2,196 research outputs found
Confidence in assessing the effectiveness of bath treatments for the control of sea lice on Norwegian salmon farms
The salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis is the most important ectoparasite of farmed salmonids in the Northern hemisphere, having a major economic and ecological impact on the sustainability of this sector of the aquaculture industry. To a large extent, control of L. salmonis relies on the use of topical delousing chemical treatments in the form of baths. Improvements in methods for the administration and assessment of bathtreatments have not kept pace with the rapid modernization and intensification of the salmon industry. Bathtreatments present technical and biological challenges, including best practice methods for the estimation of the effect of licetreatment interventions. In this communication, we compare and contrast methods to calculate and interpret treatmenteffectiveness at pen and site level. The methods are illustrated for the calculation of the percentage reduction in mean abundance of mobile lice with a measure of confidence. Six different methods for the calculation of confidence intervals across different probability levels were compared. We found the quasi-Poisson method with a 90% confidence interval to be informative and robust for the measurement of bathtreatment performance
The Intracluster Medium in z > 1 Galaxy Clusters
The Chandra X-ray Observatory was used to obtain a 190 ks image of three high
redshift galaxy clusters in one observation. The results of our analysis of
these data are reported for the two z > 1 clusters in this Lynx field,
including the most distant known X-ray selected cluster. Spatially-extended
X-ray emission was detected from both these clusters, indicating the presence
of hot gas in their intracluster media. A fit to the X-ray spectrum of RX
J0849+4452, at z=1.26, yields a temperature of kT = 5.8^{+2.8}_{-1.7} keV.
Using this temperature and the assumption of an isothermal sphere, the total
mass of RX J0849+4452 is found to be 4.0^{+2.4}_{-1.9} X 10^{14} h_{65}^{-1}
M_{\sun} within r = 1 h_{65}^{-1} Mpc. The T_x for RX J0849+4452 approximately
agrees with the expectation based on its L_{bol} = 3.3^{+0.9}_{-0.5} X 10^{44}^{-1} according to the low redshift L_x - T_x relation. The very
different distributions of X-ray emitting gas and of the red member galaxies in
the two z > 1 clusters, in contrast to the similarity of the optical/IR colors
of those galaxies, suggests that the early-type galaxies mostly formed before
their host clusters.Comment: 4 pages in emulateapj style plus 2 color jpegs for Figure 3. Accepted
by The Astrophysical Journa
Role of choline deficiency in the fatty liver phenotype of mice fed a low protein, very low carbohydrate ketogenic diet
Though widely employed for clinical intervention in obesity, metabolic syndrome, seizure disorders and other neurodegenerative diseases, the mechanisms through which low carbohydrate ketogenic diets exert their ameliorative effects still remain to be elucidated. Rodent models have been used to identify the metabolic and physiologic alterations provoked by ketogenic diets. A commonly used rodent ketogenic diet (Bio-Serv F3666) that is very high in fat (~94% kcal), very low in carbohydrate (~1% kcal), low in protein (~5% kcal), and choline restricted (~300 mg/kg) provokes robust ketosis and weight loss in mice, but through unknown mechanisms, also causes significant hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and cellular injury. To understand the independent and synergistic roles of protein restriction and choline deficiency on the pleiotropic effects of rodent ketogenic diets, we studied four custom diets that differ only in protein (5% kcal vs. 10% kcal) and choline contents (300 mg/kg vs. 5 g/kg). C57BL/6J mice maintained on the two 5% kcal protein diets induced the most significant ketoses, which was only partially diminished by choline replacement. Choline restriction in the setting of 10% kcal protein also caused moderate ketosis and hepatic fat accumulation, which were again attenuated when choline was replete. Key effects of the 5% kcal protein diet - weight loss, hepatic fat accumulation, and mitochondrial ultrastructural disarray and bioenergetic dysfunction - were mitigated by choline repletion. These studies indicate that synergistic effects of protein restriction and choline deficiency influence integrated metabolism and hepatic pathology in mice when nutritional fat content is very high, and support the consideration of dietary choline content in ketogenic diet studies in rodents to limit hepatic mitochondrial dysfunction and fat accumulation
“It ain’t (just) what you do, it’s (also) the way that you do it”: The role of Procedural Justice in the Implementation of Anti-social Behaviour Interventions with Young People
This paper provides an analysis of the introduction and implementation of hybrid powers to regulate anti-social behaviour, during a period of regulatory ‘hyperactivity’ in the UK. It explores the role of procedural justice by drawing on findings from a study conducted in England which investigated the implementation practices and experiences of young people and parents. These are considered against seven characteristics of procedural justice: voice; voluntariness; respectful treatment; parsimony; accuracy of information; fairness; and neutrality. The paper analyses the manner in which principles of voluntary cooperation can be corrupted by threats of punitive sanctions. It questions the extent to which the use of such hybrid orders fosters perceptions of legitimacy and supports the capacity of young people to avoid criminalisation
Damned if they do, damned if they don't: negotiating the tricky context of anti-social behaviour and keeping safe in disadvantaged urban neighbourhoods
Young people's relationship with anti-social behaviour (ASB) is complicated. While their behaviours are often stereotyped as anti-social (e.g. ‘hanging about’), they also experience ASB in their neighbourhood. In this study, we explore young people's own perspectives on ASB, comparing results from ‘go-along’ interviews and focus groups conducted in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Glasgow, Scotland. This article discusses how young people's everyday experience of ASB was contextualised by social factors such as cultural stereotyping of marginalised groups, poor social connectivity and spatial marginalisation within their neighbourhood. Furthermore, we found that these social factors were mutually reinforcing and interacted in a way that appeared to leave young people in a ‘no-win’ situation regarding their association with ASB. Participation in ASB and attempts to avoid such involvement were seen to involve negative consequences: participation could entail violence and spatial restrictions linked to territoriality, but avoidance could lead to being ostracised from their peer group. Regardless of involvement, young people felt that adults stereotyped them as anti-social. Our findings therefore provide support for policies and interventions aimed at reducing ASB (perpetrated by residents of all ages); in part by better ensuring that young people have a clear incentive for avoiding such behaviours
An X-ray Selected Galaxy Cluster at z=1.26
We report the discovery of an X-ray luminous galaxy cluster at z=1.26.
RXJ0848.9+4452 was selected as an X-ray cluster candidate in the ROSAT Deep
Cluster Survey, on the basis of its spatial extent. Deep optical and near-IR
imaging have revealed a galaxy overdensity around the peak of the X-ray
emission, with a significant excess of red objects with J-K colors typical of
elliptical galaxies at z>1. Spectroscopic observations at the Keck II telescope
have secured 6 galaxy redshifts in the range 1.257=1.261), within
a 35 arcsec radius around the peak X-ray emission. This system lies only 4.2
arcmin away (5.0 h^{-1}_{50} comoving Mpc, q_0=0.5) from the galaxy cluster ClG
J0848+4453, which was identified by Stanford et al. (1997) at z=1.273 in a
near-IR field galaxy survey, and is also known to be X-ray luminous. Assuming
that the X-ray emission is entirely due to hot intra-cluster gas, both these
systems have similar rest frame luminosities L_x ~=1x10^{44} ergs/s (0.5-2.0
keV band). In combination with our spectrophotometric data for the entire 30
arcmin^2 field, this suggests the presence of a superstructure, consisting of
two collapsed, possibly virialized clusters, the first detected to date at z>1.Comment: To appear in The Astronomical Journal, 24 pages, 8 figures, 1 color
jpg plate (fig.7), see http://www.eso.org/~prosati/lynx/plate_fig7.jp
Establishment and operation of a Good Manufacturing Practice-compliant allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-specific cytotoxic cell bank for the treatment of EBV-associated lymphoproliferative disease
Funded by Wellcome Trust Translational Award SNBTSPeer reviewedPublisher PD
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