A systematic review of grandparents’ influence on grandchildren’s cancer risk factors

Many lifestyle patterns are established when children are young. Research has focused on the potential role of parents as a risk factor for non communicable disease in children, but there is limited investigation of the role of other caregivers, such as grandparents. The aim of this review was to identify and synthesise evidence for any influence grandparents’ care practices may have on their grandchildren’s long term cancer risk factors. A systematic review was carried out with searches across four databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, PsycINFO) as well as searches of reference lists and citing articles, and Google Scholar. Search terms were based on six areas of risk that family care could potentially influence–weight, diet, physical activity, tobacco, alcohol and sun exposure. All study designs were included, as were studies that provided an indication of the interaction of grandparents with their grandchildren. Studies were excluded if grandparents were primary caregivers and if children had serious health conditions. Study quality was assessed using National Institute for Health and Care Excellence checklists. Grandparent impact was categorised as beneficial, adverse, mixed or as having no impact. Due to study heterogeneity a meta-analysis was not possible. Qualitative studies underwent a thematic synthesis of their results. Results from all included studies indicated that there was a sufficient evidence base for weight, diet, physical activity and tobacco studies to draw conclusions about grandparents’ influence. One study examined alcohol and no studies examined sun exposure. Evidence indicated that, overall, grandparents had an adverse impact on their grandchildren’s cancer risk factors. The theoretical work in the included studies was limited. Theoretically underpinned interventions designed to reduce these risk factors must consider grandparents’ role, as well as parents’, and be evaluated robustly to inform the evidence base further

Discovery of Novel Trichomonacidals Using LDA-Driven QSAR Models and Bond-Based Bilinear Indices as Molecular Descriptors

Few Years ago, the World Health Organization estimated the number of adults with trichomoniasis at 170 million worldwide, more than the combined numbers for gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia. To combat this sexually transmitted disease, Metronidazole (MTZ) has emerged, since 1959, as a powerful drug for the systematic treatment of infected patients. However, increasing resistance to MTZ, adverse effects associated to high-dose MTZ therapies and very expensive conventional technologies related to the development of new trichomonacidals necessitate novel computational methods that shorten the drug discover), pipeline. Therefore, bond-based bilinear indices, new 2-D bond-based TOMOCOMD-CARDD Molecular Descriptors (MDs), and Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) are combined to discover novel antitrichomonal agents. Generated models, using non-stochastic and stochastic indices, are able to classify correctly the 90.11% (93.75%) and the 87.92% (87.50%) of chemicals in the training (test) sets, respectively. In addition, they show large Matthews' correlation coefficients (C) of 0.80 (0.86) and 0.76 (0.71) for the training (test) sets, respectively. The result of predictions on the 10% full-out cross-validation test also evidences the quality of both models. In order to test the models' predictive power, 12 compounds, already proved against Trichomonas vaginalis (Tv), are screened in a simulated virtual screening experiment. As a result, they correctly classified 9 out of 12 (75.00%) and 10 out of 12 (83.33%) of the chemicals, respectively, which were the most important criteria to validate the models. Finally, in order to prove the reach of TOMOCOMD-CARDD approach and to discover new trichomonacidals, these classification functions were applied to a set of eight chemicals which, in turn, were synthesized and tested toward in vitro activity against Tv. As a result, experimental observations confirm theoretical predictions to a great extent, since it is gained a correct classification of 87.50% (7/8) of chemicals. Biological tests also show several candidates as antitrichomonals, since almost all the compounds [VAM2-(3-8)] exhibit pronounced cytocidal activities of 100% at the concentration of 100 mu g/mL and at 24 h (48 h) but VAM2-2: 99.37% (100%), and it is remarkable that these compounds do not show toxic activity in macrophage assays at this concentration. The Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) models presented here could significantly reduce the number of synthesized and tested compounds as well as could act as virtual shortcuts to new chemical entities with trichomonacidal activity

Cigarette tax revenues and tobacco control in Japan

The hypotheses of non-addiction, myopia and rational addiction are tested using annual, quarterly and monthly data. Changes in the prices of Japanese cigarettes can be viewed as exogenous from the point of view of consumer behaviour, because the Japanese government controls cigarette prices. The empirical results of this paper support the addiction hypothesis. The short-run and long-run price elasticities range from -0.338 to -0.421, and from -0.679 to -0.686, respectively; thus, increases in tax revenues in the long run are likely to be smaller than those in the short run. As a result, tax increases would be an effective means of curbing smoking and reducing its social cost. Furthermore, the debt compensation programmes for the Japan Railway and the National Forestry will not go according to plan, unless revenues are increased in the future.