Ethics, Efficacy, and Decision-making in Animal Research

Few would disagree with the ethical contention that if cruelty to animals is not wrong, then nothing is wrong. In fact, it is not only wrong, but in most states in the us, it is a crime, a felony no less. And yet, intentionally inflicting pain and suffering upon animals, which meets Webster’s definition of cruelty, is routinely countenanced when vivisection (from the Latin vivi, to be alive, and secare, to cut) is performed under license for biomedical research. Deciding to embrace, or reject, or limit animal research demands our best ethical judgment; and it is complicated by factual disputes over the extent to which it benefits human health. Three issues combining facts and ethics need to be considered. First, to what extent does animal research deliver on its promise to improve human health? Second, if the goal of public investment (e.g., tax dollars spent by the National Institute of Health, nih) on animal research is to improve human health, are we getting sufficient return for the billions spent, or might the money be better directed towards human-based research or implementing healthcare interventions of proven efficacy? Third, since opinions about ends justifying means will vary, who should decide if animal research is ethically justified: the scientists who perform it or representatives of the public at large, who pay for it

Ethics, Efficacy, and Decision-making in Animal Research

Few would disagree with the ethical contention that if cruelty to animals is not wrong, then nothing is wrong. In fact, it is not only wrong, but in most states in the us, it is a crime, a felony no less. And yet, intentionally inflicting pain and suffering upon animals, which meets Webster’s definition of cruelty, is routinely countenanced when vivisection (from the Latin vivi, to be alive, and secare, to cut) is performed under license for biomedical research. Deciding to embrace, or reject, or limit animal research demands our best ethical judgment; and it is complicated by factual disputes over the extent to which it benefits human health. Three issues combining facts and ethics need to be considered. First, to what extent does animal research deliver on its promise to improve human health? Second, if the goal of public investment (e.g., tax dollars spent by the National Institute of Health, nih) on animal research is to improve human health, are we getting sufficient return for the billions spent, or might the money be better directed towards human-based research or implementing healthcare interventions of proven efficacy? Third, since opinions about ends justifying means will vary, who should decide if animal research is ethically justified: the scientists who perform it or representatives of the public at large, who pay for it

Azúcar y nervios: Explanatory models and treatment experiences of Hispanics with diabetes and depression

This study examined the explanatory models of depression, perceived relationships between diabetes and depression, and depression treatment experiences of low-income, Spanish-speaking, Hispanics with diabetes and depression. A purposive sample (n = 19) was selected from participants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial conducted in Los Angeles, California (United States) testing the effectiveness of a health services quality improvement intervention. Four focus groups followed by 10 in-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted. Data were analyzed using the methodology of coding, consensus, co-occurrence, and comparison, an analytical strategy rooted in grounded theory. Depression was perceived as a serious condition linked to the accumulation of social stressors. Somatic and anxiety-like symptoms and the cultural idiom of nervios were central themes in low-income Hispanics' explanatory models of depression. The perceived reciprocal relationships between diabetes and depression highlighted the multiple pathways by which these two illnesses impact each other and support the integration of diabetes and depression treatments. Concerns about depression treatments included fears about the addictive and harmful properties of antidepressants, worries about taking too many pills, and the stigma attached to taking psychotropic medications. This study provides important insights about the cultural and social dynamics that shape low-income Hispanics' illness and treatment experiences and support the use of patient-centered approaches to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with diabetes and depression

SPATIOTEMPORAL VARIATIONIN GRASSLAND BIOMASS AND FORAGE QUALITY ACROSS THE UPPER YELLOWSTONE RIVER BASIN

Spatial and temporal heterogeneity in the abundance of high quality forage is known to play an important role in migratory ungulate ecology. While many studies have documented how variations in the timing of start of growth and land use affect the availability of high quality forage across temperate landscapes, few studies have quantified how the abundance of high quality forage varies across these gradients. In this study we quantified how aboveground biomass, crude protein, and digestibility varied throughout the growing season in (1) grasslands that start growth early, mid, and late in the season and (2) in irrigated agriculture, private grasslands, and public grasslands and then used these estimates to (3)assess how the seasonal abundance of high quality forage differed in these start of season and land use classes in the Upper Yellowstone River Basin. We found that grasslands that start growth late in the season had up to 150% greater aboveground biomass, 20% greater crude protein, and 15% greater digestibility at its seasonal peak than grasslands that start growth mid and early in the season. Irrigated agriculture had up to 500% greater aboveground biomass, 90% greater crude protein, and 10% greater digestibility at its seasonal peak than private and public grasslands. Overall, the abundance of high quality forage was greater in the late start of season and irrigated agriculture grasslands. Understanding these landscape-scale variations in the abundance of high quality forage may provide important information for migratory ungulate research and management

Density functional theory of vortex lattice melting in layered superconductors: a mean-field--substrate approach

We study the melting of the pancake vortex lattice in a layered superconductor in the limit of vanishing Josephson coupling. Our approach combines the methodology of a recently proposed mean-field substrate model for such systems with the classical density functional theory of freezing. We derive a free-energy functional in terms of a scalar order-parameter profile and use it to derive a simple formula describing the temperature dependence of the melting field. Our theoretical predictions are in good agreement with simulation data. The theoretical framework proposed is thermodynamically consistent and thus capable of describing the negative magnetization jump obtained in experiments. Such consistency is demonstrated by showing the equivalence of our expression for the density discontinuity at the transition with the corresponding Clausius-Clapeyron relation.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure

Hydrophilic polymer embolism identified in brain tumor specimens following Wada testing: A report of 2 cases

Hydrophilic polymers are commonly used as coatings on intravascular medical devices. As intravascular pro-cedures continue to increase in frequency, the risk of embolization of this material throughout the body has become evident. These emboli may be discovered incidentally but can result in serious complications includ-ing death. Here, we report the first two cases of hydrophilic polymer embolism (HPE) identified on brain tu-mor resection following Wada testing. One patient experienced multifocal vascular complications and diffuse cerebral edema, while the other had an uneventful postoperative course. Wada testing is frequently per-formed during preoperative planning prior to epilepsy surgery or the resection of tumors in eloquent brain regions. These cases demonstrate the need for increased recognition of this histologic finding to enable fur-ther correlation with clinical outcomes

CMB component separation by parameter estimation

We propose a solution to the CMB component separation problem based on standard parameter estimation techniques. We assume a parametric spectral model for each signal component, and fit the corresponding parameters pixel by pixel in a two-stage process. First we fit for the full parameter set (e.g., component amplitudes and spectral indices) in low-resolution and high signal-to-noise ratio maps using MCMC, obtaining both best-fit values for each parameter, and the associated uncertainty. The goodness-of-fit is evaluated by a chi^2 statistic. Then we fix all non-linear parameters at their low-resolution best-fit values, and solve analytically for high-resolution component amplitude maps. This likelihood approach has many advantages: The fitted model may be chosen freely, and the method is therefore completely general; all assumptions are transparent; no restrictions on spatial variations of foreground properties are imposed; the results may be rigorously monitored by goodness-of-fit tests; and, most importantly, we obtain reliable error estimates on all estimated quantities. We apply the method to simulated Planck and six-year WMAP data based on realistic models, and show that separation at the muK level is indeed possible in these cases. We also outline how the foreground uncertainties may be rigorously propagated through to the CMB power spectrum and cosmological parameters using a Gibbs sampling technique.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures, submitted to ApJ. For a high-resolution version, see http://www.astro.uio.no/~hke/docs/eriksen_et_al_fgfit.p

How a Diverse Research Ecosystem Has Generated New Rehabilitation Technologies: Review of NIDILRR’s Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers

Over 50 million United States citizens (1 in 6 people in the US) have a developmental, acquired, or degenerative disability. The average US citizen can expect to live 20% of his or her life with a disability. Rehabilitation technologies play a major role in improving the quality of life for people with a disability, yet widespread and highly challenging needs remain. Within the US, a major effort aimed at the creation and evaluation of rehabilitation technology has been the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. As envisioned at their conception by a panel of the National Academy of Science in 1970, these centers were intended to take a “total approach to rehabilitation”, combining medicine, engineering, and related science, to improve the quality of life of individuals with a disability. Here, we review the scope, achievements, and ongoing projects of an unbiased sample of 19 currently active or recently terminated RERCs. Specifically, for each center, we briefly explain the needs it targets, summarize key historical advances, identify emerging innovations, and consider future directions. Our assessment from this review is that the RERC program indeed involves a multidisciplinary approach, with 36 professional fields involved, although 70% of research and development staff are in engineering fields, 23% in clinical fields, and only 7% in basic science fields; significantly, 11% of the professional staff have a disability related to their research. We observe that the RERC program has substantially diversified the scope of its work since the 1970’s, addressing more types of disabilities using more technologies, and, in particular, often now focusing on information technologies. RERC work also now often views users as integrated into an interdependent society through technologies that both people with and without disabilities co-use (such as the internet, wireless communication, and architecture). In addition, RERC research has evolved to view users as able at improving outcomes through learning, exercise, and plasticity (rather than being static), which can be optimally timed. We provide examples of rehabilitation technology innovation produced by the RERCs that illustrate this increasingly diversifying scope and evolving perspective. We conclude by discussing growth opportunities and possible future directions of the RERC program

The hazards of lack of co-registration of ictal brain SPECT with MRI: A case report of sinusitis mimicking a brainstem seizure focus

BACKGROUND: Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) following injection of radiotracer during a seizure is known as ictal SPECT. Comparison of an ictal SPECT study to a baseline or interictal study can aid identification of a seizure focus. CASE PRESENTATION: A young woman with encephalitis and refractory seizures underwent brain SPECT during a period of frequent seizure-like episodes, and during a seizure-free period. A focal area of increased radiotracer uptake present only when she was experiencing frequent seizure-like episodes was originally localized to the brainstem, but with later computerized co-registration of SPECT to MRI, was found to lie outside the brain, in the region of the sphenoid sinus. CONCLUSION: Low-resolution SPECT images present difficulties in interpretation, which can be overcome through co-registration to higher-resolution structural images

Some doubts on the validity of the foreground Galactic contribution subtraction from microwave anisotropies

The Galactic foreground contamination in CMBR anisotropies, especially from the dust component, is not easily separable from the cosmological or extragalactic component. In this paper, some doubts will be raised concerning the validity of the methods used to date to remove Galactic dust emission in order to show that none of them achieves its goal. First, I review the recent bibliography on the topic and discuss critically the methods of foreground subtraction: the cross-correlation with templates, analysis assuming the spectral shape of the Galactic components, the "maximum entropy method", "internal linear combination", and "wavelet-based high resolution fitting of internal templates". Second, I analyse the galactic latitude dependence from WMAP data. The frequency dependence is discussed with the data in the available literature. The result is that all methods of subtracting the Galactic contamination are inaccurate. The galactic latitude dependence analysis or the frequency dependence of the anisotropies in the range 50-250 GHz put a constraint on the maximum Galactic contribution in the power spectrum to be less than a ~10% (68% C. L.) for a ~1 degree scale, and possibly higher for larger scales. The origin of most of the signal in the CMBR anisotropies is not Galactic. In any case, the subtraction of the Galaxy is not accurate enough to allow a "precision Cosmology"; other sources of contamination (extragalactic, solar system) are also present.Comment: 24 pages, 1 figure, accepted to be published in J. Astrophys. Ast