Using Gimlet to Improve Service at the Library

In 2011, Johnson County Community College’s Billington Library first piloted and then implemented a low-cost online reference statistics tool called Gimlet. The system replaced an outmoded and inaccurate pen-and-paper statistics system. This paper details the struggles and advantages of this change. Implementation and training programs are discussed, as well as strategies for generating staff buy-in. Both the expected and unexpected advantages of a Gimlet based online system are explored, and future directions for the system are described. Libraries looking for a very low cost, easy to implement electronic statistics solution should consider Gimlet. The experience of JCCC’s Billington Library can serve as an effective road map

African trypanosomiasis in travelers returning to the United Kingdom.

Two returning safari tourists with African trypanosomiasis were admitted to the Hospital for Tropical Diseases, London, in a 3-day period, compared with six cases in the previous 14 years. We describe the clinical features, diagnosis, and problems encountered in accessing appropriate therapy, and discuss the potential for emergence of this disease in increasingly adventurous international travelers

Assessment of the bimodality in the distribution of bacterial genome sizes

Bacterial genome sizes have previously been shown to exhibit a bimodal distribution. This phenomenon has prompted discussion regarding evolutionary forces driving genome size in bacteria and its ecological significance. We investigated the level of inherent redundancy in the public database and the effect it has on the shape of the apparent bimodal distribution. Our study reveals that there is a significant bias in the genome sequencing efforts towards a certain group of species, and that correcting the bias using species nomenclature and clustering of the 16S rRNA gene, results in a unimodal rather than the previously published bimodal distribution. The true genome size distribution and its wider ecological implications will soon emerge as we are currently witnessing rapid growth in the number of sequenced genomes from diverse environmental niches across a range of habitats at an unprecedented rate

Bioinformatics analysis of the locus for enterocyte effacement provides novel insights into type-III secretion

BACKGROUND: Like many other pathogens, enterohaemorrhagic and enteropathogenic strains of Escherichia coli employ a type-III secretion system to translocate bacterial effector proteins into host cells, where they then disrupt a range of cellular functions. This system is encoded by the locus for enterocyte effacement. Many of the genes within this locus have been assigned names and functions through homology with the better characterised Ysc-Yop system from Yersinia spp. However, the functions and homologies of many LEE genes remain obscure. RESULTS: We have performed a fresh bioinformatics analysis of the LEE. Using PSI-BLAST we have been able to identify several novel homologies between LEE-encoded and Ysc-Yop-associated proteins: Orf2/YscE, Orf5/YscL, rORF8/EscI, SepQ/YscQ, SepL/YopN-TyeA, CesD2/LcrR. In addition, we highlight homology between EspA and flagellin, and report many new homologues of the chaperone CesT. CONCLUSION: We conclude that the vast majority of LEE-encoded proteins do indeed possess homologues and that homology data can be used in combination with experimental data to make fresh functional predictions

Evolutionary history of the ADRB2 gene in humans

No abstract available

Percutaneous reduction and fixation of an intra-articular calcaneal fracture using an inflatable bone tamp: description of a novel and safe technique

Calcaneal fractures are common injuries involving the hind foot and often a source of significant long-term morbidity. Treatment options have changed throughout the ages from periods of preferred nonoperative management to closed reduction with a mallet, and more recently, open reduction and anatomic internal fixation. The current treatment of choice; however, is often debated, as open management of these fractures carries many risks to include wound breakdown and infection. A less invasive form of surgical management through small incisions, while maintaining the ability to obtain joint congruency, anatomic alignment, and restore calcaneal height and width would be ideal. We propose a novel form of fracture reduction using an inflatable bone tamp and percutaneous fracture fixation. Preoperative planning and experienced fluoroscopy is crucial to successful management using this method. Although we achieved successful radiographic outcome in this case, long-term functional outcome of this technique are yet to be published

Religious Coping and Spiritual Struggle Among Emergency Room Patients With Suicidal Intent

Previous literature has shown religion and spirituality to be protective factors for depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation, and that spiritual struggle is associated with increases in suicidal ideation. However, in some cases, positive religious coping may also be associated with risk factors for suicidality. The present study explored aspects of spiritual struggle or religious coping that were spontaneously offered and noted in a medical record during a standard emergency room risk assessment involving the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS). Among 839 archival records from emergency department settings in Yamhill County, Oregon, in 2015 and 2016, only 36 interviews met criteria. It was hypothesized that those with expressed spiritual or religious struggle would indicate a higher risk for suicide through self-report compared with those who express positive religious coping. The current study found no association between self-report of suicidal intent severity and style of spiritual or religious coping, perhaps in part because the number of interviews that met criteria were far fewer than expected. Several possible explanations are considered

Place attachment in deprived neighbourhoods: The impacts of population turnover and social mix

This paper examines the determinants of individual place attachment, focussing in particular on differences between deprived and others neighbourhoods, and on the impacts of population turnover and social mix. It uses a multi-level modelling approach to take account of both individual- and neighbourhood-level determinants. Data are drawn from a large sample government survey, the Citizenship Survey 2005, to which a variety of neighbourhood-level data have been attached. The paper argues that attachment is significantly lower in more deprived neighbourhoods primarily because these areas have weaker social cohesion but that, in other respects, the drivers of attachment are the same. Turnover has modest direct impacts on attachment through its effect on social cohesion. Social mix has very limited impacts on attachment and the effects vary between social groups. In general, higher status or more dominant groups appear less tolerant of social mix

Chapter 5 Impacts and Environmental Risks of Oil Spills on Marine Invertebrates, Algae and Seagrass

Marine invertebrates and macrophytes are sensitive to the toxic effects of oil. Depending on the intensity, duration and circumstances of the exposure, they can suffer high levels of initial mortality together with prolonged sublethal effects that can act at individual, population and community levels. Under some circumstances, recovery from these impacts can take years to decades. However, effects are variable because some taxa are less sensitive than others, and many factors can mitigate the degree of exposure, meaning that impacts are moderate in many cases, and recovery occurs within a few years. Exposure is affected by a myriad of factors including: type and amount of oil, extent of weathering, persistence of exposure, application of dispersants or other clean-up measures, habitat type, temperature and depth, species present and their stage of development or maturity, and processes of recolonisation, particularly recruitment. Almost every oil spill is unique in terms of its impact because of differing levels of exposure and the type of habitats, communities and species assemblages in the receiving environment. Between 1970 and February 2017, there were 51 significant oil spills in Australia. Five occurred offshore with negligible likely or expected impacts. Of the others, only 24 of the spills were studied in detail, while 19 had only cursory or no assessment despite the potential for oil spills to impact the marine environment. The majority were limited to temperate waters, although 10 of the 14 spills since 2000 were in tropical coastal or offshore areas, seven were in north Queensland in areas close to the Great Barrier Reef. All four spills that have occurred from offshore petroleum industry infrastructure have occurred since 2009. In Australia, as elsewhere, a prespill need exists to assess the risk of a spill, establish environmental baselines, determine the likely exposure of the receiving environment, and test the toxicity of the oil against key animal and plant species in the area of potential impact. Subsequent to any spill, the baseline provides a reference for targeted impact monitoring

Celebrating 15 years of The ISME Journal

Given the rapidly changing landscape of microbial ecology over the past 15 years, it seems appropriate to have some reflection on how The ISME Journal has progressed over the past decade-and-a-half, so as the journal’s founding editors, we would like to share some of our perspectives