Alien Registration- Macdougall, John A. (Bangor, Penobscot County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/11811/thumbnail.jp

Experimental Exposure to Urban and Pink Noise Affects Brain Development and Song Learning in Zebra Finches (Taenopygia guttata)

Recently, numerous studies have observed changes in bird vocalizations—especially song—in urban habitats. These changes are often interpreted as adaptive, since they increase the active space of the signal in its environment. However, the proximate mechanisms driving cross-generational changes in song are still unknown. We performed a captive experiment to identify whether noise experienced during development affects song learning and the development of song-control brain regions. Zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) were bred while exposed, or not exposed, to recorded traffic urban noise (Study 1) or pink noise (Study 2). We recorded the songs of male offspring and compared these to fathers’ songs. We also measured baseline corticosterone and measured the size of song-control brain regions when the males reached adulthood (Study 1 only). While male zebra finches tended to copy syllables accurately from tutors regardless of noise environment, syntax (the ordering of syllables within songs) was incorrectly copied affected by juveniles exposed to noise. Noise did not affect baseline corticosterone, but did affect the size of brain regions associated with song learning: these regions were smaller in males that had been had been exposed to recorded traffic urban noise in early development. These findings provide a possible mechanism by which noise affects behaviour, leading to potential population differences between wild animals occupying noisier urban environments compared with those in quieter habitats

Experimental exposure to urban and pink noise affects brain development and song learning in zebra finches (Taenopygia guttata)

Recently, numerous studies have observed changes in bird vocalizations-especially song-in urban habitats. These changes are often interpreted as adaptive, since they increase the active space of the signal in its environment. However, the proximate mechanisms driving cross-generational changes in song are still unknown. We performed a captive experiment to identify whether noise experienced during development affects song learning and the development of song-control brain regions. Zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) were bred while exposed, or not exposed, to recorded traffic urban noise (Study 1) or pink noise (Study 2). We recorded the songs of male offspring and compared these to fathers\u27 songs. We also measured baseline corticosterone and measured the size of song-control brain regions when the males reached adulthood (Study 1 only). While male zebra finches tended to copy syllables accurately from tutors regardless of noise environment, syntax (the ordering of syllables within songs) was incorrectly copied affected by juveniles exposed to noise. Noise did not affect baseline corticosterone, but did affect the size of brain regions associated with song learning: these regions were smaller in males that had been had been exposed to recorded traffic urban noise in early development. These findings provide a possible mechanism by which noise affects behaviour, leading to potential population differences between wild animals occupying noisier urban environments compared with those in quieter habitats

Access and Health System Impact of an Early Intervention Treatment Program for Emerging Adults with Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Objectives: Early intervention programs are effective for improving outcomes in first-episode psychosis; however, less is known about their effectiveness for mood and anxiety disorders. We sought to evaluate the impact of an early intervention program for emerging adults with mood and anxiety disorders in the larger health system context, relative to standard care. Methods: Using health administrative data, we constructed a retrospective cohort of cases of mood and anxiety disorders among emerging adults aged 16 to 25 years in the catchment of the First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP) in London, Ontario, between 2009 and 2014. This cohort was linked to primary data from FEMAP to identify service users. We used proportional hazards models to compare indicators of service use between FEMAP users and a propensity score–matched group of nonusers receiving care elsewhere in the health system. Results: FEMAP users (n = 490) had more rapid access to a psychiatrist relative to nonusers (hazard ratio [HR], 2.82; 95% confidence interval, 2.45 to 3.26; median time, 16 vs. 71 days). In the year following admission, FEMAP users also had lower rates of emergency department use for mental health reasons (HR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.99). We did not observe differences in psychiatric hospitalization rates. Conclusions: An early intervention model of care for mood and anxiety disorders is associated with better access to psychiatric care and lower use of the emergency department. Our findings suggest that early intervention services for mood and anxiety disorders may be beneficial from a health systems perspective, and further research on the effectiveness of this model of care is warranted

Randomized trial comparing proactive, high-dose versus reactive, low-dose intravenous iron supplementation in hemodialysis (PIVOTAL) : Study design and baseline data

Background: Intravenous (IV) iron supplementation is a standard maintenance treatment for hemodialysis (HD) patients, but the optimum dosing regimen is unknown. Methods: PIVOTAL (Proactive IV irOn Therapy in hemodiALysis patients) is a multicenter, open-label, blinded endpoint, randomized controlled (PROBE) trial. Incident HD adults with a serum ferritin 700 μg/L and/or TSAT ≥40%) or a reactive, low-dose IV iron arm (iron sucrose administered if ferritin <200 μg/L or TSAT < 20%). We hypothesized that proactive, high-dose IV iron would be noninferior to reactive, low-dose IV iron for the primary outcome of first occurrence of nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), nonfatal stroke, hospitalization for heart failure or death from any cause. If noninferiority is confirmed with a noninferiority limit of 1.25 for the hazard ratio of the proactive strategy relative to the reactive strategy, a test for superiority will be carried out. Secondary outcomes include infection-related endpoints, ESA dose requirements, and quality-of-life measures. As an event-driven trial, the study will continue until at least 631 primary outcome events have accrued, but the expected duration of follow-up is 2-4 years. Results: Of the 2,589 patients screened across 50 UK sites, 2,141 (83%) were randomized. At baseline, 65.3% were male, the median age was 65 years, and 79% were white. According to eligibility criteria, all patients were on ESA at screening. Prior stroke and MI were present in 8 and 9% of the cohort, respectively, and 44% of patients had diabetes at baseline. Baseline data for the randomized cohort were generally concordant with recent data from the UK Renal Registry. Conclusions: PIVOTAL will provide important information about the optimum dosing of IV iron in HD patients representative of usual clinical practice. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2013-002267-25.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Magnetic properties of the geometrically frustrated S=1/2 antiferromagnets, La2LiMoO6 and Ba2YMoO6, with the B-site ordered double perovskite structure: Evidence for a Collective Spin Singlet Ground State

Two B-site ordered double perovskites, La2LiMoO6 and Ba2YMoO6, based on the S = 1/2 ion, Mo5+, have been investigated in the context of geometric magnetic frustration. Powder neutron diffraction, heat capacity, susceptibility, muon spin relaxation(_SR), and 89Y NMR- including MAS NMR- data have been collected. La2LiMoO6 deviates strongly from simple Curie-Weiss paramagnetic behavior below 150K and zero-field cooled/ field cooled (ZFC/FC)irreversibility occurs below 20K with a weak, broad susceptibility maximum near 5K in the ZFC data. A Curie-Weiss fit shows a reduced mu_eff=1.42\mu_B, (spin only = 1.73 muB) and a Weiss temperature, \theta_c, which depends strongly on the temperature range of the fit. Powder neutron diffraction, heat capacity and 7Li NMR show no evidence for long range magnetic order to 2K. On the other hand oscillations develop below 20K in muSR indicating at least short range magnetic correlations. Susceptibility data for Ba2YMoO6 also deviate strongly from the C-W law below 150K with a similarly reduced mu_eff = 1.72\mu_B and \theta_c = - 219(1)K. Heat capacity, neutron powder diffraction and muSR data show no evidence for long range order to 2K but a very broad maximum appears in the heat capacity. The 89Y NMR paramagnetic Knight shift shows a remarkable local spin susceptibility behavior below about 70K with two components from roughly equal sample volumes, one indicating a singlet state and the other a strongly fluctuating paramagnetic state. Further evidence for a singlet state comes from the behavior of the relaxation rate, 1/T1. These results are discussed and compared with those from other isostructural S = 1/2 materials and those based on S = 3/2 and S = 1.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Phase II study of two dose schedules of C.E.R.A. (Continuous Erythropoietin Receptor Activator) in anemic patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) receiving chemotherapy

BACKGROUND: C.E.R.A. (Continuous Erythropoietin Receptor Activator) is an innovative agent with unique erythropoietin receptor activity and prolonged half-life. This study evaluated C.E.R.A. once weekly (QW) or once every 3 weeks (Q3W) in patients with anemia and advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) receiving chemotherapy. METHODS: In this Phase II, randomized, open-label, multicenter, dose-finding study, patients (n = 218) with Stage IIIB or IV NSCLC and hemoglobin (Hb) ≤ 11 g/dL were randomized to one of six treatment groups of C.E.R.A. administered subcutaneously for 12 weeks: 0.7, 1.4, or 2.1 μg/kg QW or 2.1, 4.2, or 6.3 μg/kg Q3W. Primary endpoint was average Hb level between baseline and end of initial treatment (defined as last Hb measurement before dose reduction or transfusion, or the value at week 13). Hematopoietic response (Hb increase ≥ 2 g/dL or achievement of Hb ≥ 12 g/dL with no blood transfusion in the previous 28 days determined in two consecutive measurements within a 10-day interval) was also measured. RESULTS: Dose-dependent Hb increases were observed, although the magnitude of increase was moderate. Hematopoietic response rate was also dose dependent, achieved by 51% and 62% of patients in the 4.2 and 6.3 μg/kg Q3W groups, and 63% of the 2.1 μg/kg QW group. In the Q3W group, the proportion of early responders (defined as ≥ 1 g/dL increase in Hb from baseline during the first 22 days) increased with increasing C.E.R.A. dose, reaching 41% with the highest dose. In the 6.3 μg/kg Q3W group, 15% of patients received blood transfusion. There was an inclination for higher mean Hb increases and lower transfusion use in the Q3W groups than in the QW groups. C.E.R.A. was generally well tolerated. CONCLUSION: C.E.R.A. administered QW or Q3W showed clinical activity and safety in patients with NSCLC. There were dose-dependent increases in Hb responses. C.E.R.A. appeared to be more effective when the same dose over time was given Q3W than QW, with a suggestion that C.E.R.A. 6.3 μg/kg Q3W provided best efficacy in this study. However, further dose-finding studies using higher doses are required to determine the optimal C.E.R.A. dose regimen in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy

Efficacy and safety of bempedoic acid in patients not receiving statins in phase 3 clinical trials

BACKGROUND: Despite the high incidence of patients with statin tolerance problems, randomized evaluations of nonstatin oral treatment options for lowering of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in this population are sparse. OBJECTIVE: To assess the LDL-C lowering effect of bempedoic acid in patients not taking statins. METHODS: This was a pooled analysis of data from patients enrolled in four phase 3 bempedoic acid studies (12 to 52 weeks in duration) who were not taking concomitant statins (Phase 3 No Statin Cohort) and a phase 3 bempedoic acid plus ezetimibe fixed-dose combination study (BA+EZE FDC No Statin Cohort). The primary endpoint for all studies was the percent change from baseline to week 12 in LDL-C levels. Safety and tolerability were assessed by laboratory values and adverse events. RESULTS: In the Phase 3 No Statin Cohort, bempedoic acid (n = 394) lowered LDL-C levels at week 12 significantly more than placebo (n = 192; -26.5% [95% CI, -29.7%, -23.2%]; P\u3c0.001). The fixed-dose combination of bempedoic acid with ezetimibe lowered LDL-C by 39.2% (95% CI, -51.7% to -26.7%; P\u3c0.001). Muscle-related disorders occurred at a rate of 26.4 and 28.6 per 100 person-years with bempedoic acid and placebo, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with hypercholesterolemia unable to take statins, bempedoic acid lowered LDL-C levels by a mean of 26.5% vs placebo and bempedoic acid + ezetimibe fixed-dose combination lowered LDL-C by 39.2%. The treatments were generally well tolerated, suggesting that bempedoic acid may be efficacious and well tolerated in this challenging-to-treat patient population

The medical student

The Medical Student was published from 1888-1921 by the students of Boston University School of Medicine

Art therapy, arts-based research and transitional stories of domestic violence and abuse

Visual imagery within qualitative research is an established method of gathering data that has parallels to the way in which images are used within art therapy. This paper explores how visual imagery was used to investigate women’s responses to domestic violence and abuse and examines how art therapy principles shaped the development and conducting of that research. Through the use of collage, participants created visual representations of their responses to experiences of domestic violence and abuse. The visual representations were, when combined with spoken words, created stories that reference the past, present and future. The stories created have been termed transitional stories of domestic violence. These stories show that the home has special significance for women as they transition away from domestic violence and plan for their future. The home becomes both a metaphorical and physical manifestation and container of hopes for a harmonious future that often incorporates the desire for the return to the idea of a complete family. This paper will present the findings of the arts-based research conducted, and consider the implications upon art therapy practice of those findings.N