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Biomedical subjects

Louise Kelly

Publications and source records attributed to Louise Kelly.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Physical activity to prevent obesity in young children: cluster randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether a physical activity intervention reduces body mass index in young children. DESIGN: Cluster randomised controlled single blinded trial over 12 months. SETTING: Thirty six nurseries in Glasgow, Scotland. PARTICIPANTS: 545 children in their preschool year, mean age 4.2 years (SD 0.2) at baseline. INTERVENTION: Enhanced physical activity programme in nursery (three 30 minute sessions a week over 24 weeks) plus home based health education aimed at increasing physical activity through play and reducing sedentary behaviour. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Body mass index, expressed as a standard deviation score relative to UK 1990 reference data. Secondary measures were objectively measured physical activity and sedentary behaviour; fundamental movement skills; and evaluation of the process. RESULTS: Group allocation had no significant effect on the primary outcome measure at six and 12 months or on measures of physical activity and sedentary behaviour by accelerometry. Children in the intervention group had significantly higher performance in movement skills tests than control children at six month follow-up (P=0.0027; 95% confidence interval 0.3 to 1.3) after adjustment for sex and baseline performance. CONCLUSIONS: Physical activity can significantly improve motor skills but did not reduce body mass index in young children in this trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN36363490.

Body Mass Index↗
PubMed2005

Quantitative risk assessment of rabies entering Great Britain from North America via cats and dogs.

Great Britain has been rabies-free since 1922, which is often considered to be in part due to the strict laws requiring that imported cats and dogs be vaccinated and quarantined for 6 months immediately on entry into the country. Except for two isolated incidents, this quarantine policy has contributed to ensuring that Great Britain has remained free of rabies. In 2000, amendments to the UK quarantine laws were made and the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) was launched for companion animals traveling from European Union countries and rabies-free islands. Since its introduction, it has been proposed that other countries including North America should be included within the UK scheme. A quantitative risk assessment was developed to assist in the policy decision to amend the long-standing quarantine laws for dogs and cats from North America. It was determined that the risk of rabies entry is very low and is dependent on the level of compliance (i.e., legally conforming to all of the required regulations) with PETS and the number of pets imported. Assuming 100% compliance with PETS and the current level of importation of cats and dogs from North America, the annual probability of importing rabies is lower for animals traveling via PETS (7.22 x 10(-6), 95th percentile) than quarantine (1.01 x 10(-5), 95th percentile). These results, and other scientific evidence, directly informed the decision to expand the PETS scheme to North America as of December 2002.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Different ataxin-2 antibodies display different immunoreactive profiles.

We have developed a monoclonal antibody (4A7) directed against the C-terminus of the ataxin-2 protein that is involved in the polyglutamine neurodegenerative disorder spinocerebellar ataxia type 2. Comparison with other ataxin-2 antibodies showed that 4A7 specifically recognized ataxin-2. In contrast, a previously reported ataxin-2 antibody (15F6) did not appear to recognize full-length ataxin-2 in our systems. Immunocytochemical and subcellular fractionation studies using 4A7 confirmed previous reports that ataxin-2 is localized to both the cytoplasm and the trans-Golgi network in rat PC12 cells and rat brain tissue. In contrast, 4A7 failed to label the trans-Golgi network in the three primate cell lines examined. Cytoplasmic ataxin-2 was not associated with mitochondria, lysosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, peroxisomes, proteasomes, clathrin-coated pits or vesicles, or F-actin. Ataxin-2 was found to be phosphorylated but not glycosylated, and exhibited an estimated half-life of not less than 21 h. Interestingly, another commercially available ataxin-2 antibody did not detect ataxin-2 localized to the trans-Golgi network. This antibody was also found to immunoprecipitate fewer proteins/protein partners than 4A7. Although cross-reactivity of the 4A7 antibody with other protein(s) cannot be ruled out, it appears likely that the interaction of ataxin-2 with other cell components is dependent on both the host cell type and its subsequent subcellular localization.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

An objective method for measurement of sedentary behavior in 3- to 4-year olds.

OBJECTIVE: To test the ability of accelerometry to quantify sedentary behavior in 3- to 4-year-old children. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: We developed a cut-off for accelerometry output (validation study) in 30 healthy 3 to 4 year olds, which provided highest sensitivity and specificity for the detection of sedentary behavior relative to a criterion method of measurement, direct observation using the children's physical activity form. We then cross-validated the cut-off in an independent sample of healthy 3 to 4 year olds (n = 52). RESULTS: In the validation study, optimal sensitivity and specificity for the detection of sedentary behavior were obtained at an accelerometry output cut-off of <1100 counts/min. In the cross-validation, sensitivity was 83%: 438/528 inactive minutes were correctly classified. Specificity was 82%: 1251/1526 noninactive minutes were correctly classified using this cut-off. DISCUSSION: Sedentary behavior can be quantified objectively in young children using accelerometry. This new technique could be considered for a wide variety of applications in the etiology, prevention, and treatment of childhood obesity.

Child Behavior↗
PubMed2002

Comprehensive genotypic analysis of leukemia: clinical and therapeutic implications.

Over the past several years, the application of a spectrum of cytogenetic and molecular diagnostic techniques has dramatically improved our understanding of the pathophysiology of leukemia. These techniques include chromosomal translocations visualized by G-banding techniques, fluorescence in-situ hybridization, spectral karyotyping, comparative genomic hybridization, loss of heterozygosity analysis, and characterization of point mutations by DNA sequence analysis. We will review the application of these techniques, update novel findings utilizing these techniques over the past year as they apply to specific leukemias, and review the clinical and therapeutic implications of these findings.

Genotype↗