Noteworthy: demographics, auto industry, Texas jobs

Economic conditions - Texas ; Automobile industry and trade ; Population ; High technology industries

Behavioral tendencies of the jewel wasp, Nasonia vitripennis

Includes bibliographical references.Two main areas of focus were examined in three experiments: the effects of mating status on male activity and the effects of crowding on female activity in the parasitoid wasp Nasonia vitripennis. The first experiment dealt with wing dispersal among lone versus crowded females. Competition appeared to make the females more likely to wing-disperse than when the female was alone. The second experiment dealt with the locomotor activity of lone versus crowded females. Competition appeared to cause females to be more active when with another female than when alone. The final experiment dealt with the locomotor activity of mated versus virgin males when exposed to a dead virgin female. Mated and virgin males appeared to be equally active.B.S. (Bachelor of Science

Noteworthy: hurricane season, venture capital, exports

Ike deals severe blow to Texas economy. Texas investment funding slips in 2nd quarter. Latin America, China lead Texas surge in overseas sales.Economic conditions - Texas ; Natural disasters ; Venture capital - Texas ; International trade ; Exports

Beauty, Vanity, and Perception in the Sonnets of Shakespeare

https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/english_3315/1005/thumbnail.jp

Activity-dependent bulk endocytosis: control by molecules and signalling cascades

Synaptic vesicle (SV) recycling in the presynapse is essential for the maintenance of neurotransmission. During mild stimulation clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME) dominates, however during intense stimulation activity-dependent bulk endocytosis (ADBE) is the dominant form of membrane retrieval. The aim of this thesis was to determine how the signalling molecule GSK3 controlled ADBE, with the hypothesis that this enzyme was required at multiple stages of this endocytosis mode. I also hoped to identify a specific cargo for ADBE. I found that during intense action potential stimulation, a localised calcium increase is necessary for the activation of Akt, which inhibited GSK3. This activation was mediated via a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-dependent mechanism. Furthermore, I found that phosphatidylinositol 4-kinaseIIα (PI4KIIα), a molecule whose abundance is regulated by GSK3, had a key role in ADBE. Specifically, I found that the absence of PI4KIIα accelerated CME but inhibited ADBE and that PI4KIIα controls CME and ADBE via distinct mechanisms. The PI4KIIα study revealed potential cross-talk between CME and ADBE. To determine whether modulation of either endocytosis mode impacts on the other, the retrieval of genetically-encoded reporters of SV cargo was monitored during intense stimulation during inhibition of either CME or ADBE. The recovery of almost all SV cargo was unaffected by ADBE inhibition but was arrested by abolishing CME. In contrast, VAMP4-pHluorin retrieval was perturbed by inhibiting ADBE and not by blocking CME. Knockdown of VAMP4 also arrested ADBE, indicating that in addition to being the first identified ADBE cargo, it is also essential for this endocytosis mode to proceed

Mental Health and Neurodevelopmental Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) for Children and Young People with Epilepsy:A Systematic Review

Children and young people with epilepsy are at higher risk of mental health disorders and atypical neurodevelopmental outcomes compared to the general population. It is essential to detect such comorbidities early in children with epilepsy and provide appropriate interventions, to improve clinical outcomes. We aimed to identify and evaluate the measurement properties of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) that have been validated specifically to measure mental health and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children and/or young people with epilepsy. We searched Embase, Medline, and PsycINFO in May 2023 for relevant studies. Mental health was defined as psychological symptoms (e.g., anxiety, depression, psychosis) and/or behavioural difficulties (e.g., conduct disorders). Neurodevelopmental outcomes included neurodevelopmental disorder traits such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autistic spectrum disorders. We assessed methodological quality using Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) guidance. Twelve papers were identified that psychometrically evaluated 13 relevant PROMs (two epilepsy-specific, eleven generic). The appraisal of the PROMs was limited by the availability of only one or two published articles for each, and incomplete psychometric evaluations in some cases. The tool demonstrating the strongest evidence was The Neurological Disorders Depression Inventory-Epilepsy for Youth. The ADHD Rating Scale-IV and The Paediatric Symptom Checklist -17 demonstrated good evidence in favour of at least two measurement properties. This review identified only a small number of mental health and neurodevelopmental PROMs evaluated specifically in paediatric epilepsy. There is a need for further validation of mental health and neurodevelopmental PROMs in children with epilepsy

Perceptions of autistic and non-autistic adults in employment interviews:The role of impression management

Background: Social communication and interaction differences can make employment interviews particularly challenging for autistic people, who may be less able to modulate their Impression Management (IM). This makes autism a relevant test case of the extent to which behavioral IM influences perceptions of job candidates.Method: Two studies are reported. In Study 1, lay-raters watched a video of autistic and non-autistic mock candidates’ interviews, and assessed their verbal, non-verbal, and para-verbal behaviors, and likelihood of social approach/avoidance. In Study 2, the presence of behavioral cues was manipulated by using either the interview videos (behavioral cues present) or transcripts (cues absent). Employers rated their overall impression of the candidates (e.g., perceived confidence, conscientiousness, competence, communication skills, etc).Results: In study 1, autistic candidates were perceived as having a more monotonous tone of voice, being less composed and focused, and displaying less natural eye contact and gestures than their non-autistic counterparts, and received lower ratings for likelihood of social approach. For non-autistic interviewees, relationships were also found between ratings for verbal, para-verbal, and non-verbal behaviors, and social awkwardness and attractiveness. In study 2, non-autistic (but not autistic) interviewees received higher ratings of their confidence and communication skills when assessed by video than by transcript, but this advantage was not found for the autistic candidates.Conclusions: Results indicate that observers may use different information when evaluating autistic compared with non-autistic interviewees, possibly due to qualitative differences in behavior. Implications of different behavioral presentations in autistic candidates are discussed, including the potential benefits of using transcripts or more structured interviews to enable recruiters to focus on interviewee answers, whilst being less influenced by non-verbal and para-verbal behaviors

Identifying clinical features in primary care electronic health record studies: methods for codelist development

Objective: Analysis of routinely collected Electronic Health Record (EHR) data from primary care is reliant upon the creation of codelists to define clinical features of interest. To improve scientific rigor, transparency and replicability we describe and demonstrate a standardised reproducible methodology for clinical codelist development.Design: We describe a three stage process for developing clinical codelists. First, the clear definition a priori of the clinical feature of interest using reliable clinical resources. Second, development of a list of potential codes using statistical software to comprehensively search all available codes. Third, a modified Delphi process to reach consensus between primary care practitioners on the most relevant codes, including the generation of an ‘uncertainty’ variable to allow sensitivity analysis.Setting: These methods are illustrated by developing a codelist for shortness of breath in a primary care EHR sample, including modifiable syntax for commonly used statistical software.Participants: The codelist was used to estimate the frequency of shortness of breath in a cohort of 28,216 patients aged over 18 years who received an incident diagnosis of lung cancer between 1 January 2000 and 30 November 2016 in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD).Results: Of 78 candidate codes, 29 were excluded as inappropriate. Complete agreement was reached for 44 (90%) of the remaining codes, with partial disagreement over 5 (10%). 13,091 episodes of shortness of breath were identified in the cohort of 28,216 patients. Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that codes with the greatest uncertainty tend to be rarely used in clinical practice.Conclusions: Although initially time-consuming, using a rigorous and reproducible method for codelist generation ‘future-proofs’ findings, and an auditable, modifiable syntax for codelist generation enables sharing and replication of EHR studies. Published codelists should be badged by quality and report the methods of codelist generation including: definitions and justifications associated with each codelist; the syntax or search method; the number of candidate codes identified; and the categorisation of codes after Delphi review

Attitudes towards faecal immunochemical testing in patients at increased risk of colorectal cancer: an online survey of GPs in England

Background: There is increasing interest in using a quantitative faecal immunochemical test (FIT) to rule out colorectal cancer (CRC) in patients with high-risk symptoms in primary care.  Aim: This study aimed to investigate GPs’ attitudes and willingness to use a FIT over an urgent 2-week wait (2WW) referral.  Design and setting: A cross-sectional online survey involving 1024 GPs working across England.  Method: Logistic regression models were used to explore the likelihood of GPs using a FIT instead of a 2WW referral, and reported using odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).  Results: Just over one-third of GPs (n = 365) preferred to use a FIT as a rule-out test over a 2WW referral. GPs were more willing if they were: aged 36–45 years (OR 1.59 [95% CI = 1.04 to 2.44]); 46–55 years (OR 1.99 [95% CI = 1.14 to 3.47]); thought a FIT was highly accurate (OR 1.63 [95% CI = 1.16 to 2.29]); thought patients would benefit compared with having a colonoscopy (OR 2.02 [95% CI = 1.46 to 2.79]); and were highly confident about discussing the benefits of a FIT (OR 2.14 [95% CI = 1.46 to 3.16]). GPs were less willing if they had had >10 urgent referrals in the past year (OR 0.62 [95% CI = 0.40 to 0.94]) and thought that longer consultations would be needed (OR 0.61 [95% CI = 0.44 to 0.83]).  Conclusion: The study findings suggest that the acceptability of using a FIT as a rule-out test in primary care is currently low, with less than half of GPs who perceived the test to be accurate preferring it over colonoscopy. Any potential guideline changes recommending a FIT in patients with high-risk symptoms, instead of urgent referral to rule out CRC, are likely to require intensive supporting educational outreach to increase GP confidence in the accuracy and application of a FIT in this context