Thermal variability induces sex-specific morphometric changes in zebrafish (Danio rerio).

In nature, organisms are exposed to variable environmental conditions that impact their performance and fitness. Despite the ubiquity of environmental variability, substantial knowledge gaps in our understanding of organismal responses to nonconstant thermal regimes remain. In the present study, using zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model organism, we applied geometric morphometric methods to examine how challenging but ecologically realistic diel thermal fluctuations experienced during different life stages influence adult body shape, size, and condition. Zebrafish were exposed to either thermal fluctuations (22-32°C) or a static optimal temperature (27°C) sharing the same thermal mean during an early period spanning embryonic and larval ontogeny (days 0-30), a later period spanning juvenile and adult ontogeny (days 31-210), or a combination of both. We found that body shape, size, and condition were affected by thermal variability, but these plasticity-mediated changes were dependent on the timing of ontogenetic exposure. Notably, after experiencing fluctuating temperatures during early ontogeny, females displayed a deeper abdomen while males displayed an elongated caudal peduncle region. Moreover, males displayed beneficial acclimation of body condition under lifelong fluctuating temperature exposure, whereas females did not. The present study, using ecologically realistic thermal regimes, provides insight into the timing of environmental experiences that generate phenotypic variation in zebrafish.

Trans-oceanic genomic divergence of Atlantic cod ecotypes is associated with large inversions.

Chromosomal rearrangements such as inversions can play a crucial role in maintaining polymorphism underlying complex traits and contribute to the process of speciation. In Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), inversions of several megabases have been identified that dominate genomic differentiation between migratory and nonmigratory ecotypes in the Northeast Atlantic. Here, we show that the same genomic regions display elevated divergence and contribute to ecotype divergence in the Northwest Atlantic as well. The occurrence of these inversions on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean reveals a common evolutionary origin, predating the >100 000-year-old trans-Atlantic separation of Atlantic cod. The long-term persistence of these inversions indicates that they are maintained by selection, possibly facilitated by coevolution of genes underlying complex traits. Our data suggest that migratory behaviour is derived from more stationary, ancestral ecotypes. Overall, we identify several large genomic regions-each containing hundreds of genes-likely involved in the maintenance of genomic divergence in Atlantic cod on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

Evaluating the Incredible Years Toddler Parenting Programme with parents of toddlers in disadvantaged (Flying Start) areas of Wales.

BACKGROUND: Early risk factors for poor child outcomes are well established, and some group parenting programmes have demonstrated good outcomes for children under 3 years of age. This randomized controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of the Incredible Years® Toddler Parenting Programme with parents of 1-year-old and 2-year-old children recruited by staff in disadvantaged Flying Start areas across Wales. METHODS: Eighty-nine families with a child aged between 12 and 36 months at baseline participated in a pragmatic community-based trial of the programme in eight Flying Start areas. Outcomes were measured at baseline, 6 months and 12 months using measures of parental mental health, competence, child behaviour, child development, home environment and blinded-observation of parent-child interactions. RESULTS: Significant intervention group improvements were found in parental mental well-being and observed praise at 6 months. Significant improvements for the intervention group at 12 months included child development, home environment and parental depression. CONCLUSION: The study provides preliminary evidence for programme attendance.

The Incredible Years Parent-Toddler Programme and parental language: a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Parental language is associated with children's later language development. Parenting programmes, based on social learning theory, enhance a range of parenting behaviours, yet there is limited evidence for their effect on parental language. AIM: To assess the benefits of a behavioural-based parenting programme, which features components of language and communication, to enhance parental language. METHOD: Parents of toddlers, aged 12 to 36 months, were recruited from eight Flying Start early intervention centres across Wales. Participants were randomised 2:1 either to a parenting programme (n = 60) or to a wait-list control group (n = 29). Researchers were blind to participant allocation throughout the trial. Fifteen-minute video-recorded observations of parents and children interacting during free-play, both at a pre-intervention and at 6-month follow-up, provided the data for the study. Five observed measures of parental language were assessed; quantity and variety, encouraging, critical, child-led and parent led interactions. INTERVENTION: The Incredible Years Parent-Toddler Programme (IYPTP) is a 12-week group-based behavioural intervention that teaches effective relationship and behavioural management skills including social, emotional and persistence coaching to enable parents to better support their children's development. RESULTS: Of 89 dyads that completed pre-intervention assessments 81 (54 intervention and 27 control) met the criteria for the current study. Intention to treat analysis indicated that child-led language interactions significantly benefited from the intervention [regression coefficient (B) = -1.44, 95% confidence intervals (CI) = -2.59 to -0.29, P = 0.015, effect size (ES) = 0.47] and a positive trend for encouraging language in favour of the intervention sample was evident. Per-protocol sample analysis replicated these findings with encouraging language reaching statistical significance (B = 1.07, 95% CI = 0.11 to 2.03, P = 0.03, ES = 0.52). No further benefits were evident. CONCLUSIONS: The IYPTP has limited evidence as an effective programme for enhancing some aspects of parental language.

Unintentional selection, unanticipated insights: introductions, stocking and the evolutionary ecology of fishes.

Natural environmental change has produced countless opportunities for species to disperse into and persist in habitats where they previously did not exist. Introduction and stocking programmes have facilitated similar sorts of colonization opportunities across considerably greater geographical scales and often in much shorter periods of time. Even though the mechanism of colonization differs, the result can be the same: evolutionary change in the colonizing population in response to novel selection pressures. As a consequence, some human-mediated fish transfers have unintentionally yielded novel research opportunities to study how phenotypes and genes interact with their environment and affect ecological and evolutionary change. The primary purpose here is to explore how work, directly or indirectly involved with human-mediated transfers, has unintentionally yielded novel research and research opportunities in fish ecology and evolution. Insights have produced new knowledge or altered previously held perceptions on topics such as local adaptation, rate of evolutionary change, phenotypic plasticity, alternative reproductive strategies, population structure and colonization probability. Well-documented stocking programmes, especially in terms of history, numbers and original population sources, can provide highly fertile ground for generating further insights on the ecology and evolution of fishes and of the factors likely to influence the success of conservation-based, restoration programmes.

Evaluation of a confocal Raman probe for pathological diagnosis during colonoscopy.

AIM: Raman spectroscopy of human tissue can provide a unique biochemical 'fingerprint' that alters with disease progression. Light incident on tissue is scattered and may be altered in wavelength, which can be represented as a Raman spectrum. A confocal fibreoptic Raman probe designed to fit down the accessory channel of a colonoscope has been constructed. This in-vitro study evaluated the accuracy of pathological diagnosis in the colon using probe-based Raman spectroscopy. METHOD: Biopsy samples were collected at colonoscopy, snap frozen and stored at -80 °C. Raman spectra with 10-s and 1-s acquisition periods were measured with the probe tip in contact with the mucosal surface of thawed specimens. Mathematical modelling using principal component analysis followed by linear discriminant analysis was used to correlate Raman spectra with histopathological diagnoses. RESULTS: Three-hundred and seventy-five Raman spectra were measured from a total of 356 colon biopsies (81 of normal colon mucosa, 79 of hyperplastic polyps, 92 of adenomatous polyps, 64 of adenocarcinoma and 40 of ulcerative colitis) from 177 patients. Spectral classification accuracies comparing pathology pairs ranged from 72.1 to 95.9% for 10-s acquisitions and from 61.5 to 95.1% for 1-s acquisitions. For a three-group model of normal, adenomatous and adenocarcinoma tissue, accuracies were 74.1% for 10-s acquisitions and 63.5% for 1-s acquisitions. CONCLUSION: The confocal Raman probe system can distinguish between different colorectal pathologies. The probe has potential to establish Raman spectroscopy as a clinical tool for instant diagnosis at colonoscopy.

Multigenerational hybridisation and its consequences for maternal effects in Atlantic salmon.

Outbreeding between segregating populations can be important from an evolutionary, conservation and economical-agricultural perspective. Whether and how outbreeding influences maternal effects in wild populations has rarely been studied, despite both the prominent maternal influence on early offspring survival and the known presence of fitness effects resulting from outbreeding in many taxa. We studied several traits during the yolk-feeding stage in multigenerational crosses between a wild and a domesticated Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) population up to their third-generation hybrid in a common laboratory environment. Using cross-means analysis, we inferred that maternal additive outbreeding effects underlie most offspring traits but that yolk mass also underlies maternal dominant effects. As a consequence of the interplay between additive and dominant maternally controlled traits, offspring from first-generation hybrid mothers expressed an excessive proportion of residual yolk mass, relative to total mass, at the time of first feeding. Their residual yolk mass was 23-97% greater than those of other crosses and 31% more than that predicted by a purely additive model. Offspring additive, epistatic and epistatic offspring-by-maternal outbreeding effects appeared to further modify this largely maternally controlled cross-means pattern, resulting in an increase in offspring size with the percentage of domesticated alleles. Fitness implications remain elusive because of unknown phenotype-by-environment interactions. However, these results suggest how mechanistically co-adapted genetic maternal control on early offspring development can be disrupted by the effects of combining alleles from divergent populations. Complex outbreeding effects at both the maternal and offspring levels make the prediction of hybrid phenotypes difficult.

Micro-costing in public health economics: steps towards a standardized framework, using the incredible years toddler parenting program as a worked example.

Complex interventions, such as parenting programs, are rarely evaluated from a public sector, multi-agency perspective. An exception is the Incredible Years (IY) Basic Parenting Program; which has a growing clinical and cost-effectiveness evidence base for preventing or reducing children's conduct problems. The aim of this paper was to provide a micro-costing framework for use by future researchers, by micro-costing the 12-session IY Toddler Parenting Program from a public sector, multi-agency perspective. This micro-costing was undertaken as part of a community-based randomized controlled trial of the program in disadvantaged Flying Start areas in Wales, U.K. Program delivery costs were collected by group leader cost diaries. Training and supervision costs were recorded. Sensitivity analysis assessed the effects of a London cost weighting and group size. Costs were reported in 2008/2009 pounds sterling. Direct program initial set-up costs were £3305.73; recurrent delivery costs for the program based on eight parents attending a group were £752.63 per child, falling to £633.61 based on 10 parents. Under research contexts (with weekly supervision) delivery costs were £1509.28 per child based on eight parents, falling to £1238.94 per child based on 10 parents. When applying a London weighting, overall program costs increased in all contexts. Costs at a micro-level must be accurately calculated to conduct meaningful cost-effectiveness/cost-benefit analysis. A standardized framework for assessing costs is needed; this paper outlines a suggested framework. In prevention science it is important for decision makers to be aware of intervention costs in order to allocate scarce resources effectively.

Old wine in new bottles: reaction norms in salmonid fishes.

Genetic variability in reaction norms reflects differences in the ability of individuals, populations and ultimately species to respond to environmental change. By increasing our understanding of how genotype × environment interactions influence evolution, studies of genetic variation in phenotypic plasticity serve to refine our capacity to predict how populations will respond to natural and anthropogenic environmental variability, including climate change. Given the extraordinary variability in morphology, behaviour and life history in salmonids, one might anticipate the research milieu on reaction norms in these fishes to be empirically rich and intellectually engaging. Here, I undertake a review of genetic variability in continuous and discontinuous (threshold) norms of reaction in salmonid fishes, as determined primarily (but not exclusively) by common-garden experiments. Although in its infancy from a numerical publication perspective, there is taxonomically broad evidence of genetic differentiation in continuous, threshold and bivariate reaction norms among individuals, families and populations (including inter-population hybrids and backcrosses) for traits as divergent as embryonic development, age and size at maturity, and gene expression. There is compelling inferential evidence that plasticity is heritable and that population differences in reaction norms can reflect adaptive responses, by natural selection, to local environments. As a stimulus for future work, a series of 20 research questions are identified that focus on reaction-norm variability, selection, costs and constraints, demographic and conservation consequences, and genetic markers and correlates of phenotypic plasticity.

Incredible Years parent training support for foster carers in Wales: a multi-centre feasibility study.

BACKGROUND: the incidence of conduct disorder in young children is 10% in the general population and 37% among fostered children. Up to 40% of untreated children diagnosed with conduct disorder develop problems later in life including drug misuse, criminal and violent behaviour. There are more than 80,000 looked after children in the UK, with 5000 in Wales. Challenging child behaviour is the main reason for placement breakdown and has huge cost implications as challenging children cost up to 10 times more in service use than children without conduct disorder. The Incredible Years (IY) evidence-based parenting programme is an effective, low cost solution in improving child behaviour and social competence in 'conventional' families and thus has the potential to support foster carers in managing difficult behaviours. Our main aims were to establish: • The feasibility of delivery and the effectiveness of the IY parenting programme in supporting carers in managing difficult behaviour in looked after children. • Service use costs for foster carers and looked after child. METHODS: This was a 12-month trial platform study with 46 foster carers in three authorities in Wales. Carers were allocated 2:1 intervention to waiting-list control. Validated measures were used to assess 'parenting' competency, carers' depression levels, child behaviour and service use. Measures were administered at baseline and 6-month follow-up. Intervention carers received the programme between baseline and follow-up. RESULTS: Analyses showed a significant reduction in child problem behaviour and improvement in carers' depression levels for intervention families at follow-up, compared with control. Unexpectedly, there was a significant improvement in control carers' self-reported 'parenting' strategies. Special education was the greatest service cost for looked after children. CONCLUSIONS: Initial foster carer training could incorporate the IY programme to support carers in establishing positive relationships and managing difficult child behaviour. Programme participation may lead to reduced service use and improved placement stability.

The impact of group leaders' behaviour on parents acquisition of key parenting skills during parent training.

BACKGROUND: Parent training (PT) is identified as the most effective intervention for the treatment of conduct disorder (CD). Intervention observational outcomes are often reported as summarised composite scores, providing an overview of overall construct change. METHODS AND AIMS: Parents of children aged 3-5 years identified 'at risk' of developing CD were randomly allocated to either PT intervention or waiting list control group. Parent and child behaviours were assessed before and after the intervention period. The current paper aims to establish which individual observed parenting categories change as a result of PT, and which specific observed leader categories predict these changes. RESULTS: Controlling for baseline scores, ANCOVA demonstrated changes in parent praise and reflective behaviours as significant post-intervention. One-way ANOVAs demonstrated higher levels of leader praise and reflective behaviours resulted in greater change in parental praise and reflective behaviours respectively. Regression analyses indicated these leader behaviours predict positive change in parental praise and reflective behaviours for intervention families. CONCLUSIONS: Composite observational scores provide an account of behaviour constructs, whereas individual behaviour categories provide an insight into the core components of these constructs. The results suggest praise and reflection as key leader behaviours that influence the mechanisms of change in parenting behaviours as a result of PT.

Multiple paternity and variance in male fertilization success within Atlantic salmon Salmo salar redds in a naturally spawning population.

The incidence and magnitude of multiple paternity were estimated for a natural, unmanipulated spawning population of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar. Egg nests were surveyed in the autumn and sub-samples were excavated the following spring. Parentage data derived from microsatellite DNA revealed an unexpectedly high level of multiple paternity. Within a single redd, females may mate with as many as 16 different males, including small mature male parr and large anadromous males. Multiple paternity was most pronounced in areas of highest redd density, corresponding with increased abundances of mature male parr. In addition, there was considerable variation in success among males, although this variability did not depend upon the number of males participating in spawning. This work underscores the value of undertaking genetic studies on the mating systems of fishes in unmanipulated, natural environments.

A miniature confocal Raman probe for endoscopic use.

Raman spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying biochemical changes in the human body. We describe a miniature, confocal fibre optic probe intended to fit within the instrument channel of a standard medical endoscope. This probe has been optimized for the study of the carcinogenesis process of oesophageal malignancy. The optical design and fabrication of this probe is described including the anisotropic wet etching technique used to make silicon motherboards and jigs. Example spectra of PTFE reference samples are shown. Spectra with acquisition times as low as 2 s from resected oesophageal tissue are presented showing identifiable biochemical changes from various pathologies.

Treatment fidelity as a predictor of behaviour change in parents attending group-based parent training.

BACKGROUND: Change in parenting skills, particularly increased positive parenting, has been identified as the key component of successful evidence-based parent training (PT), playing a causal role in subsequent child behaviour change for both prevention and treatment of Conduct Disorder. The amount of change in parenting skills observed after PT varies and may be accounted for by both the content of the programme and by the level of PT implementer process skills. Such variation in implementer skills is an important component in the assessment of treatment fidelity, itself an essential factor in successful intervention outcome. AIMS: To establish whether the Leader Observation Tool, a reliable and valid process skills fidelity measure, can predict change in parenting skills after attendance on the Incredible Years PT programme. RESULTS: Positive leader skills categories of the Leader Observation Tool significantly predicted change in both parent-reported and independently observed parenting skills behaviour, which in turn, predicted change in child behaviour outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Delivering an intervention with a high level of treatment fidelity not only preserves the behaviour change mechanisms of the intervention, but can also predict parental behaviour change, which itself predicts child behaviour change as a result of treatment.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in pre-school children: current findings, recommended interventions and future directions.

This paper outlines the presentation, aetiology and treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in pre-school children. A review of current parenting training interventions demonstrates that there is good evidence for their efficacy in reducing symptoms of ADHD in pre-school children, and three interventions are evaluated: The new forest parent training programme (NFPP); the triple P - positive parenting programme and the incredible years parent training programme (IY). The evaluation of the NFPP provides strong evidence demonstrating its effectiveness for pre-school children with ADHD, while the efficacy of the Triple - P and the IY programme have, to date, only been demonstrated on children with conduct problems and co-morbid ADHD. It is suggested that parent training should be the first choice treatment for pre-school children presenting signs of ADHD, and medication introduced only for those children where parent training is not effective. Few moderators of outcome have been identified for these interventions, with the exception of parental ADHD. Barriers to intervention and implementation fidelity will need to be addressed to achieve high levels of attendance, completion and efficacy. The IY programme is a good model for addressing fidelity issues and for overcoming barriers to intervention. The future directions for parent training are also discussed.

The Leader Observation Tool: a process skills treatment fidelity measure for the Incredible Years parenting programme.

BACKGROUND: Despite recognition of the need to deliver evidence-based programmes in the field of mental health, there is little emphasis on implementing such programmes with fidelity. Attempts by programme developers to ensure adherence to their programmes include the development of training, manuals and content scales, but these alone may be insufficient to ensure fidelity in replication. Observational measures lend themselves as a potentially useful assessment of intervention outcomes, providing accurate and objective accounts of the intervention process. AIM: To develop a reliable and valid observational treatment fidelity tool of process skills required to deliver the Incredible Years (IY) BASIC parenting programme effectively. METHODS: An objective observational fidelity measure was developed to assess adherence to the IY BASIC parenting programme protocol. Observations were conducted on 12 IY BASIC parenting programme groups, attended by parents of pre-school children displaying signs of early onset conduct disorder. RESULTS: The Leader Observation Tool (LOT) achieved high internal reliability and good code-recode and inter-rater reliability. Evidence of concurrent validity was also obtained. CONCLUSIONS: Having demonstrated that the LOT is a reliable and valid measure of implementation fidelity, further research is necessary to examine the relationship between LOT scores and intervention outcome.

Efficacy of the Incredible Years Programme as an early intervention for children with conduct problems and ADHD: long-term follow-up.

BACKGROUND: This study examined the long-term efficacy of the Incredible Years (IY) BASIC Parenting Programme delivered as a preventive intervention with parents of pre-school children who display signs of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct problems. Families were followed up after the completion of a controlled trial with 11 Sure Start areas in North and Mid-Wales and North West England. METHODS: Participants in the study were 50 pre-school children whose parents had received the intervention. Child ADHD symptoms were assessed at baseline, at follow-up one (6 months after baseline); at follow-up two (12 months after baseline); and at follow-up three (18 months after baseline). Families in the original waiting-list control group were not assessed after follow-up one as they had subsequently received the same intervention. RESULTS: The significant post-intervention improvements in child ADHD symptoms evident at follow-up one were maintained over time, as demonstrated by statistical and clinical stability of measures. No significant differences were found for ADHD symptoms across each follow-up, indicating that the gains made post intervention were maintained for at least 12 months, with 57% of the sample maintaining scores below the clinical cut-off on the Conners. Eighty-six, 58, and 30 per cent respectively had maintained at least a modest, large, or very large improvement in ADHD symptoms at follow-up three. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study suggest that the IY psychosocial treatment programme is a valuable intervention in the longer term for many pre-school children displaying early signs of ADHD.

Efficacy of the Incredible Years Basic parent training programme as an early intervention for children with conduct problems and ADHD.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of the Incredible Years (IY) Basic parent training (PT) programme for a community-based sample of families with pre-school children at risk of developing both conduct problems and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was examined. METHODS: Pre-school children displaying signs of both early-onset conduct problems and ADHD were randomly allocated to either IY PT intervention, or to a waiting list (WL) control group. Child symptoms were assessed before and after the intervention. RESULTS: Post intervention, the intervention group was associated with significantly lower levels of parent-reported inattention and hyperactive/impulsive difficulties, even after controlling for post-intervention changes in child deviance. In addition, 52% of those in the intervention condition, compared with 21% in the control condition, displayed clinically reliable improvements post intervention, giving an absolute risk reduction of 31% and a number needed to treat of 3.23. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study indicate that the IY PT programme is a valuable intervention for many pre-school children displaying early signs of ADHD.

Selective and genetic constraints on the evolution of body size in a stream-dwelling salmonid fish.

To examine constraints on evolution of larger body size in two stunted populations of brook charr (Salvelinus fontinalis) from a single river in Cape Race, Newfoundland, Canada, we measured viability selection acting on length-at-age traits, and estimated quantitative genetic parameters in situ (following reconstruction of pedigree information from microsatellite data). Furthermore we tested for phenotypic differentiation between the populations, and for association of high juvenile growth with early maturity that is predicted by life history theory. Within each population, selection differentials and estimates of heritabilities for length-at-age traits suggested that evolution of larger size is prevented by both selective and genetic constraints. Between the populations, phenotypic differentiation was found in length-at-age and age of maturation traits, whereas early maturation was associated with increased juvenile growth (relative to adult growth) both within and between populations. The results suggest an adaptive plastic response in age of maturation to juvenile growth rates that have a largely environmental basis of determination.