Plos One
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Recent interest in the study of concussion and other neurological injuries has heightened awareness of the medical implications of American tackle football injuries amongst the public. ⋯ Injuries related to tackle football are a frequent cause of emergency room visits, specifically in the pediatric population, but severe acute trauma requiring inpatient admission or operative interventions are rare. Continued investigation in the long-term health impact of football related concussion and other repetitive lower impact trauma is warranted.
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The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), the largest extant carnivorous marsupial and endemic to Tasmania, is at the verge of extinction due to the emergence of a transmissible cancer known as devil facial tumour disease (DFTD). DFTD has spread over the distribution range of the species and has been responsible for a severe decline in the global devil population. To protect the Tasmanian devil from extinction in the wild, our group has focused on the development of a prophylactic vaccine. ⋯ As HSPs have not been studied in the Tasmanian devil, this study presents the first characterisation of HSPs in this marsupial and evaluates the suitability of these proteins as antigenic components for the enhancement of a DFTD vaccine. We show that tissues and cancer cells from the Tasmanian devil express constitutive and inducible HSP. Additionally, this study suggests that HSP derived from DFTD cancer cells are immunogenic supporting the future development of a HSP-based vaccine against DFTD.
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Dog ownership is popular worldwide, with most human-dog dyads forming successful attachment bonds. However, millions of dogs are surrendered to animal shelters annually, possibly due to mismatches between owner expectations and the realities of dog ownership. The aim of the current study was to explore the benefits and challenges people expect from dog ownership and how these expectations vary with previous ownership history. ⋯ Ownership history influenced respondents' expectations, with previous/current dog owners having consistently greater odds of expecting benefits and reduced odds of expecting challenges than non-owners. A possible explanation is that previous/current dog owners' exhibit bias when considering dog ownership by selectively recalling positive experiences from previous ownership. Our findings support the need for education of prospective dog owners to ensure their expectations align with the reality of ownership, based on current scientific evidence.
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Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) have a widespread distribution in mountain landscapes, and are considered vulnerable globally, but are low-priority species for conservation in Nepal. Habitat fragmentation, illegal hunting, and human-bear conflict are the major threats to Asiatic black bears across their global range. Having an adequate level of genetic variation in a population helps with adapting to rapidly changing environments, and thus is important for the long-term health of bear populations. ⋯ Three haplotypes were observed from the entire conservation area. The complete mitochondrial genome (16,771 bp), the first obtained from wild populations of the Himalayan black bear (U. t. laniger), was also sequenced to resolve the phylogenetic relationships of closely related subspecies of Asiatic black bears. The resulting phylogeny indicated that Himalayan black bear populations in Nepal are evolutionary distinct from other known subspecies of Asiatic black bears.
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The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics, risky sexual behaviour, alcohol use and transactional sex among female bar workers in Yaounde, Cameroon. ⋯ Our study concludes that female bar workers are exposed to male customers and engage in risky sexual practices including transaction sex. Most of them also consume alcohol which increases their risk of HIV and STI acquisition. They are a high-risk group that need to be targeted with HIV prevention interventions.