The presence of a dog increases greetings: a study in social intervention

Pet dogs served many useful purposes, especially by provoking social interaction in the lives of their owners. The purpose of this study was to show that a person accompanied by a dog received more greetings from passersby than a person without a dog. This was a field study using a female confederate, a dog, and three observers. Subjects passing in front of the confederate were recorded as a greeter or a non-greeter. Results formulated by the Chi Square showed that when the confederate was with the dog, they were greeted significantly more than when they were not accompanied by the dog. This study had important applications for people who consider themselves lonely, shy, or socially inept

The Mouse Limb Anatomy Atlas: An interactive 3D tool for studying embryonic limb patterning

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The developing mouse limb is widely used as a model system for studying tissue patterning. Despite this, few references are available that can be used for the correct identification of developing limb structures, such as muscles and tendons. Existing textual references consist of two-dimensional (2D) illustrations of the adult rat or mouse limb that can be difficult to apply when attempting to describe the complex three-dimensional (3D) relationship between tissues.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To improve the resources available in the mouse model, we have generated a free, web-based, interactive reference of limb muscle, tendon, and skeletal structures at embryonic day (E) 14.5 <url>http://www.nimr.mrc.ac.uk/3dlimb/</url>. The Atlas was generated using mouse forelimb and hindlimb specimens stained using immunohistochemistry to detect muscle and tendon. Limbs were scanned using Optical Projection Tomography (OPT), reconstructed to make 3D models and annotated using computer-assisted segmentation tools in Amira 3D Visualisation software. The annotated dataset is visualised using Java, JAtlasView software. Users click on the names of structures and view their shape, position and relationship with other structures within the 3D model and also in 2D virtual sections.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The Mouse Limb Anatomy Atlas provides a novel and valuable tool for researchers studying limb development and can be applied to a range of research areas, including the identification of abnormal limb patterning in transgenic lines and studies of models of congenital limb abnormalities. By using the Atlas for "virtual" dissection, this resource offers an alternative to animal dissection. The techniques we have developed and employed are also applicable to many other model systems and anatomical structures.</p

The Mouse Limb Anatomy Atlas: An interactive 3D tool for studying embryonic limb patterning

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The developing mouse limb is widely used as a model system for studying tissue patterning. Despite this, few references are available that can be used for the correct identification of developing limb structures, such as muscles and tendons. Existing textual references consist of two-dimensional (2D) illustrations of the adult rat or mouse limb that can be difficult to apply when attempting to describe the complex three-dimensional (3D) relationship between tissues.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To improve the resources available in the mouse model, we have generated a free, web-based, interactive reference of limb muscle, tendon, and skeletal structures at embryonic day (E) 14.5 <url>http://www.nimr.mrc.ac.uk/3dlimb/</url>. The Atlas was generated using mouse forelimb and hindlimb specimens stained using immunohistochemistry to detect muscle and tendon. Limbs were scanned using Optical Projection Tomography (OPT), reconstructed to make 3D models and annotated using computer-assisted segmentation tools in Amira 3D Visualisation software. The annotated dataset is visualised using Java, JAtlasView software. Users click on the names of structures and view their shape, position and relationship with other structures within the 3D model and also in 2D virtual sections.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The Mouse Limb Anatomy Atlas provides a novel and valuable tool for researchers studying limb development and can be applied to a range of research areas, including the identification of abnormal limb patterning in transgenic lines and studies of models of congenital limb abnormalities. By using the Atlas for "virtual" dissection, this resource offers an alternative to animal dissection. The techniques we have developed and employed are also applicable to many other model systems and anatomical structures.</p

Development of A Tool to Assess Resident Physicians’ Perceived Competence for Patient-centered Obesity Counseling

Physicians report a number of barriers to obesity counseling, among them low perceived competence in the ability to counsel. While there is increasing recognition of the need for resident training on counseling, implementation requires residency programs to have the necessary curricula and tools to evaluate training effectiveness. This study’s objective was to describe the development and psychometric testing of the Perceived Competence for Obesity Counseling (PCOC) scale. Items were generated based on constructs from the 5A’s counseling framework, review of the obesity literature, and expert opinion. The 20-item scale was piloted among 74 resident physicians. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify the number and nature of factors in the scale.  Pearson's correlation was used to assess scale validity of the total scores and sub-scale scores association with residents’ overall confidence in counseling and outcome expectancy for obesity counseling. Analyses suggested a 3-factor solution. After the removal of cross loading items, eighteen items were retained; eleven items loaded on the first factor, four items on the second factor, and three on the third factor. Cronbach's alpha for the 18-item PCOC scale was 0.95 indicating internal consistency. The PCOC scale was significantly correlated with resident’s overall confidence in counseling (r = 0.60, p < 0.01) and outcome expectancy for obesity counseling (r = 0.41, p < 0.01). This pilot study suggests PCOC is holds promise as a valid and reliable measure of resident’s perceived competence for obesity counseling. Future studies are needed to assess the scale’s association with counseling skills

Long-term quality of life after liver donation in the adult to adult living donor liver transplantation cohort study (A2ALL)

There are few long-term studies of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in living liver donors. This study aimed to characterize donor HRQOL in the Adult to Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation Study (A2ALL) up to 11 years post-donation

2017 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1004/thumbnail.jp

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

Book Review: The Complete Guide to Blended Learning: Activating Agency, Differentiation, Community and Inquiry for Students

In The Complete Guide to Blended Learning: Activating Agency, Differentiation, Community and Inquiry for Students, Catlin Tucker continues to support teacher wellness and student accountability. Unlike her previous books on blended learning, this book focuses on designing and developing a learning community that positively impacts both students and teachers. Recognizing that technology has become a mainstay in classrooms, Tucker provides recommendations that support educators in the selective use of digital tools to empower students to take an active role in their learning at all levels