Research has generally revealed only a weak link, if any at all, between victimization-related experiences and job performance. Drawing on the commonly used conservation of resources perspective, we ...argue that such inconsistent evidence in the organizational literature stems from an over-focus on personal resources at the expense of considering the role of social resources. Victimization is an interpersonal phenomenon with social ramifications. Its effects may be better captured when measured from the standpoint of the social environment, and analyzed relative to an employee's capacity to effectively regulate those social resources. With the latter capacity being encapsulated by the construct of political skill, we conducted two studies to explore the moderating influence of employee political skill on the relationship between employee perceptions of a victimizing work environment and employee task performance. In Study 1, employees with low political skill exhibited reduced task performance when perceiving a victimizing environment, and this link was found to be mediated by tension in Study 2. Those with high political skill exhibit no change in performance across victimization perceptions in Study 2, yet an increase in performance in Study 1. We discuss our findings relative to the victimization and political skill literatures.
The Met Office Unified Model develops a systematic error consisting of a large high‐pressure bias over the North Pole. The error begins to develop early in numerical weather prediction forecasts and ...is the leading large‐scale circulation error in the model's climatological mean, with implications for principle circulation regimes and blocking. The cause of the error is investigated using a variety of diagnostic techniques, including analysis of a perturbed parameter ensemble for the model, evaluation of changes in both weather and climate simulations to minimise the risk of introducing compensating errors, and detailed comparisons with another model. A reduction in this systematic error is achieved through an overall reduction in the near‐surface drag; however, to accomplish this without affecting forecast predictability adversely, a redistribution of the drag is required between the roughness from vegetation in the land‐surface scheme, the near‐surface drag from the orographic gravity‐wave drag scheme, the turbulent orographic form drag, and the resolved drag (through changing the orographic filtering). A modest reduction in the climatological bias is achieved, along with a reduction in bias and improved predictability of near‐surface winds.
The Met Office Unified model develops a large high surface pressure bias and associated geopotential height error over the Arctic (figure shows the climatological bias against ERA‐Interim for a) PMSL, b) geopotential height (m)). The cause of the error is investigated and a redistribution of near‐surface drag between parametrization schemes is found to be required
Highly addictive amphetamine‐type stimulants, including methamphetamine (MA), pose significant health and socioeconomic issues, with an estimated 27 million users worldwide. Understanding the ...neurobiological changes underlying various stages of MA abuse is key to developing safe and effective therapies. While the majority of addiction research has implicated the dopamine system, the long‐term neuroplasticity that maintains MA Use Disorder also involves drug‐induced changes in glutamate signaling in reward regions of the brain like the nucleus accumbens (NAC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC). In order to further characterize the role of glutamate in MA reward and reinforcement, glutamate receptor scaffolding protein Homer2 expression in the NAC and activity in the glutamatergic projection PFC‐NAC were manipulated prior to place‐ and operant‐conditioning procedures. Together the results from these studies argue that while research of the functional neuroanatomy of addiction tends to focus on traditional dichotomies between the NAC core and shell or PFC prelimbic and infralimbic sub‐regions, the role of these circuits in drug abuse is more complex than the narrow scope of our experiments were able to probe. Other inputs upstream from our regions of interest may be able to compensate for our manipulations via neurobiological redundancy. This would suggest that as research technologies advance, targeting functional networks will be crucial for elucidating the neurobiological underpinnings of addiction and discovering potential therapeutics.
Bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder (BED) are eating disorders (EDs) characterized by recurrent binge eating (BE) episodes. Overlap exists between ED diagnostic groups, with BE episodes ...presenting one clinical feature that occurs transdiagnostically. Neuroimaging of the responses of those with BN and BED to disorder-specific stimuli, such as food, is not extensively investigated. Furthermore, to our knowledge, there have been no previous published studies examining the neural response of individuals currently experiencing binge eating, to low energy foods. Our objective was to examine the neural responses to both low energy and high energy food images in three emotive categories (disgust; fear; and happy) in BN and BED participants.
Nineteen females with BN (
= 14) or BED (
= 5), comprising the binge eating group (BEG;
= 19), and 19 age-matched healthy control (HC)'s completed thorough clinical assessment prior to functional MRI (fMRI). Neural response to low energy and high energy foods and non-food images was compared between groups using whole-brain exploratory analyses, from which six regions of interest (ROI) were then selected: frontal, occipital, temporal, and parietal lobes; insula and cingulate.
In response to low energy food images, the BEG demonstrated differential neural responses to all three low energy foods categories (disgust; fear; and happy) compared to HCs. Correlational analyses found a significant association between frequency of binge episodes and diminished temporal lobe and greater occipital lobe response. In response to high energy food images, compared to HC's, the BEG demonstrated significantly decreased neural activity in response to all high energy food images. The HC's had significantly greater neural activity in the limbic system, occipital lobe, temporal lobe, frontal lobe, and limbic system in response to high energy food images.
Results in the low energy food condition indicate that binge frequency may be related to increased aberrant neural responding. Furthermore, differences were found between groups in all ROI's except the insula. The neural response seen in the BEG to disgust food images may indicate disengagement with this particular stimuli. In the high energy food condition, results demonstrate that neural activity in BN and BED patients may decrease in response to high energy foods, suggesting disengagement with foods that may be more consistent with those consumed during a binge eating episode.
•The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) is polymorphic in human populations.•Inherited variants in mtDNA may play a role in cancer risk and progression.•Array-based genotyping of mtDNA variants in 2 ...epidemiologic studies of glioma.•Selected mtDNA haplogroups and common mtDNA variants associate with glioma risk.•Complete mtDNA sequencing needed for study of rare and singleton variants.
Malignant gliomas are the most common primary adult brain tumors, with a poor prognosis and ill-defined etiology. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence variation has been linked with certain cancers; however, research on glioma is lacking.
We examined the association of common (minor allele frequency ≥ 5%) germline mtDNA variants and haplogroups with glioma risk in 1,566 glioma cases and 1,017 controls from a US case-control study, and 425 glioma cases and 1,534 matched controls from the UK Biobank cohort (UKB). DNA samples were genotyped using the UK Biobank array that included a set of common and rare mtDNA variants. Risk associations were examined separately for glioblastoma (GBM) and lower grade tumors (non-GBM).
In the US study, haplogroup W was inversely associated with glioma when compared with haplogroup H (OR = 0.43, 95%CI: 0.23–0.79); this association was not demonstrated in the UKB (OR = 1.07, 95%CI: 0.47–2.43). In the UKB, the variant m.3010G > A was significantly associated with GBM (OR = 1.32; 95%CI: 1.01–1.73; p = 0.04), but not non-GBM (1.23; 95%CI: 0.78–1.95; p = 0.38); no similar association was observed in the US study. In the US study, the variant m.14798 T > C, was significantly associated with non-GBM (OR = 0.72; 95%CI: 0.53–0.99), but not GBM (OR = 0.86; 95%CI: 0.66–1.11), whereas in the UKB, a positive association was observed between this variant and GBM (OR = 1.46; 95%CI: 1.06–2.02) but not non-GBM (OR = 0.92; 95%CI: 0.52–1.63). None of these associations were significant after adjustment for multiple testing.
The association of inherited mtDNA variation, including rare and singleton variants, with glioma risk merits further study.
Abstract
Objectives
Transitioning into palliative care is psychologically demanding for people with advanced cancer, and there is a need for acceptable and effective interventions to support this. We ...aimed to develop and pilot test a brief Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) based intervention to improve quality of life and distress.
Methods
Our mixed-method design included: (i) quantitative effectiveness testing using Single Case Experimental Design (SCED), (ii) qualitative interviews with participants, and (iii) focus groups with hospice staff. The five-session, in-person intervention was delivered to 10 participants; five completed at least 80%.
Results
At baseline, participants reported poor quality of life but low distress. Most experienced substantial physical health deterioration during the study. SCED analysis methods did not show conclusively significant effects, but there was some indication that outcome improvement followed changes in expected intervention processes variables. Quantitative and qualitative data together demonstrates acceptability, perceived effectiveness and safety of the intervention. Qualitative interviews and focus groups were also used to gain feedback on intervention content and to make design recommendations to maximise success of later feasibility trials.
Conclusions
This study adds to the growing evidence base for ACT in people with advanced cancer. A number of potential intervention mechanisms, for example a distress-buffering hypothesis, are raised by our data and these should be addressed in future research using randomised controlled trial designs. Our methodological recommendations—including recruiting non-cancer diagnoses, and earlier in the treatment trajectory—likely apply more broadly to the delivery of psychological intervention in the palliative care setting.
This study was pre-registered on the Open Science Framework (Ref: 46,033) and retrospectively registered on the ISRCTN registry (Ref: ISRCTN12084782).
Anthropogenic disturbances associated with urban ecosystems can create favorable conditions for populations of some invasive plant species. Light pollution is one of these disturbances, but how it ...affects the growth and establishment of invasive plant populations is unknown. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is a problematic invasive species where it has displaced native grassland communities in the United States, but to our knowledge, there have been no studies of the ecological factors that affect cheatgrass presence in urban ecosystems. We conducted field surveys in urban alleys in Denver, Colorado, to compare the presence of cheatgrass at sites with and without artificial light at night (hereafter artificial light) from streetlights. These streetlights are mounted on utility poles, which cause ground disturbance when installed in alleys; we were able to test the independent effect of poles on cheatgrass establishment because not all poles have streetlights on them. We found that cheatgrass was positively associated with the presence of streetlights and to a lesser extent poles. In addition to cheatgrass, we also found that other plants were positively associated with the presence of both poles and streetlights. Our results suggest that artificial light may benefit the occurrence of cheatgrass and other plant species in urban settings. While invasive populations of cheatgrass in wild habitats attract the most attention from managers, we suggest more consideration for this grass in urban environments where its growth and establishment benefit from anthropogenic changes.
We have found that light pollution facilitates an invasive plant species, cheatgrass. Ours is the first study to document the effect of this global change driver, artificial light at night, on this important invasive plant species.
•Adherence to disease-modifying therapy affects multiple sclerosis outcomes.•Healthcare claims data over several years were assessed.•Better adherence was associated with longer time to relapse and ...lower relapse rates.•Longer time to cane/walker or wheelchair use was observed with greater adherence.•The healthcare costs examined were lower for adherent individuals.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurodegenerative inflammatory disease that requires long-term commitment to treatment for optimal outcomes. A variety of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are now available that reduce relapses and delay disease progression in people with MS. However, adherence remains a significant issue, with a variety of mental, physical, and emotional factors contributing to non-adherence. In a large number of studies, non-adherence has been associated with worse clinical outcomes (relapses and disease severity), a higher economic burden, and loss of work productivity. However, many of these studies were short-term (1–2 years) or cross-sectional studies; thus, more data are needed on the long-term clinical and economic impacts of DMT non-adherence. The objective of this study was to determine the longer-term impact of adherence to DMTs on disease activity and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) in people with MS. The study hypothesis was that non-adherence to DMTs would be associated long-term with worse clinical outcomes and a higher economic burden.
A retrospective administrative claims analysis of the US MarketScan® Commercial database (2011–2017) in individuals (18–65 years) with MS (based on International Classification of Disease coding) was conducted. Adherence was classified by proportion of days covered (PDC) ≥0.8 and non-adherence by PDC <0.8; sensitivity analyses helped further categorize as moderately (PDC ≥0.6–<0.8) or highly (PDC <0.6) non-adherent. Cohorts were matched using propensity score matching. Time to first relapse, annualized relapse rate (ARR), time to use of assistive devices (cane/walker or wheelchair), and annual HCRU (inpatient, emergency room ER, outpatient, and MRI visits and costs) were compared between cohorts.
10,248 MS cases were identified; 58% met adherence criteria, and 42% met non-adherence criteria. Mean follow-up from diagnosis or first DMT claim was 5.3 years. Adherent individuals had a longer time to first relapse (hazard ratio HR 0.83; 95% confidence interval CI: 0.77–0.90; p<0.0001), a lower ARR (0.13 vs. 0.18, respectively; rate ratio RR 0.75 95% CI: 0.71–0.79; p<0.0001), and longer lag times to cane/walker use (HR 0.79 95% CI: 0.66–0.94; p=0.0067) and wheelchair use (HR 0.68 95% CI: 0.55–0.83; p=0.0002) than non-adherent individuals. Adherent individuals had fewer annual inpatient and ER visits and lower total costs than those who were non-adherent (p<0.0001). Sensitivity analyses showed that differences in disease activity and HCRU were generally more pronounced between matched adherent and highly non-adherent pairs than between matched adherent and moderately non-adherent pairs.
Significant differences in MS disease activity and HCRU were observed based on adherence to DMTs. Our study underscores the negative impact of non-adherence to DMTs on long-term clinical and economic outcomes in MS.
Heterogeneous subtypes of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) coexist within pancreatic cancer tissues and can both promote and restrain disease progression. Here, we interrogate how cancer cells ...harboring distinct alterations in p53 manipulate CAFs. We reveal the existence of a p53-driven hierarchy, where cancer cells with a gain-of-function (GOF) mutant p53 educate a dominant population of CAFs that establish a pro-metastatic environment for GOF and null p53 cancer cells alike. We also demonstrate that CAFs educated by null p53 cancer cells may be reprogrammed by either GOF mutant p53 cells or their CAFs. We identify perlecan as a key component of this pro-metastatic environment. Using intravital imaging, we observe that these dominant CAFs delay cancer cell response to chemotherapy. Lastly, we reveal that depleting perlecan in the stroma combined with chemotherapy prolongs mouse survival, supporting it as a potential target for anti-stromal therapies in pancreatic cancer.
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