ITV vs BBC: How gambling advertising during the World Cup influences impulsive football betting

Abstract Introduction: The pervasiveness of gambling advertising and its relationship with football have been identified as areas of concern in the UK. Following the liberalisation of advertising laws in the 2005 Gambling Act, there has been increasing recognition of its public health impact. To date, there is a lack of evidence of the impact of advertising on behaviour in “real-world” settings. Methods: This study employs a natural experiment measuring the impact of television gambling advertising on the frequency of impulsive football bets placed during the World Cup. Longitudinal betting data collected from a sample of men (aged 18-45) will be linked with individual exposure to two TV channels: ITV (adverts) and BBC (no adverts). This is a unique opportunity to measure the causal impact of gambling advertising on behaviour during a widely-televised sporting event. Data Analysis: Panel data statistical models will be employed; advertising will be determined using the television channel. Statistical analyses will estimate the interaction effect between watching a live game which occurs on ITV. Alternative windows of impulsive betting around the live game will be tested. Results: Data collection commences in November, with data analysis complete by early 2023. Statement of implications: If a relationship exists between television gambling advertising and impulsive football betting, then policies which restrict advertising around live sports might be a crucial part of a public health approach to tackle gambling-related harm. If no relationship exists, then current industry policies might not be sufficient in reducing harm

The impact of the Whistle-to-Whistle ban on the frequency and placement of gambling advertising on UK television

Abstract Introduction: There are currently no legally enforced restrictions on the broadcast time of gambling advertising on UK television. In August 2019, the Industry Group for Responsible Gambling (IGRG) introduced a voluntary policy which limited advertising around live sports, creating a “safe” window of 5 minutes either side of a match, known as the “Whistle-to-Whistle” period. This policy intended to protect young and vulnerable people from the widespread exposure to gambling adverts on television during pre-watershed (9pm) live sports games. Methods: This study will employ panel data statistical models to explore the change in pre-watershed gambling advertising around live sports, and other sporting programmes, following the introduction of the “whistle-to-whistle” ban. It will explore spill-overs to post-watershed, and non-sports channels to assess the industry’s response to the policy. Data: Data comprises six months of advertising data obtained from Nielsen Media covering 1st September to 1st December 2018, and 2019. Data is compiled using the BARB (Broadcasters Audience Research Board) definition of gambling. Analyses will compare the impact on weekdays and weekends, pre and post-watershed, for different genres of television programme. Results & Conclusions: Data analysis commences in November 2022 and is due to be completed in early 2023. Statement of implications: If such policies are effective in reducing the number of gambling adverts on television, then they might be implemented legally in the UK broadcasting codes. Identifying spread to other channels, or post-watershed television, will help to understand the potential unintended consequences of the policy

Does higher-yielding agriculture mean more environmental harm?

A criticism of the land-sparing approach to preserving biodiversity, by restricting farmland to a smaller, higher-yielding area, is that other impacts are higher in food produced this way. This study aims to investigate the evidence for this based on currently available data and models for greenhouse gas emissions, N, P and soil loss and water use. We asked 25 experts to identify and supply data to plot environmental impact per unit of product against yield for the beef, dairy, wheat and rice sectors. This produced data from modelling and field trials and the lifecycle assessment and field trial literature. The data were modelled statistically to adjust for differences between the studies. Given data limitations, it does not seem that higher yielding agricultural production has higher impacts, often quite the reverse. We ask those conducting field studies to collect data that can definitively answer this question.CCI project code: CCI 06-16-00

The Earth Microbiome Project: Meeting report of the "1 EMP meeting on sample selection and acquisition" at Argonne National Laboratory October 6 2010.

This report details the outcome the first meeting of the Earth Microbiome Project to discuss sample selection and acquisition. The meeting, held at the Argonne National Laboratory on Wednesday October 6(th) 2010, focused on discussion of how to prioritize environmental samples for sequencing and metagenomic analysis as part of the global effort of the EMP to systematically determine the functional and phylogenetic diversity of microbial communities across the world

O-Antigen Biosynthesis: Hitting the Sweet Spot for a Q Fever Vaccine

Poster presented at the 2017 Defence and Security Doctoral Symposium.Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever, is a pathogen with a worldwide distribution. Biological material shed from ruminant infections contaminates dirt and dust, which can cause infection on inhalation. Humans generally present with flu-like symptoms, however, patients can develop life-changing maladies such as hepatitis, chronic fatigue, and endocarditis. Q fever was initially identified as a military problem when thousands were affected during WWI. More recently, Q fever has been recognised as a problem in UK troops returning from Afghanistan. C. burnetii is classified as a CDC category B bioterrorism agent, the second highest category, yet there is no Q fever vaccine licensed in the UK/EU/US. For C. burnetii, the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is the main determinant of virulence, and many of the most effective modern vaccines target such sugar structures. Furthermore, the sugars that comprise the C. burnetii LPS are highly unusual, making this the primary target for vaccine development. In order to facilitate production of a subunit vaccine, focus is on elucidating the pathways for biosynthesis of two very rare sugars, virenose and dihydrohydroxystreptose (DHHS). Therefore in addition to providing the basis for a novel Q fever vaccine, for livestock and humans, this project will highlight novel biochemistry

Spatially targeted nature-based solutions can mitigate climate change and nature loss but require a systems approach

Funding Information: This study was funded by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and Natural England (project code ECM 58632). The Breeding Bird Survey is a Partnership between the BTO, RSPB, and Joint Nature Conservation Committee (on behalf of Natural Resources Wales, Natural England, Council for Nature Conservation and Countryside, and NatureScot) and relies on volunteer surveyors. Simon Gillings provided tetrad-level predictions of relative abundance for wading birds. We are grateful to members of the RSPB steering group, who contributed to the development of our scenarios, and Profs. Tim Benton and Andrew Balmford who commented on an earlier version of this manuscript. Conceptualization, T.F. R.B.B. T.B.-L. G.M.B. W.J.P. and R.H.F.; methodology, T.F. T.B.-L. J.P.C. D.M. P.S. and R.H.F.; software, T.F.; formal analysis, T.F.; resources, D.M.; data curation, T.F.; writing – original draft, T.F.; writing – review & editing, R.B.B. T.B.-L. G.M.B. J.P.C. D.M. P.S. W.J.P. and R.H.F.; visualization, T.F.; supervision, W.J.P. The authors declare no competing interests. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The AuthorsPeer reviewedPublisher PD

The Earth Microbiome Project: The Meeting Report for the 1st International Earth Microbiome Project Conference, Shenzhen, China, June 13th-15th 2011

This report details the outcome of the 1st International Earth Microbiome Project Conference. The 2-day conference was held at the Kingkey Palace Hotel, Shenzhen, China, on the 14th-15th June 2011, and was hosted by BGI (formally the Beijing Genomics Institute). The conference was arranged as a formal launch for the Earth Microbiome Project, to highlight some of the exciting research projects, results of the preliminary pilot studies, and to provide a discussion forum for the types of technology and experimental approaches that will come to define the standard operating procedures of this project

Mutation of a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor β subunit is associated with resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides in the aphid Myzus persicae

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly citedBackground: Myzus persicae is a globally important aphid pest with a history of developing resistance to insecticides. Unusually, neonicotinoids have remained highly effective as control agents despite nearly two decades of steadily increasing use. In this study, a clone of M. persicae collected from southern France was found, for the first time, to exhibit sufficiently strong resistance to result in loss of the field effectiveness of neonicotinoids. Results: Bioassays, metabolism and gene expression studies implied the presence of two resistance mechanisms in the resistant clone, one based on enhanced detoxification by cytochrome P450 monooxygenases, and another unaffected by a synergist that inhibits detoxifying enzymes. Binding of radiolabeled imidacloprid (a neonicotinoid) to whole body membrane preparations showed that the high affinity [3H]-imidacloprid binding site present in susceptible M. persicae is lost in the resistant clone and the remaining lower affinity site is altered compared to susceptible clones. This confers a significant overall reduction in binding affinity to the neonicotinoid target: the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR). Comparison of the nucleotide sequence of six nAChR subunit (Mp alpha 1-5 and Mp beta 1) genes from resistant and susceptible aphid clones revealed a single point mutation in the loop D region of the nAChR beta 1 subunit of the resistant clone, causing an arginine to threonine substitution (R81T). Conclusion: Previous studies have shown that the amino acid at this position within loop D is a key determinant of neonicotinoid binding to nAChRs and this amino acid change confers a vertebrate-like character to the insect nAChR receptor and results in reduced sensitivity to neonicotinoids. The discovery of the mutation at this position and its association with the reduced affinity of the nAChR for imidacloprid is the first example of field-evolved target-site resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides and also provides further validation of exisiting models of neonicotinoid binding and selectivity for insect nAChRs.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

A scaffold-level genome assembly of a minute pirate bug, Orius laevigatus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae), and a comparative analysis of insecticide resistance-related gene families with hemipteran crop pests

Background: Orius laevigatus, a minute pirate bug, is a highly effective beneficial predator of crop pests including aphids, spider mites and thrips in integrated pest management (IPM) programmes. No genomic information is currently available for O. laevigatus, as is the case for the majority of beneficial predators which feed on crop pests. In contrast, genomic information for crop pests is far more readily available. The lack of publicly available genomes for beneficial predators to date has limited our ability to perform comparative analyses of genes encoding potential insecticide resistance mechanisms between crop pests and their predators. These mechanisms include several gene/protein families including cytochrome P450s (P450s), ATP binding cassette transporters (ABCs), glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), UDP-glucosyltransferases (UGTs) and carboxyl/cholinesterases (CCEs). Methods and findings: In this study, a high-quality scaffold level de novo genome assembly for O. laevigatus has been generated using a hybrid approach with PacBio long-read and Illumina short-read data. The final assembly achieved a scaffold N50 of 125,649 bp and a total genome size of 150.98 Mb. The genome assembly achieved a level of completeness of 93.6% using a set of 1658 core insect genes present as full-length genes. Genome annotation identified 15,102 protein-coding genes - 87% of which were assigned a putative function. Comparative analyses revealed gene expansions of sigma class GSTs and CYP3 P450s. Conversely the UGT gene family showed limited expansion. Differences were seen in the distributions of resistance-associated gene families at the subfamily level between O. laevigatus and some of its targeted crop pests. A target site mutation in ryanodine receptors (I4790M, PxRyR) which has strong links to diamide resistance in crop pests and had previously only been identified in lepidopteran species was found to also be present in hemipteran species, including O. laevigatus. Conclusion and significance: This assembly is the first published genome for the Anthocoridae family and will serve as a useful resource for further research into target-site selectivity issues and potential resistance mechanisms in beneficial predators. Furthermore, the expansion of gene families often linked to insecticide resistance may be an indicator of the capacity of this predator to detoxify selective insecticides. These findings could be exploited by targeted pesticide screens and functional studies to increase effectiveness of IPM strategies, which aim to increase crop yields by sustainably, environmentally-friendly and effectively control pests without impacting beneficial predator populations.Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC