The African Lungfish (\u3cem\u3eProtopterus dolloi\u3c/em\u3e): Ionoregulation and Osmoregulation in a Fish out of Water

Although urea production and metabolism in lungish have been thoroughly studied, we have little knowledge of how internal osmotic and electrolyte balance are controlled during estivation or in water. We tested the hypothesis that, compared with the body surface of teleosts, the slender African lungfish (Protopterus dolloi) body surface was relatively impermeable to water, Na+ and Cl- due to its greatly reduced gills. Accordingly, we measured the tritiated water (3H-H2O) flux in P. dolloi in water and during air exposure. In water, 3H-H2O efflux was comparable with the lowest measurements reported in freshwater teleosts, with a rate constant (K) of 17.6% body water h-1. Unidirectional ion fluxes, measured using 22Na+ and 36Cl-, indicated that Na+ and Cl- influx was more than 90% lower than values reported in most freshwater teleosts. During air exposure, a cocoon formed within 1 wk that completely covered the dorsolateral body surface. However, there were no disturbances to blood osmotic or ion (Na+, Cl-) balance, despite seven- to eightfold increases in plasma urea after 20 wk. Up to 13-fold increases in muscle urea (on a dry-weight basis) were the likely explanation for the 56% increase in muscle water content observed after 20 wk of air exposure. The possibility that muscle acted as a “water reservoir” during air exposure was supported by the 20% decline in body mass observed during subsequent reimmersion in water. This decline in body mass was equivalent to 28 mL water in a 100-g animal and was very close to the calculated net water gain (approximately 32 mL) observed during the 20-wk period of air exposure. Tritiated water and unidirectional ion fluxes on air-exposed lungfish revealed that the majority of water and ion exchange was via the ventral body surface at rates that were initially similar to aquatic rates. The 3H-H2O flux declined over time but increased upon reimmersion. We conclude that the slender lungfish body surface, including the gills, has relatively low permeability to water and ions but that the ventral surface is an important site of osmoregulation and ionoregulation. We further propose that an amphibian-like combination of ventral skin water and ion permeability, plus internal urea accumulation during air exposure, allows P. dolloi to extract water from its surroundings and to store water in the muscle when the water supply becomes limited

Azimuthal anisotropy of jet quenching at LHC

We analyze the azimuthal anisotropy of jet spectra due to energy loss of hard partons in quark-gluon plasma, created initially in nuclear overlap zone in collisions with non-zero impact parameter. The calculations are performed for semi-central Pb-Pb collisions at LHC energy.Comment: Talk given at Fourth International Conference "Physics and Astrophysics of Quark-Gluon Plasma", November 26-30, 2001; 4 pages including 4 eps-figure

Association between methylphenidate treatment and risk of seizure: A population-based self-controlled case series study

Background: Individuals with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of seizures. Stimulant medications such as methylphenidate are the most commonly prescribed treatment for ADHD, but the association between their therapeutic use and the risk of seizures is unclear. We aimed to investigate the association between methylphenidate treatment and the risk of seizure. Methods: For this population-based observational study, we used the electronic medical record database of the Hong Kong Clinical Data Analysis And Reporting System to identify individuals aged 6–25 years who received at least one methylphenidate prescription during the study period. Individuals with records of seizure or epilepsy before the study period were excluded. Individuals treated with methylphenidate who had seizures during the study period were included in the subsequent analyses, and a self-controlled case-series design was used to control for time-invariant individual characteristics. We did additional analyses using skin infection as a negative control outcome. We compared relative incidence of seizure during periods when individuals were exposed to methylphenidate with that during non-exposed periods. Findings: Of 29 604 individuals prescribed methylphenidate between Jan 1, 2001, and Dec 31, 2017, 269 (199 males and 70 females) had incident seizures. The mean age at baseline was 6·66 years (SD 2·01) and the median age at the incident seizure was 9·69 years (IQR 7·62–12·99). The overall incidence of seizure during methylphenidate treatment was 4·4 per 10 000 patient-years. We detected an increased risk of seizure during the first 30 days of methylphenidate treatment compared with that during non-exposed periods, with an incidence rate ratio of 4·01 (95% CI 2·09–7·68). No increase in risk was identified during the following 31–180 days of treatment (1·13, 0·56–2·25) or during subsequent treatment (1·38, 0·92–2·07). We did not identify an increased risk in any risk window for the negative control outcome analysis. No individuals died because of a seizure during the study period. Interpretation: The incidence of seizures was higher in the period immediately after the start of methylphenidate treatment than in the non-exposed period. No increased risk was observed during continuation of methylphenidate treatment. The association between methylphenidate treatment and seizures immediately after initiation of medication can be seen as a potential safety signal. Monitoring of neurological outcomes in individuals with ADHD is recommended when they first start methylphenidate treatment. Funding: Hong Kong Research Grants Council

Supporting Self-management Among Young People With Acne Vulgaris Through a Web-Based Behavioral Intervention: Development and Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Acne is a common skin condition that is most prevalent in young people. It can have a substantial impact on the quality of life, which can be minimized with the appropriate use of topical treatments. Nonadherence to topical treatments for acne is common and often leads to treatment failure. Objective: The aim of this study is to develop a web-based behavioral intervention to support the self-management of acne and to assess the feasibility of recruitment, retention, and engagement of users with the intervention. Methods: The intervention was developed iteratively using the LifeGuide software and following the person-based approach for intervention development. The target behavior was appropriate use of topical treatments. Barriers and facilitators identified from the qualitative research and evidence from the wider literature were used to identify techniques to improve and promote their use. Young people with acne aged 14-25 years who had received treatment for acne in the past 6 months were invited to participate through mail-out from primary care practices in the South of England in a parallel, unblinded randomized trial. Participants were automatically randomized using a computer-generated algorithm to usual care or to usual care plus access to the web-based intervention. Usage data was collected, and a series of questionnaires, including the primary outcome measure for skin-specific quality of life (Skindex-16), were collected at baseline and at the 4- and 6-week follow-ups. Results: A total of 1193 participants were invited, and 53 young people with acne were randomized to usual care (27/53, 51%) or usual care plus intervention (26/53, 49%). The response rate for the primary outcome measure (Skindex-16) was 87% at 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and at both time points. The estimate of mean scores between groups (with 95% CI) using linear regression showed a trend in the direction of benefit for the web-based intervention group in the primary outcome measure (Skindex-16) and secondary measures (Patient Health Questionnaire-4 and the Problematic Experiences of Therapy Scale). Intervention usage data showed high uptake of the core module in the usual care plus web-based intervention group, with 88% (23/26) of participants completing the module. Uptake of the optional modules was low, with less than half visiting each (myth-busting quiz: 27%; living with spots or acne: 42%; oral antibiotics: 19%; what are spots or acne: 27%; other treatments: 27%; talking to your general practitioner: 12%). Conclusions: This study demonstrated the feasibility of delivering a trial of a web-based intervention to support self-management in young people with acne. Additional work is needed before a full definitive trial, including enhancing engagement with the intervention, recruitment, and follow-up rates

Blockchain-IoT-driven nursing workforce planning for effective long-term care management in nursing homes

Due to the global ageing population, the increasing demand for long-term care services for the elderly has directed considerable attention towards the renovation of nursing homes. Although nursing homes play an essential role within residential elderly care, professional shortages have created serious pressure on the elderly service sector. Effective workforce planning is vital for improving the efficacy and workload balance of existing nursing staff in today's complex and volatile long-term care service market. Currently, there is lack of an integrated solution to monitor care services and determine the optimal nursing staffing strategy in nursing homes. This study addresses the above challenge through the formulation of nursing staffing optimisation under the blockchain-internet of things (BIoT) environment. Embedding a blockchain into IoT establishes the long-term care platform for the elderly and care workers, thereby decentralising long-term care information in the nursing home network to achieve effective care service monitoring. Moreover, such information is further utilised to optimise nursing staffing by using a genetic algorithm. A case study of a Hong Kong nursing home was conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed system. We found that the total monthly staffing cost after using the proposed model was significantly lower than the existing practice with a change of -13.48%, which considers the use of heterogeneous workforce and temporary staff. Besides, the care monitoring and staffing flexibility are further enhanced, in which the concept of skill substitution is integrated in nursing staffing optimisation

Drain blocking has limited short-term effects on greenhouse gas fluxes in a Molinia caerulea dominated shallow peatland (article)

This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordThe dataset associated with this article is available in ORE at https://doi.org/10.24378/exe.2723Drained peatlands dominated by purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea) are widespread in the UK and Western Europe. Although substantial carbon stores may be present in these peatlands, in this degraded state they are not currently acting as carbon sinks. Therefore, M.caerulea dominated peatlands have been identified as potential sites for ecohydrological restoration to tackle the current climate emergency. However, at present little is known about whether ditch blocking can raise water tables and promote the recovery of bog plant species, and the subsequent effects on carbon sequestration in these peatlands. To investigate the potential for restoration, we measured changes in water table depth, vegetation composition, photosynthesis at 1000 μmol Photons m−2 s−1 (PG1000), ecosystem respiration (REco) and partitioned below-ground respiration in two M.caerulea dominated peatlands in which drainage ditches had been blocked located in Exmoor National Park, southwest England. Measurements were made in two headwater catchments at ⅛, ¼ and ½ of the distance between adjacent drainage ditches at four control-restored paired sites, during the growing seasons pre- (2012) and post- (2014, 2016 & 2018) restoration. Restoration had a small but significant (p = 0.009) effect on water table depths however, this did not result in a significant change in vegetation composition (p > 0.350). Ecosystem respiration increased in both the control and restored locations following restoration however, this increase was significantly smaller (p = 0.010) at the restored locations, possibly due to a similarly reduced increase in photosynthesis, although this change was not significant (p = 0.116). Below-ground respiration showed no significant changes following restoration. This research illustrates how degraded these shallow peatlands are, and raises concerns that ditch blocking alone may not bring about the high and stable water tables required to perturb the existing Molinia caerulea-dominated ecosystem and substantially alter the carbon balance. Additional restoration measures may be required.South West Water (SWW)University of ExeterTechnology Strategy Board CouncilNatural Environment Research Council (NERC

Adaptation of an internet-based depression prevention intervention for Chinese adolescents: from "CATCH-IT" to "grasp the opportunity"

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Zika virus on youtube: An analysis of english-language video content by source

Objectives The purpose of this study was to describe the source, length, number of views, and content of the most widely viewed Zika virus (ZIKV)-related YouTube videos. We hypothesized that ZIKV-related videos uploaded by different sources contained different content. Methods The 100 most viewed English ZIKV-related videos were manually coded and analyzed statistically. Results Among the 100 videos, there were 43 consumer-generated videos, 38 Internet-based news videos, 15 TV-based news videos, and 4 professional videos. Internet news sources captured over two-thirds of the total of 8 894 505 views. Compared with consumer-generated videos, Internet-based news videos were more likely to mention the impact of ZIKV on babies (odds ratio [OR], 6.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.64 to 23.76), the number of cases in Latin America (OR, 5.63; 95% CI, 1.47 to 21.52); and ZIKV in Africa (OR, 2.56; 95% CI, 1.04 to 6.31). Compared with consumer-generated videos, TV-based news videos were more likely to express anxiety or fear of catching ZIKV (OR, 6.67; 95% CI, 1.36 to 32.70); to highlight fear of ZIKV among members of the public (OR, 7.45; 95% CI, 1.20 to 46.16); and to discuss avoiding pregnancy (OR, 3.88; 95% CI, 1.13 to 13.25). Conclusions Public health agencies should establish a larger presence on YouTube to reach more people with evidence-based information about ZIKV

Measurements of the diffuse Galactic synchrotron spectral index and curvature from MeerKLASS pilot data

21cm intensity mapping experiments are bringing an influx of high spectral resolution observational data in the $\sim100$ MHz $- 1$ GHz regime. We use pilot $971-1075$ MHz data from MeerKAT in single-dish mode, recently used to test the calibration and data reduction scheme of the upcoming MeerKLASS survey, to probe the spectral index of diffuse synchrotron emission below 1 GHz within $145^{\circ} < \alpha < 180^{\circ}$, $-1^{\circ} < \delta < 8^{\circ}$. Through comparisons with data from the OVRO Long Wavelength Array and the Maipu and MU surveys, we find an average spectral index of $-2.75 < \beta < -2.71$ between 45 and 1055 MHz. By fitting for spectral curvature with a spectral index of the form $\beta + c \, {\rm{ln}}(\nu / 73~{\rm MHz})$, we measure $\beta = -2.55 \pm 0.13$ and $c = -0.12 \pm 0.05$ within our target field. Our results are in good agreement (within $1\sigma$) with existing measurements from experiments such as ARCADE2 and EDGES. These results show the calibration accuracy of current data and demonstrate that MeerKLASS will also be capable of achieving a secondary science goal of probing the interstellar medium.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS. Updated to match published paper (additional references and acknowledgements