Reactor Neutrino Spectra Hayes, Anna C; Vogel, Petr
Annual review of nuclear and particle science,
10/2016, Letnik:
66, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
We present a review of the antineutrino spectra emitted from reactors. Knowledge of these spectra and their associated uncertainties is crucial for neutrino oscillation studies. The spectra used to ...date have been determined either by converting measured electron spectra to antineutrino spectra or by summing over all of the thousands of transitions that make up the spectra, using modern databases as input. The uncertainties in the subdominant corrections to β-decay plague both methods, and we provide estimates of these uncertainties. Improving on current knowledge of the antineutrino spectra from reactors will require new experiments. Such experiments would also address the so-called reactor neutrino anomaly and the possible origin of the shoulder observed in the antineutrino spectra measured in recent high-statistics reactor neutrino experiments.
The lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) integrates homeostatic processes and reward-motivated behaviors. Here we show that LHA neurons that produce melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) are dynamically ...responsive to both food-directed appetitive and consummatory processes in male rats. Specifically, results reveal that MCH neuron Ca
activity increases in response to both discrete and contextual food-predictive cues and is correlated with food-motivated responses. MCH neuron activity also increases during eating, and this response is highly predictive of caloric consumption and declines throughout a meal, thus supporting a role for MCH neurons in the positive feedback consummatory process known as appetition. These physiological MCH neural responses are functionally relevant as chemogenetic MCH neuron activation promotes appetitive behavioral responses to food-predictive cues and increases meal size. Finally, MCH neuron activation enhances preference for a noncaloric flavor paired with intragastric glucose. Collectively, these data identify a hypothalamic neural population that orchestrates both food-motivated appetitive and intake-promoting consummatory processes.
Early life Western diet (WD) consumption leads to impaired memory function, particularly for processes mediated by the hippocampus. However, the precise critical developmental window(s) during which ...WD exposure negatively impacts hippocampal function are unknown. Here, we exposed male and female rats to a WD model involving free access to a variety of high-fat and/or high-sugar food and drink items during either the early-adolescent period (postnatal days PN 26–41; WD-EA) or late-adolescent period (PN 41–56; WD-LA). Control (CTL) rats were given healthy standard chow throughout both periods. To evaluate long-lasting memory capacity well beyond the early life WD exposure periods, we performed behavioral assessments after both a short (4 weeks for WD-EA, 2 weeks for WD-LA) and long (12 weeks for WD-EA, 10 weeks for WD-LA) period of healthy diet intervention. Results revealed no differences in body weight or body composition between diet groups, regardless of sex. Following the shorter period of healthy diet intervention, both male and female WD-EA and WD-LA rats showed deficits in hippocampal-dependent memory compared to CTL rats. Following the longer healthy diet intervention period, memory impairments persisted in male WD-EA but not WD-LA rats. In contrast, in female rats the longer healthy diet intervention reversed the initial memory impairments in both WD-EA and WD-LA rats. Collectively, these findings reveal that early-adolescence is a critical period of long-lasting hippocampal vulnerability to dietary insults in male but not female rats, thus highlighting developmental- and sex-specific effects mediating the relationship between the early life nutritional environment and long-term cognitive health.
COVID-19 lockdowns caused widespread closures of supportive care services for breast cancer survivors in Australia. In a randomized controlled trial, our team's lifestyle-focused, evidence-based SMS ...text message support program (EMPOWER-SMS COVID-19) was found to be acceptable and useful for breast cancer survivors, and it was ready for rapid widespread delivery.
This study aims to evaluate the reach (uptake) of an adapted 3-month lifestyle-focused SMS text message program (EMPOWER-SMS COVID-19) and barriers and enablers to implementation using the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework.
A mixed methods pre-post study was conducted to evaluate the EMPOWER-SMS COVID-19 program. The study evaluated the following aspects: (1) reach/representativeness, which refers to the proportion of participant enrollment (ie, number enrolled/number that visited the study website) and demographics (eg, age, sex, ethnicity, time since completing treatment, Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage IRSAD; quintile 1, which refers to most disadvantaged areas, to quintile 5, which refers to least disadvantaged areas, and remoteness); (2) effectiveness, in which participant engagement and acceptability were evaluated using SMS text message reply data and a feedback survey (5-point Likert scale and free-text responses); (3) adoption, which corresponds to the proportion of organizations or health professionals who agreed to promote the program; (4) implementation fidelity and maintenance, which evaluated SMS text message delivery data, opt-outs, costs, and adaptations. Quantitative data were summarized using means and SDs or frequencies and percentages, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically.
With regard to the reach/representativeness of the program, 841/1340 (62.8%) participants enrolled and provided electronic consent. Participants had a mean age of 58.8 (SD 9.8; range 30-87) years. According to the data collected, most participants identified as female (837/840, 99.6%) and White (736/840, 87.6%) and nearly half (418/841, 49.7%) finished treatment ≤18 months ago. Most resided in major cities (574/838, 68.5%) and 30% (251/838) in IRSAD quintile 1 or 2. In terms of effectiveness, 852 replies were received from 511 unique participants (median 1; range 1-26). The most common replies were participants stating how they heard about the program (467/852, 54.8%) or "thank you" (131/852, 15.4%). None of the replies contained urgent safety concerns. Among participants who provided feedback (449/841, 53.4%), most "(strongly) agreed" the SMS text messages were easy to understand (445/448, 99.3%), useful (373/440, 84.8%), helped participants feel supported (388/448, 86.6%), and motivated participants to be physically active (312/445, 70.1%) and eat healthier (313/457, 68.5%). Free-text responses revealed 5 factors influencing engagement: (1) feeling supported and less alone, (2) motivation and reassurance for health self-management, (3) the variety of information, (4) weblinks to information and resources, and (5) the option to save the SMS text messages. Concerning adoption, 50% (18/36) of organizations/health professionals agreed to promote the program. With regard to implementation/maintenance, SMS text messages were delivered as planned (97.43% 41,257/42,344 of SMS text messages were successfully delivered) with minimal opt-outs (62/838, 7.4%) and low cost (Aus $15.40/participant; Aus $1=US $0.67). No adaptations were made during the intervention period. Postintervention adaptations included adding weblinks and participant-selected customizations.
EMPOWER-SMS COVID-19 was implemented quickly, had a broad reach, and had high engagement and acceptability among socioeconomically diverse participants. The program had high fidelity, low cost, and required minimal staff oversight, which may facilitate future implementation. However, further research is needed to evaluate barriers and enablers to adoption and implementation for health professionals and strategies for long-term maintenance.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The only known non-avian vertebrate obligate brood parasite is the cuckoo catfish (
Synodontis multipunctatus
), a Lake Tanganyikan endemic. The cuckoo catfish parasitizes Tanganyikan mouthbrooding ...cichlids, and under captive conditions, will also parasitize cichlids from other Rift Valley lakes. Here we examine the frequency of parasitism by the cuckoo catfish of
Ctenochromis horei
from Lake Tanganyika and three species from Lake Malawi and the greater Lake Victorian system in a laboratory setting.
C. horei
was parasitized significantly less (17%) than the allopatric species
Haplochromis latifasciatus
,
Haplochromis nubilus
, and
Metriaclima estherae
(combined parasitism rate of 28%). The lower rates of parasitism in
C. horei
may be due to differences in the mating ritual, oviposition (e.g., long periods of pseudo-spawning before actual oviposition), and behavioral adaptations (e.g., increased aggression towards the cuckoo catfish). The number of catfish eggs per parasitized brood was similar between
C. horei, H. latifasciatus, H. nubilus, and M. estherae
. Our results are comparable to findings from the field for
C. horei
parasitism frequency and number of cuckoo catfish per brood. We also analyzed the parasitism rate of the albino morph of
Metriaclima zebra
, a domestic strain. Parasitism rates and number of catfish per brood were the highest in the albino morphotype suggesting that the higher levels of parasitism may be related to lower aggressive behavior, lower visual acuity, or captive influence. Cuckoo catfish and mouthbrooding cichlids provide a model system for testing brood parasitism in a laboratory setting.
Background
Patient‐reported outcome measures (PROMs) are important tools to inform patients, clinicians and policy‐makers about clinical need and the effectiveness of any given treatment. Consistent ...PROM use can promote early symptom detection, help identify unexpected treatment responses and improve therapeutic engagement. Very few studies have examined associations between patient characteristics and PROM data collection.
Methods
We used the electronic mental health records for 28,382 children and young people (aged 4–17 years) accessing Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) across four South London boroughs between the 1st of January 2008 to the 1st of October 2017. We examined the completion rates of the caregiver Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a ubiquitous PROM for CAMHS at baseline and 6‐month follow‐up.
Results and Conclusions
SDQs were present for approximately 40% (n = 11,212) of the sample at baseline, and from these, only 8% (n = 928) had a follow‐up SDQ. Patterns of unequal PROM collection by sociodemographic factors were identified: males were more likely (aOR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01–1.13), whilst older age (aOR 0.87, 95% CI 0.87–0.88), Black (aOR 0.79 95% CI 0.74–0.84) and Asian ethnicity (aOR 0.75 95% CI 0.66–0.86) relative to White ethnicity, and residence within the most deprived neighbourhood (aOR 0.87 95% CI 0.80–0.94) were less likely to have a record of baseline SDQ. Similar results were found in the sub‐group (n = 11,212) with follow‐up SDQ collection. Our findings indicate systematic differences in the currently available PROMS data and highlights which groups require increased focus if we are to gain equitable PROM collection. We need to ensure representative PROM collection for all individuals accessing treatment, regardless of ethnic or socioeconomic background; biased data have adverse ramifications for policy and service level decision‐making.
Neonatal encephalopathy (NE) is a leading cause of child mortality and longer-term impairment. Infection can sensitize the newborn brain to injury; however, the role of group B streptococcal (GBS) ...disease has not been reviewed. This paper is the ninth in an 11-article series estimating the burden of GBS disease; here we aim to assess the proportion of GBS in NE cases.
We conducted systematic literature reviews (PubMed/Medline, Embase, Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature LILACS, World Health Organization Library Information System WHOLIS, and Scopus) and sought unpublished data from investigator groups reporting GBS-associated NE. Meta-analyses estimated the proportion of GBS disease in NE and mortality risk. UK population-level data estimated the incidence of GBS-associated NE.
Four published and 25 unpublished datasets were identified from 13 countries (N = 10436). The proportion of NE associated with GBS was 0.58% (95% confidence interval CI, 0.18%-.98%). Mortality was significantly increased in GBS-associated NE vs NE alone (risk ratio, 2.07 95% CI, 1.47-2.91). This equates to a UK incidence of GBS-associated NE of 0.019 per 1000 live births.
The consistent increased proportion of GBS disease in NE and significant increased risk of mortality provides evidence that GBS infection contributes to NE. Increased information regarding this and other organisms is important to inform interventions, especially in low- and middle-resource contexts.
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