Short-term improvements in diet quality in people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes are associated with smoking status, physical activity and body mass index: the 3D case series study.

Dietary intake impacts glycaemic control through its effect on weight and glucose-insulin homeostasis. Early glycaemic control is associated with improved outcomes and reduced mortality for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D). To date, the diet quality of people with T2D has only been studied cross-sectionally. The objective of this paper is to quantify short-term improvements in diet quality and to identify factors associated with improvements after T2D diagnosis among participants in the 3D study. This paper presents data from the 3D study of 225 Australian adults, newly diagnosed with T2D. Telephone interviews collected demographic, diet, physical and health data at baseline and 3 months. Diet quality was assessed using the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) tool to examine short-term changes in diet quality after diagnosis. Participants were categorised into two groups: those who improved their diet quality by 3 months (increase in DASH score of 3 or more) and those who did not. Factors associated with change in DASH scores were clinically and statistically evaluated. The 3D cohort was comparable to Australian cohorts with diabetes by gender and body mass index (BMI) but differed by age, remoteness and socioeconomic status. Mean (SD) baseline DASH score was 24.4 (4.7), in the midrange of possible scores between 8 and 40. One third of participants improved their DASH score by 3-months. This group had lower diet quality (p < 0.001), lower BMI (p = 0.045), higher physical activity levels (p = 0.028) and were less likely to smoke (p = 0.018) at baseline. Diet quality changes after diagnosis do not appear to be associated with demographic characteristics but were associated with lifestyle behaviours. Strategies targeted at better supporting smokers, those with low physical activity and higher BMI are required. Future research should investigate how the diet quality changes people make around time of diagnosis are related to long-term health outcomes

‘It’s Backdoor Accessibility’: Disabled Students’ Navigation of University Campus

This article shares disabled students’ experiences of ableism, discrimination, and exclusion while navigating university life. Drawing upon these experiences, we argue that many of the ordinary systems and assumptions that govern university life often materialise as barriers for disabled students. Introducing the concept of ‘backdoor accessibility,’ this paper examines exclusionary practices and systemic ableism to propose that disabled students are routinely offered a lesser quality service that is argued to be ‘better than nothing.’ In order to navigate these barriers, many students reported the additional expenditure of time, resources and energy. In this article, we explore these barriers and strategies within the framework of affect theory and pay attention to the diverse ways that university life can limit or enhance the affective possibility of disabled students. In conclusion, this article makes some recommendations as suggested by disabled students as potential avenues to overcome disabling structures in higher education

Frequency Modulation and Spatiotemporal Stability of the sCPG in Preterm Infants with RDS

The nonnutritive suck (NNS) is an observable and accessible motor behavior which is often used to make inference about brain development and pre-feeding skill in preterm and term infants. The purpose of this study was to model NNS burst compression pressure dynamics in the frequency and time domain among two groups of preterm infants, including those with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS, N = 15) and 17 healthy controls. Digitized samples of NNS compression pressure waveforms recorded at a 1-week interval were collected 15 minutes prior to a scheduled feed. Regression analysis and ANOVA revealed that healthy preterm infants produced longer NNS bursts and the mean burst initiation cycle frequencies were higher when compared to the RDS group. Moreover, the initial 5 cycles of the NNS burst manifest a frequency modulated (FM) segment which is a significant feature of the suck central pattern generator (sCPG), and differentially expressed in healthy and RDS infants. The NNS burst structure revealed significantly lower spatiotemporal index values for control versus RDS preterminfants during FM, and provides additional information on the microstructure of the sCPG which may be used to gauge the developmental status and progression of oromotor control systems among these fragile infants

Frequency Modulation and Spatiotemporal Stability of the sCPG in Preterm Infants with RDS

This is the published version, also available here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/581538.The nonnutritive suck (NNS) is an observable and accessible motor behavior which is often used to make inference about brain development and pre-feeding skill in preterm and term infants. The purpose of this study was to model NNS burst compression pressure dynamics in the frequency and time domain among two groups of preterm infants, including those with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS, N=15) and 17 healthy controls. Digitized samples of NNS compression pressure waveforms recorded at a 1-week interval were collected 15 minutes prior to a scheduled feed. Regression analysis and ANOVA revealed that healthy preterm infants produced longer NNS bursts and the mean burst initiation cycle frequencies were higher when compared to the RDS group. Moreover, the initial 5 cycles of the NNS burst manifest a frequency modulated (FM) segment which is a significant feature of the suck central pattern generator (sCPG), and differentially expressed in healthy and RDS infants. The NNS burst structure revealed significantly lower spatiotemporal index values for control versus RDS preterm infants during FM, and provides additional information on the microstructure of the sCPG which may be used to gauge the developmental status and progression of oromotor control systems among these fragile infants

Site-Directed Mutagenesis of Malate Dehydrogenase: A Class Project

Malate dehydrogenase (MDH) is an important enzyme in an organism’s metabolic pathways. MDH is found in almost all living cells and catalyzes the conversion of malate to oxaloacetate which also involves nicotinamide dehydrogenase (NAD) as a coenzyme. A method to study how an enzyme operates is to alter one of its amino acids and compare the activity of the enzyme before and after the mutation. As a class project in Advanced Biochemistry during the spring semester of 2018, we are working as a team to propose and carry out a point-based mutation on MDH

Identifying, building and sustaining leadership capacity for communities of practice in higher education

Executive summary The Leadership project LE10-1734, ‘Identifying, building and sustaining leadership capacity for communities of practice in higher education’, used an iterative, reflective, action learning approach to identify and address the leadership needs and challenges for those facilitating learning and teaching communities of practice (CoPs). CoPs are increasingly established in higher education to provide opportunities for staff to form a peer learning community and to allocate dedicated time to build knowledge of learning and teaching and to share their practice, ultimately leading to improvement and innovation. An analysis of the academic literature identified confusion around the understanding of CoPs, a dearth of literature specifically on higher education, and a gap regarding the leadership role within CoPs. The leadership role within CoPs can be challenging as the CoP may have an uneasy fit within the context of higher education institutions. Often CoPs are not aligned with formal structures, and the leadership role/s within CoPs can differ significantly from those of the familiar ‘corporate’ roles of committee chair, department head or unit/course leader. Often CoP members will be from different disciplines and may include both professional and academic staff. The dynamics of collaboration within such diversity will require significant leadership skill to manage personalities and power dynamics, cultivate a supportive receptive context and provide outcomes useful for both members and institutions. Thus, for this project, the ‘leadership’ role in the CoP is designated the ‘facilitator.’ The project team’s action research methodology is detailed in Chapter 2 of this report. Data to inform a leadership needs analysis were obtained through a literature review, a broad quantitative survey of the higher education sector, as well as from in-depth qualitative investigation with key informants. The triangulation of these sources, plus input from the reference group and evaluator, provided a deep understanding of the leadership needs and challenges for those facilitating learning and teaching CoPs in higher education. Data identified most CoPs are situated within university faculties among practitioners and are, therefore, close to where student learning takes place. In evaluating how best to support and develop capability for facilitators of CoPs in the Australian context, the project team concluded that “[r]esearch … indicates that there is no one definitive set of ‘traits’ or ‘behaviours’ that characterises leaders” and there are many diverse types of successful leader with a range of qualities, skills and attributes (Jameson 2008, p. 9). Therefore, the project’s methodology highlighted a need to engage strongly with the target end users to identify their needs; this featured throughout the project. To facilitate this approach, early, continuous engagement with a stakeholder network of individuals in Australia and overseas known to facilitate or be interested in facilitating CoPs, ensured strong involvement in the project by stakeholders. Additionally, the project team developed linkages with a number of groups working in the same area overseas and with other OLT projects in Australia. Through the stakeholder network, and other interested groups, a targeted survey and in-depth interviews informed a needs analysis for CoP facilitators in the sector, which led into development of resources from the project. These resources were derived after a comprehensive literature review, survey and interviews, as depicted in Figure 2 below, as well as engagement with the stakeholder network. A rich set of Australian, higher education-specific resources designed explicitly for those who facilitate higher education communities of practice is the key outcome of the project. Based on feedback from the project survey, interviews and the stakeholder network, the resources were developed as a ’just in time, just for me‘ integrated online package aimed at disciplinary academics who were found to be the key facilitators of CoPs in the Australian setting. The resources are framed and constructed around the development phases through which CoPs typically move, as shown in Figure 3 below. Figure 2: Identifying CoP leadership needs for development and capacity building: A triangulated/iterative approach Figure 3: Phases of Communities of Practice The introductory explanations to the resources note that the need for particular skills may be more pronounced in some phases of the CoP than others and, also, that each facilitator has a separate development journey, and, thus, completes a self-audit to assess their development needs. For each phase of CoP development, there are key leadership skills, capabilities or competencies that are needed to contribute to successful leadership by the facilitator. The resources, therefore, cover a range of skills, capabilities and competencies, in each phase of CoP development. Each individual resource is constructed to be short and sharp and to stand alone, but sits within the overall framework outlined above. These resources have been tested and reviewed with target academics at Australian-based conferences and workshops and are available for free distribution via the project website . The independent evaluation of the project highlighted that the project team displayed significant strengths including a tight project design, joint leadership, a strong approach to working together that worked with the team’s strengths and the continuous engagement model through the stakeholder network. The evaluator concludes that these strengths ensured the project stayed on time and on budget to produce excellent outcomes. In particular, the project demonstrated clear value through the identification of and engagement with end users, its articulation of the strengths and use of the CoP approach in higher education, and ultimately, through its contribution to the development of CoP facilitators.

‘Get back to the kitchen, cos u talk s*** on tv’: gendered online abuse and trigger events in sport

Research question: Online abuse is prevalent in sport and can be the by-product of trigger events–reactive social media posts that motivate online hate. Little is known about what triggers online abuse, types of content, and how this impacts certain groups. The current research examined how online behaviour emerges, and evolves during a trigger event, through a gendered lens. Research methods: This research employed a two phase, mixed methods approach of a digital netnography with participation observation through social network analysis and thematic content analysis of 1332 (N = 1332) tweets in the United Kingdom. The trigger event examined abusive content toward Karen Carney following post-match football commentary on 29 December 2020. Results and findings: Results identified 590 individuals who formed two distinct groups. Directed network visualisation indicated Carney was the focus of the trigger event. Thematic time series analysis revealed emotional maltreatment (i.e. ridiculing, humiliating, belittling) progressing to overt gendered discriminatory maltreatment. Implications: Findings support the need for safeguarding policies for target groups, as trigger events escalate quickly, and group affiliations impact abusive content. From a theoretical standpoint, in-group and out-group affiliations resulted in rhetoric highlighting persistent, gendered socio-normative issues within sport, amplified in an online environment

Targeting Current and Future Threats: Recent Methodological Trends in Environmental Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Their Relationships to Risk Assessment

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing public health threat. Improved surveillance of AMR\u27s genetic indicators in environmental reservoirs should lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the problem at a global scale, as with SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in sewage. However, the “best” monitoring approach is unclear. Some scientific works have emphasized monitoring for the abundance of already-known antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs); others have emphasized monitoring for the potential of new ARGs to arise. The goal of this study was to examine which methods were employed by highly-cited papers studying AMR in environmental engineering and agricultural systems, thus providing insight into current and future methodological trends for monitoring ARGs. We searched recent (2018–2020) literature documenting AMR in five environmental matrices: wastewater, surface water, drinking water, stormwater, and livestock manure. We selected the most highly-cited papers across these matrices (89 papers from 17809 initial results) and categorized them as using targeted methods (e.g., qPCR), non-targeted methods (e.g., shotgun metagenomics), or both. More than 80% of papers employed targeted methods. Only 33% employed non-targeted methods, and the use of targeted versus non-targeted methods varied by environmental matrix. We posit that improving AMR surveillance in environmental reservoirs requires assessing risk, and that different monitoring approaches imply different objectives for risk assessment. Targeted methods are appropriate for quantifying known threats, particularly in environmental matrices where direct human exposure is likely (e.g., drinking water). However, long-term studies employing non-targeted methods are needed to provide an understanding of how frequently new threats (i.e., novel ARGs) arise