Assessing Child Maltreatment: The Role of Testing

Due to the recent development of test instruments designed to assist professionals in the evaluation of child maltreatment cases, social service professionals must become familiar with issues related to test construction and use. The purpose of the present paper is to provide the reader with a discussion of issues related to test selection and use. This article, however, is not Intended to be a substitute for a basic understanding of the test validity and reliability. The paper begins with a review of different prevention modes and discusses how each mode uses test data. Next, test use as it relates to assessment is outlined. Within the context of assessment, types of test classification errors are discussed. Finally, a number of general test Issues that can affect test results are presented

Behavioral Effects of Intracranial Adrenergic and Cholinergic Chemical Stimulation in the Cat

Psycholog

Preferences in Japanese Quail for Sucrose at Five Molarities of Concentration

Psycholog

Engineering bacteriocin-mediated resistance against the plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae.

The plant pathogen, Pseudomonas syringae (Ps), together with related Ps species, infects and attacks a wide range of agronomically important crops, including tomato, kiwifruit, pepper, olive and soybean, causing economic losses. Currently, chemicals and introduced resistance genes are used to protect plants against these pathogens but have limited success and may have adverse environmental impacts. Consequently, there is a pressing need to develop alternative strategies to combat bacterial disease in crops. One such strategy involves using narrow-spectrum protein antibiotics (so-called bacteriocins), which diverse bacteria use to compete against closely related species. Here, we demonstrate that one bacteriocin, putidacin L1 (PL1), can be expressed in an active form at high levels in Arabidopsis and in Nicotiana benthamiana in planta to provide effective resistance against diverse pathovars of Ps. Furthermore, we find that Ps strains that mutate to acquire tolerance to PL1 lose their O-antigen, exhibit reduced motility and still cannot induce disease symptoms in PL1-transgenic Arabidopsis. Our results provide proof-of-principle that the transgene-mediated expression of a bacteriocin in planta can provide effective disease resistance to bacterial pathogens. Thus, the expression of bacteriocins in crops might offer an effective strategy for managing bacterial disease, in the same way that the genetic modification of crops to express insecticidal proteins has proven to be an extremely successful strategy for pest management. Crucially, nearly all genera of bacteria, including many plant pathogenic species, produce bacteriocins, providing an extensive source of these antimicrobial agents

Biomacromolecular charge chirality detected using chiral plasmonic nanostructures

The charge distributions of solvent exposed surfaces of complex biomolecules such has proteins are unique fingerprints. The chirality of these charge distributions result in stereo-specific electrostatic interactions which help define how proteins interact with each other, contributing to specificity in protein – protein interactions. Thus it is a key concept in understanding chemical processes in biology. There is currently no known spectroscopic phenomenon that allows rapid characterisation of chiral surface charge distributions. We show that this essential property that is currently “invisible” to optical spectroscopy, can be detected by monitoring asymmetries in the chiroptical response of protein-plasmonic nanostructure complexes. The unique capabilities of the phenomenon are utilised to discriminate between a structurally homologous series of proteins, type II dehydroquinase (DHQase) derived from different organisms. The proteins are indistinguishable with conventional structurally sensitive spectroscopy (i.e. circular dichroism). We show that discrimination between proteins can be achieved by detecting differences in chiral surface charge distributions. The phenomenon is explained with a simple model whereby the chiroptical properties of the plasmonic structures are perturbed by the induction of an enantiomeric mirror image charge distribution of the protein in the metal. This new phenomenon has broad impact, it is a powerful analytical tool for discriminating between structurally homologous biomaterials, but will also provide information relevant to macromolecular interactions

Challenges of using protein antibiotics for pathogen control

Bacterial phytopathogens represent a significant threat to many economically important crops. Current control measures often inflict harm on the environment and may ultimately impact on human health through the spread of antibiotic resistance. Antimicrobial proteins such as bacteriocins have been suggested as the next generation of disease control agents since they are able to specifically target the pathogen of interest with minimal impact on the wider microbial community and environment. However, substantial gaps in knowledge with regards to the efficacy and application of bacteriocins to combat phytopathogenic bacteria remain. Here we highlight the immediate challenges the community must address to ensure maximum exploitation of antimicrobial proteins in the field

Bacteriocins targeting Gram-negative phytopathogenic bacteria: plantibiotics of the future

Gram-negative phytopathogenic bacteria are a significant threat to food crops. These microbial invaders are responsible for a plethora of plant diseases and can be responsible for devastating losses in crops such as tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, olives, and rice. Current disease management strategies to mitigate yield losses involve the application of chemicals which are often harmful to both human health and the environment. Bacteriocins are small proteinaceous antibiotics produced by bacteria to kill closely related bacteria and thereby establish dominance within a niche. They potentially represent a safer alternative to chemicals when used in the field. Bacteriocins typically show a high degree of selectivity toward their targets with no off-target effects. This review outlines the current state of research on bacteriocins active against Gram-negative phytopathogenic bacteria. Furthermore, we will examine the feasibility of weaponizing bacteriocins for use as a treatment for bacterial plant diseases

Baseline Functioning and Stress Reactivity in Maltreating Parents and At-Risk Adults: Review and Meta-Analyses of Autonomic Nervous System Studies.

We reviewed and meta-analyzed 10 studies ( N = 492) that examined the association between (risk for) child maltreatment perpetration and basal autonomic activity, and 10 studies ( N = 471) that examined the association between (risk for) child maltreatment and autonomic stress reactivity. We hypothesized that maltreating parents/at-risk adults would show higher basal levels of heart rate (HR) and skin conductance (SC) and lower levels of HR variability (HRV) and would show greater HR and SC stress reactivity, but blunted HRV reactivity. A narrative review showed that evidence from significance testing within and across studies was mixed. The first set of meta-analyses revealed that (risk for) child maltreatment was associated with higher HR baseline activity ( g = 0.24), a possible indication of allostatic load. The second set of meta-analyses yielded no differences in autonomic stress reactivity between maltreating/at-risk participants and nonmaltreating/low-risk comparison groups. Cumulative meta-analyses showed that positive effects for sympathetic stress reactivity as a risk factor for child maltreatment were found in a few early studies, whereas each subsequently aggregated study reduced the combined effect size to a null effect, an indication of the winner's curse. Most studies were underpowered. Future directions for research are suggested.The study was supported by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (LRAA: VIDI grant; MHvIJ: NWO SPINOZA prize; MJBK: VICI grant), and the Wellcome Trust (WT103343MA).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from SAGE Publications via http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1077559516659937

Victim, perpetrator, family, and incident characteristics of infant and child homicide in the United States Air Force

Objective: The present study describes factors related to fatal abuse in three age groups in the United States Air Force (USAF). Method: Records from 32 substantiated cases of fatal child abuse in the USAF were independently reviewed for 60 predefined factors. Results: Males were over-represented in young child victims (between 1 year and 4 years of age) and child victims (between 4 years and 15 years of age) but not in infant victims (between 24 hours and 1 year of age). African-American infant victims and perpetrators were over-represented. Younger victims were more likely to have been previously physically abused by the perpetrator. Perpetrators were predominantly male and the biological fathers of the victims. Infant and young child perpetrators reported childhood abuse histories, while child perpetrators reported the highest frequency of mental health contact. Victims’ families reported significant life stressors. Families of young child victims were more likely divorced, separated, or single. Incidents with infants and young children tended to occur without witnesses; incidents with child victims tended to have the victim’s sibling(s) and/or mother present. Fatal incidents were more frequent on the weekend, in the home, and initiated by some family disturbance. Conclusions: Differences among groups in factors related to infant and child homicide across age groups may assist in the development of more tailored abuse prevention efforts and may also guide future investigations

Protecting Migration Corridors: Challenges and Optimism for Mongolian Saiga

Hunting pressure and habitat loss place the endangered saiga, a type of antelope that was once abundant in central Asia, at high risk of extinction, and make the protection of the migratory routes of Mongolian populations even more critical for conserving the species