For Christ and Germany: German Catholicism and the Second World War by Brodie, TO

“…Its concluding chapter uses its findings concerning Catholicism during the war years to revise current understandings of the formation of a conservative ‘restoration’ in West Germany after May 1945.…”

Effect of vitamin A on adult lung function: a triangulation of evidence approach by Mongey, R, van der Plaat, DA, Shaheen, SO, Portas, L, Potts, J, Hind, MD, Minelli, C

“…We then assessed the causality of these associations using Mendelian randomisation (MR), and we investigated the effects on adult lung function of 39 genes related to vitamin A, and their interaction with vitamin A intake. Findings: Our observational analysis suggests a positive association between carotene intake and FVC only (13.3 mL per 100 µg/day; p=2.9×10−9), with stronger associations in smokers, but no association of retinol intake with FVC or FEV1/FVC. …”

‘You could start a new country, but you would need to discover new land’: exploring understandings of statehood with primary school pupils in England by Saddington, L, McConnell, FR

“…This paper draws upon participation observation of this activity with 441 pupils from 17 classes across 10 state-maintained primary schools in England. We find that children have complex geopolitical understandings of the world which encompass nuanced articulations of the politics of difference, legitimacy, the act of recognition, and legacies of colonial practices. …”

Neural mechanisms of perceptual decision-making in the fruit fly by Wong, LHT

“…Third, I bidirectionally manipulate the activity of these neurons during the perceptual task to test for behavioural consequences in speed and accuracy. I find that photostimulation quickens reaction times as a function of odour contrast and light intensity. …”

Wages, family background, on-campus performance and gender: an investigation of Chinese graduates’ first job salaries by Liu, S

“…This thesis provides little evidence to support the marketized transition theory, as we find graduates’ first job salaries are still largely affected by their political/ideological attainments in university. …”

Characterising human disparity tuning properties using population receptive field mapping by Alvarez, I, Mancari, A, Ip, IB, Parker, AJ, Bridge, H

“…Finally, the individual thresholds for psychophysical stereoacuity at the 3 different pedestal disparities were broadly related to population receptive field tuning width in area V1, suggesting a possible limit for fine stereopsis at the earliest level of cortical processing. Together, these findings point to heterogeneity of disparity processing across human visual areas, comparable to non-human primates.…”

The neural correlates of response inhibition across the transition from infancy to toddlerhood: an fNIRS Study by Fiske, A, Collins-Jones, L, de Klerk, C, Lui, KYK, Hendry, A, Greenhalgh, I, Hall, A, Dvergsdal, H, Scerif, G, Holmboe, K

“…We acknowledge the need for replication of these results. Nevertheless, our findings suggest that the transition from infancy to toddlerhood may constitute an important period of reorganisation of the PFC that might support the development of early inhibitory control processes.…”

A genome-wide association study of respiratory syncytial virus infection severity in infants by Johnson, M, Chelysheva, I, Öner, D, McGinley, J, Lin, G-L, O'Connor, D, Robinson, H, Drysdale, SB, Gammin, E, Vernon, S, Muller, J, Wolfenden, H, Westcar, S, Anguvaa, L, Thwaites, RS, Bont, L, Wildenbeest, J, Martinón-Torres, F, Aerssens, J, Openshaw, PJM, Pollard, AJ

“…<p><strong> Conclusions</strong></p> These findings may provide insights into genetic mechanisms driving severe RSV infection, offering biologically relevant information for future investigations.…”

Competition law and economic inequality by Zac, A

“…</p> <p>The thesis empirical findings support a link between competition law and enforcement and economic inequality via its relationship with the levels of competition. …”

Strategic and operational issues in sustaining community-based dementia support groups: the Get Real with Meeting Centres realist evaluation part 2 by Morton, T, Evans, SB, Swift, R, Bray, J, Frost, F, Russell, C, Brooker, D, Wong, G, Hullah, N

“…This is the second of two linked articles outlining learning from this realist evaluation of Meeting Centres (MCs) for people with dementia and carers, which focusses on findings regarding their operational and strategic running.…”

Range expansion of a declining forest species, the Western Gray Squirrel (Sciurus griseus), into semi-arid woodland by Sultaire, SM, Montgomery, RA, Jackson, PJ, Millspaugh, JJ

“…A species distribution model parameterized with historical gray squirrel observations (pre-1950), indicated increased climatic suitability for the species on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada in recent decades, which may have facilitated this range expansion. Our findings reveal the potential for species declining in their historical range to colonize novel habitats that become increasingly suitable as a result of human-driven changes to ecosystems.…”

At the frontiers between penal and psy discourses: judicial constructions of the mentally dis/ordered defendant in Hong Kong sentencing judgments by Chiu, TCU

“…While existing literature on the compulsory mental health regime in Hong Kong has found judges to defer, with little critical scrutiny, to medical professional opinion in finding mental incapacity and disorder, this thesis is the first to explore whether this judicial reliance on the clinical gaze extends to decision-making about sentencing in criminal law.…”

Time to HIV viral rebound and frequency of post-treatment control after analytical interruption of antiretroviral therapy: an individual data-based meta-analysis of 24 prospective... by Gunst, JD, Gohil, J, Li, JZ, Bosch, RJ, White, Catherine Seamon, A, Chun, T, Mothe, B, Gittens, K, Praiss, L, De Scheerder, M, Vandekerckhove, L, Escandón, K, Thorkelson, A, Schacker, T, SenGupta, D, Brander, C, Papasavvas, E, Montaner, LJ, Martinez-Picado, J, Calin, R, Castagna, A, Muccini, C, de Jong, W, Leal, L, Tipoe, T, Frater, J

“…Sustained PTC of pVL &lt;50 copies/ml after 84 days is rare in PWH, especially in those starting ART late. Our findings inform future interventional HIV cure/remission trials on study size and design.…”

Lasting dynamic effects of the psychedelic 2,5-dimethoxy-4- iodoamphetamine ((±)-DOI) on cognitive flexibility by Sabanovic, M, Lazari, A, Blanco Pozo, M, Tisca, C, Tachrount, M, Martins Bach, A, Lerch, J, Walton, M, Bannerman, D

“…. (±)-DOI’s facilitation of both cognitive adaptation and novel thinking strategies may contribute to the clinical benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy, particularly in cases of perseverative behaviours and a resistance to change seen in depression, anxiety, or addiction. Furthermore, our findings highlight the crucial role of time-dependent neuroplasticity and the influence of experiential factors in shaping the therapeutic potential of psychedelic interventions for impaired cognitive flexibility.…”

Elevated basophil count is associated with increased risk of endometriosis by Feng, Q, Shigesi, N, Guan, J, Rahmioglu, N, Bafadhel, M, Paddon, K, Hubbard, C, Zondervan, K, Becker, C, Hellner, K

“…None of the other leukocyte subtypes showed an association. Our findings suggest an association between inflammatory responses and the pathogenesis of endometriosis; future studies are warranted to investigate whether the association is causal.…”

Elucidating the non-apoptotic role of the caspases in the Drosophila intestinal system by Arthurton, L

“…Collectively, this data provides novels insights into the caspase-dependent but non-apoptotic regulation of the intestinal system in non-regenerative conditions. Furthermore, these findings could explain the correlation between caspase-9 misexpression and the bad prognosis observed in patients suffering from colon cancer. …”

Comparison of INTERGROWTH- 21st and Fenton growth standards to assess size at birth and at discharge in preterm infants in the United Arab Emirates by Cheikh Ismail, L, Mohamad, MN, Ohuma, EO, ElHalik, MS, Dash, SK, Osaili, TM, Hasan, H, Hashim, M, Saleh, ST, Daour, RA, Parker, SR, Ali, HI, Stojanovska, L, Al Dhaheri, AS

“…The rates of SGA, AGA, and LGA at birth were 11.5%, 80.42%, and 9.08% using INTERGROWTH-21st growth charts compared to 9.5%, 83.2%, and 7.3% respectively according to Fenton charts. The findings indicated statistically significant differences between the two growth charts classifying of preterm infants based on weight, length, and head circumference (p < 0.05). …”

The big five personality traits and eating habits among female students at Zayed University by AlBlooshi, S, AlSabbah, K, Thani, S, Hijazi, R, Al Dhaheri, AS, Zeb, F, Cheikh Ismail, L

“…Key aspects of eating behavior studied included cognitive restraint, disinhibition, and emotional eating. The findings provide insights into how personality characteristics may influence eating habits, offering potential implications for interventions targeting healthier eating behaviors. …”

Broadleaf afforestation impacts on terrestrial hydrology insignificant compared to climate change in Great Britain by Buechel, M, Slater, L, Dadson, S

“…For these three aims we run simulations using (i) past climate with proposed land cover changes and known floods and drought events; (ii) past climate with independent changes in precipitation, temperature, and CO₂; and (iii) a potential future climate (2020–2050). We find the proposed scale of afforestation is unlikely to significantly alter regional hydrology; however, it can noticeably decrease low flows whilst not reducing high flows. …”

Surface plasmon-mediated photoluminescence boost in graphene-covered CsPbBr3 quantum dots by Park, Y, Oleiki, E, Ying, G, Jana, A, Alanazi, M, Osokin, V, Cho, S, Taylor, RA, Lee, G

“…The momentum mismatch between graphene plasmons and free-space photons is resolved through plasmon scattering at Gr/CsPbBr₃&nbsp;interface corrugations, facilitating the observed super-bright emission. These findings highlight the critical role of graphene as a top contact in dramatically enhancing CsPbBr₃&nbsp;QDs&rsquo; PL. …”