Expectancies regarding the interaction between smoking and substance use in alcohol-dependent smokers in early recovery.

The purpose of this study was to investigate expectancies regarding the interaction between cigarette smoking and use of alcohol among alcohol-dependent smokers in early recovery, using the Nicotine and Other Substances Interaction Expectancies Questionnaire (NOSIE). Participants were 162 veterans, 97% male, with a mean age of 50 years, enrolled in a clinical trial aimed at determining the efficacy of an intensive smoking cessation intervention versus usual care. At baseline, participants were assessed on measures of smoking behavior, abstinence thoughts about alcohol and tobacco use, symptoms of depression, and smoking-substance use interaction expectancies. In addition, biologically verified abstinence from tobacco and alcohol was assessed at 26 weeks. Participants reported that they expected smoking to have less of an impact on substance use than substance use has on smoking (p < .001). Severity of depressive symptoms was significantly associated with the expectancy that smoking provides a way of coping with the urge to use other substances (p < .01). The expectation that smoking increases substance urges/use was predictive of prospectively measured and biologically verified abstinence from smoking at 26 weeks (p < .03). The results add to our knowledge of smoking-substance use interaction expectancies among alcohol-dependent smokers in early recovery and will inform the development of more effective counseling interventions for concurrent alcohol and tobacco use disorders

Smoking abstinence-related expectancies among American Indians, African Americans, and women: Potential mechanisms of disparities in cigarette use

Research has documented tobacco-related health disparities by race and gender. Prior research, however, has not examined expectancies about the smoking cessation process (i.e., abstinence-related expectancies) as potential contributors to tobacco-related disparities in special populations. This cross-sectional study compared abstinence-related expectancies between American Indian (n = 87), African American (n = 151), and White (n = 185) smokers, and between women (n = 231) and men (n = 270) smokers. Abstinence-related expectancies also were examined as mediators of race and gender relationships with motivation to quit and abstinence self efficacy. Results indicated that American Indians and African Americans were less likely than Whites to expect withdrawal effects, and more likely to expect that quitting would be unproblematic. African Americans also were less likely than Whites to expect smoking cessation interventions to be effective. Compared with men, women were more likely to expect withdrawal effects and weight gain. These expectancy differences mediated race and gender relationships with motivation to quit and abstinence self-efficacy. Findings emphasize potential mechanisms underlying tobacco-related health disparities among American Indians, African Americans, and women and suggest a number of specific approaches for targeting tobacco dependence interventions to these populations

Undergraduate orientations towards higher education in Germany and England: problematizing the notion of ‘student as customer’

There is a great deal of discussion in the academic literature around how the current conditions in higher education frame students as customers. Observers are of the view that rankings and marketing, an increased focus on student satisfaction, and particularly tuition fees, encourage an instrumental, passive attitude towards a university education. Given the volume of attention directed towards this topic, it is perhaps surprising that there is relatively little scholarship that examines it empirically. Some who have addressed it presumed a customer/consumer orientation in students and have been somewhat—but not entirely successful—in generating evidence to confirm those assumptions. It appears that the expectations of this instrumental, passive orientation are being realised in part, but that this is also mediated by other dispositions. What could be considered to be missing from the analysis thus far is an exploration of how students make university­related decisions (not simply what choices are based on) and how they understand the respective roles of the student and university. This study begins to fill that gap, exploring the orientations towards university of undergraduates in Germany and England, two countries where the diffusion of market conditions in higher education policies has been somewhat contrasting. Distinctions between the German and English students did emerge, but these were less based on those countries’ unequal engagement with tuition fees and rankings and more to do with other aspects of their university cultures and the world beyond their degrees. This suggests that how people approach their time as students is more complex than some of the literature assumes. Furthermore, at the very least, any consideration of this topic must include an analysis of how students themselves understand and experience their higher education and broader social contexts

Three-dimensional super-resolution microscopy of the inactive X chromosome territory reveals a collapse of its active nuclear compartment harboring distinct Xist RNA foci

Background: A Xist RNA decorated Barr body is the structural hallmark of the compacted inactive X territory in female mammals. Using super resolution three-dimensional structured illumination microscopy (3D-SIM) and quantitative image analysis, we compared its ultrastructure with active chromosome territories (CTs) in human and mouse somatic cells, and explored the spatio-temporal process of Barr body formation at onset of inactivation in early differentiating mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Results: We demonstrate that all CTs are composed of structurally linked chromatin domain clusters (CDCs). In active CTs the periphery of CDCs harbors low-density chromatin enriched with transcriptionally competent markers, called the perichromatin region (PR). The PR borders on a contiguous channel system, the interchromatin compartment (IC), which starts at nuclear pores and pervades CTs. We propose that the PR and macromolecular complexes in IC channels together form the transcriptionally permissive active nuclear compartment (ANC). The Barr body differs from active CTs by a partially collapsed ANC with CDCs coming significantly closer together, although a rudimentary IC channel system connected to nuclear pores is maintained. Distinct Xist RNA foci, closely adjacent to the nuclear matrix scaffold attachment factor-A (SAF-A) localize throughout Xi along the rudimentary ANC. In early differentiating ESCs initial Xist RNA spreading precedes Barr body formation, which occurs concurrent with the subsequent exclusion of RNA polymerase II (RNAP II). Induction of a transgenic autosomal Xist RNA in a male ESC triggers the formation of an `autosomal Barr body' with less compacted chromatin and incomplete RNAP II exclusion. Conclusions: 3D-SIM provides experimental evidence for profound differences between the functional architecture of transcriptionally active CTs and the Barr body. Basic structural features of CT organization such as CDCs and IC channels are however still recognized, arguing against a uniform compaction of the Barr body at the nucleosome level. The localization of distinct Xist RNA foci at boundaries of the rudimentary ANC may be considered as snap-shots of a dynamic interaction with silenced genes. Enrichment of SAF-A within Xi territories and its close spatial association with Xist RNA suggests their cooperative function for structural organization of Xi

The effect of oral rehydration solution and recommended home fluids on diarrhoea mortality

Background Most diarrhoeal deaths can be prevented through the prevention and treatment of dehydration. Oral rehydration solution (ORS) and recommended home fluids (RHFs) have been recommended since 1970s and 1980s to prevent and treat diarrhoeal dehydration. We sought to estimate the effects of these interventions on diarrhoea mortality in children aged <5 years

Renewable, ethical? Assessing the energy justice potential of renewable electricity

Energy justice is increasingly being used as a framework to conceptualize the impacts of energy decision making in more holistic ways and to consider the social implications in terms of existing ethical values. Similarly, renewable energy technologies are increasingly being promoted for their environmental and social benefits. However, little work has been done to systematically examine the extent to which, in what ways and in what contexts, renewable energy technologies can contribute to achieving energy justice. This paper assesses the potential of renewable electricity technologies to address energy justice in various global contexts via a systematic review of existing studies analyzed in terms of the principles and dimensions of energy justice. Based on publications including peer reviewed academic literature, books, and in some cases reports by government or international organizations, we assess renewable electricity technologies in both grid integrated and off-grid use contexts. We conduct our investigation through the rubric of the affirmative and prohibitive principles of energy justice and in terms of its temporal, geographic, socio-political, economic, and technological dimensions. Renewable electricity technology development has and continue to have different impacts in different social contexts, and by considering the different impacts explicitly across global contexts, including differences between rural and urban contexts, this paper contributes to identifying and understanding how, in what ways, and in what particular conditions and circumstances renewable electricity technologies may correspond with or work to promote energy justice

Dynamics and Distribution of the Invasive Mosquito Aedes koreicus in a Temperate European City

Aedes koreicus is a mosquito species native to Asia that has recently successfully invaded new areas in several European countries. Here, we provide important data on Ae. koreicus establishment in Pécs (Southern Hungary). Mosquito surveillance was carried out weekly between 2016 and 2019 at 10 different sites located throughout the city from May to September. We conducted a statistical analysis to evaluate the most important abiotic factors driving Ae. koreicus abundance. We then calibrated a previously developed temperature-dependent mathematical model to the recorded captures to evaluate mosquito abundance in the study area. We found that too high summer temperatures negatively affect mosquito abundance. The model accurately replicated the observed capture patterns, providing an estimate of Ae. koreicus density for each breeding season, which we interpolated to map Ae. koreicus abundance throughout Pécs. We found a negative correlation between mosquito captures and human density, suggesting that Ae. koreicus does not necessarily require humans for its blood meals. Our study provides a successful application of a previously published mathematical model to investigate Ae. koreicus population dynamics, proving its suitability for future studies, also within an epidemiological framewor