Vaginal yeasts in the era of "over the counter" antifungals

OBJECTIVE: To establish whether there has been any rise in the prevalence of non-albicans Candida species isolated from vaginal swabs since the introduction of “over the counter” antifungal treatments. METHOD: A retrospective review looking at all positive vaginal yeast isolates collected from women attending one genitourinary medicine clinic during the 6 year period from 1993 to 1998 inclusive. All positive vaginal yeast isolates were included, regardless of whether or not the patients were symptomatic. Isolates from HIV positive women were excluded from the analysis. RESULT: No increase in non-albicans vaginal yeast isolates was shown during the period studied. The proportion of non-albicans yeasts remained constant at approximately 5% of the total yeasts isolated. The most common non-albicans yeast isolated was C glabrata. CONCLUSION: There is no evidence from this study to suggest that the increasing use of “over the counter” antifungal treatment has selected for atypical, possibly inherently azole resistant, strains of vaginal yeasts in HIV seronegative women

Growth, microstructure, and failure of crazes in glassy polymers

We report on an extensive study of craze formation in glassy polymers. Molecular dynamics simulations of a coarse-grained bead-spring model were employed to investigate the molecular level processes during craze nucleation, widening, and breakdown for a wide range of temperature, polymer chain length $N$, entanglement length $N_e$ and strength of adhesive interactions between polymer chains. Craze widening proceeds via a fibril-drawing process at constant drawing stress. The extension ratio is determined by the entanglement length, and the characteristic length of stretched chain segments in the polymer craze is $N_e/3$. In the craze, tension is mostly carried by the covalent backbone bonds, and the force distribution develops an exponential tail at large tensile forces. The failure mode of crazes changes from disentanglement to scission for $N/N_e\sim 10$, and breakdown through scission is governed by large stress fluctuations. The simulations also reveal inconsistencies with previous theoretical models of craze widening that were based on continuum level hydrodynamics

Exact quantum states of a general time-dependent quadratic system from classical action

A generalization of driven harmonic oscillator with time-dependent mass and frequency, by adding total time-derivative terms to the Lagrangian, is considered. The generalization which gives a general quadratic Hamiltonian system does not change the classical equation of motion. Based on the observation by Feynman and Hibbs, the propagators (kernels) of the systems are calculated from the classical action, in terms of solutions of the classical equation of motion: two homogeneous and one particular solutions. The kernels are then used to find wave functions which satisfy the Schr\"{o}dinger equation. One of the wave functions is shown to be that of a Gaussian pure state. In every case considered, we prove that the kernel does not depend on the way of choosing the classical solutions, while the wave functions depend on the choice. The generalization which gives a rather complicated quadratic Hamiltonian is simply interpreted as acting an unitary transformation to the driven harmonic oscillator system in the Hamiltonian formulation.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Unitary relation between a harmonic oscillator of time-dependent frequency and a simple harmonic oscillator with and without an inverse-square potential

The unitary operator which transforms a harmonic oscillator system of time-dependent frequency into that of a simple harmonic oscillator of different time-scale is found, with and without an inverse-square potential. It is shown that for both cases, this operator can be used in finding complete sets of wave functions of a generalized harmonic oscillator system from the well-known sets of the simple harmonic oscillator. Exact invariants of the time-dependent systems can also be obtained from the constant Hamiltonians of unit mass and frequency by making use of this unitary transformation. The geometric phases for the wave functions of a generalized harmonic oscillator with an inverse-square potential are given.Comment: Phys. Rev. A (Brief Report), in pres

Solidification behavior of intensively sheared hypoeutectic Al-Si alloy liquid

The official published version of this article can be found at the link below.The effect of the processing temperature on the microstructural and mechanical properties of Al-Si (hypoeutectic) alloy solidified from intensively sheared liquid metal has been investigated systematically. Intensive shearing gives a significant refinement in grain size and intermetallic particle size. It also is observed that the morphology of intermetallics, defect bands, and microscopic defects in high-pressure die cast components are affected by intensive shearing the liquid metal. We attempt to discuss the possible mechanism for these effects.Funded by the EPSRC

Beyond the bedside: protocol for a scoping review exploring the experiences of non-practicing healthcare professionals within health professions education

Background The number of healthcare professionals leaving clinical practice and transitioning to alternative careers in health professions education is increasing. Among these non-practicing healthcare professionals, concerns have been reported regarding tensions in relation to identity, role, and credibility in their new field. There are suggestions that this is a particularly pressing issue for minoritised professionals who make this transition. Support is critical to attract and retain diverse talent within health professions education teaching and research. The purpose of this scoping review is to explore the career experiences of non-practicing healthcare professionals who work in health professions education internationally. Methods Arksey and O’Malley’s framework has been utilised to guide the design of this scoping review process and will be used throughout the course of the review. A comprehensive search of seven electronic databases and limited search of Google Scholar will be conducted, as well as a hand search of eligible article reference lists. Two reviewers will independently screen all articles based on inclusion criteria, with conflicts resolved by a third reviewer. Data from included articles will be charted, collated, and analysed thematically. Meta-data will be summarised quantitatively. Discussion This scoping review aims to explore the role and experiences of non-practicing healthcare professionals working within health professions education. The review will follow established scoping review guidelines and will include studies from various regions and languages, provided an English translation is available. The study remit will be broad, including both quantitative and qualitative studies, as well as reviews and opinion papers. Limitations may include the exclusion of non-English articles and potential difficulty of identifying papers which discuss the experiences of non-practicing clinicians. However, the review will provide insight into the current knowledge on what it is like to be a non-practicing clinician working within health professions education and identify gaps for both future research, and future support for those making this career transition

Resistance training enhances delayed memory in healthy middle-aged and older adults: A randomised controlled trial

Objectives High-intensity exercise is a potential therapeutic tool to postpone or prevent the onset of cognitive decline. However, there is a lack of sufficient evidence regarding the longitudinal effects of structured resistance training on cognitive function in healthy adults. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of two ecologically valid, intense 12-week resistance training programs on cognitive function in late middle-aged adults. Design Single-site parallel randomised controlled trial at the Department of Exercise Science strength and conditioning laboratory. Groups allocated by minimisation randomisation. Methods Forty-five healthy adults (age range = 41-69 years) were enrolled and randomised into A.) high-load, long rest resistance training (n = 14), or B.) moderate-load, short rest resistance training (n = 15) twice per week for 12 weeks, or a non-exercising control (n = 16). Follow-up within 7 days. Data were collected September 2016-December 2017. Cognitive function assessed using the CogState computerised battery. Assessors were blinded to participant group allocation. Secondary outcomes were maximal muscle strength and body composition. Results Forty-four participants were analysed in 2018. Delayed verbal memory performance was improved (p = 0.02) in resistance training groups (g = 0.67-0.79) when compared to the control group, with no differences between training groups. Likewise, increases in maximal muscle strength were observed (p < 0.01) in resistance training groups when compared to the control group, with no differences between training groups. No differences in body composition were observed. There were no adverse events or side-effects of the intervention. Conclusions 12 weeks of intense resistance training improves delayed verbal memory irrespective of training design (i.e., high-load vs. moderate-load)

Book Reviews

Book Review 1Book Title: Megaherbivores: the influence of very large body size on ecologyBook Author: R.N. Owen-SmithCambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1988. 369 pages.Book Review 2Book Title: Comparative Physiology of the Vertebrate KidneyBook Author: W.H. Dantzler Springer-Verlag 1989.198 pp. (Hardcover).Book Review 3Book Title: Atlas on the Biology of Soil ArthropodsBook Authors: G. Esenbeis &amp; W. Wichard Springer-Verlag, Berlin 1987. 437 pp.Book Review 4Book Title: Primate Vocal CommunicationBook Authors: Edited by D. Todt, P. Goedeking &amp; D. SymmesSpringer Verlag, Berlin (1988)Book Review 5Book Title: The Honey BeeBook Authors: J.L. Gould &amp; C. G. GouldScientific American Ubrary, W.H.Freeman, New York. 239 pp.Book Review 6Book Title: Insect Development Photoperiodic and Temperature ControlBook Author: Victor A. ZaslavskiSpringer-Verlag, Berlin. 187 pp.Book Review 7Book Title: OrganellesBook Author: Mark CarrollMacmillan 1989. 202 pp.Book Review 8Book Title: Comparative Protozoology Ecology, Physiology, Life HistoryBook Author: O. Roger AndersonSpringer-Verlag, Berlin, 1988. 482pp.Book Review 9Book Title: Ecotoxicology: Problems and ApproachesBook Authors: Edited by S.A. Levin, M.A. Harwell, J.R. Kelly &amp; K.D. KimballSpringer Verlag, New York. 547 pp

The Conway-Kochen argument and relativistic GRW models

In a recent paper, Conway and Kochen proposed what is now known as the "Free Will theorem" which, among other things, should prove the impossibility of combining GRW models with special relativity, i.e., of formulating relativistically invariant models of spontaneous wavefunction collapse. Since their argument basically amounts to a non-locality proof for any theory aiming at reproducing quantum correlations, and since it was clear since very a long time that any relativistic collapse model must be non-local in some way, we discuss why the theorem of Conway and Kochen does not affect the program of formulating relativistic GRW models.Comment: 16 pages, RevTe

A randomized controlled trial of high-intensity exercise and executive functioning in cognitively normal older adults

Background There is a paucity of interventional research that systematically assesses the role of exercise intensity and cardiorespiratory fitness, and their relationship with executive function in older adults. To address this limitation, we have examined the effect of a systematically manipulated exercise intervention on executive function. Methods Ninety-nine cognitively normal participants (age = 69.10 ± 5.2 years; n = 54 female) were randomized into either a high-intensity cycle-based exercise, moderate-intensity cycle-based exercise, or no-intervention control group. All participants underwent neuropsychological testing and fitness assessment at baseline (preintervention), 6-month follow-up (postintervention), and 12-month postintervention. Executive function was measured comprehensively, including measures of each subdomain: Shifting, Updating/ Working Memory, Inhibition, Verbal Generativity, and Nonverbal Reasoning. Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured by analysis of peak aerobic capacity; VO2peak. Results First, the exercise intervention was found to increase cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2peak) in the intervention groups, in comparison to the control group (F =10.40, p≤0.01). However, the authors failed to find mean differences in executive function scores between the high-intensity, moderate intensity, or inactive control group. On the basis of change scores, cardiorespiratory fitness was found to associate positively with the executive function (EF) subdomains of Updating/Working Memory (β = 0.37, p = 0.01, r = 0.34) and Verbal Generativity (β = 0.30, p = 0.03, r = 0.28) for intervention, but not control participants. Conclusion At the aggregate level, the authors failed to find evidence that 6-months of high-intensity aerobic exercise improves EF in older adults. However, it remains possible that individual differences in experimentally induced changes in cardiorespiratory fitness may be associated with changes in Updating/ Working Memory and Verbal Generativity