Association between the 2008–09 Seasonal Influenza Vaccine and Pandemic H1N1 Illness during Spring–Summer 2009: Four Observational Studies from Canada

In three case-control studies and a household transmission cohort, Danuta Skowronski and colleagues find an association between prior seasonal flu vaccination and increased risk of 2009 pandemic H1N1 flu

The resolution sensitivity of the South Asian monsoon and Indo-Pacific in a global 0.35◦ AGCM

The South Asian monsoon is one of the most significant manifestations of the seasonal cycle. It directly impacts nearly one third of the world’s population and also has substantial global influence. Using 27-year integrations of a high-resolution atmospheric general circulation model (Met Office Unified Model), we study changes in South Asian monsoon precipitation and circulation when horizontal resolution is increased from approximately 200 to 40 km at the equator (N96 to N512, 1.9 to 0.35◦). The high resolution, integration length and ensemble size of the dataset make this the most extensive dataset used to evaluate the resolution sensitivity of the South Asian monsoon to date. We find a consistent pattern of JJAS precipitation and circulation changes as resolution increases, which include a slight increase in precipitation over peninsular India, changes in Indian and Indochinese orographic rain bands, increasing wind speeds in the Somali Jet, increasing precipitation over the Maritime Continent islands and decreasing precipitation over the northern Maritime Continent seas. To diagnose which resolution related processes cause these changes we compare them to published sensitivity experiments that change regional orography and coastlines. Our analysis indicates that improved resolution of the East African Highlands results in the improved representation of the Somali Jet and further suggests that improved resolution of orography over Indochina and the Maritime Continent results in more precipitation over the Maritime Continent islands at the expense of reduced precipitation further north. We also evaluate the resolution sensitivity of monsoon depressions and lows, which contribute more precipitation over northeast India at higher resolution. We conclude that while increasing resolution at these scales does not solve the many monsoon biases that exist in GCMs, it has a number of small, beneficial impacts

Three new pancreatic cancer susceptibility signals identified on chromosomes 1q32.1, 5p15.33 and 8q24.21.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified common pancreatic cancer susceptibility variants at 13 chromosomal loci in individuals of European descent. To identify new susceptibility variants, we performed imputation based on 1000 Genomes (1000G) Project data and association analysis using 5,107 case and 8,845 control subjects from 27 cohort and case-control studies that participated in the PanScan I-III GWAS. This analysis, in combination with a two-staged replication in an additional 6,076 case and 7,555 control subjects from the PANcreatic Disease ReseArch (PANDoRA) and Pancreatic Cancer Case-Control (PanC4) Consortia uncovered 3 new pancreatic cancer risk signals marked by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) rs2816938 at chromosome 1q32.1 (per allele odds ratio (OR) = 1.20, P = 4.88x10 -15), rs10094872 at 8q24.21 (OR = 1.15, P = 3.22x10 -9) and rs35226131 at 5p15.33 (OR = 0.71, P = 1.70x10 -8). These SNPs represent independent risk variants at previously identified pancreatic cancer risk loci on chr1q32.1 ( NR5A2), chr8q24.21 ( MYC) and chr5p15.33 ( CLPTM1L- TERT) as per analyses conditioned on previously reported susceptibility variants. We assessed expression of candidate genes at the three risk loci in histologically normal ( n = 10) and tumor ( n = 8) derived pancreatic tissue samples and observed a marked reduction of NR5A2 expression (chr1q32.1) in the tumors (fold change -7.6, P = 5.7x10 -8). This finding was validated in a second set of paired ( n = 20) histologically normal and tumor derived pancreatic tissue samples (average fold change for three NR5A2 isoforms -31.3 to -95.7, P = 7.5x10 -4-2.0x10 -3). Our study has identified new susceptibility variants independently conferring pancreatic cancer risk that merit functional follow-up to identify target genes and explain the underlying biology

Particulate matter exposure during pregnancy is associated with birth weight, but not gestational age, 1962-1992: a cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Exposure to air pollutants is suggested to adversely affect fetal growth, but the evidence remains inconsistent in relation to specific outcomes and exposure windows.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using birth records from the two major maternity hospitals in Newcastle upon Tyne in northern England between 1961 and 1992, we constructed a database of all births to mothers resident within the city. Weekly black smoke exposure levels from routine data recorded at 20 air pollution monitoring stations were obtained and individual exposures were estimated via a two-stage modeling strategy, incorporating temporally and spatially varying covariates. Regression analyses, including 88,679 births, assessed potential associations between exposure to black smoke and birth weight, gestational age and birth weight standardized for gestational age and sex.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significant associations were seen between black smoke and both standardized and unstandardized birth weight, but not for gestational age when adjusted for potential confounders. Not all associations were linear. For an increase in whole pregnancy black smoke exposure, from the 1^st(7.4 μg/m³) to the 25^th(17.2 μg/m³), 50^th(33.8 μg/m³), 75^th(108.3 μg/m³), and 90^th(180.8 μg/m³) percentiles, the adjusted estimated decreases in birth weight were 33 g (SE 1.05), 62 g (1.63), 98 g (2.26) and 109 g (2.44) respectively. A significant interaction was observed between socio-economic deprivation and black smoke on both standardized and unstandardized birth weight with increasing effects of black smoke in reducing birth weight seen with increasing socio-economic disadvantage.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The findings of this study progress the hypothesis that the association between black smoke and birth weight may be mediated through intrauterine growth restriction. The associations between black smoke and birth weight were of the same order of magnitude as those reported for passive smoking. These findings add to the growing evidence of the harmful effects of air pollution on birth outcomes.</p

Girls Are So Complicated! Re-Imagining Addiction Support in Context

Addiction research traditionally focuses on changing the behaviours of addicted individuals, often by locating deficits within them. This study, with 5 adolescent girls who use methamphetamines, demonstrates how photograph elicitation is used as an entry point into rich dialogue. In engaging with the photographs, narratives emerge from which researchers, teachers, practitioners, and adolescent girls can learn. This contextualized approach not only highlights the potential of a strength-based perspective, but also disperses the onus for change among helping professionals and the community at large, rather than placing responsibility for change on individuals struggling with addiction.La recherche sur la toxicomanie est traditionnellement axée sur le changement de comportement des toxicomanes, souvent en localisant leurs déficits. Cette étude menée auprès de cinq adolescentes qui utilisent des méthamphétamines démontre comment les techniques de « photo-elicitation interview » sont utilisés comme un point d’entrée à un riche dialogue. En engageant la conversation à propos des photographies, des récits émergent à partir desquels les chercheurs, les enseignants, les praticiens, et les adolescentes peuvent apprendre. Non seulement cette méthodologie contextualisée souligne-t-elle le potentiel d’une approche centrée sur les forces, mais aussi elle distribue le fardeau du changement parmi les professionnels aidants et la collectivité dans son ensemble plutôt que d’en imputer la responsabilité aux individus aux prises avec la toxicomanie

The Impact of Daughters' Eating Disorders on Mothers' Sense of Self: Contextualizing Mothering Experiences

This interpretive inquiry examines how daughters' anorexia influence the mothers' understandings of mothering and self within the greater context of societal influences. For the most part, psychological research has neglected this contextualized view by failing to include mothers' experiences located within cultural images, norms, rules, and expectations for what constitutes "good mothering." Using constructivist theory (Mahoney, 1991) and discursive psychology (Harre & Gillett, 1994), four themes characterised participants' relationship to cultural myths and discourses associated with eating disorders and mothering. Future research and counselling practice needs to contextualize and deconstruct the representations of mothers in any discussion of anorexia so that the needs of mothers and daughters can be supported.Cette enquête interprétative examine comment l'anorexie des filles influence, chez leur mère, la conception du maternage et du « soi » dans le contexte étendu des influences sociétales. Pour la plus grande part, les recherches psychologiques ont négligé cette vue contextualisée en ne considérant pas les expériences des mères par rapport aux images, aux normes, aux règles et aux attentes culturelles qui définissent une « bonne mère ». En se servant de de la théorie constructiviste (Mahoney, 1991) et de la psychologie discursive (Harre et Gillet, 1994), les auteurs ont pu dégager quatre thèmes caractérisant les relations des participants envers les mythes et idées répandues au sujet des troubles alimentaires et du maternage. La pratique du counseling et les futures recherches doivent contextualiser et déconstruire les différentes images de la mère lors de toutes discussions sur l'anorexie afin que les besoins des mères et des filles puissent être comblés

Metaphors of Change in the Context of Eating Disorders: Bridging Understandings with Girls’ Perceptions

Although the use of metaphor is not a new strategy in counselling or research, the literature has not fully addressed individuals’ metaphors of change and how these relate to the counselling process. Using a narrative methodology, we examined the metaphors of change provided by girls recovering from eating disorders. These rich descriptions highlighted the similarities and differences in how the girls viewed change. Furthermore, this analysis of metaphors gave us a sense of what can be learned about girls’ views of identity and agency. It is apparent that there are important implications when using metaphors in the counselling process.Bien que l’utilisation de la métaphore ne soit pas une nouvelle stratégie en counseling ou en recherche, la littérature n’a pas entièrement abordé les métaphores de changement chez les individus et la façon dont elles se rapportent au processus de counseling. En utilisant une méthodologie narrative, nous avons étudié les métaphores de changement fournies par des jeunes filles se rétablissant de troubles de la nutrition. Ces riches descriptions ont souligné les similarités et différences dans la façon dont les jeunes filles voyaient le changement. De plus, l’analyse des métaphores a donné un aperçu de ce que nous pouvons apprendre sur les vues des jeunes filles en matière d’identité et d’instance. Il est apparent que l’utilisation de métaphores dans le processus de counseling a des répercussions importantes

Shifting securities: news cultures, multicultural society and legitimacy

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Current Academic Clinical Trials in Ovarian Cancer:Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup and US National Cancer Institute Clinical Trials Planning Meeting, May 2009

Objective: To review the current status of large phase academic clinical trials for women with ovarian cancer, address cross-cutting issues, and identify promising areas for future collaboration. Methods: In May 2009, the Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup, which represents 19 Cooperative Groups conducting trials for women with gynecologic cancer, and the US National Cancer Institute convened a Clinical Trials Planning Meeting. Results: The topics covered included the impact of new developments in cancer biology upon molecular targets and novel agents, pharmacogenomics, advances in imaging, the potential benefit of diet and exercise to reduce the risk of recurrence, academic partnership with industry, statistical considerations for phases 2 and 3 trials, trial end points, and symptom benefit and health-related quality-of-life issues. The clinical trials discussed spanned the spectrum of ovarian cancer from initial diagnosis, staging, and cytoreductive surgery to consolidation chemotherapy, and treatment of recurrent disease. Conclusions: Ongoing and effective collaboration with industry, government, and patients aims to ensure that the most important scientific questions can be answered rapidly. We encourage women with ovarian cancer and their oncologists to consider participation in the academic clinical trials conducted by the member groups of the Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup