Serum antibodies in first-degree relatives of patients with IBD: A marker of disease susceptibility? A follow-up pilot-study after 7 years

Introduction: Various disease-specific serum antibodies were described in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and their yet healthy first-degree relatives. In the latter, serum antibodies are commonly regarded as potential markers of disease susceptibility. The present long-term follow-up study evaluated the fate of antibody-positive first-degree relatives. Patients and Methods: 25 patients with Crohn's disease, 19 patients with ulcerative colitis and 102 first-degree relatives in whom presence of ASCA, pANCA, pancreatic- and goblet-cell antibodies had been assessed were enrolled. The number of incident cases with inflammatory bowel disease was compared between antibody-positive and antibody-negative first-degree relatives 7 years after storage of serum samples. Results: 34 of 102 (33%) first-degree relatives were positive for at least one of the studied serum antibodies. In the group of first-degree relatives, one case of Crohn's disease and one case of ulcerative colitis were diagnosed during the follow-up period. However, both relatives did not display any of the investigated serum antibodies (p = 1). Discussion: The findings of our pilot study argue against a role of serum antibodies as a marker of disease susceptibility in first-degree relatives of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. However, these data have to await confirmation in larger ideally prospective multicenter studies before definite conclusions can be drawn

A multifaceted approach to investigating pre-task planning effects on paired oral test performance

Despite the growing popularity of paired format speaking assessments, the effects of pre-task planning time on performance in these formats are not yet well understood. For example, some studies have revealed the benefits of planning but others have not. Using a multifaceted approach including analysis of the process of speaking performance, the aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of pre-task planning in a paired format. Data were collected from 32 students who carried out two decision-making tasks in pairs, under planned and unplanned conditions. The study used analyses of rating scores, discourse analytic measures, and conversation analysis (CA) of test-taker discourse to gain insight into co-constructing processes. A post-test questionnaire was also administered to understand the participants’ perceptions toward planned and unplanned interactions. The results from rating scores and discourse analytic measures revealed that planning had limited effect on performance, and analysis of the questionnaires did not indicate clear differences between the two conditions. CA, however, identified the possibility of a contrastive mode of discourse under the two planning conditions, raising concerns that planning might actually deprive test-takers of the chance to demonstrate their abilities to interact collaboratively

Serum antibodies in first-degree relatives of patients with IBD: A marker of disease susceptibility? A follow-up pilot-study after 7 years

Introduction: Various disease-specific serum antibodies were described in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and their yet healthy first-degree relatives. In the latter, serum antibodies are commonly regarded as potential markers of disease susceptibility. The present long-term follow-up study evaluated the fate of antibody-positive first-degree relatives. Patients and Methods: 25 patients with Crohn's disease, 19 patients with ulcerative colitis and 102 first-degree relatives in whom presence of ASCA, pANCA, pancreatic- and goblet-cell antibodies had been assessed were enrolled. The number of incident cases with inflammatory bowel disease was compared between antibody-positive and antibody-negative first-degree relatives 7 years after storage of serum samples. Results: 34 of 102 (33%) first-degree relatives were positive for at least one of the studied serum antibodies. In the group of first-degree relatives, one case of Crohn's disease and one case of ulcerative colitis were diagnosed during the follow-up period. However, both relatives did not display any of the investigated serum antibodies (p = 1). Discussion: The findings of our pilot study argue against a role of serum antibodies as a marker of disease susceptibility in first-degree relatives of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. However, these data have to await confirmation in larger ideally prospective multicenter studies before definite conclusions can be drawn

Mechanisms and ecological role of carbon transfer within coastal seascapes

Worldwide, coastal systems provide some of the most productive habitats, which potentially influence a range of marine and terrestrial ecosystems through the transfer of nutrients and energy. Several reviews have examined aspects of connectivity within coastal seascapes, but the scope of those reviews has been limited to single systems or single vectors. We use the transfer of carbon to examine the processes of connectivity through multiple vectors in multiple ecosystems using four coastal seascapes as case studies. We discuss and compare the main vectors of carbon connecting different ecosystems, and then the natural and human-induced factors that influence the magnitude of effect for those vectors on recipient systems. Vectors of carbon transfer can be grouped into two main categories: detrital particulate organic carbon (POC) and its associated dissolved organic and inorganic carbon (DOC/DIC) that are transported passively; and mobile consumers that transport carbon actively. High proportions of net primary production can be exported over meters to hundreds of kilometers from seagrass beds, algal reefs and mangroves as POC, with its export dependent on wind-generated currents in the first two of these systems and tidal currents for the last. By contrast, saltmarshes export large quantities of DOC through tidal movement, while land run-off plays a critical role in the transport of terrestrial POC and DOC into temperate fjords. Nekton actively transfers carbon across ecosystem boundaries through foraging movements, ontogenetic migrations, or ‘trophic relays’, into and out of seagrass beds, mangroves or saltmarshes. The magnitude of these vectors is influenced by: the hydrodynamics and geomorphology of the region; the characteristics of the carbon vector, such as their particle size and buoyancy; and for nekton, the extent and frequency of migrations between ecosystems. Through a risk-assessment process, we have identified the most significant human disturbances that affect the integrity of connectivity among ecosystems. Loss of habitat, net primary production (NPP) and overfishing pose the greatest risks to carbon transfer in temperate saltmarsh and tropical estuaries, particularly through their effects on nekton abundance and movement. In comparison, habitat/NPP loss and climate change are likely to be the major risks to carbon transfer in temperate fjords and temperate open coasts through alteration in the amount of POC and/or DOC/DIC being transported. While we have highlighted the importance of these vectors in coastal seascapes, there is limited quantitative data on the effects of these vectors on recipient systems. It is only through quantifying those subsidies that we can effectively incorporate complex interactions into the management of the marine environment and its resources

Photo- and Electroproduction of Eta Mesons

Eta photo- and electroproduction off the nucleon is investigated in an effective lagrangian approach that contains Born terms and both vector meson and nucleon resonance contributions. In particular, we review and develop the formalism for coincidence experiments with polarization degrees of freedom. The different response functions appearing in single and double polarization experiments have been studied. We will present calculations for structure functions and kinematical conditions that are most sensitive to details of the lagrangian, in particular with regard to contributions of nucleon resonances beyond the dominant $S_{11}$(1535) resonance.Comment: 24 pages RevTeX/LaTeX2.09, NFSS1, 13 figures (in separate file (tar,gzip and uue)), accepted for publication in Z. Phys.

Executive functioning, motor difficulties and developmental coordination disorder

The current study assessed a comprehensive range of executive functions (EFs) in children with poor motor skills, comparing profiles of children with a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and those identified with motor difficulties (MD). Children in both groups performed more poorly than typically-developing controls on nonverbal measures of working memory, inhibition, planning and fluency, but not on tests of switching. The similar patterns of strengths and weaknesses in children with MD and DCD have important implications for parents, teachers and clinicians, as children with MD may struggle with EF tasks even though their motor difficulties are not identified

Ketamine effects on memory reconsolidation favor a learning model of delusions.

Delusions are the persistent and often bizarre beliefs that characterise psychosis. Previous studies have suggested that their emergence may be explained by disturbances in prediction error-dependent learning. Here we set up complementary studies in order to examine whether such a disturbance also modulates memory reconsolidation and hence explains their remarkable persistence. First, we quantified individual brain responses to prediction error in a causal learning task in 18 human subjects (8 female). Next, a placebo-controlled within-subjects study of the impact of ketamine was set up on the same individuals. We determined the influence of this NMDA receptor antagonist (previously shown to induce aberrant prediction error signal and lead to transient alterations in perception and belief) on the evolution of a fear memory over a 72 hour period: they initially underwent Pavlovian fear conditioning; 24 hours later, during ketamine or placebo administration, the conditioned stimulus (CS) was presented once, without reinforcement; memory strength was then tested again 24 hours later. Re-presentation of the CS under ketamine led to a stronger subsequent memory than under placebo. Moreover, the degree of strengthening correlated with individual vulnerability to ketamine's psychotogenic effects and with prediction error brain signal. This finding was partially replicated in an independent sample with an appetitive learning procedure (in 8 human subjects, 4 female). These results suggest a link between altered prediction error, memory strength and psychosis. They point to a core disruption that may explain not only the emergence of delusional beliefs but also their persistence