Assessment of field-grown cellulase-expressing corn.

Transgenic plants in the US and abroad generated using genetic engineering technology are regulated with respect to release into the environment and inclusion into diets of humans and animals. For crops incorporating pharmaceuticals or industrial enzymes regulations are even more stringent. Notifications are not allowed for movement and release, therefore a permit is required.

The cellular and molecular biology of the intervertebral disc: A clinician's primer.

Clinicians routinely encounter patients suffering from both degenerative and acute spinal pain, often as a consequence of pathology affecting the intervertebral disc (IVD). The IVD is a complex structure essential to spinal function and is subject to degenerative disease and injury. However, due to the complexity of spinal pain syndromes it is often difficult to determine the extent of the IVD's contribution to the genesis of spinal pain.

Predictors of self-management in pediatric type 1 diabetes: individual, family, systemic, and technologic influences.

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a complex chronic disease that has many facets for successful management. The burden of this management falls largely on the individual and their family members. Self-management has a major influence on T1D health outcomes, and with successful management, children and adolescents with T1D can lead long and healthy lives.

Improved patient outcomes in paraesophageal hernia repair using a laparoscopic approach: a study of the national surgical quality improvement program data.

A consensus on the optimal surgical approach for repair of a paraesophageal hernia has not been reached. The aim of this study was to examine the outcomes of open and laparoscopic paraesophageal hernia repairs (PHR), both with and without mesh. A review of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database from 2007 to 2011 was conducted.

'It's made all of us bond since that course…' - a qualitative study of service users' experiences of a CBT anger management group intervention.

Background: People with intellectual disabilities (ID) are rarely asked about their experiences as users of psychological services and little is known about the views of clients with ID who have undergone cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). This study aimed to gather the views of adults with ID who had recently taken part in a cluster randomised control trial (RCT) of a staff-delivered manualised CBT anger management group intervention.

Method: A qualitative method, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), was employed and eleven participants were interviewed.

Measuring students perceptions of interprofessional clinical placements: development of the Interprofessional Clinical Placement Learning Environment Inventory.

Pre-professional healthcare courses, including nursing, are increasingly focused on interprofessional learning and experimentation with clinical education in 'training wards'. This involves students from at least two disciplines who, under supervision, are responsible for patients' care. There is no consensus on how students' clinical learning experiences in this context are evaluated.

Teaching teamwork: an evaluation of an interprofessional training ward placement for health care students.

The establishment of interprofessional teamwork training in the preprofessional health care curriculum is a major challenge for teaching faculties. Interprofessional clinical placements offer an opportunity for teamwork education, as students in various professions can work and learn together. In this sequential, mixed-method study, focus group and survey techniques were used to evaluate students' educational experiences after 2-week ward-based interprofessional clinical placements.

A guide for interprofessional case presentations.

Background: Opportunities for interprofessional learning (IPL) and the promotion of interprofessional (IP) communication at the undergraduate level are important goals of health science faculties. IPL activities with shared curriculum validity to promote full student engagement can be challenging to identify. Case presentations that focus on patient-centred learning are one type of activity that is likely to have clinical relevance to all undergraduate groups.

Psychosocial burden and glycemic control during the first 6 years of diabetes: results from the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth study.

Purpose: To evaluate the psychosocial burden of adolescents with diabetes, determine the trajectory of psychosocial burden, and examine the interdependent relationships between psychosocial burden and glycemic control across the first 6 years of diabetes.

Methods: Data from SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth, an observational study of U.S.

Calculated globulin (CG) as a screening test for antibody deficiency.

Calculated globulin (total protein - albumin) is usually tested as part of a liver function test profile in both primary and secondary care and determines the serum globulin concentration, of which immunoglobulins are a major component. The main use hitherto of calculated globulin is to detect paraproteins when the level is high. This study investigated the potential to use low levels of calculated globulin to detect antibody deficiency.

A feasibility study to inform the design of a randomized controlled trial to identify the most clinically and cost effective anticoagulation length with low molecular weight heparin in the treatment of cancer associated thrombosis (ALICAT): study protocol for a mixed-methods study.

Background: Venous thromboembolism is common in patients with cancer and requires anticoagulation with low molecular weight heparin. Current data informs anticoagulation as far as six months, yet guidelines recommend anticoagulation beyond six months in patients who have locally advanced or metastatic cancer. This recommendation, based on expert consensus, has not been evaluated in a clinical study.

Development of self-efficacy of newly graduated registered nurses in an aged care program.

Aim: To evaluate an aged care program in developing self-efficacy of newly graduated registered nurses.

Methods: An evaluation of the program was conducted using a mixed methods approach. Twenty-four nurses completed the pre- and post-survey of aged care nursing self efficacy and attended one of three focus groups held to gain in-depth understanding of their insight into the program.

Physical activity in police beyond self-report.

Objective: Police officers have a higher risk for cardiovascular disease. Reductions in occupational physical activity may contribute to the risk, yet there have been few efforts to characterize the physical demands of police work beyond self-report.

Purpose: To compare measured physical activity between work and off-duty hours and assess the effects of stress on physical activity.

Illness representations predict adherence in adolescents and young adults with type 1 diabetes.

Objective: Most adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with type 1 diabetes struggle with diabetes self-management and exhibit suboptimal glycemic control. This study examined two models of association between illness representations, a modifiable predictor of suboptimal outcomes, and adherence and glycemic control in AYAs with type 1 diabetes.

Design And Main Outcome Measures: Ninety-nine AYAs (ages 15-20 years) completed measures of illness representations and adherence at two visits.

Mindfulness-based therapy for inflammatory bowel disease patients with functional abdominal symptoms or high perceived stress levels.

Background And Aims: Psychological interventions are used in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) but there is uncertainty about who the optimal target population is. Multi-convergent therapy (MCT) is a form of psychotherapy that combines mindfulness meditation with aspects of cognitive behavioural therapy and has been used in the management of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This study aimed to assess the feasibility and efficacy of MCT in the management of IBD patients with either functional abdominal symptoms or high perceived stress levels.

Autonomy support and responsibility-sharing predict blood glucose monitoring frequency among youth with diabetes.

Objective: Adolescence poses a number of special challenges for youth and their families managing the Type 1 diabetes medical regimen. Little is known on how family and youth factors and management of the regimen change over the course of early adolescence and predict adherence to the regimen during this developmental period.

Methods: Youth with Type 1 diabetes (n = 239) and their maternal caregivers completed measures of diabetes-specific autonomy support, diabetes-related family conflict, regimen responsibility, and blood glucose monitoring frequency (BGMF) at 4 timepoints over a 3-year period.

Antibiotic prescription strategies for acute sore throat: a prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Data from trials suggest that antibiotics reduce the risk of complications of sore throat by at least 50%, but few trials for complications have been done in modern settings, and datasets of delayed antibiotic prescription are underpowered. Observational evidence is important in view of poor compliance with antibiotic treatment outside trials, but no prospective observational cohort studies have been done to date.

Methods: We generated a large prospective cohort from the DESCARTE study, and the PRISM component of DESCARTE, of 12,829 adults presenting with sore throat (≤ 2 weeks duration) in primary care.

Preventing substance misuse: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of the Strengthening Families Programme 10-14 UK (SFP 10-14 UK).

Background: Prevention of alcohol, drug and tobacco misuse by young people is a key public health priority. There is a need to develop the evidence base through rigorous evaluations of innovative approaches to substance misuse prevention. The Strengthening Families Programme 10-14 is a universal family-based alcohol, drugs and tobacco prevention programme, which has achieved promising results in US trials, and which now requires cross-cultural assessment.

Magnesium sulphate in acute severe asthma in children (MAGNETIC): a randomised, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: Little evidence is available for the effect of nebulised magnesium sulphate (MgSO(4)) in acute asthma in children. We assessed the effect of MgSO(4) treatment in children with severe acute asthma.

Methods: In this randomised placebo-controlled, multi-centre, parallel trial, we enrolled children (aged 2-16 years) with severe acute asthma who did not respond to standard inhaled treatment from 30 hospitals in the UK.

All-Wales licensed premises intervention (AWLPI): a randomised controlled trial to reduce alcohol-related violence.

Background: Alcohol-related violence in and in the vicinity of licensed premises continues to place a considerable burden on the United Kingdom's (UK) health services. Robust interventions targeted at licensed premises are therefore required to reduce the costs of alcohol-related harm. Previous evaluations of interventions in licensed premises have a number of methodological limitations and none have been conducted in the UK.

Cognitive behavioural anger management intervention for people with intellectual disabilities: costs of intervention and impact on health and social care resource use.

Background: Anger and aggression among adults with intellectual disability (ID) are associated with a range of adverse consequences for their well-being and that of their family or staff carers. The aims were to evaluate the effectiveness of an anger management intervention for adults with mild to moderate ID and to evaluate the costs of the intervention and its impact on health and social care resource use. This paper is concerned with the latter aim.

Patient-reported measurement of time to diagnosis in cancer: development of the Cancer Symptom Interval Measure (C-SIM) and randomised controlled trial of method of delivery.

Background: The duration between first symptom and a cancer diagnosis is important because, if shortened, may lead to earlier stage diagnosis and improved cancer outcomes. We have previously developed a tool to measure this duration in newly-diagnosed patients. In this two-phase study, we aimed further improve our tool and to conduct a trial comparing levels of anxiety between two modes of delivery: self-completed versus researcher-administered.

A pipeline of programs for collecting and analyzing group II intron retroelement sequences from GenBank.

Background: Accurate and complete identification of mobile elements is a challenging task in the current era of sequencing, given their large numbers and frequent truncations. Group II intron retroelements, which consist of a ribozyme and an intron-encoded protein (IEP), are usually identified in bacterial genomes through their IEP; however, the RNA component that defines the intron boundaries is often difficult to identify because of a lack of strong sequence conservation corresponding to the RNA structure. Compounding the problem of boundary definition is the fact that a majority of group II intron copies in bacteria are truncated.