Women's business ownership : recent research and policy developments

This report aims to provide a current assessment of recent research investigating women's business ownership. The report builds on a previous review undertaken by the authors on behalf of the Small Business Service (Carter, Anderson and Shaw, 2001). The report also explores in broad terms the role and contribution of recent policy developments in changing the landscape of women's enterprise in the UK

Women's business ownership : a review of the academic, popular and internet literature

The objective of this review is to present a detailed analysis of the research and popular literature on women entrepreneurs. The review includes an appraisal of the academic research, the popular literature and Internet based information sources

Changes in epidemiological patterns of sea lice infestation on farmed Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., in Scotland between 1996 and 2006

Analyses of a unique database containing sea lice records over an 11 year period provide evidence of changing infestation patterns in Scotland. The data, collected from more than 50 commercial Atlantic salmon farms, indicate that both species of sea lice commonly found in Scotland, Lepeophtheirus salmonis and Caligus elongatus, have declined on farms over the past decade. Reductions for both species have been particularly marked since 2001 when more effective veterinary medicines became available. Treatment data were also available in the database and these show a growing trend towards the use of the in feed medication emamectin benzoate (Slice), particularly in the first year of the salmon production cycle. However, this trend to wards single product use has not been sustained in 2006, the latest year for which data are available. There is some evidence of region to region variation within Scotland with the Western Isles experiencing higher levels of infestation. However, compared to the levels observed between 1996 and 2000, all regions have benefited from reduced lice infestation, with the overall pattern showing a particular reduction in the second and third quarters of the second year of production

Further support for thermal ecosystem engineering by wandering albatross

On sub-Antarctic Marion Island, wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans) nests support high abundances of tineid moth, Pringleophaga marioni, caterpillars. Previous work proposed that the birds serve as thermal ecosystem engineers by elevating nest temperatures relative to ambient, thereby promoting growth and survival of the caterpillars. However, only 17 days of temperature data were presented previously, despite year-long nest occupation by birds. Previous sampling was also restricted to old and recently failed nests, though nests from which chicks have recently fledged are key to understanding how the engineering effect is realized. Here we build on previous work by providing nest temperature data for a full year and by sampling all three nest types. For the full duration of nest occupancy, temperatures within occupied nests are significantly higher, consistently by c. 7°C, than those in surrounding soils and abandoned nests, declining noticeably when chicks fledge. Caterpillar abundance is significantly higher in new nests compared to nests from which chicks have fledged, which in turn have higher caterpillar abundances than old nests. Combined with recent information on the life history of P. marioni, our data suggest that caterpillars are incidentally added to the nests during nest construction, and subsequently benefit from an engineering effect

An assessment of the strength of knots and splices used as eye terminations in a sailing environment

Research into knots, splices and other methods of forming an eye termination has been limited, despite the fact that they are essential and strongly affect the performance of a rope. The aim of this study was to carry out a comprehensive initial assessment of the breaking strength of eye terminations commonly used in a sailing environment, thereby providing direction for further work in the field. Supports for use in a regular tensile testing machine were specially developed to allow individual testing of each sample and a realistic spread of statistical data to be obtained. Over 180 break tests were carried out on four knots (the bowline, double bowline, figure-of-eight loop and perfection loop) and two splices (three-strand eye splice and braid-on-braid splice). The factors affecting their strength were investigated. A statistical approach to the analysis of the results was adopted. The type of knot was found to have a significant effect on the strength. This same effect was seen in both types of rope construction (three-strand and braid-on-braid). Conclusions were also drawn as to the effect of splice length, eye size, manufacturer and rope diameter on the breaking strength of splices. Areas of development and further investigation were identified

Mechanisms, models and biomarkers in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The last 30 years have seen a major advance in the understanding of the clinical and pathological heterogeneity of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and its overlap with frontotemporal dementia. Multiple, seemingly disparate biochemical pathways converge on a common clinical syndrome characterized by progressive loss of upper and lower motor neurons. Pathogenic themes in ALS include excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, neuroinflammation, altered energy metabolism, and most recently RNA mis-processing. The transgenic rodent, overexpressing mutant superoxide dismutase-1, is now only one of several models of ALS pathogenesis. The nematode, fruit fly and zebrafish all offer fresh insight, and the development of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived motor neurons holds promise for the screening of candidate therapeutics. The lack of useful biomarkers in ALS contributes to diagnostic delay, and the inability to stratify patients by prognosis may be an important factor in the failure of therapeutic trials. Biomarkers sensitive to disease activity might lessen reliance on clinical measures and survival as trial endpoints and reduce study length. Emerging proteomic markers of neuronal loss and glial activity in cerebrospinal fluid, a cortical signature derived from advanced structural and functional MRI, and the development of more sensitive measurements of lower motor neuron physiology are leading a new phase of biomarker-driven therapeutic discovery

Correlates of intake of folic acid–containing supplements among pregnant women

This study describes the timing and correlates of folic acid supplement intake among pregnant women

A tensor decomposition reveals ageing-induced differences in muscle and grip-load force couplings during object lifting

Do motor patterns of object lifting movements change as a result of ageing? Here we propose a methodology for the characterization of these motor patterns across individuals of different age groups. Specifically, we employ a bimanual grasp-lift-replace protocol with younger and older adults and combine measurements of muscle activity with grip and load forces to provide a window into the motor strategies supporting effective object lifts. We introduce a tensor decomposition to identify patterns of muscle activity and grip-load force ratios while also characterizing their temporal profiles and relative activation across object weights and participants of different age groups. We then probe age-induced changes in these components. A classification analysis reveals three motor components that are differentially recruited between the two age groups. Linear regression analyses further show that advanced age and poorer manual dexterity can be predicted by the coupled activation of forearm and hand muscles which is associated with high levels of grip force. Our findings suggest that ageing may induce stronger muscle couplings in distal aspects of the upper limbs, and a less economic grasping strategy to overcome age-related decline in manual dexterity

Antioxidant Consumption is Associated with Decreased Odds of Congenital Limb Deficiencies

Background: Approximately 1 in 2000 infants is born with a limb deficiency in the US. Research has shown that women's periconceptional diet and use of vitamin supplements can affect risk of birth defects. We investigated whether maternal consumption of nutritional antioxidants was associated with occurrence of transverse limb deficiency (TLD) and longitudinal limb deficiencies (LLD). Methods: We analysed case–control data from mothers and their singleton infants with TLD (n = 566), LLD (n = 339), or no malformation (controls; n = 9384) in the National Birth Defects Prevention Study (1997–2009). Using a modified food frequency, we estimated usual pre-pregnancy antioxidant consumption by total fruit and vegetable consumption (in grams) grouped into tertiles, and cumulative antioxidant score (ranging from 1 to 10) based on consumption of three antioxidants: beta-carotene, lycopene, and lutein. We estimated odds ratios (OR) adjusted for maternal age, race/ethnicity, education, smoking, alcohol use, body mass index, and total energy. Results: Compared to women in the lowest tertile of fruit and vegetable consumption, women in the highest tertile were less likely to have infants with TLD (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.57, 0.96) or LLD (OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.59, 1.13). Compared to the lowest antioxidant consumption score of 1, those with the highest score of 10 had ORs of 0.68 (95% CI 0.48, 0.95) for TLD and 0.77 (95% CI 0.50, 1.17) for LLD. Conclusions: Dietary intake of antioxidants was associated with reduced odds of limb deficiencies. These findings add further evidence for women's periconceptional diet reducing occurrence of some birth defects

Sociodemographic, health behavioral, and clinical risk factors for anotia/microtia in a population-based case-control study

Objective: Anotia and microtia are congenital malformations of the external ear with few known risk factors. We conducted a comprehensive assessment of a wide range of potential risk factors using data from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study (NBDPS), a population-based case-control study of non-chromosomal structural birth defects in the United States. Methods: Mothers of 699 infants with anotia or microtia (cases) and 11,797 non-malformed infants (controls) delivered between 1997 and 2011 were interviewed to obtain information about sociodemographic, health behavioral, and clinical characteristics. Adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated with logistic regression. Results: Infants with anotia/microtia were more likely to be male (aOR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.10–1.50) and from a multifetal pregnancy (aOR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.16–2.42). Cases were also more likely to have parents of Hispanic ethnicity (maternal aOR, 3.19; 95% CI, 2.61–3.91; paternal aOR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.54–2.88), and parents born outside the United States (maternal aOR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.06–1.57; paternal aOR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.53–2.41). Maternal health conditions associated with increased odds of anotia/microtia included obesity (aOR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.06–1.61) and pre-pregnancy diabetes (type I aOR, 9.89; 95% CI, 5.46–17.92; type II aOR, 4.70; 95% CI, 2.56–8.63). Reduced odds were observed for black mothers (aOR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.38–0.85) and mothers reporting daily intake of folic acid-containing supplements (aOR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.46–0.76). Conclusion: We identified several risk factors for anotia/microtia, some which have been previously reported (e.g., diabetes) and others which we investigate for perhaps the first time (e.g., binge drinking) that warrant further investigation. Our findings point to some potentially modifiable risk factors and provide further leads toward understanding the etiology of anotia/microtia