Changes in microphytobenthos fluorescence over a tidal cycle: implications for sampling designs

Intertidal microphytobenthos (MPB) are important primary producers and provide food for herbivores in soft sediments and on rocky shores. Methods of measuring MPB biomass that do not depend on the time of collection relative to the time of day or tidal conditions are important in any studies that need to compare temporal or spatial variation, effects of abiotic factors or activity of grazers. Pulse amplitude modulated (PAM) fluorometry is often used to estimate biomass of MPB because it is a rapid, non-destructive method, but it is not known how measures of fluorescence are altered by changing conditions during a period of low tide. We investigated this experimentally using in situ changes in minimal fluorescence (F) on a rocky shore and on an estuarine mudflat around Sydney (Australia), during low tides. On rocky shores, the time when samples are taken during low tide had little direct influence on measures of fluorescence as long as the substratum is dry. Wetness from wave-splash, seepage from rock pools, run-off, rainfall, etc., had large consequences for any comparisons. On soft sediments, fluorescence was decreased if the sediment dried out, as happens during low-spring tides on particularly hot and dry days. Surface water affected the response of PAM and therefore measurements used to estimate MPB, emphasising the need for care to ensure that representative sampling is done during low tide

Detection of the Natural Alpha Decay of Tungsten

The natural alpha decay of 180W has been unambiguously detected for the first time. The alpha peak is found in a (gamma,beta and neutron)-free background spectrum. This has been achieved by the simultaneous measurement of phonon and light signals with the CRESST cryogenic detectors. A half-life of T1/2 = (1.8 +- 0.2) x 10^18 y and an energy release of Q = (2516.4 +- 1.1 (stat.) +- 1.2 (sys.)) keV have been measured. New limits are also set on the half-lives of the other naturally occurring tungsten isotopes.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review C Revised versio

Status of the CRESST Dark Matter Search

The CRESST experiment aims for a detection of dark matter in the form of WIMPs. These particles are expected to scatter elastically off the nuclei of a target material, thereby depositing energy on the recoiling nucleus. CRESST uses scintillating CaWO4 crystals as such a target. The energy deposited by an interacting particle is primarily converted to phonons which are detected by transition edge sensors. In addition, a small fraction of the interaction energy is emitted from the crystals in the form of scintillation light which is measured in coincidence with the phonon signal by a separate cryogenic light detector for each target crystal. The ratio of light to phonon energy permits the discrimination between the nuclear recoils expected from WIMPs and events from radioactive backgrounds which primarily lead to electron recoils. CRESST has shown the success of this method in a commissioning run in 2007 and, since then, further investigated possibilities for an even better suppression of backgrounds. Here, we report on a new class of background events observed in the course of this work. The consequences of this observation are discussed and we present the current status of the experiment.Comment: Proceedings of the 13th International Workshop on Low Temperature Detectors, 4 pages, 3 figure

Composite CaWO4 Detectors for the CRESST-II Experiment

CRESST-II, standing for Cryogenic Rare Events Search with Superconducting Thermometers phase II, is an experiment searching for Dark Matter. In the LNGS facility in Gran Sasso, Italy, a cryogenic detector setup is operated in order to detect WIMPs by elastic scattering off nuclei, generating phononic lattice excitations and scintillation light. The thermometers used in the experiment consist of a tungsten thin-film structure evaporated onto the CaWO4 absorber crystal. The process of evaporation causes a decrease in the scintillation light output. This, together with the need of a big-scale detector production for the upcoming EURECA experiment lead to investigations for producing thermometers on smaller crystals which are glued onto the absorber crystal. In our Run 31 we tested composite detectors for the first time in the Gran Sasso setup. They seem to produce higher light yields as hoped and could provide an additional time based discrimination mechanism for low light yield clamp events.Comment: Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Workshop on Low Temperature Detectors 4 pages, 9 figure

Gut microbiota-derived propionate reduces cancer cell proliferation in the liver

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

"I never had the money for blood testing" – Caretakers' experiences of care-seeking for fatal childhood fevers in rural Uganda – a mixed methods study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The main killer diseases of children all manifest as acute febrile illness, yet are curable with timely and adequate management. To avoid a fatal outcome, three essential steps must be completed: caretakers must recognize illness, decide to seek care and reach an appropriate source of care, and then receive appropriate treatment. In a fatal outcome some or all of these steps have failed and it remains to be elucidated to what extent these fatal outcomes are caused by local disease perceptions, inappropriate care-seeking or inadequate resources in the family or health system. This study explores caretakers' experiences of care-seeking for childhood febrile illness with fatal outcome in rural Uganda to elucidate the most influential barriers to adequate care.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A mixed methods approach using structured Verbal/Social autopsy interviews and in-depth interviews was employed with 26 caretakers living in Iganga/Mayuge Demographic Surveillance Site who had lost a child 1–59 months old due to acute febrile illness between March and June 2006. In-depth interviews were analysed using content analysis with deductive category application.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Final categories of barriers to care were: 1) "Illness interpretation barriers" involving children who received delayed or inappropriate care due to caretakers' labelling of the illness, 2) "Barriers to seeking care" with gender roles and household financial constraints hindering adequate care and 3) "Barriers to receiving adequate treatment" revealing discontents with providers and possible deficiencies in quality of care. Resource constraints were identified as the underlying theme for adequate management, both at individual and at health system levels.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The management of severely ill children in this rural setting has several shortcomings. However, the majority of children were seen by an allopathic health care provider during the final illness. Improvements of basic health care for children suffering from acute febrile illness are likely to contribute to a substantial reduction of fatal outcomes. Health care providers at all levels and private as well as public should receive training, support, equipment and supplies to enable basic health care for children suffering from common illnesses.</p

Coupling models of cattle and farms with models of badgers for predicting the dynamics of bovine tuberculosis (TB)

Bovine TB is a major problem for the agricultural industry in several countries. TB can be contracted and spread by species other than cattle and this can cause a problem for disease control. In the UK and Ireland, badgers are a recognised reservoir of infection and there has been substantial discussion about potential control strategies. We present a coupling of individual based models of bovine TB in badgers and cattle, which aims to capture the key details of the natural history of the disease and of both species at approximately county scale. The model is spatially explicit it follows a very large number of cattle and badgers on a different grid size for each species and includes also winter housing. We show that the model can replicate the reported dynamics of both cattle and badger populations as well as the increasing prevalence of the disease in cattle. Parameter space used as input in simulations was swept out using Latin hypercube sampling and sensitivity analysis to model outputs was conducted using mixed effect models. By exploring a large and computationally intensive parameter space we show that of the available control strategies it is the frequency of TB testing and whether or not winter housing is practised that have the most significant effects on the number of infected cattle, with the effect of winter housing becoming stronger as farm size increases. Whether badgers were culled or not explained about 5%, while the accuracy of the test employed to detect infected cattle explained less than 3% of the variance in the number of infected cattle

The Marine Knowledge Exchange Network: Insights from an innovative regional-to-national scale academic-led knowledge-to-impact network and recommendations for future initiatives

This article provides an overview of the approach taken by the Marine Knowledge Exchange Network (M-KEN) and an assessment of its activities in valorizing and generating impact from research. M-KEN was formed in 2014 in response to a call for projects to accelerate impact generated from environmental research in the United Kingdom (UK). M-KEN was university-led and focused in the eastern region of the UK but its approach to fostering impact has had international reach. Over the course of its first five years, M-KEN has leveraged substantial additional funding; spawned numerous spin-off projects; influenced policy and practice; and supported a range of marine research projects in the delivery of their research to stakeholders. This article demonstrates that the reach of M-KEN has been international and has led to substantial ripples of activity radiating out from the core activity of the network. We reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of the approach taken by M-KEN in the context of key research questions around Knowledge Exchange. Finally, we propose recommendations for endeavors from regional to global scale that wish to develop impact from a portfolio of research

Psychiatry out-of-hours: a focus group study of GPs' experiences in Norwegian casualty clinics

Background: For Norwegian general practitioners (GPs), acute treatment of mental illness and substance abuse are among the most commonly experienced emergency situations in out-of-hours primary healthcare. The largest share of acute referrals to emergency psychiatric wards occurs out-of-hours, and out-of-hours services are responsible for a disproportionately high share of compulsory referrals. Concerns exist regarding the quality of mental healthcare provided in the out-of-hours setting. The aim of this study was to explore which challenges GPs experience when providing emergency care out-of-hours to patients presenting problems related to mental illness or substance abuse. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study based on two individual interviews and six focus groups with purposively sampled GPs (totally 45 participants). The interviews were analysed successively in an editing style, using a thematic approach based on methodological descriptions by Charmaz and Malterud. Results: Safety and uncertainty were the dominating themes in the discussions. The threat to personal safety due to unpredictable patient behaviour was a central concern, and present security precautions in the out-of-hours services were questioned. The GPs expressed high levels of uncertainty in their work with patients presenting problems related to mental illness or substance abuse. The complexity of the problems presented, shortage of time, limited access to reliable information and limited range of interventions available during out-of-hours contributed to this uncertainty. Perceived access to second opinion seemed to have a major impact on subjectively experienced work stress. Conclusions: The GPs experienced out-of-hours psychiatry as a field with high levels of uncertainty and limited support to help them meet the experienced challenges. This might influence the quality of care provided. If the current organisation of emergency mental healthcare is to be kept, we need to provide GPs with a better support framework out-of-hours