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OUP accepted manuscript
No full textIntroduction: The We Can Quit2 (WCQ2) pilot trial assessed the feasibility of ‘We Can Quit’ (WCQ), a community-based stop-smoking programme delivered by trained community facilitators, based on the socio-ecological framework and developed using a Community-based Participatory Research approach, targeting women living in socioeconomically disadvantaged (SED) areas of Ireland.
Methods: A pragmatic cluster RCT with a process evaluation was conducted in four matched pairs of SED districts (8-10,000 women per district). Districts were independently randomised to WCQ (group support + nicotine replacement therapy), or to individual support delivered by health professionals. Participants were adult women smokers interested in quitting, living or working in trial districts. Recruitment of districts and 194 women in four waves (49 women per wave); retention at 12-weeks and 6-months; fidelity to intervention delivery and acceptability of trial-related processes were assessed. Validated smoking abstinence at 12-week and 6-months post-intervention was recorded, missing data assumed as continued smoking.
Results: Eight districts were recruited. 125/188 (66.5%) eligible women consented. The 49 women target was reached in wave4. Retention at 12-weeks was [Intervention (I): 55.4%; Control (C): 51.7%], at 6-months, [I: 47.7%; C: 46.7%]. Smoking abstinence at 12-weeks was [I: 23.1%, (95% CI 14.5-34.7%); C: 13%, (95% CI 6.9-24.1%)]. 83.8% of session activities were delivered. Trial-related processes were acceptable to facilitators. Low literacy was highlighted as a barrier for participants’ acceptability.
Conclusions: WCQ was feasible to deliver by trained facilitators and indicated a positive direction in abstinence rates. Low literacy will need to be addressed in a future trial design.
Implications: This pilot trial showed that a stop-smoking intervention tailored to a group of women smokers living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas which was delivered by trained local women within their local communities was feasible. Furthermore, although not formally compared, more We Can Quit women were abstinent from smoking at the end of treatment. The results are relevant to enhance the design of a fully powered trial of effectiveness, and provide important evidence on the barriers to deliver a tailored smoking cessation service to socioeconomically disadvantaged women smokers in Ireland
Impact of Metabolic Surgery on Renal Injury in Pre-Clinical Models of Diabetic Kidney Disease
No full textBackground: Surgical approaches to the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes, most notably the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) procedure, have been shown to be renoprotective, reducing the incidence of albuminuria and end-stage kidney disease over 15- to 20-year follow-up in patients with obesity. The tissue level effects of metabolic surgery on the diabetic kidney are not easily interrogated in clinical samples. However, elucidation of the cellular and molecular basis for the renoprotective effects of metabolic surgery is now emerging from a body of pre-clinical work in rodent models of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Summary: Experimental metabolic surgery (RYGB, sleeve gastrectomy [SG], Roux-en-Y oesophagojejunostomy, and duodenojejunal bypass) exerts a pronounced albuminuria-lowering effect in rat models of DKD. Following RYGB in the Zucker diabetic fatty rat, glomerular histology is improved as demonstrated by reductions in podocyte stress, glomerulomegaly, and glomerulosclerosis. Glomerular ultrastructure improves after RYGB and after SG, manifested by quantifiable reductions in podocyte foot process effacement. The transcriptional programme underpinning these structural improvements has been characterized at the pathway level using RNA sequencing and is associated with a significant reduction in the activation of inflammatory and fibrotic responses. Key Messages: Experimental metabolic surgery reduces biochemical, histological, and molecular indices of DKD. These pre-clinical data support a growing interest in the potential utility of metabolic surgery as a therapeutic approach to slow renal functional decline in patients with obesity and DKD.Wellcome Trus
Organisational characteristics that facilitate gender-based violence and harassment in higher education?
No full textGender-based violence and sexual harassment (GBVH) by and towards academics and
students has been under-theorised at an organisational level in higher education institutions (HEIs). The methodology involves a critical review of the literature on GBVH and organizational responses to it, locating it in the context of an analysis of organizational power. The theoretical perspective involves a focus on power and workplace bullying. It identifies three power-related characteristics of academic environments which it is suggested facilitate GBVH: their male-dominant hierarchical
character; their neoliberal managerialist ethos and gender/intersectional incompetent leadership which perpetuates male entitlement and toxic masculinities. These characteristics also inhibit tackling GBVH by depicting it as an individual problem, encouraging informal coping and militating against the prosecution of perpetrators. Initiating a discussion and action at organizational and state levels about GBVH as a power-related phenomenon, challenging the dominant neo-liberal ethos and the
hierarchical character of HEIs, as well as reducing their male dominance and increasing the gender competence of those in positions of power are seen as initial steps in tackling the problem
Ireland in a Danish mirror: A microlevel comparison of the productivity of Danish and Irish creameries before the First World War
No full textThe relative success of the Danish and failure of the Irish dairy industries before the First
World War is often contrasted given their competition for the lucrative British butter market.
The traditional narrative implicitly assumes that Ireland failed because it was unsuccessful at
adopting the cooperative institution, and that Irish cooperatives were not as efficient as their
Danish counterparts, despite having been explicitly modelled on them. This assumption is,
however, untested at the ‘firm’ level. We seek to rectify this through the analysis of a large
microlevel database of creameries in both countries over the period 1898-1903. Using
Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA), a standard methodology in modern productivity studies,
we find no evidence for significant productivity differences on average, although there was a
much larger variance in Ireland. This nuances the idea that the Irish were unable to cooperate successfully, although some creameries were certainly productivity laggards
Modified cyclodextrin-based nanoparticles mediated delivery of siRNA for huntingtin gene silencing across an in vitro BBB model
No full textHuntington\u27s disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by a mutation in the huntingtin (HTT) gene, leading to a toxic version of the HTT protein. There are currently no disease-modifying therapies available. In this scenario, gene-based treatments for HD aimed at lowering HTT levels have become one of the most promising emerging therapeutic options. To date, however, promising results have only been achieved following direct intrathecal or intracranial injections designed to circumvent the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Consequently, efforts to develop less invasive delivery platforms are highly desirable. Here, we described a novel delivery system based on modified cyclodextrin nanoparticles (CDs) loaded with small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) targeting HTT and complexed with the rabies virus glycoprotein (RVG), a BBB-shuttle peptide. Results using an in vitro BBB model, indicate the formulation successfully crosses the brain endothelial cells, releases the encapsulated siRNAs into the cytoplasm of neuronal cells, and mediates downregulation of HTT. In conclusion, the CD platform is a promising option for delivery of siRNA-based therapeutics for HD with wider potential to treat other diseases with a genetically validated target in the central nervous system
Lattice Boltzmann simulations of dense granular suspensions
No full textThis thesis aims to understand, via lattice Boltzmann simulations, the
rheological behaviour of charged monodisperse particle suspensions in
hydraulic transport lines. Therefore, a three-dimensional, in-house
numerical code was implemented using an immersed boundary-lattice
Boltzmann method (IB-LBM) to assess the rheology and suspension
structures subjected to constant and time-varying shear flows, for a
wide range of solids volume fractions, 2% ≤ φv ≤ 52%, and particle
Reynolds numbers, 0.1 ≤ Rep ≤ 0.5. The particles translate, rotate,
and collide under the influence of applied shear and sub-grid scale
forces and torques.
Preliminary simulations of suspensions began by simulating uncharged
particles with a spring force model under constant shear rate. The
simulations revealed shear-thickening, and the relative apparent viscosity showed excellent agreement with the literature for Rep = 0.11.
For higher values of φv and Rep, apparent discrepancies in the viscosity were observed due to slower particle rotation and increased
clustering.
The sub-grid scale force model was improved by replacing the spring
forces with the corrections for the unresolved lubrication (normal and
tangential) forces and electric double layer (EDL) forces. When the
collisions were modelled with lubrication corrections, the contribution
of the tangential lubrication corrections to the suspensions’ viscosity was dominant, and the particles assembled to form homogeneous
chain-like structures. By subsequently adding EDL forces, the chain
structures were broken and the viscosity of the suspensions was decreased down to ≈ 30% due to the formation of hexagonal assemblies.
The response of suspensions subjected to instantaneous flow reversals
with lubrication correction and EDL forces revealed that the presence
of EDLs shortens the time required for suspensions to attain equilibrium. The investigation of the suspensions’ behaviour due to step
increases and decreases in shear rate magnitudes showed that when
sheared continuously, dense suspensions retain their previous shear
history but lose their previous state when the fluid flow was suddenly
stopped and resumed
Introducing the PEAT model to frame professional digital competence in teacher education
No full textThis paper puts forward a case for using the PEAT model in teacher education, a framework designed to capture the different dimensions of teachers’ professional digital competence (PDC). The model arose from an Erasmus+ funded project exploring digital competence in teacher education. While existing frameworks and conceptualisations of teachers’ digital competence exist, this paper argues that the PEAT model has unique
affordances and characteristics.This paper outlines the importance of digital competence before exploring how it is currently conceptualised in teacher education. Following this, some of the current frameworks encapsulating the elements of teachers’ professional digital competence are briefly presented. Finally, the paper presents the PEAT framework and discusses its unique affordances
Policy drivers of farm succession and inheritance
No full textFarm succession and inheritance is increasingly considered a complex phenomenon
which not only affects core dimensions of farm family life but also the agricultural
sector more widely. Intergenerational farm transfer in particular is increasingly viewed
as fundamental to the sustainability and development of global agriculture. In the
majority of EU countries, the average age of farmers is increasing, while the number of
farmers under 40 years of age is decreasing. There is growing concern that this
demographic trend may have negative impacts on the agricultural industry because it is
younger and not older farmers who are associated with more efficient and effective
production practices. The question of what motivates decisions to transfer farms is a
complex one, and research to date has not apparently enlightened agricultural policy to
the extent that current trends towards an ageing farm population are being managed.
This research aims to investigate economic and financial aspects of the policy drivers of
farm succession and inheritance in Ireland to understand what it is about the policy
environment that is failing to stimulate higher levels of farm transfer. It draws on the
Teagasc National Farm Survey data which provides Irish data to the Farm Accountancy
Data Network in the European Commission. A hypothetical microsimulation model is
used to investigate economic factors of farm transfers, with scenarios created to test
these factors and their impacts on the transfer process. The Net Present Value (NPV) of
income streams for farmers and their successors are calculated to assess which scenarios
have the highest/lowest financial effects. The findings illustrate a range of possible
scenarios for farm succession/inheritance, with some results indicating that under
current policy retaining a farm until death may be more economically beneficial to a
farmer than transferring land before death
Reproductive efficiency and survival of Holstein-Friesian cows of divergent Economic Breeding Index, evaluated under seasonal calving pasture-based management
No full textThe objective of the current study was to examine phenotypic fertility performance and survival, and to gain insight into underlying factors that may contribute to greater fertility performance in 2 divergent genetic groups (GG) of Holstein-Friesian, selected using the Irish Economic Breeding Index (EBI). The GG were evaluated across 3 spring calving pasture-based feeding treatments (FT) over 4 yr. The 2 divergent GG were (1) high EBI; representative of the top 5% nationally (elite), and (2) EBI representative of the national average (NA). In each year, 90 elite and 45 NA cows were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 FT: control, lower grass allowance, and high concentrate. No interaction between GG and FT was observed for any of the measures of fertility investigated. The elite cows achieved significantly greater pregnancy rate to first service (+14.9 percentage points), and significantly greater pregnancy rates after 21, 42, and 84 d of breeding (+17.3, +15.2, and +9.6 percentage points, respectively) compared with NA. The number of services per cow was fewer for elite (1.57) compared with NA (1.80). The interval from mating start date to pregnancy was significantly shorter for elite cows compared with NA. The elite cows maintained greater mean body condition score than NA throughout the study (2.91 vs. 2.72), and had greater body condition score at calving, artificial insemination, and drying off compared with NA. The elite cows had greater mean circulating concentrations of insulin-like growth factor-1 compared with NA. No significant effect was observed of GG on commencement of luteal activity, or progesterone profile variables. Greater survival to the start of fifth lactation was observed for elite cows. The elite cows were 43% less likely to be culled than NA by the beginning of the fifth lactation. The results highlight the success of the Economic Breeding Index to deliver reproductive performance and longevity consistent with industry targets across a range of seasonal pasture-based FT. The results also clearly demonstrate the potential of appropriate genetic selection to reverse negative fertility trends incurred during previous decades of selection for milk production alone