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Research Value (research + value)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	83%

Selected Abstracts

Research engagement and outcomes in public health and health services research in Australia

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 3 2009
Armita Adily
Abstract Objectives: To retrospectively explore research outcomes in Australian public health research and their relationship to full engagement with potential research users during the research process. Methods: A self-administered survey of all principal investigators (PIs) receiving research funds from one of three well-known research funding agencies. ,Research value' and ,research utility' were self-reported using fixed response sets. Associations between outcomes and ,full engagement' were examined. Results: Our response rate (75.1%) yielded data for 187 research projects. For just over one-quarter (26.7%), ,research value' was rated ,very important' in terms of knowledge generation. The most common ,research utility' was ,continuing education' (27.3%) followed by ,policy formulation' (25.7%). While 66 (35.3%) projects engaged at least one potential research user group throughout ,full engagement', such an intertwined relationship between researchers and research users was not associated with research value (,2=0.46, 1df, p=0.5) or research utility (,2=2.19, 1df, p=0.14). There were no predictors of ,full engagement'. In just over a third of projects (34.8%), both part of the awarded grant and additional funding had been spent to promote research use. Conclusions and Implications: This snapshot demonstrates patchy research engagement between researchers and research users. Other academic groups were the most common partner for full engagement. In an evidence-based era, innovation in health research funding policy should be evaluated. As NHMRC embarks upon its ,Partnerships initiative' in 2009, we recommend a prospective approach to evaluation. [source]

Specific Fab fragments recovered by phage display technique recognizing human spermatozoa

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY, Issue 5 2009
Dorota Fiszer
Summary Human hybridoma cell lines are often unstable and loose ability for antibody production. Sometimes, they show low and varying levels of heavy and light chains synthesis. Therefore it is reasonable to preserve generated specificities of light and heavy chains by cloning them to phagemid vector and creating phage display library. The aim of this study was to construct phage display library of Fab fragments recognizing sperm surface antigens. The source of mRNA constituted seven hybridoma cell lines producing antisperm antibodies which was proved by ELISA, and agglutination test as well as by inhibition of sperm to penetrate hamster oocytes. Fragments of cDNA encoding ,/, and , chains were cloned into pComb3HSS phagemid vector and amplified in XL-1Blue. The library was panned against whole unfixed sperm cells. Three positive clones selected after fourth round of panning showed heavy chain belonging to VH4 family, two of them (G28, K61) possessed lambda chain from VL2 family and one (H43) kappa chain from VK1 family. As these Fabs revealed similarities to antibodies against some proteins involved in sperm motility and cell fusion it can be suggested that these Fabs may be a cause of infertility. Finally, we proved that it is feasible to preserve specificities produced by human hybridomas using phage display technique and we recovered some Fabs which may be of diagnostic and research value, and may also have some value for contraceptive vaccine. [source]

The uptake of applied ecology

JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2002
S. J. Ormerod
Summary 1We asked 229 authors who have published recently in the Journal of Applied Ecology (1999,2001) whether their papers made management or policy recommendations and whether they had evidence of consequent uptake. 2A total of 108 respondents working in the UK (34%), Europe (30%), the Americas (12%), Australasia (11%), Asia (7%) and Africa (6%) reported on 110 papers. They represented agro-ecosystems (35%), temperate forests or woodlands (16%), savanna, grass or arid lands (11%), rivers or wetlands (10%), estuaries or marine systems (7%) and tropical forests (5%). The major organisms were invertebrates (27%), birds (24%), mammals (21%) and higher plants (21%). Topics apparently under-represented in recent coverage include ecosystem science, urban areas, soils, mountain systems, fish, amphibians and lower organisms such as algae. 3Almost all papers (99%) carried recommendations and for 57% there was evidence of uptake in the broad categories of ,environmental management or models', ,information, training and education' and ,monitoring and assessment'. Most uptake involved large geographical scales through habitat or species management plans (32% of cases), effects on reserve design or designation (6%), and effects on agri-environmental policy (5%). The development of further research (11%), the communication of methods to other ecologists (9%), the dissemination of recommendations to practitioners or agencies (7%), and uptake in training or education (5%) were important uses of information. 4Prestige from publication in the Journal of Applied Ecology aided several authors in convincing end-users of research value. User involvement in research as participants or funders was widespread (> 42% of papers), a fact which almost certainly promotes uptake along with the parallel dissemination of management messages. We view applied issues as an important interface between end-users and ecologists of value to ,both' communities but suggest that improved communication will further benefit the sponsorship and application of ecological science. 5The major reason offered for lack of uptake was that it was still too soon after publication (21% of respondents). Costs, difficulty of implementation, the scale of the problem, and ,challenges to existing thinking' each figured in more than one response. 6For some respondents, papers were led by curiosity rather than the need for direct application. Several authors published in the Journal to share ideas internationally, or said that recommendations were general, conceptual or long-term rather than specific. The editors of the Journal of Applied Ecology recognize the seminal importance of contributions that affect policy incrementally and conceptually as much as those with specific application. 7These data provide evidence that ecological science is aiding environmental management and policy across a wide range of regions, ecosystems and types of organisms; rather than merely detecting problems, applied ecology is offering solutions both directly and more diffusely through conceptual advance. We invite the user community to offer their own perspectives about the value of research-led publications such as this Journal, about how links between researchers and users might be strengthened, and about how the uptake of applied ecology might be further advanced. [source]

Research Using Emergency Department,related Data Sets: Current Status and Future Directions

ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2009
Jon Mark Hirshon MD
Abstract The 2009 Academic Emergency Medicine consensus conference focused on "Public Health in the ED: Surveillance, Screening and Intervention." One conference breakout session discussed the significant research value of health-related data sets. This article represents the proceedings from that session, primarily focusing on emergency department (ED)-related data sets and includes examples of the use of a data set based on ED visits for research purposes. It discusses types of ED-related data sets available, highlights barriers to research use of ED-related data sets, and notes limitations of these data sets. The paper highlights future directions and challenges to using these important sources of data for research, including identification of five main needs related to enhancing the use of ED-related data sets. These are 1) electronic linkage of initial and follow-up ED visits and linkage of information about ED visits to other outcomes, including costs of care, while maintaining deidentification of the data; 2) timely data access with minimal barriers; 3) complete data collection for clinically relevant and/or historical data elements, such as the external cause-of-injury code; 4) easy access to data that can be parsed into smaller jurisdictions (such as states) for policy and/or research purposes, while maintaining confidentiality; and 5) linkages between health survey data and health claims data. ED-related data sets contain much data collected directly from health care facilities, individual patient records, and multiple other sources that have significant potential impact for studying and improving the health of individuals and the population. [source]