Comment on "Fisheries Management"

The recent article by O’Leary et al. (2011) raises an important question about the relationship between science and those who manage fisheries. They contend that fishery managers do not give due cognisance to scientific advice and consistently set Total Allowable Catches (TACs) above values advised by scientists (which they define as ‘‘political adjustment’’). The authors claim that the consequence of this is that there is a high probability of stock collapse in the next 40 years. They use a simulation model to argue that this probability may exceed 80% at the mean level of political adjustment adopted by managers, depending on the degree of environmental variability and life history strategy of the fish

Estimated Risk of HIV Acquisition and Practice for Preventing Occupational Exposure: A Study of Healthcare Workers at Tumbi and Dodoma Hospitals, Tanzania.

Health care workers (HCWs) are at risk of acquiring human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV) and other infections via exposure to infectious patients' blood and body fluids. The main objective of this study was to estimate the risk of HIV transmission and examine the practices for preventing occupational exposures among HCWs at Tumbi and Dodoma Hospitals in Tanzania. This study was carried out in two hospitals, namely, Tumbi in Coast Region and Dodoma in Dodoma Region. In each facility, hospital records of occupational exposure to HIV infection and its management were reviewed. In addition, practices to prevent occupational exposure to HIV infection among HCWs were observed. The estimated risk of HIV transmission due to needle stick injuries was calculated to be 7 cases per 1,000,000 HCWs-years. Over half of the observed hospital departments did not have guidelines for prevention and management of occupational exposure to HIV infections and lacked well displayed health and safety instructions. Approximately, one-fifth of the hospital departments visited failed to adhere to the instructions pertaining to correlation between waste materials and the corresponding colour coded bag/container/safety box. Seventy four percent of the hospital departments observed did not display instructions for handling infectious materials. Inappropriate use of gloves, lack of health and safety instructions, and lack of use of eye protective glasses were more frequently observed at Dodoma Hospital than at Tumbi Hospital. The poor quality of the hospital records at the two hospitals hampered our effort to characterise the risk of HIV infection acquisition by HCWs. Greater data completeness in hospital records is needed to allow the determination of the actual risk of HIV transmission for HCWs. To further reduce the risk of HIV infection due to occupational exposure, hospitals should be equipped with sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) and HCWs should be reminded of the importance of adhering to universal precautions

Fishing for MSY: using “pretty good yield” ranges without impairing recruitment

Pretty good yield (PGY) is a sustainable fish yield corresponding to obtaining no less than a specified large percentage of the maximum sustainable yield (MSY). We investigated 19 European fish stocks to test the hypothesis that the 95% PGY yield range is inherently precautionary with respect to impairing recruitment. An FMSY range was calculated for each stock as the range of fishing mortalities (F) that lead to an average catch of at least 95% of MSY in long-term simulations. Further, a precautionary reference point for each stock (FP.05) was defined as the F resulting in a 5% probability of the spawning-stock biomass falling below an agreed biomass limit below which recruitment is impaired (Blim) in long-term simulations. For the majority of the stocks analysed, the upper bound of the FMSY range exceeded the estimated FP.05. However, larger fish species had higher precautionary limits to fishing mortality, and species with larger asymptotic length were less likely to have FMSY ranges impairing recruitment. Our study shows that fishing at FMSY generally is precautionary with respect to impairing recruitment for highly exploited teleost species in northern European waters, whereas the upper part of the range providing 95% of MSY is not necessarily precautionary for small- and medium-sized teleosts.</jats:p

Cardioprotection by systemic dosing of thymosin beta four following ischemic myocardial injury

Thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4) was previously shown to reduce infarct size and improve contractile performance in chronic myocardial ischemic injury via two phases of action: an acute phase, just after injury, when Tβ4 preserves ischemic myocardium via antiapoptotic or anti-inflammatory mechanisms; and a chronic phase, when Tβ4 activates the growth of vascular or cardiac progenitor cells. In order to differentiate between the effects of Tβ4 during the acute and during the chronic phases, and also in order to obtain detailed hemodynamic and biomarker data on the effects of Tβ4 treatment suitable for use in clinical studies, we tested Tβ4 in a rat model of chronic myocardial ischemia using two dosing regimens: short term dosing (Tβ4 administered only during the first 3 days following injury), and long term dosing (Tβ4 administered during the first 3 days following injury and also every third day until the end of the study). Tβ4 administered throughout the study reduced infarct size and resulted in significant improvements in hemodynamic performance; however, chamber volumes and ejection fractions were not significantly improved. Tβ4 administered only during the first 3 days following injury tended to reduce infarct size, chamber volumes and improve hemodynamic performance. Plasma biomarkers of myocyte injury were significantly reduced by Tβ4 treatment during the acute injury period, and plasma ANP levels were significantly reduced in both dosing groups. Surprisingly, neither acute nor chronic Tβ4 treatment significantly increased blood vessel density in peri-infarct regions. These results suggest the following: repeated dosing may be required to achieve clinically measureable improvements in cardiac function post-myocardial infarction (MI); improvement in cardiac function may be observed in the absence of a high degree of angiogenesis; and that plasma biomarkers of cardiac function and myocardial injury are sensitive pharmacodynamic biomarkers of the effects of Tβ4

Another piece of baggage: A literature review and data analysis on the needs of young homeless children in emergency shelter programs

Young children residing in homeless shelters with their primary caregiver are at an increased risk for negative mental and medical health outcomes, including asthma and depression, as well as an increased likelihood to fail a grade and higher rates of emergency room utilization. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) study suggests that the more traumatic experiences a child has, the higher the likelihood that he will have poor health as an adult. A literature review of interventions through PubMed and the National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices in December 2013 and January 2014 showed a need for evidence-based interventions that specifically target homeless children. Qualitative interviews conducted by the University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Child Development provided insight into the needs of staff and mothers involved with two shelters in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Staff expressed a need for more funding, and mothers wished that the shelters provided more child-centered services for their convenience. In order to increase programming for homeless children, it is necessary to increase funding at the local, state, and federal level. Providing more mental health services in shelter would help children adjust to the transition and decrease the risk of negative public health outcomes in adulthood

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

LOWER LEG MORPHOLOGY AND STRETCH-SHORTENING CYCLE PERFORMANCE IN YOUNG AND ELDERLY MALES

The purpose of this investigation was to examine bone and muscle characteristics of the lower leg and stretch-shortening cycle capabilities of the ankle in young (22.3 ± 1.3 yrs) and elderly (67.5 ± 3.3 yrs) males. Peripheral quantitiative computed tomography (pQCT) was utilized to assess bone stress-strain index, bone ultimate fracture load, muscle density, muscle cross-sectional area (CSA), fat CSA and muscle+bone CSA. Maximal voluntary isometric plantarflexion (MVIP) force and force-velocity measurments during a countermovement hop (CMH) and drop hops from 20, 30 and 40 cm (DH20, DH30, DH40) were also measured. Bone stress-strain index was significantly higher in young males as well as muscle density, muscle CSA and muscle+bone CSA in comparison to elderly males. MVIP peak force and rate of force development was significantly higher in young males in comparsion to elderly males as well. An analysis of the force-velocity curves indicated that young males had significanlty higher levels of force and velocity in both the eccentric and concentric phase during the CMH, DH20, DH30 and DH40 in comparsion to elderly males. The data from this investigation indicate that aging potentially negatively influences lower leg bone and muscle strength and this may be reflected in lower stretch-shortening cycle capabilities of the ankle