The use of tissue culture for the improvement of salt tolerance in Atriplex SPP

Soil salinity is widespread throughout the world, and human activity is responsible for increases in the area of land affected by salt. Replanting saline areas using salt-tolerant, or halophytic, species is one method of reclaiming this land. This project investigated the possibility of using in vitro methods to select for increased salt tolerance in halophytic plants. By establishing clonal lines of halophytes in culture and screening those clones for cells exhibiting variation in their capacity to tolerate salt, it may be possible to regenerate plants with elevated salt tolerance. Clonal lines of six species of A triplex (saltbushes) were obtained. Two clones each of A. amnicola and A. cinerea, and one clone of A. nummularia were established as shoot cultures. Explants were induced to form multiple shoots or roots in tissue culture, by the addition of 1μM of the cytokinins kinetin or 2iP, or the auxins NAA, IAA or IBA to M&S basal medium. Callus was readily initiated from leaves of A. nummularia, by the use of M&S medium containing 9-18μM NAA or IAA, and 9μM kinetin or 2iP. Suspension cultures of cells from A. nummularia callus were established in M&S medium without gelling agents or hormones. Regeneration of organs from callus was observed infrequently. The medium giving highest rates of organogenesis could not be defined. Shoots were formed on callus cultures on M&S medium containing 9μM NAA and 9μM kinetin; roots were formed on medium containing a variety of hormone concentrations. Under the conditions imposed here, shoot regeneration can take up to four months to become evident. Callus and suspension cultures of A. nummularia were exposed to up to 342mM NaCI. Callus cultures were not affected by the addition of 43mM NaCI, but growth was depressed at higher salt concentrations. Cell density in suspension cultures were lower when NaCI was present in the medium. These results suggest that although Atriplex nummularia plants possess salt tolerance, this is not expressed or not effective at the cellular level

The Emotional Attributes Questionnaire: Self- and Other-Reports of Guilt and Shame

Shame and guilt are considered to be important emotions for empirical study for a variety of reasons. Developmental psychologists are interested in the emergence of shame and guilt as they relate to the child\u27s understanding of societal and familial expectations/norms and the subsequent development of conscience (Zahn-Waxler & Kochanska, 1990). Social psychologists study how guilt and shame are used to create power differentials and restore equity to relationships (Baumeister, Stillwell, & Heatherton, 1994). Finally, clinicians have long thought shame and guilt to be involved in the development of disorders such as anxiety and depression (H.B. Lewis, 1971). However, those within the clinical realm have often used the words shame and guilt interchangeably, and even the DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) fails to draw a clear distinction between the two. Because of the lack of conceptual clarity, there is is also confusion regarding whether shame and guilt are distinct precursors to different disorders

Dyscalculia: possible causes, symptoms, and teaching techniques

The purpose of this research paper was to examine the causes of dyscalculia in learning disabled children and to examine the characteristics and symptoms such a child exhibits

Predicting criminal incidents on the basis of non-verbal behaviour: the role of experience

Do experienced police officers have a superior ability to detect impending criminal acts? In order to test this hypothesis ten Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) clips were collected from real criminal events that occurred in and around Nottingham city centre in the UK. Ten control clips were filmed specifically or chosen from existing footage to match the criminal clips, but did not contain any criminal activity. All clips ended abruptly, immediately prior to a real criminal act unfolding, or a non-criminal act in the control clips, and either the screen turned black, masking the video scene, or remained frozen on the final frame of the edited clip. Thirty police officers and 30 control participants watched the clips. At the end of each clip, participants were asked to predict what would happen next. Signal detection analysis indicated marginal evidence that police show greater accuracy in predicting clips that cut to black screen compared to the general public. A stronger effect was noted in the analysis of the criterion, with police officers much more likely to predict a crime regardless of whether there was one. These findings provide promising evidence of experiential differences between police officers and the general public when identifying criminal and antisocial behaviour in CCTV footage, though the greater criterion bias effect suggests that experience may over-sensitise individuals to non-verbal cues

The effectiveness of school-based run/walk programmes to develop physical literacy and physical activity components in primary school children: A systematic review

The objectives of this review were to systematically review the research on school-based run/walk programmes and their measurements of physical literacy (PL) and physical activity (PA)-related components and to assess the different intervention methods and their impact on encouraging PL and PA. To be included in the review, studies had to satisfy all inclusion criteria. An electronic search was conducted on six databases, the last date search was 25 April 2022. All outcome measures were grouped using the Shearer et al. (Citation2021) PL checklist and additional PA related outcomes. Ten studies were included in the final review. Five different run/walk interventions were identified and six studies followed or referred to The Daily Mile (TDM) protocol. Outcomes relating to the physical domain were most commonly explored, and no studies explored the cognitive domain. Four studies reported significant differences in cardiovascular endurance measures. Positive findings were also reported for outcomes relating to motivation and self-perception/self-esteem in the affective domain. Overall, run/walk programmes appear to provide promising results in favour of physical and affective development in PL. However, further high-quality studies are needed to draw firm conclusions. This review highlights the popularity of TDM and its potential to contribute to PL development

Protocol for a process-oriented qualitative evaluation of the Waltham Forest and East London Collaborative (WELC) integrated care pioneer programme using the Researcher-in-Residence model

INTRODUCTION: The integration of health and social care in England is widely accepted as the answer to fragmentation, financial concerns and system inefficiencies, in the context of growing and ageing populations with increasingly complex needs. Despite an expanding body of literature, there is little evidence yet to suggest that integrated care can achieve the benefits that its advocates claim for it. Researchers have often adopted rationalist and technocratic approaches to evaluation, treating integration as an intervention rather than a process. Results have usually been of limited use to practitioners responsible for health and social care integration. There is, therefore, a need to broaden the evidence base, exploring not only what works but also how integrated care can most successfully be implemented and delivered. For this reason, we are carrying out a formative evaluation of the Waltham Forest and East London Collaborative (WELC) integrated care pioneer programme. Our expectation is that this will add value to the literature by focusing on the processes by which the vision and objectives of integrated care are translated through phases of development, implementation and delivery from a central to a local perspective, and from a strategic to an operational perspective. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The qualitative and process-oriented evaluation uses an innovative participative approach-the Researcher-in-Residence model. The evaluation is underpinned by a critical ontology, an interpretive epistemology and a critical discourse analysis methodology. Data will be generated using interviews, observations and documentary gathering. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Emerging findings will be interpreted and disseminated collaboratively with stakeholders, to enable the research to influence and optimise the effective implementation of integrated care across WELC. Presentations and publications will ensure that learning is shared as widely as possible. The study has received ethical approval from University College London's Research Ethics Committee and has all appropriate NHS governance clearances

Incorporating Special Needs Youth into 4-H

The Winning 4-H Plan provides Extension professionals, volunteers, parents, and youth with hands-on activities to improve their understanding of special needs youth and to promote inclusion of these youth in traditional 4-H programs. The program emphasizes acceptance by peers through an educational 4-H plan. When using appropriate project materials that follow a step-by-step progression, the end result will be a positive judging experience. The Winning 4-H Plan creates a 4-H environment where youth with disabilities can reach their fullest potential as capable, competent, caring, and contributing citizens

Evidence for variation in the effective population size of animal mitochondrial DNA

Background: It has recently been shown that levels of diversity in mitochondrial DNA are remarkably constant across animals of diverse census population sizes and ecologies, which has led to the suggestion that the effective population of mitochondrial DNA may be relatively constant. Results: Here we present several lines of evidence that suggest, to the contrary, that the effective population size of mtDNA does vary, and that the variation can be substantial. First, we show that levels of mitochondrial and nuclear diversity are correlated within all groups of animals we surveyed. Second, we show that the effectiveness of selection on non-synonymous mutations, as measured by the ratio of the numbers of non-synonymous and synonymous polymorphisms, is negatively correlated to levels of mitochondrial diversity. Finally, we estimate the effective population size of mitochondrial DNA in selected mammalian groups and show that it varies by at least an order of magnitude. Conclusions: We conclude that there is variation in the effective population size of mitochondria. Furthermore we suggest that the relative constancy of DNA diversity may be due to a negative correlation between the effective population size and the mutation rate per generation

‘Works for some but not others’ A qualitative study on teachers’ perspectives and perceived pupil experience of a North West London school-based run/walk programme

Developing physical literacy (PL) in childhood is a key to develop lifelong physical activity. Teachers’ play an important role in supporting children’s PL and are at the forefront for continued participation in school-based interventions. This study aimed to discuss teacher-perceived pupils’ experiences of a London-based run/walk intervention and explore its contribution to PL. Semi-structured interviews were developed to explore school delivery and teacher perceptions. Six themes developed: perceived experiences, perceived outcomes of participation, teacher attitudes, fidelity/adherence, logistics and intervention suggestions. A novel insight is that the intervention ‘works for some but not others’ and the importance of self-select pace

Sustainable intensification? Increased production diminishes omega-3 content of sheep milk

Intensifying agricultural production alters food composition, but this is often ignored when assessing system sustainability, yet it could compromise consumers’ health and the concept of ‘sustainable diets’. Here we consider milk composition from Mediterranean dairy sheep, finding inferior fatty acid (FA) profiles with respect to consumer health as a result of a more intensive system of production. Semi-intensive management did produce 57% more milk per ewe with 20% lower fat content, but inferior fat composition. Milk had a nutritionally poorer fatty acid (FA) profile, with 18% less omega-3 FA (n-3) (19% less long-chain n-3) and 7% less monounsaturated FA but 3% more saturated FA (9% higher in C14:0) concentrations compared with ewes under traditional, extensive management. Redundancy analysis identified close associations between fat composition and animal diets, particularly concentrate supplementation and grazing cultivated pasture - n-3 was associated with grazing diverse, native mountain pastures. The paper questions if identifying such key elements in traditional systems could be deployed for ‘sustainable intensification’ to maintain food quality whilst increasing output