•We investigate nonwetting phase (air and oil) invasion in brine-saturated sandstone.•Snap-off during drainage is observed in all experiments and in simulation results.•Current models of drainage ...which assume connected phase invasion are incomplete.
We study quasi-static drainage displacement experiments in Bentheimer sandstone micro-cores using X-ray computed microtomography. Two nonwetting fluids, air and n-decane, are investigated, under high and low flow rate conditions. Experimental conditions consider viscosity ratios that vary by a factor of 40, and capillary numbers that range five orders of magnitude; but all experiments investigated are conducted under nominally capillary-dominated conditions, indicating that drainage displacements should demonstrate percolation-like invasion patterns. However, we observe significant and prevalent snap-off of nonwetting phase under all experimental conditions, a phenomena not predicted by the conceptual model of percolation invasion. We further observe that the size and persistence of snapped-off ganglia are influenced by the experimental flow rate and the nonwetting phase fluid. The quasi-static experimental observations are supported by lattice-Boltzmann modelling of drainage dynamics. These findings indicate that current conceptual models of drainage are incomplete, with implications for future experimental and modelling studies as well as engineering applications.
To determine the prevalence and 2-year persistence of subjective sleep complaints in a rural older population.
A prospective epidemiological study of an age-stratified random community sample.
The ...mid-Monongahela Valley, a rural area of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
A total of 1050 individuals with a mean age of 74.4 years (range, 66-97; SD = 5.5); 57.2% were women.
Subjective responses to questions about sleep complaints, classified as "never" experienced versus "sometimes" or "usually"; these questions reflected difficulty falling asleep (DFA), sleep continuity disturbance (SCD), early morning awakening (EMA), and uncontrollable daytime somnolence (DaSom). Subjects were also asked about snoring. Frequencies of these complaints were used to calculate their prevalence; those who remained in the study 2 years later were asked the same questions again to determine the persistence of sleep complaints. On the first occasions, subjects were also asked for "usual" estimates of how long they took to fall asleep, how many times they wakened during the night, and how many hours of sleep they obtained per night.
With regard to prevalence, 385 (36.7%) subjects reported DFA, 301 (28.7%) reported SCD, 201 (19.1%) reported EMA, and 198 individuals (18.9%) reported DaSom. Of those who knew whether they snored, 334 (40.0%) reported snoring loudly during sleep. Within the age range of this group, age was not associated with complaints of insomnia or somnolence; however, older age was associated with a significantly lower prevalence of snoring (P < .001). All three insomnia complaints were significantly more common among women (P < .001). Snoring was significantly more common among men (P < .005), but there was no gender difference in DaSom. With regard to subjective estimates, of those reporting DFA, 49.2% reported that sleep latency exceeded an hour; of those reporting SCD, 26.2% reported waking three or more times per night; and of the entire sample, 11.8% reported 5 hours or less, whereas 12.7% reported 9 to 12 hours, of sleep per night. Approximately 2 years later, among those who had reported insomnia previously and participated in the follow-up wave, the persistence of DFA was 74.9%, that of SCD 68.9%, that of EMA 47.3%, and that of known snoring was 59.6%. The persistence of DaSom, however, was only 5.7%; only DaSom was significantly (P = .049) associated with mortality.
Sleep complaints were common among these older individuals. Because these data were collected prospectively, they also provide objective evidence that insomnia is relatively persistent or chronic among older adults. This finding has implications for the diagnosis and long-term management of sleep disorders in older people. Derivation from a random community-based sample rather than from samples of patients or volunteers makes these data more generalizable to the general older population. Finally, these data describe a rural older populations, a group which, in general, is medically underserved and understudied.
to develop a measure of activities of daily living appropriate for use in assessing the presence of dementia in illiterate rural elderly people in India.
identification of relevant items, pre-testing ...of items and refinement of administrative procedures and scoring in four successive groups of 30 subjects each, pilot testing in a group of 100 subjects comparable to those for whom the measure is intended, administration to a representative sample of 387 people aged 55 and older, and assessment of the reliability of the final measure.
age-stratified random sample of older men and women in rural areas of Ballabgarh, Northern India.
the original pool of 35 items covering mobility, instrumental and personal care activities was reduced to an 11-item unidimensional scale (to which an additional item on mobility was added) with internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha)=0.82, perfect inter- and intra-rater reliability, test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation)=0.82 (any disability) and 0.92 (unable to perform for 'mental' reasons). Women, older subjects, the totally illiterate and subjects with poorer cognitive function performed significantly more poorly (P < or = 0.02 for all). PRODUCT: a brief, reliable and valid activities of daily living measure, with norms, which is appropriate for use in assessing dementia in illiterate rural elderly people in India.
Seascape ecology, the marine-centric counterpart to landscape ecology, is rapidly emerging as an interdisciplinary and spatially explicit ecological science with relevance to marine management, ...biodiversity conservation, and restoration. While important progress in this field has been made in the past decade, there has been no coherent prioritisation of key research questions to help set the future research agenda for seascape ecology. We used a 2-stage modified Delphi method to solicit applied research questions from academic experts in seascape ecology and then asked respondents to identify priority questions across 9 interrelated research themes using 2 rounds of selection. We also invited senior management/conservation practitioners to prioritise the same research questions. Analyses highlighted congruence and discrepancies in perceived priorities for applied research. Themes related to both ecological concepts and management practice, and those identified as priorities include seascape change, seascape connectivity, spatial and temporal scale, ecosystem-based management, and emerging technologies and metrics. Highest-priority questions (upper tercile) received 50% agreement between respondent groups, and lowest priorities (lower tercile) received 58% agreement. Across all 3 priority tiers, 36 of the 55 questions were within a ±10% band of agreement. We present the most important applied research questions as determined by the proportion of votes received. For each theme, we provide a synthesis of the research challenges and the potential role of seascape ecology. These priority questions and themes serve as a roadmap for advancing applied seascape ecology during, and beyond, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
To determine the pharmacoepidemiology of prescription drug use in a rural elderly community sample, specifically the numbers and categories of medications taken and the factors associated with them.
...Cross-sectional community survey.
The mid-Monongahela Valley of southwestern Pennsylvania.
An age-stratified random sample of 1360 community-dwelling individuals, aged 65 years and older.
Self-reported use of prescription drugs demographic characteristics, and use of health services.
Nine hundred sixty-seven participants (71%) reported regularly taking at least one prescription medication and 157 (10%) reported taking five or more medications (median 2.0, range 0-13). Women took significantly more medications than men (median 2.0, range 0-13 and median 1.0, range 0-9, respectively; p = 0.01). The use of a greater number of medications was independently and statistically significantly associated with older age, hospitalization within the previous 6 months, home health care in previous year, visit to a physician within the previous year, and insurance coverage for prescription medication. Individuals older than 85 years were significantly more likely to be taking cardiovascular agents, anticoagulants, vasodilating agents, diuretics, and potassium supplements. Significantly more women than men were taking nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, antidepressants, potassium supplements, and thyroid replacement medications.
Both the number and the types of prescription medications vary with age and gender. The demographic and health service use variables associated with greater medication use in the community may help define high-risk groups for polypharmacy and adverse drug reactions. Longitudinal studies are needed.
Coalitionary aggression occurs when at least two individuals jointly direct aggression at one or more conspecific targets. Scientists have long argued that this common form of cooperation has ...positive fitness consequences. Nevertheless, despite evidence that social bond strength (which is thought to promote coalition formation) is correlated with fitness in primates, cetaceans, and ungulates, few studies have directly examined whether coalitionary aggression improves reproductive success. We tested the hypothesis that among free-ranging chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), participation in coalitionary aggression increases reproductive output. Using 14 years of genetic and behavioral data from Gombe National Park, Tanzania, we found that coalitionary aggression increased a male's chances of (A) siring offspring, compared to other males of similar dominance rank, and (B) ascending in rank, a correlate of future reproductive output. Because male chimpanzees form coalitions with many others within a complex network, we used social network analysis to identify the types of connections correlated with these fitness benefits. The beneficiaries of coalitionary aggression were males with the highest "betweenness"—that is, those who tended to have coalition partners who themselves did not form coalitions with each other. This suggests that beyond simply recognizing third-party relationships, chimpanzees may use this knowledge to choose coalition partners. If so, this is a significant step forward in our knowledge of the adaptive value of social intelligence. Regardless of mechanism, however, this is the first evidence of genetic benefits of coalitionary aggression in this species, and therefore has important implications for understanding the evolution of cooperation.
Summary
Background
Inhibition of gastric acid removes a defence against ingested bacteria and spores, increasing the risk of some forms of gastroenteritis. Previous studies investigating a possible ...link between acid suppression therapy and Clostridium difficile‐associated diarrhoea have reported conflicting results.
Aim
To investigate whether acid suppression therapy is associated with an increased risk of C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea.
Methods
Prospective case–control study of 155 consecutive in‐patients with C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea.
Results
Antibiotics had been received by 143 (92%) of the C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea group and 76 (50%) of the controls during the preceding 3 months. Among those receiving antibiotics, 59 (41%) of the C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea group had also received acid suppression, compared with 21 (28%) of controls (OR 1.84, CI 1.01, 3.36, χ2 = 4.0, P = 0.046). Among the entire C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea group 64 (41%) had received acid suppression compared with 40 (26%) of controls (OR 1.99, CI 1.19, 3.31, χ2 = 7.9, P = 0.005). Logistic regression analyses found that C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea was independently associated with: antibiotic use (OR 13.1, 95% CI: 6.6, 26.1); acid suppression therapy (OR 1.90, 95% CI: 1.10, 3.29); and female sex (OR 1.79, 95% CI: 1.06, 3.04).
Conclusions
The risk of C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea in hospitalized patients receiving antibiotics may be compounded by exposure to proton pump inhibitor therapy.
Tidal marshes are a key component of coastal seascape mosaics that support a suite of socially and economically valuable ecosystem services, including recreational opportunities (e.g., fishing, ...birdwatching), habitat for fisheries species, improved water quality, and shoreline protection. The capacity for tidal marshes to support these services is, however, threatened by increasingly widespread human impacts that reduce the extent and condition of tidal marshes across multiple spatial scales and that vary substantially through time. Climate change causes species redistribution at continental scales, changes in weather patterns (e.g., rainfall), and a worsening of the effect of coastal squeeze through sea level rise. Simultaneously, the effects of urbanization such as habitat loss, eutrophication, fishing, and the spread of invasive species interact with each other, and with climate change, to fundamentally change the structure and functioning of tidal marshes and their food webs. These changes affect tidal marshes at local scales through changes in plant community composition, complexity, and condition and at regional scales through changes in habitat extent, configuration, and connectivity. However, research into the full effects of these multi-scaled, interactive stressors on ecosystem service provision in tidal marshes is in its infancy and is somewhat geographically restricted. This hinders our capacity to quickly and effectively curb loss and degradation of both tidal marshes and the services they deliver with targeted management actions. We highlight ten priority research questions seeking to quantify the consequences and scales of human impacts on tidal marshes that should be answered to improve management and restoration plans.
1 University of Cambridge, Department of Haematology, Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, Cambridge
2 Academic Unit of Haematology, School of Medicine and Biomedical Science, Sheffield
3 ...Department of Haematology, Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge
4 Department of Haematology, Russells Hall Hospital, Dudley and
5 Department of Haematology, St. Thomass Hospital, London, UK
Correspondence: Anthony J. Bench, Haemato-oncology, Diagnostic Service, Department, of Haematology, Addenbrookes, Hospital, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK. E-mail: anthony.bench{at}addenbrookes.nhs.uk
Background: The JAK2 V617F mutation can be found in patients with polycythemia vera, essential thrombocythemia and idiopathic myelofibrosis. Mutation or methylation of other components of JAK/STAT signaling, such as the negative regulators suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 ( SOCS1 ) and SOCS3 , may contribute to the pathogenesis of both JAK2 V617F positive and negative myeloproliferative disorders.
Design and Methods: A cohort of patients with myeloproliferative disorders was assessed for acquired mutations, aberrant expression and/or CpG island hypermethylation of SOCS1 and SOCS3 .
Results: No mutations were identified within the coding region of either gene in 73 patients with myeloproliferative disorders. No disease-specific CpG island methylation of SOCS1 was observed. SOCS1 expression was raised in myeloproliferative disorder granulocytes but the level was independent of JAK2 V617F status. Hypermethylation of the SOCS3 promoter was identified in 16 of 50 (32%) patients with idiopathic myelofibrosis but not in patients with essential thrombocythemia, polycythemia vera or myelofibrosis preceded by another myeloproliferative disorder. Confirmation of methylation status was validated by nested polymerase chain reaction and/or bisulphite sequencing. SOCS3 transcript levels were highest in patients with polycythemia vera and other JAK2 V617F positive myeloproliferative disorders, consistent with SOCS3 being a target gene of JAK2/STAT5 signaling. There was a trend towards an association between SOCS3 methylation and lower SOCS3 expression in JAK2 V617F negative patients with idiopathic myelofibrosis but not in JAK2 V617F positive ones. Finally, SOCS3 methylation was not significantly correlated with survival or other clinical variables.
Conclusions: SOCS3 promoter methylation was detected in 32% of patients with idiopathic myelofibrosis suggesting a possible role for SOCS3 methylation in this disorder. The pathogenetic consequences of SOCS3 methylation in idiopathic myelofibrosis remain to be fully elucidated.
Key words: SOCS3, SOCS1, hypermethylation, myeloproliferative disorders.
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