Workforce participation and activities in Parkinson's disease patients receiving device-aided therapy.

OBJECTIVES: Many countries have an aging population, and it is thus likely that Parkinson's disease (PD) will become an increasing health problem. It is important to ensure this group can use their resources in the best way possible, including remaining in the work market. This study aimed to investigate workforce participation and daily activities among patients with PD receiving device-aided therapy to provide new knowledge that may be used to inform decisions about these therapy options. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective, descriptive quantitative pilot study, including 67 patients with PD from 3 centers in Sweden and Denmark. Included patients were younger than 67 years at the time of introduction of device-aided therapy. Eligible patients were identified by the Swedish national Parkinson patient registry or by the treating neurologist. Quantitative interviews were made by telephone. RESULTS: A majority of the patients could perform the same, or more, amount of activities approximately 5 years after the introduction of device-aided therapy. A small number of patients receiving deep brain stimulation (DBS) and levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) were able to increase their work capacity within 1 year of initiating device-aided therapy and a remarkably high share could still work at the end-point of this study, approximately 15 years since the diagnosis of PD. CONCLUSIONS: Device-aided therapy may sustain or increase daily activities and workforce participation in patients with PD who have not yet reached retirement age. There is need for prospective studies, both quantitative and qualitative, to confirm these results.

Standardized ileal digestibility of amino acids in European soya bean and rapeseed products fed to growing pigs.

This study was conducted to determine the chemical composition and standardized ileal digestibility coefficients (SID) of crude protein (CP) and amino acids (AA) of European soya bean and rapeseed products in pigs. Six soya bean and two rapeseed products were used as the sole dietary source of CP and AA, including raw (FFSB) and roasted full-fat soya beans (FFSBRoasted ), soya bean (SBC) and rapeseed cake (RSC), and rapeseed meal (RSM) from Bavaria (Germany), soya bean meal (SBM) from the Danube region (Austria; SBMAustria ), a commercially available standard SBM (SBMStd ) and an imported genetically modified organism-free SBM (SBMGMO-free ). Eight ileal- cannulated pigs with an initial body weight of 32 ± 2 kg were allotted to a row-column design with eight diets and six periods of seven days each. Trypsin inhibitor activity (TIA) ranged from 1.8 in SBMStd to 24.5 mg/g DM in FFSB. The SID of CP and all AA in FFSBRoasted were greater than in FFSB, but lower when compared to SBC and SBMAustria (p < .05). The SID of CP and all AA (except glutamic acid) were not different between SBC and SBMAustria , but the SID of CP and all AA (except methionine) were greater (p < .05) in SBC than in SBMGMO-free . Furthermore, the SID of CP and most AA showed a quadratic response with decreasing TIA, and there exists a quadratic response in SID of CP and all AA with increasing lysine to CP ratio and neutral detergent insoluble nitrogen (p < .05). In conclusion, variation in chemical composition and SID of CP and AA was observed in different European soya bean and rapeseed products as influenced by differences in processing conditions. European SBC and SBMAustria can be used as alternative to imported SBMGMO-free and SBMStd in diets for growing pigs.

Effect of feeding level on ileal and total tract digestibility of nutrients and energy from soybean meal-based diets for piglets.

A total of 36 piglets with an initial body weight (BW) of 5.6 ± 0.7 kg, fitted with simple T-cannulas at the distal ileum, were used to evaluate the effect of three graded feeding levels (50, 75 or 100 g/kg BW(0.75) day) on apparent ileal digestibility (AID) and total tract digestibility (ATTD) of dry matter (DM), nitrogen (N) and energy, and on ATTD of organic matter (OM), ether extracts (EE), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and digestible (DE), metabolisable (ME) and net energy (NE) content in soybean meal (SBM)-casein-cornstarch-based diets. The AID of DM, N and energy and ATTD of NDF, ADF and EE in the diets were not affected (p > 0.05) by the feed intake (FI) level. There was a small decrease in ATTD of DM, N (CP), OM, ash and energy, and in DE, ME and NE content in the diets (p < 0.05) with increasing FI level. The net disappearance in the large intestine (in % of ileal recovery) decreased for DM, N and energy (p < 0.05) with increasing FI level. The design of the study allowed for estimating ileal endogenous loss of N and total tract endogenous loss of ash, N and EE, for estimating corresponding true ileal and total tract digestibility values, and for estimating urinary endogenous N loss. High variability in estimates of ileal endogenous N loss and total tract endogenous losses of N, EE and ash reflects great variation in individual endogenous losses between animals. Estimation of true total tract digestibility of N, EE and ash by regression analysis was affected by their decrease in ATTD with increasing FI level, as estimates for true digestibility were lower compared to their apparent values. The present results suggest that FI level can affect both apparent and true total tract nutrient digestibility in piglets.

Short-term effect of dietary yeast nucleotide supplementation on small intestinal enzyme activities, bacterial populations and metabolites and ileal nutrient digestibilities in newly weaned pigs.

In previous studies, dietary nucleotides have been shown to improve performance in single-stomached animals by promoting the renewal of small intestine epithelial cells and by influencing the activity and composition of the microbial community in the digestive tract. The present experiment was carried out with 12 barrows weaned at the age of 18 days and fitted with a simple T-cannula at the distal ileum. To determine short-term effects of dietary yeast nucleotides, the piglets received a grain-soybean meal-based basal diet with or without supplementation of 1 g/kg of a dried yeast product containing free nucleotides. Dietary supplementation with yeast did not affect bacterial numbers in the ileum as well as ileal concentrations of individual short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), total SCFA and total lactic acid (p > 0.05). Moreover, there was no effect of supplemental yeast nucleotides on ileal α-amylase, leucine amino peptidase, maltase and lactase activities (p > 0.05), as well as on ileal dry matter, crude protein and crude fibre digestibilities (p > 0.05). In conclusion, short-term supplementation with dietary yeast nucleotides did not affect microbial metabolite concentrations, bacterial numbers and enzyme activities in the ileal digesta as well as ileal nutrient digestibilities of newly weaned pigs.

Children born to women with intellectual disabilities - 5-year incidence in a Swedish county.

BACKGROUND: Families with parental intellectual disabilities (ID) are likely to need support in achieving a decent family life. In order to accurately plan for such support services, society needs data regarding the occurrence of those parents and their children. The aim of this study was to investigate the 5-year incidence of children born to women with ID in a county in Sweden. METHODS: Women born between 1975 and 1989 were identified from school registers for children and adolescents with ID in the county of Blekinge. The women's personal identification numbers were, in 2010, linked and matched with the Swedish Medical Birth Register. RESULTS: In total, 98 women with ID were identified. Nine of these had given birth to children; one woman to two children and eight women to one child each. The 10 children were born between 2004 and 2008. CONCLUSION: The incidence rate calculated as a result of the present study indicates that approximately 2.12 per 1000 children are born per year to women with ID. For the whole of Sweden that rate indicates an incidence of approximately 225 children each year. On the basis of this, the prevalence of children (aged 0-18 years) being born to women with ID is estimated at about 4050.

Measuring the effects of an international health professions faculty development fellowship: the FAIMER Institute.

While there are many examples of evaluations of faculty development programs in resource rich countries, evaluation of transnational programs for faculty from developing countries is limited. We describe evaluation of the effects of the FAIMER Institute, an international health professions education fellowship that incorporates not only education content, but also leadership and management topics and, in addition, strives to develop a sustained community of educators. Data were obtained via retrospective pre/post surveys, as well as interviews. Results indicate that participating health professions faculty from developing countries are augmenting their knowledge and skills in education leadership, management, and methodology, and applying that knowledge at their home institutions. Fellows' perceptions of importance of, and their own competence in, all curriculum theme areas increased. Interviews confirmed a nearly universal gain of at least one leadership skill. Findings suggest that the high-engagement experience of the FAIMER model offering integration of education and leadership/management tools necessary to implement change, provides knowledge and skills which are useful across cultural and national contexts and results in the development of a supportive, global, professional network.

Effect of graded levels of dietary betaine on ileal and total tract nutrient digestibilities and intestinal bacterial metabolites in piglets.

The study was conducted to investigate the effects of graded dietary inclusion levels of betaine on ileal and total tract nutrient digestibilities and intestinal bacterial metabolites in piglets. A total of eight barrows with an average initial body weight of 7.9 kg were randomly allocated to one of the four assay diets with two pigs per treatment in four repeated measurement periods. The assay diets included a basal diet based on wheat, barley and soybean meal alone, or supplemented with a liquid betaine product at dietary levels of 1.5, 3.0, or 6.0 g betaine per kilogram diet (as-fed). Ileal digestibilities of dry matter and neutral detergent fibre increased both quadratically and linearly, and ileal digestibility of glycine increased linearly as dietary betaine level increased (p < 0.05). Furthermore, total tract digestibility of crude protein increased quadratically (p < 0.05) and total tract digestibilities of most amino acids tended to increase quadratically (p = 0.06 to p = 0.11) with increasing dietary betaine level. Moreover, there were linear increases in the concentrations of most bacterial metabolites which were significant p < 0.05 for ileal d-lactic acid and for faecal diaminopimelic acid. The results demonstrate that dietary betaine supplementation stimulates bacterial fermentation of fibre in the small intestine and bacterial degradation of crude protein in the large intestine.

The interaction of multiple environmental stressors affects adaptation to a novel habitat in the natterjack toad Bufo calamita.

The potential to adapt to novel environmental conditions is a key area of interest for evolutionary biology. However, the role of multiple selection pressures on adaptive responses has rarely been investigated in natural populations. In Sweden, the natterjack toad Bufo calamita inhabits two separate distribution areas, one in southernmost Sweden and one on the west coast. We characterized the larval habitat in terms of pond size and salinity in the two areas, and found that the western populations are more affected by both desiccation risk and pond salinity than the southern populations. In a common garden experiment manipulating salinity and temperature, we found that toads from the west coast populations were locally adapted to shorter pond duration as indicated by their higher development and growth rates. However, despite being subjected to higher salinity stress in nature, west coast toads had a poorer performance in saline treatments. We found that survival in the saline treatments in the west coast populations was positively affected by larger body mass and longer larval period. Furthermore, we found negative genetic correlations between body mass and growth rate and their plastic responses to salinity. These results implicate that the occurrence of multiple environmental stressors needs to be accounted for when assessing the adaptive potential of organisms and suggest that genetic correlations may play a role in constraining adaptation of natural populations.

Bacteriophage and the toxigenicity of Clostridium botulinum type C.

Nontoxigenic and bacteriophage-sensitive bacterial cultures have been isolated from toxigenic Clostridium botulinum type C, strain 468C, after treatment with either ultraviolet light or acridine orange. Two bacteriophages, designated CEbeta and CE(gamma), were isolated from toxigenic strain 468C. Both of these bacteriophages were capable of infecting the nontoxigenic type C cultures, but only bacteriophage CEbeta was involved in the change from nontoxigenicity to toxigenicity.

Interspecies conversion of Clostridium botulinum type C to Clostridium novyi type A by bacteriophage.

When Clostridium botulinum type C is cured of its prophage it simultaneously ceases to produce toxin. This nontoxigenic culture can then be converted to another toxigenic bacterial species, Clostridium novyi type A or to toxigenic Clostridium botulinum types C or D, by specific bacteriophages. The toxigenicity and type of toxin produced by these cultures depends upon the continued presence of these bacteriophages.

Working ability in relation to disease severity, everyday occupations and well-being in women with limited systemic sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate how women with SSc and varying degrees of working ability differed regarding disease severity, everyday occupations and well-being. Working ability was operationalized according to the degree of sick leave. METHODS: Forty-four women of working age with lcSSc were assessed regarding sociodemographic characteristics, disease severity including organ manifestation, perceived physical symptoms, hand function, and satisfaction with everyday occupations, self-rated health and well-being. RESULTS: The subjects formed three groups with regard to reduction in working capacity. Twenty-one women (48%) had no sick leave, 15 women (34%) were on partial sick leave and eight women (18%) were temporarily on full-time sick leave or had a full disability pension. There were no statistically significant differences concerning sociodemographics between the groups. Women without sick leave had less physically demanding jobs (P = 0.026), and the hypothesis that working ability reflects lower disease severity was confirmed regarding dexterity grip force and perceived fatigue and breathlessness (P < 0.05). Greater working ability was associated with better capacity to perform activities of daily life (P < 0.01), greater satisfaction with occupations (P < 0.01), better well-being (P < 0.001) and better health (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Fifty per cent of the women were restricted in their working ability; the lower the working ability, the lower their perceived well-being. This emphasizes the need for further research into the factors that promote working ability and the development of suitable methods to improve working ability.

Heterologous array analysis in Heterobasidion: hybridisation of cDNA arrays with probe from mycelium of S, P or F-types.

Because of the close relatedness between three species of Heterobasidion annosum (P-type), Heterobasidion parviporum (S-type) and Heterobasidion abietinum (F-type), we investigated the possible use of arrays from one species for studies of gene expression in the other. Clones containing partial cDNAs from 94 identifiable genes expressed during spore germination and differentiation in H. parviporum were printed manually in six replications on nylon membranes. The membrane was hybridized with chemifluorescent labelled cDNA from actively growing mycelia of H. parviporum, H. annosum or H. abietinum, cultivated on a non-selective substrate. Product-moment correlation coefficient varied between 0.81 and 0.49. Due to the level of correlation, in the gene expression among the intersterility groups, we concluded that the cDNA array of one can be used to study gene expression in the others.

Swedish recovered wood waste: linking regulation and contamination.

In Sweden, large amounts of wood waste are generated annually from construction and demolition activities, but also from other discarded products such as packaging and furniture. A large share of this waste is today recovered and used for heat production. However, previous research has found that recovered wood waste (RWW) contains hazardous substances, which has significant implications for the environmental performance of recycling. Improved sorting is often suggested as a proper strategy to decrease such implications. In this study, we aim to analyse the impacts of waste regulation on the contamination of RWW. The occurrence of industrial preservative-treated wood, which contains several hazardous substances, was used as an indicator for contamination. First the management of RWW during 1995-2004 was studied through interviews with involved actors. We then determined the occurrence of industrial preservative-treated wood in RWW for that time period for each supplier (actor). From the results, it can be concluded that a substantially less contaminated RWW today relies on extensive source separation. The good news is that some actors, despite several obstacles for such upstream efforts, have already today proved capable of achieving relatively efficient separation. In most cases, however, the existing waste regulation has not succeeded in establishing strong enough incentives for less contaminated waste in general, nor for extensive source separation in particular. One important factor for this outcome is that the current market forces encourage involved actors to practice weak quality requirements and to rely on end-of-pipe solutions, rather than put pressure for improvements on upstream actors. Another important reason is that there is a lack of communication and oversight of existing waste regulations. Without such steering mechanisms, the inherent pressure from regulations becomes neutralized.

Effect of dietary crude protein level on basal ileal endogenous losses and standardized ileal digestibilities of crude protein and amino acids in newly weaned pigs.

The study was carried out to estimate basal ileal endogenous crude protein and amino acid losses (IAAL(B)) and standardized ileal digestibilities (SID) of crude protein (CP) and amino acids (AA) originating from casein in newly weaned pigs from linear relationships between ileal recoveries and dietary intakes of graded levels of CP and AA. A total of 14 (12 + 2 for replacement) 3-week-old barrows weighing 5.7 kg was fitted with simple T cannulas at the distal ileum. At 28 days of age, the pigs were randomly allocated to the six experimental diets with two pigs per diet in four weekly repeated measurements. Corn starch-based diets, containing six graded levels of CP from casein (90, 155, 220, 285, 350, 415 g/kg CP as-fed basis respectively), were formulated. Titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) was included as a digestibility marker. Each experimental period consisted of 7 days. Ileal digesta were collected for a total of 24 h during day 6 and 8. Splitting the total range of 90 to 415 g/kg CP into smaller ranges, i.e. from 90 to 220, 220 to 350 or 285 to 415 g/kg CP, provides estimates for CP and AA recoveries which are not significantly different from zero. As a result, dietary CP and AA originating from casein are completely digested and absorbed until the end of the small intestine. In addition, the use of large ranges of dietary CP levels showed that IAAL(B) were affected (p < 0.050) by the dietary CP content. Accepting that ileal recoveries of CP and AA are exclusively of endogenous origin when purified corn starch casein-based diets are fed, IAAL(B) were estimated as a function of the dietary CP level. There were linear increases (p < 0.050) in IAAL(B) when the dietary CP content was increased from 90 to 415 g/kg. Average IAAL(B) expressed in g/kg dry matter intake (DMI) were 16.3, 0.7, 0.2, 0.9 and 0.2 for CP, lysine, methionine, threonine and tryptophan respectively. These values are in close agreement with IAAL(B) obtained in grower-finisher pigs.

Both long and brief maternal separation produces persistent changes in tissue levels of brain monoamines in middle-aged female rats.

Adverse experiences early in life are associated with an increased incidence of later psychopathology including depression. Based on evidence that dysfunction of central monoaminergic systems is involved in the pathophysiology of depression, we hypothesize that early adversity could negatively affect these systems. To test this we have investigated the effects of maternal separation, which has been suggested to model early-life stress and the development of a depression-like syndrome in the rat, on brain monoaminergic systems. Since depression is more common in women and the risk of developing this disorder appears to increase with age, we have studied such effects in middle-aged female rats. Rat pups were separated for 180 min (long maternal separation; LMS) or 15 min (brief maternal separation; BMS, often referred to as neonatal handling) twice daily for 2 weeks postpartum. An animal facility-reared (AFR) group was also included. At 15 months of age tissue levels of monoamines and their metabolites in several different brain regions were analyzed. In the LMS females tissue levels of both 5-HT and 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) were significantly increased in the dorsal raphe nucleus, and 5-HIAA and homovanillic acid levels were also elevated in the nucleus accumbens as compared with AFR and BMS rats. In the cingulate cortex both LMS and BMS decreased noradrenaline (NA) levels, although this effect was more pronounced in the LMS rats. On the other hand, BMS decreased 5-HT, 5-HIAA, dopamine (DA) as well as NA levels in the amygdala and produced an increase in DA levels in response to acute stress in the hypothalamus, an effect not seen in AFR rats. Our results demonstrate that LMS produced persistent alterations in both serotonergic, noradrenergic and dopaminergic systems in brain regions that have been suggested to be implicated in the pathophysiology of depression. In addition, BMS affected brain monoaminergic levels mainly in the amygdala.

Ileal starch digestibility of different cereal grains fed to growing pigs.

The objective of the present study was to determine, in growing pigs, the ileal starch digestibility and ileal digestible starch content of 8 different genotypes of barley, rye, triticale, and wheat each. Therefore, 4 experiments were conducted with 34 ileally cannulated growing pigs (initial BW of 24 to 32 kg) in total. The experimental diets were formulated to contain 1 of the 8 genotypes of each cereal grain at an inclusion level of 95%. Cereal grains were ground through a 2-mm sieve and were the sole dietary source of starch. All diets were supplemented with plant oil, minerals and vitamins, and titanium dioxide as an indigestible marker. The experiments were arranged either as a row-column design with 8 periods of 6 d each and 9 pigs (for barley and wheat) or according to an 8 × 8 Latin square design with 8 periods of 6 (rye) or 7 d (triticale) and 8 pigs. Experimental periods comprised 4 (barley, rye, and wheat) or 5 d (triticale) for adaptation followed by 2 d for ileal digesta collection. The daily feed intake amounted to 4% of pigs' average BW, corresponding to about 3 times the animals' energy requirement for maintenance (106 kcal of ME [as-fed basis]/kg of metabolic BW). Ileal starch digestibility was different ( < 0.05) within barley and triticale genotypes, with values ranging between 90.1 and 95.0% for barley and between 96.5 and 98.1% for triticale and tended to differ within rye genotypes ( < 0.1). Ileal digestible starch content was different ( < 0.05) within all cereal grains. On average, ileal starch digestibility amounted to 92.7, 95.0, 97.3, and 92.2% for barley, rye, triticale, and wheat, respectively, and was different among cereal grains ( < 0.001). Average ileal digestible starch content was greatest ( < 0.001) in triticale (68.3%, DM basis) followed by wheat (66.1%, DM basis), rye (61.1%, DM basis), and barley (57.6%, DM basis). Differences in ileal starch digestibility and ileal digestible starch content within and among grain genotypes may reflect variations in contents of several fiber fractions such as NDF, ADF, and nonstarch polysaccharides (NSP). For most cereal grains, ileal starch digestibility and ileal digestible starch content decreased ( < 0.05) with increasing contents of soluble, insoluble, and total NSP. In conclusion, in the present study, triticale is superior when compared with the other cereal grains due to its relatively low fiber and high starch content and its high ileal starch digestibility values.

Influence of wet heating and autoclaving on chemical composition and standardized ileal crude protein and amino acid digestibility in full-fat soybeans for pigs.

One batch each of eight full-fat soybeans (FFSB) was used to determine the effect of different heat treatments including wet heating (WH) and autoclaving (AC) on chemical composition and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of CP and AA in growing pigs. The raw FFSB (K0) were either treated by WH at 80°C for 1 min (K1), at 100°C for 6 min (K2), or at 100°C for 16 min (K3). Thereafter, these batches were expanded at 125°C for 15 s. A further heat treatment included AC at 110°C for 15 (Z1), 30 (Z2), 45 (Z3), or 60 (Z4) min of FFSB that were subjected to the same WH treatment as K3. Diets were formulated to contain the respective FFSB as the sole source of CP and AA. A N-free diet was used to measure basal endogenous losses of CP and AA in an additional period at the end of the experiment. Eight ileally cannulated pigs (28 ± 1 kg) were allocated to a row-column design with 8 diets and 6 periods of 7 d each. An increase in the duration of WH had no effect on contents of AA (% of CP) and NDF, but NDIN contents linearly increased ( < 0.05) with increasing time for WH. Autoclaving resulted in a linear decrease ( < 0.05) of trypsin inhibitor activity (TIA), contents of Arg, Leu, Ala, Asp, Cys, and Gly as well as Lys to CP ratio (Lys:CP), reactive Lys to CP ratio (rLys:CP), and in an increase ( < 0.05) in contents of NDF and NDIN. There was a quadratic response ( < 0.05) of SID of CP and AA as time for WH at 100°C increased from 0 (K0) to 6 (K2) up to 16 (K3) min. Moreover, a quadratic response ( < 0.05) to increasing time of AC was observed for SID of Arg, Phe, and Pro. The SID of CP and all indispensable AA showed a quadratic response ( < 0.05) to decreasing TIA, urease activity, protein solubility in 0.2% potassium hydroxide, protein dispersibility index, Lys:CP, (lightness), and to increasing NDIN and (redness). In addition, there was a linear increase ( < 0.05) in SID values with decreasing rLys:CP and increasing NDF contents. In conclusion, WH proved to be suitable for increasing SID values. Further improvement of SID of most AA could be achieved on additional AC treatment from Z1 to Z3, however, it needs to be considered, if the observed increase due to AC is cost effective in view of the additional production costs. Several chemical and physical parameters can be used in the feed industry for quality control purposes to predict the extent of heat damage on SID of CP and indispensable AA in FFSB.

Variations in the chemical composition and standardized ileal digestibility of amino acids in eight genotypes of triticale fed to growing pigs.

The study was conducted to determine the chemical composition, physical characteristics, and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of CP and AA of 8 currently available genotypes of triticale fed to growing pigs. The genotypes included Grenado, Cando, Agostino, Massimo, Tarzan, HYT Prime, SW Talentro, and Cultivo. Eight barrows with an initial BW of 31 ± 2 kg were fitted with simple T-cannulas at the distal ileum and allotted to an 8 × 8 Latin square design with 8 periods of 7 d each and 8 assay diets. The N-free method was used to determine basal ileal endogenous CP and AA losses. The 8 assay diets contained 1 of 8 triticale genotypes as the sole source of CP and AA. The triticale genotypes were grown under identical environmental conditions on the same site. Among the 8 genotypes, contents of CP ranged from 104.7 to 118.1 g/kg (as-fed basis). The content of total nonstarch polysaccharides and NDF ranged, on an as-fed basis, from 84.6 to 99.5 g/kg and from 88.4 to 149.0 g/kg, respectively. Among the 8 genotypes, SID of CP ranged from 81% in Grenado to 85% in Massimo and Tarzan. The SID of CP and AA did not differ among triticale genotypes except for SID of Arg, Glu, and Gly ( < 0.05). The mean SID of CP, Lys, Met, and Trp was 4, 4, 4, and 1 percantage units less and SID of Trp was 5 percantage units greater compared with values in current feed tables. Among the 8 triticale genotypes, standardized ileal digestible content (cSID) of CP followed total CP content and ranged from 84.8 to 98.7 g/kg (as-fed basis), with the lowest ( < 0.001) values for Grenado and the greatest ( < 0.001) values for SW Talentro and Cultivo. For CP and most AA, cSID linearly decreased as the content of total, soluble, and insoluble ß-glucans increased ( < 0.05) in the 8 genotypes of triticale. There was a positive correlation between thousand seed weight and cSID of CP and most AA ( < 0.01). These variables may help to predict cSID in triticale batches, whereas other nutrients are not suitable due to their low variation among the 8 genotypes. The present study provides data on chemical composition, physical characteristics, and SID of CP and AA of 8 triticale genotypes grown under similar conditions. However, as most of the present SID values are less than those in feed tables, future research is warranted to elaborate whether these differences are caused by experimental conditions or reflect a consistent decrease that needs to be accounted for in feed tables.

Prostate cancer screening in men aged 50 to 69 years (STHLM3): A prospective population-based diagnostic study. Grönberg H, Adolfsson J, Aly M, Nordström T, Wiklund P, Brandberg Y, Thompson J, Wiklund F, Lindberg J, Clements M, Egevad L, Eklund M.Lancet Oncol. 2015 Dec;16(16):1667-76. [Epub 2015 Nov 10]. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(15)00361-7.

BACKGROUND: The prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is used to screen for prostate cancer but has a high false-positive rate that translates into unnecessary prostate biopsies and overdiagnosis of low-risk prostate cancers. We aimed to develop and validate a model to identify high-risk prostate cancer (with a Gleason score of at least 7) with better test characteristics than that provided by PSA screening alone. METHODS: The Stockholm 3 (STHLM3) study is a prospective, population-based, paired, screen-positive, diagnostic study of men without prostate cancer aged 50 to 69 years randomly invited by date of birth from the Swedish Population Register kept by the Swedish Tax Agency. Men with prostate cancer at enrolment were excluded from the study. The predefined STHLM3 model (a combination of plasma protein biomarkers [PSA, free PSA, intact PSA, hK2, MSMB, MIC1], genetic polymorphisms [232 SNPs], and clinical variables [age, family, history, previous prostate biopsy, prostate exam]), and PSA concentration were both tested in all participants enrolled. The primary aim was to increase the specificity compared with PSA without decreasing the sensitivity to diagnose high-risk prostate cancer. The primary outcomes were number of detected high-risk cancers (sensitivity) and the number of performed prostate biopsies (specificity). The STHLM3 training cohort was used to train the STHLM3 model, which was prospectively tested in the STHLM3 validation cohort. Logistic regression was used to test for associations between biomarkers and clinical variables and prostate cancer with a Gleason score of at least 7. This study is registered with ISCRTN.com, number ISRCTN84445406. FINDINGS: The STHLM3 model performed significantly better than PSA alone for detection of cancers with a Gleason score of at least 7 (P<0.0001), the area under the curve was 0·56 (95% CI: 0·55-0·60) with PSA alone and 0·74 (95% CI: 0·72-0·75) with the STHLM3 model. All variables used in the STHLM3 model were significantly associated with prostate cancers with a Gleason score of at least 7 (P<0·05) in a multiple logistic regression model. At the same level of sensitivity as the PSA test using a cutoff of≥3ng/ml to diagnose high-risk prostate cancer, use of the STHLM3 model could reduce the number of biopsies by 32% (95% CI: 24-39) and could avoid 44% (35-54) of benign biopsies. INTERPRETATION: The STHLM3 model could reduce unnecessary biopsies without compromising the ability to diagnose prostate cancer with a Gleason score of at least 7, and could be a step towards personalised risk-based prostate cancer diagnostic programmes. FUNDING: Stockholm County Council (Stockholms Läns Landsting).

Molecular and phenotypic profiling of sorbitol-fermenting Escherichia coli O157:H- human isolates from Finland.

This study investigated the occurrence of virulence-associated genes, including stx1, stx2, stx2c, stx2d, stx2e, eae and its subtypes (alpha, beta, gamma, epsilon), efa1, cdt-V cluster, enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC)-hlyA, katP, espP, etpD, sfpA and the flagellar fliC gene, in nine sorbitol-fermenting (SF), beta-glucuronidase-positive E. coli O157:H- (non-motile) isolates obtained from humans in Finland between 1997 and 2001. In addition, the production of Shiga toxin (Stx), cytolethal distending toxin (CDT)-V and EHEC haemolysin (EHEC-Hly) was studied, and the phage type (PT) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) types were determined. All nine isolates carried eae-gamma, efa1, EHEC-hlyA, etpD, sfpA and fliC; eight also harboured the cdt-V gene cluster and five were positive for stx2. None of the isolates harboured stx1, stx2c, stx2d, stx2e, katP or espP. All isolates harbouring the corresponding genes also produced Stx2 and CDT-V in titres ranging from 1:32 to 1:128 and from 1:2 to 1:4, respectively. None of the isolates expressed EHEC-Hly on enterohaemolysin agar. Seven isolates belonged to PT88 and two had a PT88 variant pattern. Seven isolates showed a close genetic relationship, with a PFGE similarity index (SI) of 92-98%. Two isolates, temporally the first and last, obtained 5 years apart, were the most divergent (SI of 71% and 85%, respectively). The study demonstrated that SF E. coli O157:H- isolates from Finland are closely related and show a close relationship with SF E. coli O157 strains isolated in Germany. This finding suggests a clonality of SF E. coli O157:H- isolates from different geographical regions.