Social marketing and healthy eating : Findings from young people in Greece

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12208-013-0112-xGreece has high rates of obesity and non-communicable diseases owing to poor dietary choices. This research provides lessons for social marketing to tackle the severe nutrition-related problems in this country by obtaining insight into the eating behaviour of young adults aged 18–23. Also, the main behavioural theories used to inform the research are critically discussed. The research was conducted in Athens. Nine focus groups with young adults from eight educational institutions were conducted and fifty-nine participants’ views towards eating habits, healthy eating and the factors that affect their food choices were explored. The study found that the participants adopted unhealthier nutritional habits after enrolment. Motivations for healthy eating were good health, appearance and psychological consequences, while barriers included lack of time, fast-food availability and taste, peer pressure, lack of knowledge and lack of family support. Participants reported lack of supportive environments when deciding on food choices. Based on the findings, recommendations about the development of the basic 4Ps of the marketing mix, as well as of a fifth P, for Policy are proposedPeer reviewe

Immune-mediated competition in rodent malaria is most likely caused by induced changes in innate immune clearance of merozoites

Malarial infections are often genetically diverse, leading to competitive interactions between parasites. A quantitative understanding of the competition between strains is essential to understand a wide range of issues, including the evolution of virulence and drug resistance. In this study, we use dynamical-model based Bayesian inference to investigate the cause of competitive suppression of an avirulent clone of Plasmodium chabaudi (AS) by a virulent clone (AJ) in immuno-deficient and competent mice. We test whether competitive suppression is caused by clone-specific differences in one or more of the following processes: adaptive immune clearance of merozoites and parasitised red blood cells (RBCs), background loss of merozoites and parasitised RBCs, RBC age preference, RBC infection rate, burst size, and within-RBC interference. These processes were parameterised in dynamical mathematical models and fitted to experimental data. We found that just one parameter μ, the ratio of background loss rate of merozoites to invasion rate of mature RBCs, needed to be clone-specific to predict the data. Interestingly, μ was found to be the same for both clones in single-clone infections, but different between the clones in mixed infections. The size of this difference was largest in immuno-competent mice and smallest in immuno-deficient mice. This explains why competitive suppression was alleviated in immuno-deficient mice. We found that competitive suppression acts early in infection, even before the day of peak parasitaemia. These results lead us to argue that the innate immune response clearing merozoites is the most likely, but not necessarily the only, mediator of competitive interactions between virulent and avirulent clones. Moreover, in mixed infections we predict there to be an interaction between the clones and the innate immune response which induces changes in the strength of its clearance of merozoites. What this interaction is unknown, but future refinement of the model, challenged with other datasets, may lead to its discovery

A feasibility trial to examine the social norms approach for the prevention and reduction of licit and illicit drug use in European University and college students.

Background: Incorrect perceptions of high rates of peer alcohol and tobacco use are predictive of increased personal use in student populations. Correcting misperceptions by providing feedback has been shown to be an effective intervention for reducing licit drug use. It is currently unknown if social norms interventions are effective in preventing and reducing illicit drug use in European students. The purpose of this paper is to describe the design of a multi-site cluster controlled trial of a web-based social norms intervention aimed at reducing licit and preventing illicit drug use in European university students. Methods/Design: An online questionnaire to assess rates of drug use will be developed and translated based on existing social norms surveys. Students from sixteen universities in seven participating European countries will be invited to complete the questionnaire. Both intervention and control sites will be chosen by convenience. In each country, the intervention site will be the university that the local principal investigator is affiliated with. We aim to recruit 1000 students per site (baseline assessment). All participants will complete the online questionnaire at baseline. Baseline data will be used to develop social norms messages that will be included in a web-based intervention. The intervention group will receive individualized social norms feedback. The website will remain online during the following 5 months. After five months, a second survey will be conducted and effects of the intervention on social norms and drug use will be measured in comparison to the control site. Discussion: This project is the first cross-national European collaboration to investigate the feasibility of a social norms intervention to reduce licit and prevent illicit drug use among European university students. Final trial registration number DRKS00004375 on the ‘German Clinical Trials Register’.This study is funded by the European Commission, Directorate General Justice, Freedom and Security (JLS/2009-2010/DPIP/AG

A commensal symbiotic interrelationship for the growth of Symbiobacterium toebii with its partner bacterium, Geobacillus toebii

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Symbiobacterium toebii </it>is a commensal symbiotic thermophile that absolutely requires its partner bacterium <it>Geobacillus toebii </it>for growth. Despite development of an independent cultivation method using cell-free extracts, the growth of <it>Symbiobacterium </it>remains unknown due to our poor understanding of the symbiotic relationship with its partner bacterium. Here, we investigated the interrelationship between these two bacteria for growth of <it>S. toebii </it>using different cell-free extracts of <it>G. toebii</it>.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>Symbiobacterium toebii </it>growth-supporting factors were constitutively produced through almost all growth phases and under different oxygen tensions in <it>G. toebii</it>, indicating that the factor may be essential components for growth of <it>G. toebii </it>as well as <it>S. toebii</it>. The growing conditions of <it>G. toebii </it>under different oxygen tension dramatically affected to the initial growth of <it>S. toebii </it>and the retarded lag phase was completely shortened by reducing agent, L-cysteine indicating an evidence of commensal interaction of microaerobic and anaerobic bacterium <it>S. toebii </it>with a facultative aerobic bacterium <it>G. toebii</it>. In addition, the growth curve of <it>S. toebii </it>showed a dependency on the protein concentration of cell-free extracts of <it>G. toebii</it>, demonstrating that the <it>G. toebii</it>-derived factors have nutrient-like characters but not quorum-sensing characters.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Not only the consistent existence of the factor in <it>G. toebii </it>during all growth stages and under different oxygen tensions but also the concentration dependency of the factor for proliferation and optimal growth of <it>S. toebii</it>, suggests that an important biosynthetic machinery lacks in <it>S. toebii </it>during evolution. The commensal symbiotic bacterium, <it>S. toebii </it>uptakes certain ubiquitous and essential compound for its growth from environment or neighboring bacteria that shares the equivalent compounds. Moreover, <it>G. toebii </it>grown under aerobic condition shortened the lag phase of <it>S. toebii </it>under anaerobic and microaerobic conditions, suggests a possible commensal interaction that <it>G. toebii </it>scavengers ROS/RNS species and helps the initial growth of <it>S. toebii</it>.</p

Early adolescent disclosure and parental knowledge regarding online activities: Social anxiety and parental rule-setting as moderators

Early adolescents spend a lot of time online, yet little is currently known about the links between parental rule-setting, adolescent disclosure about online activities, and whether social anxiety may interfere with these processes. Using a longitudinal sample of 526 adolescents (269 girls; Mage = 14.00) and their parents (79% mothers, Mage = 43.66), the results from the current study showed low correspondence between parental knowledge, adolescent disclosure, as well as parents’ and adolescents’ ratings of parental legitimacy to set boundaries about online activities. High social anxiety interacted with high adolescent-rated parental rule-setting in predicting the least disclosure about chatting with strangers and posting online content over time. Also, high social anxiety interacted with low parent-rated control to predict more adolescent disclosure about chatting with strangers and money spent online over time. Thus, social anxiety and parental rule-setting moderated the links between disclosure and knowledge for some early adolescent online activities. Our results conflict with the value typically placed on parental rule-setting in online contexts, at least for socially anxious adolescents

High Prevalence of Drug Resistance in Animal Trypanosomes without a History of Drug Exposure

Trypanosomosis is responsible for the death of 3 million heads of cattle yearly, with 50 million animals at risk in sub-Saharan Africa. DA, a commonly used drug against the disease, was marketed decades ago. Drug resistance is reported in 21 African countries. A common argument about the origin of drug resistance is the selection by the drug of rare individuals that are naturally resistant and the propagation of those individuals in the population because of the competitive advantage they have when exposed to drug. When the drug pressure decreases, the wild-type individuals regain their supremacy. The principal objective of this study was thus to estimate the prevalence of trypanosomes resistant to DA in a population that was never exposed to the drug. Our results showing a high prevalence of drug resistance in environments free of any drug pressure is thought provoking and suggests that ceasing the use of DA will not allow for a return to a DA-sensitive population of trypanosomes. Drug resistance in animal trypanosomes thus present a pattern different from what is observed with Plasmodium sp. (causative agent of malaria) where a complete stoppage in the use of the chloroquine allows for a return to drug sensitivity

The Early Positive Approaches to Support (E-PAtS) study: study protocol for a feasibility cluster randomised controlled trial of a group programme (E-PAtS) for family caregivers of young children with intellectual disability

Background: Children with intellectual disability have an IQ < 70, associated deficits in adaptive skills and are at increased risk of having clinically concerning levels of behaviour problems. In addition, parents of children with intellectual disability are likely to report high levels of mental health and other psychological problems. The Early Positive Approaches to Support (E-PAtS) programme for family caregivers of young children (5 years and under) with intellectual and developmental disabilities is a group-based intervention which aims to enhance parental psychosocial wellbeing and service access and support positive development for children. The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility of delivering E-PAtS to family caregivers of children with intellectual disability by community parenting support service provider organisations. The study will inform a potential, definitive RCT of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of E-PAtS. Methods: This study is a feasibility cluster randomised controlled trial, with embedded process evaluation. Up to 2 family caregivers will be recruited from 64 families with a child (18 months to 5 years) with intellectual disability at research sites in the UK. Participating families will be allocated to intervention: control on a 1:1 basis; intervention families will be offered the E-PAtS programme immediately, continuing to receive usual practice, and control participants will be offered the opportunity to attend the E-PAtS programme at the end of the follow-up period and will continue to receive usual practice. Data will be collected at baseline, 3 months post-randomisation and 12 months post-randomisation. The primary aim is to assess feasibility via the assessment of: recruitment of service provider organisations; participant recruitment; randomisation; retention; intervention adherence; intervention fidelity and the views of participants, intervention facilitators and service provider organisations regarding intervention delivery and study processes. The secondary aim is preliminary evaluation of a range of established outcome measures for individual family members, subsystem relationships and overall family functioning, plus additional health economic outcomes for inclusion in a future definitive trial. Discussion: The results of this study will inform a potential future definitive trial, to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the E-PAtS intervention to improve parental psychosocial wellbeing. Such a trial would have significant scientific impact internationally in the intellectual disability field

Hyperparasitaemia and low dosing are an important source of anti-malarial drug resistance

BACKGROUND: Preventing the emergence of anti-malarial drug resistance is critical for the success of current malaria elimination efforts. Prevention strategies have focused predominantly on qualitative factors, such as choice of drugs, use of combinations and deployment of multiple first-line treatments. The importance of anti-malarial treatment dosing has been underappreciated. Treatment recommendations are often for the lowest doses that produce "satisfactory" results. METHODS: The probability of de-novo resistant malaria parasites surviving and transmitting depends on the relationship between their degree of resistance and the blood concentration profiles of the anti-malarial drug to which they are exposed. The conditions required for the in-vivo selection of de-novo emergent resistant malaria parasites were examined and relative probabilities assessed. RESULTS: Recrudescence is essential for the transmission of de-novo resistance. For rapidly eliminated anti-malarials high-grade resistance can arise from a single drug exposure, but low-grade resistance can arise only from repeated inadequate treatments. Resistance to artemisinins is, therefore, unlikely to emerge with single drug exposures. Hyperparasitaemic patients are an important source of de-novo anti-malarial drug resistance. Their parasite populations are larger, their control of the infection insufficient, and their rates of recrudescence following anti-malarial treatment are high. As use of substandard drugs, poor adherence, unusual pharmacokinetics, and inadequate immune responses are host characteristics, likely to pertain to each recurrence of infection, a small subgroup of patients provides the particular circumstances conducive to de-novo resistance selection and transmission. CONCLUSION: Current dosing recommendations provide a resistance selection opportunity in those patients with low drug levels and high parasite burdens (often children or pregnant women). Patients with hyperparasitaemia who receive outpatient treatments provide the greatest risk of selecting de-novo resistant parasites. This emphasizes the importance of ensuring that only quality-assured anti-malarial combinations are used, that treatment doses are optimized on the basis of pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic assessments in the target populations, and that patients with heavy parasite burdens are identified and receive sufficient treatment to prevent recrudescence

Quorum Sensing Influences Vibrio harveyi Growth Rates in a Manner Not Fully Accounted For by the Marker Effect of Bioluminescence

The light-emitting Vibrios provide excellent material for studying the interaction of cellular communication with growth rate because bioluminescence is a convenient marker for quorum sensing. However, the use of bioluminescence as a marker is complicated because bioluminescence itself may affect growth rate, e.g. by diverting energy. quorum mutants. growth rate can be either positive or negative and includes both bioluminescence-dependent and independent components. Bioluminescence tends to slow growth rate but not enough to account for the effects of quorum sensing on growth rate

Increased Local Retention of Reef Coral Larvae as a Result of Ocean Warming

Climate change will alter many aspects of the ecology of organisms, including dispersal patterns and population connectivity. Understanding these changes is essential to predict future species distributions, estimate potential for adaptation, and design effective networks of protected areas. In marine environments, dispersal is often accomplished by larvae. At higher temperatures, larvae develop faster, but suffer higher mortality, making the effect of temperature on dispersal difficult to predict. Here, we experimentally calibrate the effect of temperature on larval survival and settlement in a dynamic model of coral dispersal. Our findings imply that most reefs globally will experience several-fold increases in local retention of larvae due to ocean warming. This increase will be particularly pronounced for reefs with mean water residence times comparable to the time required for species to become competent to settle. Higher local retention rates strengthen the link between abundance and recruitment at the reef scale, suggesting that populations will be more responsive to local conservation actions. Higher rates of local retention and mortality will weaken connectivity between populations, and thus potentially retard recovery following severe disturbances that substantially deplete local populations. Conversely, on isolated reefs that are dependent on replenishment from local broodstock, increases in local retention may hasten recovery