487 research outputs found
Treatment for Schistosoma japonicum, Reduction of Intestinal Parasite Load, and Cognitive Test Score Improvements in School-Aged Children
Parasitic worm infections are associated with cognitive impairment and lower academic achievement for infected relative to uninfected children. However, it is unclear whether curing or reducing worm infection intensity improves child cognitive function. We examined the independent associations between: (i) Schistosoma japonicum infection-free duration, (ii) declines in single helminth species, and (iii) joint declines of âĽ2 soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections and improvements in four cognitive tests during18 months of follow-up. Enrolled were schistosome-infected school-aged children among whom coinfection with STH was common. All children were treated for schistosome infection only at enrolment with praziquantel. Children cured or schistosome-free for >12 months scored higher in memory and verbal fluency tests compared to persistently infected children. Likewise, declines of single and polyparasitic STH infections predicted higher scores in three of four tests. We conclude that reducing the intensity of certain helminth species and the frequency of multi-species STH infections may have long-term benefits for affected children's cognitive performance. The rapidity of schistosome re-infection and the ubiquity of concurrent multi-species infection highlight the importance of sustained deworming for both schistosome and STH infections to enhance the learning and educational attainment of children in helminth-endemic settings
Programa de intervenciĂłn en representaciones de creatividad y motivaciĂłn acadĂŠmica de adolescentes
Creativity and its promotion are widespread concerns in education. However, few efforts have been made to implement
intervention programs designed to promote creativity and other related aspects (e.g., academic motivation). The Future Problem Solving
Program International (FPSPI), aimed for training creativity representations and creative problem solving skills in young people, has
been one of the most implemented programs. This interventionâs materials and activities were adapted for Portuguese students, and
a longitudinal study was conducted. The program was implemented during four months, in weekly sessions, by thirteen teachers.
Teachers received previous training for the program and during the programâs implementation. Intervention participants included
77 Basic and Secondary Education students, and control participants included 78 equivalent students. Pretest-posttest measures of
academic motivation and creativity representations were collected. Results suggest a significant increase, in the intervention group,
in motivation and the appropriate representations of creativity. Practical implications and future research perspectives are presented.A criatividade e sua promoção geram grande preocupação em educação. Contudo, poucos esforços têm existido para
implementar programas destinados a sua promoção e de outros aspetos relacionados (e.g., motivação acadêmica). O Future Problem
Solving Program International (FPSPI), criado para melhorar as representaçþes de criatividade e a resolução criativa de problemas
em jovens, tem sido um dos mais implementados. Os seus materiais e atividades foram adaptados para estudantes portugueses,
efetuando-se um estudo longitudinal. O programa foi implementado durante quatro meses, semanalmente, por treze professores, que
receberam formação antes e durante a implementação. O grupo experimental incluiu 77 estudantes do Ensino Båsico e Secundårio,
apresentando o grupo de controlo 78 estudantes com caracterĂsticas equivalentes. Os dados sobre a motivação e criatividade foram
recolhidos num prÊ e pós-teste. Os resultados sugerem um aumento significativo na motivação e crenças apropriadas de criatividade
no grupo experimental. Implicaçþes pråticas e perspectivas para investigaçþes futuras são apresentadas.La creatividad y su promoción generan gran preocupación en educación. Sin embargo, han sido llevados a cabo pocos
esfuerzos para implementar programas de promociĂłn de la creatividad y otros aspectos (e.g., motivaciĂłn acadĂŠmica). El Future
Problem Solving Program International (FPSPI), creado para mejorar las representaciones de creatividad y la soluciĂłn creativa de
problemas en jĂłvenes, ha sido bastante implementado. Se adaptaron sus materiales y actividades para estudiantes portugueses, y
se desarrollĂł un estudio longitudinal. El programa se implementĂł semanalmente durante cuatro meses por trece profesores, que
recibieron formaciĂłn antes y durante la implementaciĂłn. El grupo experimental incluyĂł 77 estudiantes de EducaciĂłn Primaria y
Secundaria y el grupo de control incluyĂł 78 estudiantes con caracterĂsticas semejantes. Los datos de motivaciĂłn y creatividad fueron
recogidos en un pre y post-test, sugiriendo un aumento significativo de motivaciĂłn y creencias apropiadas sobre la creatividad en el
grupo experimental. Se presentan implicaciones pråcticas y perspectivas para futuras investigaciones.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - SFRH/BPD/80825/201
Chemical warfare between leafcutter ant symbionts and a co-evolved pathogen
Acromyrmex leafcutter ants form a mutually beneficial symbiosis with the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus and with Pseudonocardia bacteria. Both are vertically transmitted and actively maintained by the ants. The fungus garden is manured with freshly cut leaves and provides the sole food for the ant larvae, while Pseudonocardia cultures are reared on the ant-cuticle and make antifungal metabolites to help protect the cultivar against disease. If left unchecked, specialized parasitic Escovopsis fungi can overrun the fungus-garden and lead to colony collapse. We report that Escovopsis upregulates the production of two specialized metabolites when it infects the cultivar. These compounds inhibit Pseudonocardia and one, shearinine D, also reduces worker behavioral defences and is ultimately lethal when it accumulates in ant tissues. Our results are consistent with an active evolutionary arms race between Pseudonocardia and Escovopsis, which modifies both bacterial and behavioral defences such that colony collapse is unavoidable once Escovopsis infections escalate
Influence of GB virus C on IFN-Îł and IL-2 production and CD38 expression in T lymphocytes from chronically HIV-infected and HIV-HCV-co-infected patients
This study was designed to assess the effect of GB virus (GBV)-C on the immune response to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in chronically HIV-infected and HIV- hepatitis C virus (HCV)-co-infected patients undergoing antiretroviral therapy. A cohort of 159 HIV-seropositive patients, of whom 52 were HCV-co-infected, was included. Epidemiological data were collected and virological and immunological markers, including the production of interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and interleukin (IL)-2 by CD4, CD8 and Tγδ cells and the expression of the activation marker, CD38, were assessed. A total of 65 patients (40.8%) presented markers of GBV-C infection. The presence of GBV-C did not influence HIV and HCV replication or TCD4 and TCD8 cell counts. Immune responses, defined by IFN-γ and IL-2 production and CD38 expression did not differ among the groups. Our results suggest that neither GBV-C viremia nor the presence of E2 antibodies influence HIV and HCV viral replication or CD4 T cell counts in chronically infected patients. Furthermore, GBV-C did not influence cytokine production or CD38-driven immune activation among these patients. Although our results do not exclude a protective effect of GBV-C in early HIV disease, they demonstrate that this effect may not be present in chronically infected patients, who represent the majority of patients in outpatient clinics.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Laboratório de Virologia e Imunologia Disciplina de InfectologiaFleury Medicina DiagnósticaUNIFESP, Laboratório de Virologia e Imunologia Disciplina de InfectologiaSciEL
The impacts of oral health on quality of life in working adults
This study investigated the impacts of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) on daily activities and work productivity in adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a supermarket chain in the state of SĂŁo Paulo, which included 386 workers, age-range 20 â 64 years. Participants were examined for oral disease following WHO recommendations, and the oral health impact profile (OHIP) assessment was used to determine OHRQoL. Demographic, socio-economic, use of dental services, and OHRQoL data were obtained. Answers to the OHIP were dichotomized into no impact and some impact, and the relationship to OHRQoL was determined. Poisson regression with robust variance was performed using SPSS version 17.0. Dimensions with highest OHIP scores were physical pain and psychological discomfort. Sex (male: PR = 0 .55, 9 5% C I 0 .38 â 0.80), lower family i ncome (PR = 1.49, 95% CI 1.04 â 2.12), visiting a dentist due to pain (PR = 2.14, 95% CI 1.57 â 3.43), tooth loss (PR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.09 â 2.32), and needing treatment for caries (PR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.09 â 2.32) were most likely to impact OHRQoL. Therefore, socioeconomic and demographic status and use of dental services impacted OHRQoL. These results indicate that oral health promotion strategies should be included in work environments
Compressed representation of a partially defined integer function over multiple arguments
In OLAP (OnLine Analitical Processing) data are analysed in an n-dimensional cube. The cube may be represented as a partially defined function over n arguments. Considering that often the function is not defined everywhere, we ask: is there a known way of representing the function or the points in which it is defined, in a more compact manner than the trivial one
Azimuthal anisotropy of charged particles at high transverse momenta in PbPb collisions at sqrt(s[NN]) = 2.76 TeV
The azimuthal anisotropy of charged particles in PbPb collisions at
nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of 2.76 TeV is measured with the CMS
detector at the LHC over an extended transverse momentum (pt) range up to
approximately 60 GeV. The data cover both the low-pt region associated with
hydrodynamic flow phenomena and the high-pt region where the anisotropies may
reflect the path-length dependence of parton energy loss in the created medium.
The anisotropy parameter (v2) of the particles is extracted by correlating
charged tracks with respect to the event-plane reconstructed by using the
energy deposited in forward-angle calorimeters. For the six bins of collision
centrality studied, spanning the range of 0-60% most-central events, the
observed v2 values are found to first increase with pt, reaching a maximum
around pt = 3 GeV, and then to gradually decrease to almost zero, with the
decline persisting up to at least pt = 40 GeV over the full centrality range
measured.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
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