Expanding the role of social science in conservation through an engagement with philosophy, methodology, and methods

© 2019 The Authors. Methods in Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society The Special Feature led by Sutherland, Dicks, Everard, and Geneletti (Methods Ecology and Evolution, 9, 7–9, 2018) sought to highlight the importance of “qualitative methods” for conservation. The intention is welcome, and the collection makes many important contributions. Yet, the articles presented a limited perspective on the field, with a focus on objectivist and instrumental methods, omitting discussion of some broader philosophical and methodological considerations crucial to social science research. Consequently, the Special Feature risks narrowing the scope of social science research and, potentially, reducing its quality and usefulness. In this article, we seek to build on the strengths of the articles of the Special Feature by drawing in a discussion on social science research philosophy, methodology, and methods. We start with a brief discussion on the value of thinking about data as being qualitative (i.e., text, image, or numeric) or quantitative (i.e., numeric), not methods or research. Thinking about methods as qualitative can obscure many important aspects of research design by implying that “qualitative methods” somehow embody a particular set of assumptions or principles. Researchers can bring similar, or very different, sets of assumptions to their research design, irrespective of whether they collect qualitative or quantitative data. We clarify broad concepts, including philosophy, methodology, and methods, explaining their role in social science research design. Doing so provides us with an opportunity to examine some of the terms used across the articles of the Special Feature (e.g., bias), revealing that they are used in ways that could be interpreted as being inconsistent with their use in a number of applications of social science. We provide worked examples of how social science research can be designed to collect qualitative data that not only understands decision-making processes, but also the unique social–ecological contexts in which it takes place. These examples demonstrate the importance of coherence between philosophy, methodology, and methods in research design, and the importance of reflexivity throughout the research process. We conclude with encouragement for conservation social scientists to explore a wider range of qualitative research approaches, providing guidance for the selection and application of social science methods for ecology and conservation

The Cyclophilin-Binding Agent Sanglifehrin A Is a Dendritic Cell Chemokine and Migration Inhibitor

Sanglifehrin A (SFA) is a cyclophilin-binding immunosuppressant but the immunobiology of action is poorly understood. We and others have reported that SFA inhibits IL-12 production and antigen uptake in dendritic cells (DC) and exhibits lower activity against lymphocytes. Here we show that SFA suppresses DC chemokine production and migration. Gene expression analysis and subsequent protein level confirmation revealed that SFA suppressed CCL5, CCL17, CCL19, CXCL9 and CXCL10 expression in human monocyte-derived DC (moDC). A systems biology analysis, Onto Express, confirmed that SFA interferes with chemokine-chemokine receptor gene expression with the highest impact. Direct comparison with the related agent cyclosporine A (CsA) and dexamethasone indicated that SFA uniquely suppresses moDC chemokine expression. Competitive experiments with a 100-fold molar excess of CsA and with N-Methyl-Val-4-cyclosporin, representing a nonimmunosuppressive derivative of CsA indicated chemokine suppression through a cyclophilin-A independent pathway. Functional assays confirmed reduced migration of CD4+ Tcells and moDCs to supernatant of SFA-exposed moDCs. Vice versa, SFA-exposed moDC exhibited reduced migration against CCL19. Moreover, SFA suppressed expression of the ectoenzyme CD38 that was reported to regulate DC migration and cytokine production. These results identify SFA as a DC chemokine and migration inhibitor and provide novel insight into the immunobiology of SFA

A retrospective population-based study of childhood hospital admissions with record linkage to a birth defects registry

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Using population-based linked records of births, deaths, birth defects and hospital admissions for children born 1980–1999 enables profiles of hospital morbidity to be created for each child.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This is an analysis of a state-based registry of birth defects linked to population-based hospital admission data. Transfers and readmissions within one day could be taken into account and treated as one episode of care for the purposes of analyses (N = 485,446 children; 742,845 non-birth admissions).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Children born in Western Australia from 1980–1999 with a major birth defect comprised 4.6% of live births but 12.0% of non-birth hospital admissions from 1980–2000. On average, the children with a major birth defect remained in hospital longer than the children in the comparison group for the same diagnosis. The mean and median lengths of stay (LOS) for admissions before the age of 5 years have decreased for all children since 1980. However, the mean number of admissions per child admitted has remained constant at around 3.8 admissions for children with a major birth defect and 2.2 admissions for all other children.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>To gain a true picture of the burden of hospital-based morbidity in childhood, admission records need to be linked for each child. We have been able to do this at a population level using birth defect cases ascertained by a birth defects registry. Our results showed a greater mean LOS and mean number of admissions per child admitted than previous studies. The results suggest there may be an opportunity for the children with a major birth defect to be monitored and seen earlier in the primary care setting for common childhood illnesses to avoid hospitalisation or reduce the LOS.</p

Cancer treatment-related neuropathic pain:proof of concept study with menthol—a TRPM8 agonist

PURPOSE: Effective treatment of neuropathic pain without unacceptable side effects is challenging. Cancer sufferers increasingly live with long-term treatment-related neuropathic pain, resulting from chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) or surgical scars. This proof-of-concept study aimed to determine whether preclinical evidence for TRPM8 ion channels in sensory neurons as a novel analgesic target could be translated to clinical benefit in patients with neuropathic pain, using the TRPM8 activator menthol. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with problematic treatment-related neuropathic pain underwent a baseline assessment using validated questionnaires, psychophysical testing, and objective functional measures. The painful area was treated with topical 1 % menthol cream twice daily. Assessments were repeated at 4–6 weeks. The primary outcome was the change in Brief Pain Inventory total scores at 4–6 weeks. Secondary outcomes included changes in function, mood and skin sensation. RESULTS: Fifty-one patients (female/male, 32/19) were recruited with a median age of 61 (ranging from 20 to 89). The commonest aetiology was CIPN (35/51), followed by scar pain (10/51). Thirty-eight were evaluable on the primary outcome. Eighty-two per cent (31/38) had an improvement in total Brief Pain Inventory scores (median, 47 (interquartile range, 30 to 64) to 34 (6 to 59), P < 0.001). Improvements in mood (P = 0.0004), catastrophising (P = 0.001), walking ability (P = 0.008) and sensation (P < 0.01) were also observed. CONCLUSION: This proof-of-concept study indicates that topical menthol has potential as a novel analgesic therapy for cancer treatment-related neuropathic pain. Improvements in patient-rated measures are supported by changes in objective measures of physical function and sensation. Further systematic evaluation of efficacy is required

An effectiveness study of an integrated, community-based package for maternal, newborn, child and HIV care in South Africa: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Progress towards MDG4 in South Africa will depend largely on scaling up effective prevention against mother to child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV and also addressing neonatal mortality. This imperative drives increasing focus on the neonatal period and particularly on the development and testing of appropriate models of sustainable, community-based care in South Africa in order to reach the poor. A number of key implementation gaps affecting progress have been identified. Implementation gaps for HIV prevention in neonates; implementation gaps for neonatal care especially home postnatal care; and implementation gaps for maternal mental health support. We have developed and are evaluating and costing an integrated and scaleable home visit package delivered by community health workers targeting pregnant and postnatal women and their newborns to provide essential maternal/newborn care as well as interventions for Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV. METHODS: The trial is a cluster randomized controlled trial that is being implemented in Umlazi which is a peri-urban settlement with a total population of 1 million close to Durban in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. The trial consists of 30 randomized clusters (15 in each arm). A baseline survey established the homogeneity of clusters and neither stratification nor matching was performed. Sample size was based on increasing HIV-free survival from 74% to 84%, and calculated to be 120 pregnant women per cluster. Primary outcomes are higher levels of HIV free survival and levels of exclusive and appropriate infant feeding at 12 weeks postnatally. The intervention is home based with community health workers delivering two antenatal visits, a postnatal visit within 48 hours of birth, and a further four visits during the first two months of the infants life. We are undertaking programmatic and cost effectiveness analysis to cost the intervention. DISCUSSION: The question is not merely to develop an efficacious package but also to identify and test delivery strategies that enable scaling up, which requires effectiveness studies in a health systems context, adapting and testing Asian community-based studies in various African contexts

Higher risk of gastrointestinal parasite infection at lower elevation suggests possible constraints in the distributional niche of Alpine marmots

Alpine marmots Marmota marmota occupy a narrow altitudinal niche within high elevation alpine environments. For animals living at such high elevations where resources are limited, parasitism represents a potential major cost in life history. Using occupancy models, we tested if marmots living at higher elevation have a reduced risk of being infected with gastrointestinal helminths, possibly compensating the lower availability of resources (shorter feeding season, longer snow cover and lower temperature) than marmots inhabiting lower elevations. Detection probability of eggs and oncospheres of two gastro-intestinal helminthic parasites, Ascaris laevis and Ctenotaenia marmotae, sampled in marmot feces, was used as a proxy of parasite abundance. As predicted, the models showed a negative relationship between elevation and parasite detectability (i.e. abundance) for both species, while there appeared to be a negative effect of solar radiance only for C. marmotae. Site-occupancy models are used here for the first time to model the constrains of gastrointestinal parasitism on a wild species and the relationship existing between endoparasites and environmental factors in a population of free-living animals. The results of this study suggest the future use of site-occupancy models as a viable tool to account for parasite imperfect detection in ecoparasitological studies, and give useful insights to further investigate the hypothesis of the contribution of parasite infection in constraining the altitudinal niche of Alpine marmots

CXCL10 Can Inhibit Endothelial Cell Proliferation Independently of CXCR3

CXCL10 (or Interferon-inducible protein of 10 kDa, IP-10) is an interferon-inducible chemokine with potent chemotactic activity on activated effector T cells and other leukocytes expressing its high affinity G protein-coupled receptor CXCR3. CXCL10 is also active on other cell types, including endothelial cells and fibroblasts. The mechanisms through which CXCL10 mediates its effects on non-leukocytes is not fully understood. In this study, we focus on the anti-proliferative effect of CXCL10 on endothelial cells, and demonstrate that CXCL10 can inhibit endothelial cell proliferation in vitro independently of CXCR3. Four main findings support this conclusion. First, primary mouse endothelial cells isolated from CXCR3-deficient mice were inhibited by CXCL10 as efficiently as wildtype endothelial cells. We also note that the proposed alternative splice form CXCR3-B, which is thought to mediate CXCL10's angiostatic activity, does not exist in mice based on published mouse CXCR3 genomic sequences as an in-frame stop codon would terminate the proposed CXCR3-B splice variant in mice. Second, we demonstrate that human umbilical vein endothelial cells and human lung microvascular endothelial cells that were inhibited by CXL10 did not express CXCR3 by FACS analysis. Third, two different neutralizing CXCR3 antibodies did not inhibit the anti-proliferative effect of CXCL10. Finally, fourth, utilizing a panel of CXCL10 mutants, we show that the ability to inhibit endothelial cell proliferation correlates with CXCL10's glycosaminoglycan binding affinity and not with its CXCR3 binding and signaling. Thus, using a very defined system, we show that CXCL10 can inhibit endothelial cell proliferation through a CXCR3-independent mechanism