169 research outputs found
Impact of helminth infection during pregnancy on cognitive and motor functions of one-year-old children
Objective
To determine the effect of helminth infection during pregnancy on the cognitive and motor functions of one-year-old children.
Methods
Six hundred and thirty five singletons born to pregnant women enrolled before 29 weeks of gestation in a trial comparing two intermittent preventive treatments for malaria were assessed for cognitive and motor functions using the Mullen Scales of Early Learning, in the TOVI study, at twelve months of age in the district of Allada in Benin. Stool samples of pregnant women were collected at recruitment, second antenatal care (ANC) visit (at least one month after recruitment) and just before delivery, and were tested for helminths using the Kato-Katz technique. All pregnant women were administered a total of 600 mg of mebendazole (100 mg two times daily for 3 days) to be taken after the first ANC visit. The intake was not directly observed.
Results
Prevalence of helminth infection was 11.5%, 7.5% and 3.0% at first ANC visit, second ANC visit and at delivery, respectively. Children of mothers who were infected with hookworms at the first ANC visit had 4.9 (95% CI: 1.3â8.6) lower mean gross motor scores compared to those whose mothers were not infected with hookworms at the first ANC visit, in the adjusted model. Helminth infection at least once during pregnancy was associated with infant cognitive and gross motor functions after adjusting for maternal education, gravidity, child sex, family possessions, and quality of the home stimulation.
Conclusion
Helminth infection during pregnancy is associated with poor cognitive and gross motor outcomes in infants. Measures to prevent helminth infection during pregnancy should be reinforced
Evidence for the h_b(1P) meson in the decay Upsilon(3S) --> pi0 h_b(1P)
Using a sample of 122 million Upsilon(3S) events recorded with the BaBar
detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy e+e- collider at SLAC, we search for
the spin-singlet partner of the P-wave chi_{bJ}(1P) states in the
sequential decay Upsilon(3S) --> pi0 h_b(1P), h_b(1P) --> gamma eta_b(1S). We
observe an excess of events above background in the distribution of the recoil
mass against the pi0 at mass 9902 +/- 4(stat.) +/- 2(syst.) MeV/c^2. The width
of the observed signal is consistent with experimental resolution, and its
significance is 3.1sigma, including systematic uncertainties. We obtain the
value (4.3 +/- 1.1(stat.) +/- 0.9(syst.)) x 10^{-4} for the product branching
fraction BF(Upsilon(3S)-->pi0 h_b) x BF(h_b-->gamma eta_b).Comment: 8 pages, 4 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (Rapid
Communications
The fifth leaf and spike organs of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) display different physiological and metabolic responses to drought stress
Gendered health systems: evidence from low- and middle-income countries
Background
Gender is often neglected in health systems, yet health systems are not gender neutral. Within health systems research, gender analysis seeks to understand how gender power relations create inequities in access to resources, the distribution of labour and roles, social norms and values, and decision-making. This paper synthesises findings from nine studies focusing on four health systems domains, namely human resources, service delivery, governance and financing. It provides examples of how a gendered and/or intersectional gender approach can be applied by researchers in a range of low- and middle-income settings (Cambodia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, India, China, Nigeria and Tanzania) to issues across the health system and demonstrates that these types of analysis can uncover new and novel ways of viewing seemingly intractable problems.
Methods
The research used a combination of mixed, quantitative, qualitative and participatory methods, demonstrating the applicability of diverse research methods for gender and intersectional analysis. Within each study, the researchers adapted and applied a variety of gender and intersectional tools to assist with data collection and analysis, including different gender frameworks. Some researchers used participatory tools, such as photovoice and life histories, to prompt deeper and more personal reflections on gender norms from respondents, whereas others used conventional qualitative methods (in-depth interviews, focus group discussion). Findings from across the studies were reviewed and key themes were extracted and summarised.
Results
Five core themes that cut across the different projects were identified and are reported in this paper as follows: the intersection of gender with other social stratifiers; the importance of male involvement; the influence of gendered social norms on health system structures and processes; reliance on (often female) unpaid carers within the health system; and the role of gender within policy and practice. These themes indicate the relevance of and need for gender analysis within health systems research.
Conclusion
The implications of the diverse examples of gender and health systems research highlighted indicate that policy-makers, health practitioners and others interested in enhancing health system research and delivery have solid grounds to advance their enquiry and that one-size-fits-all heath interventions that ignore gender and intersectionality dimensions require caution. It is essential that we build upon these insights in our efforts and commitment to move towards greater equity both locally and globally
Updated measurements of exclusive J/Ï and Ï(2S) production cross-sections in pp collisions at âs = 7 TeV
The differential cross-section as a function of rapidity has been measured for the exclusive production of J/Ï and Ï(2S) mesons in protonâproton collisions at âs = 7 TeV, using data collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 930 pbâ1. The cross-sections times branching fractions to two muons having pseudorapidities between 2.0 and 4.5 are measured to be where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. The measurements agree with next-to-leading order QCD predictions as well as with models that include saturation effects
Observation of Two New Excited Îb0 States Decaying to Îb0 K-Ï+
Two narrow resonant states are observed in the Îb0K-Ï+ mass spectrum using a data sample of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, collected by the LHCb experiment and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 6 fb-1. The minimal quark content of the Îb0K-Ï+ system indicates that these are excited Îb0 baryons. The masses of the Îb(6327)0 and Îb(6333)0 states are m[Îb(6327)0]=6327.28-0.21+0.23±0.12±0.24 and m[Îb(6333)0]=6332.69-0.18+0.17±0.03±0.22 MeV, respectively, with a mass splitting of Îm=5.41-0.27+0.26±0.12 MeV, where the uncertainties are statistical, systematic, and due to the Îb0 mass measurement. The measured natural widths of these states are consistent with zero, with upper limits of Î[Îb(6327)0]<2.20(2.56) and Î[Îb(6333)0]<1.60(1.92) MeV at a 90% (95%) credibility level. The significance of the two-peak hypothesis is larger than nine (five) Gaussian standard deviations compared to the no-peak (one-peak) hypothesis. The masses, widths, and resonant structure of the new states are in good agreement with the expectations for a doublet of 1D Îb0 resonances
Studies of beauty baryon decays to D0phâ and Î+châ final states
Decays of beauty baryons to the D0phâ and Î+châ final states (where h indicates a pion or a kaon) are studied using a data sample of pp collisions, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.0ââfbâ1, collected by the LHCb detector. The Cabibbo-suppressed decays Î0bâD0pKâ and Î0bâÎ+cKâ are observed, and their branching fractions are measured with respect to the decays Î0bâD0pÏâ and Î0bâÎ+cÏâ. In addition, the first observation is reported of the decay of the neutral beauty-strange baryon Î0b to the D0pKâ final state, and a measurement of the Î0b mass is performed. Evidence of the Î0bâÎ+cKâ decay is also reported
Measurement of the CKM angle using with decays
A model-dependent amplitude analysis of the decay is performed using proton-proton collision data
corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.0fb, recorded at
and by the LHCb experiment. The CP violation observables
and , sensitive to the CKM angle , are measured to
be \begin{eqnarray*} x_- &=& -0.15 \pm 0.14 \pm 0.03 \pm 0.01, y_- &=& 0.25 \pm
0.15 \pm 0.06 \pm 0.01, x_+ &=& 0.05 \pm 0.24 \pm 0.04 \pm 0.01, y_+ &=&
-0.65^{+0.24}_{-0.23} \pm 0.08 \pm 0.01, \end{eqnarray*} where the first
uncertainties are statistical, the second systematic and the third arise from
the uncertainty on the amplitude model. These
are the most precise measurements of these observables. They correspond to
and , where is
the magnitude of the ratio of the suppressed and favoured decay amplitudes, in a mass region of around the
mass and for an absolute value of the cosine of the decay
angle larger than .Comment: All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and
additional information, are available at
https://lhcbproject.web.cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/LHCbProjectPublic/LHCb-PAPER-2016-007.htm
Search for dark photons produced in 13 TeV collisions
Searches are performed for both promptlike and long-lived dark photons,
A
0
, produced in proton-proton
collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, using
A
0
â
Ό
ĂŸ
Ό
â
decays and a data sample corresponding
to an integrated luminosity of
1
.
6
fb
â
1
collected with the LHCb detector. The promptlike
A
0
search covers
the mass range from near the dimuon threshold up to 70 GeV, while the long-lived
A
0
search is restricted to
the low-mass region
214
<m
Ă°
A
0
Ă
<
350
MeV. No evidence for a signal is found, and 90% confidence
level exclusion limits are placed on the
Îł
â
A
0
kinetic-mixing strength. The constraints placed on promptlike
dark photons are the most stringent to date for the mass range
10
.
6
<m
Ă°
A
0
Ă
<
70
GeV, and are
comparable to the best existing limits for
m
Ă°
A
0
Ă
<
0
.
5
GeV. The search for long-lived dark photons is the
first to achieve sensitivity using a displaced-vertex signature
- âŠ