Control of hepatic fatty acid synthesis in rats and mice

Imperial Users onl

Logics, rhetoric and 'the blob': populist logic in the Conservative reforms to English schooling

A lot has been written about the lasting implications of the Conservative reforms to English schooling, particularly changes made by Michael Gove as Education Secretary (2010–2014). There is a lot less work, however, on studying the role that language, strategy and the broader political framework played in the process of instituting and winning consent for these reforms. Studying these factors is important for ensuring that any changes to education and schooling are not read in isolation from their political context. Speeches particularly capture moments where intellectual and strategic political traditions meet, helping us to form a richer understanding of the motives behind specific reform goals and where they fit into a political landscape. This article analyses speeches and policy documents from prominent politicians who led the Conservative education agenda between 2010–2014 to illustrate how politicians mobilised a deliberate populist strategy and argumentation to achieve specific educational goals, but which have had broader social and political implications. Concepts from interpretive political studies are used to develop a case analysis of changes to teacher training provision and curriculum reform, illustrating how politicians constructed a frontier between ‘the people’ (commonly teachers or parents) and an illegitimate ‘elite’ (an educational establishment) that opposed change. This anti‐elite populist rhetoric, arguably first tested in the Department for Education, has now become instituted more widely in our current British politics

Ethical Issues in the Development of Readiness Cohorts in Alzheimer's Disease Research.

There is growing interest in the development of novel approaches to secondary prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease to facilitate screening and recruitment of research participants and to reduce the time and costs associated with clinical trials. Several international research collaborations are setting up research infrastructures that link existing research cohorts, studies or patient registries to establish 'trial-ready' or 'readiness' cohorts. From these cohorts, individuals are recruited into clinical trial platforms. In setting up such research infrastructures, researchers must make ethically challenging design decisions in at least three areas: re-contacting participants in existing research studies, obtaining informed consent for participation in a readiness cohort, and disclosure of Alzheimer's disease-related biomarkers. These ethical considerations have been examined by a dedicated workgroup within the European Prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia (EPAD) project, a trans-European longitudinal cohort and adaptive proof-of-concept clinical trial platform. This paper offers recommendations for the ethical management of re-contact, informed consent and risk disclosure which may be of value to other research collaborations in the process of developing readiness cohorts for prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease and other disease areas.This work was funded through the Ethical Legal and Social Implications work package of the European Prevention of Alzheimer’s Dementia (EPAD) study EPAD receives support from the Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking under grant agreement n° 115736, resources of which are composed of financial contribution from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) and EFPIA companies’ in kind contribution. RM was also funded through the UK National Institute of Health Research grant to the Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre

Deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr using beta-decay studies

A novel method of deducing the deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr is presented. It is based on the comparison of the experimental Gamow-Teller strength distribution B(GT) from its beta decay with the results of QRPA calculations. This method confirms previous indications of the strong prolate deformation of this nucleus in a totally independent way. The measurement has been carried out with a large Total Absorption gamma Spectrometer, "Lucrecia", newly installed at CERN-ISOLDE.Comment: Accepted in Phys. Rev. Letter

Integrated care as a means to improve primary care delivery for adults and adolescents in the developing world: a critical analysis of Integrated Management of Adolescent and Adult Illness (IMAI)

Background: More than three decades after the 1978 Declaration of Alma-Ata enshrined the goal of ‘health for all’, high-quality primary care services remain undelivered to the great majority of the world’s poor. This failure to effectively reach the most vulnerable populations has been, in part, a failure to develop and implement appropriate and effective primary care delivery models. This paper examines a root cause of these failures, namely that the inability to achieve clear and practical consensus around the scope and aims of primary care may be contributing to ongoing operational inertia. The present work also examines integrated models of care as a strategy to move beyond conceptual dissonance in primary care and toward implementation. Finally, this paper examines the strengths and weaknesses of a particular model, the World Health Organization’s Integrated Management of Adolescent and Adult Illness (IMAI), and its potential as a guidepost toward improving the quality of primary care delivery in poor settings. Discussion Integration and integrated care may be an important approach in establishing a new paradigm of primary care delivery, though overall, current evidence is mixed. However, a number of successful specific examples illustrate the potential for clinical and service integration to positively impact patient care in primary care settings. One example deserving of further examination is the IMAI, developed by the World Health Organization as an operational model that integrates discrete vertical interventions into a comprehensive delivery system encompassing triage and screening, basic acute and chronic disease care, basic prevention and treatment services, and follow-up and referral guidelines. IMAI is an integrated model delivered at a single point-of-care using a standard approach to each patient based on the universal patient history and physical examination. The evidence base on IMAI is currently weak, but whether or not IMAI itself ultimately proves useful in advancing primary care delivery, it is these principles that should serve as the basis for developing a standard of integrated primary care delivery for adults and adolescents that can serve as the foundation for ongoing quality improvement. Summary As integrated primary care is the standard of care in the developed world, so too must we move toward implementing integrated models of primary care delivery in poorer settings. Models such as IMAI are an important first step in this evolution. A robust and sustained commitment to innovation, research and quality improvement will be required if integrated primary care delivery is to become a reality in developing world

Positron-neutrino correlation in the 0^+ \to 0^+ decay of ^{32}Ar

The positron-neutrino correlation in the $0^+ \to 0^+ \beta$ decay of $^{32}$Ar was measured at ISOLDE by analyzing the effect of lepton recoil on the shape of the narrow proton group following the superallowed decay. Our result is consistent with the Standard Model prediction. For vanishing Fierz interference we find $a=0.9989 \pm 0.0052 \pm 0.0036$, which yields improved constraints on scalar weak interactions

Involving research participants in a pan-European research initiative: the EPAD participant panel experience

Abstract: Background: Including participants in patient and public involvement activities is increasingly acknowledged as a key pillar of successful research activity. Such activities can influence recruitment and retention, as well as researcher experience and contribute to decision making in research studies. However, there are few established methodologies of how to set up and manage participant involvement activities. Further, there is little discussion of how to do so when dealing with collaborative projects that run across countries and operate in multiple linguistic and regulatory contexts. Methods: In this paper we describe the set-up, running and experiences of the EPAD participant panel. The EPAD study was a pan-European cohort study with the aim to understand risks for developing Alzheimer’s disease and build a readiness cohort for Phase 2 clinical trials. Due to the longitudinal nature of this study, combined with the enrolment of healthy volunteers and those with mild cognitive impairments, the EPAD team highlighted participant involvement as crucial to the success of this project. The EPAD project employed a nested model, with local panels meeting in England, France, Scotland, Spain and The Netherlands, and feeding into a central study panel. The local panels were governed by terms of reference which were adaptable to local needs. Results: The impact of the panels has been widespread, and varies from feedback on documentation, to supporting with design of media materials and representation of the project at national and international meetings. Conclusions: The EPAD panels have contributed to the success of the project and the model established is easily transferable to other disease areas investigating healthy or at-risk populations

World psychiatric association section of old age psychiatry consensus statement on ethics and capacity in older people with mental disorders

The World Psychiatric Association (WPA) Section of Old Age Psychiatry, since 1997, has developed Consensus Statements relevant to the practice of Old Age Psychiatry. Since 2006 the Section has worked to develop a Consensus Statement on Ethics and Capacity in older people with mental disorders, which was completed in Prague, September 2008, prior to the World Congress in Psychiatry. This Consensus meets one of the goals of the WPA Action Plan 2008–2011, ”to promote the highest ethical standards in psychiatric practice and advocate the rights of persons with mental disorders in all regions of the world“. This Consensus Statement offers to mental health clinicians caring for older people with mental disorders, caregivers, other health professionals and the general public the setting out of and discourse in ethical principles which can often be complex and challenging, supported by practical guidance in meeting such ethical needs and standards, and to encouraged good clinical practice. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/64443/1/2279_ftp.pd

Beta decay of 115-In to the first excited level of 115-Sn: Potential outcome for neutrino mass

Recent observation of beta decay of 115-In to the first excited level of 115-Sn with an extremely low Q_beta value (Q_beta ~ 1 keV) could be used to set a limit on neutrino mass. To give restriction potentially competitive with those extracted from experiments with 3-H (~2 eV) and 187-Re (~15 eV), atomic mass difference between 115-In and 115-Sn and energy of the first 115-Sn level should be remeasured with higher accuracy (possibly of the order of ~1 eV).Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures; talk at the NANP'05 Conferenc