Micronucleus test in tadpole erythrocytes: Trends in studies and new paths

The micronucleus test has been applied for more than three decades in tadpoles, generating an early warning of environmental quality. In this study, we reviewed 48 articles on the micronucleus test in tadpoles, published between 1987 and 2018. The findings reveal that pesticides have been the main topic discussed in the induction of micronucleus and other nuclear abnormalities in anuran larvae to the detriment of the widespread use of compounds used in agriculture. In addition to pesticides, a number of other xenobiotic agents have been targeted for genotoxic damage, such as heavy metals, radiation and wastewater. An appeal is reported to environmental contaminants, which when released naturally into the environment or because of human activities may contaminate aquatic habitats, threatening populations of tadpoles that depend on these environments for their survival. Larvae can bioaccumulate these contaminants that cause progressive impacts, ranging from DNA damage to metamorphosis delays, as well as malformations. We found that Argentina is the main driving force for the application of this test in anuran larvae along with Brazil. Different erythrocyte malformations have been reported for the erythrocyte nuclear abnormalities test, binucleated cells, nuclear buds, notched, lobed, reniform, nuclear bebbled, anucleated, picnotic and apoptotic cells are the most cited. In summary, the presence of chemical or physical agents, along with other disturbances of the habitat, can have a significant impact on the life history of the species, contributing to the decline of anuran populations.

Validation of antibody-based assays for regulatory peptides: Do it once, get it right, and exploit the under-appreciated benefit of long-term antibody stability

Many submitted manuscripts utilizing antibody-based assays for biologically active peptides frequently neither include nor cite adequate validation data with the risk that the report is adding to the reproducibility crisis in biological research. On the basis of recent experience in re-characterizing in a radioimmunoassay format a polycolonal antibody to gastrin that was first raised nearly five decades ago, it is argued that some antibodies can be stable for very many decades. Researchers concerned about the reproducibility of data using antibodies in assays for regulatory peptides should therefore note that by rigorous validation at an early stage they may not only contribute to the resolution of the reproducibility crisis but also establish a resource that could be useful for very many years.

Qresp, a tool for curating, discovering and exploring reproducible scientific papers

We propose a strategy and present a simple tool to facilitate scientific data reproducibility by making available, in a distributed manner, all data and procedures presented in scientific papers, together with metadata to render them searchable and discoverable. In particular, we describe a graphical user interface (GUI), Qresp, to curate papers (i.e. generate metadata) and to explore curated papers and automatically access the data presented in scientific publications.

Credit and Priority in Scientific Discovery: A Scientist's Perspective

Credit for scientific discovery plays a central role in the reward structure of science. As the "currency of the realm," it powerfully influences the norms and institutional practices of the research ecosystem. Though most scientists enter the field for reasons other than desiring credit, once in the field they desire credit for their work. In addition to being a source of pleasure, credit and recognition are necessary for successful careers. The consensus among sociologists, philosophers, and economists is that pursuit of credit increases the efficiency of the scientific enterprise. Publishing results in a scholarly journal is the core approach to obtaining credit and priority, and the publishing landscape is undergoing dramatic change. As research groups get larger and more interdisciplinary, and scholarly journals proliferate, allocating credit has become more difficult. Awards and prizes further contribute to credit by recognizing prior attributions and articulating new credit attributions through their decisions. Patents can have a complex relationship to credit, and disputes over authorship and credit are common and difficult to adjudicate. Pathologic pursuit of credit adversely affects the scientific enterprise. Academic institutions assess credit in appointment and promotion decisions, and are best positioned to assume responsibility for addressing problems with the credit ecosystem. Several possible remedies are presented.

Quo vadis, Acta Crystallographica F?

The Section Editor discusses the current state and future of Acta Crystallographica F and encourages readers to submit their best Research Communications.

The process of climate change in mass media discourse using the example of Polish and international editions of "Newsweek" magazine

The main objective of the article is to conduct a critical media discourse analysis as presented in the Polish and international editions of the "Newsweek" magazine in the years 2001-2006 and 2012-2016; the subject of which was climate change. The introduction provides the definitions of the key terms, such as: the greenhouse effect and critical discourse analysis (CDA). The theoretical part presents the most important assumptions of the CDA and presents a characteristic of the weekly. The results of the conducted quantitative and qualitative analysis partially lead to varying conclusions. Based on the CDA, the hypothesis was assumed that more attention was provided to climate change in the international (English) edition of "Newsweek", than in the Polish-language edition. Rejected in turn was the hypothesis, according to which, more importance to climate change and their repercussions was provided in the discourse within the last 5 years of publication of the weekly than in the discourse from the years 2001-2006. As a result of comparison of both discourses, the disturbing fact that media discourse did not present and encourage among the readers an active stance in favour of the climate was noticed. It is the task of this influential weekly, the message of which reaches many people, not only to provide knowledge and shape specific values or view, but also to encourage and popularise attitudes in favour of the climate. If man wants to continue to live on earth, then one of their goals is to modify the form of discourse by entities responsible for its form.

Poor statistical reporting, inadequate data presentation and spin persist despite editorial advice

The Journal of Physiology and British Journal of Pharmacology jointly published an editorial series in 2011 to improve standards in statistical reporting and data analysis. It is not known whether reporting practices changed in response to the editorial advice. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of reporting practices in a random sample of research papers published in these journals before (n = 202) and after (n = 199) publication of the editorial advice. Descriptive data are presented. There was no evidence that reporting practices improved following publication of the editorial advice. Overall, 76-84% of papers with written measures that summarized data variability used standard errors of the mean, and 90-96% of papers did not report exact p-values for primary analyses and post-hoc tests. 76-84% of papers that plotted measures to summarize data variability used standard errors of the mean, and only 2-4% of papers plotted raw data used to calculate variability. Of papers that reported p-values between 0.05 and 0.1, 56-63% interpreted these as trends or statistically significant. Implied or gross spin was noted incidentally in papers before (n = 10) and after (n = 9) the editorial advice was published. Overall, poor statistical reporting, inadequate data presentation and spin were present before and after the editorial advice was published. While the scientific community continues to implement strategies for improving reporting practices, our results indicate stronger incentives or enforcements are needed.

Using the METRICS model for defining routes to scholarship in healthcare simulation

INTRODUCTION

In this paper, we explored the utility and value of the METRICS model for modeling scholarship in healthcare simulation by: (1) describing the distribution of articles in four healthcare simulation journals across the seven areas of METRICS scholarship; and (2) appraising patterns of scholarship expressed in three programs of simulation scholarship and reflecting on how these patterns potentially influence the pursuit of future scholarly activities.

METHODS

Two raters reviewed abstracts of papers published between January 2015 and August 2017 in four healthcare simulation journals and coded them using METRICS. Descriptive statistics were calculated for scholarship type and distribution across journals. Twenty-eight articles from three scholars were reviewed, with patterns of scholarship within articles mapped to METRICS. Descriptive synthesis was constructed through discussion between two reviewers.

RESULTS

A total of 432 articles from four journals were reviewed. The three most commonly published areas of scholarship were: 32.2% (139/432) evaluation, 18.8% (81/432) innovation, and 15.3% (66/432) conceptual. The METRICS model was able to represent different kinds of scholarship expressed in all of the papers reviewed and across programs of research. Reflecting on patterns of scholarship within their scholarly programs was helpful for research in planning future directions.

CONCLUSIONS

The METRICS model for scholarship can describe a wide range of patterns of simulation scholarship within individual articles, programs of research, or across journals.

Publication of Randomized Clinical Trials in Pediatric Research: A Follow-up Study

IMPORTANCE

Nonpublication of research results in considerable research waste and compromises medical evidence and the safety of interventions in child health.

OBJECTIVE

To replicate, compare, and contrast the findings of a study conducted 15 years ago to determine the impact of ethical, editorial, and legislative mandates to register and publish findings.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

In this cohort study, abstracts accepted to the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) meetings from May 2008 to May 2011 were screened in duplicate to identify phase 3 randomized clinical trials enrolling pediatric populations. Subsequent publication was ascertained through a search of electronic databases in 2017. Study internal validity was measured using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool, the Jadad scale, and allocation concealment, and key variables (eg, trial design and study stage) were extracted. Associations between variables and publication status, time to publication, and publication bias were examined.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Publication rate, trial registration rate, study quality, and risk of bias.

RESULTS

A total of 177 787 abstracts were indexed in the PAS database. Of these, 3132 were clinical trials, and 129 met eligibility criteria. Of these, 93 (72.1%; 95% CI, 53.8%-79.1%) were published. Compared with the previous analysis, the current analysis showed that fewer studies remained unpublished (183 of 447 [40.9%] vs 36 of 129 [27.9%], respectively; odds ratio [OR], 0.56; 95% CI, 0.36-0.86; P = .008). Fifty-one of 129 abstracts (39.5%) were never registered. Abstracts with larger sample sizes (OR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.15-3.18; P = .01) and those registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (OR, 13.54; 95% CI, 4.78-38.46; P < .001) were more likely to be published. There were no differences in quality measures, risk of bias, or preference for positive results (OR, 1.60; 95% CI, 0.58-4.38; P = .34) between published and unpublished studies. Mean (SE) time to publication following study presentation was 26.48 (1.97) months and did not differ between studies with significant and nonsignificant findings (25.61 vs 26.86 months; P = .93). Asymmetric distribution in the funnel plot (Egger regression, -2.77; P = .04) suggests reduced but ongoing publication bias among published studies. Overall, we observed a reduction in publication bias and in preference for positive findings and an increase in study size and publication rates over time.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

These results suggest a promising trend toward a reduction in publication bias and nonpublication rates over time and positive impacts of trial registration. Further efforts are needed to ensure the entirety of evidence can be accessed when assessing treatment effectiveness.

Global trends in nanomedicine research on triple negative breast cancer: a bibliometric analysis

Nanotechnology has emerged as a promising tool in the clinic to combat several difficult-to-manage diseases, such as cancer, which is the second leading cause of death worldwide. Chemotherapeutic drugs present several limitations such as undesired side effects, low specificity, resistance, and high relapse rates. Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is caused by cells that lack specific receptors in their membrane, such as estrogen (ER+) and progesterone (PR+) receptors, or by cells that do not express the amplification of human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2+). This cancer type has poor prognosis, high relapse rates, and no targeted therapies. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the trends of nanotechnology research in TNBC and compare the contribution of research from different regions, institutions, and authors. A search of the studies published between 2012 and 2017, related to nanotechnology and TNBC, with different keyword combinations, was performed in the Scopus database. The keywords found in this search were grouped into four clusters, in which "breast cancer" was the most mentioned (1,133 times) and the word "MCF-7 cell line" is one of the latest hotspots that appeared in the year 2016. A total of 1,932 articles, which were cited 26,450 times, were identified. The USA accounted for 28.36% of the articles and 27.61% of the citations; however, none of its centers appeared in the list of 10 most productive ones in terms of publications. The journals Biomaterials and International Journal of Nanomedicine had the highest number of publications. The USA and China had the highest number of articles produced and cited; however, the highest average citation per article was from Singapore. The studies focused on the research of antineoplastic agents in animal models and cell culture, and these were the most used topics in research with nanotechnology and TNBC.

Celebrating the 21st anniversary of empowerment evaluation with our critical friends

This special topic edition of E&PP presents the insights of luminaries in the field who have helped shape empowerment evaluation with their critiques, concerns, and congratulations. We celebrate their contributions to empowerment evaluation. This special topic edition of E&PP presents their comments about an evaluation approach that, according to president Stewart Donaldson, has "gone viral" across the globe (Donaldson, 2015). To set the stage for these critical friends' comments, additional context for their discussion is provided. In addition, this special topic edition concludes with a brief comment on their thoughts.

Health Reporting in Print Media in Lebanon: Evidence, Quality and Role in Informing Policymaking

Background

Media plays a vital role in shaping public policies and opinions through disseminating health-related information. This study aims at exploring the role of media in informing health policies in Lebanon, identifying the factors influencing health reporting and investigating the role of evidence in health journalism and the quality of health reporting. It also identifies strategies to enhance the use of evidence in health journalism and improve the quality of health reporting.

Methods

Media analysis was conducted to assess the way media reports on health-related issues and the quality of reporting using a quality assessment tool. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with 27 journalists, researchers and policymakers to explore their perception on the role of media in health policymaking and the factors influencing health reporting. In addition, a validation workshop was conducted.

Results

Out of 1,279 health-related news articles identified, 318 articles used certain type of evidence to report health issues 39.8% of which relied on experts’ opinions as their source of evidence while only 5.9% referenced peer-reviewed research studies. The quality of health reporting was judged to be low based on a quality assessment tool consisting of a set of ten criteria. Journalists raised concerns about issues impeding them from referring to evidence. Journalists also reported difficulties with the investigative health journalism. Policymakers and researchers viewed media as an important tool for evidence-informed health policies, however, serious concerns were voiced in terms of the current practice and capacities.

Conclusion

Our study provides a structured reflection on the role of media and the factors that influence health reporting including context-specific strategies that would enhance the quality and promote the use of evidence in health reporting. In the light of the political changes in many Middle Eastern countries, findings from this study can contribute to redefining the role of media in strengthening health systems.