How to assess the effectiveness of nasal influenza vaccines? Role and measurement of sIgA in mucosal secretions

Secretory IgAs (sIgA) constitute the principal isotype of antibodies present in nasal and mucosal secretions. They are secreted by plasma cells adjacent to the mucosal epithelial cells, the site where infection occurs, and are the main humoral mediator of mucosal immunity. Mucosally delivered vaccines, such as live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV), are able to mimic natural infection without causing disease or virus transmission and mainly elicit a local immune response. The measurement of sIgA concentrations in nasal swab/wash and saliva samples is therefore a valuable tool for evaluating their role in the effectiveness of such vaccines. Here, we describe two standardized assays (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and microneutralization) available for the quantification of sIgA and discuss the advantages and limitations of their use

Toward High-Precision Measures of Large-Scale Structure

I review some results of estimation of the power spectrum of density fluctuations from galaxy redshift surveys and discuss advances that may be possible with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. I then examine the realities of power spectrum estimation in the presence of Galactic extinction, photometric errors, galaxy evolution, clustering evolution, and uncertainty about the background cosmology.Comment: 24 pages, including 11 postscript figures. Uses crckapb.sty (included in submission). To appear in ``Ringberg Workshop on Large-Scale Structure,'' ed D. Hamilton (Kluwer, Amsterdam), p. 39

The nature and fate of natural resins in the geosphere XIII: a probable pinaceous resin from the early Cretaceous (Barremian), Isle of Wight

Terpenoid resin is produced by all families and most genera of the order Coniferales (the conifers), and the distribution of terpenes present in most conifer resins is characteristic of the originating family. Analyses of early Cretaceous (Barremian) amber (fossil resin) from the English Wealden, Isle of Wight, southern England, by pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS), indicate a terpene distribution dominated by abietane- and labdane-type terpenes. Similar distributions are observed in some species of the extant family Pinaceae. The Pinaceae are well represented within the Wealden deposits of southern England, by only one (known) species, Pityites solmsii (Seward) Seward, whereas the macro-fossil record of these deposits is dominated by the extinct conifer family Cheirolepidiaceae, for which no resin chemistry has been reported. By analogy with modern materials, it is probable that the ambers found in these deposits are derived from an extinct member of the Pinaceae, but given the absence of evidence concerning the chemotaxonomy of the Cheirolepidiaceae, this family cannot be excluded a priori as a possible paleobotanical source. These ambers may therefore be assigned to either the Pinaceae or to the Cheirolepidiaceae. These samples are the oldest ambers to date to yield useful chemotaxonomic data

<i>Lrig1</i> expression identifies airway basal cells with high proliferative capacity and restricts lung squamous cell carcinoma growth

Lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) accounts for a significant proportion of cancer deaths worldwide, and is preceded by the appearance of progressively disorganised pre-invasive lesions in the airway epithelium. Yet the biological mechanisms underlying progression of pre-invasive lesions into invasive LUSC are not fully understood. LRIG1 is downregulated in pre-invasive airway lesions and invasive LUSC tumours and this correlates with decreased lung cancer patient survival.Using an Lrig1 knock-in reporter mouse and human airway epithelial cells collected at bronchoscopy, we show that during homeostasis LRIG1 is heterogeneously expressed in the airway epithelium. In basal airway epithelial cells, the suspected cell of origin of LUSC, LRIG1 identifies a subpopulation of progenitor cells with higher in vitro proliferative and self-renewal potential in both the mouse and human. Using the N-nitroso-tris-chloroethylurea (NTCU)-induced murine model of LUSC, we find that Lrig1 loss-of-function leads to abnormally high cell proliferation during the earliest stages of pre-invasive disease and to the formation of significantly larger invasive tumours, suggesting accelerated disease progression.Together, our findings identify LRIG1 as a marker of basal airway progenitor cells with high proliferative potential and as a regulator of pre-invasive lung cancer progression. This work highlights the clinical relevance of LRIG1 and the potential of the NTCU-induced LUSC model for functional assessment of candidate tumour suppressors and oncogenes

Defining emergency department episodes by severity and intensity: A 15-year study of Medicare beneficiaries

Background. Episodes of Emergency Department (ED) service use among older adults previously have not been constructed, or evaluated as multi-dimensional phenomena. In this study, we constructed episodes of ED service use among a cohort of older adults over a 15-year observation period, measured the episodes by severity and intensity, and compared these measures in predicting subsequent hospitalization. Methods. We conducted a secondary analysis of the prospective cohort study entitled the Survey on Assets and Health Dynamics among the Oldest Old (AHEAD). Baseline (1993) data on 5,511 self-respondents 70 years old were linked to their Medicare claims for 1991-2005. Claims then were organized into episodes of ED care according to Medicare guidelines. The severity of ED episodes was measured with a modified-NYU algorithm using ICD9-CM diagnoses, and the intensity of the episodes was measured using CPT codes. Measures were evaluated against subsequent hospitalization to estimate comparative predictive validity. Results. Over 15 years, three-fourths (4,171) of the 5,511 AHEAD participants had at least 1 ED episode, with a mean of 4.5 episodes. Cross-classification indicated the modified-NYU severity measure and the CPT-based intensity measure captured different aspects of ED episodes (kappa = 0.18). While both measures were significant independent predictors of hospital admission from ED episodes, the CPT measure had substantially higher predictive validity than the modified-NYU measure (AORs 5.70 vs. 3.31; p < .001). Conclusions. We demonstrated an innovative approach for how claims data can be used to construct episodes of ED care among a sample of older adults. We also determined that the modified-NYU measure of severity and the CPT measure of intensity tap different aspects of ED episodes, and that both measures were predictive of subsequent hospitalization. © 2010 Kaskie et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

The state of pediatric asthma in Chicago's Humboldt Park: a community-based study in two local elementary schools

Abstract Background Pediatric asthma is a serious public health problem in Chicago and has been designated a high priority concern by residents of Chicago's Humboldt Park, a diverse community area with a large number of Puerto Rican, African American, and Mexican American families. Methods In May 2009, following the principles of community-based participatory research, a cross-sectional asthma screening survey was administered to adult caregivers of children attending two Humboldt Park elementary schools. Data were analyzed to determine the prevalence of diagnosed and probable asthma as well as the degree of asthma control among affected children; associations between asthma outcomes and mutable triggers were evaluated. Results Surveys from 494 children were evaluated. Physician-diagnosed asthma was reported for 24.9% of children and probable asthma identified in an additional 16.2% of children. Asthma was poorly or moderately controlled in 60.0% of diagnosed children. Smoking occurred inside 25.0% of households and 75.0% of caregivers reported idling of vehicles in their community. Report of general stress among caregivers, stress due to community crime, and/or an inability to cope with everyday life were significantly and positively associated with poor asthma morbidity and control among affected children. Conclusions Despite high prevalence rates and poor asthma morbidity and control in Humboldt Park, the association of these measures with mutable variables is promising. A community-based asthma intervention to address the issues identified in this study is needed to affect positive change.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/112574/1/12887_2010_Article_357.pd

Yours ever (well, maybe): Studies and signposts in letter writing

Electronic mail and other digital communications technologies seemingly threaten to end the era of handwritten and typed letters, now affectionately seen as part of snail mail. In this essay, I analyze a group of popular and scholarly studies about letter writing-including examples of pundits critiquing the use of e-mail, etiquette manuals advising why the handwritten letter still possesses value, historians and literary scholars studying the role of letters in the past and what it tells us about our present attitudes about digital communications technologies, and futurists predicting how we will function as personal archivists maintaining every document including e-mail. These are useful guideposts for archivists, providing both a sense of the present and the past in the role, value and nature of letters and their successors. They also provide insights into how such documents should be studied, expanding our gaze beyond the particular letters, to the tools used to create them and the traditions dictating their form and function. We also can discern a role for archivists, both for contributing to the literature about documents and in using these studies and commentaries, suggesting not a new disciplinary realm but opportunities for new interdisciplinary work. Examining a documentary form makes us more sensitive to both the innovations and traditions as it shifts from the analog to the digital; we can learn not to be caught up in hysteria or nostalgia about one form over another and archivists can learn about what they might expect in their labors to document society and its institutions. At one time, paper was part of an innovative technology, with roles very similar to the Internet and e-mail today. It may be that the shifts are far less revolutionary than is often assumed. Reading such works also suggests, finally, that archivists ought to rethink how they view their own knowledge and how it is constructed and used. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V

Who are the 'middle actors' in sustainable construction and what do they need to know?

This paper explores what knowledge and skills are needed, and how those skills and knowledge might be gained, in order to deliver more sustainable outcomes from construction, using the concept of ‘middle actors’. ‘Middle actors’ are the individuals who occupy the space between ‘top-down’ policy and instruction, and ‘bottom-up’ norms. In construction, ‘middle actors’ with influence on building performance include clerks of works, project managers, tradespeople and technical advisers. There is a relentless drive for more sustainable buildings that use less energy, generate less waste during construction and use, and provide healthy environments for people to live and work in. This direction of travel can no longer be considered ‘new’ and yet it remains far from the mainstream. To create buildings which are sustainable, we need to consider not only technology and design changes, but how to alter the wider system of construction. We use middle actors as the lens through which to examine these non-technical changes, and the skills and knowledge required to achieve them. A review of the concept of middle actors as it has been applied to construction and an overview of skills and knowledge needs for sustainable construction is followed by identifying middle actors in new build and retrofit, commercial and domestic projects currently under way with one developer in Leeds, UK. The skills and knowledge needed by ‘middle actors’ to deliver more sustainable outcomes from their projects are described, based on empirical data gathered from project teams, and further structured by considering when in the project cycle they are needed, and what routes to gaining the required skills and knowledge might be most effective. This analysis reinforces that there is no single route to achieving more sustainable buildings and instead the activities, responsibilities and networks of individuals need to be carefully considered in developing training programmes for construction teams

Information overload : the differences that age makes

Information overload has long been studied as a phenomenon that causes problems at the personal, social and organisational level. This study investigates overload from a new angle, that of the influence of age on perceptions of information overload. A combination of questionnaires, interviews and diaries were used to gain insight into people’s perceptions towards information overload. It was found that people of all ages suffer from information overload but young people are primarily affected by information literacy levels while older people are affected by technology. There was evidence of a link between age and technology use. A link was also found between job role and information overload and the impact technology has had on the quantity of information available. This research will benefit anyone, either individually or within an organisation, looking for ways to combat information overload. It identifies the influence of age on various factors and recommends actions that may be taken to reduce information overload. In particular, recommendations were made for further training in technology and information literacy. The paper is based on an approach not seen before in the literature as it investigates the effects of age on information overload by seeking to understand how perceptions towards information overload may differ between different age groups. It is anticipated that this paper will trigger further studies that could focus on the effect of job role on information overload and the likelihood of information addiction becoming a future concern