Alterations in cardiac function correlate with a disruption in fatty acid metabolism in a mouse model of SMA.

Spinal Muscular Atrophy is an autosomal dominant disease caused by mutations and deletions within the SMN1 gene, with predominantly childhood onset. Although primarily a motor neuron disease, defects in non-neuronal tissues are described in both patients and mouse models. Here, we have undertaken a detailed study of the heart in the Smn2B/- mouse models of SMA, and reveal a thinning of the ventriclar walls as previously described in more severe mouse models of SMA.

The association between medical fitness facility attendance and incident mental disorders.

Objective: This study examined the effects of medical fitness facility (MFF) attendance, a proxy for exercise, on the incidence of mental disorders.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study linked members at two MFFs in Winnipeg, Canada, to health administrative databases held at the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy population research data repository. Adults aged ≥ 18 years were assigned an index date at MFF membership enrollment between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2015, and matched to controls based on propensity score weighting.

Improving the forensic genetic workflow for countries with small geographical areas: What are the options and how cost effective are they?

Forensic services worldwide often encounter considerable challenges relating to funding and infrastructure. Smaller jurisdictions or areas where forensic resources are scarce are faced with complicated choices in how they approach criminal casework, with a number of options available. Often these involve trade-offs between cost, time and data quality.

The forensic potential of environmental DNA (eDNA) in freshwater wildlife crime investigations: From research to application.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is widely used in biodiversity, conservation, and ecological studies but despite its successes, similar approaches have not yet been regularly applied to assist in wildlife crime investigations. The purpose of this paper is to review current eDNA methods and assess their potential forensic application in freshwater environments considering collection, transport and persistence, analysis, and interpretation, while identifying additional research required to present eDNA evidence in court. An extensive review of the literature suggests that commonly used collection methods can be easily adapted for forensic frameworks providing they address the appropriate investigative questions and take into consideration the uniqueness of the target species, its habitat, and the requirements of the end user.

Advanced high pressure hyperbaric techniques in tunnelling.

Work in compressed air and diving are both occupational activities that have been around since the mid-19th century, and those undertaking their work under elevated pressure. Meeting the demand to go to "higher pressure for longer" in tunneling has lagged in diving, but both activities have found it necessary to adopt mixed gas breathing and saturation exposure techniques. This paper explains how work in hyperbaric conditions at high pressure is undertaken in tunneling and is illustrated by the hyperbaric activity likely to be involved in constructing a large-diameter road tunnel below a body of water such as an estuary.