Challenges and opportunities in mapping land use intensity globally

Future increases in land-based production will need to focus more on sustainably intensifying existing production systems. Unfortunately, our understanding of the global patterns of land use intensity is weak, partly because land use intensity is a complex, multidimensional term, and partly because we lack appropriate datasets to assess land use intensity across broad geographic extents. Here, we review the state of the art regarding approaches for mapping land use intensity and provide a comprehensive overview of available global-scale datasets on land use intensity. We also outline major challenges and opportunities for mappinglanduseintensityfor cropland, grazing, and forestry systems, and identify key issues for future research.Peer Reviewe

Generation of NSE-MerCreMer Transgenic Mice with Tamoxifen Inducible Cre Activity in Neurons

To establish a genetic tool for conditional deletion or expression of gene in neurons in a temporally controlled manner, we generated a transgenic mouse (NSE-MerCreMer), which expressed a tamoxifen inducible type of Cre recombinase specifically in neurons. The tamoxifen inducible Cre recombinase (MerCreMer) is a fusion protein containing Cre recombinase with two modified estrogen receptor ligand binding domains at both ends, and is driven by the neural-specific rat neural specific enolase (NSE) promoter. A total of two transgenic lines were established, and expression of MerCreMer in neurons of the central and enteric nervous systems was confirmed. Transcript of MerCreMer was detected in several non-neural tissues such as heart, liver, and kidney in these lines. In the background of the Cre reporter mouse strain Rosa26R, Cre recombinase activity was inducible in neurons of adult NSE-MerCreMer mice treated with tamoxifen by intragastric gavage, but not in those fed with corn oil only. We conclude that NSE-MerCreMer lines will be useful for studying gene functions in neurons for the conditions that Cre-mediated recombination resulting in embryonic lethality, which precludes investigation of gene functions in neurons through later stages of development and in adult

The psychometric properties of three self-report screening instruments for identifying frail older people in the community

Background: Frailty is highly prevalent in older people. Its serious adverse consequences, such as disability, are considered to be a public health problem. Therefore, disability prevention in community-dwelling frail older people is considered to be a priority for research and clinical practice in geriatric care. With regard to disability prevention, valid screening instruments are needed to identify frail older people in time. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the psychometric properties of three screening instruments: the Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI), the Tilburg Frailty Indicator (TFI) and the Sherbrooke Postal Questionnaire (SPQ). For validation purposes the Groningen Activity Restriction Scale (GARS) was added. Methods: A questionnaire was sent to 687 community-dwelling older people (>= 70 years). Agreement between instruments, internal consistency, and construct validity of instruments were evaluated and compared. Results: The response rate was 77%. Prevalence estimates of frailty ranged from 40% to 59%. The highest agreement was found between the GFI and the TFI (Cohen's kappa = 0.74). Cronbach's alpha for the GFI, the TFI and the SPQ was 0.73, 0.79 and 0.26, respectively. Scores on the three instruments correlated significantly with each other (GFI - TFI, r = 0.87; GFI - SPQ, r = 0.47; TFI - SPQ, r = 0.42) and with the GARS (GFI - GARS, r = 0.57; TFI - GARS, r = 0.61; SPQ - GARS, r = 0.46). The GFI and the TFI scores were, as expected, significantly related to age, sex, education and income. Conclusions: The GFI and the TFI showed high internal consistency and construct validity in contrast to the SPQ. Based on these findings it is not yet possible to conclude whether the GFI or the TFI should be preferred; data on the predictive values of both instruments are needed. The SPQ seems less appropriate for postal screening of frailty among community-dwelling older peopl

Predicting ADL disability in community-dwelling elderly people using physical frailty indicators: a systematic review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Disability in Activities of Daily Living (ADL) is an adverse outcome of frailty that places a burden on frail elderly people, care providers and the care system. Knowing which physical frailty indicators predict ADL disability is useful in identifying elderly people who might benefit from an intervention that prevents disability or increases functioning in daily life. The objective of this study was to systematically review the literature on the predictive value of physical frailty indicators on ADL disability in community-dwelling elderly people.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A systematic search was performed in 3 databases (PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE) from January 1975 until April 2010. Prospective, longitudinal studies that assessed the predictive value of individual physical frailty indicators on ADL disability in community-dwelling elderly people aged 65 years and older were eligible for inclusion. Articles were reviewed by two independent reviewers who also assessed the quality of the included studies.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>After initial screening of 3081 titles, 360 abstracts were scrutinized, leaving 64 full text articles for final review. Eventually, 28 studies were included in the review. The methodological quality of these studies was rated by both reviewers on a scale from 0 to 27. All included studies were of high quality with a mean quality score of 22.5 (SD 1.6). Findings indicated that individual physical frailty indicators, such as weight loss, gait speed, grip strength, physical activity, balance, and lower extremity function are predictors of future ADL disability in community-dwelling elderly people.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This review shows that physical frailty indicators can predict ADL disability in community-dwelling elderly people. Slow gait speed and low physical activity/exercise seem to be the most powerful predictors followed by weight loss, lower extremity function, balance, muscle strength, and other indicators. These findings should be interpreted with caution because the data of the different studies could not be pooled due to large variations in operationalization of the indicators and ADL disability across the included studies. Nevertheless, our study suggests that monitoring physical frailty indicators in community-dwelling elderly people might be useful to identify elderly people who could benefit from disability prevention programs.</p

Acute and chronic safety and efficacy of dose dependent creatine nitrate supplementation and exercise performance

BACKGROUND: Creatine monohydrate (CrM) and nitrate are popular supplements for improving exercise performance; yet have not been investigated in combination. We performed two studies to determine the safety and exercise performance-characteristics of creatine nitrate (CrN) supplementation. METHODS: Study 1 participants (N = 13) ingested 1.5 g CrN (CrN-Low), 3 g CrN (CrN-High), 5 g CrM or a placebo in a randomized, crossover study (7d washout) to determine supplement safety (hepatorenal and muscle enzymes, heart rate, blood pressure and side effects) measured at time-0 (unsupplemented), 30-min, and then hourly for 5-h post-ingestion. Study 2 participants (N = 48) received the same CrN treatments vs. 3 g CrM in a randomized, double-blind, 28d trial inclusive of a 7-d interim testing period and loading sequence (4 servings/d). Day-7 and d-28 measured Tendo™ bench press performance, Wingate testing and a 6x6-s bicycle ergometer sprint. Data were analyzed using a GLM and results are reported as mean ± SD or mean change ± 95 % CI. RESULTS: In both studies we observed several significant, yet stochastic changes in blood markers that were not indicative of potential harm or consistent for any treatment group. Equally, all treatment groups reported a similar number of minimal side effects. In Study 2, there was a significant increase in plasma nitrates for both CrN groups by d-7, subsequently abating by d-28. Muscle creatine increased significantly by d-7 in the CrM and CrN-High groups, but then decreased by d-28 for CrN-High. By d-28, there were significant increases in bench press lifting volume (kg) for all groups (PLA, 126.6, 95 % CI 26.3, 226.8; CrM, 194.1, 95 % CI 89.0, 299.2; CrN-Low, 118.3, 95 % CI 26.1, 210.5; CrN-High, 267.2, 95 % CI 175.0, 359.4, kg). Only the CrN-High group was significantly greater than PLA (p < 0.05). Similar findings were observed for bench press peak power (PLA, 59.0, 95 % CI 4.5, 113.4; CrM, 68.6, 95 % CI 11.4, 125.8; CrN-Low, 40.9, 95 % CI −9.2, 91.0; CrN-High, 60.9, 95 % CI 10.8, 111.1, W) and average power. CONCLUSIONS: Creatine nitrate delivered at 3 g was well-tolerated, demonstrated similar performance benefits to 3 g CrM, in addition, within the confines of this study, there were no safety concerns