Prospective Relations between Red Blood Cell ω-6 and ω-3 Fatty Acid Composition and Cognitive Function among Older Puerto Rican Adults

Objectives: To examine the association between red blood cell (RBC) ω-6 and ω-3 fatty acid (FA) composition and cognitive function over 2-y follow-up among older U.S. mainland Puerto Ricans. Methods: Data are from the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (74% female; 57±8 y). RBC membrane FA status was ascertained at baseline. Individual FA were expressed as a percentage of total FA identified. Cognitive function was measured at baseline and at 2-y using the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE), where a higher score ranging from 0-30 indicates better function. Cognitive impairment was defined as MMSE scores ≤21, ≤23, and ≤24 for those with less than a 9th grade education, a 9th to 12th grade education, and some college education or higher, respectively. Relations between FA and MMSE scores were examined in 946 participants and incidence of cognitive impairment among those considered to be cognitively normal at baseline (n=639). Results: In multivariate models additionally adjusted for baseline MMSE, total ω-6 FA (quartiles) were associated with lower MMSE score at 2-y (P-trend=0.003). Total ω-3 FA were positively (P-trend=0.04) and the ω-6:ω-3 ratio inversely (P-trend=0.007) related to 2-y MMSE, but these relationships attenuated with adjustment for baseline score. The incidence of cognitive impairment at follow-up was 22%. In multivariate models, a 1% increase in total ω-6 FA related to a 9% greater incidence of cognitive impairment [RR=1.09 (95% CI: 1.00, 1.18), P=0.04]. Total ω-3 FA were inversely related to incident cognitive impairment [RR=0.92 (0.81 to 1.05), P=0.21], whereas the ω-6:ω-3 ratio was positively associated [RR=1.12 (95% CI: 0.98, 1.26), P=0.08]. Conclusions: An objective biomarker of ω-6 FA consumption was associated with poorer cognitive function and incidence of cognitive impairment over 2-y follow-up, suggesting that greater intakes of food sources of ω-6 FA may play a role in cognitive decline among older U.S. mainland Puerto Ricans

Caregiving for Older Adults with Obesity in the United States

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138397/1/jgs14918_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138397/2/jgs14918.pd

Globular Clusters and X-ray Point Sources in Centaurus A (NGC 5128)

We detect 353 X-ray point sources, mostly low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), in four Chandra observations of Centaurus A (NGC 5128), the nearest giant early-type galaxy, and correlate this point source population with the largest available ensemble of confirmed and likely globular clusters associated with this galaxy. Of the X-ray sources, 31 are coincident with 30 globular clusters that are confirmed members of the galaxy by radial velocity measurement (2 X-ray sources match one globular cluster within our search radius), while 1 X-ray source coincides with a globular cluster resolved by HST images. Another 36 X-ray point sources match probable, but spectroscopically unconfirmed, globular cluster candidates. The color distribution of globular clusters and cluster candidates in Cen A is bimodal, and the probability that a red, metal rich GC candidate contains an LMXB is at least 1.7 times that of a blue, metal poor one. If we consider only spectroscopically confirmed GCs, this ratio increases to ~3. We find that LMXBs appear preferentially in more luminous (massive) GCs. These two effects are independent, and the latter is likely a consequence of enhanced dynamical encounter rates in more massive clusters which have on average denser cores. The X-ray luminosity functions of the LMXBs found in GCs and of those that are unmatched with GCs reveal similar underlying populations, though there is some indication that fewer X-ray faint LMXBs are found in globular clusters than X-ray bright ones. Our results agree with previous observations of the connection of GCs and LMXBs in early-type galaxies and extend previous work on Centaurus A.Comment: 34 pages, 10 figures, 2 tables, Accepted for Publication in The Astrophysical Journa

Therapeutic efficacy of antibodies lacking FcgammaR against lethal Dengue virus infection Is due to neutralizing potency and blocking of enhancing antibodies

<div><p>Dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS) are life-threatening complications following infection with one of the four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV). At present, no vaccine or antiviral therapies are available against dengue. Here, we characterized a panel of eight human or mouse-human chimeric monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and their modified variants lacking effector function and dissected the mechanism by which some protect against antibody-enhanced lethal DENV infection. We found that neutralizing modified MAbs that recognize the fusion loop or the A strand epitopes on domains II and III of the envelope protein, respectively, act therapeutically by competing with and/or displacing enhancing antibodies. By analyzing these relationships, we developed a novel <em>in vitro</em> suppression-of-enhancement assay that predicts the ability of modified MAbs to act therapeutically against antibody-enhanced disease <em>in vivo</em>. These studies provide new insight into the biology of DENV pathogenesis and the requirements for antibodies to treat lethal DENV disease.</p> </div

A comparison of three methods for estimating call densities of migrating bowhead whales using passive acoustic monitoring

TAM thanks partial support by Centro de Estatistica e Aplicações, Universidade de Lisboa (funded by FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal, through the project UID/MAT/00006/2013).Various methods for estimating animal density from visual data, including distance sampling (DS) and spatially explicit capture-recapture (SECR), have recently been adapted for estimating call density using passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) data, e.g., recordings of animal calls. Here we summarize three methods available for passive acoustic density estimation: plot sampling, DS, and SECR. The first two require distances from the sensors to calling animals (which are obtained by triangulating calls matched among sensors), but SECR only requires matching (not localizing) calls among sensors. We compare via simulation what biases can arise when assumptions underlying these methods are violated. We use insights gleaned from the simulation to compare the performance of the methods when applied to a case study: bowhead whale call data collected from arrays of directional acoustic sensors at five sites in the Beaufort Sea during the fall migration 2007–2014. Call detections were manually extracted from the recordings by human observers simultaneously scanning spectrograms of recordings from a given site. The large discrepancies between estimates derived using SECR and the other two methods were likely caused primarily by the manual detection procedure leading to non-independent detections among sensors, while errors in estimated distances between detected calls and sensors also contributed to the observed patterns. Our study is among the first to provide a direct comparison of the three methods applied to PAM data and highlights the importance that all assumptions of an analysis method need to be met for correct inference.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Protection by immunoglobulin dual-affinity retargeting antibodies against dengue virus

Dengue viruses are the most common arthropod-transmitted viral infection, with an estimated 390 million human infections annually and ∼3.6 billion people at risk. Currently, there are no approved vaccines or therapeutics available to control the global dengue virus disease burden. In this study, we demonstrate the binding, neutralizing activity, and therapeutic capacity of a novel bispecific dual-affinity retargeting molecule (DART) that limits infection of all four serotypes of dengue virus

Nationwide Acute Care Physical Therapist Practice Analysis Identifies Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviors That Reflect Acute Care Practice

Background and Purpose. Acute care physical therapists have experienced the effects of dramatic changes in health care reimbursement systems and population demographics. Acute care hospitals now serve a patient population of much older, chronically ill patients who are hospitalized for shorter periods of time in a practice environment in which physical therapy staffing resources are often inadequate. The purposes of this study were to document common experiences in the practice of acute care physical therapy and to identify differences in the perceptions of physical therapists with varying levels of experience and in various sizes of acute care facilities. Subjects and Methods. A survey questionnaire was mailed to 500 randomly selected physical therapists employed in acute care facilities. The therapists answered questions regarding the frequency of various physical therapy evaluation and treatment practices, problems encountered in delivering physical therapy services, coordination of the discharge planning process, and perceptions of staffing trends in the acute care setting. The responses of 188 physical therapists who completed the survey were compared by their experience levels and the size of the institutions in which they practiced. Results. Subjects reported that patient factors, such as medical complications and cooperation; organizational factors, such as staffing shortages and large caseloads; and health care system constraints, such as difficulty changing orders and limited time in which to work with the patient interfered with patients reaching physical therapy goals. Conclusion and Discussion. Inadequate skills for successful acute care practice and maladaptive therapist beliefs about acute care career possibilities may adversely affect physical therapist career longevity in the acute care setting

Nationwide Acute Care Physical Therapist Practice Analysis Identifies Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviors That Reflect Acute Care Practice

Background and Purpose. Acute care physical therapists have experienced the effects of dramatic changes in health care reimbursement systems and population demographics. Acute care hospitals now serve a patient population of much older, chronically ill patients who are hospitalized for shorter periods of time in a practice environment in which physical therapy staffing resources are often inadequate. The purposes of this study were to document common experiences in the practice of acute care physical therapy and to identify differences in the perceptions of physical therapists with varying levels of experience and in various sizes of acute care facilities. Subjects and Methods. A survey questionnaire was mailed to 500 randomly selected physical therapists employed in acute care facilities. The therapists answered questions regarding the frequency of various physical therapy evaluation and treatment practices, problems encountered in delivering physical therapy services, coordination of the discharge planning process, and perceptions of staffing trends in the acute care setting. The responses of 188 physical therapists who completed the survey were compared by their experience levels and the size of the institutions in which they practiced. Results. Subjects reported that patient factors, such as medical complications and cooperation; organizational factors, such as staffing shortages and large caseloads; and health care system constraints, such as difficulty changing orders and limited time in which to work with the patient interfered with patients reaching physical therapy goals. Conclusion and Discussion. Inadequate skills for successful acute care practice and maladaptive therapist beliefs about acute care career possibilities may adversely affect physical therapist career longevity in the acute care setting

The effect of early versus late treatment initiation after diagnosis on the outcomes of patients treated for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Globally it is estimated that 480 000 people developed multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in 2014 and 190 000 people died from the disease. Successful treatment outcomes are achieved in only 50 % of patients with MDR-TB, compared to 86 % for drug susceptible disease. It is widely held that delay in time to initiation of treatment for MDR-TB is an important predictor of treatment outcome. The objective of this review was to assess the existing evidence on the outcomes of multidrug- and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis patients treated early (≤4 weeks) versus late (>4 weeks) after diagnosis of drug resistance. METHODS: Eight sources providing access to 17 globally representative electronic health care databases, indexes, sources of evidence-based reviews and grey literature were searched using terms incorporating time to treatment and MDR-TB. Two-stage sifting in duplicate was employed to assess studies against pre-specified inclusion and exclusion criteria. Only those articles reporting WHO-defined treatment outcomes were considered for inclusion. Articles reporting on fewer than 10 patients, published before 1990, or without a comparison of outcomes in patient groups experiencing different delays to treatment initiation were excluded. RESULTS: The initial search yielded 1978 references, of which 1475 unique references remained after removal of duplicates and 28 articles published pre-1990. After title and abstract sifting, 64 papers underwent full text review. None of these articles fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in the review. CONCLUSIONS: Whilst there is an inherent logic in the theory that treatment delay will lead to poorer treatment outcomes, no published evidence was identified in this systematic review to support this hypothesis. Reports of programmatic changes leading to reductions in treatment delay exist in the literature, but attribution of differences in outcomes specifically to treatment delay is confounded by other contemporaneous changes. Further primary research on this question is not considered a high priority use of limited resources, though where data are available, improved reporting of outcomes by time to treatment should be encouraged