Orthogonal Comparison of Molecular Signatures of Kidney Transplants With Subclinical and Clinical Acute Rejection: Equivalent Performance Is Agnostic to Both Technology and Platform

We performed orthogonal technology comparisons of concurrent peripheral blood and biopsy tissue samples from 69 kidney transplant recipients who underwent comprehensive algorithm‐driven clinical phenotyping. The sample cohort included patients with normal protocol biopsies and stable transplant (sTx) function (n = 25), subclinical acute rejection (subAR, n = 23), and clinical acute rejection (cAR, n = 21). Comparisons between microarray and RNA sequencing (RNA‐seq) signatures were performed and demonstrated a strong correlation between the blood and tissue compartments for both technology platforms. A number of shared differentially expressed genes and pathways between subAR and cAR in both platforms strongly suggest that these two clinical phenotypes form a continuum of alloimmune activation. SubAR is associated with fewer or less expressed genes than cAR in blood, whereas in biopsy tissues, this clinical phenotype demonstrates a more robust molecular signature for both platforms. The discovery work done in this study confirms a clear ability to detect gene expression profiles for sTx, subAR, and cAR in both blood and biopsy tissue, yielding equivalent predictive performance that is agnostic to both technology and platform. Our data also provide strong biological insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying these signatures, underscoring their logistical potential as molecular diagnostics to improve clinical outcomes following kidney transplantation.     

Investigating early childhood teachers’ views on science teaching practices: the integration of science with visual art in early childhood settings

This study investigates early childhood teachers’ views about science teaching practices in an early childhood settings. It was conducted in a preschool located in Ankara, Turkey. The data of the study were collected through multiple sources of information such as interviews with early childhood teachers and observations of their practices in the classroom. The findings of this study indicated that early childhood teachers believed in the importance of science activities in their practices and they claimed that they provided child-centred activities for children to enrich their science experiences. Moreover, the findings showed that they used different learning experiences that were naturalistic, informal, and structured. The findings also revealed that an integrated curriculum improved children’s developmental progress. More specifically, participant teachers used art as an assessment tool in science activities because they considered that they were able to evaluate children’s understanding on the basis of their art work such as their drawings.     

医院研究型科室科技评价指标体系构建

在分析现有医院科技评价体系不足的基础上,针对研究型科室的特点,提出研究型科室科技评价的思路,并依据"结果链"模型框架,从基础、过程、产出、结果、影响5个方面,初步构建研究型科室科技评价的指标体系.     

宫颈癌患者对科普信息需求度调查及信息质量分析

目的 调查宫颈癌患者对科普信息的需求度,评估中文网络宫颈癌科普信息质量及其阅读难度。方法 通过问卷调查,了解宫颈癌患者对医学科普信息的需求度。采用Discern评分系统,对百度和搜狗检索出来的宫颈癌科普文章进行评分。建立中文阅读难度分析模型,分析文章阅读难易程度。结果 53.6%的受调查人群至少每周搜索网络科普信息,其主要目标阅读内容是疾病的病因和危险因素、症状、治疗的选择、治疗的不良反应和预后;96.4%受调查者认为网络科普信息可靠。纳入样本库的104条检索结果中,13条(12.5%)符合纳入标准,91条(87.5%)未入选,包括重复内容32条(30.8%),非文字网页6条(5.8%),字数较少(小于300)18条(17.3%),广告7条(6.7%),新闻3条(2.9%),论坛贴吧22条(21.2%),学术论文3条(2.9%)。根据Discern评分系统,两位专业医师对13篇纳入文章的出版物可靠性(r=0.728,P<0.001)、治疗相关信息质量(r=0.431,P<0.001)和综合评分(r=0.559,P<0.001)评估一致,且总体评分的平均分为3分。可靠性评估中平均分小于3分的对应问题是:出版物的内容来源、信息如何产生、赞助方和引用细节以及尚未明确部分。治疗信息评估中,各项评分的平均分均小于3分。阅读难度分析结果显示,13篇文章中,研究生论文水平(5级)4篇,本科论文水平(4级)4篇,高中教材水平(3级)0篇,高于义务教育水平(≥3级)共计8篇(61.5%);义务教育水平(≤2级)仅5篇(38.5%)。结论 绝大多数受调查的宫颈癌患者会通过网络搜索临床诊疗信息并相信其可靠性。中文搜索引擎对高质量医学科普文章的检出率较低。现有的高质量医学科普文章较少,阅读难度较大,需要专科医师撰写更多易读的高质量文章进行科普。     

Integrating micronutrient status assessment into the 2015–2016 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey: A qualitative evaluation

Demand for national‐level micronutrient status data continues to grow, yet little is known about the implementation of different approaches for collecting these data. We conducted an evaluation of the process of linking the 2015–2016 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (MDHS) and 2015–2016 Malawi Micronutrient Survey (MNS). We conducted 24 in‐depth interviews with stakeholders from the Malawi government and international agencies and field staff. Interview questions explored perceptions of what worked and what was challenging during three phases of implementation: preparation; data collection; and data analysis, reporting, and dissemination. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results showed that there was strong government interest to integrate the MDHS and MNS. Perceived benefits included potential cost savings and lower respondent burden. However, government and international agency stakeholders did not view the linkage of the surveys to be a fully integrated approach. The lack of full integration produced challenges throughout implementation, such as complex field logistics and duplication in nutrition indicators assessed and reported. Some stakeholders believed integration was not attainable primarily due to timing. The MDHS and MNS were originally designed as stand‐alone surveys, and planning for each survey was at an advanced stage once the government sought to integrate the surveys. Additionally, the MNS could not be incorporated as a module within the MDHS given the complexity of the MNS data collection and short timeframe for planning. These findings can inform decisions about implementing the next MNS and may be transferable to other countries that are conducting micronutrient surveys to address data gaps.     

Identifying an outcome measure to assess the impact of Mobility Dogs

Purpose: Mobility Dogs® trains dogs to work with people with physical disabilities to increase independence, confidence, self-esteem and participation. Mobility Dogs® seeks to critically evaluate and improve its services as it grows. This study aimed to identify and implement a standardised outcome measure into practice at Mobility Dogs®. Method: Based on the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research and guided by a steering group of key stakeholders, a three-phase approach was developed to identify and assess an outcome measure. The steering group highlighted the organisation’s specific needs, selected participation as the assessment domain and identified core utility requirements of the measure. A comprehensive review of evidence was undertaken to identify and rank potential measures according to the specified needs.

Results: Of the seven participation outcome measures that met inclusion criteria, the three highest ranked measures were critically evaluated by the steering group to determine suitability against the organisation’s needs. The Impact on Participation and Autonomy (IPA) was selected for implementation into practice at Mobility Dogs®. Conclusion: Use of the IPA is an important first step for Mobility Dogs® to test the benefits of trained service dogs. This process could be replicated by other service dog organisations to identify outcome measures to assess their own services.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• Service dogs (such as Mobility Dogs® in New Zealand) assist people living with physical impairments by performing tasks, however there is limited evidence on outcomes.

• The process for selecting an appropriate outcome measure for Mobility Dogs® involving partnership between Mobility Dogs® personnel and academics was an effective way to steer the project by determining important properties of the measure, before a search of the literature was undertaken.

• While the IPA was selected as the most appropriate outcome measure for use at Mobility Dogs®, it was the process that is valuable to replicate if other organisations wish to select an outcome measure for use in their own practice.