Ecological genomics: steps towards unraveling the genetic basis of inducible defenses in Daphnia

Little is known about the genetic mechanisms underlying inducible defenses. Recently, the genome of Daphnia pulex, a model organism for defense studies, has been sequenced. Building on the genome information, recent preliminary studies in BMC Developmental Biology and BMC Molecular Biology have assessed gene response profiles in Daphnia under predation pressure. We review the significance of the findings and highlight future research perspectives

A [4Fe-4S]-Fe(CO)(CN)-L-cysteine intermediate is the first organometallic precursor in [FeFe] hydrogenase H-cluster bioassembly.

Biosynthesis of the [FeFe] hydrogenase active site (the 'H-cluster') requires the interplay of multiple proteins and small molecules. Among them, the radical S-adenosylmethionine enzyme HydG, a tyrosine lyase, has been proposed to generate a complex that contains an Fe(CO)2(CN) moiety that is eventually incorporated into the H-cluster. Here we describe the characterization of an intermediate in the HydG reaction: a [4Fe-4S][(Cys)Fe(CO)(CN)] species, 'Complex A', in which a CO, a CN- and a cysteine (Cys) molecule bind to the unique 'dangler' Fe site of the auxiliary [5Fe-4S] cluster of HydG. The identification of this intermediate-the first organometallic precursor to the H-cluster-validates the previously hypothesized HydG reaction cycle and provides a basis for elucidating the biosynthetic origin of other moieties of the H-cluster

From Physical to Virtual: Widening the Perspective on Multi-Agent Environments

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23850-0_9Since more than a decade, the environment is seen as a key element when analyzing, developing or deploying Multi-Agent Systems (MAS) applications. Especially, for the development of multi-agent platforms it has become a key concept, similarly to many application in the area of location-based, distributed systems. An emerging, prominent application area for MAS is related to Virtual Environments. The underlying technology has evolved in a way, that these applications have grown out of science fiction novels till research papers and even real applications. Even more, current technologies enable MAS to be key components of such virtual environments. In this paper, we widen the concept of the environment of a MAS to encompass new and mixed physical, virtual, simulated, etc. forms of environments. We analyze currently most interesting application domains based on three dimensions: the way different "realities" are mixed via the environment, the underlying natures of agents, the possible forms and sophistication of interactions. In addition to this characterization, we discuss how this widened concept of possible environments influences the support it can give for developing applications in the respective domains.Carrascosa Casamayor, C.; Klugl, F.; Ricci, A.; Boissier, O. (2015). From Physical to Virtual: Widening the Perspective on Multi-Agent Environments. En Agent Environments for Multi-Agent Systems IV. 4th International Workshop, E4MAS 2014 - 10 Years Later, Paris, France, May 6, 2014. 133-146. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23850-0_9S133146Aggarwal, J.K., Ryoo, M.S.: Human activity analysis: a review. ACM Comput. 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Agents and Ambient Intelligence, Ambient Intelligence and Smart Environments, pp. 17–31. IOS Press, Amsterdam (2012)Ferber, J.: Multi-Agent Systems: An Introduction to Distributed Artificial Intelligence. Addison Wesley Longman, Harlow (1999)Gelernter, D.: Mirror Worlds - or the Day Software Puts the Universe in a Shoebox: How it Will Happen and What it Will Mean. Oxford University Press, New York (1992)Gibson, W.: Neuromancer. Ace, New York (1984)Klügl, F., Fehler, M., Herrler, R.: About the role of the environment in multi-agent simulations. In: Weyns, D., Van Parunak, H.D., Michel, F. (eds.) E4MAS 2004. LNCS (LNAI), vol. 3374, pp. 127–149. Springer, Heidelberg (2005)Krueger, M.: Artificial Reality II. Addison-Wesley, New York (1991)Luck, M., Aylett, R.: Applying artificial intelligence to virtual reality: intelligent virtual environments. Appl. Artif. Intell. 14(1), 3–32 (2000)Dorigo, M., Floreano, D., Gambardella, L.M., et al.: Swarmanoid: a novel concept for the study of heterogeneous robotic swarms. IEEE Robot. Autom. Mag. 20(4), 60–71 (2013)Milgram, P., Kishino, A.F.: Taxonomy of mixed reality visual displays. IEICE Trans. Inf. Syst. E77–D(12), 1321–1329 (1994)Olsson, T., Salo, M.: Online user survey on current mobile augmented reality applications. In: Proceedings of the 2011 10th IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality, ISMAR 2011, pp. 75–84. IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC, USA (2011)Saunier, J., Balbo, F., Pinson, S.: A formal model of communication and context awareness in multiagent systems. J. Logic Lang. Inform. 23(2), 219–247 (2014)Stephenson, N.: Snow Crash. Bantam Books, New York (1992)Tummolini, L., Castelfranchi, C.: Trace signals: the meanings of stigmergy. In: Weyns, D., Van Parunak, H.D., Michel, F. (eds.) E4MAS 2006. LNCS (LNAI), vol. 4389, pp. 141–156. Springer, Heidelberg (2007)Weyns, D., Omicini, A., Odell, J.: Environment as a first class abstraction in multiagent systems. Auton. Agent. Multi-Agent Syst. 14(1), 5–30 (2007)Weyns, D., Schelfthout, K., Holvoet, T., Lefever, T.: Decentralized control of e’gv transportation systems. In: Proceedings of the Fourth International Joint Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems, pp. 67–74. ACM (2005)Weyns, D., Schumacher, M., Ricci, A., Viroli, M., Holvoet, T.: Environments in multiagent systems. Knowl. Eng. Rev. 20(2), 127–141 (2005

Major depressive disorder and current psychological distress moderate the effect of polygenic risk for obesity on body mass index

We are grateful to the families who took part in GS:SFHS, the GPs and Scottish School of Primary Care for their help in recruiting them, and the whole GS team, which includes academic researchers, clinic staff, laboratory technicians, clerical workers, IT staff, statisticians and research managers. This work is supported by the Wellcome Trust through a Strategic Award, reference 104036/Z/14/Z. The Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government and the Scottish Funding Council provided core support for Generation Scotland. GS:SFHS was funded by a grant from the Scottish Government Health Department, Chief Scientist Office, number CZD/16/6. We acknowledge with gratitude the financial support received for this work from the Dr Mortimer and Theresa Sackler Foundation. PT, DJP, IJD and AMM are members of The University of Edinburgh Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, part of the cross council Lifelong Health and Wellbeing Initiative (MR/K026992/1). Funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and Medical Research Council is gratefully acknowledged. DJM is an NRS Career Fellow, funded by the CSO. Supplementary Information accompanies the paper on the Translational Psychiatry websitePeer reviewedPublisher PD

Voluntary stopping of eating and drinking in Switzerland from different points of view : protocol for a mixed-methods study

“To die with dignity” has reached the significance of a core value in democratic societies. Based on this unconditional value, people require autonomy and care. "Voluntary stopping of eating and drinking" (VSED) represents an alternative to assisted suicide because no one else is involved in the action of death fastening, even though from outside, it might be considered as an extreme form of passive euthanasia. However, there are no data available about the prevalence and frequency of either explicit VSED or the implicit reduction of food and liquid in Switzerland. The responsible and independent ethics committee of the Greater Region of Eastern Switzerland (EKOS 17/083) approved this study

Study protocol: a cluster randomised controlled trial of a school based fruit and vegetable intervention – Project Tomato

Background The School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme (SFVS) is an important public health intervention. The aim of this scheme is to provide a free piece of fruit and/or vegetable every day for children in Reception to Year 2. When children are no longer eligible for the scheme (from Year 3) their overall fruit and vegetable consumption decreases back to baseline levels. This proposed study aims to design a flexible multi-component intervention for schools to support the maintenance of fruit and vegetable consumption for Year 3 children who are no longer eligible for the scheme. Method This study is a cluster randomised controlled trial of Year 2 classes from 54 primary schools across England. The schools will be randomly allocated into two groups to receive either an active intervention called Project Tomato, to support maintenance of fruit intake in Year 3 children, or a less active intervention (control group), consisting of a 5 A DAY booklet. Children's diets will be analysed using the Child And Diet Evaluation Tool (CADET), and height and weight measurements collected, at baseline (Year 2) and 18 month follow-up (Year 4). The primary outcome will be the ability of the intervention (Project Tomato) to maintain consumption of fruit and vegetable portions compared to the control group. Discussion A positive result will identify how fruit and vegetable consumption can be maintained in young children, and will be useful for policies supporting the SFVS. A negative result would be used to inform the research agenda and contribute to redefining future strategies for increasing children's fruit and vegetable consumption

Type I Interferon: Potential Therapeutic Target for Psoriasis?

Background: Psoriasis is an immune-mediated disease characterized by aberrant epidermal differentiation, surface scale formation, and marked cutaneous inflammation. To better understand the pathogenesis of this disease and identify potential mediators, we used whole genome array analysis to profile paired lesional and nonlesional psoriatic skin and skin from healthy donors. Methodology/Principal Findings: We observed robust overexpression of type I interferon (IFN)–inducible genes and genomic signatures that indicate T cell and dendritic cell infiltration in lesional skin. Up-regulation of mRNAs for IFN-a subtypes was observed in lesional skin compared with nonlesional skin. Enrichment of mature dendritic cells and 2 type I IFN–inducible proteins, STAT1 and ISG15, were observed in the majority of lesional skin biopsies. Concordant overexpression of IFN-c and TNF-a–inducible gene signatures occurred at the same disease sites. Conclusions/Significance: Up-regulation of TNF-a and elevation of the TNF-a–inducible gene signature in lesional skin underscore the importance of this cytokine in psoriasis; these data describe a molecular basis for the therapeutic activity of anti–TNF-a agents. Furthermore, these findings implicate type I IFNs in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Consistent and significant up-regulation of type I IFNs and their associated gene signatures in psoriatic skin suggest that type I IFNs may b

Development and psychometric testing of an instrument to evaluate cognitive skills of evidence based practice in student health professionals

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Health educators need rigorously developed instruments to evaluate cognitive skills relating to evidence based practice (EBP). Previous EBP evaluation instruments have focused on the acquisition and appraisal of the evidence and are largely based in the medical profession. The aim of this study was to develop and validate an EBP evaluation instrument to assess EBP cognitive skills for entry-level health professional disciplines.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The Fresno test of competence in evidence based medicine was considered in the development of the 'Knowledge of Research Evidence Competencies' instrument (K-REC). The K-REC was reviewed for content validity. Two cohorts of entry-level students were recruited for the pilot study, those who had been exposed to EBP training (physiotherapy students, n = 24), and who had not been exposed to EBP training (human movement students, n = 76). The K-REC was administered to one cohort of students (n = 24) on two testing occasions to evaluate test-retest reliability. Two raters independently scored the first test occasion (n = 24) to evaluate the inter-rater reliability of the marking guidelines. Construct validity was assessed by comparison of the two groups, 'exposed' and 'non-exposed', and the percentage of students achieving a 'pass' score in each of these groups. Item difficulty was established.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Among the 100 participants (24 EBP 'exposed', and 76 EBP 'non-exposed' students), there was a statistically significant (<it>p </it>< 0.0001) difference in the total K-REC scores. The test-retest and inter-rater reliability of the individual items and total scores ranged from moderate to excellent (measured by Cohen's Kappa and ICC, range: 0.62 to perfect agreement).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The K-REC instrument is a valid and reliable evaluation instrument of cognitive skills of EBP in entry-level student health professionals. The instrument is quick to disseminate and easy to score, making it a suitable instrument for health educators to employ to evaluate students' knowledge of EBP or in the evaluation of entry-level EBP training.</p