Carbohydrate and lipid balances in the positive plant phenotypic response to arbuscular mycorrhiza: increase in sink strength.

The exchange of phosphorus (P) and carbon (C) between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is a major determinant of their mutualistic symbiosis. We explored the C dynamics in tomato (Solanum lycorpersicum) inoculated or not with Rhizophagus irregularis to study their growth response under different NaH2 PO4 concentrations (Null P, 0 mM; Low P, 0.065 mM; High P, 1.3 mM). The percentage of AMF colonization was similar in plants under Null and Low P, but severely reduced under High P. However, the AMF mass biomarker 16:1ω5 revealed higher fungal accumulation in inoculated roots under Low P, while more AMF spores were produced in the Null P. Under High P, AMF biomass and spores were strongly reduced. Plant growth response to mycorrhiza was negative under Null P, showing reduction in height, biovolume index, and source leaf (SL) area. Under Low P, inoculated plants showed a positive response (e.g., increased SL area), while inoculated plants under High P were similar to non-inoculated plants. AMF promoted the accumulation of soluble sugars in the SL under all fertilization levels, whereas the soluble sugar level decreased in roots under Low P in inoculated plants. Transcriptional upregulation of SlLIN6 and SlSUS1, genes related to carbohydrate metabolism, was observed in inoculated roots under Null P and Low P, respectively. We conclude that P-limiting conditions that increase AMF colonization stimulate plant growth due to an increase in the source and sink strength. Our results suggest that C partitioning and allocation to different catabolic pathways in the host are influenced by AMF performance.

Cellulase and chitinase activities and antagonism against Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense race 1 of six Trichoderma strains isolated from Mexican maize cropping.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the enzymatic and biocontrol capacity of native Trichoderma strains isolated from corn crops in Irapuato (state of Guanajuato) and Napízaro (state of Michoacán), Mexico. RESULTS: Six native strains from Irapuato and Napízaro were tested, with five of them identified as T. harzianum and one as T. tomentosum. The six strains qualitatively and quantitatively showed enzyme activity for cellulase and chitinase. The best results were obtained for strains IrV6SIC7 and MichV6S2C2 with 878 IU L-1 of chitinase and 1323 IU L-1 of cellulase, respectively. All Trichoderma strains acted antagonistically toward Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense race 1 (FocR1), with percentages of inhibition that ranged from 9 to 54%. In addition, the microscopic analysis allowed visualizing the mechanisms of mycoparasitism and antibiosis by either IrV6SIC7 or MichV6S2C2. The latter effects indicate that the tested native Trichoderma strains isolated from corn crops possessed enzymatic mechanisms as a strategy for biocontrolling FocR1 strains. CONCLUSION: The enzyme production by the Trichoderma strains represents a potential biotechnological utilization for either agricultural or industrial purposes.

Peer pressure and alcohol consumption in adults living in the UK: a systematic qualitative review.

BACKGROUND: Peer pressure to drink alcohol may influence excessive alcohol consumption, which can have adverse impacts on health and wellbeing. While peer pressure to drink alcohol is extensively studied among youth, less examination exists among adults. This systematic review examined qualitative research studies which explored the role and concept of peer pressure within the context of alcohol consumption in adults living in the UK. METHODS: Qualitative studies which explored peer pressure within the context of alcohol consumption or alcohol related behaviours and views in adults (age range approximately 18-52 years) living in the UK were included. Systematic searches conducted in Medline, PsycINFO and Web of Science identified 1462 references, of which 13 studies met inclusion criteria. Thematic analysis was conducted. RESULTS: Five overarching themes were identified. Four of these themes directly address aspects of peer pressure, including: experiences of peer pressure; consequences of peer pressure; strategies to deal with peer pressure; and conditions perceived to affect peer pressure. The fifth overarching theme explains the wider social context influencing peer pressure. Pressure to drink alcohol affects individuals across the life span and can be experienced as overt and aggressive, or subtle and friendly. Those consuming little or no alcohol are more likely to feel overt forms of peer pressure. Some developed strategies to cope with pressure from drinkers. Peer pressure can result in feelings of social isolation, or giving in by consuming alcohol against ones wishes. CONCLUSION: Peer pressure to drink alcohol is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon experienced across adulthood requiring better understanding to support initiatives to decrease the impact of pressure-inducing environments and develop strategies to deal with perceived pressure conditions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The protocol for this review is registered with PROSPERO ( CRD42019122201 ). Registered 11 February 2019.

Bacillus cabrialesii sp. nov., an endophytic plant growth promoting bacterium isolated from wheat (Triticum turgidum subsp. durum) in the Yaqui Valley, Mexico.

Strain TE3T, an endophytic plant growth promoting bacterium, was isolated from wheat (Triticumturgidum subsp. durum) sampled in the Yaqui Valley, Mexico. Biochemical, phenotypic and genotypic approaches were used to clarify the taxonomic affiliation of this strain. Based on analysis of its full-length 16S rRNA gene, strain TE3T was assigned to the genus Bacillus (similarity ≥98.7 %). This finding was supported by morphological and metabolic characteristics, such as rod shape, strictly aerobic metabolism, spore formation, Gram-positive staining, catalase-positive activity, reduction of nitrate to nitrite, starch and casein hydrolysis, growth in presence of lysozyme and 2 % NaCl, citrate utilization, growth pH from 6.0 to 8.0, and acid and indole production from glucose and tryptophan, respectively. The whole-genome phylogenetic relationship showed that TE3T formed an individual clade with Bacillus tequilensis KCTC 13622T, distant from that generated by all Bacillus subtilis subspecies. The maximum values for average nucleotide identity and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization were 93.85 and 54.30 %, respectively, related to Bacillus subtilissubsp. inaquosorum KCTC 13429T. Analysis of its fatty acid content showed the ability of strain TE3T to bio-synthetize fatty acids that are not present in closely related Bacillus species, such as C12 : 0, C12 : 0 2OH, C12 : 0 3OH, C17 : 0, iso-C17 : 0 3OH and C18 : 1ω9c. These results provide evidence that strain TE3T is a novel species of the genus Bacillus, for which the name Bacilluscabrialesii sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Bacilluscabrialesii is TE3T (CM-CNRG TB54T=CCStamb A1T).

Comparative stress response to food preservation conditions of ST19 and ST213 genotypes of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium.

The replacement of the most prevalent Salmonella enterica genotypes has been documented worldwide. Here we tested the hypothesis that the current prevalent sequence type ST213 of serotype Typhimurium in Mexico has a higher resistance to stressful food preservation conditions than the displaced sequence ST19. ST19 showed higher cell viability percentages than ST213 in osmotic (685 mM NaCl) and acidic (pH 3.5) stress conditions and in combination with refrigeration (4 °C) and ambient (≈22 °C) temperatures. Both genotypes showed the same poststress recovery growth. ST213 formed biofilm and filamentous cells (FCs) under stress, whereas ST19 did not. ST213 cells also showed higher motility. The capacity of ST213 to form FCs may explain its lower viability percentages when compared with ST19, i.e., ST213 cells divided less under stress conditions, but FCs had the same recovery capacity of ST19 cells. ST213 presented a higher unsaturated/saturated fatty acids ratio (0.5-0.6) than ST19 (0.2-0.5), which indicates higher membrane fluidity. The transcript levels of the rpoS gene were similar between genotypes under the experimental conditions employed. Biofilm formation, the generation of FCs, cell motility and membrane modification seem to make ST213 more resistant than ST19 to food preservation environments.

Increased maize growth and P uptake promoted by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi coincide with higher foliar herbivory and larval biomass of the Fall Armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda.

Most plant species naturally associate with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which are known to promote crop nutrition and health in agroecosystems. However, information on how mycorrhizal associations affect plant biotic interactions that occur aboveground with foliar herbivores is limited and needs to be further addressed for the development of pest management strategies. With the objective to examine the influence of maize mycorrhizas on foliar herbivory caused by larvae of Spodoptera frugiperda, a serious pest in maize agroecosystems, we performed a fully factorial greenhouse pot experiment with three factors: Maize genotype (Puma and Milpal H318), AMF (with and without AMF, and without AMF with mineral P) and Insect herbivory (with and without S. frugiperda). Main results showed that inoculation with AMF improved plant growth and foliar P concentration, which coincided with increased foliar damage from herbivory and higher biomass of S. frugiperda larvae. A significant positive correlation between shoot P concentration and larval biomass was also observed. Finally, foliar herbivory by S. frugiperda slightly increased and decreased AMF root colonization in Puma and H318, respectively. In conclusion, our results show that maize plant benefits from AMF in terms of promotion of growth and nutrition, and may also increase the damage caused from insects by improving the food quality of maize leaves for larval growth, which seems to be linked to increased P uptake by the maize mycorrhizal association.

Personal well-being networks, social capital and severe mental illness: exploratory study.

BACKGROUND: Connectedness is a central dimension of personal recovery from severe mental illness (SMI). Research reports that people with SMI have lower social capital and poorer-quality social networks compared to the general population.AimsTo identify personal well-being network (PWN) types and explore additional insights from mapping connections to places and activities alongside social ties. METHOD: We carried out 150 interviews with individuals with SMI and mapped social ties, places and activities and their impact on well-being. PWN types were developed using social network analysis and hierarchical k-means clustering of this data. RESULTS: Three PWN types were identified: formal and sparse; family and stable; and diverse and active. Well-being and social capital varied within and among types. Place and activity data indicated important contextual differences within social connections that were not found by mapping social networks alone. CONCLUSIONS: Place locations and meaningful activities are important aspects of people's social worlds. Mapped alongside social networks, PWNs have important implications for person-centred recovery approaches through providing a broader understanding of individual's lives and resources.Declaration of interestNone.

Using a mobile health application to reduce alcohol consumption: a mixed-methods evaluation of the drinkaware track & calculate units application.

BACKGROUND: Smartphone applications ("apps") offer promise as tools to help people monitor and reduce their alcohol consumption. To date, few evaluations of alcohol reduction apps exist, with even fewer considering apps already available to the public. The aim of this study was to evaluate an existing publically available app, designed by Drinkaware, a UK-based alcohol awareness charity. METHODS: We adopted a mixed-methods design, analysing routinely collected app usage data to explore user characteristics and patterns of usage. Following this, in-depth interviews were conducted with a sub-sample of app users to examine perceptions of acceptability, usability and perceived effectiveness, as well as to provide recommendations on how to improve the app. RESULTS: One hundred nineteen thousand seven hundred thirteen people downloaded and entered data into the app over a 13-month period. High attrition was observed after 1 week. Users who engaged with the app tended to be "high risk" drinkers and to report being motivated "to reduce drinking" at the point of first download. In those who consistently engaged with the app over time, self-reported alcohol consumption levels reduced, with most change occurring in the first week of usage. Our qualitative findings indicate satisfaction with the usability of the app, but mixed feedback was given regarding individual features. Users expressed conflicting views concerning the type of feedback and notifications that the app currently provides. A common preference was expressed for more personalised content. CONCLUSIONS: The Drinkaware app is a useful tool to support behaviour change in individuals who are already motivated and committed to reducing their alcohol consumption. The Drinkaware app would benefit from greater personalisation and tailoring to promote longer term use. This evaluation provides insight into the usability and acceptability of various app features and contains a number of recommendations for improving user satisfaction and the potential effectiveness of apps designed to encourage reductions in alcohol consumption.

Development of the REFOCUS intervention to increase mental health team support for personal recovery.

BACKGROUND: There is an emerging evidence base about best practice in supporting recovery. This is usually framed in relation to general principles, and specific pro-recovery interventions are lacking. AIMS: To develop a theoretically based and empirically defensible new pro-recovery manualised intervention--called the REFOCUS intervention. METHOD: Seven systematic and two narrative reviews were undertaken. Identified evidence gaps were addressed in three qualitative studies. The findings were synthesised to produce the REFOCUS intervention, manual and model. RESULTS: The REFOCUS intervention comprises two components: recovery-promoting relationships and working practices. Approaches to supporting relationships comprise coaching skills training for staff, developing a shared team understanding of recovery, exploring staff values, a Partnership Project with people who use the service and raising patient expectations. Working practices comprise the following: understanding values and treatment preferences; assessing strengths; and supporting goal-striving. The REFOCUS model describes the causal pathway from the REFOCUS intervention to improved recovery. CONCLUSIONS: The REFOCUS intervention is an empirically supported pro-recovery intervention for use in mental health services. It will be evaluated in a multisite cluster randomised controlled trial (ISRCTN02507940).

Layers of listening: qualitative analysis of the impact of early intervention services for first-episode psychosis on carers' experiences.

BACKGROUND: Early intervention services (EIS) comprise low-stigma, youth-friendly mental health teams for young people undergoing first-episode psychosis (FEP). Engaging with the family of the young person is central to EIS policy and practice.AimsBy analysing carers' accounts of their daily lives and affective challenges during a relative's FEP against the background of wider research into EIS, this paper explores relationships between carers' experiences and EIS. METHOD: Semi-structured longitudinal interviews with 80 carers of young people with FEP treated through English EIS. RESULTS: Our data suggest that EIS successfully aid carers to support their relatives, particularly through the provision of knowledge about psychosis and medications. However, paradoxical ramifications of these user-focused engagements also emerge; they risk leaving carers' emotions unacknowledged and compounding an existing lack of help-seeking. CONCLUSIONS: By focusing on EIS's engagements with carers, this paper draws attention to an urgent broader question: as a continuing emphasis on care outside the clinic space places family members at the heart of the care of those with severe mental illness, we ask: who can, and should, support carers, and in what ways?

Medical education for obstetricians and gynecologists should incorporate environmental health.

Obstetricians-gynecologists can protect the reproductive health of women, men, and their offspring from environmental hazards through preconception and prenatal counseling and encouraging patients to take actions to reduce environmental exposures. Although obstetricians-gynecologists are well positioned to prevent hazardous exposures, education on environmental health in medical education is limited. The Mid-Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of George Washington University convened a meeting to begin integration of environmental health topics into medical education for obstetricians-gynecologists. Several avenues were identified to incorporate environmental health topics into medical education including continuing education requirements, inclusion of environmental health questions on board certification examinations and the creation of a curriculum on environmental health specific to obstetrics-gynecology.

Intake of St John's wort improves the glucose tolerance in healthy subjects who ingest metformin compared with metformin alone.

AIMS: Our objective was to investigate the steady-state pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interaction between the antidepressive herbal medicine St John's wort and the antidiabetic drug metformin. METHODS: We performed an open cross-over study in 20 healthy male subjects, who received 1 g of metformin twice daily for 1 week with and without 21 days of preceding and concomitant treatment with St John's wort. The pharmacokinetics of metformin was determined, and a 2 h oral glucose tolerance test was performed. RESULTS: St John's wort decreased the renal clearance of metformin but did not affect any other metformin pharmacokinetic parameter. The addition of St John's wort decreased the area under the glucose concentration-time curve [702 (95% confidence interval, 643-761) vs. 629 min*mmol/L (95% confidence interval, 568-690), P = 0.003], and this effect was caused by a statistically significant increase in the acute insulin response. CONCLUSIONS: St John's wort improves glucose tolerance by enhancing insulin secretion independently of insulin sensitivity in healthy male subjects taking metformin.

Implementing personalisation in integrated mental health teams in England.

This article explores how role boundaries and professional priorities in integrated mental health teams have impacted on the implementation of personalised approaches to social care support. We focus on the use of personal budgets to meet mental health-related social care needs as a key mechanism for personalised care. Drawing on 28 qualitative interviews with mental health practitioners from three local authorities in England undertaken in 2013, we report nurses', social workers', and occupational therapists' attitudes towards, and engagement with, personal budgets. Professional boundaries and competing priorities heavily influenced the extent to which personal budgets were perceived as a legitimate part of their roles. Across different professional groups, a sense emerged that personal budgets should be somebody else's job. A focus on attention to treatment, stability, and risk management often resulted in low prioritisation of personal budgets and led practitioners to avoid recommending them or to exclude service users from the process as a way to save time. Implications of the dominant medical model and the protection of traditional professional roles for the implementation of new, person-centred models of practice are discussed.

Introducing New Peer Worker Roles into Mental Health Services in England: Comparative Case Study Research Across a Range of Organisational Contexts.

A wide variety of peer worker roles is being introduced into mental health services internationally. Empirical insight into whether conditions supporting role introduction are common across organisational contexts is lacking. A qualitative, comparative case study compared the introduction of peer workers employed in the statutory sector, voluntary sector and in organisational partnerships. We found good practice across contexts in structural issues including recruitment and training, but differences in expectations of the peer worker role in different organisational cultures. Issues of professionalism and practice boundaries were important everywhere but could be understood very differently, sometimes eroding the distinctiveness of the role.

Outcomes from personal budgets in mental health: service users' experiences in three English local authorities.

BACKGROUND: In England, personal budgets are offered to eligible people with severe mental health problems to enable them to purchase what is helpful for their quality of life or recovery. However, in-depth insight into people's own perceptions of the outcomes is lacking. AIMS: To investigate people's own reporting of outcomes from using personal budgets in relation to social care needs arising from severe mental health problems. METHOD: A convenience sample of 47 individuals receiving personal budgets was recruited from three English local authorities. In-depth semi-structured interviews were subject to thematic framework analysis. RESULTS: Most participants identified positive outcomes across domains interconnected through individual life circumstances, with mental health and wellbeing, social participation and relationships, and confidence and skills most commonly reported. Some needed more support than others to identify goals and make use of the personal budget to take a more active part in the society. CONCLUSIONS: Personal budgets can enable people to achieve outcomes that are relevant to them in the context of their lives, particularly through enhancing their wellbeing and social participation. Consideration should be given to distinguishing those individuals potentially requiring more support for engagement from those who can engage more independently to identify and pursue their goals.

Competing priorities: staff perspectives on supporting recovery.

Recovery has come to mean living a life beyond mental illness, and recovery orientation is policy in many countries. The aims of this study were to investigate what staff say they do to support recovery and to identify what they perceive as barriers and facilitators associated with providing recovery-oriented support. Data collection included ten focus groups with multidisciplinary clinicians (n = 34) and team leaders (n = 31), and individual interviews with clinicians (n = 18), team leaders (n = 6) and senior managers (n = 8). The identified core category was Competing Priorities, with staff identifying conflicting system priorities that influence how recovery-oriented practice is implemented. Three sub-categories were: Health Process Priorities, Business Priorities, and Staff Role Perception. Efforts to transform services towards a recovery orientation require a whole-systems approach.

Making chorionic villus sampling painless for both the patient and the physician.

Currently, in common practice, no pain control is provided to the patient undergoing transvaginal chorionic villus sampling (CVS). Chorionic villus sampling is an invasive procedure involving an 18-gauge needle stick through the abdomen or passage of a suction catheter through the cervix. Furthermore, CVS is a mechanically difficult procedure for the clinician and requires considerable skill and training. There have been prior studies establishing the efficacy of using a topical anesthetic in similar gynecologic procedures. We share our method of performing CVS, which aids in pain relief for the patient and concurrently aids the practitioner in executing this precise procedure.

'Listen, empower us and take action now!': reflexive-collaborative exploration of support needs in bipolar disorder when 'going up' and 'going down'.

BACKGROUND: People with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder experience mood fluctuation from depression to mania, and their support needs may differ during these fluctuations. AIMS: To investigate support needed during periods of mania and depression, and when 'going up' or 'going down'. METHOD: Five service user researchers were supported in a reflexive-collaborative approach to undertake and analyse semi-structured interviews with 16 people with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and 11 people providing informal support. RESULTS: Support needs differed when becoming manic or depressed. When manic, people needed a calming approach and encouragement to avoid overly stimulating activities. When depressed, positive activity and engaging in everyday life routines were helpful. Three core themes determined the effectiveness of support: (1) being listened to with active engagement through affirmation and encouragement, (2) empowerment through development of personal coping and self-management strategies, and (3) early action and understanding of early warning signs to respond to developing crises and protect wellbeing. CONCLUSION: Periods of depression or mania, and lesser 'ups' and 'downs', all require different support needs. Active listening and engagement, facilitating empowerment and appropriate early action are crucial elements of effective support.

Mechanisms for plant growth promotion activated by Trichoderma in natural and managed terrestrial ecosystems.

Trichoderma spp. are free-living fungi present in virtually all terrestrial ecosystems. These soil fungi can stimulate plant growth and increase plant nutrient acquisition of macro- and micronutrients and water uptake. Generally, plant growth promotion by Trichoderma is a consequence of the activity of potent fungal signaling metabolites diffused in soil with hormone-like activity, including indolic compounds as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) produced at concentrations ranging from 14 to 234 µg l-1, and volatile organic compounds such as sesquiterpene isoprenoids (C15), 6-pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one (6-PP) and ethylene (ET) produced at levels from 10 to 120 ng over a period of six days, which in turn, might impact plant endogenous signaling mechanisms orchestrated by plant hormones. Plant growth stimulation occurs without the need of physical contact between both organisms and/or during root colonization. When associated with plants Trichoderma may cause significant biochemical changes in plant content of carbohydrates, amino acids, organic acids and lipids, as detected in Arabidopsis thaliana, maize (Zea mays), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare), which may improve the plant health status during the complete life cycle. Trichoderma-induced plant beneficial effects such as mechanisms of defense and growth are likely to be inherited to the next generations. Depending on the environmental conditions perceived by the fungus during its interaction with plants, Trichoderma can reprogram and/or activate molecular mechanisms commonly modulated by IAA, ET and abscisic acid (ABA) to induce an adaptative physiological response to abiotic stress, including drought, salinity, or environmental pollution. This review, provides a state of the art overview focused on the canonical mechanisms of these beneficial fungi involved in plant growth promotion traits under different environmental scenarios and shows new insights on Trichoderma metabolites from different chemical classes that can modulate specific plant growth aspects. Also, we suggest new research directions on Trichoderma spp. and their secondary metabolites with biological activity on plant growth.