Changing institutional research strategies

University research strategies make statements about research ambitions, but rarely speak directly about scholarly communications. At the same time, communication of all sorts has become central to a university, whether to support recruitment, present a public profile, or to respond to events. This chapter seeks to explore the relationship between institutional research strategies and scholarly communications, and to see how each may have affected the other and how they might do so in the future. It describes the purpose and structure of an institutional research strategy, and how these are changing. It highlights the linkages between strategy, implementation plans, and policies, where the latter encourage desired behaviours. In the context of scholarly communications, the research strategy is the public document in which an institution states its commitment to such forms of communication: that discovering new knowledge and sharing that discovery in meaningful ways are at the heart of the institution. The discussion then moves to the changing nature of scholarly communications, including the Open agenda, and questions how scholarly communications fits into the wider spectrum of institutional communications. The chapter concludes that there has probably been little direct connection between research strategies and approaches to scholarly communications, but that this is changing. Both institutions and individual researchers wish to demonstrate the quality, relevance and accessibility of their research, in order to be attractive to collaborators, funders, and employers. Successful institutions will ensure that strategy and scholarly communications activities are mutually supportive, to the benefit of their researchers and the organisation

An investigation into the oxidation of organic sulphides, organic selenides and simple hydrocarbons by Mortierella isabellina NRRL 1757

The work presented in this thesis is divided into three separate sections 4!> Each' 'section is involved wi th a different problem, however all three are involved with a microbial oxidation of a substrate~ A series of 'aryl substituted phenyl a.nd be,nzyl methyl sulphides were oxidized to the corre~pondi~g sulphoxides by 'Mo:rtierellai's'a'b'e'llina NRR.L17'S7 @ For this enzymic Qxidation, based on 180 labeled experiments, the oxygen atom is derived fr'orn the atmosphere and not from water. By way of an u~.traviolet analysis, the rates of oxidation, in terms of sulphox~ de appearance, were obtained and correlated with the Hatnmett p s~grna constants for the phenyl methyl sulphide series. A value of -0.67 was obtained and, is interpreted in terms of a mechanism of oxidation that involves an electrophilic attack on the sulphide sulphur by an enzymic ironoxygen activated complex and the conversion of the resulti!lg sulphur cation to sulphoxide. A series of alkyl phenyl selen~des have been incubated with the fu~gi, Aspergillus niger ATCC9l42, Aspergillus fO'etidus NRRL 337, MIIJisabellina NF.RLl757 and'He'lminth'osparium sp'ecies NRRL 4671 @l These fu?gi have been reported to be capable of carrying out the efficient oxidation of sulphide to sulphoxide, but in no case was there any evidence to supp'ort the occurrence of a microbialox,idation. A more extensive inves·t~gation was carried out with'M,e 'i's'a'b'e'l'l'i'na, this fu~gus was capable of oxidizing the correspondi~g sulphides to sulphoxi.de·s·$ Usi:ng a 1abel.edsubstra.te, [Methyl-l4c]-methyl phenyl selenide, the fate of this compound was invest~gated followi!lg an i'ncubation wi th Me isabellina .. BeSUldes th. e l4C-ana1YS1Q S-,'. a quant"ltta"lve selen'lum ana1Y"S1S was carried out with phenyl methyl selenide. These techniques indicate that thesel'enium was capable of enteri!1g thefu!1gal cell ef'ficiently but that s'ome metabolic cleav~ge of the seleni'um-carbon bond' may take plac'e Ie The l3c NMR shifts were assigned to the synthesized alkyl phenyl sulphides and selenides@ The final section involved the incubation ofethylben~ zene and p-e:rtr.hyltoluene wi th'M ~ 'isab'e'llina NRRL 17574b Followi~ g this incubation an hydroxylated product was isolated from the medium. The lH NMR and mass spectral data identify the products as I-phenylethanol and p-methyl-l-phenylethanol. Employi!lg a ch'iral shift re~gent,tri~ (3-heptafluorobutyl-dcamphorato)'- europium III, the enantiomeric puri ty of these products was invest~gated. An optical rotation measurement of I-phenylethanol was in ~greement with the results obtained with the chiral shift re~gen,te 'M.isabe'l'lina is capable of carryi~g out an hydroxylation of ethylbenzene and p-ethyltoluene at the ~ position

The ethical implications of intervening in bodyweight

This chapter is about the ethical implications of health sector actions intended to change individuals\u27 or communities\u27 weight. We consider these implications using two hypothetical cases. The first is Megan, a 15-year-old girl whose BMI is in the range defined as obese. She has been unable to lose weight and her parents are considering seeking clinical help. The second case is the population of the state where Megan lives, in which 35% of adults and 15% of children are reportedly overweight, and 17% of adults and 5% of children obese. The minister for health, prompted by these statistics, is determined to take action. What ethical issues are relevant for Megan, her parents, and the health professionals they may consult? What ethical issues are relevant for the citizens of the state, their minister for health and their bureaucrats? How does a focus on the care of individuals impact on public health, and how might community-level interventions affect people like Megan? Interventions designed to treat and prevent obesity in individuals and in communities raise important ethical issues. These issues are both distinct and overlapping; because the interventions have different goals, risks and benefits, moral compromise is always necessary. The central task is to think through the ethical and philosophical issues before action is taken: whether in clinical medicine or in public health. We present ethical approaches that can assist in such reasoning

Public health ethics: informing better public health practice

Public health ethics has emerged and grown as an independent discipline over the last decade. It involves using ethical theory and empirical analyses to determine and justify the right thing to do in public health. In this paper, we distinguish public health ethics from clinical ethics, research ethics, public health law and politics. We then discuss issues in public health ethics including: how to weigh up the benefits, harms and costs of intervening; how to ensure that public health interventions produce fair outcomes; the potential for public health to undermine or promote the rights of citizens; and the significance of being transparent and inclusive in public health interventions. We conclude that the explicit and systematic consideration of ethical issues will, and should, become central to every public health worker\u27s daily practice

Repetitive sequence variation and dynamics in the ribosomal DNA array of Saccharomyces cerevisiae as revealed by whole-genome resequencing

Ribosomal DNA (rDNA) plays a key role in ribosome biogenesis, encoding genes for the structural RNA components of this important cellular organelle. These genes are vital for efficient functioning of the cellular protein synthesis machinery and as such are highly conserved and normally present in high copy numbers. In the baker's yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, there are more than 100 rDNA repeats located at a single locus on chromosome XII. Stability and sequence homogeneity of the rDNA array is essential for function, and this is achieved primarily by the mechanism of gene conversion. Detecting variation within these arrays is extremely problematic due to their large size and repetitive structure. In an attempt to address this, we have analyzed over 35 Mbp of rDNA sequence obtained from whole-genome shotgun sequencing (WGSS) of 34 strains of S. cerevisiae. Contrary to expectation, we find significant rDNA sequence variation exists within individual genomes. Many of the detected polymorphisms are not fully resolved. For this type of sequence variation, we introduce the term partial single nucleotide polymorphism, or pSNP. Comparative analysis of the complete data set reveals that different S. cerevisiae genomes possess different patterns of rDNA polymorphism, with much of the variation located within the rapidly evolving nontranscribed intergenic spacer (IGS) region. Furthermore, we find that strains known to have either structured or mosaic/hybrid genomes can be distinguished from one another based on rDNA pSNP number, indicating that pSNP dynamics may provide a reliable new measure of genome origin and stability

7 Essays on Impact

Edited by Dr Andrew Dean, Dr Michael Wykes & Hilary Stevens, University of ExeterThrough the Jisc-funded DESCRIBE Project we have sought to undertake a rigorous assessment of current standards relating to the evidence of impacts arising from Higher Education research. This document contains seven valuable essays each exploring the topic of Impact. Each essay is distinct and we have sought to enable selected thought-leaders and Impact experts to both review the status quo, and to look to the future, making suggestions and recommendations for the development of Impact in the sector. DESCRIBE has been managed by the University of Exeter’s Research and Knowledge Transfer team in partnership with the Marchmont Observatory. We have sought to combine the latest thinking on research Impact with examples and recommendations which are practical and rooted in the art of the possible.JISC DIINN1

Should All Patients With Pulmonary Hypertension Undergoing Non-Cardiac Surgery Be Managed by Cardiothoracic Fellowship-Trained Anesthesiologists?

Objectives To identify differences in practice patterns and outcomes related to the induction of general anesthesia for patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) performed by anesthesiologists who have completed a cardiothoracic fellowship (CTA group) vs those who have not (non-CTA group). Design Retrospective study with propensity score matching. Setting Operating room. Participants All adult patients with PH undergoing general anesthesia requiring intubation at a single academic center over 5 years. Interventions Patient baseline characteristics, peri-induction management variables, post-induction mean arterial pressure (MAP), and other outcomes were compared between CTA and non-CTA groups. Methods and main results: Following propensity scoring matching, 402 patients were included in the final model, 100 in the CTA group and 302 in the non-CTA group. Also following matching, only cases of mild to moderate PH without right ventricular dysfunction remained in the analysis. Matched groups were overall statistically similar with respect to baseline characteristics; however, there was a greater incidence of higher ASA class (P = .025) and cardiology and thoracic procedures (P < .001) being managed by the CTA group. No statistical differences were identified in practice patterns or outcomes related to the induction of anesthesia between groups, except for longer hospital length of stay in the CTA group (P = .008). Conclusions These results provide early evidence to suggest the induction of general anesthesia of patients with non-severe PH disease can be comparably managed by either anesthesiologists with or without a cardiothoracic fellowship. However, these findings should be confirmed in a prospective study

Indigeneity and likelihood of discharge to psychiatric hospital in an Australian deliberate self-poisoning hospital-treated cohort

Hospital-treated self-harm rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) people are at least double those for other Australians. Despite this, limited research has explored the relationship between Indigeneity and the clinical management of hospital-treated deliberate self-harm. A retrospective clinical cohort study (2003–2012) at a regional referral centre (NSW) for deliberate self-poisoning was used to explore the magnitude and direction of the relationship between Indigeneity and discharge destination (psychiatric hospital vs. other) using a series of logistic regressions. There were 149 (4%) Indigenous and 3697 (96%) non-Indigenous deliberate self-poisoning admissions during the study period. One-third (31%) were referred to the psychiatric hospital at discharge; Indigenous 21% (n = 32) vs. non-Indigenous 32% (n = 1175). Those who identified as Indigenous were less likely to be discharged to the psychiatric hospital, OR 0.59 (0.40–0.87) at the univariate level, with little change after sequential adjustment; and AOR 0.34 (0.21–0.73) in the fully adjusted model. The Indigenous cohort had a lower likelihood of psychiatric hospital discharge even after adjustment for variables associated with discharge to the psychiatric hospital highlighting the need for further investigation of the reasons accounting for this differential pattern of clinical management and the effectiveness of differential after-care allocation

Population genomics of domestic and wild yeasts

The natural genetics of an organism is determined by the distribution of sequences of its genome. Here we present one- to four-fold, with some deeper, coverage of the genome sequences of over seventy isolates of the domesticated baker&#x27;s yeast, _Saccharomyces cerevisiae_, and its closest relative, the wild _S. paradoxus_, which has never been associated with human activity. These were collected from numerous geographic locations and sources (including wild, clinical, baking, wine, laboratory and food spoilage). These sequences provide an unprecedented view of the population structure, natural (and artificial) selection and genome evolution in these species. Variation in gene content, SNPs, indels, copy numbers and transposable elements provide insights into the evolution of different lineages. Phenotypic variation broadly correlates with global genome-wide phylogenetic relationships however there is no correlation with source. _S. paradoxus_ populations are well delineated along geographic boundaries while the variation among worldwide _S. cerevisiae_ isolates show less differentiation and is comparable to a single _S. paradoxus_ population. Rather than one or two domestication events leading to the extant baker&#x27;s yeasts, the population structure of _S. cerevisiae_ shows a few well defined geographically isolated lineages and many different mosaics of these lineages, supporting the notion that human influence provided the opportunity for outbreeding and production of new combinations of pre-existing variation

Self-reported current sleep behaviors of adult athletes from different competitive levels and sports

Objectives: To quantify self-reported current sleep behaviors in a range of adult athletes. In addition, to determine any differences in sleep duration and sleep quality, depending on sport type and competitive level. Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 313 athletes (243 male, 70 female), competing in a variety of sports and competitive level, completed the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) and a questionnaire which captured current sleep behaviors. Sleep quality was calculated using the global PSQI score (≥ 5 indicative of poor sleep quality). Results: On average, athletes self-reported sleep duration was 7:34 ± 1:00 h:min. Overall, 19% of athletes achieved less than 7 h of sleep, 50% achieved less than 8 h. Global PSQI score was 5.0 ± 2.4, with poor sleep quality found in 55% of athletes. Sleep duration was significantly shorter in runners compared to basketball, soccer and rugby players (p < 0.05). Recreational athletes slept significantly less (7:08 ± 0:54 h:min) than competitive (7:32 ± 1:00 h:min), national (7:50 ± 1:00 h:min) and elite level athletes (7:49 ± 0:51 h:min). No differences in sleep quality were found between sport or competitive level. Discussion: Half of the athletes failed to achieve 8 h of sleep per night and the majority reported compromised sleep quality. Sport type and competitive level may influence sleep duration; however, these factors do not seem to cause discrepancies in sleep quality. This study provides novel data into the sleep behaviors of adult athletes, and suggests strategies to improve sleep duration and quality may be warranted