Occupational therapists' self-insight into their referral prioritisation policies for clients with mental health needs.

Background/aim: Obtaining valid accounts of professionals' thinking is dependent upon experts' capacity for self-insight. Self-insight has implications for developing professional decision making, facilitating education and promoting agreement among therapists. The aim of this study was to examine occupational therapists' self-insight into their referral prioritisation policies.

Differential expression of mTOR signalling components in drug resistance in ovarian cancer.

Background/aim: A limitation to successful cancer chemotherapy treatments is the acquisition of drug resistance. In advanced-stage ovarian cancer, the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway is up-regulated, and inhibition of this pathway increases chemosensitivity in ovarian carcinoma cell lines. In this study, the expression of DEPTOR, mTOR, RICTOR, RAPTOR and S6 kinases were investigated in SKOV-3 and PEO1 parental and the paclitaxel-resistant (TaxR) SKOV-3TaxR and PEO1TaxR cell lines.

A qualitative study of service user experiences of occupation in forensic mental health.

Background/aim:  This qualitative study explored occupational engagement of those detained in forensic units. Legal and institutional restrictions on occupation have implications for their health and wellbeing.

Method:  Twenty-six current forensic mental health service users participated in five focus groups, which were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and subjected to constant comparative analysis.

Perceptions of breast health awareness in Black British women.

Purpose: Breast cancer is a global concern. Published studies indicate that 43% of Black and ethnic minority women interviewed have reported that they did not practice breast awareness because they did not know the relevant breast changes that occur in breast cancer. Black women are also more likely to receive a diagnosis of breast cancer when it is in an advanced stage.

Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques for chronic pain.

Background: Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques aim to induce an electrical stimulation of the brain in an attempt to reduce chronic pain by directly altering brain activity. They include repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), cranial electrotherapy stimulation (CES) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy of non-invasive brain stimulation techniques in chronic pain.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization on DNA halo preparations and extended chromatin fibres.

Although many fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) protocols involve the use of intact, fixed nuclei, the resolution achieved is not always sufficient, especially for physical mapping. In light of this, several techniques are commonly used to create extended chromatin fibres or extruded loops of DNA. As a result, it is possible to visualise and distinguish regions of the genome at a resolution higher than that attained with conventional preparations for FISH.

Using interpretative phenomenological analysis to inform physiotherapy practice: an introduction with reference to the lived experience of cerebellar ataxia.

Qualitative research methods that focus on the lived experience of people with health conditions are relatively underutilised in physiotherapy research. This article aims to introduce interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), a research methodology oriented toward exploring and understanding the experience of a particular phenomenon (e.g.

Defective Artemis causes mild telomere dysfunction.

Background: Repair of DNA double strand breaks by non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) requires several proteins including Ku, DNA-PKcs, Artemis, XRCC4, Ligase IV and XLF. Two of these proteins, namely Ku and DNA-PKcs, are also involved in maintenance of telomeres, chromosome end-structures. In contrast, cells defective in Ligase IV and XRCC4 do not show changes in telomere length or function suggesting that these proteins are not involved in telomere maintenance.

Black women and breast health: a review of the literature.

Aim: In the UK, it is known that screening inequalities exist involving ethnic minority groups such as Black women (Patnick, 2009). To date, there is limited UK data on Black British women and breast health awareness. Black British women appear to be an underrepresented group in breast cancer studies (Breast Cancer Care, 2004, 2005).

Cultural interrelationships and the lived experience of Pakistani breast cancer patients.

Aim: There is a paucity of British and international literature on the psychological, sociological and cultural correlates of breast health in ethnic minority women.

Methods: This two centre qualitative study was part of a larger study that aimed to examine the influence of culture on the lived experience of Pakistani Muslim breast cancer patients. Thirty six patients attending hospital out-patient breast cancer clinics in Lahore, Pakistan and London, UK were recruited to the study.

Patients' experiences of the impact of chronic back pain on family life and work.

Purpose: The emotional distress caused by pain is one of the most disruptive aspects of living with the condition. This study investigates how individuals experience pain and its consequences for family life and work.

Method: Unstructured interviews, using the 'Framework' approach with topic guide, were recorded and transcribed.

Health status measurement in exacerbations of COPD.

This article evaluates recent publications measuring health status in exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and sets them in the context of existing knowledge. Limitations of the studies are discussed and the validity of health status measurement for exacerbations in light of new evidence is reviewed. Additional research is required to characterize health status measurement across exacerbation frequencies and to clarify predictive validity according to the definition of an exacerbation.

The non-classical functions of the classical complement pathway recognition subcomponent C1q.

C1q, the ligand recognition subcomponent of the classical complement pathway has steadily been gaining recognition as a bridge between innate and adaptive immunity. C1q has been shown to be involved in the modulation of various immune cells (such as dendritic cells, platelets, microglia cells and lymphocytes), clearance of apoptotic cells, a range of cell processes such as differentiation, chemotaxis, aggregation and adhesion, and pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases and systemic lupus erythematosus. Recent studies have highlighted the importance of C1q during pregnancy, coagulation process and embryonic development including neurological synapse function.

Progeria, the nucleolus and farnesyltransferase inhibitors.

HGPS (Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome) is a rare genetic disease affecting children causing them to age and die prematurely. The disease is typically due to a point mutation in the coding sequence for the nuclear intermediate-type filament protein lamin A and gives rise to a dominant-negative splice variant named progerin. Accumulation of progerin within nuclei causes disruption to nuclear structure, causes and premature replicative senescence and increases apoptosis.

Rapid chromosome territory relocation by nuclear motor activity in response to serum removal in primary human fibroblasts.

Background: Radial chromosome positioning in interphase nuclei is nonrandom and can alter according to developmental, differentiation, proliferation, or disease status. However, it is not yet clear when and how chromosome repositioning is elicited.

Results: By investigating the positioning of all human chromosomes in primary fibroblasts that have left the proliferative cell cycle, we have demonstrated that in cells made quiescent by reversible growth arrest, chromosome positioning is altered considerably.

Internalisation of membrane progesterone receptor-α after treatment with progesterone: Potential involvement of a clathrin-dependent pathway.

Internalisation and recycling of seven trans-membrane domain receptors is a critical regulatory event for their signalling. The mechanism(s) by which membrane progesterone receptor-α (mPRα) number is regulated on the cell surface is unclear. In this study, we investigated the cellular distribution of mPRα and mechanisms of mPRα trafficking using a cell line derived from a primary culture of human myometrial cells (M11) as an experimental model.

Congenital imperforate hymen with hydrocolpos and hydronephrosis associated with severe hydramnios and increase of maternal ovarian steroidogenic enzymes.

Study Objective: To study clinical features of patient presented with severe hydramnios, associated with hydronephrosis, that was antenatally diagnosed and has been successfully treated immediately after birth. At a molecular level, we investigated the gene expression of key steroidogenic enzymes from the maternal ovary.

Design: Ultrasound scan, MRI, semi-quantitative RT-PCR SETTING: The patient was admitted to the University Hospital, University of Crete, Medical School, Greece, where all clinical data has been obtained.

Expression of mTOR and downstream signalling components in the JEG-3 and BeWo human placental choriocarcinoma cell lines.

Emerging data suggest that nutritional status and body weight are related to reproductive function, and nutrient imbalances during pregnancy lead to changes in the expression of fetal genes. Recent studies show that the mTOR acts as a placental growth signalling sensor and its expression is down-regulated in intrauterine growth restriction. To date, very little is known about the expression of this signalling pathway in choriocarcinoma, one of the most lethal germ cell cancers.

Interpretive bias in acupuncture research?: A case study.

Acupuncture is one of the most widely used and broadly researched of the complementary and alternative therapies, but high-quality trials generally show no benefit over sham acupuncture. Many would view this result as evidence of ineffectiveness for this intervention. This discussion article focuses on the report of a large multicenter randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for chronic low-back pain (CLBP) in the lay and academic press, the ensuing discussion, and its impact on both clinical practice and service provision.

Innate immune recognition in tuberculosis infection.

In this review, an overview of the host's innate immune response against Mycobacterium tuberculosis will be provided. In particular, M. tuberculosis interaction with Toll-like receptors (TLRs), lung surfactant proteins and the antimicrobial mechanisms in the macrophage will be discussed along with their importance in shaping adaptive immunity to tuberculosis infection.

A novel splice variant of the DNA-PKcs gene is associated with clinical and cellular radiosensitivity in a patient with xeroderma pigmentosum.

Background: Radiotherapy-induced DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are critical cytotoxic lesions. Inherited defects in DNA DSB repair pathways lead to hypersensitivity to ionising radiation, immunodeficiency and increased cancer incidence. A patient with xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group C, with a scalp angiosarcoma, exhibited dramatic clinical radiosensitivity following radiotherapy, resulting in death.

Does a neuropsychological index of hemispheric lateralization predict onset of upper respiratory tract infectious symptoms?

Objectives: Past studies demonstrate relationships between hemispheric lateralization (HL) and immunity. However, the relevance of HL-immune relationships to health and illness has rarely been investigated. This study tested whether a neuropsychological index of right-hemispheric lateralization (right-HL) predicts development of upper respiratory tract infectious (URTI) symptoms.