A War in a Pandemic: Implications of the Ukraine crisis and COVID-19 on global governance of migration and remittance flows

This Migration and Development Brief (number 36 in the series) discusses the anticipated effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on migration and remittance flows. And ahead of the International Migration Review Forum to be held in May 2022, the brief indicates how the global governance of migration can be strengthened and cross-border remittance flows facilitated. Developments concerning migration-related Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicators for which the World Bank is a custodian--increasing the volume of remittances as a percentage of gross domestic product (SDG indicator 17.3.2) and reducing remittance costs (SDG indicator 10.c.1)--are also discussed

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

EFSA Panel on Biological Hazards (BIOHAZ); Scientific Opinion on public health risks represented by certain composite products containing food of animal origin

This Opinion reviews the factors that affect microbial survival and growth in composite products, and in foods in general. It concludes that the main factors to be considered are: water activity, pH, temperature and duration of storage, processing, and intensity and duration of other non-thermal physical processes applied. Prevalence and concentration of the pathogens in food are important to determine the risk for consumers. The opinion presents a review of the quantitative microbiology models and databases that can be used to provide quantitative estimations of the impact of the above factors on the survival and growth of the main bacterial pathogens. In composite products, migration and diffusion of moisture and substances among the ingredients may change their physico-chemical parameters, particularly at the interfaces. Therefore, the assessment of the risk posed by composite products needs to consider the combinations of parameters most permissive to survival and growth of pathogens. Two complementary approaches are proposed for the identification and profiling of microbiological hazards in different specific composite products. The first one is based on past outbreaks and prevalence of hazards in the products and leads to the conclusion that the most frequent hazard-composite product combinations are Salmonella in cakes and bakery products. The second one consists in decision tools based on the impact on the pathogens of food composition and food processing. Categorisation of the risk for composite products requires information on their composition, processing and further handling, which can largely differ for foods belonging to the same category. Further conditions may influence the risk and should be verified, i.e. hygienic conditions during preparation of the composite products and their ingredients, shelf-life conditions, and reliability of cooking by consumers to inactivate pathogens. The decision tools developed apply to all composite products considered by the mandate, as well as to all other foods. © European Food Safety Authority, 201

Relationship between rheumatoid arthritis disease severity, health-related utility, and resource use in australian patients: A cross-sectional, multicenter study

The development of child behaviour and parenting difficulties is understood to undermine treatment outcomes for children with atopic dermatitis. Past research has reported on correlates of child behaviour difficulties. However, few research studies have sought to examine parenting confidence and practices in this clinical group

Colored apparel and its potential influence on heterosexual attraction

The objective of this study is to determine if men would follow the “red effect” when choosing colors for women to wear on a date, and also to determine if the colors that men would wear when going on a date would be the same as the colors that females (their date) would wish them to wear. A set of psychophysical data was generated from this experiment, where participants were asked to rank a set of 10 colored samples based on preference for each question asked. There were three different sets of colored samples. The set of colored samples given to the participant depended on the question. A total of five questions were asked. Scaling analysis was done on the data to organize a set of items according to preferences providing values, an interval scale (Z values), that correspond to the relative perceptual differences among the stimuli. The Z values were graphed to show the general preference of colors for women to wear, and the preference of colors for men to wear. A Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficient (SRCC) was calculated comparing each individual's rank order with the mean rank order for that specific question. An average Spearman's rank order was calculated for each question and each gender in order to determine the variability in answers. Scaling results indicate that men follow the “red effect,” but women preferred to wear other colors such as turquoise, blue, or yellow depending on the outfit. Males and females agreed that no matter the colored bottoms (denim or black), blue was the preferred color top for men to wear. SRCC results showed a lot of variability between individual answers and the mean answer indicating that participants' rankings did not necessarily agree with general color preferences presented in the scaling analysis. While scaling analysis might suggest certain color preferences such as men following the “red effect” and women preferring to wear blue, the poor correlation found using SRCC between the individual answers and the mean rank orders suggests that color preferences for each individual are inherently unique