The Genetic Analysis and Clinical Features of Early Onset Familial Alzheimer's Disease

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Studies on seed mucilages

Although « vast amount of research haa been; done In the field of carbohydrate chemistry, comparatively little attention has been given to the group of substances which may bo classified under the heading of acid polysaccharides. In this group we find such substances as occtins, plant gums, hemioelluloees, mucilages, soluble spoolflc substances produced by bacteria, and alginic acid from algae. Moat of these substances appear to be formed by the modification of cellulose under the influence of enzymes, few, if any of them, being produced directly by photosynthesis. Acid 'polysaccharides apparently play a very important, though poorly understood, role in natural orocesses.In this tlx©ale the structure of the mucilage from rib grass seed, Plantago lanceolate, is investigated. The study falls into two main sections, the first dealing with the products obtained from the free acid mucilage Itself and the second with the products obtained from the ftally methylated mucilage. It Is interesting to note that the British Pharmaceutical Codex (1) asserts that Plantago lanceolate seed gives no mucilage with water. In praotlce, however* aa will be shown later, a 4-5% yield of mucilage can be obtained. How a great deal of confusion arose at one time regarding the exact species of the various Plantago seeds on the market. Plantain seeds are really of Indian origin and in the literature references oan be found pointing to the occurrence of several speoies in native Indien commerce. They are sold in the bazaars under native names and on© of the best known of these is "Bnrtung" or "Barhang". Considerable disagreement has existed as to the origin of this drug, and although Irvine attributed it to Plantago lanceolate (2) research showed that the parent species was Plantago major (3). Another substance which finds extensive use In pharmacy in the East is "Ispaghula", which consists of the dried, ripe seeds of Plantago ovata, a herbaceous annual Indigenous to India end Persia, Psyllium seeds were also regarded as the seeds of Plant a go Psyllium but commercial samples are sometimes composed entirely or partly of seeds of Plantago arenarla or Plimtago lanceolata, Reoent research, published in the quarterly Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology gives a quick method of differentiating between the various species of plantain seed (4). It is based on the weights and dimensions of the eeeds and forms quite a good method of oheoklng up on the seeds under observation

Modelling the effectiveness of grass buffer strips in managing muddy floods under a changing climate

Muddy floods occur when rainfall generates runoff on agricultural land, detaching and transporting sediment into the surrounding natural and built environment. In the Belgian Loess Belt, muddy floods occur regularly and lead to considerable economic costs associated with damage to property and infrastructure. Mitigation measures designed to manage the problem have been tested in a pilot area within Flanders and were found to be cost-effective within three years. This study assesses whether these mitigation measures will remain effective under a changing climate. To test this, the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) model was used to examine muddy flooding diagnostics (precipitation, runoff, soil loss and sediment yield) for a case study hillslope in Flanders where grass buffer strips are currently used as a mitigation measure. The model was run for present day conditions and then under 33 future site-specific climate scenarios. These future scenarios were generated from three earth system models driven by four representative concentration pathways and downscaled using quantile mapping and the weather generator CLIGEN. Results reveal that under the majority of future scenarios, muddy flooding diagnostics are projected to increase, mostly as a consequence of large scale precipitation events rather than mean changes. The magnitude of muddy flood events for a given return period is also generally projected to increase. These findings indicate that present day mitigation measures may have a reduced capacity to manage muddy flooding given the changes imposed by a warming climate with an enhanced hydrological cycle. Revisions to the design of existing mitigation measures within existing policy frameworks are considered the most effective way to account for the impacts of climate change in future mitigation planni

Urban Environmental Management Approaches by Tourism Organisations in Wellington, New Zealand

Tourism in New Zealand depends heavily on the quality of the environment yet at the same time holds the potential of destroying the very environment on which it relies upon if not managed properly. Therefore, concerted actions must be taken to ensure New Zealand's '100% Pure' image is maintained. According to the New Zealand Tourism Strategy 2015, the tourism sector's ability to take a leading role in protecting and enhancing the environment is a key priority. While most tourism studies on environmental management tend to focus on rural or protected areas there is a need to investigate environmental management within urban settings. This research takes a qualitative approach based on semi-structured interviews to investigate and examine the nature of environmental management approaches taken by tourism organisations in the urban setting of Wellington. It also aims to identify the factors influencing the adoption of environmentally-friendly practices, barriers which may hinder the adoption of such practices, and the role of public and private sector agencies in environmental management for tourism businesses. The research found that tourism organisations in Wellington mainly took an informal approach towards environmental management. However, a qualitative method of enquiry revealed that tourism businesses were slowly moving towards change. This was evident from the number of businesses that indicated they were adopting environmental practices related to supply chain management, employee awareness and training, and interpretation. The main factors influencing adoption have also provided reasons for this change. Though, the barriers and difficulties faced by tourism businesses continue to affect the pace of change. As with businesses, public and private sector organisations have an important role to play in urban environmental management. The responses of interviewees indicate that these 'bigger' organisations such as the RTO need to take on a much more proactive role. The need for greater cooperation and communication between key stakeholders of tourism is essential to the success of urban environmental sustainability

Perceptions of 24/7 In‐house Attending Coverage on Fellow Education and Autonomy in a Pediatric Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit

BackgroundThe 24/7 in‐house attending coverage is emerging as the standard of care in intensive care units. Implementation costs, workforce feasibility, and patient outcomes resulting from changes in physician staffing are widely debated topics. Understanding the impact of staffing models on the learning environment for medical trainees and faculty is equally warranted, particularly with respect to trainee education and autonomy.ObjectiveThis study aims to elicit the perceptions of pediatric cardiology fellows and attendings toward 24/7 in‐house attending coverage and its effect on fellow education and autonomy.MethodsWe surveyed pediatric cardiology fellows and attendings practicing in the pediatric cardiothoracic intensive care unit (PCTU) of a large, university‐affiliated medical center, using structured Likert response items and open‐ended questions, prior to and following the transition to 24/7 in‐house attending coverage.ResultsAll (100%) trainees and faculty completed all surveys. Both prior to and following transition to 24/7 in‐house attending coverage, all fellows, and the majority of attendings agreed that the overnight call experience benefited fellow education. At baseline, trainees identified limited circumstances in which on‐site attending coverage would be critical. Preimplementation concerns that 24/7 in‐house attending coverage would negatively affect the education of fellows were not reflected following actual implementation of the new staffing policy. However, based upon open‐ended questions, fellow autonomy was affected by the new paradigm, with fellows and attendings reporting decreased “appropriateness” of autonomy after implementation.ConclusionsOur prospective study, showing initial concerns about limiting the learning environment in transitioning to 24/7 in‐house attending coverage did not result in diminished perceptions of the educational experience for our fellows but revealed an expected decrease in fellow autonomy. The study indirectly facilitated open discussions about methods to preserve fellow education and warranted autonomy in our PCTU; however, continued efforts are needed to achieve the optimal balance between supervised training and the transition to autonomous practice.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111990/1/chd12261.pd

Wave V Birth Records Database – Release 1

The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) is a longitudinal study of a nationally representative sample of over 20,000 adolescents who were in grades 7-12 during the 1994-95 school year, and have been followed for five waves to date, most recently in 2016-18 (see Harris et al. 2019 for more information about the study). The Add Health Birth Records Database describes the birth event of Add Health sample members (AHSMs), born between 1974 and 1983. This database was constructed using birth certificate information and birth data of AHSMs reported by AHSMs and their parents. The Birth Records Database represents a subset of the larger Add Health study sample and is composed of AHSMs consenting to Add Health’s use of their birth record data and born in states with agreements to make birth record data available to Add Health