Randomised trial of educational visits to enhance use of systematic reviews in 25 obstetric units

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of an educational visit to help obstetricians and midwives select and use evidence from a Cochrane database containing 600 systematic reviews. DESIGN: Randomised single blind controlled trial with obstetric units allocated to an educational visit or control group. SETTING: 25 of the 26 district general obstetric units in two former NHS regions. SUBJECTS: The senior obstetrician and midwife from each intervention unit participated in educational visits. Clinical practices of all staff were assessed in 4508 pregnancies. INTERVENTION: Single informal educational visit by a respected obstetrician including discussion of evidence based obstetrics, guidance on implementation, and donation of Cochrane database and other materials. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Rates of perineal suturing with polyglycolic acid, ventouse delivery, prophylactic antibiotics in caesarean section, and steroids in preterm delivery, before and 9 months after visits, and concordance of guidelines with review evidence for same marker practices before and after visits. RESULTS: Rates varied greatly, but the overall baseline mean of 43% (986/2312) increased to 54% (1189/2196) 9 months later. Rates of ventouse delivery increased significantly in intervention units but not in control units; there was no difference between the two types of units in uptake of other practices. Pooling rates from all 25 units, use of antibiotics in caesarean section and use of polyglycolic acid sutures increased significantly over the period, but use of steroids in preterm delivery was unchanged. Labour ward guidelines seldom agreed with evidence at baseline; this hardly improved after visits. Educational visits cost pound860 each (at 1995 prices). CONCLUSIONS: There was considerable uptake of evidence into practice in both control and intervention units between 1994 and 1995. Our educational visits added little to this, despite the informal setting, targeting of senior staff from two disciplines, and donation of educational materials. Further work is needed to define cost effective methods to enhance the uptake of evidence from systematic reviews and to clarify leadership and roles of senior obstetric staff in implementing the evidence.     

Ethical and practical issues involved in behavioral pharmacology research that administers drugs of abuse to human volunteers

Researchers carrying out non-therapeutic research that involves the administration of drugs of abuse to human volunteers can be faced with many ethical and practical questions. The history of this type of research is relatively brief, with little in the way of published information relevant to carrying out behavioral pharmacological research with human participants. The aim of this article is to raise issues that occur in most studies of this type and to provide solutions that we have found acceptable and which have been approved by a variety of institutions and regulatory agencies. Clearly, there are other approaches that would work equally as well, and we are not attempting to provide 'the' answer to many of the issues raised. We believe that raising these issues and providing our perspectives is important for stimulating others to discuss them and for all of us to strive, where possible, to reach a consensus concerning ethical practices and to become aware of gaps and pitfalls. The topics discussed range from the nuts and bolts of acquiring and keeping track of drugs, to selecting research participants and designing ethical studies that protect our volunteers while still collecting scientifically useful data.     

Directions for improving manual fire suppression using a physically based computer simulation

The Swedish Fire Research Board and the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency are sponsoring a project to further the understanding of the basic mechanisms involved, as well as to support the development of standards for and to seek ways of improving the performance of portable fire suppression systems used by fire departments.This paper describes a physically based computer model developed to simulate one aspect of the problem: the manual suppression of postflashover fires. This includes: (1) an overview of the physical basis behind the model; (2) a comparison of model predictions with available experimental data, and (3) an analysis of fire suppression effectiveness using the model.The analysis concludes that, when direct access and extinguishment of the burning fuel is not possible, improved fire control occurs with water sprays having a Rosin-Rammler distribution of droplet sizes with volume-median-drop diameters in the 0.15 to 0.35 mm range. This agrees with available experimental data. It is also shown that fire fighting venting and standoff distance requirements may lead to more severe fires requiring more water for control; although venting and water spray induced air/gas flow also serve to channel hot steam and gases away from the fire fighter adding to his safety. The analysis also shows that allowing higher gas and surface temperatures at fire control through improved fire fighter protective clothing and equipment design reduces water flow rate requirements. Additional experimental work is recommended before all these conclusions are considered definitive. Reference: L. M. Pietrzak and G. A. Johanson, Directions for Improving Manual Fire Suppression Using a Physically Based Computer Simulation,Fire Technology, Vol. 22, No. 3, August, 1986, p. 184.     

Properties of a single-chain antibody containing different linker peptides

Single-chain antibodies were constructed using six differentlinker peptides to join the V_H and V_L domains of an anti-2-phenyloxazolone(Ox) antibody. Four of the linker peptides originated from theinterdomain linker region of the fungal cellulase CBHI and consistedof 28, 11, six and two amino acid residues. The two other linkerpeptides used were the (GGGGS)₃ linker with 15 amino acid residuesand a modified IgG2b hinge peptide with 22 residues. Proteolyticstability and Ox binding properties of the six different scFvderivatives produced in Escherichia coli were investigated andcompared with those of the corresponding Fv fragment containingno joining peptide between the V domains. The hapten bindingproperties of different antibody fragments were studied by ELISAand BIAcore^TM. The interdomain linker peptide improved the haptenbinding properties of the antibody fragment when compared withFv fragment, but slightly increased its susceptibility to proteases.Single-chain antibodies with short CBHI linkers of 11, six andtwo residues had a tendency to form multimers which led to ahigher apparent affinity. The fragments with linkers longerthan 11 residues remained monomeric.     

Introduction of lysine residues on the light chain constant domain improves the labelling properties of a recombinant Fab fragment

Europium chelates provide a non-radioactive alternative forsensitive labelling of antibodies for diagnostic immunoassays.Lysine residues at antibody surfaces are ready targets for labellingby an isothiocyanate derivative of the europium chelate (Eu³⁺).Here the labelling efficiency of a recombinant anti-human -fetoprotein(hAFP) Fab fragment has been improved by increasing its lysinecontent by protein engineering. Molecular modelling was usedto identify three light chain constant domain surface arginineresidues, R154, R187 and R210, which were mutated to lysineresidues. The mutations did not influence the affinity of thelysine-enriched Fab fragment and its labelling efficiency wasfound to be 40% higher than that of the wildtype Fab fragmentWith low degree of labelling, the affinities of the two Fabfragments were identical and comparable with that of the originalmonoclonal anti-hAFP IgG. With a higher degree of labellingthe affinities of both Fab fragments decreased more than thatof the intact IgG since more lysine residues are available forlabelling in the additional heavy chain constant domains ofthe larger molecule. Electrostatic adsorption and covalent immobilizationof the Fab fragments were characterized by BIAcore^TM and thelysine-enriched Fab fragment was found to be more efficientlyimmobilized to an activated carboxymethyl surface.     

Volatile monocarbonyl compounds of carrot roots at various stages of maturity

Summary Volatile carbonyl compounds of carrot varietyFeonia Hunderup S-64 at various stages of maturity were analysed as their 2,4-DNPH's by a combined TLC-GLC-MS method. Twenty-three different carbonyl compounds were identified, of which undecanal, buten-2-al, methylbutenal, pentan-2-one, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one and 5-methylfurfural have not previously been found in carrot. During maturation the content of acetaldehyde and acetone increased significantly, while that of methylbutenal decreased.

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Die leichtflüchtigen Monocarbonylverbindungen der Karotten in verschiedenen Stufen der Reife

Zusammenfassung Die leichtflüchtigen Carbonylverbindungen der Karotten Varietät Feonia Hunderup S-64 wurden in verschiedenen Stufen der Reife als 2,4-DNPH mit der kombinierten DC-GC-MS-Methode analysiert. Dreiundzwanzig verschiedene Carbonylverbindungen wurden nachgewiesen. Von diesen sind Undecanal, 2-Butenal, Methylbutenal, 2-Pentanon, 6-Methyl-5-hepten-2-on und 5-Methylfurfural noch nicht in Karotten aufgefunden worden. Während des Reifens nahm der Gehalt an Acetaldehyd und Aceton bedeutend zu. Der Gehalt an Methylbutenal verminderte sich.

     

Interactive Workspaces

We are rapidly entering a world in which people equip themselves with a small constellation of mobile devices and pass through environments rich in embedded technology. However, we are still a long way from harnessing the power of this technology in a way that seamlessly and invisibly assists users in their day-to-day activities. Bringing pervasive computing to maturity requires innovations in systems integration and human-computer interaction (HCI). To investigate these challenges, Stanford University's Interactive Workspaces project (http://iwork.stanford.edu/) is exploring team-based collaboration in technology-augmented environments. These workspaces are designed to allow groups of five to ten people to work together using computing and interaction devices on many scales.     

Changes in soil carbon stock after cropland conversion to grassland in Russian temperate zone: measurements versus model simulation

The collapse of Soviet Union in early 1990s led to abandonment of large area of arable land which is assumed to act as a carbon (C) sink. We studied the ability of two dynamic soil C models (Yasso07 and RothC) to predict changes in soil C content after cropland abandonment. The performance of the models was compared using the results of a long-term experiment in Pushchino, Moscow region (54°50′N, 37°35′E) in Russia. The experiment was divided in four combinations of fertilizer or mowing treatments on former cropland soil. The soil C content was determined in the year of establishment (1980) and thereafter in 1999 and 2004. The soil C stocks increased by about 1.5- to 1.8-fold during the study period. Both models predicted the overall change in soil C relatively well (modelling efficiency of Yasso07 and RothC were 0.60 and 0.73, respectively). According to the models, the soil gained on average 140–150 g C m^?2 year^?1 during the first 5 years after conversion of cropland to grassland. The C sequestration rate decreased to 40–50 g C m^?2 year^?1 after 20 years of land use change. The sequestration rates estimated in this study are comparable to the rates observed in other studies.     

Impact toughness,viscoelastic behavior,and morphology of polypropylene–jute–viscose hybrid composites

In this investigation, we studied the impact toughness and viscoelastic behavior of polypropylene (PP)–jute composites. In this study, we used viscose fiber as an impact modifier and maleated PP as a compatibilizer. The toughness of the composites was studied with conventional Charpy and instrumental falling‐weight impact tests. The composites’ viscoelastic properties were studied with dynamic mechanical analysis. The results show that the incorporation of viscose fibers improved the impact strength and toughness to 134 and 65% compared to those of the PP–jute composites. The tan δ peak amplitude also increased with the addition of the impact modifier and indicated a greater degree of molecular mobility. The thermal stability of the composites was evaluated with thermogravimetric analysis. The addition of 2 wt % maleated polypropylene (MAPP) to the impact‐modified composite improved the impact strength and toughness to 144 and 93%, respectively. The fiber–matrix morphology of the fracture surface and the Fourier transform infrared spectra were also studied to ascertain the existence of the type of interfacial bonds. Microstructural analysis showed the retention of viscose fibers in the composites compared to the more separated jute fibers. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 42981.