Effect of varying crude protein levels on spawning frequency and growth of Sarotherodon niloticus breeders

Four-month-old S. niloticus breeders were fed with dry pellets containing 20-50% crude protein and the frequency of spawning involving removal of egg from the mouthbrooding females and growth were determined. When the diets contain high quality proteins from fish meal and soybean oil meal and the amounts of daily food allowance are at satiation level, the influence of increasing dietary crude protein on spawning frequency involving egg removal from the brooder and growth may not be significant

Effect of varying crude protein levels on spawning frequency and growth of Sarotherodon niloticus breeders

Four-month-old S. niloticus breeders were fed with dry pellets containing 20-50% crude protein and the frequency of spawning involving removal of egg from the mouthbrooding females and growth were determined. When the diets contain high quality proteins from fish meal and soybean oil meal and the amounts of daily food allowance are at satiation level, the influence of increasing dietary crude protein on spawning frequency involving egg removal from the brooder and growth may not be significant

It\u27s Not Like He Was Being a Robot: Student Perceptions of Video-Based Writing Feedback in Online Graduate Coursework

Although much research has explored the impact writing feedback has on student learning, it has primarily focused on undergraduate coursework offered in traditional face-to-face settings. This work explores student perceptions of writing feedback they received in an online graduate-level research methods course. Using a seven-point framework based on undergraduate writing feedback literature, students received feedback on a semester-long research proposal writing project. We explored student perceptions of the feedback they received in both written and video formats. Interviews were conducted with participants in both studies to understand their perceptions of the feedback they received. Students perceived the feedback and revision process as being constructive, positively impacting their content knowledge about the research process, and as facilitating their growth as writers for research. Most participants preferred the video-based feedback they received. This was found to impact the relationship students formed with the instructor in the course and support student growth as writers for research

Primary growth hormone insensitivity (Laron syndrome) and acquired hypothyroidism: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Primary growth hormone resistance or growth hormone insensitivity syndrome, also known as Laron syndrome, is a hereditary disease caused by deletions or different types of mutations in the growth hormone receptor gene or by post-receptor defects. This disorder is characterized by a clinical appearance of severe growth hormone deficiency with high levels of circulating growth hormone in contrast to low serum insulin-like growth factor 1 values.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a 15-year-old Caucasian girl who was diagnosed with Silver-Russell syndrome at the age of four and a half years. Recombinant growth hormone was administered for 18 months without an appropriate increase in growth velocity. At the age of seven years, her serum growth hormone levels were high, and an insulin-like growth factor 1 generation test did not increase insulin-like growth factor 1 levels (baseline insulin-like growth factor 1 levels, 52 μg/L; reference range, 75 μg/L to 365 μg/L; and peak, 76 μg/L and 50 μg/L after 12 and 84 hours, respectively, from baseline). The genetic analysis showed that the patient was homozygous for the R217X mutation in the growth hormone receptor gene, which is characteristic of Laron syndrome. On the basis of these results, the diagnosis of primary growth hormone insensitivity syndrome was made, and recombinant insulin-like growth factor 1 therapy was initiated. The patient's treatment was well tolerated, but unexplained central hypothyroidism occurred at the age of 12.9 years. At the age of 15 years, when the patient's sexual development was almost completed and her menstrual cycle occurred irregularly, her height was 129.8 cm, which is 4.71 standard deviations below the median for normal girls her age.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The most important functional tests for the diagnosis of growth hormone insensitivity are the insulin-like growth factor 1 generation test and genetic analysis. Currently, the only effective treatment is daily administration of recombinant insulin-like growth factor 1 starting from early childhood. However, these patients show a dramatically impaired final height. In our case, unexplained central hypothyroidism occurred during treatment.</p

The Political Consequences of Terrorism: Terror Events, Casualties, and Government Duration

How does transnational terrorism affect the stability of parliamentary governments? Does terrorism cause some governments to fail prematurely and/or does it enhance the probability that some governments will stay in office longer than they otherwise would? Using a duration model on a sample of 18 advanced parliamentary democracies between the late-1960s and 2003, we find that terrorism exacerbates the likelihood of government failure for some governments but not others. Our principal finding is that right-oriented governments are able to keep their hold on power more than left-wing governments when confronted with transnational terrorism. Keywords: terrorism, government duration, partsianship, casualties What are the political consequences of transnational terror attacks? 1 While research demonstrates that transnational terror attacks have economic consequences such as reducing growth (Gaibulloev and Sandler 2008), we know less about how terror attacks affect domestic politics in democratic states. If terror attacks affect domestic politics, do these attacks affect all democratic states and governments equally? To address one aspect of this broader question, we ask how terror events and their resulting casualties influence the durability of parliamentary governments. Specifically, we examine whether terror attacks lead to *The authors wish to thank Daina Chiba and Joseph Young for his helpful comments and suggestions. We also thank Jonathan Martin and Tyson Meredith for their research assistance. Replication materials and robustness checks can be found on web.missouri.edu/~williamslaro/. 1 While we do not question that both transnational and domestic terrorism have economic and political domestic consequences, the causes, goals, and responses to each type of terrorism are likely to be different. As Enders, Sandler, and Gaibulloev (2011) suggest, transnational terrorism is likely to emerge from broader grievances in other countries (see Savun and Phillips (2009) about states&apos; foreign policies and terrorism), which leads to terror attacks aimed at drawing attention to national issues beyond the borders of the attacked country attempting to force policy changes desired by the terrorists. In contrast, they suggest that domestic terrorism emerges either from separatists, individuals trying to overthrow the government, or issue-specific causes such as social justice or environmental degradation (that is, the Earth Liberation Front). Furthermore, responses to transnational and domestic terrorism by the government and the public may differ. Transnational terrorism requires a large increase in defense spending and defense efforts while domestic terrorism is usually dealt with through the police and requires very little international collaboration. Given these differences, we focus on shocks from transnational terrorism

Perinatal Exposure to Bisphenol A Alters Early Adipogenesis in the Rat

BACKGROUND: The causes of the current obesity pandemic have not been fully elucidated. Implication of environmental endocrine disruptors such as bisphenol A (BPA) on adipose tissue development has been poorly investigated. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of perinatal exposure to BPA on early adipose storage at weaning. METHODS: Pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats had access to drinking water containing 1 mg/L BPA from day 6 of gestation through the end of lactation. Pups were weaned on postnatal day (PND) 21. At that time, we investigated perigonadal adipose tissue of pups (weight, histology, gene expression). For the remaining animals, we recorded body weight and food intake for animals on either standard chow or a high-fat diet. RESULTS: Gestational exposure to BPA did not alter the sex ratio or litter size at birth. On PND1, the weight of male and female BPA-exposed pups was increased. On PND21, body weight was increased only in females, in which parametrial white adipose tissue (pWAT) weight was increased about 3-fold. This excess of pWAT was associated with adipocyte hypertrophy and overexpression of lipogenic genes such as C/EBP-alpha (CAAT enhancer binding protein alpha), PPAR-gamma (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma), SREBP-1C (sterol regulatory element binding protein-1C), LPL (lipoprotein lipase), FAS (fatty acid synthase), and SCD-1 (stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1). In addition, gene expression of SREBP-1C, FAS, and ACC (acetyl-CoA carboxylase) was also increased in liver from BPA-exposed females at PND21, without a change in circulating lipids and glucose. After weaning, perinatal BPA exposure predisposed to overweight in a sex- and diet-dependent manner. We observed no change in food intake due to perinatal BPA exposure in rats on either standard chow or a high-fat diet. CONCLUSIONS: Perinatal exposure to a low dose of BPA increased adipogenesis in females at weaning. Adult body weight may be programmed during early life, leading to changes dependent on the sex and the nutritional status. Although further studies are required to understand the mechanisms of BPA action in early life, these results are particularly important with regard to the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity and the context-dependent action of endocrine disruptors

Association of Type 1 Diabetes With Month of Birth Among U.S. Youth: The SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study

OBJECTIVE - Seasonal environment at birth may influence diabetes incidence in later life. We sought evidence for this effect in a large sample of diabetic youth residing in the U.S. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS— We compared the distribution of birth months within the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study (SEARCH study) with the monthly distributions in U.S. births tabulated by race for years 1982-2005. SEARCH study participants (9,737 youth with type 1 diabetes and 1,749 with type 2 diabetes) were identified by six collaborating U.S. centers. RESULTS— Among type 1 diabetic youth, the percentage of observed to expected births differed across the months (P = 0.0092; decreased in October-February and increased in March―July). Their smoothed birth-month estimates demonstrated a deficit in November-February births and an excess in April-July births (smoothed May versus January relative risk [RR] = 1.06 [95% CI 1.02―1.11]). Stratifications by sex or by three racial groups showed similar patterns relating type 1 diabetes to month of birth. Stratification by geographic regions showed a peak-to-nadir RR of 1.10 [1.04-1.16] in study regions from the northern latitudes (Colorado, western Washington State, and southern Ohio) but no birth-month effect (P > 0.9) in study regions from more southern locations. Among type 2 diabetic youth, associations with birth month were inconclusive. CONCLUSIONS— Spring births were associated with increased likelihood of type 1 diabetes but possibly not in all U.S. regions. Causal mechanisms may involve factors dependent on geographic latitude such as solar irradiance, but it is unknown whether they influence prenatal or early postnatal development

Pre-exposure prophylaxis initiation and adherence among Black men who have sex with men (MSM) in three US cities: results from the HPTN 073 study

Abstract : Introduction: Randomized clinical trials have demonstrated the efficacy of antiretroviral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in preventing HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men (MSM). However, limited research has examined initiation and adherence to PrEP among Black MSM (BMSM) in the United States (US) who are disproportionately represented among newly HIV infected and late to care individuals. This research reports on the HIV Prevention Trials Network 073 (HPTN 073) study aimed to examine PrEP initiation, utilization and adherence among Black MSM utilizing the theoretically principled, cul- turally informed and client-centered care coordination (C4) model. Methods: The HPTN 073 study enrolled and followed 226 HIV-uninfected Black MSM in three US cities (Los Angeles, CA; Washington DC; and Chapel Hill, NC) from February 2013 through September 2015. Study participants were offered once daily oral emtricitabine/tenofovir (FTC/TDF) PrEP combined with C4 and followed up for 52 weeks. Participants received HIV testing, risk reduction education and clinical monitoring. Results: Of the 226 men enrolled, 178 participants initiated PrEP (79%), and of these 64% demonstrated PrEP utilization at week 26 (mid-point of the study) based on pharmacokinetic testing. Condomless anal sex with an HIV-infected or unknown status casual male partner was statistically significantly associated with a greater likelihood of PrEP initiation (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 4.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.7, 11.7). Greater age (≥25 vs. <25, OR 2.95, 95% CI 1.37 –6.37), perception of having enough money (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.7 to 7.7) and knowledge of male partner taking PrEP before sex (OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.03 to 4.79) were statistically significantly associated with increased likelihood of PrEP adherence at week 26. Annualized HIV incidence was 2.9 (95% CI 1.2 to 7.9) among those who initiated PrEP, compared to 7.7 (95% CI 2.5 to 24.1) among those who did not initiate PrEP (p = 0.18). Conclusions: Results suggest a high level of PrEP initiation among at-risk Black MSM, a group historically characterized as hard to reach. The data support the importance of addressing contextual factors that affect PrEP initiation and adherence, and of additional research on the ultimate benefit of PrEP in HIV prevention among Black MSM

Symptomatic cerebral oedema during treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis: effect of adjuvant octreotide infusion

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>A potentially lethal complication of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in children is brain oedema, whether caused by DKA itself or by the therapeutic infusion of insulin and fluids.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 10-year old previously healthy boy with DKA became unconscious and apnoeic due to cerebral oedema (confirmed by abnormal EEG and CT-scan) during treatment with intravenous fluids (36 ml/h) and insulin (0.1 units/kg/h). He was intubated and artificially ventilated, without impact on EEG and CT-scan. Subsequently, adjuvant infusion of octreotide was applied (3.5 μg/kg/h), suppressing growth hormone (GH) and IGF-1 production and necessitating the insulin dose to be reduced to 0.05 - 0.025 units/kg/h. The brain oedema improved and the boy made a full recovery.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Co-therapy with octreotide was associated with a favourable outcome in the present patient with DKA and cerebral oedema. Whether this could be ascribed to the effects of octreotide on the insulin requirement or on the GH/IGF-axis remains to be elucidated.</p