transmission capabilities for the near-real-time monitoring of coastal physics and environmental parameters. Smartfin\u27s temperature sensor has an accuracy of 0.05 °C relative to a calibrated Sea-Bird temperature sensor. Data products for quantifying ocean physics from the motion sensor and additional sensors for water quality monitoring are in development. Over 300 Smartfins have been distributed around the world and have been in use for up to five years. The technology has been proven to be a useful scientific research tool in the coastal ocean—especially for observing spatiotemporal variability, validating remotely sensed data, and characterizing surface water depth profiles when combined with other tools—and the project has yielded promising results in terms of formal and informal education and community engagement in coastal health issues with broad international reach. In this article, we describe the technology, the citizen science project design, and the results in terms of natural and social science analyses. We also discuss progress toward our outreach, education, and scientific goals

Informing the design of a national screening and treatment programme for chronic viral hepatitis in primary care: qualitative study of at-risk immigrant communities and healthcare professionals

n Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise statedThis paper presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under the Programme Grants for Applied Research programme (RP-PG-1209-10038).

Maternal trait personality and breastfeeding duration: the importance of confidence and social support

AIM: To explore associations among breastfeeding duration, maternal personality and maternal attitudes and experiences of breastfeeding. BACKGROUND: Understanding influences on breastfeeding initiation and duration is critical to increasing breastfeeding rates and supporting new mothers. Maternal characteristics such as self‐efficacy, knowledge and confidence are known to enable women to breastfeed, but little is known about the influence of maternal trait personality on breastfeeding. DESIGN: An exploratory cross‐sectional survey. METHOD: A total of 602 mothers with an infant aged 6–12 months old completed a self‐report questionnaire examining maternal trait personality, breastfeeding duration and attitudes and experiences of breastfeeding. Data were collected between March–June 2009. RESULTS: Mothers who reported high levels of extraversion, emotional stability and conscientiousness were significantly more likely to initiate and continue breastfeeding for a longer duration. Attitudes and experiences significantly associated with these personality traits such as perceived difficulties and lack of support may explain these patterns. For example, characteristics associated with introversion and anxiety may prevent women from seeking support or challenging negative attitudes of others at this critical time. CONCLUSION: Understanding the influence of maternal personality may thus be a useful tool in antenatal support to recognize women who may need extra, directed support while facilitating discussion of potential barriers to breastfeeding