Roads and residents : measurement and mitigation of psychological stress : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Environmental and Resource Planning at Massey University

Psychological stress, suffered by property owners who are forced to relinquish land for roading development, is difficult to quantify. However, psychological stress can have a significant adverse impact on affected home and business owners. Currently, evaluations of roading projects only include a cursory assessment of psychological stress in the planning balance sheet. The aim of this thesis was to measure psychological stress suffered as a result of the imposition of roading designations and forced property purchases. The main research objectives were to examine whether it was possible to directly quantify the level of psychological stress suffered, and to identify mitigating factors that would reduce the impact of psychological stress. Forty-four residential and business property owners affected by four roading projects in Hastings and Christchurch completed a questionnaire and face-to-face interview on their personal experience of stress as a result of the roading development. A possible method of measuring stress symptoms and the impact of life changes was tested, based on the Holmes and Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Almost all interviewees acknowledged that they had experienced some degree of stress because of the roading development. However, results of the stress symptoms and life impact surveys varied and appeared to be more dependent on the individual's circumstances than on the impact of the roading project. Eighty-five percent of interviewees believed that communication between roading authorities and property owners could be improved. It appears that stress can be significantly mitigated by providing affected owners with more direct contact with roading representatives and regular information updates on the development's progress. The issue of compensation also requires addressing in order to reduce the amount of stress suffered. Currently property owners receive the market value for any land and improvements lost but no other compensation is provided. All interviewees believed that they were financially worse off regardless of whether they were losing all or part of their property. However, where an independent negotiator had been employed to finalise the property purchases, interviewees were more positive and acknowledged that this had helped achieve a win-win solution and a reduction in the level of stress they had suffered

The significance of CYP1A2 genotype on caffeine metabolism and exercise performance : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Human Nutrition at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate whether a single nucleotide polymorphism (C to A transversion at position -163 downstream of the first transcribed nucleotide) in the enzyme that metabolizes caffeine (CYP1A2), would explain the variability seen in caffeine related responses in endurance exercise performance. In a double blind crossover trial, well trained male endurance athletes (n=11, mean VO2 max 69±4 mL.kg-1.min-1) ingested either caffeine (5 mg.kg-1) or a placebo 60 minutes prior to performing a lab based experimental protocol involving a two hour steady state cycle (70% VO2 max) followed by a 30 minute time trial to measure performance. The rate of caffeine metabolism over seven hours (inclusive of exercise period) was also determined by the HPLC analysis of plasma caffeine and its major metabolites, paraxanthine, theophylline and theobromine. Caffeine metabolism at rest over a similar seven hour period was also determined in the same manner. Results: Caffeine improved endurance performance by 7.1% (p=0.037) compared to a placebo. Caffeine also significantly elevated heart rate during the time trial (p=0.003); and RPE (p=0.010) and VO2 (p=0.047) during steady state exercise. There was no correlation between caffeine or paraxanthine concentrations at the start of the time trial and subsequent performance and the rate of caffeine metabolism was not significantly different between resting or exercising trials. Furthermore there was no significant interaction between caffeine treatment and CYP1A2 genotype on performance or any other variables measured. However there was a trend for carriers of the C allele showing faster metabolism than those homozygous A/A (p=0.097). Conclusions: Caffeine is ergogenic during endurance exercise, however individual responses were variable. In this study this variability could not be explained by CYP1A2 genotype. However the small sample size in this study especially when subjects were divided into genotype groups, makes drawing conclusions difficult

A Comparative Case Study: An Examination of How Literature Assists Children Experiencing a Trauma

This case study, with four elementary school students as participants, examined the use of books and bibliotherapy when experiencing a traumatic incident. Utilizing fiction books, I explored how literature could be a powerful tool for overcoming life-altering events and circumstances, such as losing a pet, going through a divorce, or dealing with a grandparent who is suffering from Alzheimer\u27s, with a bully in school, or the death of a loved one. Bibliotherapy could also be effective when used with individuals that stutter, children with dyslexia, and children coping with death or a parental mental illness. For this study, the data was collected through interviews, journals, and audio tapings. Analysis was completed using the grounded theory method. The participants were four students ages from seven to nine, from two elementary schools. The results indicated that literature as a medium was effective when used with children who were overcoming a specific emotional trauma

Structural and functional analysis of CD81-Claudin-1, a hepatitis C virus receptor complex

Many viruses initiate infection through a multistep process involving host cell membrane proteins. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is an important human pathogen that infects more than 185 million people worldwide and results in progressive liver disease. Recent advances have identified an essential role for tetraspanin CD81 and tight junction protein Claudin-1 in HCV entry into hepatocytes in the liver. CD81 associates with Claudin-1 and this complex is necessary for virus internalisation; defining the full length interface of this membrane protein interaction is therefore important for the design of future anti-viral therapies. Structural information is lacking for CD81: indeed, there is no high resolution structure for any full-length tetraspanin. This thesis describes an analysis of the protein-protein interaction interface between CD81 and Claudin-1 full-length proteins using a split-ubiquitin yeast assay. Also, using recombinant protein production of CD81, this thesis describes work towards successful crystallisation trials of a full length tetraspanin. CD81 homotypic and heterotypic interactions with Claudin-1 were analysed in a high-throughput format in yeast, showing that this interaction is specific and does not require other mammalian cell factors. This work demonstrates that the CD81 large extracellular loop and its first transmembrane domain are involved in the CD81-Claudin-1 interaction: a novel full length molecular model predicted interacting amino acid residues that were confirmed in vivo using yeast assays. Thermal stability assays used to investigate recombinant membrane protein found that both detergent and buffer components are vital for the stability of recombinant CD81, which shows increased thermostability in the presence of cholesteryl hemisuccinate. Using the improved protein solution environment found here, and the increased understanding of the tetraspanin interaction interface; this work paves the way for CD81 structural characterisation alone or in combination with Claudin-1

The Functional Morphology of Avicularia in Cheilostome Bryozoans

Avicularia are modified zooids characteristic of cheilostome bryozoans. Through evolutionary time the functional capacity of the polypide has evolved and is now a vestigial feature within the avicularium. The functional role of avicularia in the colony is unclear. Unable to feed, avicularia are dependent on nutrients from the parental or neighbouring zooids and therefore constitute a significant metabolic cost in production and maintenance, a cost which must be met by some reciprocal function. Details on the functional morphology of avicularia are severely lacking with avicularia constituting a large gap in the knowledge of cheilostome biology. By examining their biology, this study will enhance our understanding of the evolution and functional capacity of avicularia. Fundamentally this study will provide insight into the degree of morphological and morphometric divergence among avicularia. The objective of this study was to: (1) conduct a morphological survey of the putative sensory structures associated with the palate (or orificial structures) of avicularia (SEM); (2) conduct an ultrastructural-level study (TEM) of the vestigial polypide from two species of bugulids from disparate habitats; and (3) incorporate a holistic study on the behaviour and functional evolution of character traits in Bugula flabellata. The avicularia from 38 species of cheilostome bryozoans were examined covering 11 superfamilies, 18 families and 29 genera. The results indicate that avicularia are morphologically diverse and display extensive variation in avicularian orifice morphology. Structures associated with the orifice varied from tufts of cilia, simple pores, tubular protuberances, and pores with an organic exude. The adventitious avicularia dominated (83%) and displayed the greatest morphometric diversity compared with interzooidal, vicarious and vibracular types. Within superfamilies, only the catenicellids displayed a significant level of morphometric and anatomical congruence. The density of avicularia within a colony was greatest by combining adventitious and vibracular types (e.g. Caberea). This finding may represent an evolutionary shift towards maximisation of function within a smaller spatial scale. The ultrastructure of the vestigial polypide of the subtidal B. flabellata and deep-sea Nordgaardia cornucopioides revealed disparities suggestive of differing functional roles either as a result of habitat differences or differing stages of evolutionary development. The avicularium of B. flabellata has undergone significant modification in character traits from the plesiomorphic autozooid. The current anatomy and behaviour of this avicularium provides strong evidence for a mechanoreceptive function whereby detection of tactile stimuli from passing invaders is important in the functional role of the bird's-head avicularium of B. flabellata. This study is the first to examine the functional morphology of avicularia in such detail. The techniques used in this study have never been applied to avicularia before allowing numerous features such as the muscles, orificial structures and vestigial polypide anatomy to be discerned. The results indicate that avicularia are morphologically diverse and anatomically equipped to perform a variety of functions. The morphological diversity of avicularia may be of immense ecological importance and represent differing responses to various selective pressures in the environment

Exploring barriers to care home research recruitment during the COVID-19 pandemic:The influence of social media recruitment posts and public sentiment

IntroductionRecruitment of care home staff to research studies is recognised as challenging. This was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated negative media portrayal of care home workers. Social media use has surged since the onset of COVID-19 lockdowns, offering a plausible approach to understanding the barriers to care home research recruitment and gaining insight into public perceptions of care home workers.AimTo utilise comments from two Facebook recruitment posts to: 1) gain an understanding of potential barriers to recruitment of healthcare workers (HCWs) in UK care homes, and 2) explore public sentiment towards care home research and care homes in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsThis cross-sectional study analysed comments from two Facebook posts (available June-October 2021) advertising a separate study on psychological support for care staff during the pandemic. This study was situated within a larger investigation into the mental health and wellbeing of care home staff and employed both qualitative analysis and quantitative methods (word count and correlations between words used and between posts).ResultsThree themes were identified from the qualitative analysis: support, mistrust and blame. There was a greater use of words associated with support and negative emotive words in post 2. Post 2 comments featured significantly more choice words and first-person singular pronouns than post 1 which indicated a resentful sentiment from those who advocate freedom of choice and control. Discussion of mistrust towards researchers was most prominent in post 1 indicating the importance of relationship building between researchers and HCWs in UK care homes. With attribution to blame, there was a larger range of negative emotion words than positive emotion words.Discussion and conclusionTaken together our findings offer novel insights into why recruitment to care home research during the pandemic including the use of social media might be problematic. Social media is a useful tool for recruitment but should not be considered as a one-time input. Researchers should pro-actively engage with the study population from the start using co-design with resident and public groups to support recruitment and ensure these populations are accurately represented within research

Considering evidence: the approach taken by the Hazardous Substances Advisory Committee in the UK

The Hazardous Substances Advisory Committee (HSAC) provides expert advice to UK officials, Ministers and other relevant bodies on the protection of the environment, and human health via the environment, from potentially hazardous substances and articles. Hazardous substances are often the subject of controversy, on which individuals, and different groups in society, hold divergent views. This paper details the approach taken by HSAC when considering the evidence to provide advice on hazardous substances. Firstly HSAC reviews the range of evidence and determines its quality considering: transparency of aims, the methodology and results, completeness, independent review and accessibility. HSAC does not follow one explicit methodology as the wide range of hazardous substances we consider means they need to be addressed on a case by case basis. Most notably HSAC considers the evidence in the wider context, being aware of factors that influence individuals in their decision making when receiving a HSAC opinion e.g. trust in the source of the evidence, defensibility, conformity to a ‘world view’ and framing. HSACs also reflects on its own perspectives with the aim of addressing bias by the diversity of its membership. The Committee’s intention, in adopting this rounded approach, is to reach opinions that are robust, relevant and defensible

What is the current NHS service provision for patients severely affected by chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis? A national scoping exercise

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME), in its most severe clinical presentation, can result in patients becoming housebound and bedbound so unable to access most available specialist services. This presents particular clinical risks and treatment needs for which the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) advises specialist medical care and monitoring. The extent of National Health Service (NHS) specialist provision in England for severe CFS/ME is currently unknown. Objectives: To establish the current NHS provision for patients with severe CFS/ME in England. Setting and participants: All 49 English NHS specialist CFS/ME adult services in England, in 2013. Method: Cross-sectional survey by email questionnaire. Primary outcome measures: Adherence to NICE guidelines for severe CFS/ME. Results: All 49 services replied (100%). 33% (16/49) of specialist CFS/ME services provided no service for housebound patients. 55% (27/49) services did treat patients with severe CFS/ME and their interventions followed the NICE guidelines. The remaining services (12%, 6/49) offered occasional or minimal support where funding allowed. There was one NHS unit providing specialist inpatient CFS/ME provision in England. Conclusions: Study findings highlight substantial variation in access to specialist care for patients with severe presentation of CFS/ME. Where treatment was provided, this appeared to comply with NICE recommendations for this patient group