Nearly half of all Australians (42.9%) will experience a mental health disorder during their lifetime(1). Preliminary research suggests an association between dietary and tissue advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) and mental health conditions, such as depression(2,3). However, more research is needed to determine the extent to which poor mental health is linked with AGEs(4). This study examined whether dietary consumption of the AGE carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), tissue accumulation of AGEs, or levels of circulating glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) were associated with depression or anxiety. Fifty adults participated in a cross-sectional study. Depression and anxiety were assessed using the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and Spielberger’s State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Dietary CML intake was assessed from 3-day food records by matching food items to those in published, validated food AGE databases and adjusting for energy intake (CML/MJ). Tissue accumulation of AGEs was measured as skin autofluorescence (SAF) using an AGE Reader. HbA1c was measured in whole blood using a Capillary 3 HbA1c kit. Spearman’s rank correlations were performed to explore relationships between variables. Participants included 14 males and 36 females, aged (median (range)) 30.6 (18–72) years. Participants were predominantly healthy, with a BMI of 23.3 (18.5–31.1) kg/m2 and energy intake of 7889 (5452–12568) kJ/day. Depression scores were 8 (0–40) out of 60. State anxiety scores were 26 (20–53) and trait anxiety scores were 33.5 (20–66) out of 80, where higher scores indicated greater symptom severity. Daily intake of CML was 0.6 (0.2–1.9) mg/MJ/day. SAF was 1.8 (1.2–3.3) arbitrary units (AU), similar to previously reported normal reference values(5). Circulating HbA1c was 5.1% (4.4–6.2%), all within the healthy range(6). Spearman’s correlation tests indicated no significant associations between any of the independent variables (CML/MJ, SAF, HbA1c) and any of the dependent variables (CES-D, STAI) (all p > 0.05). In this population of predominantly of healthy individuals, there was no association between dietary CML intake, tissue AGE accumulation or circulating HbA1c and increased symptom severity for depression or anxiety. The next step of this research is to investigate metabolomic markers in this population and their association with depression and anxiety. In relatively healthy people, dietary metabolites may be more sensitive to uncover whether a relationship exists between AGEs and depression and anxiety.

We present the most sensitive and detailed view of the neutral hydrogen (${\rm H\small I}$) emission associated with the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), through the combination of data from the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) and Parkes (Murriyang), as part of the Galactic Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (GASKAP) pilot survey. These GASKAP-HI pilot observations, for the first time, reveal ${\rm H\small I}$ in the SMC on similar physical scales as other important tracers of the interstellar medium, such as molecular gas and dust. The resultant image cube possesses an rms noise level of 1.1 K ($1.6\,\mathrm{mJy\ beam}^{-1}$) $\mathrm{per}\ 0.98\,\mathrm{km\ s}^{-1}$ spectral channel with an angular resolution of $30^{\prime\prime}$ (${\sim}10\,\mathrm{pc}$). We discuss the calibration scheme and the custom imaging pipeline that utilises a joint deconvolution approach, efficiently distributed across a computing cluster, to accurately recover the emission extending across the entire ${\sim}25\,\mathrm{deg}^2$ field-of-view. We provide an overview of the data products and characterise several aspects including the noise properties as a function of angular resolution and the represented spatial scales by deriving the global transfer function over the full spectral range. A preliminary spatial power spectrum analysis on individual spectral channels reveals that the power law nature of the density distribution extends down to scales of 10 pc. We highlight the scientific potential of these data by comparing the properties of an outflowing high-velocity cloud with previous ASKAP+Parkes ${\rm H\small I}$ test observations.

First admission psychiatric patients born in England and Wales between 1938 and 1963, and discharged from hospitals in England and Wales between 1976 and 1986, were examined. Using logistic regression, we tested the hypothesis that the risk of shizophrenia varies by place, and season of birth. Persons born in city areas showed a 12% greater risk of schizophrenia (odds ratio 1.12; 95% confidence interval 1.06 to 1.19) than those born in non-city areas, when compared with other psychiatric patients. The increase in risk was particularly high for individuals born in city areas in winter (21%, ie odds ratio 1.21 and confidence interval 1.08 to 1.36). These findings suggest that the factor(s) responsible for the season-of-birth effect preferentially affects city born schizophrenics.

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is a planned large radio interferometer designed to operate over a wide range of frequencies, and with an order of magnitude greater sensitivity and survey speed than any current radio telescope. The SKA will address many important topics in astronomy, ranging from planet formation to distant galaxies. However, in this work, we consider the perspective of the SKA as a facility for studying physics. We review four areas in which the SKA is expected to make major contributions to our understanding of fundamental physics: cosmic dawn and reionisation; gravity and gravitational radiation; cosmology and dark energy; and dark matter and astroparticle physics. These discussions demonstrate that the SKA will be a spectacular physics machine, which will provide many new breakthroughs and novel insights on matter, energy, and spacetime.

We apply two methods to estimate the 21-cm bispectrum from data taken within the Epoch of Reionisation (EoR) project of the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). Using data acquired with the Phase II compact array allows a direct bispectrum estimate to be undertaken on the multiple redundantly spaced triangles of antenna tiles, as well as an estimate based on data gridded to the uv-plane. The direct and gridded bispectrum estimators are applied to 21 h of high-band (167–197 MHz; z = 6.2–7.5) data from the 2016 and 2017 observing seasons. Analytic predictions for the bispectrum bias and variance for point-source foregrounds are derived. We compare the output of these approaches, the foreground contribution to the signal, and future prospects for measuring the bispectra with redundant and non-redundant arrays. We find that some triangle configurations yield bispectrum estimates that are consistent with the expected noise level after 10 h, while equilateral configurations are strongly foreground-dominated. Careful choice of triangle configurations may be made to reduce foreground bias that hinders power spectrum estimators, and the 21-cm bispectrum may be accessible in less time than the 21-cm power spectrum for some wave modes, with detections in hundreds of hours.

Introduction: Individualizing risk for stroke following a transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a topic of intense research, as existing scores are context-dependent or have not been well validated. The Canadian TIA Score stratifies risk of subsequent stroke into low, moderate and high risk. Our objective was to prospectively validate the Canadian TIA Score in a new cohort of emergency department (ED) patients. Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study in 14 Canadian EDs over 4 years. We enrolled consecutive adult patients with an ED visit for TIA or nondisabling stroke. Treating physicians recorded standardized clinical variables onto data collection forms. Given the ability of prompt emergency carotid endarterectomy (CEA) to prevent stroke (NNT = 3) in high risk patients, our primary outcome was the composite of subsequent stroke or CEA ≤7 days. We conducted telephone follow-up using the validated Questionnaire for Verifying Stroke Free Status at 7 and 90 days. Outcomes were adjudicated by panels of 3 local stroke experts, blinded to the index ED data collection form. Based on prior work, we estimated a sample size of 5,004 patients including 93 subsequent strokes, would yield 95% confidence bands of +/− 10% for sensitivity and likelihood ratio (LR). Our analyses assessed interval LRs (iLR) with 95% CIs. Results: We prospectively enrolled 7,569 patients with mean 68.4 +/−14.7 years and 52.4% female, of whom 107 (1.4%) had a subsequent stroke and 74 (1.0%) CEA ≤7 days (total outcomes = 181). We enrolled 81.2% of eligible patients; missed patients were similar to enrolled. The Canadian TIA Score stratified the stroke/CEA ≤7days risk as: Low (probability <0.2%, iLR 0.20 [95%CI 0.091-0.44]; Moderate (probability 1.3%, iLR 0.79 [0.68-0.92]; High (probability 2.6%, iLR 2.2 [1.9-2.6]. Sensitivity analysis for just stroke ≤7 days yielded similar results: Low iLR 0.17 [95%CI 0.056-0.52], Medium iLR 0.89 [0.75-1.1], High iLR 2.0 [1.6-2.4]. Conclusion: The Canadian TIA Score accurately identifies TIA patients risk for stroke/CEA ≤7 days. Patients classified as low risk can be safely discharged following a careful ED assessment with elective follow-up. Patients at moderate risk can undergo additional testing in the ED, have antithrombotic therapy optimized, and be offered early stroke specialist follow-up. Patients at high risk should in most cases be fully investigated and managed ideally in consultation with a stroke specialist during their index ED visit.

For livestock production systems to play a positive role in global food security, the balance between their benefits and disbenefits to society must be appropriately managed. Based on the evidence provided by field-scale randomised controlled trials around the world, this debate has traditionally centred on the concept of economic-environmental trade-offs, of which existence is theoretically assured when resource allocation is perfect on the farm. Recent research conducted on commercial farms indicates, however, that the economic-environmental nexus is not nearly as straightforward in the real world, with environmental performances of enterprises often positively correlated with their economic profitability. Using high-resolution primary data from the North Wyke Farm Platform, an intensively instrumented farm-scale ruminant research facility located in southwest United Kingdom, this paper proposes a novel, information-driven approach to carry out comprehensive assessments of economic-environmental trade-offs inherent within pasture-based cattle and sheep production systems. The results of a data-mining exercise suggest that a potentially systematic interaction exists between ‘soil health’, ecological surroundings and livestock grazing, whereby a higher level of soil organic carbon (SOC) stock is associated with a better animal performance and less nutrient losses into watercourses, and a higher stocking density with greater botanical diversity and elevated SOC. We contend that a combination of farming system-wide trials and environmental instrumentation provides an ideal setting for enrolling scientifically sound and biologically informative metrics for agricultural sustainability, through which agricultural producers could obtain guidance to manage soils, water, pasture and livestock in an economically and environmentally acceptable manner. Priority areas for future farm-scale research to ensure long-term sustainability are also discussed.

The objectives of this study were to determine the inheritance of aryloxyphenoxypropionate (APP) resistance in the wild oat population UM33 and to determine the genetic relationship between resistance in UM33 and another population, UM1, which has a different cross-resistance pattern. Reciprocal crosses were made between UM33 and a susceptible population UM5, and between UM33 and UM1. Initial screenings of F1 and F2 Is populations derived from crosses between UM33 and UM5 were conducted over a range of fenoxaprop-P rates to determine a discriminatory dosage. F2 populations and F2-derived F3 families were then screened at this dosage (1200 g ai ha−1) to determine segregation patterns. Results from reciprocal UM33 x UM5 F1 dose-response experiments, and F2 and F2-derived F3 segregation experiments indicated that UM33 resistance to fenoxaprop-P was governed by a single, partially dominant nuclear gene system. To determine if resistance in UM1 and UM33 results from alterations at the same gene locus, 584 F2 plants derived from reciprocal UM33 x UM1 crosses were screened with 150 g ha−1 fenoxaprop-P. This dosage was sufficient to kill susceptible plants (UM5), but was not sufficient to kill plants with a resistance allele from either parent. None of the treated F2 plants exhibited injury or death, indicating that UM1 and UM33 resistance genes did not segregate independently. From this it was concluded that resistance in both populations is encoded at the same gene locus.

A seed bioassay was developed and tested for the rapid identification of aryloxyphenoxypropionate (APP) and cyclohexanedione (CHD) resistance in wild oat. Two susceptible (S) genotypes, UM5 and Dumont, were treated with fenoxaprop-P and sethoxydim over a range of dosages on filter paper and agar. The former is a wild oat line and the latter a tame oat cultivar. Within 5 d, shoot and root development of both genotypes were completely inhibited by 10 μM fenoxaprop-P and 5 μM sethoxydim. These dosages were then tested to determine if they were suitable for distinguishing between resistant (R) and susceptible (S) plants. Agar medium was preferred over filter paper because of the ease of preparation and maintenance. Four known R wild oat populations were included in the tests. Those with high levels of resistance produced significantly longer coleoptiles and roots than S genotypes, but those with moderate or low levels of resistance could not be separated statistically from S biotypes based on quantitative measurements. However, after exposing the germinating, treated seeds to light for 24 to 48 h, all the R populations produced green coleoptiles and initiated a first leaf, unlike the S genotypes which did not turn green or produce any new growth. This procedure proved useful in discriminating between R and S genotypes and in ranking populations in terms of relative levels of resistance.

Resistance to aryloxyphenoxypropionate and cyclohexanedione herbicides was identified in four wild oat populations from western Canada. Populations UM1, UM2, and UM3 originated from northwestern Manitoba and UM33 from south-central Saskatchewan. Field histories indicated that these populations were exposed to repeated applications of diclofop-methyl and sethoxydim over the previous 10 yr. The populations differed in their levels and patterns of cross-resistance to these and five other acetyl-CoA carboxylase inhibitors (ACCase inhibitors). UM1, UM2, and UM3 were resistant to diclofop-methyl, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, and sethoxydim. In contrast, UM33 was resistant to the aryloxyphenoxy propionate herbicides but not to sethoxydim. The dose of sethoxydim required to reduce growth of UM1 by 50% was 150 times greater than for a susceptible population (UM5) or UM33 based on shoot dry matter reductions 21 d after treatment. This population differed from UM2 and UM3 that had R/S ratios of less than 10. In the field UM1 also exhibited a very high level of resistance to sethoxydim. In contrast to susceptible plants that were killed at the recommended dosage, shoot dry matter of resistant plants treated at eight times the recommended dosage was reduced by only 27%. In growth chamber experiments none of the four populations was cross-resistant to herbicides from five different chemical families.

Resistance to fenoxaprop-P and other aryloxyphenoxypropionate and cyclohexanedione herbicides in the wild oat population, UM1, is controlled by a single, partially dominant, nuclear gene. In arriving at this conclusion, parents, F1 hybrids, and F2 plants derived from reciprocal crosses between UM1 and a susceptible wild oat line, UM5, were treated with fenoxaprop-P over a wide range of dosages. Based on these experiments, a dosage of 400 g ai ha−1 fenoxaprop-P was selected to discriminate between three response types. At this dosage, susceptible plants were killed and resistant plants were unaffected, whereas plants characterized as intermediate in response were injured but recovered. Treated F2 plants segregated in a 1:2:1 (R, I, S) ratio, indicative of single nuclear gene inheritance. This was confirmed by selfing F2 plants and screening several F3 families. Families derived from intermediate F2 plants segregated for the three characteristic response types, whereas those derived from resistant F2 plants were uniformly resistant. Chisquare analysis indicated the F2 segregation ratios fit those expected for a single partially dominant nuclear gene system. In addition, F2 populations from both crosses were screened with a mixture of fenoxaprop-Pand sethoxydim. The dosages of both herbicides (150 g ai ha−1 fenoxaprop-P and 100 g ha−1 sethoxydim) were sufficient to control only susceptible plants. Treated F2 populations segregated in a 3:1 (R:S) pattern, thereby confirming that resistance to the two chemically unrelated herbicides results from the same gene alteration.