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BackgroundIncreasing physical activity, improving diet, and performing brain training exercises are associated with reduced cognitive decline in older adults. ObjectiveIn this paper, we describe a feasibility trial of the Active Brains intervention, a web-based digital intervention developed to support older adults to make these 3 healthy behavior changes associated with improved cognitive health. The Active Brains trial is a randomized feasibility trial that will test how accessible, acceptable, and feasible the Active Brains intervention is and the effectiveness of the study procedures that we intend to use in the larger, main trial. MethodsIn the randomized controlled trial (RCT), we use a parallel design. We will be conducting the intervention with 2 populations recruited through GP practices (family practices) in England from 2018 to 2019: older adults with signs of cognitive decline and older adults without any cognitive decline. Trial participants were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 study groups: usual care, the Active Brains intervention, or the Active Brains website plus brief support from a trained coach (over the phone or by email). The main outcomes are performance on cognitive tasks, quality of life (using EuroQol-5D 5 level), Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, and diagnoses of dementia. Secondary outcomes (including depression, enablement, and health care costs) and process measures (including qualitative interviews with participants and supporters) will also be collected. The trial has been approved by the National Health Service Research Ethics Committee (reference 17/SC/0463). ResultsResults will be published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at conferences, and shared at public engagement events. Data collection was completed in May 2020, and the results will be reported in 2021. ConclusionsThe findings of this study will help us to identify and make important changes to the website, the support received, or the study procedures before we progress to our main randomized phase III trial. Trial RegistrationInternational Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number 23758980; http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN23758980 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/18929

Background: Community pharmacists have an essential role in antimicrobial stewardship by providing self-care advice for self-limiting infections. Aim: To explore community pharmacists' perceptions and experiences of advising patients on management of acute respiratory tract infections (RTIs) and urinary tract infections (UTIs), and to explore issues regarding use of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, including herbal medicines. Design & setting: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with community pharmacists in England. Method: Qualitative interviews with community pharmacists were carried out face to face and by telephone between November 2019 and March 2020. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, recorded and transcribed. A reflexive thematic analysis was undertaken. Results: In total, 18 community pharmacists were interviewed. Three main themes were identified. Theme 1 was self-management recommendations. Community pharmacists considered patients' preferences when recommending self-management strategies. Some believed that conventional OTC medications had quicker and stronger effects, while others preferred herbal OTCs as a more natural approach, particularly for less severe symptoms. Theme 2 was factors influencing pharmacists' recommendations for acute infections. This included pharmacists' perceptions of patient preferences, nature or severity of illness, research evidence, training, commercial pressures, and patient concerns about medication cost. Theme 3 was pharmacist-patient communication. Pharmacists sometimes experienced challenges with language barriers and patients' expectations of receiving antibiotics. Pharmacists emphasised the importance of being trusted by their patients. There was widespread acceptance of their role in self-management advice for acute illness and interest in the role of herbal medicines, but pharmacists did not feel confident in recommending these. Conclusion: Pharmacists are central to the management of self-limiting infections. There is a need to educate the public about appropriate use of antibiotics and provide training and support for pharmacists on self-management strategies including herbal medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High productivity of fertilized loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations in the southern United States is related to increased leaf area index (LAI), but higher evaporative leaf surface area may increase drought vulnerability. To determine if the benefits of fertilization are affected by water availability or the effects of drought are exacerbated by fertilization, the interactive effects of throughfall treatment (ambient throughfall versus throughfall reduction) and fertilization treatment (no fertilization versus one-time fertilization) on a loblolly pine plantation were examined over five growing seasons. Enhancement of LAI and growth from fertilization was unaffected by throughfall treatment, and reductions in LAI, tree height, and stand volume increment in response to throughfall reduction were unaffected by fertilization treatment. Leaf-level stomatal conductance ([g.sub.S]) was decreased and water use efficiency was increased by fertilization and by throughfall reduction. Lower [g.sub.S] was associated with decreased leaf predawn water potential in response to throughfall reduction. In contrast, lower gs in response to fertilization was associated with a reduction in the hydraulic allometry index, a measure of the ability of sapwood to supply water to leaves. These results suggest that fertilization may enhance LAI and growth even under mild or moderate drought. Key words: loblolly pine, leaf area index, leaf water potential, hydraulic traits, drought. La productivite elevee des plantations de pin a encens (Pinus taeda L.) dans le sud des Etats-Unis est reliee a l'augmentation de l'indice de surface foliaire (LAI), mais une plus grande surface foliaire augmente l'evaporation et peut accentuer la vulnerabilite a la secheresse. Dans le but de determiner si les benefices de la fertilisation dependent de la disponibilite en eau ou si les effets de la secheresse sont exacerbes par la fertilisation, les effets interactifs de traitements impliquant la precipitation au sol (ambiante ou reduite) et la fertilisation (aucune ou une application) dans une plantation de pin a encens ont ete etudies pendant cinq saisons de croissance. L'amelioration de LAI et de la croissance due a la fertilisation n'etait pas influencee par les changements dans la precipitation au sol. La fertilisation n'a pas eu d'effet sur la reduction de LAI, de la hauteur des arbres et de l'accroissement en volume du peuplement en reaction a la reduction de la precipitation au sol. La conductance stomatique a l'echelle des feuilles ([g.sub.S]) a ete reduite et l'efficacite de l'utilisation de l'eau a ete augmentee par la fertilisation et la reduction de la precipitation au sol. La valeur plus faible de [g.sub.S] etait associee a la diminution du potentiel hydrique de base foliaire en reaction a la reduction de la precipitation au sol. Au contraire, la valeur plus faible de [g.sub.S] en reaction a la fertilisation etait associee a la reduction de l'indice d'allometrie hydraulique, une mesure de la capacite du bois d'aubier a approvisionner les feuilles en eau. Ces resultats indiquent que la fertilisation peut ameliorer LAI et la croissance meme en presence d'une secheresse legere ou moderee. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles : pin a encens, indice de surface foliaire, potentiel hydrique foliaire, caracteristiques hydrauliques, secheresse., Introduction Along with increasing temperature, greater annual and seasonal variability in precipitation, more intense rain events, and longer interstorm periods are predicted for eastern North America (Swain and Hayhoe 2015; [...]

Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) restoration in the south eastern United States offers opportunities for carbon (C) sequestration. Ecosystem C stocks are not well understood in longleaf pine forests, which are typically of low density and maintained by prescribed fire. The objectives of this research were to develop allometric equations for above- and below-ground biomass and quantify ecosystem C stocks in five longleaf pine forests ranging in age from 5 to 87 years and in basal area from 0.4 to 22.6 [m.sup.2] x [ha.sup.-1]. Live aboveground C (woody plant + ground cover) and live root C (longleaf pine below stump + plot level coarse roots + plot level fine roots) ranged from 1.4 and 2.9 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1], respectively, in the 5-year-old stand to 78.4 and 19.2 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1], respectively, in the 87-year-old stand. Total ecosystem C (live plant + dead organic matter + mineral soil) values were 71.6, 110.1, 124.6,141.4, and 185.4 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1] in the 5-, 12-, 21-, 64-, and 87-year-old stands, respectively, and dominated by tree C and soil C. In the 5- year-old stand, ground cover C and residual taproot C were significant C stocks. This unique, in-depth assessment of above and below-ground C across a series of longleaf pine stands will improve estimates of C in longleaf pine ecosystems and contribute to development of general biomass models that account for variation in climate, site, and management history in an important but understudied ecosystem. Key words: longleaf pine, carbon sequestration, allometry, roots, ground- penetrating radar. La restauration du pin des marais (Pinus palustris Mill.) dans le sud-est des Etats-Unis off re une opportunity de stocker du carbone (C). Les stocks de C de l'ecosysteme ne sont pas bien connus dans les forets de pin des marais qui ont typiquementune faible densite et se maintiennent grace au brulage dirigee. Les objectifs de ces travaux de recherche consistaient a elaborer des equations allometriques pour la biomasse aerienne et souterraine et a quantifier les stocks de C de l'ecosysteme dans cinq forets de pin des marais dont l'age allait de 5 a 87 ans et dont la surface terriere variait de 0,4 a 22,6 [m.sup.2] x [ha.sup.-1]. Le C aerien vert (plantes ligneuses + couverture vegetale) et le C des racines vivantes (souches de pin des marais + grosses racines et racines fines presentes dans les placettes) variaient respectivement de 1,4 et 2,9 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1]dans le peuplement age de 5 ans a 78,4 et 19,2 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1] dans le peuplement age de 87 ans. Le C total de l'ecosysteme (plantes vivantes + matiere organique morte + sol mineral) atteignait respectivement 71,6,110,1,124,6,141,4 et 185,4 Mg C x [ha.sup.-1] dans les peuplements ages de 5,12, 21, 64 et 87 ans et etait domine par le C des arbres et du sol. Dans le peuplement age de 5 ans, le C contenu dans la couverture vegetale et les racines pivotantes residuelles constituait un stock important de C. Cette evaluation unique et approfondie du C aerien et souterrain dans une serie de peuplements de pin des marais ameliorera les estimations du C dans les ecosystemes domines par cette essence et contribuera au developpement de modeles generaux de biomasse qui tiennent compte de la variation dans le climat, la station et l'historique d'amenagement dans un ecosysteme important mais peu etudie. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles: pin des marais, sequestration du carbone, allometrie, racines, georadar., Introduction Forests serve as a means for mitigating climate change by acting as sinks for atmospheric C[O.sub.2] and storing carbon (C) in plant biomass, detritus, and forest soils. In the [...]

: Growth, allocation to woody root biomass, wood properties, leaf physiology, and shoot morphology were examined in a 47-year-old loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) density trial located in Maui, Hawaii, to determine if stands continued to carry the high density, basal area, and volume reported at younger ages and to identify potential factors controlling expression of maximum growth potential. Basal area and volume were similar among spacings (square: 1.8, 2.4, 3.0, and 3.7 m) and averaged 93 [m.sup.2]*[ha.sup.-1] and 1076 [m.sup.3]*[ha.sup.-1], respectively, and were double the maxima reported for loblolly pine in its native range. Spacing had a significant influence on density, quadratic mean diameter, and height. Ring-specific gravity and percent latewood were similar among spacing treatments but values were high compared to mainland stands. Leaf light-saturated net photosynthesis, dark respiration, stomatal conductance, and quantum yield were comparable with values reported for loblolly pine in its native range. Foliar calcium concentrations, specific leaf area, and flush number were high in the Hawaii study. Higher carrying capacity in Hawaii may be related to a more favorable climate conducive to yearround leaf carbon gain, high nutrient availability, increased flushing, and less allocation to belowground mass. Resume: Nous avons etudie la croissance, l'allocation des ressources a la biomasse racinaire ligneuse, les proprietes du bois, la physiologie foliaire et la morphologie des pousses dans un peuplement de pin a encens (Pinus taeda L.) age de 47 ans situe a Maui, a Hawaii, et qui faisait partie d'une experience de densite variable. Le but de l'etude etait de determiner si les peuplements continuaient de soutenir les valeurs elevees de densite, de surface terriere et de volume observees en jeune age et d'identifier les facteurs qui pourraient etre associes a l'expression de la croissance potentielle maximale. La surface terriere et le volume n'ont pas varie selon l'espacement (espacements carres de 1,8, 2,4, 3,0 et 3,7 m) et ont respectivement atteint 93 [m.sup.2]*[ha.sup.-1] et 1076 [m.sup.3]*[ha.sup.-1], en moyenne, ce qui correspond au double des valeurs maximales observees dans l'habitat naturel du pin a encens. L'espacement a eu un effet significatif sur la densite, le diametre moyen quadratique et la hauteur des arbres. La densite du bois et le pourcentage de bois final etaient semblables parmi les traitements d'espacement, mais leurs valeurs etaient elevees comparativement aux peuplements continentaux. La photosynthese foliaire nette sous une lumiere saturante, la respiration a l'obscurite, la conductance stomatique et le rendement quantique avaient des valeurs semblables a celles qui ont ete rapportees pour le pin a encens dans son habitat naturel. La concentration foliaire en calcium, la surface foliaire specifique et le nombre de pousses etaient eleves dans l'etude hawaiienne. La plus forte capacite de support du milieu a Hawaii peut etre reliee a un climat plus favorable qui est propice a un gain foliaire en carbone a longueur d'annee, a une disponibilite elevee en nutriments, a une augmentation du nombre de pousses et a une plus faible allocation des ressources a la biomasse souterraine. [Traduit par la Redaction, Introduction Production rates of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) in Hawaii, Brazil, Argentina, and South Africa indicate that full biological expression of growth potential in loblolly pine has not yet [...]

Abstract: Leaf physiology and stem growth were assessed in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) in response to 10 to 11 years of treatment with weed control (W), weed control plus [...]