Missing and accounted for: gaps and areas of wealth in the public health review literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>High-quality review evidence is useful for informing and influencing public health policy and practice decisions. However, certain topic areas lack representation in terms of the quantity and quality of review literature available. The objectives of this paper are to identify the quantity, as well as quality, of review-level evidence available on the effectiveness of public health interventions for public health decision makers.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Searches conducted on <url>http://www.health-evidence.ca</url> produced an inventory of public health review literature in 21 topic areas. Gaps and areas of wealth in the review literature, as well as the proportion of reviews rated methodologically strong, moderate, or weak were identified. The top 10 topic areas of interest for registered users and visitors of <url>http://www.health-evidence.ca</url> were extracted from user profile data and Google Analytics.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Registered users' top three interests included: 1) healthy communities, 2) chronic diseases, and 3) nutrition. The top three preferences for visitors included: 1) chronic diseases, 2) physical activity, and 3) addiction/substance use. All of the topic areas with many (301+) available reviews were of interest to registered users and/or visitors (mental health, physical activity, addiction/substance use, adolescent health, child health, nutrition, adult health, and chronic diseases). Conversely, the majority of registered users and/or visitors did not have preference for topic areas with few (≤ 150) available reviews (food safety and inspection, dental health, environmental health) with the exception of social determinants of health and healthy communities. Across registered users' and visitors' topic areas of preference, 80.2% of the reviews were of well-done methodological quality, with 43.5% of reviews having a strong quality rating and 36.7% a moderate review quality rating.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In topic areas in which many reviews are available, higher level syntheses are needed to guide policy and practice. For other topic areas with few reviews, it is necessary to determine whether primary study evidence exists, or is needed, so that reviews can be conducted in the future. Considering that less than half of the reviews available on <url>http://www.health-evidence.ca</url> are of strong methodological quality, the quality of the review-level evidence needs to improve across the range of public health topic areas.</p

Validation of a Real-Time PCR–Based Qualitative Assay for the Detection of Methylated SEPT9 DNA in Human Plasma

Abstract BACKGROUND Epi proColon® is a new blood-based colorectal cancer (CRC) screening test designed to determine the methylation status of a promoter region of the SEPT9 (septin 9) gene in cell-free DNA isolated from plasma. We describe the analytical and clinical performance of the test. METHODS Analytical performance at 4 testing laboratories included determination of limit of detection, precision, and reproducibility of the SEPT9 test. Clinical performance was evaluated in a prospective study by use of samples (n = 1544) from subjects enrolled in the PRESEPT clinical trial. Results were analyzed by comparison with colonoscopy, the reference standard. RESULTS The limit of detection for methylated SEPT9 DNA was 7.8 pg/mL (95% CI 6–11 pg/mL) corresponding to &amp;lt;2 genome copies of methylated SEPT9 per milliliter of plasma. In the prospective clinical trial, sensitivity for all stages of CRC was 68% (95% CI 53%–80%) and for stage I–III CRC, 64% (48%–77%). Adjusted specificity, on the basis of negative colonoscopy findings, was 80.0% (78%–82%). SIGNIFICANCE: The Epi proColon test is a simple, real-time PCR–based assay for the detection of methylated SEPT9 DNA in blood that may provide a noninvasive CRC screening alternative for people noncompliant with current CRC screening guidelines. </jats:sec

Genetic differentiation in Pinus brutia Ten. using molecular markers and quantitative traits: the role of altitude

· Context Turkish red pine (Pinus brutia Ten.) is widespread in the eastern Mediterranean Basin. In the late 1970s, four common gardens were established along steep altitudinal transects extending from the coast to about 1,200 m in the Taurus Mountains (Antalya, Turkey). · Aims The aim was to study the role of altitude in shaping Turkish red pine genetic diversity and population structure as well as to evaluate the existence of local adaptation along altitudinal gradients in this species. · Methods Genetic diversity and population structure were evaluated in replicated altitudinal gradients using chloroplast microsatellite (cpSSR) markers. Genetic differentiation for neutral markers was compared with quantitative differentiation for growth traits for the same populations evaluated at different altitudes. · Results Genetic differentiation among altitudinal groups was higher than among transects. A high portion of the genetic variance corresponded to families within populations (up to 10.75%). Overall quantitative genetic differentiation (QST) was higher than molecular differentiation in most test sites for all the traits and ages considered. · Conclusion Turkish red pine shows signatures of local adaptation to environmental gradients related to altitude. For forestry practices, such as selection of seed sources, both altitude and the family level of variation need to be considered. © INRA/Springer-Verlag France 2011