Parental Attitudes Toward Newborn Screening for Duchenne/Becker Muscular Dystrophy and Spinal Muscular Atrophy

A sensitive and specific screen for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) has been clinically confirmed, but the acceptability of adding DMD to the newborn screening (NBS) program has been controversial due to a lack of evidence that early diagnosis improves clinical outcome. With promising new gene therapies currently in clinical trials, it is reasonable to consider NBS for DMD for early pharmaceutical intervention. It is our objective to assess parents’ attitudes toward the acceptability of including DMD, the milder and allelic Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD), and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in the NBS panel, as well as to determine which factors (early diagnosis, family planning, parent-child bonding, anxiety, decision regret, time to prepare) are the most influential in parents’ opinions. Methods: Two cohorts were recruited separately and surveyed about their attitudes toward NBS for DMD/BMD/SMA. Expectant parents were recruited with no regard to family history, and their opinions were compared to those of parents of children with DMD, BMD, or SMA. Results: Of the 65 parents of children with DMD, BMD, or SMA that were surveyed, 63 (97%) supported NBS for DMD/BMD/SMA, either as a mandatory screen or with parental permission. Of the 400 expectant parents surveyed, 369 (92.5%) would have their child screened at birth for an incurable, life-shortening disease such as DMD/BMD/SMA. Expectant parents, especially those who would choose to have their child screened, viewed the benefits of early diagnosis (58.9%) as the most influential factor in their decision. Conclusions: There is strong support for NBS for DMD/BMD/SMA in both cohorts, which is not contingent on further therapeutic development. The consideration of including non-treatable diseases in NBS should include consideration of parental opinions on the beneficence of screening. Although there is currently no direct medical benefit to early diagnosis in DMD/BMD/SMA, parents responded that early diagnosis could have other, less tangible benefits. Parental opinions, along with promising clinical trials, make the implementation of an optional screen ideal for DMD, BMD, and SMA. Public Health Importance: NBS is the foremost intersection of genetics and public health. It is imperative to involve public opinion when assessing the acceptability of adding a potentially controversial disease to a standard panel

A Search for Identity: Frances Calderon de la Barca and Life in Mexico

Scottish-born Frances Calderon de la Barca, wife of the first Spanish minister to Mexico, recorded her observations and interpretations of mid-nineteenth century Mexico in a series of letters and journals. In 1843, she published Life in Mexico, an edited version of her letters. Acclaimed for its style and descriptive qualities, Life in Mexico also reveals the author\u27s personal struggle to define herself and her role in Mexican society. Life in Mexico provides historians with a unique perspective into Mexico\u27s cultural and ideological relationship with the European and American world

Wives, Clerks, and 'Lady Diplomats': The Gendered Politics of Diplomacy and Representation in the U.S. Foreign Service, 1900-1940

In the first few decades of the twentieth century, as the United States asserted itself on the world stage, American women played important roles in the work of diplomacy within the formal U.S. Foreign Service structure. They accompanied their diplomat husbands abroad, as wives and quasi-professional partners in the Service, primarily focusing on the critical social and domestic aspects of diplomatic life abroad.  As these American missions grew in size and complexity during the period from 1900 to 1940, U.S. State Department officials saw the need for additional clerical assistance, and increasingly relied on the work of women, as clerks and stenographers.  As employees of the U.S. State Department, these women also maintained the representative qualities associated with diplomatic work. During this same time period, the U.S. State Department and the Foreign Service in particular remained rather adamantly convinced that American women were “not fitted to discharge the exacting and peculiar duties of a Foreign Service Officer.”  Increasing pressure from women’s groups resulted in a protracted debate over the suitability of women to serve as official representatives of the U.S. government in overseas positions. This paper will analyze the debates, in the State Department and among American diplomats abroad, about the roles of women as wives, clerks and professional diplomats  in the U.S. Foreign Service during the critical pre-World War II era

How Functionalist and Process Approaches to Behavior Can Explain Trait Covariation

Factors identified in investigations of trait structure (e.g., the Big Five) are sometimes understood as explanations or sources of the covariation of distinct behavioral traits, as when extraversion is suggested to underlie the covariation of assertiveness and sociability. Here, we detail how trait covariation can alternatively be understood as arising from units common to functionalist and process frameworks, such as self-efficacies, expectancies, values, and goals. Specifically, the expected covariation between two behavioral traits should be increased when a specific process variable tends to indicate the functionality of both traits simultaneously. In 2 empirical illustrations, we identify a wide array of specific process variables associated with several Big Five-related behavioral traits simultaneously, and which are thus likely sources of their covariation. Many of these, such as positive interpersonal expectancies, self-regulatory skills, and preference for order, relate similarly to a broad range of trait perceptions in both studies, and across both self- and peer-reports. We also illustrate how this understanding of trait covariation provides a somewhat novel explanation of why some traits are uncorrelated. As we discuss, a functionalist understanding of trait covariation as arising through functionalist or process variables has implications for many basic issues in personality psychology, such as how personality traits should be measured, mechanisms for personality stability and change, and the nature of personality traits more generally. Includes supplementary materials

Temperate and tropical forest canopies are already functioning beyond their thermal thresholds for photosynthesis

Tropical tree species have evolved under very narrow temperature ranges compared to temperate forest species. Studies suggest that tropical trees may be more vulnerable to continued warming compared to temperate species, as tropical trees have shown declines in growth and photosynthesis at elevated temperatures. However, regional and global vegetation models lack the data needed to accurately represent such physiological responses to increased temperatures, especially for tropical forests. To address this need, we compared instantaneous photosynthetic temperature responses of mature canopy foliage, leaf temperatures, and air temperatures across vertical canopy gradients in three forest types: tropical wet, tropical moist, and temperate deciduous. Temperatures at which maximum photosynthesis occurred were greater in the tropical forests canopies than the temperate canopy (30 ± 0.3 °C vs. 27 ± 0.4 °C). However, contrary to expectations that tropical species would be functioning closer to threshold temperatures, photosynthetic temperature optima was exceeded by maximum daily leaf temperatures, resulting in sub-optimal rates of carbon assimilation for much of the day, especially in upper canopy foliage (\u3e10 m). If trees are unable to thermally acclimate to projected elevated temperatures, these forests may shift from net carbon sinks to sources, with potentially dire implications to climate feedbacks and forest community composition

On the shoulders of giants: Continuing the legacy of large-scale ecosystem manipulation experiments in Puerto Rico

There is a long history of experimental research in the Luquillo Experimental Forest in Puerto Rico. These experiments have addressed questions about biotic thresholds, assessed why communities vary along natural gradients, and have explored forest responses to a range of both anthropogenic and non-anthropogenic disturbances. Combined, these studies cover many of the major disturbances that affect tropical forests around the world and span a wide range of topics, including the effects of forest thinning, ionizing radiation, hurricane disturbance, nitrogen deposition, drought, and global warming. These invaluable studies have greatly enhanced our understanding of tropical forest function under different disturbance regimes and informed the development of management strategies. Here we summarize the major field experiments that have occurred within the Luquillo Experimental Forest. Taken together, results from the major experiments conducted in the Luquillo Experimental Forest demonstrate a high resilience of Puerto Rico’s tropical forests to a variety of stressors

Malaria "diagnosis" and diagnostics in Afghanistan.

In many malaria-endemic areas, including Afghanistan, overdiagnosis of malaria is common. Even when using parasite-based diagnostic tests prior to treatment, clinicians commonly prescribe antimalarial treatment following negative test results. This practice neglects alternative causes of fever, uses drugs unnecessarily, and might contribute to antimalarial drug resistance. We undertook a qualitative study among health workers using different malaria diagnostic methods in Afghanistan to explore perceptions of malaria diagnosis. Health workers valued diagnostic tests for their ability to confirm clinical suspicions of malaria via a positive result, but a negative result was commonly interpreted as an absence of diagnosis, legitimizing clinical diagnosis of malaria and prescription of antimalarial drugs. Prescribing decisions reflected uncertainty around tests and diagnosis, and were influenced by social- and health-system factors. Study findings emphasize the need for nuanced and context-specific guidance to change prescriber behavior and improve treatment of malarial and nonmalarial febrile illnesses

Infrared heater system for warming tropical forest understory plants and soils

The response of tropical forests to global warming is one of the largest uncertainties in predicting the future carbon balance of Earth. To determine the likely effects of elevated temperatures on tropical forest understory plants and soils, as well as other ecosystems, an infrared (IR) heater system was developed to provide in situ warming for the Tropical Responses to Altered Climate Experiment (TRACE) in the Luquillo Experimental Forest in Puerto Rico. Three replicate heated 4‐m‐diameter plots were warmed to maintain a 4°C increase in understory vegetation compared to three unheated control plots, as sensed by IR thermometers. The equipment was larger than any used previously and was subjected to challenges different from those of many temperate ecosystem warming systems, including frequent power surges and outages, high humidity, heavy rains, hurricanes, saturated clayey soils, and steep slopes. The system was able to maintain the target 4.0°C increase in hourly average vegetation temperatures to within ± 0.1°C. The vegetation was heterogeneous and on a 21° slope, which decreased uniformity of the warming treatment on the plots; yet, the green leaves were fairly uniformly warmed, and there was little difference among 0–10 cm depth soil temperatures at the plot centers, edges, and midway between. Soil temperatures at the 40–50 cm depth increased about 3°C compared to the controls after a month of warming. As expected, the soil in the heated plots dried faster than that of the control plots, but the average soil moisture remained adequate for the plants. The TRACE heating system produced an adequately uniform warming precisely controlled down to at least 50‐cm soil depth, thereby creating a treatment that allows for assessing mechanistic responses of tropical plants and soil to warming, with applicability to other ecosystems. No physical obstacles to scaling the approach to taller vegetation (i.e., trees) and larger plots were observed

Findings of the East Africa Humanitarian Climate Risk Management Workshop

The East African humanitarian community is looking for ways to better respond to the challenges presented by climate risks, including climate change, but is struggling to access appropriate and targeted scientific data that can inform their operations. Recent advances in science and technology have produced a variety of new tools for humanitarian organizations working on climate risk management. Humanitarian actors have an enormous opportunity to utilize these tools to inform risk reduction, preparedness and contingency planning, as well as program implementation. Despite such advances, many challenges remain to the practical application of these tools in the humanitarian context. Often times, climate information is too technical or lacks the context necessary for use in humanitarian planning and operations. Thus, climate information must be tailored to specific needs and presented in formats that are readily accessible to these users. In response, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), in close collaboration with the International Federation of Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), initiated the development of a 2-day Humanitarian Climate Risk Management Workshop on 23- 24 February 2010. Initiatives that enable interaction can help to bridge the divide between humanitarian practitioners and climate experts; feedback provided by end-users can guide research and development of new prediction technologies and tools, as well as more appropriate packaging of current information. At the same time, humanitarian actors need to evaluate how such information can usefully inform their decision-making at various timescales. The challenge of decision-making under uncertainty must be addressed if climate information is to be used effectively within humanitarian planning, preparedness, and response. This workshop aimed to address such barriers to the use of climate information