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BACKGROUND ANMD AIMS: Functional decline in older adults is related physiologically to both aging and lifestyle-related risk factors. The role of health promotion and lifestyle modifications in preventing functional performance decline in community-dwelling older adults has not been well established. We evaluated the effects of an education-based health promotion program on functional performance and body composition in midlife and older adults. METHODS: A prospective study of a 4-week health promotion program for community- dwelling older adults. Outcome measures of gait speed, chair rise time, grip strength, weight, body mass index (BMI) and bioelectric impedance analysis (BIA) for body fat were assessed at baseline, 6 and 12 months. RESULTS: Participants (n=117) with a mean age 62.9+/-8 years; 63.2% were women. Gait speed improved by 0.20 ms-1 (95% CI 0.14, 0.29; p<0.001) and chair rise time decreased by 0.36 s (95% CI -0.13, -0.56; p=0.001) at 12 months. There was no change in grip strength (p=0.433). There was a modest decrease in weight 0.55 kg (95% CI -0.08, -1.01; p=0.019), BMI 0.35 kgm-2 (95% CI -0.02, -0.64; p=0.033) and fat impedance 0.75% (95% CI -0.09, -1.26; p=0.021) at 12 months. Imputation to account for missing outcomes did not alter overall conclusions. CONCLUSION: A 4-week educationbased health promotion in later-life is feasible and may help to improve and maintain functional performance and body composition in midlife and older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This pilot study aimed to determine the proportions, level of knowledge, anxiety and confidence of foreign domestic workers (FDWs) who were involved in supporting the healthcare needs of older persons with long-term non-communicable diseases., Design: The pilot study used a cross-sectional and descriptive design.FDWs who accompanied the older adults attending a primary healthcare setting in Singapore. 100 eligible FDWs' demographic data, knowledge and confidence level of caregiving in food preparation, medication supervision, exercise, blood pressure (BP), blood glucose (BG) monitoring and anxiety level assessed by the Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 scale were recorded. Descriptive statistics were performed and presented. Items on confidence were regrouped into two groups of 'very' versus 'no/a little/moderate'. Knowledge scores and caregiving tasks were assessed with items on confidence using Mann-Whitney U test and χ 2 test, respectively., Results: The FDWs were from Indonesia (60%), Philippines (23%) and Myanmar (14%). Their mean age was 33 years with an average of 5.8 years working experience; 62% self-reported previous caregiver training for elderly. The mean age of care-recipients was 81 years. Knowledge of FDWs on BP and BG monitoring was low (<50% answered correctly). Among the 55 FDWs who were required to perform BP monitoring, 45.5% lack confidence. Similarly, 40% of the 30 FDWs were not confident in performing BG monitoring. Those with very high confidence levels had higher knowledge on BP and BG monitoring. Of those who were involved in medication supervision (n=86), 36% lacked confidence. The majority of the FDWs (96%) were not affected by anxiety in managing these healthcare tasks for older persons., Conclusion: More than half of the FDWs supported healthcare needs of older persons but they had inadequate knowledge and lacked confidence in performing the healthcare-related tasks., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Pangolins, unique mammals with scales over most of their body, no teeth, poor vision, and an acute olfactory system, comprise the only placental order (Pholidota) without a whole-genome map. To investigate pangolin biology and evolution, we developed genome assemblies of the Malayan (Manis javanica) and Chinese (M. pentadactyla) pangolins. Strikingly, we found that interferon epsilon (IFNE), exclusively expressed in epithelial cells and important in skin and mucosal immunity, is pseudogenized in all African and Asian pangolin species that we examined, perhaps impacting resistance to infection. We propose that scale development was an innovation that provided protection against injuries or stress and reduced pangolin vulnerability to infection. Further evidence of specialized adaptations was evident from positively selected genes involving immunity-related pathways, inflammation, energy storage and metabolism, muscular and nervous systems, and scale/hair development. Olfactory receptor gene families are significantly expanded in pangolins, reflecting their well-developed olfaction system. This study provides insights into mammalian adaptation and functional diversification, new research tools and questions, and perhaps a new natural IFNE-deficient animal model for studying mammalian immunity., (© 2016 Choo et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.)

The genome of Mycobacterium massiliense M172, isolated from a human sputum sample, was sequenced using Illumina GA IIX technology and found to contain 5,204,460 bp, including putative genes for virulence and antibiotic resistance as well as a 92-kb genomic region most likely to correspond to a mycobacteriophage.

Mycobacterium abscessus is a rapid-growing species of nontuberculous mycobacteria that is frequently associated with opportunistic infections in humans. We report herein the draft genome sequence of M. abscessus strain M93.