Experiences of Art Psychotherapy in Early Adulthood: an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

This study was concerned with exploring young people’s experiences of engaging in individual Art Therapy sessions. An exploratory research question was formulated and addressed using a qualitative methodology. Five young adults were recruited through voluntary organisations and art therapists in private practice. Participants took part in semi structured interviews, which were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Five master themes were constructed from the data: From an initial trepidation, young adults engaged with art materials, enjoying parts of the process. They felt under observation by their art therapists, and they overcame the challenge of trusting their therapist when they felt emotionally validated and understood. They made sense of their presenting difficulties through their art-making, gaining further psychological insight. They felt connected with their childhood, recalling fond memories and feeling compassion for their child self. They considered the impact of Art Therapy sessions as a learning experience. These findings highlight the need for further research to explore further the process of making sense of difficulties through art, and the therapeutic value of connecting to one’s childhood. Art Therapy can be experienced as a rewarding learning process, that helps young adults express and process their difficulties. Its benefits should be therefore communicated to referrers, service users and service developers, as it is a therapeutic mode that may offer different experiences to talking therapies

The fate of microplastics during the anaerobic digestion of thermally pretreated sludge

The presence of microplastics (MPs) in the water environment has raised as an issue of great concern, mainly due to their persistence and potential adverse effects on biota. Municipal wastewater treatment plants have been claimed among the most important point source of MPs. Nevertheless, they act as a barrier for the spread of MPs in water, since a significant amount of these pollutants concentrates in the sludge originating from wastewater treatment. This study focuses on the presence of MPs in sewage sludge, with the main aim of assessing their fate during the mesophilic anaerobic digestion of thermally pretreated sludge. MP abundance in the digestate as well as the anaerobic biodegradability of the pretreated substrates were assessed. Experimental results addressed preliminary considerations on the effects of high temperature on the MPs as well as on their influence on anaerobic degradation processes

Comparative genomic analysis between Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. lactis and Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. bulgaricus of dairy origin

Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. lactis and Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. bulgaricus are lactic acid bacteria commonly exploited by the dairy industry as starter cultures, mainly for the production of cheese and yogurt. In this work, we present the comparative genomic analysis between the recently sequenced genomes of L. lactis ACA-DC 178 and L. bulgaricus ACA DC 87, isolated from Kasseri cheese and yogurt, respectively. The genome of L. lactis ACA-DC 178 is larger than that of L. bulgaricus ACA-DC 87, containing 2,048 and 1,928 protein coding genes, respectively. Full chromosome alignments revealed strain specific differences, although a high degree of synteny between the two strains was also observed. The core genome of the two stains contained about 1,300 genes while the unique genes of the two strains were als oidentified. The two genomes contained several genomic islands, indicating that a number of genes have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. We also predicted one confirmed CRISPR system in each genome, three potential antimicrobial peptides in total and also prophage sequences integrated into the genomes of the two strains. Overall,our analysis provides useful insights into the technological potential of the ACA-DC 178 and ACA-DC 87 strains

Transcriptomics, Epigenetics, and Metabolomics of Primary Aldosteronism

INTRODUCTION Primary aldosteronism (PA) is the most common cause of endocrine hypertension, mainly caused by aldosterone-producing adenomas or hyperplasia; understanding its pathophysiological background is important in order to provide ameliorative treatment strategies. Over the past several years, significant progress has been documented in this field, in particular in the clarification of the genetic and molecular mechanisms responsible for the pathogenesis of aldosterone-producing adenomas (APAs). METHODS Systematic searches of the PubMed and Cochrane databases were performed for all human studies applying transcriptomic, epigenetic or metabolomic analyses to PA subjects. Studies involving serial analysis of gene expression and microarray, epigenetic studies with methylome analyses and micro-RNA expression profiles, and metabolomic studies focused on improving understanding of the regulation of autonomous aldosterone production in PA were all included. RESULTS In this review we summarize the main findings in this area and analyze the interplay between primary aldosteronism and several signaling pathways with differential regulation of the RNA and protein expression of several factors involved in, among others, steroidogenesis, calcium signaling, and nuclear, membrane and G-coupled protein receptors. Distinct transcriptomic and metabolomic patterns are also presented herein, depending on the mutational status of APAs. In particular, two partially opposite transcriptional and steroidogenic profiles appear to distinguish APAs carrying a KCNJ5 mutation from all other APAs, which carry different mutations. CONCLUSIONS These findings can substantially contribute to the development of personalized treatment in patients with PA

Internet pornography viewing preference as a risk factor for adolescent Internet addiction: the moderating role of classroom personality factors

Background and aims: Adolescent Internet pornography viewing has been significantly increased in the last decade with research highlighting its association with Internet addiction (IA). However, there is little longitudinal data on this topic, particularly in relation to peer context effects. This study aimed to examine age- and context-related variations in the Internet pornography–IA association. Methods: A total of 648 adolescents, from 34 classrooms, were assessed at 16 years and then at 18 years to examine the effect of Internet pornography preference on IA in relation to the classroom context. IA was assessed using the Internet Addiction Test (Young, 1998), Internet pornography preference (over other Internet applications) was assessed with a binary (yes/no) question, and classroom introversion and openness to experience (OTE) with the synonymous subscales within the Five Factor Questionnaire (Asendorpf & Van Aken, 2003). Results: Three-level hierarchical linear models were calculated. Findings showed that viewing Internet pornography exacerbates the risk of IA over time, while classroom factors, such as the average level of OTE and introversion, differentially moderate this relationship. Discussion and conclusion: The study demonstrated that the contribution of Internet pornography preference (as an IA risk factor) might be increased in more extroverted classrooms and decreased in OTE classrooms

Incorporating Accessibility in Web-Based Work Environments: Two Alternative Approaches and Issues Involved

The development of online work and collaboration environments presents a number of opportunities as well as challenges, especially for diverse user populations. They can enhance the mobility of workers and, subject to their design, offer access to people with disability and contribute significantly to tackling existing barriers in employment and social inclusion. At present, a number of web-based work environments have been developed; nonetheless, they hardly reach people with disability due to their low conformance with Web accessibility principles. One of the reasons why incorporating accessibility in online environments remains elusive for most Web service providers is that it is difficult for them to choose among the alternative approaches. This paper examines two different approaches of Web accessibility engineering from a provider’s perceptive and in relation to the resources required in each case. In the first approach, interfaces are made accessible by design, whereas the second approach involves the use of “filter and transformation tools” as a means to transform existing non-accessible interfaces into ones that comply with de facto Web accessibility recommendations. Based on the authors’ experience and hands-on practice on both approaches gained in the context of several European and national projects and through the development of fifteen accessible online tools in total, a study was conducted to examine the cost effectiveness of each approach. As a result, a set of practical guidelines are offered here for assisting web service providers in identifying the most appropriate approach with regards to the different needs of any given project

Adaptation of Streptococcus macedonicus and Streptococcus thermophilus in milk. Common strategies, distinct ways.

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are the most important bacteria in food fermentations. Among the genera included in LAB is the Streptococcus genus, containing a number of species that are commensals and opportunistic pathogens. Up to now only one species in the Streptococcus genus, Streptococcus thermophilus, has been traditionally used as a starter in milk and is considered a domesticated organism. However, Streptococcus macedonicus, belonging to the S. bovis/S. equinus complex (SBSEC), can be also found in milk. In this study, S. macedonicus was fully sequenced and a comparative analysis was performed against all other SBSEC members. According to our analysis, S. macedonicus missed several genes encoding enzymes for the degradation of complex plant carbohydrates typically met in the genome of Streptococcus gallolyticus, indicating a reduced ability to survive in the gastrointestinal tract of herbivores. In addition, two pilus operons necessary for the adhesion of S. gallolyticus to the host and the initiation of infection were absent from the S. macedonicus genome. Adaptation of S. macedonicus to the milk environment was supported by the presence of an extra lactose operon. Finally, the plasmid pSMA198 found in S. macedonicus also provided evidence about the habituation of the species to milk. Our findings support adaptation of S. macedonicus to the rich in nutrients milk environment characterized by diminished biosynthetic capabilities and loss of pathogenicity-related genes in parallel to gene gain events through horizontal gene transfer, similarly to S. thermophilus. Comparative analysis between S. macedonicus and S. thermophilus though revealed numerous species-specific differences at the genomic and proteomic level, suggesting that common strategies can be used by truly divergent organisms during their evolutionary histor

Characterization of the dairy Streptococcus thermophilus ACA-DC 29 strain through comparative genomics

Background: Although the Streptococcus genus includes mainly pathogenic species, Streptococcus thermophilus is a widely used dairy starter culture of great economic importance for the food industry. S. thermophilus has been adapted to milk probably through a degenerative evolution process that has led to the loss of typical streptococcal pathogenic traits. Objectives: The genome sequence of the yogurt isolate S. thermophilus ACA-DC 29 was analyzed for assessing the technological potential of this strain. Comparative genomics analysis was also performed between the genome of ACA-DC 29 and the existing complete genome sequences of S. thermophilus. Methods:The genome sequence of ACA-DC 29 was annotated using online annotation tools. Full chromosome alignments were calculated with Progressive Mauve. The pangenome, the core genome and the unique genes were predicted with the GView Server. The genomic islands, the CRISPRs and the antimicrobial peptides were predicted with IslandViewer, CRISPRcompar and BAGEL3, respectively. Conclusions:The analysis of the S. thermophilus ACA-DC 29 genome sequence revealed the absence of pathogenic features. Genes related to the adaptation to milk were identified. Full chromosome alignments showed a high degree of synteny among the different strains. The pangenome of the ten strains comprised of approximately 2,300 genes. Concerning the ACA-DC 29 strain, approximately 250 unique genes involved in various biological processes were also identified. Further analysis indicated that several of them may have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. Five potential antimicrobial peptides and two CRISPR systems, which may confer resistance against phages, were also predicted

Comparative genomic analysis among three dairy Streptococcus macedonicusstrains

Streptococcus macedonicus and Streptococcus infantarius, two species within the Streptococcus bovis/ Streptococcus equinus complex (SBSEC) are frequently found in spontaneously fermented foods especially of dairy origin. These two species have been suggested to be non-pathogenic and to have been adapted to the dairy environment similarly to Streptococcus thermophilus. Analysis of the first complete genomes of S. macedonicus and S. infantarius indicated that they may be indeed adapted to milk but they also have retained a restricted repertoire of virulence traits when compared to well characterized pathogenic streptococci. In this study we performed comparative genomic analysis among S. macedonicus strains, isolated from Italian, French and Greek dairy products. The contigs of the Italian and French partial genomes were aligned using as a reference the Greek S. macedonicus ACA-DC 198 genome, the only S. macedonicus genome that is completely sequenced to date. Based on these assemblies, we constructed two distinct pseudochromosomes for the French and the Italian strains. Despite the artifactual nature of the two chromosomes, pairwise alignments among the three genomes revealed a high degree of synteny. The genetic information was overall conserved, but strain specific regions also existed. Furthermore, the analysis revealed that the French S. macedonicus strain has lost genes involved in the catabolism of complex plant carbohydrates, in the adhesion to the host’s cells and in haemolysis. On the other hand, an extra lactose operon and a proteolytic system characteristic of lactic acid bacteria were identified, indicating their evolutionary adaptation to the milk environment. Analogous observations could also be made for the Italian strain. Even though our findings further support the adaptation of the S. macedonicus species to milk fermentation, the analysis of the additional S. macedonicus genomes, including non-dairy isolates, may be necessary to clarify its pathogenic potentia