Protocol for a randomised controlled trial investigating an intervention to boost decentering in response to distressing mental experiences during adolescence: the decentering in adolescence study (DECADES).

INTRODUCTION: Decentering describes the ability to voluntarily adopt an objective self-perspective from which to notice internal, typically distressing, stressors (eg, difficult thoughts, memories and feelings). The reinforcement of this skill may be an active ingredient through which different psychological interventions accrue reductions in anxiety and/or depression. However, it is unclear if decentering can be selectively trained at a young age and if this might reduce psychological distress. The aim of the current trial is to address this research gap. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Adolescents, recruited from schools in the UK and Ireland (n=57 per group, age range=16-19 years), will be randomised to complete 5 weeks of decentering training, or an active control group that will take part in a combination of light physical exercise and cognitive training. The coprimary training outcomes include a self-reported decentering inventory (ie, the Experiences Questionnaire) and the momentary use of decentering in response to psychological stressors, using experience sampling. The secondary mental health outcomes will include self-reported inventories of depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as psychological well-being. Initial statistical analysis will use between-group analysis of covariance to estimate the effect of training condition on self-rated inventories, adjusted for baseline scores. Additionally, experience sampling data will be examined using hierarchical linear models. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study was approved by the Cambridge Psychology Research Ethics Committee, University of Cambridge (PRE.2019.109). Findings will be disseminated through typical academic routes including poster/paper presentations at (inter)national conferences, academic institutes and through publication in peer-reviewed journals. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN14329613.

Characterisation of class II B MHC genes from a ratite bird, the little spotted kiwi (Apteryx owenii).

Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes are important for vertebrate immune response and typically display high levels of diversity due to balancing selection from exposure to diverse pathogens. An understanding of the structure of the MHC region and diversity among functional MHC genes is critical to understanding the evolution of the MHC and species resilience to disease exposure. In this study, we characterise the structure and diversity of class II MHC genes in little spotted kiwi Apteryx owenii, a ratite bird representing the basal avian lineage (paleognaths). Results indicate that little spotted kiwi have a more complex MHC structure than that of other non-passerine birds, with at least five class II MHC genes, three of which are expressed and likely to be functional. Levels of MHC variation among little spotted kiwi are extremely low, with 13 birds assayed having nearly identical MHC genotypes (only two genotypes containing four alleles, three of which are fixed). These results suggest that recent genetic drift due to a species-wide bottleneck of at most seven birds has overwhelmed past selection for high MHC diversity in little spotted kiwi, potentially leaving the species highly susceptible to disease.

'To be a woman is to make a plan': a qualitative study exploring mothers' experiences of the Child Support Grant in supporting children's diets and nutrition in South Africa.

Food security and good nutrition are key determinants of child well-being. There is strong evidence that cash transfers such as South Africa's Child Support Grant (CSG) have the potential to help address some of the underlying drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition by providing income to caregivers in poor households, but it is unclear how precisely they work to affect child well-being and nutrition. We present results from a qualitative study conducted to explore the role of the CSG in food security and child well-being in poor households in an urban and a rural setting in South Africa. SETTING: Mt Frere, Eastern Cape (rural area); Langa, Western Cape (urban township). PARTICIPANTS: CSG recipient caregivers and community members in the two sites . We conducted a total of 40 in-depth interviews with mothers or primary caregivers in receipt of the CSG for children under the age of 5 years. In addition, five focus group discussions with approximately eight members per group were conducted. Data were analysed using manifest and latent thematic content analysis methods. RESULTS: The CSG is too small on its own to improve child nutrition and well-being. Providing for children's diets and nutrition competes with other priorities that are equally important for child well-being and nutrition. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to raising the value of the CSG so that it is linked to the cost of a nutritious basket of food, more emphasis should be placed on parallel structural solutions that are vital for good child nutrition outcomes and well-being, such as access to free quality early child development services that provide adequate nutritious meals, access to adequate basic services and the promotion of appropriate feeding, hygiene and care practices.