Ethical standards in clinical psychology: maintaining integrity, record keeping and confidentiality

Clinical psychologists aim to promote psychological wellbeing and reduce psychological distress in people with mental or physical health illness (National Health Service [NHS], 2014). A requirement of all clinical psychologists is to be familiar with and adhere to the ethical codes that govern their profession: the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) standards of conduct, performance and ethics (HCPC, 2012a) and the British Psychological Society’s (BPS) code of ethics and conduct (BPS, 2009). Ethical standards relating to record keeping, confidentiality, integrity and honesty were considered in this paper. The effects of poor interpersonal relationships between a team and the impact of personal issues upon professional practice were considered as contributors to the breaching of ethical standards. To help prevent an ethical dilemma escalating, an employee performance appraisal in the form of a six-question intervention tool was created, to provide appropriate support when conducting supervisions. Directions for future research are discussed in terms of investigating support available for personal and professional issues affecting the work of a clinical psychologist

An Analysis of the Broadband (22-3900 MHz) Radio Spectrum of HB3 (G132.7+1.3): The Detection of Thermal Radio Emission from an Evolved Supernova Remnant?

We present an analysis of the broadband radio spectrum (from 22 to 3900 MHz) of the Galactic supernova remnant (SNR) HB3 (G132.7+1.3). Published observations have revealed that a curvature is present in the radio spectrum of this SNR, indicating that a single synchrotron component appears is insufficient to adequately fit the spectrum. We present here a fit to this spectrum using a combination of a synchrotron component and a thermal bremsstrahlung component. We discuss properties of this latter component and estimate the ambient density implied by the presence of this component to be n \~ 10 cm^-3. We have also analyzed extracted X-ray spectra from archived {\it ASCA} GIS observations of different regions of HB3 to obtain independent estimates of the density of the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM). From this analysis, we have derived electron densities of 0.1-0.4 f^-1/2 cm^-3 for the ISM for the three different regions of the SNR, where f is the volume filling factor. By comparing these density estimates with the estimate derived from the thermal bremsstrahlung component, we argue that the radio thermal bremsstrahlung emission is emitted from a thin shell enclosing HB3. The presence of this thermal bremsstrahlung component in the radio spectrum of HB3 suggests that this SNR is in fact interacting with an adjacent molecular cloud associated with the HII region W3. By extension, we argue that the presence of thermal emission at radio wavelengths may be a useful tool for identifying interactions between SNRs and molecular clouds, and for estimating the ambient density near SNRs using radio continuum data.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, accepted for ApJ

Non-Invasive and Invasive Assessment of Carbohydrate Intakes and Muscle Glycogen Utilisation in Rugby League and AFL

The importance of muscle glycogen availability for both endurance and high-intensity intermittent exercise performance has been recognised for several decades. The measurement of muscle glycogen in human skeletal muscle has traditionally been performed through the invasive muscle biopsy technique. However, recent data from laboratory-based cycling studies suggests that ultrasound technology (using commercially based software known as MuscleSound) provides a valid and non-invasive assessment tool for which to measure exercise-induced glycogen utilization. Nonetheless, no data currently exist to evaluate the validity of the MuscleSound software in team sport athletes in response to field-based training or match play situations. Accordingly, the aim of the present thesis was to therefore examine the reliability and validity of ultrasound technology (via the MuscleSound system) to non-invasively assess muscle glycogen concentration in skeletal muscle of team sport athletes. The aim of Study 1 (Chapter 3) was to quantify the test re-test reproducibility of the MuscleSound scoring system between (vastus lateralis, VL; vastus medalis, VM; rectus femoris RF) and within (25, 50 and 75% of the muscle length) muscles. Using a test-retest (60 minutes apart) scanning protocol in 100 recreationally active subjects (78 males, 22 females), it was identified that 50% of the VL muscle provided the most reliable anatomical site for which to obtain reproducible MuscleSound scores, as evidenced from the coefficient of variation (CV) – 5.8, intraclass correlation (ICC) – 0.89 (0.85 - 0.93), and ratio limits of agreement 1.02 (1.17) reliability statistics. Having identified the optimal anatomical location for which to obtain reproducible MuscleSound scores, the aim of Study 2 (Chapter 4) was to evaluate the validity of the MuscleSound scoring system to non-invasively assess muscle glycogen utilisation in elite male Rugby League players (n=16) during competitive match play. Although match play depleted absolute muscle glycogen in the VL muscle by approximately 200-250 mmol·kg-1 dw, there were no significant differences in MuscleSound scores obtained before and after the game. As such, these data suggest that MuscleSound is not a valid tool to assess muscle glycogen utilisation during the high-intensity intermittent activity profiles that are inherent to team sports. Given that these data are in contrast to previous validation studies conducted with cycling-based protocols, it was suggested that differences in mechanical loads and fluids shifts between exercise protocols may explain the discrepancies between studies. To eliminate the potential confounding effects of acute changes in fluid shifts associated with differing exercise stimuli, the aim of Study 3 (Chapter 5) was to assess the validity of the MuscleSound system to detect changes in muscle glycogen re-synthesis across a time-scale in which acute changes in fluid shifts have been restored to pre-exercise values. Using a combination of glycogen depleting cycling-based exercise followed by 36 h of an isonenergetic high CHO or low CHO diet, resting muscle glycogen of the VL muscle (from 16 recreationally active males) was approximately 500 versus 250 mmol·kg-1 dw in the high and low CHO trials, respectively. However, no differences were observed in the MuscleSound scores obtained between the high and low trials. When considered with the results of Chapter 4, these data collectively suggest that the MuscleSound system is unable to detect differences in muscle glycogen concentration within the physiological range that typically occurs as a result of exercise-induced glycogen utilisation and/or post-exercise muscle glycogen re-synthesis. Given that MuscleSound was not deemed a valid measurement tool, it was recommended that evaluations of the daily CHO and muscle glycogen requirements of team sport athletes should therefore be undertaken using traditional assessments of energy intake and muscle biopsies, respectively. Accordingly, the habitual CHO intakes of 44 elite professional male Australian Rules Football (AFL) players were quantified across the weekly micro-cycle in Study 4 (Chapter 6). These data demonstrate that elite AFL players practice elements of daily CHO periodisation in accordance with fluctuations in daily training load and proximity to the match day itself. Nonetheless, such data also highlighted that players do not consume CHO at the recommended dose to achieve glycogen storage that is likely required to facilitate optimal match day physical performance. In Study 5 (Chapter 7), muscle glycogen utilisation in the VL muscle was subsequently quantified using the muscle biopsy technique in two elite professional males during competitive match play. Importantly, players commenced the match after adhering to a 24 h CHO loading protocol of 8 g·kg-1 and after consuming a pre-match meal of 2 g·kg-1. Data demonstrate that such a dietary protocol achieves pre-match muscle glycogen concentration >500 mmol·kg-1 dw and that match play can induce an absolute glycogen utilisation >400 mmol·kg-1 dw. However, with the different demands observed between positions, total glycogen utlisation may vary. As such, it appears that the metabolic demands of AFL maybe more CHO dependent than other invasive team sports such as soccer and rugby. In summary, the work undertaken in this thesis has demonstrated that the MuscleSound software is not valid to detect differences in muscle glycogen concentration within the physiological range (i.e. 200-300 mmol·kg-1 dw) that typically occurs as a result of exercise-induced glycogen utilisation and/or post-exercise muscle glycogen re-synthesis. For this reason, assessment of the CHO requirements of team sport athletes is likely dependent on the traditional approaches of dietary assessment and muscle biopsy. Using the latter methods, the present data also demonstrate that the CHO requirements of AFL match play is potentially different (though larger sample sizes are required) than other team sports such as soccer and rugby. Further studies are also required to quantify the glycogen requirement of the typical training sessions undertaken by professional players of specific team sports

Epistasis between 5-HTTLPR and ADRA2B polymorphisms influences attentional bias for emotional information in healthy volunteers

Individual differences in emotional processing are likely to contribute to vulnerability and resilience to emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety. Genetic variation is known to contribute to these differences but they remain incompletely understood. The serotonin transporter (5-HTTLPR) and alpha(2B)-adrenergic autoreceptor (ADRA2B) insertion/deletion polymorphisms impact on two separate but interacting monaminergic signalling mechanisms that have been implicated in both emotional processing and emotional disorders. Recent studies suggest that the 5-HTTLPR s allele is associated with a negative attentional bias and an increased risk of emotional disorders. However, such complex behavioural traits are likely to exhibit polygenicity, including epistasis. This study examined the contribution of the 5-HTTLPR and ADRA2B insertion/deletion polymorphisms to attentional biases for aversive information in 94 healthy male volunteers and found evidence of a significant epistatic effect (p < 0.001). Specifically, in the presence of the 5-HTTLPR s allele, the attentional bias for aversive information was attenuated by possession of the ADRA2B deletion variant whereas in the absence of the s allele, the bias was enhanced. These data identify a cognitive mechanism linking genotype-dependent serotonergic and noradrenergic signalling that is likely to have implications for the development of cognitive markers for depression/anxiety as well as therapeutic drug effects and personalized approaches to treatment

Association of Exposure to Particular Matter and Carotid Intima-Media Thickness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Long time exposure to particular matter has been linked to myocardial infarction, stroke and blood pressure, but its association with atherosclerosis is not clear. This meta-analysis was aimed at assessing whether PM2.5 and PM10 have an effect on subclinical atherosclerosis measured by carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT). Methods: Pubmed, Ovid Medline, Embase and NICK between 1948 and 31 March 2015 were searched by combining the keywords about exposure to the outcome related words. The random-effects model was applied in computing the change of CIMT and their corresponding 95% confidence interval (95% CI). The effect of potential confounding factors was assessed by stratified analysis and the impact of traffic proximity was also estimated. Results: Among 56 identified studies, 11 articles satisfied the inclusion criteria. In overall analysis increments of 10 μg/m3 in PM2.5 and PM10 were associated with an increase of CIMT (16.79 μm; 95% CI, 4.95–28.63 μm and 4.13 μm; 95% CI, −5.79–14.04 μm, respectively). Results shown in subgroup analysis had reference value for comparing with those of the overall analysis. The impact of traffic proximity on CIMT was uncertain. Conclusions: Exposure to PM2.5 had a significant association with CIMT and for women the effect may be more obvious

Sea Louse Infection of Juvenile Sockeye Salmon in Relation to Marine Salmon Farms on Canada's West Coast

BACKGROUND: Pathogens are growing threats to wildlife. The rapid growth of marine salmon farms over the past two decades has increased host abundance for pathogenic sea lice in coastal waters, and wild juvenile salmon swimming past farms are frequently infected with lice. Here we report the first investigation of the potential role of salmon farms in transmitting sea lice to juvenile sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We used genetic analyses to determine the origin of sockeye from Canada's two most important salmon rivers, the Fraser and Skeena; Fraser sockeye migrate through a region with salmon farms, and Skeena sockeye do not. We compared lice levels between Fraser and Skeena juvenile sockeye, and within the salmon farm region we compared lice levels on wild fish either before or after migration past farms. We matched the latter data on wild juveniles with sea lice data concurrently gathered on farms. Fraser River sockeye migrating through a region with salmon farms hosted an order of magnitude more sea lice than Skeena River populations, where there are no farms. Lice abundances on juvenile sockeye in the salmon farm region were substantially higher downstream of farms than upstream of farms for the two common species of lice: Caligus clemensi and Lepeophtheirus salmonis, and changes in their proportions between two years matched changes on the fish farms. Mixed-effects models show that position relative to salmon farms best explained C. clemensi abundance on sockeye, while migration year combined with position relative to salmon farms and temperature was one of two top models to explain L. salmonis abundance. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This is the first study to demonstrate a potential role of salmon farms in sea lice transmission to juvenile sockeye salmon during their critical early marine migration. Moreover, it demonstrates a major migration corridor past farms for sockeye that originated in the Fraser River, a complex of populations that are the subject of conservation concern

Risk assessment of deoxynivalenol in high-risk area of China by human biomonitoring using an improved high throughput UPLC-MS/MS method

A risk assessment of deoxynivalenol (DON) was recently conducted for the residents in Henan province, China, where wheat as the staple food are highly consumed. A high-throughput sensitive UPLC-MS/MS method following 96-well μElution solid-phase extraction (SPE) were developed and validated for the determination of DON biomarkers in human urine. Isotope labelled internal standard, ¹³C-DON, was used for accurate quantification. Urinary samples collected from 151 healthy Chinese aged 2–78 years were processed with and without enzyme hydrolysis to determine total and free biomarkers, respectively. DON, and de-epoxy-deoxynivalenol (DOM-1) to a lesser extent, can be frequently detected in these samples both with and without enzyme hydrolysis. Free DOM-1 was detected at low level in human urine for the first time. Total DON was detected in all samples with a mean concentration at 47.6 ng mL⁻¹. The mean and median probable daily intakes (PDI) for the whole participants, estimated to be 1.61 μg/kg bw and 1.10 μg/kg bw, both exceeded the PMTDI (1 μg/kg bw/day), indicating a potential risk for the residents in this area, especially for children and adolescents

Effects of aflatoxin and fumonisin on gene expression of growth factors and inflammation-related genes in a human hepatocyte cell line

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and fumonisin B1 (FB1) are mycotoxins widely distributed in maize and maized-based products, often occurring together. The implications of co-exposure to aflatoxin and fumonsin for human health are numerous, but a particular concern is the potential of FB1 to modulate AFB1 hepatotoxicity. This study evaluated the toxicity of these mycotoxins, alone or combined, in a human non-tumorigenic liver cell line, HHL-16 cells, and assessed the effects of AFB1 and FB1 on expression of genes involved in immune and growth factor pathways. The results demonstrated that in HHL-16 cells, both AFB1 and FB1 had dose-dependent and time-dependent toxicity, and the combination of them showed a synergistic toxicity in the cells. Moreover, AFB1 caused upregulation of IL6, CCL20, and BMP2, and downregulation of NDP. In combination of AFB1 with FB1, gene expression levels of IL6 and BMP2 were significantly higher compared to individual FB1 treatment, and had a tendency to be higher than individual AFB1 treatment. This study shows that FB1 may increase the hepatoxicity of AFB1 through increasing the inflammatory response and disrupting cell growth pathways

On the lease rate, convenience yield and speculative effects in the gold futures market

By examining data on the gold forward offered rate (GOFO) and lease rates over the period 1996- 2009, we conclude that the convenience yield of gold is better approximated by the lease rate than the interest-adjusted spread of Fama & French (1983). Using the latter quantity, we study the relationship between gold leasing and the level of COMEX discretionary inventory and exhibit that lease rates are negatively related to inventories. We also show that Futures prices have increasingly exceeded forward prices over the period, and this effect increases with the speculative pressure and the maturity of the contracts

Radio polarimetric imaging of the interstellar medium: magnetic field and diffuse ionized gas structure near the W3/W4/W5/HB3 complex

We have used polarimetric imaging to study the magneto-ionic medium of the Galaxy, obtaining 1420 MHz images with an angular resolution of 1' over more than 40 square-degrees of sky around the W3/W4/W5/HB3 HII region/SNR complex in the Perseus Arm. Features detected in polarization angle are imposed on the linearly polarized Galactic synchrotron background emission by Faraday rotation arising in foreground ionized gas having an emission measure as low as 1 cm^{-6} pc. Several new remarkable phenomena have been identified, including: mottled polarization arising from random fluctuations in a magneto-ionic screen that we identify with a medium in the Perseus Arm, probably in the vicinity of the HII regions themselves; depolarization arising from very high rotation measures (several times 10^3 rad m^{-2}) and rotation measure gradients due to the dense, turbulent environs of the HII regions; highly ordered features spanning up to several degrees; and an extended influence of the HII regions beyond the boundaries defined by earlier observations. In particular, the effects of an extended, low-density ionized halo around the HII region W4 are evident, probably an example of the extended HII envelopes postulated as the origin of weak recombination-line emission detected from the Galactic ridge. Our polarization observations can be understood if the uniform magnetic field component in this envelope scales with the square-root of electron density and is 20 microG at the edge of the depolarized region around W4, although this is probably an over-estimate since the random field component will have a significant effect.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures (7 jpeg and 1 postscript), accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa