A Comparison of Vitamin D Levels in Children with Early Childhood Caries

Purpose: To determine if there is an association between early childhood caries (ECC) and vitamin D deficiency, as measured via a serum sample. An exploratory goal was to investigate the possibility of measuring vitamin D with a salivary assay. Methods: Serum samples of patients who were scheduled for a dental or otolaryngology procedure under general anesthesia were assessed for 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), parathyroid hormone and calcium. Results: Our analysis indicates that the vitamin D levels of the controls and ECC group were significantly different. There were significant inverse correlations between: 1) PTH levels and vitamin D and 2) decayed, missing, filled teeth (dmft) and vitamin D. Conclusions: A relationship between low serum levels of vitamin D and the prevalence of ECC for children 0 to 6 years of age was observed. The salivary assay was unable to measure vitamin D, but future studies should still explore this non-invasive technique

The Effect Of PH On The Metal Binding Capabilities Of Exopolymeric Substances From A Marine Benthic Diatom

The marine sediment-water interface is a dynamic microenvironment containing diatoms, which produce exopolymeric substance (EPS). EPS has various functions for individual cells and for marine ecosystems. EPS substance is a species-specific composition that has strong absorptive qualities and is able to bind metals from even a very dilute aqueous solution. As industrially derived metals tend to accumulate in marine mudflats, where diatoms are the major EPS producing organisms, it is important to determine how marine benthic diatom EPS will bind with metals. To address the metal binding properties of diatom EPS, Cylindrotheca closteriums’ EPS was isolated by tangential flow filtration, exposed to Cu and Cr at a range of pH levels and analyzed using a flame atomic absorption spectrometer. Results indicated that pH was a significant factor in the determination of bound Cu to diatom EPS under all treatments. Maximum bound Cu was 61.7 μg mg-EPS-1 at a pH of 6.0 in a buffered system and 17.1 μg mg- EPS-1 at a pH of 6.0 in an unbuffered system. Cu was preferentially bound over Cr and precipitation of metals occurred above a pH of 6.5. Diatom EPS binding with metals at a near neutral pH is a significant result and has not been shown before in the literature, but metal concentrations used in this study were unnaturally high, reducing practical implications. More research within this area of marine aquatics is needed to understand the greater global ramifications of pH shift effects on estuaries and fate of metals in the marine ecosystem

GFIT2: an experimental algorithm for vertical profile retrieval from near-IR spectra

An algorithm for retrieval of vertical profiles from ground-based spectra in the near IR is described and tested. Known as GFIT2, the algorithm is primarily intended for CO₂, and is used exclusively for CO₂ in this paper. Retrieval of CO₂ vertical profiles from ground-based spectra is theoretically possible, would be very beneficial for carbon cycle studies and the validation of satellite measurements, and has been the focus of much research in recent years. GFIT2 is tested by application both to synthetic spectra and to measurements at two Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) sites. We demonstrate that there are approximately 3° of freedom for the CO2 profile, and the algorithm performs as expected on synthetic spectra. We show that the accuracy of retrievals of CO₂ from measurements in the 1.61μ (6220 cm⁻¹) spectral band is limited by small uncertainties in calculation of the atmospheric spectrum. We investigate several techniques to minimize the effect of these uncertainties in calculation of the spectrum. These techniques are somewhat effective but to date have not been demonstrated to produce CO₂ profile retrievals with sufficient precision for applications to carbon dynamics. We finish by discussing ongoing research which may allow CO₂ profile retrievals with sufficient accuracy to significantly improve the scientific value of the measurements from that achieved with column retrievals

Multilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Family Adjustment Measure with Lower-Income, Ethnic Minority Parents of Children with Disabilities

The primary goal of this study is to add to the validation and psychometric development of the Family Adjustment Measure (FAM; Daire, Dominguez, Carlson, & Case Pease, 2014). The FAM is a treatment-planning tool to assist members of the helping profession assess four different areas in parental and family adjustment for parents of children with disabilities (i.e., parental distress, family-based support, social support, and positive coping skills). Previously, the FAM was normed on predominantly middle- to upper-class, Caucasian females. However, lower-income, ethnic minority families experience systemic prejudice and other contextual and social barriers in their experiences of raising a child with disabilities that may not accurately be reflected in the original FAM model. Therefore, this study will utilize an archival data set from a federally-funded research grant, Project TOGETHER (To Offer Great Education That Harvests Enduring Relationships), to conduct a multilevel factor analysis on the FAM with a more diverse sample of parents of children with disabilities. Results of this study provided a new 16-item Family Adjustment Measure for Diverse Families (FAM-DF) that better reflected the experience of individual parents of children with disabilities, while accounting for couple influence on factor scores

Clinical features of low back pain in people with hip osteoarthritis: A cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) is commonly reported in people with hip osteoarthritis (OA) and is a poor prognostic indicator of outcome in OA. This study aimed to identify the clinical features associated with LBP in people with hip OA attending orthopaedic and rheumatology clinics. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was undertaken. Twenty-four people with radiographically confirmed OA were recruited and completed self-report questionnaires for hip and LBP severity (Visual Analogue Scale), hip-related disability (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index) and back-related disability (Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire). Physical examination comprised spinal palpation, pelvic girdle pain provocation tests and hip and spinal range of motion tests. Between-group (presence/absence of LBP) differences in self-report and physical examination items were compared using Mann-Whitney U and Chi-squared tests. RESULTS: A total of 16/24 (66.7%) patients reported LBP. Those with LBP were younger, reported more pain locations and had higher self-report pain and disability. On physical examination, people with LBP and OA hip had reduced hip flexion, greater pain provocation with hip abduction, hip lateral rotation, spinal palpation and a greater number of painful pelvic girdle tests and spinal level palpation. CONCLUSIONS: Assessment of patients with hip OA should incorporate examination of the lumbar spine and pelvic regions. It appears from our study that LBP is a common co-morbidity in those with OA of the hip and may indicate greater severity of hip disease, although the small sample size limits interpretation of results. Further research should investigate the exact relationships between presence of LBP and hip OA

Hidden Consequences of Living in a Wormy World: Nematode-Induced Immune Suppression Facilitates Tuberculosis Invasion in African Buffalo

Most hosts are infected with multiple parasites, and responses of the immune system to co occurring parasites may influence disease spread. Helminth infection can bias the host immune response toward a T-helper type 2 Th2) over a type 1 Th1) response, impairing the host\u27s ability to control concurrent intracellular microparasite infections and potentially modifying disease dynamics. In humans, immune-mediated interactions between helminths and microparasites can alter host susceptibility to diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis TB), and malaria. However, the extent to which similar processes operate in natural animal populations and influence disease spread remains unknown. We used cross-sectional, experimental, and genetic studies to show that gastrointestinal nematode infection alters immunity to intracellular microparasites in free-ranging African buffalo Syncerus caffer). Buffalo that were more resistant to nematode infection had weaker Th1 responses, there was significant genotypic variation in nematode resistance, and anthelminthic treatment enhanced Th1 immunity. Using a disease dynamic model parameterized with empirical data, we found that nematode-induced immune suppression can facilitate the invasion of bovine TB in buffalo. In the absence of nematodes, TB failed to invade the system, illustrating the critical role nematodes may play in disease establishment. Our results suggest that helminths, by influencing the likelihood of microparasite invasion, may influence patterns of disease emergence in the wild

SHKÉNUK: Cuerpo y subjetividad en una propuesta metodológica para la educación primaria.

El cuerpo ha sido dividido desde los inicios de la modernidad como un accesorio del ser humano. Esta división del ser humano en cuerpo-mente y espíritu le ha dado un lugar privilegiado a la mente y a la racionalidad. La educación ha reproducido y mantenido esta división, despojando al cuerpo y a la corporalidad del proceso de aprendizaje. Se presenta a continuación la propuesta metodológica de Centro Educativo Shkénuk que plantea una alternativa a este paradigma de educación tradicional vigente, y que integra la corporalidad, emocionalidad y espiritualidad a través de tres pilares fundamentales: el ordenamiento espaciotemporal de los periodos escolares, la propuesta curricular flexible y la interdisciplinariedad. Palabras clave: educación, corporeidad, subjetividades, ambiente preparado, flexibilidad curricular, trabajo interdisciplinario, empoderamiento

COVID-19 Pandemic’s Impact on Online Sex Advertising and Sex Trafficking

Disruptive social events such as the COVID-19 pandemic can have a significant impact on sex trafficking and the working conditions of victims, yet these effects have been little understood. This paper examines the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on sex trafficking in the United States, based on analysis of over one million sexual service advertisements from the online platform Rubratings.com, using indicators of third-party management as potential proxies for trafficking. Our results show that there have been measurable changes in online commercial sexual service advertising, both with and without third-party management indicators, in the United States, with a significant decrease occurring around the time of the start of the pandemic and the issuance of stay-at-home orders followed by an increase to levels well above pre-pandemic levels corresponding in time to when COVID-related restrictions were relaxed. We argue that the initial decrease could have been induced by a loss of demand for sexual services due to pandemic-related health concerns, but that a confluence of factors, including the lack of economic and social support for those working in the commercial sex industry, may have increased the number of people vulnerable to being exploited and becoming trafficking victims. This research adds to the under-standing of the way sex trafficking adapts to events in the public sphere