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Abstract: Adherence to proper environmental cleaning practices is critical in food establishments. To validate cleanliness, cleaning practices should be routinely monitored, preferably by a rapid, reliable, and cost-effective method. The aim of this study was to determine whether a correlation exists between ATP bioluminescence measurements and selected microbial assessments in studies conducted in food establishments. A systematic literature review and meta-analysis was conducted using the principles of preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Twelve online databases and search engines were selected for the review. Peer-reviewed articles published in English between January 2000 and July 2020 were included in the search. From a total of 19 eligible studies, 3 that included Pearson correlation coefficients (r) between ATP bioluminescence measurements and microbial assessments were used for the meta-analysis calculations. Only the fixed-effect model produced a strong correlation because one value dominated the estimates: r = 0.9339 (0.9278, 0.9399). In contrast, both the random effects model, 0.2978 (0.24, 0.3471), and the mixed effects model, r = 0.3162 (-0.0387, 0.6711), indicated a weak relationship between ATP bioluminescence and microbial assessments, with no evidence of a strong correlation. The meta-analysis results indicated no sufficient evidence of a strong correlation between ATP bioluminescence measurements and microbial assessments when applied within food establishments. This lack of evidence for a strong correlation between the results of these two monitoring tools suggests that food establishments cannot depend on only one method. Yet, with immediate feedback and quantification of organic soiling, ATP bioluminescence could be an effective monitoring tool to use in food establishments., (Copyright ©, International Association for Food Protection.)

Peripubertal exposure of male rodents to the phthalate metabolite mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP) causes testicular inflammation, spermatocyte apoptosis, and disruption of the blood-testis barrier. The MEHP-induced inflammatory response in the testis includes an infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils, although the cause and purpose of this response is unknown. Recently, a population of testicular macrophages known as peritubular macrophages that are phenotypically distinct from those resident in interstitium was described in mice. Peritubular macrophages aggregate near the spermatogonial stem cell niche and are believed to stimulate their differentiation. We hypothesized that if testicular peritubular macrophages do indeed stimulate spermatogonial differentiation, MEHP exposure would result in an increase of peritubular macrophages to stimulate the replacement of lost spermatocytes. Male rats were exposed to 700 mg/kg MEHP or corn oil (vehicle control) via oral gavage at postnatal day 28 and euthanized at 48 h, 1 or 2 weeks later. Seminiferous tubules were stained with immunofluorescent markers for macrophages (major histocompatibility complex class II [MHC-II+]) and undifferentiated spermatogonia (PLZF). Peritubular macrophages were observed in rat testis: MHC-II+ cells on the surface of seminiferous tubules with heterogeneous morphology. Quantification of MHC-II+ cells revealed that, unlike in the mouse, their numbers did not increase through puberty (2-week period). MEHP increased macrophage presence by 6-fold 48 h after exposure and remained elevated by 2-fold 2 weeks after exposure. An increase of differentiating spermatogonia occurred 2 weeks after MEHP exposure. Taken together, our results suggest that peritubular macrophages play a crucial role in the testis response to acute injury and the subsequent recovery of spermatogenesis., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Toxicology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: The 2004 tsunami, the civil conflict until 2009 and the youth insurrection in the late 1980s in Sri Lanka resulted in many persons being classified as 'missing' as they disappeared and were unaccounted for. Our aim was to compare the prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) and prolonged grief disorder (PGD) in families of disappeared individuals, who eventually received the mortal remains and those who did not., Method: An ethically approved cross sectional study was conducted in a purposively selected sample after informed consent. Information on the circumstances of the family member going missing was gathered. Culturally adapted versions of the General Health Questionnaire and the Beck Depression Scale were administered. Those who screened positive were assessed by a psychiatrist on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 criteria to arrive at a diagnosis., Results: Of 391 cases of disappearances studied, MDD (17.5% v. 6%) and PGD (22% v. 7%) were significantly higher in those who did not eventually receive the mortal remains of the disappeared person. Among those who did not receive the mortal remains, being unsure whether the disappeared person was dead or alive was highly predictive of MDD and PGD. Mothers and wives, older family members and those with a family history of mental illness were more vulnerable., Conclusions: Family members of missing individuals unsure whether their loved one was alive or dead have higher psychological morbidity in the form of MDD and PGD.

Background: The Sri Lankan twin registry is one of the first to be established in a developing country, and its design has ensured sampling from a wide range of environmental conditions. It thus has great potential to examine environmental and genetic influences on diverse phenotypes, including psychiatric disorders, in the context of a diversity of environmental exposures, which may not have been fully explored in previous twin studies in developed countries. This paper presents the rationale for the study, describes its context, and the methods for twin ascertainment and data collection., Methods: A population-based twin register was established in the Colombo district of Sri Lanka using infrastructure designed to periodically update the electoral register. We invited a subsample from this register to participate in the project on common mental disorders, using random ascertainment. A separate non-twin sample was randomly selected from the geographical areas where twins were found. Home interviewers collected diagnostic information on common mental disorders, as well as environmental exposures including life events, socio-economic conditions, and the impact of the civil war and the Tsunami of 2004., Results: We identified 19,302 individuals in the creation of the population based twin register. We randomly selected a subsample, of whom 4,387 were eligible to participate and 4,024 agreed to be interviewed (including data on 1,954 complete pairs of twins and 5 sets of triplets). Those who refused consent had a similar mean age and sex ratio to those who were interviewed. We invited 2,485 singletons to participate and 2,019 were interviewed., Conclusion: Initial exploration of the data suggests the samples are very representative of the Colombo district of Sri Lanka, so we have created a unique resource for understanding the influences on mental disorders in developing countries, and to compare to the influences found in developed countries.

The Sri Lankan Twin Registry began as a volunteer register in 1997. Previously, we have shown door-to-door surveys as the best option to build a population-based twin register of older, adult twins. Our aim was to build a population-based twin register in the Colombo district and use it for twin studies on common mental disorders. We aimed to identify a random sample of 4000 twins ascertained through the twin census. The Colombo district is divided into 13 divisional secretariat divisions (DSDs) and each division is further divided into Grama Niladari divisions administratively. Grama niladaris (GNs) are civil servants and visit each household in order to update the electoral register. GNs were used to do a census of twins while they updated the electoral register. The correlation between population density and twin rate among DSDs was .81, and between twin rate and the percentage of returned forms (from each DSD) was .74. We received 9648 forms notifying about twins and multiples. After removing the duplicates and information about twins who live in other districts, there were 17,406 multiples remaining. After incorporating twins and multiples from various other feasibility studies we now have 19,040 multiples with 8.46 twins per 1000 people in the Colombo district.