To examine the relationship of maternal employment characteristics, day care arrangements and the type of maternity leave pay to breast-feeding for at least 4 months.
Cohort study.
Babies aged 9 ...months in the Millennium Cohort Study, born between September 2000 and January 2002.
A total of 6917 British/Irish white employed mothers with singleton babies.
Mothers employed part-time or self-employed were more likely to breast-feed for at least 4 months than those employed full-time (adjusted rate ratio (aRR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.30 (1.17-1.44) and 1.74 (1.46-2.07), respectively). The longer a mother delayed her return to work postpartum, the more likely she was to breast-feed for at least 4 months (P for trend < 0.001). Mothers were less likely to breast-feed for at least 4 months if they returned to work for financial reasons (aRR 0.86, 95% CI 0.80-0.93) or used informal day care arrangements rather than care by themselves or their partner (aRR 0.81, 95% CI 0.71-0.91). Mothers were more likely to breastfeed for at least 4 months if their employer offered family-friendly (aRR 1.14, 95% CI 1.02-1.27) or flexible work arrangements (aRR 1.24, 95% CI 1.00-1.55), or they received Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) plus additional pay during their maternity leave rather than SMP alone (aRR 1.13, 95% CI 1.02-1.26). These findings were independent of confounding factors, such as socio-economic status and maternal education.
Current policies may encourage mothers to enter or return to employment postpartum, but this may result in widening inequalities in breast-feeding and persistence of low rates. Policies should aim to increase financial support and incentives for employers to offer supportive work arrangements.
Abstract
* equally contributed
Grant #5P20GM103443 (NIGMS).
Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can either create or destroy microRNA binding sites. We analyzed 200 previously reported cancer ...associated SNPs within microRNA binding sites and found that more than 90% of them were surrounded by single and multiple low-frequency SNPs. The low-frequency SNPs were positioned within the expected microRNAs seed matching areas (58%), within the whole microRNA matching regions (71% incidence), and within the distance where they potentially can affect microRNA-mRNA interaction (36% incidence). We further analyzed the presence of SNPs within microRNA-binding sites in the 3'UTRs of mRNAs encoding the human V-set domain containing T-cell activation inhibitor 1 (VTCN1) and an AT-rich interaction domain 5B (ARID5B). In VTCN1 single SNPs were present in 36% of microRNAs seed matching areas, and two and more SNPs in 8% of microRNA seed matching sites. For ARID5B, single SNPs were present in 42%, and two and more SNPs in 26% of microRNA seed matching sites. In both VTCN1 and ARID5B, some microRNA seed matching areas harbored as many as 4 SNPs. The predicted binding site for microRNA-6870-5p (miR-6870) within the VTCN1 3'UTR consists of 11 uninterrupted and 2 additional Watson-Crick pairs. The length of mature miR-6870 is 19 bases, and the corresponding VTCN1 mRNA fragment harbors 6 nucleotide variations: rs758251859, rs1001277215, rs551576201, rs539444165, rs949692788, and indel rs9055595515. Hypothetically, the rs1001277215 minor allele (MA) eliminates the miR-6870-mRNA complementarity between the corresponding nucleotides. The rs551576201 MA weakens miR-6870-mRNA complementarity by creating a wobble G-U pair, the rs949692788 MA enhances miR-6870-mRNA complementarity by switching from a non-canonical G-U to canonical Watson-Crick A-U pair, and for indel rs9055595515, the absence of deletion preserves miR-6870-mRNA complementarity between CA and GU nucleotides. The probabilities of the “best” and “worst” matches between miR-6870 and VTCN1 mRNA are 0.009995% and 0.000006% correspondingly. The binding between miR-6870 and VTCN1mRNA may also be affected by variations between A and G within rs758251859 (MA frequency is unknown). As microRNA-binding efficacy depends on the mRNA sequences outside the target region, the indels rs35182629 (located 5 nucleotides upstream and covers 2 bases) and rs896747700 (located 1 nucleotide downstream and covers 1 base) may also impact miR-6870-mediated regulation of VTCN1 expression. The possible coincidence of hyper-functional or completely disabled microRNA-binding sites may result in significant phenotypic variations and predisposition to cancers.
Citation Format: Amber Budmark*, Michael Catalano*, Tyrel Haley*, Brady Hicks*, Maria Koenen*, Thea Patrick*, Tyler Larson*, Tyler Wagner*, Clark Butler, Joshua Feiner, Rebecca Frick, Sierra Haage, James Miller, Mackayla Nohr, Dillon Stadlman, Dillon Turner, Sara Husher, Nicholas Woslum, Nathan Stadem, John Dosch, Tyler Fortuna, Chandler Fredrich, Elise Hadley, Brooklynn Oehlerking, Delayna Paulson, Cal Wiese, Paula Mazzer, Tim Mullican, Cynthia Anderson, Mark Larson, Elena Paryiskaya, Alexandra Kharazova, Paola Vermeer, Samuel Milanovich, Alexei Savinov, John Collins, Alexander Kofman. Single nucleotide variations within and around microRNA-binding sites abstract. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 490.
We examined the coding sequence of 518 protein kinases, ∼1.3 Mb of DNA per sample, in 25 breast cancers. In many tumors, we detected no somatic mutations. But a few had numerous somatic mutations ...with distinctive patterns indicative of either a mutator phenotype or a past exposure.
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DOBA, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background Falling reimbursement rates for trauma care demand a concerted effort of charge capture for the fiscal survival of trauma surgeons. We compared current procedure terminology code ...distribution and billing patterns for Subsequent Hospital Care (SHC) before and after the institution of standardized documentation. Methods Standardized SHC progress notes were created. The note was formulated with an emphasis on efficiency and accuracy. Documentation was completed by residents in conjunction with attendings following standard guidelines of linkage. Year-to-year patient volume, length of stay (LOS), injury severity, bills submitted, coding of service, work relative value units (wRVUs), revenue stream, and collection rate were compared with and without standardized documentation. Results A 394% average revenue increase was observed with the standardization of SHC documentation. Submitted charges more than doubled in the first year despite a 14% reduction in admissions and no change in length of stay. Significant increases in level II and level III billing and billing volume ( P < .05) were sustainable year to year and resulted in an average per patient admission SHC income increase from $91.85 to $362.31. Conclusions Use of a standardized daily progress note dramatically increases the accuracy of coding and associated billing of subsequent hospital care for trauma services.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
The total ankle replacement versus ankle arthrodesis (TARVA) trial aims to determine which surgical procedure confers the greatest improvement in pain-free function for patients with end-stage ankle ...osteoarthritis. Both procedures are effective but there has not yet been a direct comparison to establish which is superior. This article describes the statistical analysis plan for this trial as an update to the published protocol. It is written prior to the end of patient follow-up, while the outcome of the trial is still unknown.
TARVA is a randomised, un-blinded, parallel group trial of total ankle replacement versus ankle arthrodesis. The primary outcome is the Manchester-Oxford Foot Questionnaire walking/standing domain score at 52 weeks post-surgery. Secondary outcomes include measures of pain, social interaction, physical function, quality of life, and range of motion. We describe in detail the statistical aspects of TARVA: the outcome measures, the sample size calculation, general analysis principles including treatment of missing data, the planned descriptive statistics and statistical models, and planned subgroup and sensitivity analyses.
The TARVA statistical analysis will provide comprehensive and precise information on the relative effectiveness of the two treatments. The plan will be implemented in January 2020 when follow-up for the trial is completed.
ISRCTN registry number 60672307, ClinicalTrials.gov registration number NCT02128555. Registered 1 May 2014. Recruitment started in January 2015 and ended in January 2019.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
This study investigated the impact of feeding pelleted diets containing camelina (
L. Crantz) hay (CAHP) or camelina meal (CAMP) as a supplement compared with a control pellet (CONP) diet, without ...vitamin E fortification. The fatty acid profile, retail colour, and lipid oxidative stability of lamb and yearling meat (
) stored for short-, medium-, or long-periods (2 days (fresh), 45 days and 90 days) under chilled to semi-frozen conditions were determined. The CAMP diet altered key fatty acids (
< 0.05) in a nutritionally beneficial manner for human health compared to the other diets, with increased total omega-3, decreased omega-6 fatty acids and decreased omega-6/omega-3 ratio of muscle. Muscle vitamin E concentration was lower (
< 0.05) for both camelina diets (CAMP and CAHP) when compared with the CONP diet, with the average concentrations less than 1 mg/kg muscle for all three treatments. Animal type and storage length were factors that all affected (
< 0.05) colour and lipid oxidative stability of meat. These results emphasise the importance of vitamin E concentration in meat stored for extended periods under semi-frozen conditions to maintain desirable meat colour during retail display, and to avoid off-flavour development of the cooked meat.
We present the results of an experiment to search for trapped antihydrogen atoms with the ALPHA antihydrogen trap at the CERN Antiproton Decelerator. Sensitive diagnostics of the temperatures, sizes, ...and densities of the trapped antiproton and positron plasmas have been developed, which in turn permitted development of techniques to precisely and reproducibly control the initial experimental parameters. The use of a position-sensitive annihilation vertex detector, together with the capability of controllably quenching the superconducting magnetic minimum trap, enabled us to carry out a high-sensitivity and low-background search for trapped synthesised antihydrogen atoms. We aim to identify the annihilations of antihydrogen atoms held for at least 130 ms in the trap before being released over ∼30 ms. After a three-week experimental run in 2009 involving mixing of 107 antiprotons with 1.3×109 positrons to produce 6×105 antihydrogen atoms, we have identified six antiproton annihilation events that are consistent with the release of trapped antihydrogen. The cosmic ray background, estimated to contribute 0.14 counts, is incompatible with this observation at a significance of 5.6 sigma. Extensive simulations predict that an alternative source of annihilations, the escape of mirror-trapped antiprotons, is highly unlikely, though this possibility has not yet been ruled out experimentally.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Abstract
Background: Infections with some viruses, including HIV and Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) in immunocompromised individuals, are known risk factors for specific subtypes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma ...(NHL). Epidemiological studies have also provided evidence that hepatitis viruses, and EBV in immunocompetent individuals, may also be associated with NHL. There are limited population-based prospective studies with pre-diagnostic blood samples that have comprehensively evaluated viral biomarkers and NHL risk in East Asians, in whom the descriptive characteristics of NHL and the prevalence of certain viral infections differ compared to Western populations.
Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study of 214 NHL cases and 214 controls from three population-based prospective cohorts in Shanghai and Singapore. Cases and controls were individually matched by age, sex, date of blood draw, and cohort. Antibodies to 21 antigens associated with the evaluated viruses (herpesviruses, Hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV), and polyomaviruses) were measured in plasma/serum using fluorescent bead-based multiplex serology. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate associations between viral antibody levels measured as median fluorescence intensity and NHL.
Results: For herpesviruses, an increased risk of NHL was observed for higher compared to lower early antigen diffuse (EA-D) (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.2-4.1) and BZLF1-encoded replication activator (ZEBRA) (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.0-4.9) antibodies (rsp = +0.5) associated with EBV. An increased risk of NHL was also observed among those seropositive for the intermediate-early 1A antigen (OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.0-3.3; rsp with EBV antibodies = +0.2) associated with human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6). For hepatitis viruses, a significant NHL risk was observed for higher compared to lower antibodies to the HBV-associated core (HBc) antigen (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.1-3.1), and this risk was particularly apparent in those with the highest HBc and EBV EA-D antibody levels (OR = 4.2, 95% CI = 1.4-12.7) compared to the lowest. Seropositivity to HCV was low (1.4% cases; 0.9% controls). No associations with NHL risk were observed for individual polyomaviruses (BK, JC, TSV, MCV). Discussion: Our study of serologic markers of infection and NHL risk in three prospective population-based studies of Chinese individuals suggests a role of specific viral agents in lymphomagenesis. The findings for EBV are consistent with some data from Western cohorts and indicate that EBV reactivation may be associated with NHL risk in the Chinese general population. HHV-6 is a lymphotropic virus that has been observed in some retrospective studies to be associated with lymphoma, but to our knowledge has not previously been associated with NHL prospectively in the general population. HBV is endemic to regions of East Asia, including China, and our data suggest that high levels of antibodies to the HBc antigen may be a marker for NHL risk.
Citation Format: Bryan A. Bassig, Angelika Michel, Xiao-Ou Shu, Woon-Puay Koh, Yu-Tang Gao, Lesley M. Butler, Mark Purdue, Yong-Bing Xiang, Jennifer Adams-Haduch, Renwei Wang, Nicole Brenner, Tim Waterboer, Martina Willhauck-Fleckenstein, Bu-Tian Ji, H. Dean Hosgood, Charles S. Rabkin, Jason Y.Y. Wong, Jinming Zhang, Wei Hu, Gong Yang, Wong-Ho Chow, Michael Pawlita, Wei Zheng, Jian-Min Yuan, Qing Lan, Nathaniel Rothman. Serologic markers of infection and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in a pooled prospective study of three Chinese cohorts abstract. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4245. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-4245
Biologics represent a fast-growing class of therapeutics in the pharmaceutical sector. Discovery of therapeutic antibodies and characterization of peptides can necessitate high expression of the ...target gene requiring the generation of clonal stably transfected cell lines. Traditional challenges of stable cell line transfection include gene silencing and cell-to-cell variability. Our inability to control these can present challenges in lead isolation. Recent progress in site-specific targeting of transgene to specific genomic loci has transformed the ability to generate stably transfected mammalian cell lines. In this article, we describe how the use of the Jump-In platform (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA) has been applied to drug discovery projects. It can easily and rapidly generate homogeneous high-expressing cell pools with a high degree of reproducibility. Their use in cell-based screening to identify specific binders, identify binding to relevant species variants, or detect functionally relevant therapeutic antibodies is central in driving drug discovery.
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