Tau positron emission tomography,cerebrospinal fluid and plasma biomarkers of neurodegeneration,and neurocognitive testing: an exploratory study of participants with myotonic dystrophy type 1

Journal of Neurology - To investigate Tau pathology using multimodal biomarkers of neurodegeneration and neurocognition in participants with myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1). We recruited twelve...     

Mediterranean Diet and Hip Fracture in Swedish Men and Women

A Mediterranean diet, known to have beneficial effects on cardiovascular health, may also influence the risk of hip fracture although previous studies present discrepant results. We therefore aimed to determine whether the rate of hip fracture was associated with degree of adherence to a Mediterranean diet. We combined two Swedish cohort studies consisting of 37,903 men and 33,403 women (total n = 71,333, mean age 60 years) free of previous cardiovascular disease and cancer who answered a medical and a food‐frequency questionnaire in 1997. A modified Mediterranean diet score (mMED; range, 0 to 8 points) was created based on high consumption of fruits and vegetables, legumes and nuts, whole grains, fermented dairy products, fish, and olive/rapeseed oil, moderate intake of alcohol, and low intake of red and processed meat. Incident hip fractures between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2012, were retrieved from the National Patient Register. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) adjusted for potential confounders were calculated using Cox proportional hazards regression. Differences in age at hip fracture were calculated using multivariable Laplace regression. During follow‐up, 3175 hip fractures occurred at a median age of 73.3 years. One unit increase in the mMED was associated with 6% lower hip fracture rate (adjusted HR = 0.94; 95% CI, 0.92 to 0.96) and with a 3‐month higher median age at hip fracture (50th percentile difference = 2.8 months; 95% CI, 1.4 to 4.2). Comparing the highest quintile of adherence to the mMED (6 to 8 points) with the lowest (0 to 2 points) conferred an adjusted HR of hip fracture of 0.78 (95% CI, 0.69 to 0.89) and a 12‐month higher median age of hip fracture (50th percentile difference = 11.6 months; 95% CI, 4.2 to 19.0). Results were similar in men and women. We conclude that higher adherence to a Mediterranean‐like diet is associated with lower risk of future hip fracture. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.     

Being an identity-release donor: a qualitative study exploring the motivations,experiences and future expectations of current UK egg donors

The objective of this study was to examine the motivations, experiences and future expectations of identity-release egg donors in the UK following the removal of donor anonymity and the increase in financial compensation for egg donation. This exploratory, in-depth qualitative study comprised semi-structured interviews with 11 women who had attended an egg donation screening appointment at a UK clinic during a four-month period in 2014. Interviews were conducted two to six weeks after the woman had donated or had withdrawn/been rejected from the donation process. Participants’ primary motivation for donating was to help infertile women have their ‘own child’, and the recent increase in financial compensation did not seem to play a significant role in their decision. All were happy to be identifiable and contacted by children born as a result of their donation. However, some were hesitant about providing non-identifying information about themselves for these offspring and wished for further information about the recipient(s) of their eggs and the outcome of their donation. Whilst this study was limited due to the small sample size, it is the first study of UK egg donors following the rise in donor compensation and suggests that other strategies may be more effective in increasing donor numbers.     

Impaired expression of perforin and granulysin in CD8+ T cells at the site of infection in human chronic pulmonary tuberculosis

Protective immunity in tuberculosis is dependent on the coordinated release of cytolytic effector molecules from effector T cells and the subsequent granule-associated killing of infected target cells. In this study, we investigated the expression of cytolytic (perforin and granzyme A) and antimicrobial (granulysin) molecules at the single-cell level in cryopreserved lung tissue from patients with chronic, progressive tuberculosis disease. Quantification of protein-expressing cells was performed by in situ imaging, while mRNA levels in the infected tissue were analyzed by real-time PCR. Persistent inflammation, including excessive expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase in CD68+ macrophages and significant infiltration of CD3+, CD8+ and CD4+ T cells, was evident in tuberculosis lesions in all patients. However, despite the accumulation of CD3+ T cells, perforin- and granulysin-expressing CD3+ T cells were detected at two- to threefold-lower ratios in the tuberculosis lesions than in distal lung parenchyma and uninfected control lungs, respectively. This was evident at both the protein and mRNA levels. Moreover, perforin- and granulysin-expressing CD8+ T cells were scarce in individual granulomas within the tuberculosis lesions. In contrast, significant up-regulation of granzyme A-expressing CD3+ T cells was evident in the lesions from all patients. Confocal microscopy revealed coexpression of perforin and granulysin, primarily in CD8+ T cells; however, this expression was lower in the tuberculosis lesions. These findings suggest that symptomatic, chronic tuberculosis disease is associated with insufficient up-regulation of perforin and granulysin coexpression in CD8+ T cells at the local site of infection.     

Gaussian prefiltering of 123I DAT SPECT images when using depth-independent resolution recovery

Previously we have investigated a depth-independent compensation for collimator detector response (CDR) included in the OSEM reconstruction, intended for SPECT images that have been corrected for scatter and septal penetration using convolution-based methods. In this work, the aim was to study how different filtering strategies affect contrast as a function of noise when using Gaussian smoothing filters in combination with the above-described CDR compensation. The evaluation was performed for (123)I dopamine transporter (DAT) SPECT images. Prefiltering with 2D Gaussian filter kernels, where the deterioration in resolution is included in the depth-independent CDR compensation, was compared to conventional postfiltering with 3D Gaussian filter kernels. Images reconstructed without filtering are also included in the comparison. It was found that there is little benefit in noise reduction when using CDR compensation. However, this variant of prefiltering gives consistently higher contrasts as a function of noise compared with the postfiltering alternative, and that could be of interest when using other types of filters with contrast improving properties.     

A critical review of fear tests used on cattle, pigs, sheep, poultry and horses

FORKMAN, B., A., BOISSY, M.-C., SALAÜN, E., CANALI, AND R.B., JONES. A critical review of fear tests used on cattle, pigs, sheep, poultry and horses. PHYSIOL. BEHAV. 000-000, 2007.Fear is arguably the most commonly investigated emotion in domestic animals. In the current review we attempt to establish the level of repeatability and validity found for fear tests used on cattle, pigs, sheep and goats, poultry and horses. We focus the review on the three most common types of fear tests: the arena test (open field), the novel object test, and the restraint test. For some tests, e.g. tonic immobility in poultry, there is a good and broad literature on factors that affect the outcome of the test, the validity of the test and its age dependency. However, there are comparatively few of these well defined and validated tests and what is especially missing for most tests is information on the robustness, i.e., what aspects can be changed without affecting the validity of the tests. The relative absence of standardized tests hampers the development of applied ethology as a science.     

Career success of preschool teachers in Germany – the significance of the Big Five personality traits,locus of control,and occupational self-efficacy

The career success of preschool teachers has been discussed to be important because it can be a precondition for the ability to provide a high-quality preschool education. Consequently, the identification of factors that can help explain individual differences in career success is a crucial research issue. Previous research covering various occupations indicates that the Big Five, internal locus of control (LOC), and occupational self-efficacy are good predictors of objective and subjective career success. However, there is a research gap on this topic in preschool teachers. This study examined whether the Big Five, LOC, and occupational self-efficacy could predict the career success of 560 preschool teachers in Germany. After controlling for other predictors, internal LOC corresponded with higher objective career success, but neuroticism and conscientiousness corresponded with lower subjective career success. Occupational self-efficacy corresponded with higher subjective career success. The findings are discussed with respect to practical conclusions.     

Composite-to-composite microtensile bond strength in the repair of a microfilled hybrid resin: effect of surface treatment and oxygen inhibition

PURPOSE: To compare the 24-h microtensile bond strength of a microfilled hybrid composite to the same material after mechanical and/or chemical treatment and assess the effect of oxygen inhibition on the composite-composite bond. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty composite cylinders of Gradia Direct Anterior (GC) were prepared and stored 24 h prior to the following surface treatments: 50-microm aluminum oxide air abrasion and 37% phosphoric acid etching (group 1); hydrochloric acid and 6.9% hydrofluoric acid etching (group 2); diamond bur roughening and 37% phosphoric acid etching (group 3); diamond bur roughening (group 4). In all groups, Prime & Bond NT (Dentsply De Trey) was applied and light cured in air or under a nitrogen atmosphere, prior to layering a buildup of the repairing resin composite. Microtensile bond strength measurements were performed. Data were statistically analyzed with two-way ANOVA and Tukey's test (alpha = 0.05). RESULTS: The curing atmosphere did not significantly influence the interfacial strength (p < 0.05). Surface treatment significantly affected the composite-composite bond (p > 0.05). Air abrasion, regardless of curing atmosphere, resulted in the strongest bond (p < 0.05). The other treatments were comparable. CONCLUSION: Air abrasion and the application of a bonding agent offer satisfactory bond strengths for composite repair. The oxygen inhibition layer on a light-cured adhesive is not crucial to the success of the 24-h composite-composite bond.