Journey to the west 西遊記

French haute cuisine is often considered the foundation of Western European dining, but nowadays, countries are developing distinct culinary identities of their own. 備受法國高級料理影響的西歐菜已紛紛邁開新的步伐，發展自己獨有的烹飪風格

Predicting gene expression in the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum using histone modification, nucleosome positioning, and 3D localization features.

Empirical evidence suggests that the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum employs a broad range of mechanisms to regulate gene transcription throughout the organism's complex life cycle. To better understand this regulatory machinery, we assembled a rich collection of genomic and epigenomic data sets, including information about transcription factor (TF) binding motifs, patterns of covalent histone modifications, nucleosome occupancy, GC content, and global 3D genome architecture. We used these data to train machine learning models to discriminate between high-expression and low-expression genes, focusing on three distinct stages of the red blood cell phase of the Plasmodium life cycle. Our results highlight the importance of histone modifications and 3D chromatin architecture in Plasmodium transcriptional regulation and suggest that AP2 transcription factors may play a limited regulatory role, perhaps operating in conjunction with epigenetic factors

Creating a climate in which students can flourish: A whole school intercultural approach

This article reports part of an ongoing process that is taking place at one high school. With the vision of an inclusive school in which all students could flourish, the school deliberately set out to develop a culture in which the students would feel welcome, connected and have a sense of belonging. This article focuses on, first, how the school, with a culturally-diverse student population, implemented a whole school intercultural approach aimed at improving students’ views of the school climate and, second, the impact that this had on students’ perceptions of the school climate and their self-reports of wellbeing, resilience and identity. These results indicated that, at the end of the 18 month period, students’ perceptions of the school climate were statistically significantly higher for four of the six school climate scales. Further, students’ scored statistically higher in terms of their wellbeing, resilience, self-anchoring and moral identity

The role of serotonin in personality interference:tryptophan depletion impairs the identification of neuroticism in the face

Serotonergic mechanisms mediate the expression of personality traits (such as impulsivity, aggression and anxiety) that are linked to vulnerability to psychological illnesses, and modulate the identification of emotional expressions in the face as well as learning about broader classes of appetitive and aversive signals. Faces with neutral expressions signal a variety of socially relevant information, such that inferences about the big five personality traits, including Neuroticism, Extraversion and Agreeableness, can be accurately made on the basis of emotionally neutral facial photographs. Given the close link between Neuroticism and psychological distress, we investigated the effects of diminished central serotonin activity (achieved by tryptophan depletion) upon the accuracy of 52 healthy (non-clinical) adults' discriminations of personality from facial characteristics. All participants were able to discriminate reliably four of the big five traits. However, the tryptophan-depleted participants were specifically less accurate in discriminating Neuroticism than the matched non-depleted participants. These data suggest that central serotonin activity modulates the identification of not only negative facial emotional expression but also a broader class of signals about personality characteristics linked to psychological distress

The Admiral Nurse Competency Framework: Encouraging Engagement and Putting it into Practice

BACKGROUND: Admiral Nurses undertake complex work with families living with dementia. Dementia UK commissioned The Association for Dementia Studies to refresh the Admiral Nurse Competency Framework and enable Admiral Nurses to articulate and critically reflect on their own practice progression. The Admiral Nurses were involved throughout the process to refresh the framework to ensure it was evidence based. METHOD: To encourage engagement with the framework, The Association for Dementia Studies worked with the Admiral Nurses during a roll-out phase. An exercise was developed to initiate critical reflective discussion. Critiquing a colleague's practice is a skill, provoking defensiveness if not facilitated thoughtfully. RESULTS: An exercise combining art cards with case study analysis worked well, promoting critical reflective dialogue between Admiral Nurses as peers. Engagement and feedback were positive, and the neutrality of the exercise provided a safe environment with the flexibility to allow in-depth and meaningful discussions. CONCLUSION: This technique could benefit work-based learning, facilitating creative critical reflection within practice

The effectiveness of aromatherapy and reflexology in neurodegenerative disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Many neurodegenerative conditions are chronic disorders and result in a range of debilitating symptoms, with many people turning to complementary therapies. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to investigate the evidence on effectiveness of aromatherapy and reflexology on all neurodegenerative conditions. We identified nine eligible studies (total sample n = 504 participants) all of which were on multiple sclerosis only. A meta-analysis was conducted including data from six studies, which demonstrated no significant benefit of aromatherapy/reflexology; however, the sample sizes were small and of low quality. This systematic review confirmed that it is not possible to draw conclusions regarding the effectiveness of reflexology and aromatherapy in multiple sclerosis. Larger high-quality studies are required to test these widely used therapies

Intervention components in the self-management of Parkinson’s: A mixed-methods synthesis of qualitative and quantitative evidence

INTRODUCTION: Self-management interventions consist of multiple components to support people in the management of medical, emotional, and behavioural aspects of their condition, and aim to improve quality of life, function, and other outcomes. A systematic review of self-management interventions in Parkinson’s showed no conclusive evidence for effectiveness of specific self-management approaches in Parkinson’s to date but identified several potentially useful components. AIM: To identify the key required components for self-management in people with Parkinson’s by synthesising evidence from a body of primary qualitative evidence and systematic reviews, and to explore which of these key components should be incorporated into trials of self-management in Parkinson’s. METHOD: A mixed-methods synthesis was conducted. We combined data from two primary qualitative studies and a systematic review of qualitative studies that focused on self-management in Parkinson’s to identify key intervention components. These were then mapped onto the results of a systematic review of Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) using matrices. First, data were extracted from the qualitative studies with people with Parkinson’s and healthcare professionals on the key self-management components in this population. Second, a matrix table was created to map the identified Parkinson’s specific self-management components against potential effectiveness from published RCTs of self-management interventions. RESULTS: Synthesis of qualitative data identified 15 potential self-management components. These 15 components included components needed to start self-managing (e.g., information, skill acquirement) and components needed to maintain self-managing (e.g., self-motoring, increasing motivation). From 18 RCTs, interventions varied in how many components were included (range 1–10). Trials reporting significant beneficial effects of their intervention included a higher number of components (4 or more self-management components) than trials without significant findings (1–3 self-management components). CONCLUSION: Fifteen key self-management components were identified that should be incorporated into interventions or programs of self-management in Parkinson’s. No current trial has incorporated all aspects, but a higher number of these key components appears to make trials of self-management interventions more likely to be successful

Remote Consultations for People with Parkinson’s and Cognitive Impairment – A Qualitative Study with Patients, Caregivers and Healthcare Professionals

Background: The Covid-19 pandemic led to many consultations being conducted remotely. Cognitive impairment is recognised as a potential barrier to remote healthcare interactions and is common and heterogeneous in Parkinson’s. Research studies have shown remote consultations in Parkinson’s to be feasible, but little is known about real life experience, especially for those with cognitive impairment. We explored the experiences and perceptions of remote consultations for people with Parkinson’s and cognitive impairment. Objective: To explore the experiences of remote consultations for People with Parkinson’s and Cognitive Impairments, from the perspective of service users and professionals, and investigate considerations for future service delivery. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted remotely with 11 people with Parkinson’s and cognitive impairment, 10 family caregivers and 24 Healthcare Professionals in 2020-2021. Purposive sampling was used. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four themes were identified: The Nature of Remote Interactions; Challenges Exacerbated by Being Remote; Expectation versus Reality; and Optimising for the Future. Remote consultations were considered to be ‘transactional’ and less personal, with difficulties building rapport, and different in role to in-person consultations. The loss of non-verbal communication and ability of Healthcare Professionals to ‘sense’ led to remote consultations being perceived as riskier by all groups. Issues arising from communication and cognitive impairment, balancing of the person with Parkinson’s and caregiver voice, and discussions of the future, affect this population specifically. Remote consultations were reported to have been more successful than anticipated in all three groups. Obstacles were not always as expected, for example age was less of a barrier than predicted. Video consultations were perceived as being preferable to telephone consultations by most participants, but not accessible to all people with Parkinson’s. With widespread expectation of ongoing remote consultations, potential improvements for these three groups and healthcare services were identified, including practice, preparation, increased awareness of issues, expectation management by Healthcare Professionals, and more time and flexibility for consultations. Conclusion: Advantages and challenges of remote consultations for this population are identified. Consultations could be improved with increased support, practice, preparation, awareness of issues, and more time and flexibility within services