Review of: Alan McHughen, Pandora\u27s Picnic Basket: The Potential and Hazards of Genetically Modified Foods

Review of the book: Alan McHughen, Pandora\u27s Picnic Basket: The Potential and Hazards of Genetically Modified Foods (Oxford University Press 2000).Acknowledgements, introduction, glossary and abbreviations, resources, index. ISBN 0-19-850674-0 [277 pp. $25.00 Cloth, 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016-4314]

Modelling early modern human dispersal patterns through the Wallacean Archipelago

Archaeological records from Australia provide the earliest, indirect evidence for maritime crossings by early modern humans anywhere in the world. As the island archipelago of Wallacea has never been connected to the continental landmasses of Sunda in the west (mainland Southeast Asia) or Sahul in the east (Australia and New Guinea), water crossings through this region were essential for the human colonisation of Australia. The archaeological record for human movement in Wallacea is still a work in progress, however, and none of the evidence pre-dates the archaeological record from Sahul. In 1977 the American anthropologist Joseph B. Birdsell suggested two main initial routes from Sunda to Sahul, a northern route with a landing in New Guinea, and a southern route landing in northern Australia. Models of this significant colonisation event have since been suggested, however, there has been little consensus about which model describes the most parsimonious pathway for first landfall in Sahul. Likewise, later movements between islands is still in question. The dearth of sampled islands and sites in Wallacea has made testing movement models against archaeological evidence difficult, if not impossible. This PhD attempted to examine inter-island movements using a three-pronged approach: 1) archaeological survey and excavation of Wallacean sites, combined with review and revision of the archaeological literature, to identify the timings of early human occupation in the region and enlarge the number of archaeological sample points; 2) reconstructing the palaeogeography of the Wallacean archipelago for the likely periods of initial human colonisation, and through this, model island connectivity and develop a model for human movement through the region; and 3) identify proxy records of human movement between islands to provide information on networks of connection between prehistoric island communities, and in doing so test the reliability of the model outcomes. This study provides a much needed up date to Birdsell's model from over 40 years ago, with an innovative use of geographic information systems to digitise and expand upon the reconstructions of palaeo-Wallacea and the differing variables which would have impacted early modern human movements through the region. The resulting reconstructions and models identified a multitude of now-submerged islands throughout Wallacea which would have significantly increased the connectivity between islands in the prehistoric archipelago, produced the first reconstructions of palaeo-hydrology for the region, developed two measures of intervisibility between islands and in applying these calculations to the Wallacean archipelago, identified ca. 65 ka and ca. 45 ka as the periods of likely human arrival with the greatest intervisibility. This study is also the first to apply least-cost modelling techniques to sea travel, enabling the model to be expanded across the Wallacean archipelago for the first time. Models and palaeogeographic reconstructions constructed herein provide overwhelming support for an initial northern route through Wallacea, with a landing on the modern island of Misool, near the Papuan Bird's Head. Extensive archaeological research on islands of the southern route has so far failed to recover any dates which pre-date those for Sahul, and thus support this inference. Human translocations of cuscus (Phalangeridae) throughout Wallacea found good support for a humanly-assisted introduction from Papua to Timor ca. 3ka, supporting movement between these islands by at least the mid-Holocene

Experiences of Implanon NXT® users at public health facilities in South Africa.

Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.Background and aim: Implanon NXT® was introduced in South Africa (SA) in the public health sector in February 2014. There exist concerns with premature Implanon NXT® user discontinuation in SA however, the true extent remains unknown due to delayed monitoring systems and limited empirical data. This study aimed to evaluate the experiences of Implanon NXT® among users in the public health sector in SA. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted and entailed analysis of secondary data attained from the National Department of Health Pharmacovigilance Centre for Public Health Programmes using reports submitted from 1 April 2015 to 11 September 2017. A total of 3743 cases were extracted and analysed using SPSS®. Tests of association were performed using demographics, adverse drug reactions and discontinuation variables. Chi square test and Mann Whitney U-Test were performed to test differences between Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). Results: The 20-24-year olds were the most frequent Implanon NXT® users (25.70%; 962/3743). Of the 36.57% (1369/3743) cases which reported adverse drug reactions (ADRs), menorrhagia (52.01%;712/1369), headache (20.45%;280/1369) and dizziness (11.18%;153/1369) were the most frequent ADRs. Discontinuation was reported by 63.56% (2379/3743) of case reports and premature discontinuation was reported by 81.1% (1210/1492). The common reasons for discontinuation were menorrhagia (34.27%;728/2124), expiry (29.57%;628/2124) and headache (10.26%;218/2124). Overall, ADRs were found to be the main reason for discontinuation (83.99%; 1784/2124). Pregnancies reported with Implanon NXT® occurred in 4.97% (68/1369) of case reports and efavirenz-based therapy was suspected to be associated with pregnancy in Implanon NXT® users (p<0.001). The common ADRs and reasons for discontinuation of Implanon NXT® reported in Gauteng was consistent with the national data while drug interaction and pregnancy were commonly reported in KZN. Premature discontinuation of Implanon NXT® was higher in Gauteng (82.6%, 252/305) than KZN (76.7%, 23/30). Conclusion: Young women were frequent users of Implanon NXT® . Menorrhagia was the predominantly reported ADR among all the users. A high frequency of discontinuation was identified, and ADRs were mainly responsible for discontinuation. The frequency of failure was small and efavirenz was suspected to be associated. The experiences of Implanon NXT® users differed between KZN and Gauteng which emphasizes tailored strategies need to be considered. Users’ counselling, adverse drug reaction treatment and management, monitoring and evaluation are recommended to address high discontinuation in SA

College Student Alcohol Use and Engagement in Prevention Programming

Social problems and adverse consequences have been associated with risky alcohol use (Paschall et al, 2015). Personalized Normative Feedback (PNF) has been utilized to address these problems (White and Hingson, 2014) by comparing students’ alcohol use to campus or national norms (Butler et al, 2009). The current investigation sought to understand differences in alcohol use behaviors in freshmen who did and did not report completion of a personalized feedback intervention (PFI) in a diverse sample of college students from the Spit for Science (S4S) project. S4S is a campus-wide, longitudinal study on the genetic and environmental factors that contribute to mental health and substance use outcomes in college students. Freshmen (N=1,168) completed surveys in the fall and spring; in the spring, whether or not students completed a PFI during their freshman year was assessed. Alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms and grams of ethanol consumed were calculated for participants who reported completing an online PFI for alcohol use (n=365) and for those who did not (n=803). We hypothesized that (1) PFI freshmen would exhibit greater alcohol consumption and AUD symptoms in the fall (pre-PFI), and (2) students in both groups would exhibit equal rates in the spring (post-PFI). There was sufficient evidence to support the fall hypothesis: students in the prevention group exhibited higher levels of alcohol consumption (t=1.39, p\u3c0.001) and AUD symptoms (t=2.42, p=0.031). The spring hypothesis was not supported: PFI students exhibited higher levels of alcohol consumption (t)=1.4373, p\u3c0.01) and AUD symptoms (t=2.09, p \u3c 0.01). Future research could examine whether the results may vary by ethnicity or other demographic characteristics.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/uresposters/1272/thumbnail.jp

HIV-1 Activates T Cell Signaling Independently of Antigen to Drive Viral Spread

open access articleHIV-1 spreads between CD4 T cells most efficiently through virus-induced cell-cell contacts. To test whether this process potentiates viral spread by activating signaling pathways, we developed an approach to analyze the phosphoproteome in infected and uninfected mixed-population T cells using differential metabolic labeling and mass spectrometry. We discovered HIV-1-induced activation of signaling networks during viral spread encompassing over 200 cellular proteins. Strikingly, pathways downstream of the T cell receptor were the most significantly activated, despite the absence of canonical antigen-dependent stimulation. The importance of this pathway was demonstrated by the depletion of proteins, and we show that HIV-1 Env-mediated cell-cell contact, the T cell receptor, and the Src kinase Lck were essential for signaling-dependent enhancement of viral dissemination. This study demonstrates that manipulation of signaling at immune cell contacts by HIV-1 is essential for promoting virus replication and defines a paradigm for antigen-independent T cell signaling

A Geological and Spatial Approach to Prehistoric Archaeological Surveys on Small Islands: Case Studies from Maluku Barat Daya, Indonesia

Survei arkeologi sangat penting untuk penemuan dan interpretasi sisa-sisa yang ditinggalkan oleh aktivitas manusia prasejarah. Saat ini penginderaan jarak jauh dan model prediktif telah meningkatkan jangkauan dan keberhasilan survei arkeologi, namun survei pejalan kaki untuk mengembangkan parameter model dan prediksi kebenaran dasar masih penting untuk keberhasilan suatu penemuan. Penelitian ini merupakan hasil survei arkeologi tahun 2017 di Pulau Babar Besar dan Pulau Wetang yang termasuk dalam bagian dari kelompok Kepulauan Babar, Maluku Barat Daya, Indonesia. Tercatat sebanyak 62 situs arkeologi ditemukan di kedua pulau tersebut, tujuh diantaranya merupakan situs lukisan cadas baru yang ditemukan di Pulau Wetang. Hasil survei ini menunjukkan keberhasilan penggunaan peta geologi dan topografi di samping citra satelit dalam mendeteksi daerah prospektif untuk survei. Hasil penelitian ini juga menunjukkan bahwa pemahaman karakteristik geologi daerah yang lebih rinci dan komparatif diperlukan sebelum dilakukan survei jarak jauh yang lebih lanjut di wilayah Maluku Barat Daya, Indonesia.Archaeological surveys are essential to the discovery and interpretation of remains left by past human activities. While remote sensing and predictive models have greatly improved the reach and success of archaeological survey, pedestrian surveys to develop model parameters and ground-truth predictions is still imperative for successful discoveries. Here we present the results of the 2017 archaeological survey of islands Babar Besar and Wetang in the Babar Island Group, Maluku Barat Daya, Indonesia. A total of 62 archaeological sites were recorded between the two islands; seven of which represent new rock art sites on Wetang island. Our survey results indicate the successful use of geological and topographic maps alongside satellite images in detecting prospective regions for survey. Results also indicate however that a more detailed and comparative understanding of the regions geology is required before more advanced forms of remote survey are conducted in the Maluku Barat Daya region

Communities in conservation: Protected area management and enhanced conservation in Bangladesh

In the last few decades, the natural resource base of most developing countries has decreased alarmingly because of enormous population pressure and extreme poverty. Bangladesh is no exception, having lost most of its forest in the last 30 years. The Government of Bangladesh (GoB) has adopted various approaches to conserve the country’s remaining biodiversity, including protected areas (PAs). However, the creation of PAs alone has not produced positive conservation results as expected, due to a purely ecological focus that excluded the needs of local forestdependent people. The introduction of community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) for nature conservation in PAs is relatively new for Bangladesh compared to other South Asian countries, but it seems to have effected significant changes. The GoB recently adopted CBNRM in five of its PAs as part of a pilot programme in collaborative management. This paper is a case study of the changing trends in PA management, people’s livelihoods and attitudes in and around one of these pilot sites. We observed that some changes have already taken place in forest resource collection patterns and in the attitudes of people in the locality. People’s income sources and dependency on protected forests have also noticeably shifted away from forest areas in the Communities in conservation: protected area management and enhanced conservation in Bangladesh last year. Although gradual, people’s participation seems to be changing the direction of future forest conservation in Bangladesh. We conclude that bringing a larger number of people under various income-generating schemes, clearly defining the rights and responsibilities of the local people in PAs and ensuring more effective governance should be the next steps for the future of participatory management in the country

Effectiveness of antenatal corticosteroids at term:Can we trust the data that 'inform' us?

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are a cornerstone for the assessment of the effectiveness of interventions. Appropriate randomization, design, sample size, statistical analyses, and conduct that reduces the risk of bias, enhance the chance they will deliver true research findings. The credibility of RCTs is difficult to assess without objective evidence of compliance with Good Clinical Practice standards. Remarkably, no mechanisms are in place both in the initial peer review process and during meta-analysis to assess these, and little guidance on how to assess data where research integrity cannot be confirmed (e.g. where data originated from a setting without established infrastructure or an era preceding current standards). We describe the case of the use of antenatal steroids. When these drugs are used in early preterm birth, their benefits outweigh the harms. However, later in pregnancy, and specifically at term, this balance is less clear. We describe that the four randomised clinical trials that inform clinical practice through the Cochrane meta-analysis, for various reasons, lack clear governance which makes it difficult to verify provenance and reliability of the data. We conclude that transparency and assessment of data credibility need to be inbuilt both at the time of publication and at the time of meta-analysis. This will drive up standards and encourage appropriate interpretation of results and the context from which they were derived.Ben W.Mol, Wentao Li, Shimona Lai, Sarah Stoc

A review of archaeological dating efforts at cave and rockshelter sites in the Indonesian Archipelago

In the last 35 years Indonesia has seen a substantial increase in the number of dated, cave and rockshelter sites, from 10 to 99. Here we review the published records of cave and rockshelter sites across the country to compile a complete list of dates for initial occupation at each site. All radiocarbon dates are calibrated here for standardization, many of them for the first time in publication. Our results indicate a clear disparity in the distribution of dated archaeological sites across Indonesia, which seem to be mostly influenced by ease of access, international collaboration focus, and the history of prior research success in a region. In addition, our review of the literature revealed a clear lack of standardization in the presentation of radiocarbon dates and their usage in publications. Despite the impressive increase in dating across Indonesia, our review of the literature suggests numerous excavated prehistoric sites in Indonesia remain undated at this time. Studies such as this, and possible others focused on Indonesia’s other archaeological sites, are useful for providing researchers with a dataset for investigations of some of the bigger questions in archaeology in the region