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The purpose of this study was to determine factors associated with good glycemic control in pediatric patients. Knowledge of these factors may be beneficial in preventive practices and treatment interventions [...]

Storm surges are a significant hazard to coastal communities around the world, putting lives at risk and costing billions of dollars in damage. Understanding how storm surges and high tides interact is crucial for estimating extreme water levels so that we can protect coastal communities. We demonstrate that in a tidal regime the best measure of a storm surge is the skew surge, the difference between the observed and predicted high water within a tidal cycle. Based on tide gauge records spanning decades from the UK, U.S., Netherlands, and Ireland we show that the magnitude of high water exerts no influence on the size of the most extreme skew surges. This is the first systematic proof that any storm surge can occur on any tide, which is essential for understanding worst‐case scenarios. The lack of surge generation dependency on water depth emphasizes the dominant natural variability of weather systems in an observation‐based analysis. Weak seasonal relationships between skew surges and high waters were identified at a minority of locations where long‐period changes to the tidal cycle interact with the storm season. Our results allow advances to be made in methods for estimating the joint probabilities of storm surges and tides. Skew surge is the best metric of storm surge in a tidal regimeAny skew surge can coincide with any tideWhere seasonal relationships exist, they should be included in risk predictions

Arm anthropometry is used as a proxy of body composition in clinical and field research but its validity has not been established in children. To address this issue, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) and triceps skinfold thickness (TS) were measured in 110 healthy children aged 4.4–13.9 y (55 boys) and 49 cystic fibrosis (CF) patients aged 8.1–13.4 y (22 boys). Reference values were arm and whole-body fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass (FFM) measured by dual x-ray absorptiometry and four-component model, respectively. Arm fat area (AFA), MUAC, and TS correlated well with arm FM (r0.84–0.92) and total FM (r0.78–0.92). Arm muscle area (AMA) and MUAC correlated well with arm FFM (r0.68–0.82) and total FFM (r0.60–0.86). After adjusting for age, sex, and height, arm anthropometry correlated strongly with FM but weakly with FFM. AFA, MUAC, and TS explained 67, 63, and 61% of variability in total FM in healthy children and 70, 72, and 63% in CF. AMA and MUAC explained only 24 and 16% of variability in total FFM in healthy children and 33 and 28% in CF. Arm anthropometry is useful for predicting FM and ranking healthy children and patients for fatness. It has poorer success in predicting regional or total FFM.

The occurrence of fungicidal, elemental S is well documented in certain specialized prokaryotes, but has rarely been detected in eukaryotes. Elemental S was first identified in this laboratory as a novel phytoalexin in the xylem of resistant genotypes of Theobroma cacao, after infection by the vascular, fungal pathogen Verticillium dahliae. In the current work, this phenomenon is demonstrated in a resistant line of tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum, in response to V. dahliae. A novel gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy method using isotope dilution analysis with 34S internal standard was developed to identify unambiguously and quantify 32S in samples of excised xylem. Accumulation of S in vascular tissue was more rapid and much greater in the disease-resistant than in the disease-susceptible line. Levels of S detected in the resistant variety (approximately 10 microg g-1 fresh weight excised xylem) were fungitoxic to V. dahliae (spore germination was inhibited >90% at approximately 3 microg mL-1). Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive x-ray microanalysis confirmed accumulation of S in vascular but not in pith cells and in greater amounts and frequency in the Verticillium spp.-resistant genotype. More intensive localizations of S were occasionally detected in xylem parenchyma cells, vessel walls, vascular gels, and tyloses, structures in potential contact with and linked with defense to V. dahliae. Transient increases in concentrations of sulfate, glutathione, and Cys of vascular tissues from resistant but not susceptible lines after infection may indicate a perturbation of S metabolism induced by elemental S formation; this is discussed in terms of possible S biogenesis.

AbstractEducating a son or daughter who has learning difficulties is likely to be a lifelong responsibility for many parents who find themselves in this situation. This practice-based paper explores the nature of effective teaching support and how it may be offered to parents. Flexible support which meets the needs of the child and the family at the beginning of this journey, aims to build confidence and skills which will be invaluable along the way. The priority of the specialist teacher, working to support the parents or carers of very young children with learning difficulties, is to build a relationship based on mutual trust and understanding with the parents. This relationship acknowledges that parents and teachers have different but equivalent expertise and provides the best opportunity for the teacher to work directly with the child as a ‘trusted adult’ within the family. By getting to know the child and how he learns, the visiting teacher can work with the child's family to develop the optimum learning environment for the child within the home. As relationships evolve, a range of techniques can be sensitively developed into a cohesive approach to help the child learn within the family context. Part of this work is recorded on an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), which aims to summarise the priorities of the parents alongside the advice offered by all the professionals involved with supporting the child. The visiting teacher must be aware of the dangers of being overly prescriptive when advising families about teaching specific skills, at the expense of nurturing interactions and relationships within families. The potential for developing practice in working in collaboration with parents is recognised. Further research into effective schemes is necessary to inform future service provision on a national scale.

Changes in sodium/potassium adenosine triphosphatase (Na+/K+ATPase) and Na+/K+ATPase mRNA content during preimplantation mouse embryo development were determined. Western blotting, using polyclonal antiserum against guinea pig Na+/K+ATPase, was used to detect changes in Na+/K+ATPase α- and β-subunit content during mouse embryo development. Total RNA from mouse embryos was analyzed using Northern and slot blots hybridized with random-primer-labeled cDNA for Na+/K+ ATPase α-subunit from sheep kidney. Northern blots exhibited a single mRNA band (3.65 kb) in sheep and mouse kidneys and mouse embryos. Although Na+/K+ATPase α-subunit mRNA content of mouse embryos increased 45-fold between Day 1 and Day 4 of development, Na+/K+ATPase α-subunit content remained constant, and β-subunit content increased 9-fold. The Na+/K+ATPase α-subunit and α-subunit mRNA content did not increase in a similar manner. The results suggest that, in mouse embryos, blastocoel formation is not triggered by an increase in Na+/K+ATPase α-subunit content. Changes in β-subunit content may be important in regulating Na+/K+ ATPase activity and blastocoel formation.

Biological effects of many hormones and cytokines are mediated through receptor-associated Jak tyrosine kinases and cytoplasmic Stat transcription factors, including critical physiological processes such as immunity, reproduction, and cell growth and differentiation. Pharmaceuticals that control Jak-Stat pathways are therefore of considerable interest. Here we demonstrate that a single Jak-Stat pathway can be activated by aurintricarboxylic acid (ATA), a negatively charged triphenylmethane derivative (475 Da) with anti-apoptotic properties. In prolactin (PRL)-dependent Nb2 lymphocytes, ATA sustained cell growth in the absence of hormone and mimicked rapid PRL-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of Jak2 and activation of Stat5a and Stat5b with tyrosine phosphorylation, heterodimerization, DNA binding, and induction of the Stat5-regulatedpim-1protooncogene. ATA also mimicked PRL activation of serine kinases ERK1 and ERK2. However, unlike PRL, ATA did not regulate Stat1 or Stat3. ATA also did not affect Jak3, which is activated in these cells by interleukin-2 family cytokines. Although the mechanism and specificity by which ATA activates Jak2, Stat5, and ERKs in Nb2 cells are still unclear, the present study demonstrates that certain hormone or cytokine effects on Jak-Stat pathways can be discretely imitated by a low molecular weight, non-peptide pharmaceutical. The results are also consistent with Stat5 involvement in lymphocyte growth and survival.

Activation of the plasma zymogen plasminogen to the enzyme plasmin by the early bovine embryo was evaluated. Sixteen-cell embryos to early morulae were collected at death from handmated synchronized and superovulated crossbred beef cows. Embryos were cultured in Ham’s F-12 medium supplemented with 15 mg/nil bovine serum albumin containing 0, 15, 30, 60 or 120 µg/ml plasminogen in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2in air at 37°C. Cultures were observed every day, and stage of development was recorded. Medium was collected at 24-h intervals, starting at initiation and continuing through 288 h of culture. Plasminogen activator and plasmin levels in the culture media were determined, using a caseinolytic assay. The percentages of embryos developing to the initiating hatching blastocyst, hatched blastocyst, attached blastocyst, and attached blastocyst with trophoblastic outgrowth stages were not significantly different between the five levels of plasminogen. Initiation and completion of hatching, however, accelerated as plasminogen concentration increased in the culture media. Plasminogen activator production, expressed as milliunits·m1−1·h−1·viable embryo−1, was low for the first 48 h of culture, increased between 48–120 h, and tended to plateau thereafter. Plasminogen activation, measured indirectly as the plasmin concentration in a microdrop of medium and expressed as pg plasmin·ml−1·h·1·viable embryo−1, followed plasminogen activator production, and was consistently low for the first 48–72 h of culture. Embryonic activation of plasminogen increased sharply thereafter, and also plateaued after 120 h.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including ideas for creating a warm and safe place for people living in a supported income site, the use of aluminum pen holders to protect candle light from being put out and the use of a secondhand wrought-iron planter with a recycled round tabletop as a table for a child's CD player.

Color Trails for Children was developed in response to the need for instruments which minimize cultural bias in neuropsychological testing. The test, similar in format to Trail Making, was designed to provide an evaluation of speeded visuomotor tracking while minimizing the influence of language. The present research involves two exploratory studies which examine the relationship between Color Trails for Children and Trail Making, factors that may affect performance times, and discriminant validity. Results indicate that the tests appear to measure the same neuropsychological domains, and administration of Trail Making did not significantly alter performance times on Color Trails. Increasing age and IQ were related to quicker completion time for both tests. Females were found to complete Color Trails 2 and Trail Making Part B more quickly than males in this sample. Comparison between children diagnosed with learning disabilities, attention deficits, or mild neurological conditions and a preliminary standardization sample supported the discriminant validity of Color Traits to distinguish between normal controls and children with altered neuropsychological functioning. Comparison between clinical conditions indicated that Color Trails 2 was particularly sensitive in discriminating among the groups. Although further research is needed, results suggest that Color Trails has the potential to be an effective research and clinical tool in child neuropsychological assessment.