Psychiatry:5-a-day keeps psychological distress at bay

This month, research published inBMC精神病学shows that eating five portions of fruit and vegetables each day is associated with lower psychological distress. Researchers have long suggested that the complex mix of nutrients present in fruit and vegetables might account for better health and well-being. More recently the benefits of a diet rich in fruit and vegetables on mental health have also been explored, as presented in这个博客. Three portions of vegetables and two portions of fruit a day seem to be the optimal balance correlated to a lower risk of mental health issues.

Medical ethics:Integrating values with evidence-based medicine

As part of the cross-journal series onExtending evidence-based medicine,BMC Medical Ethicsdebates this month the importance of values in evidence-based medicine (EBM). 20 years after its birth, the EBM movement is now facing an increasing number of critics for having imposed an overly technical approach that does not always take into consideration patients’ needs. In this debate article, the authors comment on the need to include values to define questions and methods and to consider patients’ and clinicians’ values in the process of clinical decision making to strengthen the humanitarian principles on which EBM is based.

Microbiology:Can different strains of Chlamydia cause different reactions?

尽管遗传变异有限，但已知不同的肺炎衣原体菌株在宿主感染期间会产生不同的反应，即急性呼吸反应以及慢性病原体诱导的并发症。这项研究BMC Microbiologycompares two strains ofC.pneumoniaebylooking at both体外andin vivobacterial growth and host responses, demonstrating the existence of phenotypic differences between human isolates that lead to differences in inflammatory potential.

Image of the month

This picture fromMa et al., BMC Plant Biology 2015, 15:237shows the effect of ambient temperature on flower phenotypes of rose plants.

Evolutionary biology:Northern lizards benefit from a warmer world

New research published inBMC Evolutionary Biologysuggests a positive effect of climate warming on the Swedish sand lizardLacerta agilis.较高的春季温度提高了卵子的日期，这是一个与后代生存的特征，这表明气候对这个高纬度人群的有益作用。

Geriatrics:“He seems to be ill” said the nurse

Signs and symptoms of infections in nursing home residents usually go undetected, leading to a delay in diagnosis and treatment. Assessments are often based on the observations of nurses, who are not involved further in the decision-making process. A new study inBMC Geriatrics提出了一种新工具的开发和验证，即感染量表（EDIS）的早期检测，该发现使用了护士报告中的定性数据，以早期发现疗养院中的感染。

Genomics:Pathogenic bacterial gene circuits

BMC Genomicspresents this month a study on bacterial pathways for pathogenicity, part of an ambitious project to create an encyclopedia for bacteria – host interactions. Using the KEGG repository, a comparative genomic assessment identified sets of genes abundant in pathogenic but absent in commensal strains, allowing the elucidation of gene clusters and circuits as possible signatures of pathogenicity.