There is a scarcity of empirically validated treatments for infants and toddlers under age 3 years with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), as well as a scarcity of empirical investigation into successful intervention characteristics for this population. Yet early screening efforts are focused on identifying autism risk in children under age 3 years. In order to build ASD interventions for infants and toddlers upon a foundation of evidence-based characteristics, the current paper presents the results of a systematic literature search and effect size analysis of efficacious interventions for infants and toddlers with other developmental disorders: those who were born prematurely, have developmental impairments, or are at high risk for developmental impairments due to the presence of a biological or familial condition associated with developmental impairments. A review of 32 controlled, high-quality experimental studies revealed that the most efficacious interventions routinely used a combination of four specific intervention procedures, including (1) parent involvement in intervention, including ongoing parent coaching that focused both on parental responsivity and sensitivity to child cues and on teaching families to provide the infant interventions, (2) individualization to each infant’s developmental profile, (3) focusing on a broad rather than a narrow range of learning targets, and (4) temporal characteristics involving beginning as early as the risk is detected and providing greater intensity and duration of the intervention. These four characteristics of efficacious interventions for infants and toddlers with other developmental challenges likely represent a solid foundation from which researchers and clinicians can build efficacious interventions for infants and toddlers at risk for or affected by ASD.
BackgroundPerinatal depression is the most common mental illness experienced by pregnant and postpartum women, yet it is often under-detected and under-treated. Some researchers suggest this may be partly influenced by a lack of education and professional development on perinatal depression among health-care providers, which can negatively affect care and contribute to stigmatization of women experiencing altered mood. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review is to provide a synthesis of educational and professional development needs and strategies for health-care providers in perinatal depression.MethodsA systematic search of the literature was conducted in seven academic health databases using selected keywords. The search was limited to primary studies and reviews published in English between January 2006 and May/June 2015, with a focus on perinatal depression education and professional development for health-care providers. Studies were screened for inclusion by two reviewers and tie-broken by a third. Studies that met inclusion criteria were quality appraised and data extracted. Results from the studies are reported through narrative synthesis.ResultsTwo thousand one hundred five studies were returned from the search, with 1790 remaining after duplicate removal. Ultimately, 12 studies of moderate and weak quality met inclusion criteria. The studies encompassed quantitative (n = 11) and qualitative (n = 1) designs, none of which were reviews, and addressed educational needs identified by health-care providers (n = 5) and strategies for professional development in perinatal mental health (n = 7). Consistently, providers identified a lack of formal education in perinatal mental health and the need for further professional development. Although the professional development interventions were diverse, the majority focused on promoting identification of perinatal depression and demonstrated modest effectiveness in improving various outcomes.ConclusionsThis systematic review reveals a lack of strong research in multi-disciplinary, sector, site, and modal approaches to education and professional development for providers to identify and care for women at risk for, or experiencing, depression. To ensure optimal health outcomes, further research comparing diverse educational and professional development approaches is needed to identify the most effective strategies and consistently meet the needs of health-care providers.Trial registrationA protocol for this systematic review was registered on PROSPERO (Protocol number: CRD42015023701), June 21, 2015.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12884-017-1431-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
This paper reflects upon the development of a multidisciplinary lesson plan aimed at developing science skills for Physics and Astronomy, Geographical and Earth Sciences, and Chemistry students at a research intensive Scottish University. The lesson plan was co-developed with a small group of staff and undergraduate students from these disciplinary areas.The authors discuss the rationale and process for developing the course, drawing upon literature relating to students and staff co-creating curricula in higher education. It offers suggestions for the academic development community about ways in which this kind of collaboration can be supported at local and institutional levels.Keywords: co-construction; course design; engagement; interdisciplinary; student voice IntroductionWe offer a reflective account of developing an interdisciplinary science skills course by staff and students at the University of Glasgow in 2013. The original impetus for devising a new course responded to students wanting to develop their problem solving skills across a range of science-related subjects early in their academic studies. The collaborative materials developed included student-generated content for lectures and laboratory sessions but also material for end of year examinations.The article focusses on the processes and products of the collaboration, relating it to current debates on working with students as partners in learning and teaching. We explain the curriculum development processes and their rationale and, by exploring personal reflections and recent literature, we examine the potential for co-creating curricula.We argue that the process and the product of the collaboration was successful and, in part, even exceeded expectations. The decision to use a collaborative approach to develop the lesson plan was based on positive prior experiences of several of the authors. Our project did not involve academic developers and so we critically reflect upon how further enhancements can be made through greater engagement with educational research literature and involving academic developers throughout the collaborative process. Our reflections attempt to shed light on how a variety of personal and disciplinary assumptions and practices influenced the direction of the collaboration.This article is co-authored by those involved: the students and staff engaged in the research, planning and delivery of the course, and a PhD student researching co-created curricula. Our reflective account has been drawn from a framework of questions, provided by the PhD student, relating to the collaboration.Authors provided individual responses in the first instance. With permission, responses were shared and discussed between all authors and, from this, categories for inclusion in this article were agreed by consensus.The process of gathering individual reflections helped make explicit assumptions that had not previously been discussed collectively. As a result, multiple perspectives from different disciplines and roles provide a rich picture for pract...
This article summarizes major points from a newly released guide published online by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). The article reviews basic principles about radiation and its measurement, short-term and long-term effects of radiation, and medical countermeasures as well as essential information about how to prepare for and respond to a nuclear detonation. A link is provided to the manual itself, which in turn is heavily referenced for readers who wish to have more detail.
Many diseases of aging including AD (Alzheimer's disease) and T2D (Type 2 diabetes) are strongly associated with common risk factors, suggesting that there may be shared aging mechanisms underlying these diseases, with the scope to identify common cellular targets for therapy. In the present study we have examined the insulin-like signalling properties of an experimental AD 8-hydroxyquinoline drug known as CQ (clioquinol). The IIS [insulin/IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor-1) signalling] kinase Akt/PKB (protein kinase B) inhibits the transcription factor FOXO1a (forkhead box O1a) by phosphorylating it on residues that trigger its exit from the nucleus. In HEK (human embryonic kidney)-293 cells, we found that CQ treatment induces similar responses. A key transcriptional response to IIS is the inhibition of hepatic gluconeogenic gene expression, and, in rat liver cells, CQ represses expression of the key gluconeogenic regulatory enzymes PEPCK (phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase) and G6Pase (glucose-6-phosphatase). The effects on FOXO1a and gluconeogenic gene expression require the presence of Zn2+ ions, reminiscent of much earlier studies examining diabetogenic properties of 8-hydroxyquinolines. Comparative investigation of the signalling properties of a panel of these compounds demonstrates that CQ alone exhibits FOXO1a regulation without diabetogenicity. Our results suggest that Zn2+-dependent regulation of FOXOs and gluconeogenesis may contribute to the therapeutic properties of this drug. Further investigation of this signalling response might illuminate novel pharmacological strategies for the treatment of age-related diseases.
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