Consequences of redefining Alzheimer's disease in terms of amyloid burden without regard to cognitive decline

正Alzheimer’s disease(AD)redefined:For the past century,AD has been defined as a disease of progressive cognitive decline paired with a burden of amyloid-β(Aβ)plaques and pathologic tau tangles in the hippocampus and forebrain.However,a recent Framework paper jointly sponsored by the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer’s Association(Jack et al.,2018)proposes new classification guidelines for AD,which,if adopted,will have profound     

Improving Breastfeeding Environments and Feeding Practices in Family Child Care Homes with the Go NAP SACC Program

Maternal and Child Health Journal - Breastfeeding and responsive feeding are important practices that support the health of infants and women. In the United States, breastfeeding continuation rates...     

The Duboisia Genus,Australian Aborigines and Suggestibility

Abstract

Plant hallucinogens, such as those of the Duboisia genus called pituri, have been used by tribal elders in Australian aboriginal populations to create managed states of consciousness, to provide their youth with a fast-paced educational experience, and to inculcate values, beliefs and religious tenets. Use of the suggestible states created by such substances (particularly in pubertal initiatory rituals marking the transition to manhood) are part of this process, which contributes to cultural cohesiveness and survival; their effectiveness is due to the unique ability of the biochemical properties of the plant to evoke suggestibility in those who ingest them. This article draws on research about suggestibility as a psychological characteristic of altered states of consciousness as well as a normal human psychological phenomenon, and examines in great detail the use of the pituri plant, deriving data from a 100-item bibliography generated by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in Canberra. Botanical/chemical data on use of the Duboisia genus up to the end of the nineteenth century is examined, as well as the way in which this hallucinogen was utilized as a “psychotechnology.”     

Planning speech one syllable at a time: the reduced buffer capacity hypothesis in apraxia of speech

This investigation examined the phonologic similarity effect among individuals with aphasia (APH), with aphasia and apraxia of speech (APH/AOS) and normal controls (NC). Participants repeatedly produced pairs of rhyming words that contrasted with respect to the featural similarity of their onsets (i.e. shared voicing and manner, shared place and manner, no shared features). Rogers and Storkel (1998) used similar word pairs, but presented them one at a time, ostensibly requiring reprogramming of pre-motor processing buffers whenever a novel word was presented. They found that phonologic similarity delayed naming. In the present investigation, a parameter remapping task was used in which both words in the pair were presented before speakers began the rapid serial productions, thus alleviating the need to reprogram the processing buffer between the first and second word. Two measures of inter-word interval duration were obtained. The APH and NC groups showed no differences in inter-word interval length between the 'shared features' and 'no shared features' conditions but the APH/AOS group did. Since neither the APH nor the NC group exhibited the phonologic similarity effect in the context of a task that permitted two words to be programmed in advance, the susceptibility of the APH/AOS group to the featural similarity manipulation suggests that the capacity of their processing buffers may have been sufficiently reduced to have precluded programming of both words simultaneously. These findings support the hypothesis that one factor contributing to the disruption of normal speech production in AOS is a reduction in the capacity to program multiple syllables at a time.     

Engaging populations living with vulnerable conditions in community‐based research: A concept mapping approach to understanding positive practices

The goal of this research is to identify positive practices used when conducting community‐based research with people living with vulnerable conditions. Community‐based research practitioners who participated in the research included 37 researchers, community partners, program planners, and government employees, working in health, human services, children and youth, and education sectors. Concept mapping, a participatory stakeholder‐driven process, was used to generate a framework of how community‐based research practitioners responded to the complex environments of people living with vulnerable conditions when conducting research. Respondents generated positive practices, determined relationships among practices, and rated practices on frequency of use and perceived effectiveness. This study revealed 7 clusters of positive practices: ethical practices, participant supports, social accountability, community involvement, language competence, financial compensation, and project management.