Factors affecting dairy farmers' attitudes towards antimicrobial medicine usage in cattle in England and Wales

There has been growing concern about bacterial resistance to antimicrobials in the farmed livestock sector. Attention has turned to sub-optimal use of antimicrobials as a driver of resistance. Recent reviews have identified a lack of data on the pattern of antimicrobial use as an impediment to the design of measures to tackle this growing problem. This paper reports on a study that explored use of antibiotics by dairy farmers and factors influencing their decision-making around this usage. We found that respondents had either recently reduced their use of antibiotics, or planned to do so. Advice from their veterinarian was instrumental in this. Over 70% thought reducing antibiotic usage would be a good thing to do. The most influential source of information used was their own veterinarian. Some 50% were unaware of the available guidelines on use in cattle production. However, 97% thought it important to keep treatment records. The Theory of Planned Behaviour was used to identify dairy farmers’ drivers and barriers to reduce use of antibiotics. Intention to reduce usage was weakly correlated with current and past practice of antibiotic use, whilst the strongest driver was respondents’ belief that their social and advisory network would approve of them doing this. The higher the proportion of income from milk production and the greater the chance of remaining in milk production, the significantly higher the likelihood of farmers exhibiting positive intention to reduce antibiotic usage. Such farmers may be more commercially minded than others and thus more cost-conscious or, perhaps, more aware of possible future restrictions. Strong correlation was found between farmers’ perception of their social referents’ beliefs and farmers’ intent to reduce antibiotic use. Policy makers should target these social referents, especially veterinarians, with information on the benefits from, and the means to, achieving reductions in antibiotic usage. Information on sub-optimal use of antibiotics as a driver of resistance in dairy herds and in humans along with advice on best farm practice to minimise risk of disease and ensure animal welfare, complemented with data on potential cost savings from reduced antibiotic use would help improve poor practice.

Elephants in pyjamas: testing the weak central coherence account of autism spectrum disorders using a syntactic disambiguation task

According to the weak central coherence (CC) account individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) exhibit enhanced local processing and weak part-whole integration. CC was investigated in the verbal domain. Adolescents, recruited using a 2 (ASD status) by 2 (language impairment status) design, completed an aural forced choice comprehension task involving syntactically ambiguous sentences. Half the picture targets depicted the least plausible interpretation, resulting in longer RTs across groups. These were assumed to reflect local processing. There was no ASD by plausibility interaction and consequently little evidence for weak CC in the verbal domain when conceptualised as enhanced local processing. Furthermore, there was little evidence that the processing of syntactically ambiguous sentences differed as a function of ASD or language-impairment status.

Sex and STEM occupation predict Autism-spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores in half a million people

This study assesses Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores in a ‘big data’ sample collected through the UK Channel 4 television website, following the broadcasting of a medical education program. We examine correlations between the AQ and age, sex, occupation, and UK geographic region in 450,394 individuals. We predicted that age and geography would not be correlated with AQ, whilst sex and occupation would have a correlation. Mean AQ for the total sample score was m = 19.83 (SD = 8.71), slightly higher than a previous systematic review of 6,900 individuals in a non-clinical sample (mean of means = 16.94) This likely reflects that this big-data sample includes individuals with autism who in the systematic review score much higher (mean of means = 35.19). As predicted, sex and occupation differences were observed: on average, males (m = 21.55, SD = 8.82) scored higher than females (m = 18.95; SD = 8.52), and individuals working in a STEM career (m = 21.92, SD = 8.92) scored higher than individuals non-STEM careers (m = 18.92, SD = 8.48). Also as predicted, age and geographic region were not meaningfully correlated with AQ. These results support previous findings relating to sex and STEM careers in the largest set of individuals for which AQ scores have been reported and suggest the AQ is a useful self-report measure of autistic traits

From molecules to neural morphology: understanding neuroinflammation in autism spectrum condition

Growing evidence points toward a critical role for early (prenatal) atypical neurodevelopmental processes in the aetiology of autism spectrum condition (ASC). One such process that could impact early neural development is inflammation. We review the evidence for atypical expression of molecular markers in the amniotic fluid, serum, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and the brain parenchyma that suggest a role for inflammation in the emergence of ASC. This is complemented with a number of neuroimaging and neuropathological studies describing microglial activation. Implications for treatment are discussed.

A comprehensive meta-analysis of common genetic variants in autism spectrum conditions

Background Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) are a group of neurodevelopmental conditions characterized by difficulties in social interaction and communication alongside repetitive and stereotyped behaviours. ASC are heritable, and common genetic variants contribute substantial phenotypic variability. More than 600 genes have been implicated in ASC to date. However, a comprehensive investigation of candidate gene association studies in ASC is lacking. Methods In this study, we systematically reviewed the literature for association studies for 552 genes associated with ASC. We identified 58 common genetic variants in 27 genes that have been investigated in three or more independent cohorts and conducted a meta-analysis for 55 of these variants. We investigated publication bias and sensitivity and performed stratified analyses for a subset of these variants. Results We identified 15 variants nominally significant for the mean effect size, 8 of which had P values below a threshold of significance of 0.01. Of these 15 variants, 11 were re-investigated for effect sizes and significance in the larger Psychiatric Genomics Consortium dataset, and none of them were significant. Effect direction for 8 of the 11 variants were concordant between both the datasets, although the correlation between the effect sizes from the two datasets was poor and non-significant. Conclusions This is the first study to comprehensively examine common variants in candidate genes for ASC through meta-analysis. While for majority of the variants, the total sample size was above 500 cases and 500 controls, the total sample size was not large enough to accurately identify common variants that contribute to the aetiology of ASC.

Frontal networks in adults with autism spectrum disorder

It has been postulated that autism spectrum disorder is underpinned by an ‘atypical connectivity’ involving higher-order association brain regions. To test this hypothesis in a large cohort of adults with autism spectrum disorder we compared the white matter networks of 61 adult males with autism spectrum disorder and 61 neurotypical controls, using two complementary approaches to diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging. First, we applied tract-based spatial statistics, a ‘whole brain’ non-hypothesis driven method, to identify differences in white matter networks in adults with autism spectrum disorder. Following this we used a tract-specific analysis, based on tractography, to carry out a more detailed analysis of individual tracts identified by tract-based spatial statistics. Finally, within the autism spectrum disorder group, we studied the relationship between diffusion measures and autistic symptom severity. Tract-based spatial statistics revealed that autism spectrum disorder was associated with significantly reduced fractional anisotropy in regions that included frontal lobe pathways. Tractography analysis of these specific pathways showed increased mean and perpendicular diffusivity, and reduced number of streamlines in the anterior and long segments of the arcuate fasciculus, cingulum and uncinate—predominantly in the left hemisphere. Abnormalities were also evident in the anterior portions of the corpus callosum connecting left and right frontal lobes. The degree of microstructural alteration of the arcuate and uncinate fasciculi was associated with severity of symptoms in language and social reciprocity in childhood. Our results indicated that autism spectrum disorder is a developmental condition associated with abnormal connectivity of the frontal lobes. Furthermore our findings showed that male adults with autism spectrum disorder have regional differences in brain anatomy, which correlate with specific aspects of autistic symptoms. Overall these results suggest that autism spectrum disorder is a condition linked to aberrant developmental trajectories of the frontal networks that persist in adult life.

Evidence of evolving extraintestinal enteroaggregative Escherichia coli ST38 clone

BACKGROUND: Several clones of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)–producing extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) have globally expanded their distribution. ExPEC infections often originate from the patient’s own intestinal flora, although the degree of overlap between diarrheagenic E. coli and ExPEC pathotypes is unclear. Relatively little is known about antimicrobial drug resistance in the most common diarrheagenic E. coli groups, including enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC), and bacterial gastroenteritis is generally managed without use of antimicrobial drugs. APPROACHES: We conducted this study to establish the presence and characteristics of ESBL-producing EAEC in a well-defined collection of ESBL-producing isolates. The isolates were from human and animal sources in Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. DNA from 359 ESBL isolates was screened for the presence of the EAEC transport regulator gene (aggR), located on the EAEC plasmid, using a real-time PCR assay and the phylogroup was determined for each positive isolate. A microarray was used to detect ESBL genes, such as blaCTX-M, at the group level, as previously described. The antimicrobial drug susceptibilities of EAEC isolates were determined and virulence factors associated with intestinal and extraintestinal infection and with EAEC were investigated . RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: We assigned a virulence score (total number of virulence factor genes detected; maximum possible score 22) and a resistance score (total number of drug classes; maximum score 11) to each isolate. We isolated 11 EAEC from humans. Eight of the EAEC were isolated from urine specimens, and 1 was isolated from a blood culture; 63% belonged to phylogroup D (Table). EAEC ST38, the most common (55%) ST, was significantly associated with extraintestinal sites in the subset of 140 human isolates (Fisher exact test, p<0.0001)

The interface of syntax with pragmatics and prosody in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

In order to study problems of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) with morphosyntax, we investigated twenty high-functioning Greek-speaking children (mean age:6;11) and twenty age- and language-matched typically developing children on environments that allow or forbid object clitics or their corresponding noun phrase. Children with ASD fell behind typically developing in comprehending and producing simple clitics and producing noun phrases in focus structures. The two groups performed similarly in comprehending and producing clitics in clitic left dislocation and in producing noun phrases in non-focus structures. We argue that children with ASD have difficulties at the interface of(morpho)syntax with pragmatics and prosody, namely, distinguishing a discourse prominent element, and considering intonation relevant for a particular interpretation that excludes clitics.