A Robust and Versatile Mating Function for Two-Sex Population Projection Models Fitting all Types of Mating Systems.

Commonly used two-sex discrete-time population projection models rely on mating functions developed for continuous-time frameworks that overestimate the number of unions between reproductive individuals. This has important consequences for our understanding of the evolution and demography of two-sex populations and consequently for management and conservation. Here, we propose a novel mating function that is robust by obeying all properties necessary to be ecologically valid and flexible by accommodating all mating systems and efficiency in mating encounters.

Co-developing a theory of change for a personalised multimodal cancer prehabilitation programme in South Wales.

Background: Evidence suggests that prehabilitation interventions, which optimise physical and mental health prior to treatment, can improve outcomes for surgical cancer patients and save costs to the health system through faster recovery and fewer complications. However, robust, theory-based evaluations of these programmes are needed. Using a theory of change (ToC) approach can guide evaluation plans by describing how and why a programme is expected to work.

Understanding the underestimation of self-report weight: The roles of narcissism and accountability.

Self-reported height and weight is widely used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI) and yet little is known about factors that affect accuracy. This study investigated the motivational characteristics-narcissism and social desirability-that influence the accuracy of self-reported weight and how they interact with accountability (telling participants that their weight will be verified). A two-way between-subjects design was used (accountable vs not accountable) with motivational moderators (narcissism and social desirability).

Can't Contracting Be Relational? Comment on "Alignment in the Hospital-Physician Relationship: A Qualitative Multiple Case Study of Medical Specialist Enterprises in the Netherlands".

Ubels and van Raaij provide a valuable account of the operation of novel hospital/medical specialist enterprise (MSE) contracts in a Dutch healthcare system shaped by market reform. However, their analytical distinction between the separate domains of contractual and relational governance frames the contractual domain more narrowly than does the relational contract theory widely deployed in socio-legal studies. The authors' conclusion that contract plays little or no part in governing relations between hospitals and MSEs leads them to underplay a wider realm of contractual practices that develop in the shadow of the written contract.

Residential mobility amongst children and young people in Wales: A longitudinal study using linked administrative records.

Background: Child poverty remains a major global concern and a child's experience of deprivation is heavily shaped by where they live and the stability of their local neighbourhood. This study examines frequencies and patterns of residential mobility in children and young people (CYP) at a population level using novel geospatial techniques to assess how often their physical environment changes and to identify geographical variations in social mobility.

Methods: We used routinely collected administrative records held in the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank for CYP aged under 18 years living in Wales between 2012 and 2022.

Understanding modifiable barriers to human milk donation in the United Kingdom.

Background: When premature infants cannot receive their own mother's milk, donor human milk (DHM) is the first-line recommended option, with growing demand for DHM use outside of neonatal units. To meet the potential need, we need to consider whether DHM supply can increase. This study aimed to explore the reasons that prevent women who wish to donate their milk in the United Kingdom from doing so to understand which barriers may be modifiable.

Neuropathological and cerebrospinal fluid correlates of choroid plexus inflammation in progressive multiple sclerosis.

Among the intrathecal inflammatory niches where compartmentalized inflammation persists and plays a pivotal role in progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), choroid plexus (CP) has recently received renewed attention. To better characterize the neuropathological/molecular correlates of CP in progressive MS and its potential link with other brain inflammatory compartments, such as perivascular spaces and leptomeninges, the levels, composition and phenotype of CP immune infiltration in lateral ventricles of the hippocampus were examined in 40 post-mortem pathologically confirmed MS and 10 healthy donors, using immunochemistry/immunofluorescence and in-situ sequencing. Significant inflammation was detected in the CP of 21 out of the 40 MS cases (52%).

Spermine induced in-situ synthesis of polychromatic carbon nanodots towards smartphone-readable ratiometric fluorescence sensing of multiple catecholamines.

Abnormal levels of catecholamines can indicate underlying health issues, such as Parkinson's disease, hypertension, and pheochromocytoma. However, it is difficult to accurately differentiate multiple catecholamines using traditional detection methods due to their highly similar structures. Herein, we proposed a carbon-based fluorescent probe with adaptability named spermine that can react with multiple catecholamines to generate polymer carbon dots with distinct fluorescence colors, enabling visual differentiation and quantitative detection of epinephrine, norepinephrine and levodopa.

Association of child weight and adverse outcomes following antibiotic prescriptions in children: a national data study in Wales, UK.

Objective: To examine if the weight of a child determines adverse events following oral antibiotics prescription.

Design: Population respective cohort using linked general practice (GP), hospital data and linkage with the Welsh Demographic Service for demographic information. Data linkage was performed using Wales health data, extracted from the SAIL (Secure Anonymised Information Linkage) databank.

Does injury type influence patient preference, response rates, and data completeness for online or telephone follow-up following injury?

Introduction: Collecting patient-reported outcomes in a systematic fashion is important to understand recovery trajectories and compare performance between different services and fields of care. These outcomes can be collected through a variety of means, but studies comparing different follow-up methods in patients with a variety of injury types are scarce. This study aimed to compare follow-up data from three injury registries to quantify patient preference for telephone versus online follow-up, determine factors associated with choosing online follow-up, and compare response rates based on the patient's preferred follow-up method.

Do environmental, social, and governance standards improve the bargaining power of bidders? An empirical investigation.

Drawing from the bargaining power hypothesis, we investigate the impact of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards on takeover premiums in the international takeover market. Using an international sample of 8336 mergers and acquisitions from 26 bidder countries between 2003 and 2021, we find that bidders with higher pre-deal ESG standards - ESG champions - pay lower premiums to win the bid auction, suggesting that better engagement of stakeholders provides higher bargaining power to ESG champions. Contrary to the stylized fact that bidders destroy shareholder value in mergers and acquisitions, the results show that all bidders are not the same, and those with higher ESG standards enjoy takeover benefits.

Long-term outcomes among patients who respond within the first year to nivolumab plus ipilimumab or nivolumab monotherapy: A pooled analysis in 935 patients.

Purpose: To investigate the predictive value of RECIST response within 3, 6, or 12 months on long-term survival, and explore differences between nivolumab+ipilimumab and nivolumab monotherapy, we analyzed pooled 5-year data of 935 responder and non-responder patients at various time points after treatment initiation in CheckMate 069, 066, and 067 studies.

Patients And Methods: Treatment-naive advanced melanoma patients received nivolumab+ipilimumab or nivolumab monotherapy. To decrease immortal time bias, 3-, 6-, or 12-month overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) landmark analyses were performed.

Latitudinal gradients in air density create invisible topography at sea level, affecting animal flight costs.

Regional patterns in wind underpin the low-cost migratory flyways of billions of birds and insects, but the effect of large-scale changes in temperature on flight is unknown. Flight costs should increase with rising temperatures because lift decreases as density decreases, whereas weight remains unchanged. The effects of density are well-established in the context of high-altitude movements and migration.

End of life care in paediatric settings: UK national survey.

Objectives: To describe end of life care in settings where, in the UK, most children die; to explore commonalities and differences within and between settings; and to test whether there are distinct, alternative models of end of life care.

Methods: An online survey of UK neonatal units (NNUs), paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) and children/young people's cancer principal treatment centres (PTCs) collected data on aspects of service organisation, delivery and practice relevant to end of life outcomes or experiences (referred to as the core elements of end of life care) across three domains: care of the child, care of the parent and bereavement care.

Results: 91 units/centres returned a survey (37% response rate).

Cost-effectiveness of C-reactive protein point of care testing for safely reducing antibiotic consumption for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as part of the multicentre, parallel-arm, open, individually randomised, controlled PACE trial.

Objectives: Many patients presenting with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) in primary care do not benefit from antibiotics. Excessive use wastes resources, promotes antimicrobial resistance and can harm patients.

Design: We conducted a within-trial economic evaluation, using a UK National Health Service perspective, as part of the multicentre, parallel-arm, open, individually randomised, controlled PACE trial.

Factors associated with failure of locking plate fixation in proximal humerus fractures.

Background: Locking plate fixation remains the mainstay of surgical fixation of unstable proximal humerus fractures, however rates of failure remain high. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors that could be used to predict the likelihood of fixation failure.

Method: Patients with proximal humerus fractures managed with locking plate fixation between 2010 and 2019 at a Level 1 trauma centre were included.

A new computational model for quantifying blood flow dynamics across myogenically-active cerebral arterial networks.

Cerebral autoregulation plays a key physiological role by limiting blood flow changes in the face of pressure fluctuations. Although the involved cellular processes are mechanically driven, the quantification of haemodynamic forces in in-vivo settings remains extremely difficult and uncertain. In this work, we propose a novel computational framework for evaluating the blood flow dynamics across networks of myogenically active cerebral arteries, which can modulate their muscular tone to stabilize flow (and perfusion pressure) as well as to limit vascular intramural stress.

Encouraging water-saving behavior during a "Moment of Change": the efficacy of implementation intentions on water conservation during the transition to university.

Water saving behavior is of substantial importance in climate change mitigation and resilience, including reducing time spent in the shower. However, water use is, for many, a strong habit, and, as such, incorporating new water saving behaviors into one's domestic routines may be unsuccessful. In this study, we consider the extent to which a composite behavior change intervention (of water-saving information, implementation intention formation, and monitoring using a shower timer) is effective in reducing the domestic water consumption of new university students who have recently moved into university accommodation.

Target selection during "snapshot" foraging.

While previous foraging studies have identified key variables that determine attentional selection, they are affected by the global statistics of the tasks. In most studies, targets are selected one at a time without replacement while distractor numbers remain constant, steadily reducing the ratios of targets to distractors with every selection. We designed a foraging task with a sequence of local "snapshots" of foraging displays, with each snapshot requiring a target selection.

A Survey of the Current UK Physician Associate Educator Workforce and Recommendations for Courses and Provider Organizations.

Introduction: In the United Kingdom there are 37 physician associate (PA) training programs with limited knowledge of the educators involved, their training, and specific needs.

Method: An online questionnaire was sent to PA educators in all UK training programs requesting information on academic title and responsibilities, clinical and nonclinical background, education and qualifications before becoming a PA educator, formal and informal training received in the role, and insights into career progression.

Discussion: The questionnaire highlighted 5 specific areas that should be specific recommendations for UK training programs to support PA educators, alongside existing guidance.