Nottingham Trent University

About: Nottingham Trent University is a education organization based out in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 4702 authors who have published 12862 publications receiving 307430 citations. The organization is also known as: NTU & Trent Polytechnic.

Practical neck cooling and time-trial running performance in a hot environment

Abstract: The aim of this two-part experiment was to investigate the effect of cooling the neck on time-trial performance in hot conditions (~30°C; 50% RH). In Study A, nine participants completed a 75-min submaximal (~60% V(O₂(max)) pre-load phase followed by a 15-min self-paced time-trial (TT) on three occasions: one with a cooling collar (CC(90)), one without a collar (NC(90)) and one with the collar uncooled (C(90)). In Study B, eight participants completed a 15-min TT twice: once with (CC(15)) and once without (NC(15)) a cooling collar. Time-trial performance was significantly improved in Study A in CC(90) (3,030 ± 485 m) compared to C(90) (2,741 ± 537 m; P = 0.008) and NC(90) (2,884 ± 571 m; P = 0.041). Fifteen-minute TT performance was unaffected by the collar in Study B (CC(15) = 3,239 ± 267 m; NC(15) = 3,180 ± 271 m; P = 0.351). The collar had no effect on rectal temperature, heart rate or RPE. There was no effect of cooling the neck on S100β, cortisol, prolactin, adrenaline, noradrenaline or dopamine concentrations in Study A. Cooling the neck via a cooling collar can improve exercise performance in a hot environment but it appears that there may be a thermal strain threshold which must be breached to gain a performance benefit from the collar.

Insights into the Emergent Bacterial Pathogen Cronobacter spp., Generated by Multilocus Sequence Typing and Analysis

Abstract: Cronobacter spp. (previously known as Enterobacter sakazakii) is a bacterial pathogen affecting all age groups, with particularly severe clinical complications in neonates and infants. One recognised route of infection being the consumption of contaminated infant formula. As a recently recognised bacterial pathogen of considerable importance and regulatory control, appropriate detection and identification schemes are required. The application of multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and analysis (MLSA) of the seven alleles atpD, fusA, glnS, gltB, gyrB, infB and ppsA (concatenated length 3036 base pairs) has led to considerable advances in our understanding of the genus. This approach is supported by both the reliability of DNA sequencing over subjective phenotyping and the establishment of a MLST database which has open access and is also curated; http://www.pubMLST.org/cronobacter. MLST has been used to describe the diversity of the newly recognised genus, instrumental in the formal recognition of new Cronobacter species (C. universalis and C. condimenti) and revealed the high clonality of strains and the association of clonal complex 4 with neonatal meningitis cases. Clearly the MLST approach has considerable benefits over the use of non-DNA sequence based methods of analysis for newly emergent bacterial pathogens. The application of MLST and MLSA has dramatically enabled us to better understand this opportunistic bacterium which can cause irreparable damage to a newborn baby’s brain, and has contributed to improved control measures to protect neonatal health.

Fear of COVID-19, Mindfulness, Humor, and Hopelessness: A Multiple Mediation Analysis.

Abstract: Hopelessness is an important vulnerability factor for depressive symptomology and suicidal ideations. It may also play an important role in the fear of coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Therefore, the present study tested the mediating role of mindful awareness and humor (both identified as coping strategies for dealing with stressful situations) in the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and hopelessness. Participants comprised 786 Turkish individuals (562 females and 224 males; aged between 18 and 67 years) from 71 of 81 cities in Turkey. An online convenience sampling method was used to recruit participants. Participants completed surveys including the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, and Coping Humor Scale. The model was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) and utilizing bootstrapping. The results of SEM showed that the effect of fear of COVID-19 on hopelessness was partly mediated by mindfulness and humor, and which was supported by bootstrapping. Therefore, higher fear of COVID-19 was associated with lower mindfulness and humor. In turn, lower mindfulness and humor were related with higher hopelessness. Findings are discussed in the context of COVID-19 and the hopelessness literature, and practical implications for counselors are also provided.

Women in the Boardroom: Evidence from Large UK Companies

Abstract: A considerable amount of attention has recently been given to the lack of equality for women in the economic arena. Women are systematically disadvantaged in many ways in terms of pay for the same job, promotion prospects and access to the most important top jobs in the United Kingdom. In this paper we present new evidence on women participation rates in UK boardrooms. In particular, our objectives are to (i) examine the proportion of executive and non-executive directors who are women (ii) to document the degree to which women are deployed to key boardroom committees.

Adherence to and Invasion of Human Intestinal Cells by Arcobacter Species and Their Virulence Genotypes

Abstract: The genus Arcobacter is composed of 17 species which have been isolated from various sources Of particular interest are A butzleri, A cryaerophilus, and A skirrowii, as these have been associated with human cases of diarrhea, the probable transmission routes being through the ingestion of contaminated drinking water and food To date, only limited studies of virulence traits in this genus have been undertaken The present study used 60 Arcobacter strains isolated from different sources, representing 16 of the 17 species of the genus, to investigate their ability to adhere to and invade the human intestinal cell line Caco-2 In addition, the presence of five putative virulence genes (ciaB, cadF, cj1349, hecA, and irgA) was screened for in these strains by PCR All Arcobacter species except A bivalviorum and Arcobacter sp strain W63 adhered to Caco-2 cells, and most species (10/16) were invasive The most invasive species were A skirrowii, A cryaerophilus, A butzleri, and A defluvii All invasive strains were positive for ciaB (encoding a putative invasion protein) Other putative virulence genes were present in other species, ie, A butzleri (cadF, cj1349, irgA, and hecA), A trophiarum (cj1349), A ellisii (cj1349), and A defluvii (irgA) No virulence genes were detected in strains which showed little or no invasion of Caco-2 cells These results indicate that many Arcobacter species are potential pathogens of humans and animals