Age-Related Attenuation of Dominant Hand Superiority

The decline of motor performance of the human hand-arm system with age is well-documented. While dominant hand performance is superior to that of the non-dominant hand in young individuals, little is known of possible age-related changes in hand dominance. We investigated age-related alterations of hand dominance in 20 to 90 year old subjects. All subjects were unambiguously right-handed according to the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory. In Experiment 1, motor performance for aiming, postural tremor, precision of arm-hand movement, speed of arm-hand movement, and wrist-finger speed tasks were tested. In Experiment 2, accelerometer-sensors were used to obtain objective records of hand use in everyday activities

Incidence of osteochondrosis (dissecans) in Dutch warmblood horses presented for pre-purchase examination

Data are lacking in the literature regarding the incidence of osteochondrosis (dissecans) [OC(D)] in relation to lameness evaluation in Dutch Warmblood horses. The objective of this retrospective study was to assess the incidence of radiological abnormalities consistent with osteochondrosis or osteochondrosis dissecans in 1,231 sound Dutch Warmblood (DW) horses presented for pre-purchase examination. Standardised (Dutch) pre-purchase examination protocols were evaluated. The pre-purchase examination included a clinical, lameness and radiological evaluation, performed at a private equine clinic in the Netherlands. Radiographical examination included views of the distal (DIP) and proximal (PIP) interphalangeal, metacarpo- and metatarsophalangeal (MCP/MTP), tarsocrural (TC) and femoropatellar (FP) joints. Radiographical evidence of OC(D) was found in 44.3% of clinically sound DW horses. In this study, 443 horses (36%, n = 1,231) had evidence of OCD and 102 horses (8.3%, n = 1,231) had evidence of OC on pre-purchase radiographs. The results also indicated that the TC joints were significantly more likely to be affected. A considerable number of horses did not demonstrate any lameness, although radiographs revealed OC(D)

Antibiotic use on paediatric inpatients in a teaching hospital in the Gambia, a retrospective study

Background: Antibiotics are useful but increasing resistance is a major problem. Our objectives were to assess antibiotic use and microbiology testing in hospitalized children in the Gambia. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of paediatric inpatient data at The Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital in Banjul, The Gambia. We extracted relevant data from the admission folders of all patients (aged >28 days to 15 years) admitted in 2015 (January-December), who received at least one antibiotic for 24 h. We also reviewed the microbiology laboratory record book to obtain separate data for the bacterial isolates and resistance test results of all the paediatric inpatients during the study period. Results: Over half of the admitted patients received at least one antibiotic during admission (496/917) with a total consumption of 670.7 Days of Antibiotic Therapy/1000 Patient-Days. The clinical diagnoses included an infectious disease for 398/496, 80.2% of the patients on antibiotics, pneumonia being the most common (184/496, 37.1%). There were 51 clinically relevant bacterial isolates, Klebsiella species being the most common (12/51, 23.5%), mainly from urine (11/12, 91.7%). Antibiotic resistance was mainly to ampicillin (38/51, 74.5%), mainly reported as Coliform species 11/51, 21.6%. Conclusions: More than half of the admitted patients received antibiotics. The reported antibiotic resistance was highest to the most commonly used antibiotics such as ampicillin. Efforts to maximize definitive antibiotic indication such as microbiological testing prior to start of antibiotics should be encouraged where possible for a more rational antibiotic use

A many-analysts approach to the relation between religiosity and well-being

The relation between religiosity and well-being is one of the most researched topics in the psychology of religion, yet the directionality and robustness of the effect remains debated. Here, we adopted a many-analysts approach to assess the robustness of this relation based on a new cross-cultural dataset (N=10,535 participants from 24 countries). We recruited 120 analysis teams to investigate (1) whether religious people self-report higher well-being, and (2) whether the relation between religiosity and self-reported well-being depends on perceived cultural norms of religion (i.e., whether it is considered normal and desirable to be religious in a given country). In a two-stage procedure, the teams first created an analysis plan and then executed their planned analysis on the data. For the first research question, all but 3 teams reported positive effect sizes with credible/confidence intervals excluding zero (median reported β=0.120). For the second research question, this was the case for 65% of the teams (median reported β=0.039). While most teams applied (multilevel) linear regression models, there was considerable variability in the choice of items used to construct the independent variables, the dependent variable, and the included covariates

Trendanalyse van kwaliteit van grondwater in drinkwaterwinningsgebieden (2000- 2012)

Ongeveer tweederde van de 244 grondwaterwinningen voor de drinkwatervoorziening in Nederland heeft een goede kwaliteit ongezuiverd grondwater. Bij ongeveer een derde blijkt het ongezuiverde grondwater (ruwwater) enige mate van verontreiniging te bevatten; de concentratie van vervuilende stoffen lag daar op 75 procent van de norm voor drinkwater of hoger. Per saldo lijkt de kwaliteit van het ruw water voor een beperkt aantal stoffen in lichte mate slechter te worden. Dit blijkt uit onderzoek van het RIVM naar de grondwaterkwaliteit bij grondwaterwinningen in Nederland tussen 2000 en 2012. In verband met de Europese kaderrichtlijn Water (KRW) heeft het RIVM de waterkwaliteit van grondwaterwinningen landelijk geïnventariseerd. Conform de KRW (artikel 7) is per winning onderzocht of de gemiddelde grondwaterkwaliteit aan de normen voldoet en of er meerjarige trends optreden. Bij 8 winningen zijn de concentraties gestegen bij zeven van de 63 onderzochte vervuilende stoffen; bij zes van deze stoffen werd de norm voor drinkwater overschreden. Bij 15 winningen is de aanvankelijke ontwikkeling onderbroken (trendomkering): bij 9 van deze winningen daalden de concentraties vervuilende stoffen eerst een aantal jaren, waarna ze weer zijn gaan stijgen. Bij 6 winningen gebeurde het omgekeerde: na een toename gedurende enkele jaren zijn de concentraties gaan dalen. Deze trends leveren aanvullende informatie op voor de concentraties van stoffen (toestand) die elke zes jaar in de desbetreffende grondwaterlichamen als geheel worden bepaald. Voor de inventarisatie zijn de grondwaterwinningen voor de drinkwatervoorziening beoordeeld op basis van de normen uit het Drinkwaterbesluit en aan de hand van REWAB-data (Registratie opgaven van Waterleidingbedrijven). In de REWAB-database rapporteren drinkwaterbedrijven over de drinkwaterkwaliteit in Nederland. De drinkwaterbedrijven zijn hierdoor verantwoordelijk voor de in deze studie gebruikte grondwaterkwaliteitsgegevens. De bevindingen van dit onderzoek komen grotendeels overeen met die van een gelijksoortige studie over een iets kortere periode, van 2000 tot en met 2009 (RIVM-rapport 607402011). In de onderliggende inventarisatie is bovendien bekeken of er sprake is van trendomkering.The Dutch drinking water supply system has 244 groundwater extraction points, and the unpurified groundwater at approx. two-thirds of these extraction points is of good quality. The unpurified water at about one-third of the groundwater extraction points is contaminated to some extent, with pollutant concentration levels at 75 percent or more of the drinking water standard. On balance, the quality of unpurified water appears to be decreasing slightly for a limited number of substances. This is apparent from groundwater quality analyses performed by the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) at groundwater extraction points in the Netherlands between 2000 and 2012. In accordance with the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD), RIVM carried out a nationwide survey of groundwater quality at groundwater extraction points. In accordance with Article 7 of the WFD, analyses were performed for each extraction point to determine if the average groundwater quality levels met the applicable standards, and to identify any multiannual trends. At eight extraction points, the concentrations of seven contaminating substances were found to have increased (out of a total of 63 investigated substances). The standard was exceeded for six of these substances. At fifteen extraction points, trend reversal was found to have occurred. At nine of these extraction points, the concentration levels of contaminating substances decreased for a number of years, and then began to increase again. At six extraction points, the opposite development occurred: an increase over several years was followed by a decrease in concentration levels. These trends provide additional information on substance concentrations, which are determined every six years in the relevant groundwater bodies as a whole. In this survey, the groundwater extraction points were assessed based on the applicable drinking water standards (as contained in the Drinking Water Decree), as well as drinking water quality data reported by Dutch drinking water supply companies in the so-called REWAB database. The drinking water supply companies are therefore responsible for the groundwater quality data used in this study. The findings of this study largely correspond to those of a similar study performed during a slightly shorter period, from 2000 to 2009 (RIVM report no. 607402011). In the present study, the researchers also examined the possibility of trend reversal.Ministerie van I&

DUSP5 expression in left ventricular cardiomyocytes of young hearts regulates thyroid hormone (T3)-induced proliferative ERK1/2 signaling

Cardiomyocytes of newborn mice proliferate after injury or exposure to growth factors. However, these responses are diminished after postnatal day-6 (P6), representing a barrier to building new cardiac muscle in adults. We have previously shown that exogenous thyroid hormone (T3) stimulates cardiomyocyte proliferation in P2 cardiomyocytes, by activating insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R)-mediated ERK1/2 signaling. But whether exogenous T3 functions as a mitogen in post-P6 murine hearts is not known. Here, we show that exogenous T3 increases the cardiomyocyte endowment of P8 hearts, but the proliferative response is confined to cardiomyocytes of the left ventricular (LV) apex. Exogenous T3 stimulates proliferative ERK1/2 signaling in apical cardiomyocytes, but not in those of the LV base, which is inhibited by expression of the nuclear phospho-ERK1/2-specific dual-specificity phosphatase, DUSP5. Developmentally, between P7 and P14, DUSP5 expression increases in the myocardium from the LV base to its apex; after this period, it is uniformly expressed throughout the LV. In young adult hearts, exogenous T3 increases cardiomyocyte numbers after DUSP5 depletion, which might be useful for eliciting cardiac regeneration