Vaccinations, infections and antibacterials in the first grass pollen season of life and risk of later hayfever

Published source: Bremner, S. A., Carey, I. M., DeWilde, S., Richards, N., Maier, W. C., Hilton, S. R., Strachan, D. P. and Cook, D. G. (2007), Vaccinations, infections and antibacterials in the first grass pollen season of life and risk of later hayfever. Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 37: 512–517. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2007.02697.

Are there right hemisphere contributions to visually-guided movement? Manipulating left hand reaction time advantages in dextrals

This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Frontiers Media via http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01203Many studies have argued for distinct but complementary contributions from each hemisphere in the control of movements to visual targets. Investigators have attempted to extend observations from patients with unilateral left- and right-hemisphere damage, to those using neurologically-intact participants, by assuming that each hand has privileged access to the contralateral hemisphere. Previous attempts to illustrate right hemispheric contributions to the control of aiming have focussed on increasing the spatial demands of an aiming task, to attenuate the typical right hand advantages, to try to enhance a left hand reaction time advantage in right-handed participants. These early attempts have not been successful. The present study circumnavigates some of the theoretical and methodological difficulties of some of the earlier experiments, by using three different tasks linked directly to specialized functions of the right hemisphere: bisecting, the gap effect, and visuospatial localization. None of these tasks were effective in reducing the magnitude of left hand reaction time advantages in right handers. Results are discussed in terms of alternatives to right hemispheric functional explanations of the effect, the one-dimensional nature of our target arrays, power and precision given the size of the left hand RT effect, and the utility of examining the proportions of participants who show these effects, rather than exclusive reliance on measures of central tendency and their associated null hypothesis significance tests.We are grateful to Lorna Jakobson, A. David Milner, Irene Logan, John Orphan, Phil Surette, and Jim Urqhuart for expert technical assistance. Leah T. Johnstone and two anonymous referees provided detailed comments on this manuscript. This research was supported by Medical Research Council of Canada Grant MA-7269 to MG and a Wellcome Trust Travel Grant to DC

Implementing first-in-first-out in the cell transmission model for networks

In traffic assignment models with time-varying flows (dynamic network loading or dynamic traffic assignment), overtaking behavior is normally not included in the model and, in that case, it is important that the model at least approximates first-in-first-out (FIFO), to prevent deviations from FIFO that are arbitrary or unrealistic or not physically possible. For the cell transmission model (CTM) it has recently been shown that the usual recommended method for preserving FIFO will ensure FIFO for each cell taken separately but does not fully ensure FIFO in the transition between cells and hence does not fully ensure FIFO for sequences of cells or for links or for routes. As a result, deviations from FIFO can easily occur and cumulate along the links or routes. In view of that, we define and analyse three different levels of satisfaction or approximation of FIFO, together with corresponding methods for achieving them. Two of these are existing methods and one is new. We develop, analyse and compare the three methods and the extent to which each of them adheres to FIFO for sequences of cells and links or routes. Also, for two of the methods we present a more detailed algorithm for applying them within the CTM. The paper is concerned with how to implement FIFO in the CTM and not with testing for FIFO or measuring deviations from FIFO

The rising tide of dementia deaths: triangulation of data from three routine data sources using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink.

BACKGROUND: Dementia is currently the leading certified underlying cause of death in England. We assess how dementia recording on Office for National Statistics death certificates (ONS) corresponded to recording in general practice records (GP) and Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). METHODS: Retrospective study of deaths (2001-15) in 153 English General Practices contributing to the Clinical Practice Research Datalink, with linked ONS and HES records. RESULTS: Of 207,068 total deaths from any cause, 19,627 mentioned dementia on the death certificate with 10,253 as underlying cause; steady increases occurred from 2001 to 2015 (any mention 5.3 to 15.4 %, underlying cause 2.7 to 10 %). Including all data sources, recording of any dementia increased from 13.2 to 28.6 %. In 2015, only 53.8 % of people dying with dementia had dementia recorded on their death certificates. Among deaths mentioning dementia on the death certificate, the recording of a prior diagnosis of dementia in GP and HES rose markedly over the same period. In 2001, only 76.3 % had a prior diagnosis in GP and/or HES records; by 2015 this had risen to 95.7 %. However, over the same period the percentage of all deaths with dementia recorded in GP or HES but not mentioned on the death certificate rose from 7.9 to 13.3 %. CONCLUSIONS: Dementia recording in all data sources increased between 2001 and 2015. By 2015 the vast majority of deaths mentioning dementia had supporting evidence in primary and/or secondary care. However, death certificates were still providing an inadequate picture of the number of people dying with dementia

A comparison of the recording of 30 common childhood conditions in the Doctor's Independent Network and General Practice Research Databases.

In this article we compare the recording of 30 common childhood conditions in two general practice databases of anonymised computerised medical records based on fundamentally different systems--the Doctor's Independent Network (DIN) database (Torex system) and the General Practice Research Database (GPRD) (In Practice Systems). Analysing the records of all children born 1990-1993 and followed for 5 years we found comparable results for most conditions, but differences between the hierarchical structures of the diagnostic coding systems (Read in DIN, OXMIS in GPRD) led to some differences between the databases. Practice variation was marked, but comparable between databases. Variation was greatest in conditions that are poorly defined clinically

An Experimental Method for Stereolithic Mandible Fabrication and Image Preparation

Reproduction of anatomical structures by rapid prototyping has proven to be a valid adjunct for craniofacial surgery, providing alternative methods to produce prostheses and development of surgical guides. The aim of this study was to introduce a methodology to fabricate asymmetric human mandibles by rapid prototyping to be used in future studies for evaluating mandibular symmetries. Stereolithic models of human mandibles were produced with varying amounts of asymmetry in the condylar neck, ramus and body of the mandible by means of rapid prototyping. A method for production of the synthetic mandibles was defined. Model preparation, landmark description and development of the experimental model were described. A series of synthetic mandibles ranging in asymmetry were accurately produced from a scanned human mandible. A method for creating the asymmetries, fabricating, coating and landmarking the synthetic mandibles was formulated. A description for designing a reproducible experimental model for image acquisition was also outlined. Production of synthetic mandibles by stereolithic modeling is a viable method for creating skeletal experimental models with known amounts of asymmetry

Tumor innate immunity primed by specific interferon-stimulated endogenous retroviruses.

Mesenchymal tumor subpopulations secrete pro-tumorigenic cytokines and promote treatment resistance1-4. This phenomenon has been implicated in chemorefractory small cell lung cancer and resistance to targeted therapies5-8, but remains incompletely defined. Here, we identify a subclass of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) that engages innate immune signaling in these cells. Stimulated 3 prime antisense retroviral coding sequences (SPARCS) are oriented inversely in 3' untranslated regions of specific genes enriched for regulation by STAT1 and EZH2. Derepression of these loci results in double-stranded RNA generation following IFN-γ exposure due to bi-directional transcription from the STAT1-activated gene promoter and the 5' long terminal repeat of the antisense ERV. Engagement of MAVS and STING activates downstream TBK1, IRF3, and STAT1 signaling, sustaining a positive feedback loop. SPARCS induction in human tumors is tightly associated with major histocompatibility complex class 1 expression, mesenchymal markers, and downregulation of chromatin modifying enzymes, including EZH2. Analysis of cell lines with high inducible SPARCS expression reveals strong association with an AXL/MET-positive mesenchymal cell state. While SPARCS-high tumors are immune infiltrated, they also exhibit multiple features of an immune-suppressed microenviroment. Together, these data unveil a subclass of ERVs whose derepression triggers pathologic innate immune signaling in cancer, with important implications for cancer immunotherapy

Hand and Eye Dominance in Sport: Are Cricket Batters Taught to Bat Back-to-Front?

Background: When first learning to bimanually use a tool to hit a target (e.g., when chopping wood or hitting a golf ball), most people assume a stance that is dictated by their dominant hand. By convention, this means that a ‘right-handed’ or ‘left-handed’ stance that places the dominant hand closer to the striking end of the tool is adopted in many sports. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the conventional stance used for bimanual hitting provides the best chance of developing expertise in that task. Methods: Our study included 43 professional (international/first-class) and 93 inexperienced (<5 years’ experience) cricket batsmen. We determined their batting stance (plus hand and eye dominance) to compare the proportion of batters who adopted a reversed stance when batting (that is, the opposite stance to that expected based on their handedness). Results: We found that cricket batsmen who adopted a reversed stance had a stunning advantage, with professional batsmen 7.1 times more likely to adopt a reversed stance than inexperienced batsmen, independent of whether they batted right or left handed or the position of their dominant eye. Conclusion: Findings imply that batsmen who adopt a conventional stance may inadvertently be batting ‘back-to-front’ and have a significant disadvantage in the game. Moreover, the results may generalize more widely, bringing into question the way in which other bimanual sporting actions are taught and performed

Effect of Functional Capacity Evaluation information on the judgment of physicians about physical work ability in the context of disability claims

Purpose To test whether Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE) information lead insurance physicians (IPs) to change their judgment about the physical work ability of claimants with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Methods Twenty-seven IPs scored twice the physical work ability of two claimants for 12 specified activities, using a visual analogue scale. One claimant performed an FCE, the other served as a control. Outcome measure was the difference between experimental and control group in number of shifts in the physical work ability for the total of 12 specified activities. Results The IPs changed their judgment about the work ability 141 times when using FCE information compared to 102 times when not using this information (P-value = 0.001), both in the direction of more and less ability. Conclusions The IPs change their judgment of the physical work ability of claimants with MSDs in the context of disability claim procedures more often when FCE information is provide