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The present study aimed to explore the impact of either being separated or adopted with sibling(s) on adolescent adoptees' emotional and behavioral development. Through a mixed method design, the study aimed to explore whether sibling placement had an effect on adolescents' internalizing and externalizing problems, as well as on the way they express and regulate their emotions in conflictual situations. Findings revealed that, although both groups of adoptees developed adaptive strategies to cope with challenging events, those placed with siblings were in general faring better than those placed alone. Being placed alone was, indeed, associated with clinical scores on the self-reported Youth Self Report (YSR) Total Problems' scale and to the greater use of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. This highlights the significance of maintaining siblings' relationships when co-placement is not possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study forms part of a major longitudinal research project collaboration between the Anna Freud Centre, Coram and Great Ormond Street Hospital, which set out to explore adopted children's and adoptive parents' outcomes and experiences from middle childhood through to adolescence. In this paper, 17 adoptive mothers of late adopted children, currently in early adolescence (aged 12 to 15 years), were interviewed. The focus of the study draws upon their worries and fears regarding their children during adolescence and as they approach adulthood. The Parent Development Interviews (PDI) were analysed using thematic analysis and generated five overarching themes: Vulnerability, Violence, Derailing opportunities, Autonomy and Anxieties about the birth family. This qualitative exploration provides strong evidence for how these parents reflected upon very concrete challenges and anxieties about their child's journey, including both their current context and anticipated outcomes. The overwhelming majority of research to date on this population examines negative outcomes quantitatively; this study adds an important qualitative layer of the parents' own perspectives. Plain Language Summary: This study draws upon the experiences of adoptive parents, all of whom were mothers, of late-adopted children, currently in early adolescence (aged 12 to 15 years). The study focused on their worries and fears regarding their children during adolescence and as they approach adulthood. Seventeen adoptive parents were interviewed using the Parent Development Interview (PDI) and the data were analysed using thematic analysis and generated five overarching themes: Vulnerability, Violence, Derailing opportunities, Autonomy and Anxieties about the birth family. This study provides strong evidence for how these parents identified and reflected upon very real challenges and anxieties about their child's journey including both their current lives and anticipated futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: While studies of ex-orphanage care show adverse effects on development, the longer-term impact on mid-life psychosocial functioning and physical health has not been established. Methods: Orphanage records provided baseline data on a sample of 100 Hong Kong Chinese girls who were subsequently adopted into the UK. A mid-life follow-up using standardised questionnaires and face-to-face interviews assessed current circumstances, life satisfaction and mental and physical health outcomes. Comparisons were made with age-matched UK-born adopted and nonadopted women. Results: Half the group spent between 1 and 2 years in orphanages, average age at adoptive placement was 23 months and 72% participated in the follow-up. Despite this poor early start, mid-life outcomes were commensurate with the comparison groups in terms of mental and physical health measures. Serious psychiatric and social difficulties were largely absent. Although the timing and extent of exposure to orphanage care did not influence outcome, participants' reports of poorer quality adoptive family experience and a negative view of their adoption were significantly associated with poorer mental health outcomes (difference in means = 0.76, 95% CI 1.33-0.19, p = 0.01; difference in means = 1.2, 95% CI 0.68-1.73, p = 0.01, respectively). Conclusions: Moderately depriving orphanage care did not predict enduring adverse consequences in mid-life but subsequent poor adoption experience was associated with outcome.

The article informs about the need for adoption support services and the legal obligation of adoption agencies to provide them. Topic include It discusses the importance of evidence-based assessments and multidisciplinary approaches in addressing the diverse needs of adopted children and families, highlighting a two-year funding program by the Department for Education to develop innovative support services.

Abstract: Cytochrome f from the psychrophile Chlamydomonas raudensis UWO 241 has a lower thermostability of its ctype heme and an apparent molecular mass that is 7 kDa lower than that [...]

Attachment theory and research are drawn upon in many applied settings, including family courts, but misunderstandings are widespread and sometimes result in misapplications. The aim of this consensus statement is, therefore, to enhance understanding, counter misinformation, and steer family-court utilisation of attachment theory in a supportive, evidence-based direction, especially with regard to child protection and child custody decision-making. The article is divided into two parts. In the first, we address problems related to the use of attachment theory and research in family courts, and discuss reasons for these problems. To this end, we examine family court applications of attachment theory in the current context of the best-interest-of-the-child standard, discuss misunderstandings regarding attachment theory, and identify factors that have hindered accurate implementation. In the second part, we provide recommendations for the application of attachment theory and research. To this end, we set out three attachment principles: the child's need for familiar, non-abusive caregivers; the value of continuity of good-enough care; and the benefits of networks of attachment relationships. We also discuss the suitability of assessments of attachment quality and caregiving behaviour to inform family court decision-making. We conclude that assessments of caregiver behaviour should take center stage. Although there is dissensus among us regarding the use of assessments of attachment quality to inform child custody and child-protection decisions, such assessments are currently most suitable for targeting and directing supportive interventions. Finally, we provide directions to guide future interdisciplinary research collaboration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can act as signaling molecules involved in the acclimation of plants to various abiotic and biotic stresses. However, it is not clear how the generalized increases in ROS and downstream signaling events that occur in response to stressful conditions are coordinated to modify plant growth and development. Previous studies of maize (Zea mays L.) primary root growth under water deficit stress showed that cell elongation is maintained in the apical region of the growth zone but progressively inhibited further from the apex, and that the rate of cell production is also decreased. It was observed that apoplastic ROS, particularly hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), increased specifically in the apical region of the growth zone under water stress, resulting at least partly from increased oxalate oxidase activity in this region. To assess the function of the increase in apoplastic H2O2 in root growth regulation, transgenic maize lines constitutively expressing a wheat oxalate oxidase were utilized in combination with kinematic growth analysis to examine effects of increased apoplastic H2O2 on the spatial pattern of cell elongation and on cell production in well-watered and water-stressed roots. Effects of H2O2 removal (via scavenger pretreatment) specifically from the apical region of the growth zone were also assessed. The results show that apoplastic H2O2 positively modulates cell production and root elongation under well-watered conditions, whereas the normal increase in apoplastic H2O2 in water-stressed roots is causally related to down-regulation of cell production and root growth inhibition. The effects on cell production were accompanied by changes in spatial profiles of cell elongation and in the length of the growth zone. However, effects on overall cell elongation, as reflected in final cell lengths, were minor. These results reveal a fundamental role of apoplastic H2O2 in regulating cell production and root elongation in both well-watered and water-stressed conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pretty good yield (PGY) is a sustainable fish yield corresponding to obtaining no less than a specified large percentage of the maximum sustainable yield (MSY). We investigated 19 European fish stocks to test the hypothesis that the 95% PGY yield range is inherently precautionary with respect to impairing recruitment. An FMSY range was calculated for each stock as the range of fishing mortalities (F) that lead to an average catch of at least 95% of MSY in long-term simulations. Further, a precautionary reference point for each stock (FP.05) was defined as the F resulting in a 5% probability of the spawning-stock biomass falling below an agreed biomass limit below which recruitment is impaired (Blim) in long-term simulations. For the majority of the stocks analysed, the upper bound of the FMSY range exceeded the estimated FP.05. However, larger fish species had higher precautionary limits to fishing mortality, and species with larger asymptotic length were less likely to have FMSY ranges impairing recruitment. Our study shows that fishing at FMSY generally is precautionary with respect to impairing recruitment for highly exploited teleost species in northern European waters, whereas the upper part of the range providing 95% of MSY is not necessarily precautionary for small- and medium-sized teleosts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pathway from adverse early experience to adulthood for internationally adopted children is complex in identifying key influences, impacts, and outcomes. This review arose from the authors' involvement in the British Chinese Adoption Study, a recent outcomes study that explored the links between early orphanage care, adoptive experiences, and midadulthood. It differs from previous reviews in focusing on a greater length of time since adoption. Both quantitative and qualitative studies were included to allow for examination of a fuller range of adult-related outcomes rather than mental health scores alone. The sampling, methods, and results of reviewed articles are summarised and a critical commentary is provided. Despite methodological differences and identified strengths and weaknesses, conclusions are drawn on the basis of the evidence available. Special attention is paid to the interpretation of negative outcomes. Findings identify areas that should be explored further in order to gain a fuller understanding of midlife outcomes of people who experienced a poor start in life followed by international adoption. Such studies help in refining lifespan developmental theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Adoption Support Fund in England, which was rolled out on 1 May 2015, seeks to improve the lives of adopted children and their families by providing resources to fund therapeutic interventions for the child. Accessing the Fund requires that the needs of the child and family are fully assessed and the expected outcomes are identified. This raises questions about the use of standardised and validated assessment tools as a part of the process. This article reviews the benefits and challenges of using established instruments, such as the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), and considers the relevance of the Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) for adoption situations. It is argued that given the legal requirements to link need, services and outcomes, the importance of using validated assessment tools is strong. However, social workers need training to administer them and interpret the results. While using the SDQ should be firmly embedded in practice, the contribution of the DAWBA, although promising, requires further exploration. Social workers will also need training on how best to use it, and how to interpret the results and integrate these into a comprehensive assessment of the child and family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Follow-up studies of adopted adults are very important in contributing to the development of policy and practice when placing children in families following early adversity. This article describes the development of a methodology for one such study due to be completed in 2012. The files of 100 ethnic Chinese girls adopted from Hong Kong into British families in the 1960s were made available and originally analysed in 2007. As the files recorded data on the children's pre-adoption experiences including orphanage care, this provided an opportunity to explore a well-established hypothesis that early orphanage experience has an enduring effect on later outcomes. However, given this group of women are now in their 40s and 50s, identifying these outcomes may offer a much longer term perspective to that usually available in research studies of this kind. This article reports the findings from an analysis of the information held on these files. It then discusses the benefits and challenges of developing a robust methodology for a follow-up study that compares this group of women with other adopted and non-adopted groups of a similar age and in particular explores how post-adoption experiences across the lifespan might moderate the effects of early adversity. Following up this group of women into their middle years and using data available about their early experiences provides a unique opportunity to test and challenge existing theories about the long-term consequences of international adoption. This will help to inform both policy and direct social work practice when children are being considered and placed through international adoption today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various reports published within the issue including dynamic patterns in the construction of identities in family placement and multicultures, the contemporary British legislative context on matching minority ethnic children to adopters, and the interplay of policy, history, experience and identities in transnational adoption.

In the field of international adoption there has been a long-standing concern that transracially adopted people experience social dislocation from both their communities of origin and the communities in which they grew up. Alan Rushton, Margaret Grant, John Simmonds and Julia Feast of the British Chinese Adoption Study team explore this notion in relation to a sample of 72 ex-orphanage, Hong Kong-born women adopted into British families in the 1960s. The authors report on how the women choose to identify themselves in mid life. The article describes the development and use of specially devised questionnaires to explore community connectedness and self-regard among this group of women. Further analysis examines the relationship between community connectedness and psychological well-being. The findings are then positioned in the context of the narrative data from face-to-face interviews with the women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For some years now, concerns have been raised about whether the frequency and the arrangements for contact between infants and parents during proceedings are in the best interests of infants. Could these arrangements be better managed to safeguard the development of the infant while maintaining effective contact and supporting the possibility of reunion with the birth parents? A recent study by Kenrick (2009) has provided detailed accounts of the stressful and negative impact on infants of high levels of contact during care proceedings. Research from Australia has raised similar concerns (Humphreys and Kiraly, 2011). A multi-disciplinary working group, hosted by Coram, has been meeting to discuss these issues and in December 2010 the President of the Family Division's annual debate was titled 'Infant Contact: Keeping the Baby in Mind'. This article by Gillian Schofield and John Simmonds draws on that debate as well as out- lining the legal, research and practice contexts. The aim here is to explore this controversial area and to identify questions which need to be considered in planning infant contact, both in the pre-proceedings phase and throughout care proceedings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working directly with children in the family-finding process presents an additional challenge to social workers where the child is disabled. In My Shoes, an interactive compute interview, has been demonstrated as an effective communication tool with children who have a wide range of special needs. Jennifer Cousins and John Simmonds report on a project exploring its use with disabled children for whom a permanent new family was being sought. Social workers observed children using In My Shoes and then a group of 16 from four local authorities were trained in its use. They were subsequently supported in its use during family-finding and feedback was gathered on their experience of doing so. A number of them reported enhanced knowledge of the children they worked with, which informed family-finding. However, identifying disabled children with permanence as a plan proved, unexpectedly, to be a significant problem. This raises important questions about whether permanence planning for disabled children follows the same trajectory as for not-disabled children. The project team also found that engaging agencies in this exploratory project was challenging. Incorporating even positive practice tools such as In My Shoes (particularly those involving technology) was often a step too far for a workforce already struggling with huge demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mental health of children in public care has received considerable attention in recent years. There are significant differences in the prevalence rates compared to children living at home and not in public care and these are added to by other adverse lifestyle issues. Considerable attention has been focused on the importance of stable and secure placements supported by access to a range of services including education, health and mental health. Identifying and classifying mental health needs proves to be challenging as the child’s genetic inheritance, pre- and post-birth experiences, including maltreatment, interact with the uncertainty and delays commonly associated with child protection processes, action in the legal system and the difficulty in establishing secure and permanent placements. Clinical need is also related to the age of the child and the reasons they came into care and the length of time they remain. A case illustrating many of these issues, publicly reported in the court’s judgement, is used as the basis for exploring the complexity for the identified child in understanding and making sense of their experiences as placement plans are made for them. These are used to explore the difficulties in establishing clinical protocols such as those recently published in the USA. Particular emphasis is given to the issues faced by children and their carers in establishing new family relationships which address the child’s inheritance from their family of origin especially where these are traumatic and conflicted in origin. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Attachment theory and therapy have established themselves as major constructs in foster care and adoption practice. The depth of the explanatory power of attachment theory and research have done much to both identify the source of developmental difficulties in adopted and fostered children, and of the significant changes that can be made when these children are placed with `autonomously' classified carers. However, the power of the concept has also led to a proliferation of ideas, particularly therapeutic models that can, in some cases, stray a long way from the core of what is effective, safe and ethical clinical practice. Holding therapy is one of these models. The British Association for Adoption and Fostering developed a position statement on this practice, setting it within a broader framework of assessment and intervention. But like the model, the development of the position statement became controversial in its development. The article charts some of the critical issues and identifies the very significant dilemmas for parents and carers caught up in the maelstrom of challenging behaviours and disturbing feelings. The conclusion turns to one of the key components of an attachment-based idea: The critical importance of finding the space to think and to feel what the child is communicating without resorting to dangerous retaliation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A highly efficient method of regenerating fertile, phenotypically normal plants from shoot apex cultures of T. aestivum was developed. The hypodermal layer (L2) of the vegetative apex containing germ line precursor cells could be located with bright field microscopy and targeted for microinjection. Fluorescently labelled dextrans were used as markers to develop a microinjection procedure which did not disrupt nuclear or cytoplasmic structure. This procedure was used to inject plasmid DNA into L2 cells. Capillary microinjection did not shear the plasmid DNA and delivery of DNA was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction analysis of DNA isolated from injected apices. The significance of these findings in relation to the development of cereal transformation systems will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In vitro responses can be influenced by the developmental status of the donor plant tissue. The effects of the donor plant photoperiod and the developmental stage of the plant on organogenesis of petiole explants of Begonia × hiemalis cv. Schwabenland Pink are reported. Long day plants had progressively more branches, total stem length, leaf area, and branch and shoot mass. In short days, flowering was earlier and a greater proportion of dry weight accumulation was allocated to reproductive structures. Similar explant responses were obtained from all developmental stages until flowering was well advanced in short days and then the regenerative capacity diminished. Primary measurements of donor leaves (length, area and weight) at the time of explant removal were not well correlated with adventitious bud production. Loss of regeneration was not determined by tissue or plant age but was associated with the progressive development of flowers. Thus the donor plant photoperiod only indirectly affected bud production. Organogenesis decreased with duration of short days but increased in long days and thus both the duration of the multiplication phase and the intensity of the in vitro response was enhanced by maintaining donor plants in long days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the experience of students entering social work practice upon qualification. Using concepts drawn from the socio-technical theory of Miller and Rice, the experience is analysed in terms of ‘crossing a boundary’ and ‘taking up a role’. Illustrative material is drawn from a two-day conference of ex-Goldsmiths' students together with an extended case study drawn from the caseload of one of those students. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Focuses on the academic leadership in the Universities and Polytechnics of Great Britain. Emphasis on the importance of academic leaders who are not allured to high promises; Highlights of the sharpness of the questions faced by the academic leaders; Possibility of teaching and learning the attitudes and conduct appropriate to the positions of authority and leadership.

A partial cDNA clone, Pis 63, corresponding to a mRNA highly expressed in Brassica napus pistils, was isolated by differential screening. PCR was used to complete the Pis 63 sequence (Pis 63-1) and to obtain the sequence of another related cDNA (Pis 63-2). Northern blot and in situ analyses demonstrated that these transcripts are expressed in the stigma throughout flower development. Pis 63-1 and Pis 63-2 display similarity to a cotton fibre cDNA clone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cDNA clone, Sta 44-4, corresponding to a mRNA highly expressed in Brassica napus cv. Westar stamens, was isolated by differential screening and characterized. Northern blot and in situ analyses demonstrated that Sta 44-4 is synthesized in pollen beginning at the late uninucleate stage and reaches a maximum in trinucleate microspores. Sta 44-4 displayed significant sequence similarity to known pollen polygalacturonase genes. The B. napus pollen polygalacturonase gene was shown to be part of a small gene family and to display some polymorphism among different cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student demands on social work courses for greater integration of issues of race and culture into every part of the curriculum put staff in danger of feeling guilty and reacting defensively. As a result, hasty and inappropriate changes can be introduced or inaction result from the paralysis that guilt induces. In this article we argue that the demands themselves need to be understood and thought about as a means of ‘learning about’ the nature of ‘difference’ and its consequences for and impact on individual and group identity. Attention to the group process is at the heart of creating a facilitating environment that enables painful and powerful issues to be addressed and understood. Change is fundamental to learning and cannot be addressed by formal teaching methods alone. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]