Processed data on the night-time use of screen-based media devices and adolescents' sleep quality and health-related quality of life

The data presented in this article relate to the research article entitled “Night-time screen-based media device use and adolescents' sleep and health-related quality of life” [1]. The present data reports findings from the investigation of the relationship between night-time screen-based media devices (SBMD) use and both sleep quality and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among 11 to 12-year-olds. Baseline data from a large cohort of 6,616 adolescents from 39 schools in and around London, UK, participating in the Study of Cognition Adolescents and Mobile Phone (SCAMP) were analysed. Self-report data on adolescents’ use of any SBMD (mobile phone, tablet, laptop, television etc.) were the main exposures of interest. Mobile phone and television were the most commonly used portable and non-portable device, respectively. Sleep variables were derived from self-reported weekday and/or weekend bedtime, sleep onset latency (SOL) and wake time. Sleep quality was assessed using four standardised dimensions from the Swiss Health Survey. HRQoL was estimated using the KIDSCREEN-10 questionnaire

Impact of helminth infection during pregnancy on cognitive and motor functions of one-year-old children

Objective To determine the effect of helminth infection during pregnancy on the cognitive and motor functions of one-year-old children. Methods Six hundred and thirty five singletons born to pregnant women enrolled before 29 weeks of gestation in a trial comparing two intermittent preventive treatments for malaria were assessed for cognitive and motor functions using the Mullen Scales of Early Learning, in the TOVI study, at twelve months of age in the district of Allada in Benin. Stool samples of pregnant women were collected at recruitment, second antenatal care (ANC) visit (at least one month after recruitment) and just before delivery, and were tested for helminths using the Kato-Katz technique. All pregnant women were administered a total of 600 mg of mebendazole (100 mg two times daily for 3 days) to be taken after the first ANC visit. The intake was not directly observed. Results Prevalence of helminth infection was 11.5%, 7.5% and 3.0% at first ANC visit, second ANC visit and at delivery, respectively. Children of mothers who were infected with hookworms at the first ANC visit had 4.9 (95% CI: 1.3–8.6) lower mean gross motor scores compared to those whose mothers were not infected with hookworms at the first ANC visit, in the adjusted model. Helminth infection at least once during pregnancy was associated with infant cognitive and gross motor functions after adjusting for maternal education, gravidity, child sex, family possessions, and quality of the home stimulation. Conclusion Helminth infection during pregnancy is associated with poor cognitive and gross motor outcomes in infants. Measures to prevent helminth infection during pregnancy should be reinforced

Lecture start time and sleep characteristics: Analysis of daily diaries of undergraduate students from the LoST-Sleep project

Objectives Emerging evidence shows that later high school start times are associated with increased sleep duration; however, little is known if this extends to the university setting. This study investigated associations of first lecture start times with sleep characteristics among university students. Design Daily diaries. Setting Lincoln, UK. Participants One hundred and fifty-five undergraduate students completed 7-night sleep diaries MEASUREMENTS: Of the plausible lecture-day diaries (Monday-to-Friday, expected N = 755 days), 567 days were lecture days (M = 3.8 lecture-days per student, SD = 1.1). The Consensus Sleep Diary was used to collect sleep characteristics. Two-level multilevel mixed effect generalized linear models were employed in the analyses. Results Seventy-five percent of first lectures occurred before noon. Students reported short sleep (M = 7.0 hours, SD = 1.9) and fewer reported highest levels of sleep quality (42.8%) and restfulness (24.8%) when first lectures started at 09:00 or 09:30 compared to 10:00 or later. Every hour delay of first lecture start time was associated with 15.1 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 9.5; 20.7) minutes increase in sleep duration and higher odds of reporting the highest levels of sleep quality and restfulness. Focusing on attended lectures starting before noon, hourly delay of first lecture start time was associated with 37.4 (95% CI: 22.0; 52.8) minutes increased sleep duration. Bedtime, sleep time, and sleep onset latency were not significantly associated with first lecture start times. Conclusion This study found that undergraduate students had longer sleep and healthier sleep quality when university first lectures started later. The earliest lecture start time that afforded sufficient sleep duration for students was 10:00

Structural basis of nanobody-mediated blocking of BtuF, the cognate substrate-binding protein of the Escherichia coli vitamin B12 transporter BtuCD

Abstract Bacterial ABC importers catalyze the uptake of essential nutrients including transition metals and metal-containing co-factors. Recently, an IgG antibody targeting the external binding protein of the Staphylococcus aureus Mn(II) ABC importer was reported to inhibit transport activity and reduce bacterial cell growth. We here explored the possibility of using alpaca-derived nanobodies to inhibit the vitamin B12 transporter of Escherichia coli, BtuCD-F, as a model system by generating nanobodies against the periplasmic binding protein BtuF. We isolated six nanobodies that competed with B12 for binding to BtuF, with inhibition constants between 10−6 and 10−9 M. Kinetic characterization of the nanobody-BtuF interactions revealed dissociation half-lives between 1.6 and 6 minutes and fast association rates between 104 and 106 M−1s−1. For the tightest-binding nanobody, we observed a reduction of in vitro transport activity of BtuCD-F when an excess of nanobody over B12 was used. The structure of BtuF in complex with the most effective nanobody Nb9 revealed the molecular basis of its inhibitory function. The CDR3 loop of Nb9 reached into the substrate-binding pocket of BtuF, preventing both B12 binding and BtuCD-F complex formation. Our results suggest that nanobodies can mediate ABC importer inhibition, providing an opportunity for novel antibiotic strategies