Tag: students

Evaluating teacher effectiveness for students with and without disabilities

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Research has often focused on how teachers and educators can best instruct and accommodate students with disabilities. However, are the methods used to teach students with disabilities effective and inclusive for all students? Michigan State University researchers are some of the first to answer that question.

Faculty and doctoral students from across MSU, including from the College of Social Science and the College of Education, offer some of the first findings on differentiating the effectiveness of instruction for students with and without disabilities.

Their study suggests that to help schools make decisions that are best for student outcomes, policymakers may want to consider teacher quality measures that look separately at these student groups.

Published in the journal Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, this research presents a major breakthrough in understanding how to best measure achievement for both students with and without disabilities.

Most students with disabilities spend most of their school day in general education classrooms, but many teachers indicate they receive insufficient training and preparedness to educate these students. We thought that through the use of statistical measures of teacher quality, we could identify which teachers are more effective teachers with these students and how much general education teachers’ ability to instruct these students varies.”

Scott Imberman, study author and professor in the Department of Economics in the College of Social Science and the College of Education

It’s important that students with disabilities have access to high-quality teachers, and not all teachers receive the necessary training and skills to support those students. They also can struggle more with certain subjects, such as math. Student success outcomes are also often determined by how the entire class performs rather than how individual students perform.

When it comes to evaluating the success of all students, numerical measures known as value-added measures, or VAM, are typically used. However, these measures often do not distinguish between evaluating students with and without disabilities.

The MSU research team created a study using data from the Los Angeles Unified School District due to the large number of enrollees and students with disabilities. They created two specific value-added measures -; one for evaluating the effectiveness for teachers instructing students with disabilities and the other for students without disabilities.

They found that some of the best-performing teachers for students without disabilities have lower value-added scores for students with disabilities. Similarly, they noted that top-performing teachers for students with disabilities have lower value-added scores for students without disabilities. This means that some students who may appear to be matched with a high-quality teacher could actually be better off with other teachers.

The bigger inequity, according to Imberman, is that although “some general education teachers do have specialized skills that make them more effective for students with disabilities, our case study in Los Angeles suggested disabled students are typically not matched to these teachers.”

While the results do not identify how to better match teachers with students with disabilities, they do raise the point to schools and policymakers to explore how both groups of students and, especially those with disabilities, can have better academic gains. It is also necessary that educators, especially those who have been teaching longer, receive the appropriate training to support students with disabilities.

“We hope that our methods can be used in the future to help school officials better match students with disabilities to the teachers who are best equipped to instruct them and better assess which teachers might need additional training in educating disabled students,” Imberman said.

In addition to Imberman, the research team included Katharine Strunk, dean of the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education; Nathan Jones, associate professor in the Special Education program at Boston University Wheelock College of Education and Human Development; W. Jesse Wood, senior analyst at Abt Associates; Neil Filosa, doctoral student in the MSU Department of Economics; and Ijun Lai, researcher with Mathematica.

Source:

Michigan State University

Journal reference:

Wood, W. J., et al. (2023). Are Effective Teachers for Students With Disabilities Effective Teachers for All? Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis. doi.org/10.3102/01623737231214555.

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March 23, 2024
Prenatal topiramate exposure not associated with increased autism risk among children

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Topiramate—an antiseizure medication prescribed to treat epilepsy as well as migraines and bipolar disorder—does not appear to increase the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among children exposed to it prenatally, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

The study was published online on March 20, 2024, in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Many studies have examined the neurodevelopmental impacts of prenatal exposure to valproate and lamotrigine, two other antiseizure medications commonly taken by people living with epilepsy. Most of these studies have linked valproate to a heightened risk of ASD among children exposed to it prenatally but have found no additional risk linked to lamotrigine. Research into the neurodevelopmental safety of topiramate, meanwhile, has been limited, with mixed findings.

Our findings provide needed clarity on the possible neurodevelopmental impacts of this commonly used drug. While our primary analyses focused on mothers with epilepsy, the study has implications for moms and moms-to-be who live with other conditions treated by topiramate as well.”

Sonia Hernández-Díaz, lead author, professor of epidemiology

Using data recorded between 2000 and 2020 across two U.S. health care databases, the researchers identified a population-based cohort of nearly 4.3 million pregnant women and their children. Children who had been exposed to topiramate during the second half of pregnancy were compared with children who had never been exposed to an antiseizure medication prenatally, with respect to the risk of ASD. Children who had been exposed to valproate and lamotrigine during the second half of pregnancy were used as control groups.

The study found that at age 8, children born to mothers with epilepsy had a higher prevalence of ASD compared to children in the general population. Within the full study population, 1.9% of children who had never been prenatally exposed to an antiseizure medication were diagnosed with ASD. For children born to mothers with epilepsy, the incidence was 4.2% with no exposure to an antiseizure medication; 6.2% with exposure to topiramate; 10.5% with valproate; and 4.1% with lamotrigine. However, after adjusting for confounding variables, the researchers concluded that prenatal exposure to topiramate and lamotrigine was no longer associated with additional risk of developing ASD, while prenatal exposure to valproate remained associated with additional risk.

The researchers noted that this relationship between valproate and ASD is dose-dependent, and that while topiramate appears safe from a neurodevelopmental standpoint, it remains linked with a higher risk of oral clefts. They also noted certain limitations of the study, including a substantial portion of children in the study population being lost to follow up before age 8.

Krista Huybrechts, associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology, was also a co-author.

The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (grant R01MH116194).

Source:

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Journal reference:

Hernández-Díaz, S., et al. (2024) Risk of Autism after Prenatal Topiramate, Valproate, or Lamotrigine Exposure. New England Journal of Medicine. doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2309359.

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March 21, 2024
Cryoablation could be a new treatment path for breast cancer patients with large tumors

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A minimally invasive technique that uses ice to freeze and destroy small, cancerous tumors has now been proven effective for breast cancer patients with large tumors, providing a new treatment path for those who are not candidates for surgery, according to new research to be presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology Annual Scientific Meeting in Salt Lake City.

For patients who have larger tumors but can’t undergo surgery, this approach could be more effective than the current standard of care for patients who are not surgical candidates. When treated with only radiation and hormonal therapy, tumors will eventually return. So, the fact that we saw only a 10% recurrence rate in our study is incredibly promising.”

Yolanda Bryce, M.D., interventional radiologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Cryoablation is a minimally invasive treatment that uses imaging guidance such as ultrasound or computed tomography (CT) scan to locate tumors. An interventional radiologist will then insert small, needle-like probes into the breast to create an ice ball that surrounds the tumor, killing the cancer cells. When combined with hormonal therapy and radiation, patients can have nearly 100% of their tumors destroyed. If the tumors do grow, patients can be treated with cryoablation multiple times to control growth. The treatment has been successfully used to treat tumors smaller than 1.5 cm, but its effectiveness on larger tumors was not extensively demonstrated until now.

This retrospective study assessed outcomes for 60 patients who underwent cryoablation because they were not candidates for surgery or refused surgery after consultation with a breast surgeon due to age, cardiac issues, hypertension, or currently undergoing chemotherapy for another cancer. Their tumor sizes ranged from 0.3 – 9 cm with an average size of 2.5cm. Patients with tumors larger than 1.4 cm were treated with multiple probes (one probe placement for each centimeter of disease). In a follow-up after 16 months, the recurrence rate was just 10%.

“Surgery is still the best option for tumor removal, but there are thousands of women who, for various reasons, cannot have surgery,” said Bryce. “We are optimistic that this can give more women hope on their treatment journeys.”

The procedures were performed with local anesthesia or minimal sedation, depending on the eligibility and preference of the patient. The freeze-thaw cycle started with 5-10 minutes of freezing, followed by 5-8 minutes of passive thaw, and then 5-10 minutes freezing at 100% intensity. Patients were able to go home on the same day, following the treatment.

The researchers will continue to follow the patient cohort to collect data on long-term effectiveness and to better understand the impact that adjuvant (e.g. hormone therapy and radiation) therapies combined with cryoablation can have on this patient population.

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March 20, 2024
Study examines oral hygiene self-care behavior among patients with mental health disorders

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A study aiming to examine oral hygiene self-care behavior among patients with self-reported mental health disorders was presented at the 102^nd General Session of the IADR, which was held in conjunction with the 53^rdAnnual Meeting of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research and the 48^th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, on March 13-16, 2024, in New Orleans, LA, USA.

The abstract, “Oral Health Behaviors Associated with Mental Health Disorders” was presented during the “Oral Health and Systemic Conditions” Oral Session that took place on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 2 p.m. Central Standard Time (UTC-6).

The study, by Gracie Groth of the Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health, Mesa, USA, reviewed electronic dental records for patients treated in an academic advanced care dental clinic between 2018 through 2021 to identify presence of self-reported anxiety, dental anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and oral hygiene self-care behaviors (OHB). Specific OHB included self-reported frequency of daily toothbrushing (TB), interdental cleaning (ID), use of fluoride toothpaste (FTP) and mouthwash (MW), and recommended preventive recare interval and frequency of returning for recare visits within a 2-year period.

Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U, and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests were used for data analysis. ATSU Mesa IRB #2023-136 Exempt. 854 charts were reviewed, with 250 records identified with self-reported MHD. Age of included patients ranged from 18 to 95 years, with mean age = 53.82 ±18.943. Most were females (n=145, 58.2%). Anxiety was the most common MHD (n=156, 62.4%), followed by depression (n=154, 61.6%), dental anxiety (n=64, 25.6%), bipolar disorder (n=37, 14.8%) and PTSD (n=22, 8.8%).

There were no significant differences in OHB, recare intervals or frequency of recare visits by MHDs. Most did not use ID (n=152, 60.8%) or MW (n=183, 73.2%). A Mann-Whitney U test showed there was a statistically significant difference between men and women for TB (W=11546.000, p=0.004) and FTP (W=11599.000, p=0.007), with women showing greater frequency of use. Mean recommended recare interval was 5 months, with <2 attended recare visits reported by sex and all types of MHD. Frequency of performing OHB, except for daily brushing with fluoride toothpaste, and returning for recare at recommended intervals was low for patients with self-reported MHD.

Source:

International Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research

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March 20, 2024
Study uncovers how APOBEC enzymes drive cancer mutations

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A research team led by the University of California, Irvine has discovered the key role that the APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B enzymes play in driving cancer mutations by modifying the DNA in tumor genomes, offering potential new targets for intervention strategies.

The study, published today online in the journal Nature Communications, describes how the researchers identified the process by which APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B detect specific DNA structures, resulting in mutations at distinct positions within the tumor genome.

It’s critical to understand how cancer cells accumulate mutations leading to hot spots that contribute to disease progression, drug resistance and metastasis. Both APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B were known to generate mutations in many kinds of tumors, but until now we did not know how to identify the specific type caused by each. This finding will allow us to develop novel therapies to suppress mutation formation by directly targeting each enzyme accordingly.”

Rémi Buisson, UCI assistant professor of biological chemistry, corresponding author

In this study, graduate student Ambrocio Sanchez and postdoctoral fellow Pedro Ortega, both in Buisson’s laboratory at the UCI School of Medicine, developed a new method to characterize the particular kind of DNA modified by APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B. It revealed that the two enzymes do not recognize the same DNA sequences and structures within the genomes of cancer cells. Based on this observation, an innovative approach utilizing these unique target preferences was employed to classify cancer patients who had accumulated mutations caused by each enzyme.

“The next steps are to investigate whether mutations caused by these enzymes lead to various types of therapy resistance. It’s also critical to identify molecules that inhibit APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B to prevent mutations from forming. Our findings could, in the future, help to assess patient risk before treatment and suppress tumor evolution using the appropriate drug therapy,” Buisson said.

Other team members included undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from UCI, Harvard Medical School, the University of Southern California, the University of Texas at San Antonio and the University of Minnesota.

This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health’s Research Supplements to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research program under award R37-CA252081-S; California Institute for Regenerative Medicine stem cell biology training grant TG2-01152; European Molecular Biology Organization postdoctoral fellowship ALTF 213-2023; Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas research training award RP 170345 and Recruitment of Established Investigators award CPRIT RR220053; the National Cancer Institute under awards R37-VA252081 and P01-CA234228; the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases under award R01 AI150524; and access to UCI’s Genomics Research and Technology Hub, affiliated with the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, under grant P30-CA062203.

Source:

University of California – Irvine

Journal reference:

Sanchez, A., et al. (2024). Mesoscale DNA features impact APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B deaminase activity and shape tumor mutational landscapes. Nature Communications. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45909-5.

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March 19, 2024
Lower grades for students who use both tobacco and cannabis, California survey reveals

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Several reports have raised the issue of increasing absenteeism and lower grades in American public schools after they reopened following the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. These predict higher rates of mental illness and dropout from high school. Substance use is also linked to poor outcomes, including vaping, tobacco, and cannabis, perhaps because of their effects on the developing brain.

Study: Co-Use of Tobacco Products and Cannabis Is Associated with Absenteeism and Lower Grades in California High School Students. Image Credit: Solid photos/Shutterstock.com

A recent study published in The Journal of Pediatrics examines the odds of these outcomes when tobacco and cannabis are co-used after compensating for other risks. With the rise in legalized cannabis, there has been an increase in the national (but not California) proportion of young people who vape, from 11% to 21% over the period 2017 to 2022. Again, the proportion of cannabis users went up from 5% to 15%.

The current study sought to dissociate this risk in a sample of high school students in California surveyed in 2020-21, immediately after post-COVID school reopening.

About the study

The study utilized the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS), performed by the WestEd, the California Department of Education, and the Department of Health Care Services, on students in grades 9 and 11 in California. Only public school students were included, numbering about 353,000, who responded to survey questions about tobacco and cannabis use during the 30 days just before the survey and were attending school in person.

The sample was equally split between males and females, grades 9 and 11, and those with highly educated parents vs others. Almost half were Hispanic, a quarter non-Hispanic White, and 15% Asian. Over one in three said they had felt depressed sometime in the past year, while 6% reported feeling endangered at school.

Almost a tenth used alcohol, while 2% used tobacco alone. About 4% used cannabis, and the same proportion used both substances. Almost double these numbers were reported as having used these substances at any time.

Co-use of both substances was linked to 35% absenteeism vs 29% in cannabis-only users, 26% among tobacco-only users, and 17% among those who used neither. Risk factors for absenteeism and/or poor grades that needed to be adjusted for included bullying, poor health, and change of residence if the student is a caregiver for others or comes from a family with food insecurity. Unsafe school conditions or poor educational climates at school also play a role in this phenomenon.

After adjustment, co-users had a 40% higher risk of absenteeism, the highest among all categories. Compared to tobacco-only users, co-use and cannabis-only users both were ~20% and 15% more likely to report absenteeism, respectively. Similar findings were obtained among ever-users, too.

The mean grade was 6.16, that is, mostly Bs. Co-use was associated with a mean grade of 5.08 vs 5.61 for tobacco-only users, 5.54 for cannabis-only users, and 6.24 among non-users. If using tobacco only was the reference group, co-users, and cannabis-only users had a decrease of 0.39 points, but it fell by a mean of 0.87 points when co-users were matched to non-users. Cannabis-only and tobacco-only users had no difference in their mean grades.

Dangers of absenteeism

School funding suffers when students are absent. Thus, co-use has roughly cost the school $300 per absent student on average.

With over 8,000 students reporting substance use, absences may potentially have cost the school almost $2.5 million in annual funding, provided all of these absences were due to substance use, though this is an unlikely event.

What are the implications?

The drop in grades by almost one category, from Bs to Bs and Cs, associated with co-users compared to non-users, is an important adverse effect. This was accompanied by 40% higher odds of absenteeism (being absent three or more days within the past month) in the co-user group vs non-users and 20% higher odds than among tobacco-only users.

This novel study supports the hypothesis that substance abuse, especially the dual use of tobacco and alcohol, worsens educational outcomes. Several mechanisms have been speculated about. For instance, these substances could affect cognitive processing and disrupt learning and memory pathways.

Cannabis heightens nicotine addiction when used during adolescence, making quitting very difficult. Also, the use of either or both of these substances can cause illness, physical or mental, resulting in skipping school. Co-use has been linked to changes in the sleep pattern.

Finally, vaping at school may distract students, reducing their ability to learn. Another possibility is that vaping or co-use may result in suspension from school. The occurrence of such events is mirrored in the list of reasons for absenteeism, such as illness, anger, sadness, stress, or inadequate sleep.

Future studies should assess potential interventions to improve educational outcomes with the help of full-spectrum efforts to reduce or eliminate substance use among students.

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March 18, 2024
Study shows the economic benefits of reducing socioeconomic disparities in youth physical activity

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What would happen if the existing disparities in physical activity levels between youth of lower and higher socioeconomic statuses were eliminated? Previous studies have shown that those between 6-17 years of age in lower socioeconomic groups get on average 10-15% less physical activity than those of higher socioeconomic groups. A new study published in the journal JAMA Health Forum on Mar. 15 shows that eliminating such disparities could end up saving society over $15 billion in direct medical costs and productivity losses. This in turn could end up benefiting all taxpayers, anyone who pays insurance premiums, and employers across the country.

These findings came from a computer simulation model of all the 6-17 year olds in the United States developed and run by the Public Health Informatics, Computational, and Operations Research (PHICOR) team at the City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy (CUNY SPH) along with researchers from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), Adelphi University, and the Centre for Sport Leadership at Stellenbosch University. The model simulated the daily physical activities of each youth, their growth, the impact of the physical activity on their health, the different chronic medical conditions that could emerge, and the resulting costs over time. Simulation experiments showed what could happen if youth were to maintain their current physical activity level, where the aforementioned disparities exist and then what would happen if such disparities were reduced by varying degrees. This included the impact on subsequent health outcomes, the medical treatments and procedures needed, and productivity losses from different perspectives.

Results from the model show that the cost savings from eliminating the physical activity disparities vary across age, sex and socioeconomic groups. For example, eliminating physical activity disparities saves over $847 million in direct costs and productivity losses for females aged 11-13 years from lower income households, but saves only a little over $41 million for females aged 14-17 years from middle income households. This suggests when limited resources are available, it may be most beneficial to tailor physical activity interventions towards lower income groups.

Our work is one of the first studies to show the economic benefits of reducing socioeconomic disparities in physical activity levels among kids in the United States. It shows how investing in programs to get kids from all backgrounds more physically active can reduce costs related to obesity and other chronic diseases, like heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Our work highlights that we can all benefit when we reduce health disparities and move towards greater health equity.”

Tiffany Powell-Wiley MD, MPH, a Stadtman Investigator and Chief of the Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and first author of the study

Eliminating such disparities could help address the ongoing obesity epidemic in the U.S. The prevalence of obesity and overweight could decrease by 0.83%. This could then prevent 101,000 weight-related disease cases, including stroke, coronary heart disease events, type 2 diabetes, or cancer. Eliminating these disparities in physical activity levels could end up saving 191,000 years of life across the youth cohort’s lifetime.

Substantial savings could result even if disparities were not fully eliminated but instead were reduced by smaller amounts. For example, reducing such disparities by 25% could still result in around 86,000 fewer cases of obesity/overweight and 26,000 fewer cases of weight-related diseases over the youths’ lifetime. This could save over $4 billion in societal costs, including over $1 billion in direct medical costs and over $2 billion in productivity losses. Reducing disparities by 50% and 75%, increases cost savings from direct medical costs and productivity losses to over $8 billion and almost $13 billion respectively.

The PHICOR team’s previous work has shown the benefits of overall increases in physical activity among youth. For example, a study published in 2017 in Health Affairs showed that increasing physical activity among children 8-11 years old so that they are engaged in 25 minutes of high-calorie burning physical activity three times a week, could save well over $50 billion. A study published last month in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine showed that meeting the Healthy People 2030 goals for youth sports participation could save the U.S. around $80 billion.

“These previously published numbers showed what could happen if more youth were to achieve physical activity and sports participation guidelines,” explained Marie Martinez, MSPH, a senior analyst with PHICOR and co-author of the study. “But if the focus of physical activity efforts is primarily on those of higher socioeconomic status, simply increasing overall numbers can end up leaving those with lower socioeconomic statuses behind. Our most recent study quantifies the value of achieving more equity in physical activity levels among youth.”

Many factors may be contributing to the lower physical activity levels seen among those of lower socioeconomic status living in poorer neighborhoods. Such neighborhoods often don’t have high quality facilities or locations that support youth physical activity, such as parks, schoolyards, gyms, and recreation centers, and oftentimes lack quality school physical education programs as well. Additionally, parents oftentimes have high demands on their time, conflicting work schedules, and financial constraints that make it difficult to get their children physically active.

“The physical inactivity epidemic and the obesity epidemic that the U.S. is facing right now are due in large part to broken systems and such systems are even more broken for those making less money,” explained Bruce Y. Lee, MD, MBA, professor of Health Policy Management at CUNY SPH, executive director of PHICOR, and senior author of the study. “Our study showed how improving the surroundings and conditions for those of lower socioeconomic status could end up benefiting everyone around the country.”

Source:

CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy

Journal reference:

Powell-Wiley, T. M., et al. (2024). Health and Economic Value of Eliminating Socioeconomic Disparities in US Youth Physical Activity. JAMA Health Forum. doi.org/10.1001/jamahealthforum.2024.0088.

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March 15, 2024
Future drug makers can develop their skills using virtual reality at new national Centre of Excellence

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Future medicine and vaccine makers will be able to develop their skills using virtual reality at a new national Centre of Excellence, after a successful funding bid involving UCL.

The RESILIENCE Centre of Excellence for UK Medicines Manufacturing Skills will deliver training and outreach materials and programmes that address skills demands in the life sciences sector. It will be run by an academic consortium of UK universities led by the University of Birmingham alongside UCL, Teesside University, and Heriot-Watt University as well as Britest LTD.

The Centre will receive £4.5m of funding from Innovate UK and the Office for Life Sciences and will work with healthcare and pharmaceutical organizations to provide an entry point for training and career input, including a pipeline of continuing professional development courses.

Director of UCL Manufacturing Futures Lab, Professor Gary Lye (UCL Biochemical Engineering), said: “The companies involved in the discovery and manufacture of new medicines make a major contribution to the UK economy. As a university, it is important that we support this vital sector through new research and through the education of skilled individuals who will enable the sector to grow.

“The RESILIENCE grant enables UCL to make two critical interventions in the medicines manufacturing skills pipeline. The first is to attract more students into STEM-based degree programmes by creating new outreach activities, and the second is to develop new hands-on training modules for those already working in the field so that they can keep their skills up to date.”

Students across the UK will benefit from access to training that draws on the best and most innovative teaching being developed by the RESILIENCE Centre, including the use of virtual reality and mixed reality situations that give students ‘near to real life’ experiences of lab environments for medicine manufacturing.

Delivery of the UCL RESILIENCE objectives is enabled by the amazing new facilities available to us at UCL East and within the UCL East Manufacturing Futures Lab. These include new outreach and engagement spaces, teaching wet labs and the Management Education Suite where we will deliver some of our new MBI Training Programme modules.”

Professor Gary Lye, Director of UCL Manufacturing Futures Lab

The Centre will provide training on digital skills, data analytics, and AI, as well as embedding environmental sustainability into manufacturing processes. With the use of virtual reality and mixed reality delivery modes, manufacturing staff can undertake a significant amount of training in VR rather than the physical environment, reducing the production of manufacturing waste that has to be incinerated, as well as speeding up the training process.

Ivan Wall, Professor of Regenerative Medicine at the University of Birmingham and Co-Director of RESILIENCE, said: “The UK is a global leader in life sciences research, but there is a critical and growing skills shortage across the medicines manufacturing industry.

“The RESILIENCE Centre of Excellence will bridge this skills gap, by developing a pipeline of talent and providing training for industry to ensure current and future employees possess the right skills for a rapidly evolving sector.”

Teaching and outreach materials will be distributed from RESILIENCE to 150 schools, colleges, and universities for free, enabling them to become affiliate members of the RESILIENCE network, as well as nurture the talent pipeline for the medicines manufacturing sector through education, mentoring and outreach.

Training courses will also be developed to support the existing workforce in the UK medicines manufacturing community, across industry and NHS, to ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of medicines development and is ready to combat future pandemics.

Addressing a Maths Summit at the Science Museum in London this week, Science and Technology Secretary, Michelle Donelan, said: “Building on our reforms to the skills system will require work from each and every one of us – universities, schools, and businesses.

“By doubling down on our investments in skills and backing British business, we can lay the foundations for an economy fit for the future – an economy that creates jobs and improves lives for communities up and down the country. That is how we make our science and tech superpower mission a success.”

Professor Vikki Rand, Director of Teesside University’s National Horizons Centre, a national centre of excellence for bioscience and healthcare, said: “At the National Horizons Centre we have a strong track record for working with partners in the bioscience sector developing innovative training for the workforce.

“By combining hands-on training on the latest equipment with digital technology, including VR and AR, we deliver real impact for the companies, by saving quality time and resources and giving them the ability to train their employees at scale”.

Professor Nik Willoughby at Heriot-Watt University said: “We are thrilled to participate in RESILIENCE, contributing significantly to the education of the upcoming generation with essential skills for the development and manufacture of future medicines. Our emerging Global Research Institute in Health and Care Technologies exemplifies our commitment to advancing healthcare through innovative research-led teaching and entrepreneurial collaboration.”

Dr Kirk Malone, Commercial Director of Britest LTD, said: “As an SME-sized company that supports organisations to sustainably grow through better process understanding, we appreciate the importance of skills training and development. RESILIENCE will instil multidisciplinary thinking into future skilled workers to enable more sustainable medicines manufacturing.”

Source:

University College London

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March 15, 2024
Multiple atmospheric pollutants may be triggering asthma symptoms among children

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Exposure to several combinations of toxic atmospheric pollutants may be triggering asthma symptoms among children, a recent analysis suggests.

The study, published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, showed that 25 different combinations of air pollutants were associated with asthma symptoms among 269 elementary school children diagnosed with asthma in Spokane, Washington. In line with previous research, the Washington State University-led study revealed a socioeconomic disparity-;with one group of children from a lower-income neighborhood exposed to more toxic combinations, a total of 13 of the 25 identified in this research.

It’s not just one pollutant that can be linked to asthma outcomes. This study examined the variety and combinations of air toxics that may be associated with asthma symptoms.”

Solmaz Amiri, lead author, WSU researcher in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine

While other studies have focused on a limited number of pollutants, Amiri and her colleagues used the data-crunching power of machine learning techniques to analyze the potential exposure effects of 109 air pollutants and their combinations on asthma outcomes.

The researchers drew on data collected and modeled by the Environmental Protection Agency on air toxics present in individual neighborhoods surrounding 10 Spokane elementary schools. They also accessed anonymized data from the elementary schools for reports of students diagnosed with asthma who experienced symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing and the need to use an inhaler.

The study looked at asthma symptoms occurring in 2019 and 2020 in the six months before the pandemic lockdowns started in March 2020. The researchers then associated these data with air pollutant exposures that occurred within those six months and with two longer-term exposure periods of three years and five years prior to the asthma symptoms.

The researchers found that three specific pollutants were significantly associated with asthma symptoms across all three exposure periods.

The toxicants involved may have unfamiliar names – 1,1,1 trichloroethane, 2-nitropropane and 2, 4, 6 trichlorophenol – but they derive from commonly used materials. The first is a widely used solvent in industry but was formerly used in household cleaners and glues. The second is an additive to paints and other finishes, and the third is an anti-septic and anti-mildew agent that was banned in the 1980s but may still be found in some pesticides and preservatives made before then.

“Some of these air toxics were discontinued in the U.S., but they can still be found in materials that may be in storage or people have in their backyard or garage. Other air toxics still exist at least in the environment,” said Amiri.

This study did not intend to pinpoint the source of any one air pollutant or the exact reason why one group of children from a lower-income neighborhood was highly exposed to air pollutants. However, proximity of known air pollution sources may play a role, Amiri said, such as living close to a highway with a lot of traffic or facilities that use solvents, such as paint producers or factories.

The finding of a likely socioeconomic disparity in air toxic exposures is consistent with previous research showing that children from lower-income areas, often indicated by schools with a higher percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced meals, are exposed to a wide variety of air pollutants in the neighborhoods where they live.

While the current study is limited to the mid-sized city of Spokane, Amiri noted that the findings align with another study in New York City which found similar air pollutants significantly associated with asthma outcomes.

“Both in Spokane and New York City, regardless of the setting – how large or small the cities are – these air toxics appear to be influencing asthma among children,” she said.

This study received support from the National Institutes of Health and the Ramboll Foundation.

Source:

Washington State University

Journal reference:

Amiri, S., et al. (2024). Machine learning-driven identification of air toxic combinations associated with asthma symptoms among elementary school children in Spokane, Washington, USA. Science of the Total Environment. doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171102.

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March 13, 2024
Metabolic syndrome increases mortality risk in women with high-risk HPV

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Using large-scale U.S. data following patients for more than a decade, York University Faculty of Health researchers found that women with both metabolic syndrome and high-risk strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) are at a 2.6 times higher risk for mortality than women without either condition, suggesting a need to look at chronic disease comorbidity when it comes to HPV-related cancers.

“While it has been known for some time that metabolic conditions can contribute to lingering HPV, this study extends previous work by examining the associations with mortality risk,” says School of Nursing Assistant Professor Catriona Buick, also an Oncology Nurse Clinician Scientist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

Buick, an expert in HPV, women’s health and cancer care, teamed up with School of Kinesiology and Health Science PhD student Parmis Mirzadeh, whose research looks at obesity and metabolic illness, to take a closer look at the association.

Data for the study, published yesterday in PLOS ONE, was obtained by the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey with a final sample of 5,101 individuals (3,274 women). The researchers found more than a quarter of the women with metabolic syndrome had high-risk HPV.

Their study didn’t suggest increased mortality for HPV status alone, which the researchers say could be attributed to the fact that the data only allowed for a snapshot of whether a woman had HPV or not, and could not speak to the persistence.

HPV is the most prevalent sextually transmitted infection and has been referred to as the common flu of STIs. In most cases, the body will clear HPV fairly quickly, but lingering cases of high-risk HPV can develop into precancerous changes in the cervix and in some cases over many years cervical cancer.”

Catriona Buick, Assistant Professor and Oncology Nurse Clinician Scientist, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

While most of the 200 known strains do not present a serious problem, a handful are responsible for nearly all cases of cervical cancer, which represents 4.5 per cent of all cancers worldwide.

Metabolic syndrome refers to a cluster of conditions that increase the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes, which can include excess fat around the waist, high fasting blood sugar levels and high blood pressure. While not looked at directly in this study, individuals with metabolic syndrome are about 65 per cent more likely to develop cardiovascular disease and are 25 per cent more likely to die from “any” cause. It is not clear how metabolic syndrome could affect HPV.

“It likely has something to do with a weakened immune response and chronic inflammation, but the research looking at a direct physiological pathway still needs to be done,” said Mirzadeh.

One in five Canadian adults have metabolic syndrome and those numbers are rising, and both Buick and Mirzadeh underline the importance of a healthy lifestyle, participating in routine cancer screening and getting vaccinated for HPV.

Jurisdictions in Canada and around the world are moving away from Pap smears and towards HPV testing, which Buick says can alert health practitioners to potential issues earlier and don’t need to be done as frequently. While HPV vaccinations are very helpful, they only help protect against a handful of the most common of the 40 known cancer-causing HPV strains, says Buick.

“Regardless of vaccination status, everyone with a cervix still needs to get screened.”

Source:

Journal reference:

Mirzadeh, P., et al. (2024). Association between human papillomaviruses, metabolic syndrome, and all-cause death; analysis of the U.S. NHANES 2003–2004 to 2015–2016. PLOS ONE. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0299479.

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March 9, 2024