Case study: introduction of peanut in high risk infants

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The prevalence and patterns of IgE-mediated food allergy and sensitisation in South African children with atopic dermatitis

Includes bibliographical references.Background: The prevalence of food allergy in South Africa is unknown, but previously thought to be low, particularly in black South Africans. We hypothesised that food allergies would be low in Xhosa patients, even those at increased risk of food allergy such as children with atopic dermatitis (AD). This study aimed to determine the prevalence of, patterns and risk factors for, IgE-mediated food allergy in South African children with moderate to severe AD. It is the first food allergy prevalence study in South Africa to utilise controlled food challenges and component analysis, and is unique for its comparison of food allergy patterns between ethnic groups in the same geographical area. Methodology: This was a prospective, observational study in a paediatric university hospital in Cape Town. Children with moderate to severe AD, aged 6 months to 10 years, were randomly recruited from the dermatology clinic. They were assessed for sensitisation and allergy by questionnaire, skin prick tests (SPT), Immuno Solid Phase Allergen Chip (ISAC) test and incremental food challenges. Sensitised patients were also tested for specific IgE by ImmunoCAP test. Results: One hundred participants (59 black Africans and 41 of mixed race) were enrolled, median age 42 months. There were high overall rates of food sensitisation (66%) and food allergy (40%). Egg (25%) and peanut (24%) were the most common allergies. Black participants had comparable sensitisation (69% vs 61%) but lower allergy rates (34% vs 46%) than mixed race participants. This was especially evident for peanut allergy (15% vs 37%, p=0.01). Early onset AD (< 6 months), severe eczema, and young age < 2 years were significant risk factors for food allergy. The ISAC test was less sensitive than SPT and ImmunoCAP tests. Only 42% of cases of perceived food allergy were confirmed as true food allergy

Conformational profiling of a G-rich sequence within the c-KIT promoter

G-quadruplexes (G4) within oncogene promoters are considered to be promising anticancer targets. However, often they undergo complex structural rearrangements that preclude a precise description of the optimal target. Moreover, even when solved structures are available, they refer to the thermodynamically stable forms but little or no information is supplied about their complex multistep folding pathway. To shed light on this issue, we systematically followed the kinetic behavior of a G-rich sequence located within the c-KIT proximal promoter (kit2) in the presence of monovalent cations K + and Na + . A very short-lived intermediate was observed to start the G4 folding process in both salt conditions. Subsequently, the two pathways diverge to produce distinct thermodynamically stable species (parallel and antiparallel G-quadruplex in K + and Na + , respectively). Remarkably, in K + -containing solution a branched pathway is required to drive the wild type sequence to distribute between a monomeric and dimeric G-quadruplex. Our approach has allowed us to identify transient forms whose relative abundance is regulated by the environment; some of them were characterized by a half-life within the timescale of physiological DNA processing events and thus may represent possible unexpected targets for ligands recognition

4th–5th Grade: English Level 2, Learning Packet #5 • Theme: Rainforests

Activities Choose a Buddy Packet #5 outline: rainforests Sorting sight words Sorting sight words match Parts of a plant vocabulary Read, label, and write Life cycle of an apple tree Sequence of a plant life cycle Rainforest vocabulary Rainforests Rainforest vocabulary cards Layers of the rainforest My rainforest habitat Rainforest report Spelling my words The Jaguar and the Mouse (adapted from Aesop\u27s fable) Character\u27s feelings Feelings chart Creative writing Nouns, adjectives, and verbs Decimals to fractions Rainforest fraction facts Learn to draw bats My Packet Journal Reference Sheet Answer Ke

6th–8th Grade: English Level 1, Learning Packet #3 • Theme: School

Reading daily practice Roll your sight words School vocabulary Write and draw Try the words in a sentence Class vocabulary Matching vocabulary Class schedule My schedule School actions Prepositions introduction Vocabulary cards: prepositions People at school Job description Drawing prepositions How to open a lock Lock combination Make a safety plan Your turn! Similarities and differences Facts and opinions about classrooms Compare and contrast Safety and school Vocabulary dictionary Essential question Angles and polygons Let\u27s take a break! My Packet Journal Reference Sheet Answer Key

Do riparian forest fragments provide ecosystem services or disservices in surrounding oil palm plantations?

Agricultural expansion across tropical regions is causing declines in biodiversity and altering ecological processes. However, in some tropical agricultural systems, conserving natural habitat can simultaneously protect threatened species and support important ecosystem services. Oil palm cultivation is expanding rapidly throughout the tropics but the extent to which non-crop habitat supports biodiversity and ecosystem services in these landscapes is poorly documented. We investigated whether riparian forest fragments (riparian reserves) provide a pest control service or increase pest activity (disservice) within oil palm dominated landscapes in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. We assessed the activity of potential predators of pest herbivores using plasticine caterpillar mimics and quantified herbivory rates on oil palm fronds in areas with and without riparian reserves. We also manipulated the shape and colour of the mimics to assess the extent to which artificial pest mimics reflect a predatory response. The presence of riparian reserves increased the attack rate on mimics by arthropods, but not by birds. Our methodological study suggested attacks on artificial pest mimics provide a better indication of predatory activity for birds than for arthropod predators. Herbivory rates were also not significantly affected by the presence of a riparian reserve, but we found some evidence that herbivory rates may decrease as the size of riparian reserves increases. Overall, we conclude that riparian forest fragments of 30 – 50 m width on each side of the river are unlikely to provide a pest control service. Nevertheless, our results provide evidence that these riparian buffer strips do not increase the density of defoliating pests, which should reassure managers concerned about possible negative consequences of preserving riparian buffers

Food security, farming, and climate change to 2050: Scenarios, results, policy options

As the global population grows and incomes in poor countries rise, so too, will the demand for food, placing additional pressure on sustainable food production. Climate change adds a further challenge, as changes in temperature and precipitation threaten agricultural productivity and the capacity to feed the world's population. This study assesses how serious the danger to food security might be and suggests some steps policymakers can take to remedy the situation.global food security, Climate change, Food prices, Agricultural productivity,

Telerehabilitation for word retrieval deficits in bilinguals with aphasia: Effectiveness and reliability as compared to in-person language therapy

Background: Bilinguals with post-stroke aphasia (BWA) require treatment options that are sensitive to their particular bilingual background and deficits across languages. However, they may experience limited access to bilingual clinical resources due to reduced availability of bilingual practitioners, geographical constraints, and other difficulties. Telerehabilitation can improve access to bilingual clinical services for BWA and facilitate the delivery of specific language treatments at distance, but more evidence on its effectiveness and reliability is needed. This study aimed to determine the equivalence of effectiveness and reliability of a semantic treatment for word retrieval deficits in BWA delivered via telerehabilitation relative to in-person therapy. Methods: We examined the retrospective data of 16 BWA who received 20 sessions of therapy based on semantic feature analysis for word retrieval deficits in person (n = 8) or via telerehabilitation (n = 8). The two groups were comparable on age, years of education, time of post-stroke onset, aphasia severity, and naming ability in both languages. Treatment effectiveness (i.e., effect sizes in the treated and the untreated language, and change on secondary outcome measures) and reliability (i.e., clinician adherence to treatment protocol) were computed for each delivery modality and compared across groups. Results: Significant improvements were observed in most patients, with no significant differences in treatment effect sizes or secondary outcomes in the treated and the untreated language between the teletherapy group and the in-person therapy group. Also, the average percentage of correctly delivered treatment steps by clinicians was high for both therapy delivery methods with no significant differences between the telerehabilitation vs. the in-person modality. Discussion: This study provides evidence of the equivalence of treatment gains between teletherapy and in-person therapy in BWA and the high reliability with which treatment for word retrieval deficits can be delivered via telerehabilitation, suggesting that the essential treatment components of the intervention can be conducted in a comparable manner in both delivery modalities. We further discuss the benefits and potential challenges of the implementation of telerehabilitation for BWA. In the future, telerehabilitation may increase access to therapy for BWA with varying linguistic and cultural backgrounds, thus, offering a more inclusive treatment approach to this population

Assessing framing of uncertainties in water management practice

Dealing with uncertainties in water management is an important issue and is one which will only increase in light of global changes, particularly climate change. So far, uncertainties in water management have mostly been assessed from a scientific point of view, and in quantitative terms. In this paper, we focus on the perspectives from water management practice, adopting a qualitative approach. We consider it important to know how uncertainties are framed in water management practice in order to develop practice relevant strategies for dealing with uncertainties. Framing refers to how people make sense of the world. With the aim of identifying what are important parameters for the framing of uncertainties in water management practice, in this paper we analyze uncertainty situations described by decision-makers in water management. The analysis builds on a series of ¿Uncertainty Dialogues¿ carried out within the NeWater project with water managers in the Rhine, Elbe and Guadiana basins in 2006. During these dialogues, representatives of these river basins were asked what uncertainties they encountered in their professional work life and how they confronted them. Analysing these dialogues we identified several important parameters of how uncertainties get framed. Our assumption is that making framing of uncertainty explicit for water managers will allow for better dealing with the respective uncertainty situations. Keywords Framing - Uncertainty - Water management practic