Molecular phylogenies disprove a hypothesized C4 reversion in Eragrostis walteri (Poaceae)

Background and Aims The main assemblage of the grass subfamily Chloridoideae is the largest known clade of C4 plant species, with the notable exception of Eragrostis walteri Pilg., whose leaf anatomy has been described as typical of C3 plants. Eragrostis walteri is therefore classically hypothesized to represent an exceptional example of evolutionary reversion from C4 to C3 photosynthesis. Here this hypothesis is tested by verifying the photosynthetic type of E. walteri and its classification. Methods Carbon isotope analyses were used to determine the photosynthetic pathway of several E. walteri accessions, and phylogenetic analyses of plastid rbcL and ndhF and nuclear internal transcribed spacer DNA sequences were used to establish the phylogenetic position of the species. Results Carbon isotope analyses confirmed that E. walteri is a C3 plant. However, phylogenetic analyses demonstrate that this species has been misclassified, showing that E. walteri is positioned outside Chloridoideae in Arundinoideae, a subfamily comprised entirely of C3 species. Conclusions The long-standing hypothesis of C4 to C3 reversion in E. walteri is rejected, and the classification of this species needs to be re-evaluate

Parks, people and planning: local perceptions of park management on the Ningaloo Coast, North West Cape, Western Australia

Attaining the ‘appropriate’ balance between human use of national parks and their protection is a topic of considerable public, scientific and business interest and is thus an important focus for research. An increasingly affluent and mobile western society has made tourism the world’s largest industry; an industry with a significant reliance on the attractions of protected areas such as national parks and their wildlife. Regional communities have benefited from protected areas through local tourism expenditure and government recognition of the economic and social values realized from protected areas. High levels of visitation, and the management of this human use require effective management. But tensions arise when park managers invoke policies and management prescriptions to mitigate the adverse affects of human use. These actions and the way they are implemented can have an alienating impact on local communities, particularly those with a direct business dependency on park tourism. This thesis explores the notion that truly sustainable management of national parks can only be achieved if park managers and communities living adjacent to parks work together in a partnership to meet each other’s needs and through this process, foster the long-term environmental, social and economic benefits that can be derived from these parks. This thesis documents how a local community perceives its park managers and thereby the impact that park management has on local communities. It then seeks to identify the opportunities for park managers and communities to improve the way they view each other and the skills, attitudes and approaches necessary to create the environment for a sustainable relationship and can deliver sustainable outcomes for both parties.Three methods were employed to progress this research; an extensive review of literature and theory on relevant aspects of the people and parks relationship; the use of a case study of communities adjacent to parks on the Ningaloo Coast; and, qualitative and quantitative surveys to inform those case studies. A resident perception survey of the Exmouth and Coral Bay communities was conducted in August 2005. At the same time key stakeholder representatives were interviewed. Secondary quantitative data on the areas economy and demographics was also collected to triangulate aspects of the primary data. The Ningaloo coast community’s perception of park management has been adversely affected by a recent (2004) management planning process for Ningaloo Marine Park that culminated in significant constraints being placed on recreational fishing access. Both the planning process and the decision have been the focus of community anger. Currently the levels of trust and respect within the community for the park agency and its management performance are low. Despite evidence that the parks of the Ningaloo coast make important social and economic contributions to the local communities of this area, the local community holds negative perceptions of the social and economic impacts of park management, and are influenced strongly by the local community’s attitudes, perceptions and feelings towards the park agency. The park agency’s inability to consult, involve and communicate with the local community (to the satisfaction of the local community) contributes to these attitudes, feelings and perceptions.Key findings include; the prevailing norms and belief systems within the park agency reinforce the classic managerial paradigm; park management fails to accommodate broader social and economic measures, which diminishes trust and undermines attempts to foster community involvement and stewardship; ineffectual leadership, poor communication and outmoded approaches to planning and community engagement, local apathy to involvement in park planning and a lack of community education in regard to the promotion of park values, programs and activities compound this situation. The Ningaloo coast has the potential to provide an exceptionally bright future for its local communities, based largely on the inherent natural and cultural values of Ningaloo Marine Park, Cape Range National Park and other associated reserves. Whether the potential to develop community stewardship of the parks of the Ningaloo coast is fully met depends largely on the willingness of park management to relinquish some of its power, establish a suitable governance model in order to work collaboratively with the community and communicate effectively with it in order to achieve sustainable futures for both the park and the community

Minimum Information about a Neuroscience Investigation (MINI) Electrophysiology

This module represents the formalized opinion of the authors and the CARMEN consortium, which identifies the minimum information required to report the use of electrophysiology in a neuroscience study, for submission to the CARMEN system (www.carmen.org.uk).
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Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Evaluating the effectiveness of agricultural adaptation to climate change in preindustrial society

The effectiveness of agricultural adaptation determines the vulnerability of this sector to climate change, particularly during the preindustrial era. However, this effectiveness has rarely been quantitatively evaluated, specifically at a large spatial and long-term scale. The present study covers this case of preindustrial society in AD 1500–1800. Given the absence of technological innovations in this time frame, agricultural production was chiefly augmented by cultivating more land (land input) and increasing labor input per land unit (labor input). Accordingly, these two methods are quantitatively examined. Statistical results show that within the study scale, land input is a more effective approach of mitigating climatic impact than labor input. Nonetheless, these observations collectively improve Boserup's theory from the perspective of a large spatial and long-term scale.postprin

A Digital Repository and Execution Platform for Interactive Scholarly Publications in Neuroscience

The CARMEN Virtual Laboratory (VL) is a cloud-based platform which allows neuroscientists to store, share, develop, execute, reproduce and publicise their work. This paper describes new functionality in the CARMEN VL: an interactive publications repository. This new facility allows users to link data and software to publications. This enables other users to examine data and software associated with the publication and execute the associated software within the VL using the same data as the authors used in the publication. The cloud-based architecture and SaaS (Software as a Service) framework allows vast data sets to be uploaded and analysed using software services. Thus, this new interactive publications facility allows others to build on research results through reuse. This aligns with recent developments by funding agencies, institutions, and publishers with a move to open access research. Open access provides reproducibility and verification of research resources and results. Publications and their associated data and software will be assured of long-term preservation and curation in the repository. Further, analysing research data and the evaluations described in publications frequently requires a number of execution stages many of which are iterative. The VL provides a scientific workflow environment to combine software services into a processing tree. These workflows can also be associated with publications and executed by users. The VL also provides a secure environment where users can decide the access rights for each resource to ensure copyright and privacy restrictions are met

Adding web-based support to exercise referral schemes improves symptoms of depression in people with elevated depressive symptoms:A secondary analysis of the e-coachER randomised controlled trial

Background: Exercise referral schemes (ERS) reduce depression but the additional effect on mental health from web-based behavioural support is unknown. The e-coachER trial reported no effect of augmenting usual ERS with theory-driven web-based behavioural support on moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at 12 months for patients with chronic physical and mental health conditions. The present study reports the effects of the e-coachER intervention on depression, anxiety and MVPA only among participants with elevated depressive symptoms and investigates whether these were mediated by changes in MVPA and hypothesised cognitive and behavioural processes. Methods: Of the original 450 adults recruited into the e-coachER trial, 205 had at least mild depression, based on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and were included in the present analysis. Data collected included the HADS, accelerometer measured and self-reported MVPA and survey process measures on physical activity action planning, self-monitoring and goal reviewing, and perceived importance, confidence, competence, autonomy and support. Linear mixed models were used to compare groups for change in depression and anxiety at 4 and 12 months using intention-to-treat complete case analysis, controlling for baseline. We also examined whether changes in physical activity and process variables at 4 months mediated changes in depression and anxiety at 12 months. Results: Of the 205 participants, 138 (67%) provided follow-up data at four months and 126 (61%) at 12 months. For those that provided follow-up data, those randomised to e-coachER reported improved levels of depression (−1.36, 95% CI: −2.55 to −0.18) but not anxiety, or MVPA, compared with controls at four months. No differences were observed at 12 months for depression, anxiety or MVPA. Intervention effects on accelerometer-measured or self-reported MVPA did not mediate improvements in depression or anxiety. However, intervention effects on confidence, competence and self-monitoring at four months significantly mediated the reduction in depression scores at four months. Intervention effects on competence and self-monitoring at four months also significantly mediated improvements in anxiety scores at four months. Interpretation: Adding web-based support to usual ERS leads to reductions in depression but not anxiety at four months. Changes in depression and anxiety were influenced by changing people's motivational regulations toward physical activity. The benefit of adding web-based support to usual ERS on mental health appears to be from increasing a sense of confidence, competence and self-monitoring rather than from increasing physical activity in people with elevated depression. ERS should focus more on strengthening motivational regulations than just doing more exercise. Trial registration: ISRCTN15644451.</p

Adding web-based support to exercise referral schemes improves symptoms of depression in people with elevated depressive symptoms:A secondary analysis of the e-coachER randomised controlled trial

Background: Exercise referral schemes (ERS) reduce depression but the additional effect on mental health from web-based behavioural support is unknown. The e-coachER trial reported no effect of augmenting usual ERS with theory-driven web-based behavioural support on moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at 12 months for patients with chronic physical and mental health conditions. The present study reports the effects of the e-coachER intervention on depression, anxiety and MVPA only among participants with elevated depressive symptoms and investigates whether these were mediated by changes in MVPA and hypothesised cognitive and behavioural processes. Methods: Of the original 450 adults recruited into the e-coachER trial, 205 had at least mild depression, based on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and were included in the present analysis. Data collected included the HADS, accelerometer measured and self-reported MVPA and survey process measures on physical activity action planning, self-monitoring and goal reviewing, and perceived importance, confidence, competence, autonomy and support. Linear mixed models were used to compare groups for change in depression and anxiety at 4 and 12 months using intention-to-treat complete case analysis, controlling for baseline. We also examined whether changes in physical activity and process variables at 4 months mediated changes in depression and anxiety at 12 months. Results: Of the 205 participants, 138 (67%) provided follow-up data at four months and 126 (61%) at 12 months. For those that provided follow-up data, those randomised to e-coachER reported improved levels of depression (−1.36, 95% CI: −2.55 to −0.18) but not anxiety, or MVPA, compared with controls at four months. No differences were observed at 12 months for depression, anxiety or MVPA. Intervention effects on accelerometer-measured or self-reported MVPA did not mediate improvements in depression or anxiety. However, intervention effects on confidence, competence and self-monitoring at four months significantly mediated the reduction in depression scores at four months. Intervention effects on competence and self-monitoring at four months also significantly mediated improvements in anxiety scores at four months. Interpretation: Adding web-based support to usual ERS leads to reductions in depression but not anxiety at four months. Changes in depression and anxiety were influenced by changing people's motivational regulations toward physical activity. The benefit of adding web-based support to usual ERS on mental health appears to be from increasing a sense of confidence, competence and self-monitoring rather than from increasing physical activity in people with elevated depression. ERS should focus more on strengthening motivational regulations than just doing more exercise. Trial registration: ISRCTN15644451.</p

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of behavioural support for prolonged abstinence for smokers wishing to reduce but not quit: Randomised controlled trial of physical activity assisted reduction of smoking (TARS)

Aims: For smokers unmotivated to quit, we assessed the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of behavioural support to reduce smoking and increase physical activity on prolonged abstinence and related outcomes. Design: A multi-centred pragmatic two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial. Setting: Primary care and the community across four United Kingdom sites. Participants: Nine hundred and fifteen adult smokers (55% female, 85% White), recruited via primary and secondary care and the community, who wished to reduce their smoking but not quit. Interventions: Participants were randomised to support as usual (SAU) (n = 458) versus multi-component community-based behavioural support (n = 457), involving up to eight weekly person-centred face-to-face or phone sessions with additional 6-week support for those wishing to quit. Measurements: Ideally, cessation follows smoking reduction so the primary pre-defined outcome was biochemically verified 6-month prolonged abstinence (from 3-9 months, with a secondary endpoint also considering abstinence between 9 and 15 months). Secondary outcomes included biochemically verified 12-month prolonged abstinence and point prevalent biochemically verified and self-reported abstinence, quit attempts, number of cigarettes smoked, pharmacological aids used, SF12, EQ-5D and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at 3 and 9 months. Intervention costs were assessed for a cost-effectiveness analysis. Findings: Assuming missing data at follow-up implied continued smoking, nine (2.0%) intervention participants and four (0.9%) SAU participants achieved the primary outcome (adjusted odds ratio, 2.30; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.70-7.56, P = 0.169). At 3 and 9 months, the proportions self-reporting reducing cigarettes smoked from baseline by ≥50%, for intervention versus SAU, were 18.9% versus 10.5% (P = 0.009) and 14.4% versus 10% (P = 0.044), respectively. Mean difference in weekly MVPA at 3 months was 81.6 minutes in favour of the intervention group (95% CI = 28.75, 134.47: P = 0.003), but there was no significant difference at 9 months (23.70, 95% CI = -33.07, 80.47: P = 0.143). Changes in MVPA did not mediate changes in smoking outcomes. The intervention cost was £239.18 per person, with no evidence of cost-effectiveness. Conclusions: For United Kingdom smokers wanting to reduce but not quit smoking, behavioural support to reduce smoking and increase physical activity improved some short-term smoking cessation and reduction outcomes and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, but had no long-term effects on smoking cessation or physical activity

Digital inclusion in a Scottish national pulmonary hypertension population

To evaluate current digital inclusion in the Scottish pulmonary hypertension population, a paper questionnaire was offered to the entirety of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension in Scotland. The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation was used to stratify patients into deprivation deciles. 464 patients returned questionnaires (86%). 91% had reliable internet access. 89% had access to an internet-enabled device. 71% used the internet daily. The most common barriers to increased internet usage were confidence with technology (19%) and lack of perceived personal benefit (7%). 54% would like virtual healthcare to complement in person review and 58% would like to monitor their health digitally. Older patients were less likely to use the internet and had less desire for virtual healthcare. Rural living did not negatively impact access to the internet. Younger, more rural, and less deprived patients currently use and desire more online exercise. Deprived patients were less likely to have internet access or internet enabled devices, more likely to have no device or a mobile without internet, and had less desire for virtual healthcare or digital health monitoring. Most patients have the means of accessing the internet and support virtual healthcare in addition to direct clinician contact. However, digital engagement was lower in older and more deprived patients. The high response rate supports paper over online survey methodology for future digital inclusion research. Future digital healthcare strategies need to integrate this knowledge to minimize age- and deprivation-related inequity