Poverty, migration and sex work: youth transitions in Ethiopia

Despite an emerging body of work on youth transitions, research has yet to explore the often unconventional routes to adulthood for young people marginalised through poverty. By drawing on interviews with 60 young commercial sex workers in Ethiopia, this paper explores the connections between poverty, migration and sex work and demonstrates that sex work provides a risky alternative, but often successful, path to independence for some rural-urban migrants. The paper concludes by offering recommendations for policies that seek to support young sex workers by enabling them to maintain their independence while seeking different employment.

Imagining migration: Placing children's understanding of 'moving house' in Malawi and Lesotho

Research pertaining to children's geographies has mainly focused on children's physical experiences of space, with their 'imagined geographies' receiving far less attention. The few studies of children's imagined geographies that exist tend to focus on children's national identities and their understanding of distant places. However, children's lives are not necessarily static and they often move between places. Research has not so far considered children's images of these transitional spaces or how such images are constructed. Through an examination of over 800 thematic drawings and stories, regarding 'moving house, produced by children aged 10-17 years in urban and rural communities of Lesotho and Malawi, this paper explores southern African children's representations of migration. The research considers how ideas of migration are culturally-constructed based on notions of family, home and kinship, particularly in relation to the fluid family structure characteristic of most southern African societies. The results suggest that most children imagine migration as a household rather than an individual process.. rarely including micro -migrations between extended family households in their drawings. Further, children's images of migration are place-rooted in everyday life experiences. Their representations concentrate on the reasons for migration, both negative and positive, which are specifically related to their local social and environmental situations and whether house moves take place locally or over longer distances. The paper concludes by exploring the implications of these conceptualisations of moving house for children's contemporary migration experiences, particularly in light of changing family structures due to the effects of the HIV/AIDS pandernic. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Bayesian estimation of recent migration rates after a spatial expansion

Approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) is a highly flexible technique that allows the estimation of parameters under demographic models that are too complex to be handled by full-likelihood methods. We assess the utility of this method to estimate the parameters of range expansion in a two-dimensional stepping-stone model, using samples from either a single deme or multiple demes. A minor modification to the ABC procedure is introduced, which leads to an improvement in the accuracy of estimation. The method is then used to estimate the expansion time and migration rates for five natural common vole populations in Switzerland typed for a sex-linked marker and a nuclear marker. Estimates based on both markers suggest that expansion occurred < 10,000 years ago, after the most recent glaciation, and that migration rates are strongly male biased.

Class II phosphoinositide 3-kinase defines a novel signaling pathway in cell migration

The lipid products of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) are involved in many cellular responses such as proliferation, migration, and survival. Disregulation of PI3K-activated pathways is implicated in different diseases including cancer and diabetes. Among the three classes of PI3Ks, class I is the best characterized, whereas class II has received increasing attention only recently and the precise role of these isoforms is unclear. Similarly, the role of phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PtdIns-3-P) as an intracellular second messenger is only just beginning to be appreciated. Here, we show that lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) stimulates the production of PtdIns-3-P through activation of a class II PI3K (PI3K-C2β). Both PtdIns-3-P and PI3K-C2β are involved in LPA-mediated cell migration. This study is the first identification of PtdIns-3-P and PI3K-C2β as downstream effectors in LPA signaling and demonstration of an intracellular role for a class II PI3K. Defining this novel PI3K-C2β- PtdIns-3-P signaling pathway may help clarify the process of cell migration and may shed new light on PI3K-mediated intracellular events.

Under-investigation of older people with abnormal chest radiographs

Background: Whilst many authors have previously suggested that older people are under-represented in the investigation and management of lung cancer, few data are available as to the effect of age on the subsequent investigation and management of a patient with an abnormal chest radiograph. Methods: During a 3-month period in a university teaching hospital, all abnormal chest radiographs suggestive of a possible diagnosis of lung cancer were identified, and patients subsequently followed to determine investigation, management and date of death over a 5-year period. Results: Thirty-seven younger (less than or equal to69 years, median age 62 years) and 43 older patients ( 670 years, median age 80 years) were identified. Of the 80 patients with a possible bronchial carcinoma only 59% had a further chest radiograph performed. Bronchoscopy was performed in 34% of patients, but a biopsy of the lesion was undertaken in only 24% of patients. Sixteen of the 80 patients, irrespective of what investigations had been undertaken, were referred for an oncological or surgical opinion. During the study period ( 3 months), 24% of the patients died. At 6, 24 and 60 months, respectively, the total deaths were 40, 78 and 88%. Conclusion: Older patients compared with those aged less than 70 years were less likely to be investigated, further, were more likely to be managed differently (i.e., less aggressively) and more likely to die within each time interval. In more of the older group a presumed death certificate diagnosis of pneumonia was made. When an abnormal chest radiograph raises the possibility of an underlying bronchial carcinoma, the finding of this study suggests that an ageist attitude influences the subsequent management of some patients. Copyright (C) 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Mind-reading difficulties in the siblings of people with Asperger's syndrome: evidence for a genetic influence in the abnormal development of a specific cognitive domain

Background: Previous research suggests that the phenotype associated with Asperger's syndrome (AS) includes difficulties in understanding the mental states of others, leading to difficulties in social communication and social relationships. It has also been suggested that the first-degree relatives of those with AS can demonstrate similar difficulties, albeit to a lesser extent. This study examined 'theory of mind' (ToM) abilities in the siblings of children with AS relative to a matched control group. Method: 2 7 children who had a sibling with AS were administered the children's version of the 'Eyes Test'(Baron-Cohen, Wheelwright, Stone, & Rutherford, 1999). The control group consisted of 27 children matched for age, sex, and a measure of verbal comprehension, and who did not have a family history of AS/autism. Results: A significant difference was found between the groups on the Eyes Test, the 'siblings' group showing a poorer performance on this measure of social cognition. The difference was more pronounced among female siblings. Discussion: These results are discussed in terms of the familial distribution of a neuro-cognitive profile associated with AS, which confers varying degrees of social handicap amongst first-degree relatives. The implication of this finding with regard to the autism/AS phenotype is explored, with some discussion of why this neuro-cognitive profile (in combination with corresponding strengths) may have an evolutionary imperative.

CO migration in native and mutant myoglobin: atomistic simulations for the understanding of protein function

Molecular dynamics simulations of the events after the photodissociation of CO in the myoglobin mutant L29F in which leucine is replaced by phenylalanine are reported. Using both classical and mixed quantum-classical molecular dynamics calculations, we observed the rapid motion of CO away from the distal heme pocket to other regions of the protein, in agreement with recent experimental results. The experimentally observed and calculated infrared spectra of CO after dissociation are also in good agreement. We compared the results with data from simulations of WT myoglobin. As the time resolution of experimental techniques is increased, theoretical methods and models can be validated at the atomic scale by direct comparison with experiment.

A Lady of York: migration, ethnicity and identity in Roman Britain

Modern methods of analysis applied to cemeteries have often been used in our pages to suggest generalities about mobility and diet. But these same techniques applied to a single individual, together with the grave goods and burial rite, can open a special kind of personal window on the past. Here, the authors of a multidisciplinary project use a combination of scientific techniques to illuminate Roman York, and later Roman history in general, with their image of a glamorous mixed-race woman, in touch with Africa, Christianity, Rome and Yorkshire.

Adult skeletal muscle stem cell migration is mediated by a blebbing/amoeboid mechanism

Adult skeletal muscle possesses a resident stem cell population called satellite cells which are responsible for tissue repair following damage. Satellite cell migration is crucial in promoting rapid tissue regeneration but is a poorly understood process. Furthermore, the mechanisms facilitating satellite cell movement have yet to be elucidated. Here the process of satellite cell migration has been investigated revealing that they undergo two distinct phases of movement; firstly under the basal lamina and then rapidly increasing their velocity when on the myofibre surface. Most significantly we show that satellite cells move using a highly dynamic blebbing based mechanism and not via lamellopodia mediated propulsion. We show that nitric oxide and non-canonical Wnt signalling pathways are necessary for regulating the formation of blebs and the migration of satellite cells. In summary, we propose that the formation of blebs and their necessity for satellite cell migration has significant implications in the future development of therapeutic regimes aimed at promoting skeletal muscle regeneration.