Herbivory in riparian buffers of agricultural landscapes in SW Finland

Siirretty Doriast

Ron Kelly, Gilbert Thomas, Sonja Joy Dalrymple, Norman Coad, and Sandra Elliff in a Junior Recital

This is the program for the joint junior recitals of pianist Ron Kelly, tenor Gilbert Thomas, pianist Sonja Joy Dalrymple, bass-baritone Norman Coad, and pianist Sandra Elliff. These recitals took place on April 17, 1962, in Mitchell Hall

Redirection of auxin flow in Arabidopsis thaliana roots after infection by root-knot nematodes

Plant auxin efflux and influx proteins redirect the plant hormone auxin towards the feeding site upon root-knot nematode infection in Arabidopsis thaliana roots.Plant-parasitic root-knot nematodes induce the formation of giant cells within the plant root, and it has been recognized that auxin accumulates in these feeding sites. Here, we studied the role of the auxin transport system governed by AUX1/LAX3 influx proteins and different PIN efflux proteins during feeding site development in Arabidopsis thaliana roots. Data generated via promoter-reporter line and protein localization analyses evoke a model in which auxin is being imported at the basipetal side of the feeding site by the concerted action of the influx proteins AUX1 and LAX3, and the efflux protein PIN3. Mutants in auxin influx proteins AUX1 and LAX3 bear significantly fewer and smaller galls, revealing that auxin import into the feeding sites is needed for their development and expansion. The feeding site development in auxin export (PIN) mutants was only slightly hampered. Expression of some PINs appears to be suppressed in galls, probably to prevent auxin drainage. Nevertheless, a functional PIN4 gene seems to be a prerequisite for proper nematode development and gall expansion, most likely by removing excessive auxin to stabilize the hormone level in the feeding site. Our data also indicate a role of local auxin peaks in nematode attraction towards the root

Nuorten Kompassi (Youth Compass): Menetelmä yläkouluikäisten nuorten hyvinvointitaitojen vahvistamiseen (1. arvio)

Ilmiöt: Hyvinvointitaidot Johdanto: Hyvä psyykkinen hyvinvointi on keskeistä nuoren kehittymisen sekä opintosuoriutumisen ja työelämävalmiuksien kannalta. Oppilaitoksilla on keskeinen asema nuorten psyykkisen hyvinvoinnin tukemisessa, ja niitä velvoitetaan myös laissa vahvistamaan opiskelijoidensa hyvinvointia. Nuorten Kompassi -menetelmän tavoitteena on tukea nuorten hyvinvointitaitoja, kuten psykologista joustavuutta ja sen osataitoja sekä ennaltaehkäistä mielenterveyden ongelmia. Menetelmä on täysin verkkopohjainen, ja sitä on mahdollista hyödyntää osana oppilaitosten toimintaa. Se on alun perin kehitetty yläkouluikäisille, mutta soveltuu myös toisen asteen opintojen alkuvaiheessa oleville nuorille. Aineisto ja menetelmät: Kirjallisuushaku tehtiin kartoittaville kirjallisuuskatsauksille tyypillisellä Population, Concept, Context (PCC) -hakustrategialla, joka kohdistui kysymykseen: Mitä tutkimusta Nuorten Kompassi -menetelmästä (Youth Compass) on tehty. Hakusanoina käytettiin: P = nuoret, yläkoulu, toinen aste, C = Youth Compass, Nuorten Kompassi, C = koulu, koti, terveydenhuolto. Ensisijaisena kiinnostuksenkohteena haussa olivat menetelmään liittyvät vaikuttavuustutkimukset, mutta mukaan otettiin kuitenkin myös muilla asetelmilla tehtyjä tutkimuksia. Systemaattinen haku kohdistui seuraaviin tietokantoihin: MEDLINE, APA PsycInfo, CINAHL, ERIC, Web of Science ja Scopus, ja sitä täydennettiin manuaalisella haulla. Tulokset: Kirjallisuushaun perusteella mukaan otettiin kahdeksan tutkimusta. Näistä viisi oli suomalaisia vaikuttavuustutkimuksia, joihin menetelmän vaikuttavuuden arviointi perustui. Lisäksi mukana oli kolme suomalaista tutkimusta, joissa ei arvioitu menetelmän vaikuttavuutta tai implementointia. Mukaan otettujen tutkimusten ja menetelmäoppaan perusteella Nuorten Kompassi -menetelmän kuvaus ja teoreettinen peruste on riittävä. Menetelmällä on todettu olevan myönteisiä vaikutuksia nuoren masennusoireisiin, ahdistusoireisiin, tyytyväisyyteen elämään, stressiin, akateemiseen joustavuuteen sekä urasuunnitteluun liittyvään epävarmuuteen. Lisäksi sen on todettu lisäävän kyvykkyyttä tehdä uravalintaan liittyviä päätöksiä. Vaikutukset olivat enintään pieniä vasteiden osalta yläkoulua käyvillä nuorilla (d = 0,03–0,48, NNT (Number­Needed­to­Treat) = 3,76–62,5). Vaikuttavuustutkimusten laatu vaihteli tyydyttävästä hyvään. Nuorten Kompassin implementointivalmius ei täyttynyt riittävästi käytettyjen osa-alueiden mukaan arvioituna. Menetelmä on tällä hetkellä valtakunnallisessa levityksessä stand­alone-periaatteella, eli menetelmästä kiinnostuneet voivat osallistua rekisteröitymällä sivustolle ja käydä sitä läpi itsenäisesti. Kokonaisarvio: Menetelmä saa kokonaisarvion 4/5, eli menetelmällä on kohtalainen dokumentoitu näyttö suomalaisessa kontekstissa. Kokonaisarvio perustuu vaikuttavuustutkimuksiin, joissa menetelmää toteutettiin verkkopohjaisella alustalla sekä kasvokkain ja digitaalisesti tapahtuvan ohjauksen avulla

Effectiveness of an Internet-Based and Telephone-Assisted Training for Parents of 4-Year-Old Children With Disruptive Behavior : Implementation Research

Background: There is a lack of effectiveness studies when digital parent training programs are implemented in real-world practice. The efficacy of the internet-based and telephone-assisted Finnish Strongest Families Smart Website (SFSW) parent training intervention on the disruptive behavior of 4-year-old children was studied in a randomized controlled trial setting in Southwest Finland between 2011 and 2013. After that, the intervention was implemented nationwide in child health clinics from 2015 onwards. Objective: The main aim of this study was to compare the treatment characteristics and effectiveness of the SFSW parent training intervention between the families who received the intervention when it was implemented as a normal practice in child health clinics and the families who received the same intervention during the randomized controlled trial. Methods: The implementation group comprised 600 families who were recruited in the SFSW intervention between January 2015 and May 2017 in real-world implementation. The RCT intervention group comprised 232 families who were recruited between October 2011 and November 2013. The same demographic and child and parent measures were collected from both study groups and were compared using linear mixed-effect models for repeated measurements. The child psychopathology and functioning level were measured using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) version 1.5-5 for preschool children, the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU), and a modified version of the Barkley Home Situations Questionnaire. Parenting skills were measured using the 31-item Parenting Scale and the shorter 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). The estimated child and parent outcomes were adjusted for CBCL externalizing scores at baseline, maternal education, duration of the behavior problems, and paternal age. The baseline measurements of each outcome were used as covariates. Results: The implementation group was more likely to complete the intervention than the RCT intervention group (514/600, 85.7% vs 176/232, 75.9%, respectively; P Conclusions: The internet-based and telephone-assisted SFSW parent training intervention was effectively implemented in real-world settings. These findings have implications for addressing the unmet needs of children with disruptive behavior problems. Our initiative could also provide a quick socially distanced solution for the considerable mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.Peer reviewe

Development of chemical proteomics for the folateome and analysis of the kinetoplastid folateome

The folate pathway has been extensively studied in a number of organisms, with its essentiality exploited by a number of drugs. However, there has been little success in developing drugs that target folate metabolism in the kinetoplastids. Despite compounds being identified which show significant inhibition of the parasite enzymes, this activity does not translate well into cellular and animal models of disease. Understanding to which enzymes antifolates bind under physiological conditions and how this corresponds to the phenotypic response could provide insight on how to target the folate pathway in these organisms. To facilitate this, we have adopted a chemical proteomics approach to study binding of compounds to enzymes of folate metabolism. Clinical and literature antifolate compounds were immobilized onto resins to allow for “pull down” of the proteins in the “folateome”. Using competition studies, proteins, which bind the beads specifically and nonspecifically, were identified in parasite lysate (Trypanosoma brucei and Leishmania major) for each antifolate compound. Proteins were identified through tryptic digest, tandem mass tag (TMT) labeling of peptides followed by LC-MS/MS. This approach was further exploited by creating a combined folate resin (folate beads). The resin could pull down up to 9 proteins from the folateome. This information could be exploited in gaining a better understanding of folate metabolism in kinetoplastids and other organisms

Registered psychiatric service use, self-harm and suicides of children and young people aged 0-24 before and during the COVID-19 pandemic : a systematic review

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted on psychiatric symptoms of children and young people, but many psychiatric services have been disrupted. It is unclear how service use, self-harm and suicide has changed since the pandemic started. To gain timely information, this systematic review focused on studies based on administrative data that compared psychiatric service use, self-harm and suicide before and during the pandemic among children and young people. Methods and finding A systematic review of studies published in English from 1 January 2020 to 22 March 2021 was conducted, using the Web of Science, PubMed, Embase and PsycINFO databases. Increases or reductions in service use were calculated and compared using percentages. Of the 2,676 papers retrieved, 18 were eligible for the review and they provided data from 19 countries and regions. Most studies assessed changes during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, from March to July 2020, and three assessed the changes until October 2020. Fifteen studies reported a total of 21 service use outcomes that were quantitively examined. More than three-quarters of the 21 outcomes (81%) fell by 5-80% (mean reduction = 27.9%, SD = 35%). Ten of the 20 outcomes for psychiatric emergency department (ED) services reduced by 5% to 80% (mean = 40.1%, SD = 34.9%) during the pandemic. Reductions in service use were also recorded for ED visits due to suicide ideation and self-harm, referrals to secondary mental health services, psychiatric inpatient unit admissions and patients receiving treatment for eating disorders. However, there were also some increases. Suicide rate and the number of ED visits due to suicide attempts have increased, and there was an increase in the number of treatment sessions in a service that provided telemedicine. Conclusion Most of the studies showed reductions in the use of psychiatric services by children and young people during the early phase of the pandemic and this highlighted potential delays or unmet needs. Suicide rate has increased during the second wave of the pandemic. Further studies are needed to assess the pattern of service use in the later phases of the COVID-19 pandemic.Peer reviewe

The perceived impact of climate change on mental health and suicidality in Kenyan high school students

Background Climate change has psychological impacts but most of the attention has been focused on the physical impact. This study was aimed at determining the association of climate change with adolescent mental health and suicidality as reported by Kenyan high school students. Methods This was a cross sectional study with a sample size of 2,652. The participants were high school students selected from 10 schools in 3 regions of Kenya. A questionnaire was used to assess climate change experiences, mental health problems, and suicidality of the youth. Data were analyzed descriptively and with logistic regression to determine various associations of the different variables and the predictors of the various scores of SDQ and suicidality at 95% CI. Results Significant differences were observed between gender and two of the threats of climate change – worry and being afraid as subjectively experienced by the participants. Females were more worried and afraid of climate change than males. On univariate and multivariate logistic regression, we found that various experiences of climate change were significantly associated with various scores of SDQ and much fewer of the experiences predicted SDQ scores. The same pattern was reflected in suicidality. Conclusion Climate change appears to be associated with mental health concerns and suicidality according to Kenyan high school students’ reports with gender differences in some associations

Perfusion CT best predicts outcome after radioembolization of liver metastases: a comparison of radionuclide and CT imaging techniques

Objective: To determine the best predictor for the response to and survival with transarterial radioembolisation (RE) with 90yttrium microspheres in patients with liver metastases. Methods: Forty consecutive patients with liver metastases undergoing RE were evaluated with multiphase CT, perfusion CT and 99mTc-MAA SPECT. Arterial perfusion (AP) from perfusion CT, HU values from the arterial (aHU) and portal venous phase (pvHU) CT, and 99mTc-MAA uptake ratio of metastases were determined. Morphologic response was evaluated after 4months and available in 30 patients. One-year survival was calculated with Kaplan-Meier curves. Results: We found significant differences between responders and non-responders for AP (P 20ml/100ml/min had a significantly (P = 0.01) higher 1-year survival, whereas an aHU value >55 HU did not discriminate survival (P = 0.12). The Cox proportional hazard model revealed AP as the only significant (P = 0.02) independent predictor of survival. Conclusion: Compared to arterial and portal venous enhancement and the 99mTc-MAA uptake ratio of liver metastases, the AP from perfusion CT is the best predictor of morphologic response to and 1-year survival with RE. Key Points : • Perfusion CT allows for calculation of the liver arterial perfusion. • Arterial perfusion of liver metastases differs between responders and non-responders to RE. • Arterial perfusion can be used to select patients responding to RE

Digital mental health literacy-program for the first-year medical students' wellbeing: a one group quasi-experimental study

Background Medical students are prone to mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety, and their psychological burden is mainly related to their highly demanding studies. Interventions are needed to improve medical students' mental health literacy (MHL) and wellbeing. This study assessed the digital Transitions, a MHL program for medical students that covered blended life skills and mindfulness activities.Methodology This was a one group, quasi-experimental pretest-posttest study. The study population was 374 first-year students who started attending the medical faculty at the University of Turku, Finland, in 2018-2019. Transitions was provided as an elective course and 220 students chose to attend and 182 agreed to participate in our research. Transitions included two 60-minute lectures, four weeks apart, with online self-learning material in between. The content focused on life and academic skills, stress management, positive mental health, mental health problems and disorders. It included mindfulness audiotapes. Mental health knowledge, stigma and help-seeking questionnaires were used to measure MHL. The Perceived Stress Scale and General Health Questionnaire measured the students' stress and health, respectively. A single group design, with repeated measurements of analysis of variance, was used to analyze the differences in the mean outcome scores for the 158 students who completed all three stages: the pre-test (before the first lecture), the post-test (after the second lecture) and the two-month follow-up evaluation.Results The students' mean scores for mental health knowledge improved (-1.6, 95% Cl -1.9 to -1.3, PP=.040). The changes were maintained at the two-month follow up (-1.7, 95% Cl -2.0 to -1.4, PP=.019, respectively). The students' stress levels reduced (P=.022) and their attitudes towards help-seeking improved after the program (PP=.13).Conclusions: The digital Transitions program was easily integrated into the university curriculum and it improved the students' mental health literacy and wellbeing. The program may respond to the increasing global need for universal digital services, especially during the lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.</p