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Fruit Intake and Abdominal Aortic Calcification in Elderly Women: A Prospective Cohort Study.
No full text© 2016 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access
article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons by Attribution
(CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide. There is a consistent inverse relationship between fruit intake with CVD events and mortality in cross-sectional and prospective observational studies, but the relationship of fruit intake with measurements of atherosclerosis in humans is less clear. Nutritional effects on abdominal aortic calcification (AAC), a marker for subclinical intimal and medial atherosclerotic vascular disease, have not been studied previously. The aim of this study was to examine the cross-sectional relationship of total and individual fruit (apple, pear, orange and other citrus, and banana) intake with AAC, scored between 0 and 24. The current study assessed baseline data for a cohort of 1052 women over 70 years of age who completed both a food frequency questionnaire assessing fruit intake, and underwent AAC measurement using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. AAC scores were significantly negatively correlated with total fruit and apple intakes (p 0.25). In multivariable-adjusted logistic regression, each standard deviation (SD; 50 g/day) increase in apple intake was associated with a 24% lower odds of having severe AAC (AAC score >5) (odd ratio OR): 0.76 (0.62, 0.93), p = 0.009). Total and other individual fruit intake were not associated with increased odds of having severe AAC. Apple but not total or other fruit intake is independently negatively associated with AAC in older women
Minimal change in children’s lifestyle behaviours and adiposity following a home-based obesity intervention: results from a pilot study
No full textThis article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.Background/Methods: Families of overweight and obese children require support to make sustainable lifestyle
changes to improve their child’s diet and activity behaviours and in turn weight status. The aim of this pre-post
intervention pilot study was to evaluate the feasibility of an individualised home-based intervention for treatment
seeking overweight/obese 4–12 year olds and their caregivers. Baseline measures were used to develop a family-specific
intervention to improve the quality of the home environment. The intervention was delivered as individualised
written recommendations and resources plus phone call and home visit support. Baseline measures were repeated
approximately 6 months later.
Results: Complete data for 24 children was available. Parents reported that 43 % of intervention recommendations
were implemented ‘very much’. Some descriptive changes were observed in the home environment, most commonly
including fruit and vegetables in their child’s lunchbox, not providing food treats, and restricting children’s access to
chips/savoury snack biscuits. At the group level, minimal change was detected in children’s diet and activity behaviours
or weight status (all p > 0.05).
Conclusion: The study findings did not support intervention feasibility in its current form. Future interventions
should target the family food and activity environment, but also utilise an approach to address the complex social
circumstances which limit parent’s ability to prioritise healthy family lifestyle behaviours.
Trial registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) 3/12/2014. http://www.ANZCTR.org.au.
ACTRN1261400126467
Early signs of neurobehavioral improvement after short-termcontinuous positive airway pressure in obstructive sleep apnea
No full textThis is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).Commentary on: Ivana Rosenzweig, Martin Glasser, William R. Crum, Matthew J. Kempton, Milan Milosevic, Alison McMillan, Guy D. Leschziner, Veena Kumari, Peter Goadsby, Anita K. Simonds, Steve C.R. Williams, Mary J. Morrell. (2016) Changes in Neurocognitive Architecture in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Treated with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure EBioMedicine, Volume 7, May 2016, Pages 221-22
The Immunomodulatory Role of Adjuvants in Vaccines Formulated with the Recombinant Antigens Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2 against Onchocerca volvulus in Mice
No full textThis is an open
access article distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits
unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any
medium, provided the original author and source are
credited.Background
In some regions in Africa, elimination of onchocerciasis may be possible with mass drug
administration, although there is concern based on several factors that onchocerciasis cannot
be eliminated solely through this approach. A vaccine against Onchocerca volvulus
would provide a critical tool for the ultimate elimination of this infection. Previous studies
have demonstrated that immunization of mice with Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2, when formulated
with alum, induced protective immunity. It was hypothesized that the levels of protective
immunity induced with the two recombinant antigens formulated with alum would be
improved by formulation with other adjuvants known to enhance different types of antigenspecific
immune responses.
Methodology/ Principal Findings
Immunizing mice with Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2 in conjunction with alum, Advax 2 and MF59
induced significant levels of larval killing and host protection. The immune response was
biased towards Th2 with all three of the adjuvants, with IgG1 the dominant antibody.
Improved larval killing and host protection was observed in mice immunized with co-administered
Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2 in conjunction with each of the three adjuvants as compared
to single immunizations. Antigen–specific antibody titers were significantly increased in mice immunized concurrently with the two antigens. Based on chemokine levels, it appears
that neutrophils and eosinophils participate in the protective immune response induced by
Ov-103, and macrophages and neutrophils participate in immunity induced by Ov-RAL-2.
Conclusions/Significance
The mechanism of protective immunity induced by Ov-103 and Ov-RAL-2, with the adjuvants
alum, Advax 2 and MF59, appears to be multifactorial with roles for cytokines, chemokines,
antibody and specific effector cells. The vaccines developed in this study have the
potential of reducing the morbidity associated with onchocerciasis in humans
Chlamydia trachomatis genotypes in a cross-sectional study of urogenital samples from remote Northern and Central Australia
No full texthis is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/Abstract
OBJECTIVES:
The objective was to determine the frequency of trachoma genotypes of Chlamydia trachomatis-positive urogenital tract (UGT) specimens from remote areas of the Australian Northern Territory (NT).
SETTING:
The setting was analysis of remnants of C. trachomatis positive primarily UGT specimens obtained in the course of clinical practice. The specimens were obtained from two pathology service providers.
PARTICIPANTS:
From 3356 C. trachomatis specimens collected during May 2012-April 2013, 439 were selected for genotyping, with a focus on specimens from postpubescent patients, in remote Aboriginal communities where ocular trachoma is potentially present.
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES:
The primary outcome measure was the proportion of successfully genotyped UGT specimens that were trachoma genotypes. The secondary outcome measures were the distribution of genotypes, and the frequencies of different classes of specimens able to be genotyped.
RESULTS:
Zero of 217 successfully genotyped UGT specimens yielded trachoma genotypes (95% CI for frequency=0-0.017). For UGT specimens, the genotypes were E (41%), F (22%), D (21%) and K (7%), with J, H and G and mixed genotypes each at 1-4%. Four of the five genotyped eye swabs yielded trachoma genotype Ba, and the other genotype J. Two hundred twenty-two specimens (50.6%) were successfully genotyped. Urine specimens were less likely to be typable than vaginal swabs (p<0.0001).
CONCLUSIONS:
Unlike in some other studies, in the remote NT, trachoma genotypes of C. trachomatis were not found circulating in UGT specimens from 2012 to 2013. Therefore, C. trachomatis genotypes in UGT specimens from young children can be informative as to whether the organism has been acquired through sexual contact. We suggest inclusion of C. trachomatis genotyping in guidelines examining the source of sexually transmitted infections in young children in areas where trachoma genotypes may continue to circulate, and continued surveillance of UGT C. trachomatis genotypes
Family Caregivers Who Would Be Unwilling to Provide Care at the End of Life Again: Findings from the Health Survey for England Population Survey
No full textThis is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Background
Family caregivers provide significant care at the end of life. We aimed to describe caregiver characteristics, and of those unwilling to repeat this role under the same circumstances.
Methods
Observational study of adults in private households (Health Survey for England [HSE]). Caregiving questions included: whether someone close to them died within past 5 years; relationship to the deceased; provision, intensity and duration of care; supportive/palliative care services used; willingness to care again; able to carry on with life. Comparison between those willing to care again or not used univariable analyses and an exploratory multiple logistic regression. A descriptive comparison with Health Omnibus Survey (Australia) data was conducted.
Findings
HSE response was 64%. 2167/8861 (25%) respondents had someone close to them die in the previous 5 years. Some level of personal care was provided by 645/8861 (7.3%). 57/632 (9%) former caregivers would be unwilling to provide care again irrespective of time since the death, duration of care, education and income. Younger age (≤65; odds ratio [OR] 2.79; 95% CI 136, 5.74) and use of palliative care services (odds ratio: 1.95, 95% CI: 1.09, 3.48) showed greater willingness to provide care again. Apart from use of palliative care services, findings were remarkably similar to the Australian data.
Conclusions
A significant group of caregivers would be unwilling to provide care again. Older people and those who had not used palliative care services were more likely to be unwilling to care again. Barriers preventing access for disadvantaged groups need to be overcome
Transnational Narrativity and Pastoralism in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. by Washington Irving
No full textWashington Irving’s collection, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (1819-20), was one of the earliest and most influential texts to have achieved acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. Its most famous stories, which include “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” are considered to be classics in their own right and are still popular. At the heart of the collection, however, is its narrator Geoffrey Crayon, a New Yorker travelling to England, and especially London, for the first time in order to experience its grand museums and libraries, its stunning architecture, and the sedate yet rarified country house lifestyle of the landed gentry: in short, all of the things he could not have experienced in contemporary America. Once in England, however, Crayon is struck by his increasing feelings of exile and loneliness, and retreats into his artistic intentions as solace. Notably, the collection’s most enduring stories in the collection are set in America: even as Crayon distances himself physically from his homeland he is drawn to it as an artistic subject, as though he cannot really see America until he leaves it. This feeling of artistic exile, as presented in The Sketch Book, is strikingly modern in tone for a text which is over 170 years old, and not only precedes later literary expatriations but anticipates developments in narrative studies, with respect to short-story theory and the composite novel. Irving negotiates the preferences, assumptions, and historical experience of each audience by steeping his social and cultural criticism in the universal realms of storytelling and mythology. In an age of emergent cultural nationalism, Irving seeks to establish both himself and his narrator as transatlantic writers. His desire to craft a truly transatlantic work, however, becomes a blatantly pastoral act, which turns the very presence of narrative into an anachronism. In our own time of emergent cultural nationalism, recent critical revival of Irving has explored his position as a postcolonial writer, but without the fullest realization of the narrative theories that bring to the fore precisely how Irving’s work manages the diverse needs of its transatlantic audiences, or without much consideration of its fictive author. A reading of specifically transnational sketches from The Sketch-Book from the perspective of contemporary narrative theory, but informed by their place in time, identifies and foregrounds the significance of the sociopolitical narrativity and literary pastoralism that emerges from Irving’s – and Crayon’s – transatlanticism
Review of The Kindness of Enemies by Leila Aboulela
No full textReview of The Kindness of Enemies by Leila Aboulel
Review Essay: A Slaughterhouse of a Story: The Butcher Boy by Patrick McCabe. Marie McMillan.
No full textThis review essay examines the intertexts and historical references in Patrick McCabe's novel The Butcher Boy