Death, dying and informatics: misrepresenting religion on MedLine

BACKGROUND: The globalization of medical science carries for doctors worldwide a correlative duty to deepen their understanding of patients' cultural contexts and religious backgrounds, in order to satisfy each as a unique individual. To become better informed, practitioners may turn to MedLine, but it is unclear whether the information found there is an accurate representation of culture and religion. To test MedLine's representation of this field, we chose the topic of death and dying in the three major monotheistic religions. METHODS: We searched MedLine using PubMed in order to retrieve and thematically analyze full-length scholarly journal papers or case reports dealing with religious traditions and end-of-life care. Our search consisted of a string of words that included the most common denominations of the three religions, the standard heading terms used by the National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature (NRCBL), and the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) used by the National Library of Medicine. Eligible articles were limited to English-language papers with an abstract. RESULTS: We found that while a bibliographic search in MedLine on this topic produced instant results and some valuable literature, the aggregate reflected a selection bias. American writers were over-represented given the global prevalence of these religious traditions. Denominationally affiliated authors predominated in representing the Christian traditions. The Islamic tradition was under-represented. CONCLUSION: MedLine's capability to identify the most current, reliable and accurate information about purely scientific topics should not be assumed to be the same case when considering the interface of religion, culture and end-of-life care

Safety evaluation of substituted thiophenes used as flavoring ingredients.

This publication is the second in a series by the Expert Panel of the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association summarizing the conclusions of its third systematic re-evaluation of the safety of flavorings previously considered to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS) under conditions of intended use. Re-evaluation of GRAS status for flavorings is based on updated considerations of exposure, structural analogy, metabolism, pharmacokinetics and toxicology and includes a comprehensive review of the scientific information on the flavorings and structurally related substances. Of the 12 substituted thiophenes reviewed here, 11 were reaffirmed as GRAS based on their rapid absorption, metabolism and excretion in humans and animals; the low estimated dietary exposure from flavor use; the wide margins of safety between the conservative estimates of intake and the no-observed-adverse effect levels; and the lack of significant genotoxic and mutagenic potential. For one of the substituted thiophenes, 3-acetyl-2,5-dimethylthiophene, it was concluded that more detailed exposure information, comparative metabolism studies and comprehensive toxicity data, including an in-depth evaluation of the mechanism of action for any adverse effects observed, are required for continuation of its FEMA GRAS™ status. In the absence of these data, the compound was removed from the FEMA GRAS list

Initial results of multilevel principal components analysis of facial shape

Traditionally, active shape models (ASMs) do not make a distinction between groups in the subject population and they rely on methods such as (single-level) principal components analysis (PCA). Multilevel principal components analysis (PCA) allows one to model between-group effects and within-group effects explicitly. Three dimensional (3D) laser scans were taken from 240 subjects (38 Croatian female, 35 Croatian male, 40 English female, 40 English male, 23 Welsh female, 27 Welsh male, 23 Finnish female, and 24 Finnish male) and 21 landmark points were created subsequently for each scan. After Procrustes transformation, eigenvalues from mPCA and from single-level PCA based on these points were examined. mPCA indicated that the first two eigenvalues of largest magnitude related to within-groups components, but that the next largest eigenvalue related to between-groups components. Eigenvalues from single-level PCA always had a larger magnitude than either within-group or between-group eigenvectors at equivalent eigenvalue number. An examination of the first mode of variation indicated possible mixing of between-group and within-group effects in single-level PCA. Component scores for mPCA indicated clustering with country and gender for the between-groups components (as ex-pected), but not for the within-group terms (also as expected). Clustering of component scores for single-level PCA was harder to resolve. In conclusion, mPCA is viable method of forming shape models that offers distinct advantages over single-level PCA when groups occur naturally in the subject population

Variable-focus microlenses as a potential technology for endoscopy

Using a new device which contains an array of microlenses whose focal lengths can be electrically varied, we have been able to control the input from one microlens to a single mode fibre using an applied voltage. For such a microlens array many closely-spaced focal spots can be generated in parallel, and electrically switched to address, potentially, an array of receiver fibres. We show how the particular switching characteristics of the device, whereby the lenses switch from diverging to converging, serves in turn to disperse light and to focus it into the fibre

Reliability of 1-repetition maximum estimation for upper and lower body muscular strength measurement in untrained middle aged type 2 diabetic patients

Purpose: The 1-repetition maximum (1-RM) test is the gold standard test for evaluating maximal dynamic strength of groups of muscles. However, safety of actual 1-RM testing is questionable in clinical situations such as type 2 diabetes (T2D), where an estimated 1-RM test is preferred. It is unclear if acceptable test retest reliability exists for the estimated 1-RM test in middle aged T2D patients. This study examined the reliability of the estimated 1-RM strength test in untrained middle aged T2D subjects.Methods: Twenty five untrained diabetic males (n=19) and females (n=6) aged 40.7+0.4 years participated in the study. Participants undertook the first estimated 1-RM test for five exercises namely supine bench press, leg press, lateral pull, leg extension and seated biceps curls. A familiarisation session was provided three to five days before the first test. 1-RM was estimated for all participants by Brzycki 1-RM prediction equation. Another identical 1-RM estimation procedure occurred one week after first test. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), paired t-test, standard error of measurement (SEM), Bland-Altman plots, and estimation of 95% CI were used to assess reliability.Results: Test-retest reliability was excellent (ICC2,1=0.98-0.99) for all measurements with the highest for leg extension (ICC2,1=0.99). The SEM was lowest for lateral pull and leg extension exercises. Paired t-tests showed non-significant differences between the means of 2 sessions across three of five exercises.Conclusions: The study findings suggest that estimation of 1-RM is reliable for upper and lower body muscular strength measurement in untrained middle aged T2D patients.https://doi.org/10.5812/asjsm.345493pubpub

Strain-dependent host transcriptional responses to toxoplasma infection are largely conserved in mammalian and avian hosts

Toxoplasma gondii has a remarkable ability to infect an enormous variety of mammalian and avian species. Given this, it is surprising that three strains (Types I/II/III) account for the majority of isolates from Europe/North America. The selective pressures that have driven the emergence of these particular strains, however, remain enigmatic. We hypothesized that strain selection might be partially driven by adaptation of strains for mammalian versus avian hosts. To test this, we examine in vitro, strain-dependent host responses in fibroblasts of a representative avian host, the chicken (Gallus gallus). Using gene expression profiling of infected chicken embryonic fibroblasts and pathway analysis to assess host response, we show here that chicken cells respond with distinct transcriptional profiles upon infection with Type II versus III strains that are reminiscent of profiles observed in mammalian cells. To identify the parasite drivers of these differences, chicken fibroblasts were infected with individual F1 progeny of a Type II x III cross and host gene expression was assessed for each by microarray. QTL mapping of transcriptional differences suggested, and deletion strains confirmed, that, as in mammalian cells, the polymorphic rhoptry kinase ROP16 is the major driver of strain-specific responses. We originally hypothesized that comparing avian versus mammalian host response might reveal an inversion in parasite strain-dependent phenotypes; specifically, for polymorphic effectors like ROP16, we hypothesized that the allele with most activity in mammalian cells might be less active in avian cells. Instead, we found that activity of ROP16 alleles appears to be conserved across host species; moreover, additional parasite loci that were previously mapped for strain-specific effects on mammalian response showed similar strain-specific effects in chicken cells. These results indicate that if different hosts select for different parasite genotypes, the selection operates downstream of the signaling occurring during the beginning of the host's immune response. © 2011 Ong et al

Non-response to a life course socioeconomic position indicator in surveillance: comparison of telephone and face-to-face modes

© 2008 Chittleborough et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Background Measurement of socioeconomic position (SEP) over the life course in population health surveillance systems is important for examining differences in health and illness between different population groups and for monitoring the impact of policies and interventions aimed at reducing health inequities and intergenerational disadvantage over time. While face-to-face surveys are considered the gold standard of interviewing techniques, computer-assisted telephone interviewing is often preferred for cost and convenience. This study compared recall of parents' highest level of education in telephone and face-to-face surveys. Methods Questions about father's and mother's highest education level were included in two representative population health surveys of South Australians aged 18 years and over in Spring 2004. A random sample selected from the electronic white pages (EWP) responded to a computer-assisted telephone interview (n = 2999), and a multistage clustered area sample responded to a face-to-face interview (n = 2893). A subsample of respondents in the face-to-face sample who owned a telephone that was listed in the EWP (n = 2206) was also compared to the telephone interview sample. Results The proportion of respondents who provided information about their father's and mother's highest education level was significantly higher in the face-to-face interview (86.3% and 87.8%, respectively) than in the telephone interview (80.4% and 79.9%, respectively). Recall was also significantly higher in the subsample of respondents in the face-to-face interview who had a telephone that was listed in the EWP. Those with missing data for parents' education were more likely to be socioeconomically disadvantaged regardless of the survey mode. Conclusion While face-to-face interviewing obtained higher item response rates for questions about parents' education, survey mode did not appear to influence the factors associated with having missing data on father's or mother's highest education level

Acetylated histone variant H2A.Z is involved in the activation of neo-enhancers in prostate cancer.

Acetylation of the histone variant H2A.Z (H2A.Zac) occurs at active promoters and is associated with oncogene activation in prostate cancer, but its role in enhancer function is still poorly understood. Here we show that H2A.Zac containing nucleosomes are commonly redistributed to neo-enhancers in cancer resulting in a concomitant gain of chromatin accessibility and ectopic gene expression. Notably incorporation of acetylated H2A.Z nucleosomes is a pre-requisite for activation of Androgen receptor (AR) associated enhancers. H2A.Zac nucleosome occupancy is rapidly remodeled to flank the AR sites to initiate the formation of nucleosome-free regions and the production of AR-enhancer RNAs upon androgen treatment. Remarkably higher levels of global H2A.Zac correlate with poorer prognosis. Altogether these data demonstrate the novel contribution of H2A.Zac in activation of newly formed enhancers in prostate cancer