The Effects of an Interdisciplinary Program upon Students' Achievement, Attendance, and Attitude

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Project SAIL, a program designed to increase student achievement through interdisciplinary learning, upon the achievement, attendance, and attitude toward school of the ninth grade students who participated in it. The study also identified its benefits and liabilities from the perspective of teachers and students

External Hydrocephalus as a Cause of Infant Subdural Hematoma: Epidemiological and Radiological Investigations of Infants Suspected of Being Abused

Background Acute subdural hematoma (ASDH) and chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) in infants have been regarded as highly specific for abuse. Other causes of CSDH have not been investigated in a large population. Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate to what extent external hydrocephalus is present in infants with ASDH and CSDH undergoing evaluation for abuse. Material and methods Eighty-five infants suspected of being abused, with ASDH (n = 16) or CSDH (n = 69), were reviewed regarding age, risk factor profiles, craniocortical width (CCW), sinocortical width (SCW), frontal interhemispheric width (IHW), subarachnoid space width (SSW), and head circumference (HC). In infants with unilateral subdural hematoma (SDH), correlations between contralateral SSW and ipsilateral CCW and SDH width were investigated. Results Infants with CSDH had significantly lower mortality, were more often premature and male, and had significantly higher CCW, SCW, IHW, and SSW than infants with ASDH (P 5 mm, in addition to increased HC. Conclusion A substantial proportion of infants with CSDH who had been suspected of being abused had findings suggesting external hydrocephalus.publishedVersio

Epidemiology of subdural haemorrhage during infancy : A population-based register study

Objectives To analyse subdural haemorrhage (SDH) during infancy in Sweden by incidence, SDH category, diagnostic distribution, age, co-morbidity, mortality, and maternal and perinatal risk factors; and its association with accidents and diagnosis of abuse. Methods A Swedish population-based register study comprising infants born between 1997 and 2014, 0-1 years of age, diagnosed with SDH-diagnoses according to the (International Classification of Diseases, 10th version (ICD10), retrieved from the National Patient Register and linked to the Medical Birth Register and the Death Cause Register. Outcome measures were: 1) Incidence and distribution, 2) co-morbidity, 3) fall accidents by SDH category, 4) risk factors for all SDHs in the two age groups, 0-6 and 7-365 days, and for ICD10 SDH subgroups: S06.5 (traumatic SDH), I62.0 (acute nontraumatic), SDH and abuse diagnosis. Results Incidence of SDH was 16.5 per 100 000 infants (n = 306). Median age was 2.5 months. For infants older than one week, the median age was 3.5 months. Case fatality was 6.5%. Male sex was overrepresented for all SDH subgroups. Accidental falls were reported in 1/3 of the cases. One-fourth occurred within 0-6 days, having a perinatal risk profile. For infants aged 7-365 days, acute nontraumatic SDH was associated with multiple birth, preterm birth, and small-for-gestational age. Fourteen percent also had an abuse diagnosis, having increased odds of being born preterm, and being small-for-gestational age. Conclusions The incidence was in the range previously reported. SDH among newborns was associated with difficult birth and neonatal morbidity. Acute nontraumatic SDH and SDH with abuse diagnosis had similar perinatal risk profiles. The increased odds for acute nontraumatic SDH in twins, preterm births, neonatal convulsions or small-for-gestational age indicate a perinatal vulnerability for SDH beyond 1st week of life. The association between prematurity/small-for-gestational age and abuse diagnosis is intriguing and not easily understood.Peer reviewe

Can information from citizen science data be used to predict biodiversity in stormwater ponds?

Citizen science data (CSD) have the potential to be a powerful scientific approach to assess, monitor and predict biodiversity. Here, we ask whether CSD could be used to predict biodiversity of recently constructed man-made habitats. Biodiversity data on adult dragonfly abundance from all kinds of aquatic habitats collected by citizen scientists (volunteers) were retrieved from the Swedish Species Observation System and were compared with dragonfly abundance in man-made stormwater ponds. The abundance data of dragonflies in the stormwater ponds were collected with a scientific, standardized design. Our results showed that the citizen science datasets differed significantly from datasets collected scientifically in stormwater ponds. Hence, we could not predict biodiversity in stormwater ponds from the data collected by citizen scientists. Using CSD from past versus recent years or from small versus large areas surrounding the stormwater ponds did not change the outcome of our tests. However, we found that biodiversity patterns obtained with CSD were similar to those from stormwater ponds when we restricted our analyses to rare species. We also found a higher beta diversity for the CSD compared to the stormwater dataset. Our results suggest that if CSD are to be used for estimating or predicting biodiversity, we need to develop methods that take into account or correct for the under-reporting of common species in CSD

Oxidative Stress in the Blood Labyrinthine Barrier in the Macula Utricle of Meniere’s Disease Patients

The blood labyrinthine barrier (BLB) is critical in the maintenance of inner ear ionic and fluid homeostasis. Recent studies using imaging and histopathology demonstrate loss of integrity of the BLB in the affected inner ear of Meniere’s disease (MD) patients. We hypothesized that oxidative stress is involved in the pathogenesis of BLB degeneration, and to date there are no studies of oxidative stress proteins in the human BLB. We investigated the ultrastructural and immunohistochemical changes of the BLB in the vestibular endorgan, the macula utricle, from patients with MD (n = 10), acoustic neuroma (AN) (n = 6) and normative autopsy specimens (n = 3) with no inner ear disease. Each subject had a well-documented clinical history and audiovestibular testing. Utricular maculae were studied using light and transmission electron microscopy and double labeling immunofluorescence. Vascular endothelial cells (VECs) were identified using isolectin B4 (IB4) and glucose-transporter-1 (GLUT-1). Pericytes were identified using alpha smooth muscle actin (αSMA) and phalloidin. IB4 staining of VECS was consistently seen in both AN and normative. In contrast, IB4 was nearly undetectable in all MD specimens, consistent with the significant VEC damage confirmed on transmission electron microscopy. GLUT-1 was present in MD, AN, and normative. αSMA and phalloidin were expressed consistently in the BLB pericytes in normative, AN specimen, and Meniere’s specimens. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and nitrotyrosine were used as markers of oxidative stress. The VECs of the BLB in Meniere’s had significantly higher levels of expression of iNOS and nitrotyrosine compared with normative and AN specimen. eNOS-IF staining showed similar patterns in normative and Meniere’s specimens. Microarray-based gene expression profiling confirmed upregulation of iNOS mRNA from the macula utricle of Meniere’s patients compared with AN. Nitrotyrosine, a marker recognized as a hallmark of inflammation, especially when seen in association with an upregulation of iNOS, was detected in the epithelial and stromal cells in addition to VECs in MD. Immunohistochemical and ultrastructural degenerative changes of the VEC suggest that these cells are the primary targets of oxidative stress, and pericyte pathology including degeneration and migration, likely also plays a role in the loss of integrity of the BLB and triggering of inflammatory pathways in MD. These studies advance our scientific understanding of oxidative stress in the human inner ear BLB and otopathology

Use of Cis-[18F]Fluoro-Proline for Assessment of Exercise-Related Collagen Synthesis in Musculoskeletal Connective Tissue

Protein turnover in collagen rich tissue is influenced by exercise, but can only with difficulty be studied in vivo due to use of invasive procedure. The present study was done to investigate the possibility of applying the PET-tracer, cis-[18F]fluoro-proline (cis-Fpro), for non-invasive assessment of collagen synthesis in rat musculoskeletal tissues at rest and following short-term (3 days) treadmill running. Musculoskeletal collagen synthesis was studied in rats at rest and 24 h post-exercise. At each session, rats were PET scanned at two time points following injection of cis-FPro: (60 and 240 min p.i). SUV were calculated for Achilles tendon, calf muscle and tibial bone. The PET-derived results were compared to mRNA expression of collagen type I and III. Tibial bone had the highest SUV that increased significantly (p<0.001) from the early (60 min) to the late (240 min) PET scan, while SUV in tendon and muscle decreased (p<0.001). Exercise had no influence on SUV, which was contradicted by an increased gene expression of collagen type I and III in muscle and tendon. The clearly, visible uptake of cis-Fpro in the collagen-rich musculoskeletal tissues is promising for multi-tissue studies in vivo. The tissue-specific differences with the highest basal uptake in bone are in accordance with earlier studies relying on tissue incorporation of isotopic-labelled proline. A possible explanation of the failure to demonstrate enhanced collagen synthesis following exercise, despite augmented collagen type I and III transcription, is that SUV calculations are not sensitive enough to detect minor changes in collagen synthesis. Further studies including kinetic compartment modeling must be performed to establish whether cis-Fpro can be used for non-invasive in-vivo assessment of exercise-induced changes in musculoskeletal collagen synthesis

Gene Expression Changes in the Prefrontal Cortex, Anterior Cingulate Cortex and Nucleus Accumbens of Mood Disorders Subjects That Committed Suicide

Suicidal behaviors are frequent in mood disorders patients but only a subset of them ever complete suicide. Understanding predisposing factors for suicidal behaviors in high risk populations is of major importance for the prevention and treatment of suicidal behaviors. The objective of this project was to investigate gene expression changes associated with suicide in brains of mood disorder patients by microarrays (Affymetrix HG-U133 Plus2.0) in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC: 6 Non-suicides, 15 suicides), the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC: 6NS, 9S) and the nucleus accumbens (NAcc: 8NS, 13S). ANCOVA was used to control for age, gender, pH and RNA degradation, with P≤0.01 and fold change±1.25 as criteria for significance. Pathway analysis revealed serotonergic signaling alterations in the DLPFC and glucocorticoid signaling alterations in the ACC and NAcc. The gene with the lowest p-value in the DLPFC was the 5-HT2A gene, previously associated both with suicide and mood disorders. In the ACC 6 metallothionein genes were down-regulated in suicide (MT1E, MT1F, MT1G, MT1H, MT1X, MT2A) and three were down-regulated in the NAcc (MT1F, MT1G, MT1H). Differential expression of selected genes was confirmed by qPCR, we confirmed the 5-HT2A alterations and the global down-regulation of members of the metallothionein subfamilies MT 1 and 2 in suicide completers. MTs 1 and 2 are neuro-protective following stress and glucocorticoid stimulations, suggesting that in suicide victims neuroprotective response to stress and cortisol may be diminished. Our results thus suggest that suicide-specific expression changes in mood disorders involve both glucocorticoids regulated metallothioneins and serotonergic signaling in different regions of the brain

Global monitoring of antimicrobial resistance based on metagenomics analyses of urban sewage

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a serious threat to global public health, but obtaining representative data on AMR for healthy human populations is difficult. Here, we use meta-genomic analysis of untreated sewage to characterize the bacterial resistome from 79 sites in 60 countries. We find systematic differences in abundance and diversity of AMR genes between Europe/North-America/Oceania and Africa/Asia/South-America. Antimicrobial use data and bacterial taxonomy only explains a minor part of the AMR variation that we observe. We find no evidence for cross-selection between antimicrobial classes, or for effect of air travel between sites. However, AMR gene abundance strongly correlates with socio-economic, health and environmental factors, which we use to predict AMR gene abundances in all countries in the world. Our findings suggest that global AMR gene diversity and abundance vary by region, and that improving sanitation and health could potentially limit the global burden of AMR. We propose metagenomic analysis of sewage as an ethically acceptable and economically feasible approach for continuous global surveillance and prediction of AMR.Peer reviewe