A systematic review comparing antiretroviral adherence descriptive and intervention studies conducted in the USA

We examined the extent to which studies aimed at testing interventions to improve antiretroviral adherence have targeted the facilitators of and barriers known to affect adherence. Of the 88 reports reviewed, 41 were reports of descriptive studies conducted with U.S. HIV-positive women and 47 were reports of intervention studies conducted with U.S. HIV-positive persons. We extracted from the descriptive studies all findings addressing any factor linked to antiretroviral adherence and from the intervention studies, information on the nature of the intervention, the adherence problem targeted, the persons targeted for the intervention, and the intervention outcomes desired. We discerned congruence between the prominence of substance abuse as a factor identified in the descriptive studies as a barrier to adherence and its prominence as the problem most addressed in those reports of intervention studies that specified the problems targeted for intervention. We also discerned congruence between the prominence of family and provider support as factors identified in the descriptive studies as facilitators of adherence and the presence of social support as an intervention component and outcome variable. Less discernible in the reports of intervention studies was specific attention to other factors prominent in the descriptive studies, which may be due to the complex nature of the problem, individualistic and rationalist slant of interventions, or simply the ways interventions were presented. Our review raises issues about niche standardization and intervention tailoring, targeting, and fidelity

A Bayesian method for the synthesis of evidence from qualitative and quantitative reports: The example of antiretroviral medication adherence

Bayesian meta-analysis is a frequently cited but very little-used method for synthesizing qualitative and quantitative research findings. The only example published to date used qualitative data to generate an informative prior probability and quantitative data to generate the likelihood. We developed a method to incorporate both qualitative and quantitative evidence in the likelihood in a Bayesian synthesis of evidence about the relationship between regimen complexity and medication adherence

Therapeutic Implications for Overcoming Radiation Resistance in Cancer Therapy

Ionizing radiation (IR), such as X-rays and gamma (γ)-rays, mediates various forms of cancer cell death such as apoptosis, necrosis, autophagy, mitotic catastrophe, and senescence. Among them, apoptosis and mitotic catastrophe are the main mechanisms of IR action. DNA damage and genomic instability contribute to IR-induced cancer cell death. Although IR therapy may be curative in a number of cancer types, the resistance of cancer cells to radiation remains a major therapeutic problem. In this review, we describe the morphological and molecular aspects of various IR-induced types of cell death. We also discuss cytogenetic variations representative of IR-induced DNA damage and genomic instability. Most importantly, we focus on several pathways and their associated marker proteins responsible for cancer resistance and its therapeutic implications in terms of cancer cell death of various types and characteristics. Finally, we propose radiation-sensitization strategies, such as the modification of fractionation, inflammation, and hypoxia and the combined treatment, that can counteract the resistance of tumors to IR

The effects of Asian summer monsoon on algal blooms in reservoirs

An important characteristic of lakes and reservoirs in the East Asian summer monsoon region is the dramatic seasonal difference in hydrologic inputs, with annual rainfall commonly concentrated in a few heavy rain events. In this study, we surveyed the monthly variations of phytoplankton density in 3 large deep reservoirs and 7 small shallow reservoirs and analyzed the effect of large precipitation events on phytoplankton. During heavy rains, stream phosphorus concen¬trations increased sharply, and phosphorus loadings into reservoirs were not continuous but episodic shock loadings. In deep stratified reservoirs, however, the concentrations of phosphorus and chlorophyll a were much lower than expected from the high total phosphorus levels in the storm runoff. Inflowing storm waters laden with phosphorus flowed into metalimnetic layers because deep reservoirs had strong thermal stratification and the storm water was cooler than the epilimnion. The result was the formation of an ecosystem resilient to phosphorus shock loadings during monsoon. Nutrients in the metalimnion seemed to be dispersed gradually toward the epilimnion, and phytoplankton reached maximum densities, called “monsoon blooms,” after the monsoon. By contrast, shallow reservoirs with short hydraulic residence times had lower chlorophyll a concentrations during the monsoon season because the high flushing rate was the major limiting factor of phytoplankton growth. In conclusion, summer monsoon is the major determinant of phyto¬plankton density in reservoirs of the East Asian region, but their responses can vary widely depending on hydrologic characteristics

Ethanol extract of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi prevents oxidative damage and neuroinflammation and memorial impairments in artificial senescense mice

Aging is a progressive process related to the accumulation of oxidative damage and neuroinflammation. We tried to find the anti-amnesic effect of the Scutellaria baicalens Georgia (SBG) ethanol extract and its major ingredients. The antioxidative effect of SBG on the mice model with memory impairment induced by chronic injection of D-galactose and sodium nitrate was studied. The Y-maze test was used to evaluate the learning and memory function of mice. The activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and the content of malondialdehyde in brain tissue were used for the antioxidation activities. Neuropathological alteration and expression of bcl-2 protein were investigated in the hippocampus by immunohistochemical staining. ROS, neuroinflammation and apoptosis related molecules expression such as Cox-2, iNOS, procaspase-3, cleaved caspase-3, 8 and 9, bcl-2 and bax protein and the products of iNOS and Cox-2, NO, PGE2, were studied using LPS-activated Raw 264.7 cells and microglia BV2 cells. The cognition of mice was significantly improved by the treatment of baicalein and 50 and 100 mg/kg of SBG in Y-maze test. Both SBG groups showed strong antioxidation, antiinflammation effects with significantly decreased iNOS and Cox-2 expression, NO and PGE2 production, increased bcl-2 and decreased bax and cleaved caspase-3 protein expression in LPS induced Raw 264.7 and BV2 cells. We also found that apoptotic pathway was caused by the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway with the decreased cleaved caspase-9 and unchanged cleaved caspase-8 expression. These findings suggest that SBG, especially high dose, 100 mg/kg, improved the memory impairments significantly and showed antioxidation, antiinflammation and intrinsic caspase-mediated apoptosis effects

Emotional design and human-robot interaction

Recent years have shown an increase in the importance of emotions applied to the Design field - Emotional Design. In this sense, the emotional design aims to elicit (e.g., pleasure) or prevent (e.g., displeasure) determined emotions, during human product interaction. That is, the emotional design regulates the emotional interaction between the individual and the product (e.g., robot). Robot design has been a growing area whereby robots are interacting directly with humans in which emotions are essential in the interaction. Therefore, this paper aims, through a non-systematic literature review, to explore the application of emotional design, particularly on Human-Robot Interaction. Robot design features (e.g., appearance, expressing emotions and spatial distance) that affect emotional design are introduced. The chapter ends with a discussion and a conclusion.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Does Experience Overcome Perception Bias for Consumers of Grass-Finished Beef?

This research focuses on estimating the shift in consumer willingness to pay (WTP) a price premium/discount for Native warm season grassed beef and for Bermuda grassed beef, an exotic species to the U.S. We utilized sensory analysis and the Becker-Degroot-Marschak (BDM) mechanism to elicit consumers’ preference for four different types of beef to determine how the premiums/discounts consumers place on these differentiated products change across information regimes: perception, experience, and complete information. Subjects participated in the BDM mechanism three times to determine their WTP: once after observing the raw packaged product with standard labeling information, once after a blind taste sample of the products, and once after complete information has been provided that links the raw packaged product to the blind taste sample. Results revealed strong preferences for NWSGed beef regardless of finishing methods, and positive impacts of the sensory results and label information on grassinished beef steaks

Multi-Market Economic Analysis of Food Policy and Agricultural Technology

This dissertation studies the market and welfare effects of a sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) tax policy and the adoption of gene-edited technologies in soybean production, aimed at increasing the domestic consumption of healthy foods and beverages. The two essays utilize different methodologies to analyze the impacts of the SSBs tax policy and gene-edited technologies on the market for beverages and crop production, respectively, and the welfare of the interest groups involved. The first essay studies the market and welfare effects of a nationwide SSBs tax. The study develops a theoretical framework that considers (a) the interaction of sugary drinks and their healthier substitutes (i.e.,100% fruit juice), (b) differences in consumer preferences, (c) differences in producer agronomic characteristics, and (d) imperfect competition among the beverage firms involved. The introduction of a $0.01 per ounce tax is shown to reduce soda firms’ profits by an astounding 81.7%, while increasing fruit juice firms’ profits by 52.9%. The introduction of this tax benefits fruit producers, while hurting crop producers and beverage consumers. Although the SSBs tax is shown to reduce consumer welfare the most, consumer welfare losses can be offset by the healthcare cost savings from reduced SSBs consumption. The second essay studies the market and welfare impact of a gene-edited technology on the U.S. soybean and oil markets. In 2018, genetically edited high-oleic soybeans were introduced to the domestic farmers first as there was an increasing consumer demand for healthy substitutes of low-oleic oils and trans-fat regulation in processed foods. We use an equilibrium displacement model (Perrin, 1997) to represent the current supply chain of soybean and related markets and introduce two demand and supply shocks (a) an increased demand for high-oleic oil, (b) a decreased demand for low-oleic oil, (c) a greater accessibility of high-oleic soybean seed, and (d) a higher marginal cost of high-oleic soybean production. Results show that farmers, who own inputs, and adopt a new high-oleic soybean seed, realize the greatest welfare gains