Transpiration and transporters: teasing apart passive and active transport of plant silicon

All plants contain some silicon (Si), but some species take it up passively through the transpiration stream while others additionally actively accumulate Si by producing transporters. Here, we review the literature, both qualitatively and quantitatively, to investigate the importance of transpiration for Si uptake across diverse plant groups with different accumulation capacities. We will use variation among species in terms of phylogeny, habitat (e.g. aquatic vs. terrestrial), and environmental conditions (e.g. water or nutrient stress) to tease apart the roles of transporters and transpiration in controlling rates of Si accumulation, and make use of published manipulative experiments to explore how Si availability impacts the importance of these two uptake mechanisms

Research Brief No. 10 - Analyzing Canadian Women Working after Childbirth as Lifecourse Transition

This research focused on Canadian mothers who had a first child between 1970 and 1999, and the probability of these mothers working shortly after childbearing. Authors Stéphanie Gaudet, Martin Cooke and Joanna Jacob studied the change and underlying dynamics with two main questions. First, what are the characteristics that affect Canadian women’s employment? And how have women’s employment transitions after the birth of a first child changed over time? The investigators probed the effects of socioeconomic characteristics on labor force withdrawal using the 2001 General Social Survey, Cycle 15 on Family History. Employment transition was viewed through a type of lifecourse analysis for six cohorts of mothers over the 30-year span. Gaudet, Cooke and Jacob attempted to understand underlying inter-cohort differences through individual characteristics such as level of education, age at childbearing, employment before childbearing, and spousal income. The researchers concluded that since the mid-1980s, mothers with low educational attainment are largely excluded from the labor market during the two years following the birth of their first child

A national survey of clinical practice for the management of whiplash-associated disorders in UK emergency departments

Objective: To undertake a national survey to determine current practice for the management of whiplash injuries in UK emergency departments (ED). Methods: Postal questionnaire survey. 316 lead consultants from all UK ED with annual new attendances of over 50 000 people were asked to indicate the use of a range of treatments and the frequency with which these treatments were used. Samples of written advice were requested and content analysis was conducted and compared with survey responses. Results: The response rate was 79% (251/316). The intervention most frequently used was verbal advice to exercise, reported by 84% of respondents for most or all cases, and advice against the use of a collar (83%). Other treatments reported as being used frequently were written advice and anti-inflammatory medication. 106 consultants (42%) provided a sample of written materials. Reference to expected recovery and encouragement for early return to activities were included in less than 6%. Nearly 50% of written materials contained information on how to use a soft collar and 61% contained information on solicitors and pursuing a personal injury claim. There were important differences between reported verbal behaviours and written advice. Conclusion: Verbal advice is the primary method for managing whiplash injuries in ED and is usually supplemented by written advice. Within individual hospitals there is a lack of consistency between verbal and written advice. The promotion of personal injury claims is a common feature of written advice. Research is required to develop effective and consistent models of advice

Behavioral Attributes Of Turbine Entrainment Risk for Adult Resident Fish Revealed By Acoustic Telemetry and State-Space Modeling

Background Fish entrainment through turbine intakes is one of the major issues for operators of hydropower facilities because it causes injury and/or mortality and adversely affects population abundance. Entrainment reduction strategies have been developed based on the behavior of downstream migrating fishes, particularly diadromous species. However, knowledge of the behavior of migratory fishes has very limited application for reducing the entrainment of resident fishes, including several species that represent important recreational and aboriginal fishery resources in reservoirs. In this study, we used fine-scale acoustic telemetry and state-space modeling to investigate behavioral attributes associated with entrainment risk of resident adult bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in a large hydropower reservoir in British Columbia, Canada. Results We found that adult bull trout resided longer in the vicinity of the powerhouse and moved closer to the turbine intakes in the fall and particularly in the winter. Bull trout were more likely to engage in exploratory behavior (characteristic of foraging or reduced activity) during periods when their body temperature was lower or higher than 6°C. We also detected diel changes in behavioral attributes, with bull trout distance to intakes and probability of exploratory behavior slightly increasing at night. Conclusions We hypothesize that the exploratory behavior in the forebay is associated with foraging for kokanee (nonanadromous form of Oncorhynchus nerka), which have been shown to congregate near the dams of hydropower reservoirs in the winter. Our study findings should be applicable to bull trout populations residing in other reservoirs and indicate that entrainment mitigation (for example, use of deterrent devices) should be focused on the fall and winter. This work also provides a framework for combining acoustic telemetry and state-space models to understand and categorize movement behavior of fish in reservoirs and, more generally, in any environment with fluctuating water levels

Systemic Effects of Arctic Pollutants in Beluga Whales Indicated by CYP1A1 Expression

Cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) is induced by exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and planar halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (PHAHs) such as non-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In this study, we examined CYP1A1 protein expression immunohistochemically in multiple organs of beluga whales from two locations in the Arctic and from the St. Lawrence estuary. These beluga populations have some of the lowest (Arctic sites) and highest (St. Lawrence estuary) concentrations of PCBs in blubber of all cetaceans. Samples from these populations might be expected to have different contaminant-induced responses, reflecting their different exposure histories. The pattern and extent of CYP1A1 staining in whales from all three locations were similar to those seen in animal models in which CYP1A has been highly induced, indicating a high-level expression in these whales. CYP1A1 induction has been related to toxic effects of PHAHs or PAHs in some species. In St. Lawrence beluga, the high level of CYP1A1 expression coupled with high levels of contaminants (including CYP1A1 substrates, e.g., PAH procarcinogens potentially activated by CYP1A1) indicates that CYP1A1 could be involved in the development of neoplastic lesions seen in the St. Lawrence beluga population. The systemic high-level expression of CYP1A1 in Arctic beluga suggests that effects of PAHs or PHAHs may be expected in Arctic populations, as well. The high-level expression of CYP1A1 in the Arctic beluga suggests that this species is highly sensitive to CYP1A1 induction by aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonists

Determining the feasibility of calculating pancreatic cancer risk scores for people with new-onset diabetes in primary care (DEFEND PRIME): study protocol

Introduction Worldwide, pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis. Early diagnosis may improve survival by enabling curative treatment. Statistical and machine learning diagnostic prediction models using risk factors such as patient demographics and blood tests are being developed for clinical use to improve early diagnosis. One example is the Enriching New-onset Diabetes for Pancreatic Cancer (ENDPAC) model, which employs patients’ age, blood glucose and weight changes to provide pancreatic cancer risk scores. These values are routinely collected in primary care in the UK. Primary care’s central role in cancer diagnosis makes it an ideal setting to implement ENDPAC but it has yet to be used in clinical settings. This study aims to determine the feasibility of applying ENDPAC to data held by UK primary care practices. Methods and analysis This will be a multicentre observational study with a cohort design, determining the feasibility of applying ENDPAC in UK primary care. We will develop software to search, extract and process anonymised data from 20 primary care providers’ electronic patient record management systems on participants aged 50+ years, with a glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) test result of ≥48 mmol/mol (6.5%) and no previous abnormal HbA1c results. Software to calculate ENDPAC scores will be developed, and descriptive statistics used to summarise the cohort’s demographics and assess data quality. Findings will inform the development of a future UK clinical trial to test ENDPAC’s effectiveness for the early detection of pancreatic cancer. Ethics and dissemination This project has been reviewed by the University of Surrey University Ethics Committee and received a favourable ethical opinion (FHMS 22-23151 EGA). Study findings will be presented at scientific meetings and published in international peer-reviewed journals. Participating primary care practices, clinical leads and policy makers will be provided with summaries of the findings

A pilot randomised controlled trial of personalised care for depressed patients with symptomatic coronary heart disease in South London general practices: the UPBEAT-UK RCT protocol and recruitment.

ABSTRACT: Background: Community studies reveal people with coronary heart disease (CHD) are twice as likely to be depressed as the general population and that this co-morbidity negatively affects the course and outcome of both conditions. There is evidence for the efficacy of collaborative care and case management for depression treatment, and whilst NICE guidelines recommend these approaches only where depression has not responded to psychological, pharmacological, or combined treatments, these care approaches may be particularly relevant to the needs of people with CHD and depression in the earlier stages of stepped care in primary care settings. Methods: This pilot randomised controlled trial will evaluate whether a simple intervention involving a personalised care plan, elements of case management and regular telephone review is a feasible and acceptable intervention that leads to better mental and physical health outcomes for these patients. The comparator group will be usual general practitioner (GP) care. 81 participants have been recruited from CHD registers of 15 South London general practices. Eligible participants have probable major depression identified by a score of ≥8 on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale depression subscale (HADS-D) together with symptomatic CHD identified using the Modified Rose Angina Questionnaire. Consenting participants are randomly allocated to usual care or the personalised care intervention which involves a comprehensive assessment of each participant’s physical and mental health needs which are documented in a care plan, followed by regular telephone reviews by the case manager over a 6-month period. At each review, the intervention participant’s mood, function and identified problems are reviewed and the case manager uses evidence based behaviour change techniques to facilitate achievement of goals specified by the patient with the aim of increasing the patient’s self efficacy to solve their problems. Depressive symptoms measured by HADS score will be collected at baseline and 1, 6- and 12 months post randomisation. Other outcomes include CHD symptoms, quality of life, wellbeing and health service utilisation. Discussion: This practical and patient-focused intervention is potentially an effective and accessible approach to the health and social care needs of people with depression and CHD in primary care. Trial registration: ISRCTN21615909

Participating together: dialogic space for children and architects in the design process

© 2016 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis GroupTypically enmeshed in the ‘voice’ perspective within children’s participation debates, there are currently sporadic insights into designer–child creative dialogue. Drawing on the findings of a Leverhulme Trust-funded research project, this paper articulates moments of dialogue between architects and children in spatial design processes, whose spatial and symbolic qualities help to understand the interactions and meeting of cultures. Several authors have discussed the transformational potential for adults and children to ‘co-author’ identities in dialogical contexts. The paper builds on this body of research to suggest that design dialogue offers the space, literally and metaphorically, for children and architects to participate together. Identifying the qualities of the dialogic design space as potentially present in children’s and adults’ everyday cultures and interdependent relations, it is proposed that this dialogical framework might diversify architects’ and children’s roles in the design process and enrich practices and perceptions of design participation

Addressing Challenges in the Application of Animal Movement Ecology to Aquatic Conservation and Management

The dynamic nature of most environments forces many animals to move to meet their fundamental needs. This is especially true in aquatic environments where shifts in spatial ecology (which are a result of movements) are among the first adaptive responses of animals to changes in ecosystems. Changes in the movement and distribution of individuals will in turn alter population dynamics and ecosystem structure. Thus, understanding the drivers and impacts of variation in animal movements over time is critical to conservation and spatial planning. Here, we identify key challenges that impede aquatic animal movement science from informing management and conservation, and propose strategies for overcoming them. Challenges include: (1) Insufficient communication between terrestrial and aquatic movement scientists that could be increased through cross-pollination of analytical tools and development of new tools and outputs; (2) Incomplete coverage in many studies of animal space use (e.g., entire life span not considered); (3) Insufficient data archiving and availability; (4) Barriers to incorporating movement data into decision-making processes; and (5) Limited understanding of the value of movement data for management and conservation. We argue that the field of movement ecology is at present an under-tapped resource for aquatic decision-makers, but is poised to play a critical role in future management approaches and policy development

PDE12 removes mitochondrial RNA poly(A) tails and controls translation in human mitochondria

Polyadenylation of mRNA in human mitochondria is crucial for gene expression and perturbation of poly(A) tail length has been linked to a human neurodegenerative disease. Here we show that 2′-phosphodiesterase (2′-PDE), (hereafter PDE12), is a mitochondrial protein that specifically removes poly(A) extensions from mitochondrial mRNAs both in vitro and in mitochondria of cultured cells. In eukaryotes, poly(A) tails generally stabilize mature mRNAs, whereas in bacteria they increase mRNA turnover. In human mitochondria, the effects of increased PDE12 expression were transcript dependent. An excess of PDE12 led to an increase in the level of three mt-mRNAs (ND1, ND2 and CytB) and two (CO1 and CO2) were less abundant than in mitochondria of control cells and there was no appreciable effect on the steady-state level of the remainder of the mitochondrial transcripts. The alterations in poly(A) tail length accompanying elevated PDE12 expression were associated with severe inhibition of mitochondrial protein synthesis, and consequently respiratory incompetence. Therefore, we propose that mRNA poly(A) tails are important in regulating protein synthesis in human mitochondria, as it is the case for nuclear-encoded eukaryotic mRNA