The Soliga, an isolated tribe from Southern India: genetic diversity and phylogenetic affinities

India's role in the dispersal of modern humans can be explored by investigating its oldest inhabitants: the tribal people. The Soliga people of the Biligiri Rangana Hills, a tribal community in Southern India, could be among the country's first settlers. This forest-bound, Dravidian speaking group, lives isolated, practicing subsistence-level agriculture under primitive conditions. The aim of this study is to examine the phylogenetic relationships of the Soligas in relation to 29 worldwide, geographically targeted, reference populations. For this purpose, we employed a battery of 15 hypervariable autosomal short tandem repeat loci as markers. The Soliga tribe was found to be remarkably different from other Indian populations including other southern Dravidian-speaking tribes. In contrast, the Soliga people exhibited genetic affinity to two Australian aboriginal populations. This genetic similarity could be attributed to the 'Out of Africa' migratory wave(s) along the southern coast of India that eventually reached Australia. Alternatively, the observed genetic affinity may be explained by more recent migrations from the Indian subcontinent into Australia.     

Formulas Used by Tibetan Doctors at Men‐Tsee‐Khang in India for the Treatment of Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Their Correlation with Pharmacological Data

The aim of the present study was to identify formulas used at Men‐Tsee‐Khang (Tibetan Medical and Astrological Institute), India, for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders and to compare the Tibetan usage of particular ingredients with pharmacological data from the scientific database. Using ethnographic methods, five doctors were selected and interviewed. A correlation was observed between central nervous system disorders and rLung, one of the three humors in Tibetan medicine, which imbalance is the source of mental disorders, and ten multi‐ingredient formulas used to treat the imbalance of this particular humor were identified. These formulas utilize 61 ingredients; among them were 48 plant species. Each formula treats several symptoms related to rLung imbalance, so the plants may have therapeutic uses distinct from those of the formulas in which they are included. Myristica fragrans, nutmeg, is contained in 100% of the formulas, and its seeds exhibit stimulant and depressant actions affecting the central nervous system. Preclinical and clinical data from the scientific literature indicate that all of the formulas include ingredients with neuropsychiatric action and corroborate the therapeutic use of 75.6% of the plants. These findings indicate a level of congruence between the therapeutic uses of particular plant species in Tibetan and Western medicines. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A pilot cohort analytic study of Family Integrated Care in a Canadian neonatal intensive care unit

Background

We have developed a Family Integrated Care (FIC) model for use in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) where parents provide most of the care for their infant, while nurses teach and counsel parents. The objective of this pilot prospective cohort analytic study was to explore the feasibility, safety, and potential outcomes of implementing this model in a Canadian NICU.

Methods

Infants born ≤35 weeks gestation, receiving continuous positive airway pressure or less respiratory support, with a primary caregiver willing and able to spend ≥8 hours a day with their infant were eligible. Families attended daily education sessions and were mentored at the bedside by nurses. The primary outcome was weight gain, as measured by change in z-score for weight 21 days after enrolment. For each enrolled infant, we identified two matched controls from the previous year’s clinical database. Differences in weight gain between the two groups were analyzed using a linear mixed effects multivariable regression model. We also measured parental stress levels using the Parental Stress Survey: NICU, and interviewed parents and nurses regarding their experiences with FIC.

Results

This study included 42 mothers and their infants. Of the enrolled infants, matched control data were available for 31 who completed the study. The rate of change in weight gain was significantly higher in FIC infants compared with control infants (p < 0.05). There was also a significant increase in the incidence of breastfeeding at discharge (82.1 vs. 45.5%, p < 0.05). The mean Parental Stress Survey: NICU score for FIC mothers was 3.06 ± 0.12 at enrolment, which decreased significantly to 2.30 ± 0.13 at discharge (p < 0.05). Feedback from the parents and nurses indicated that FIC was feasible and appropriately implemented.

Conclusions

This study suggests that the FIC model is feasible and safe in a Canadian healthcare setting and results in improved weight gain among preterm infants. In addition, this innovation has the potential to improve other short and long-term infant and family outcomes. A multi-centre randomized controlled trial is needed to further evaluate the efficacy of FIC in the Canadian context.

     

Comparison of respiratory parameters in participants with and without chronic low back pain

BackgroundIndividuals with chronic low back pain (CLBP) may lack coordination between the stabilising and respiratory functions of trunk muscles. The trunk stabilisers compromise breathing to maintain spinal stability, leading to breathing dysfunctions. Maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) is indicative of the respiratory muscle endurance and strength whereas end-tidal carbon dioxide (PETCO₂) gives an estimate of breathing patterns that closely reflect the arterial measurement of CO₂.CLBP has been shown to have a significant effect on respiratory functions. However, the impact has not yet been quantified. Further, there is a dearth of literature comparingrespiratory functions between CLBP and healthy individuals. This study investigates respiratory functions in participants with and without CLBP.MethodsThe study compared the respiratory functions of maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) and End-Tidal Carbon Dioxide (PETCO₂) between 14 participants with CLBP and 14 healthy individuals. Participants in both groups were matched for age, height, weight and body surface area. The assessment of MVV and PETCO₂ were performed sitting, standing on a stable surface, and on an unstable surface (BOSU ball).ResultsThe mean of measured MVV (L/min) was found to be lower (p < 0.05) in the CLBP group when compared to the healthy group. Mean PETCO₂ and respiratory rate was found to be higher in CLBP group when compared to the healthy group in all three positions, although this was not found to be statistically significant.ConclusionThe findings of this study demonstrated sub-optimal respiratory parameters in participants with chronic low back pain. However, when adjusted for gender, the difference was not found to be significant between the two groups.     

Longitudinal mutational analysis of a cerebellar pilocytic astrocytoma recurring as a ganglioglioma

A cerebellar pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) in a child recurred first with a PA histology and then with features of a ganglioglioma (GG). Molecular genetic analyses of the tumors confirmed a BRAF V600E mutation in all. They also all harbored a T202M mutation in ERK1, a kinase downstream of BRAF that is implicated in glial versus neuronal differentiation. The GG sample contained several variants that were not present in the PA samples; in particular, it had a truncating mutation in MAP2. These findings not only underscore the role of BRAF as oncogenic driver but also suggest that other genes may influence tumor morphology.     

Bacteria Associated with Echinodorus cordifolius and Lepironia articulata Enhance Nitrogen and Phosphorus Removal from Wastewater

Phytoremediation and bioremediation are eco-friendly methods of wastewater treatment that are widely used throughout the world to reduce anthropogenic water contamination. This study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of symbiotic bacteria in phytoremediation using two aquatic plants, Echinodorus cordifolius and Lepironia articulata, that were tested in sterilized and unsterilized groups. The results showed that unsterilized plants removed more phosphate, ammonium, nitrate and nitrite than the sterilized plants. In untreated and unsterilized E. cordifolius groups, the dominant bacterium was Calothrix (46.90 and 49.69%, respectively), which was higher than in the sterilized E. cordifolius group (38.88%). In untreated and unsterilized groups of L. articulata, Clostridium was a dominant bacterium. The proportion of Clostridium was much lower in the sterilized L. articulata group (1.31%) than in the untreated (13.71%) and unsterilized (49.02%) groups. Our results suggested that root-associated bacteria in E. cordifolius and L. articulata were effective in the removal of phosphorus and nitrogen from domestic wastewater.

     

Cognitive and Adaptive Skills in Toddlers Who Meet Criteria for Autism in DSM-IV but not DSM-5

The current study compared adaptive and cognitive skills, and autism severity of toddlers with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis under DSM-IV but not DSM-5 criteria (DSM-IV only group) to those who met autism criteria under both diagnostic systems (DSM-5 group) and to those without ASD (non-ASD group). The toddlers in the DSM-IV only group were less delayed on various domains of adaptive (Communication, Socialization) and cognitive (Expressive and Receptive language, Fine Motor, Visual Reception) skills, and had less severe symptoms of ASD than the DSM-5 group. Thus, they might have the best potential for successful intervention. The DSM-IV only group did not differ from the non-ASD group in any adaptive or cognitive skills except for socialization skills, the hallmark of ASD.     

The dose response functions of ionization chambers in photon dosimetry – Gaussian or non-Gaussian?

This study is concerned with the spatial resolution of air-filled ionization chambers in photon-beam dosimetry, i.e. with their dose response functions. These act as convolution kernels K(x,y), transforming true dose profiles D(x,y) into the measured signal profiles M(x,y). One-dimensional dose response functions have been experimentally determined for nine types of cylindrical ionization chambers both in their lateral and longitudinal directions, as well as across two plane-parallel chambers and for the single chambers of two 2D arrays. All these 1D dose response functions are closely described by Gaussian functions. The associated energy-dependent values of the standard deviations σ have been measured for 6 and 15 MV photons with an uncertainty of 0.02 mm. At depths beyond secondary electron fluence build-up, there was no detectable depth dependence of the σ values. The general occurrence of Gaussian dose response functions, their extension beyond the geometrical boundaries of the chambers, and the energy dependence of their standard deviations can be understood by considering the underlying system of convolutions, which is the origin of the influences of secondary electron transport. Monte-Carlo simulations of the convolution kernels for a cylindrical, a square, and a flat ionization chamber and their Fourier analysis have been employed to show that the Gaussian convolution kernels are approximations to the true dose response functions, valid in the clinically relevant domain of the spatial frequency. This paper is conceived as the starting point for the deconvolution methods to be described in a further publication.