Zwarte Piet

Portraits of the historical figure of Black Pete who plays servant to Sinta Klaas in the Dutch Christmas myth. These startling portraits of velvet-clad white women and children blacked-up as Zwarte Piet playfully reveal an ambiguous character who sits uncomfortably in European history. Essay by Meike Ba

Ternary Complex Formation and Competition Quench Fluorescence of ZnAF Family Zinc Sensors

Our current understanding of the intracellular thermodynamics and kinetics of Zn(II) ions is largely based on the application of fluorescent sensor molecules, used to study and visualize the concentration, distribution and transport of Zn(II) ions in real time. Such agents are designed for high selectivity for zinc in respect to other biological metal ions. However, the issue of their sensitivity to physiological levels of 10 low molecular weight Zn(II) ligands (LMWLs) has not been addressed. We followed the effects of eight such compounds on the fluorescence of ZnAF-1 and ZnAF-2F, two representatives of ZnAF family of fluorescein-based zinc sensors containing the N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine chelating unit. Fluorescence titrations of equimolar Zn(II)/ZnAF-1 and Zn(II)/ZnAF-2F solutions with acetate, phosphate, citrate, glycine, glutamic acid, histidine, ATP and GSH demonstrated strong fluorescence 15 quenching. These results are interpreted in terms of an interplay of the formation of the [ZnAF-Zn(II)- LMWL] ternary complexes and the competition for Zn(II) between ZnAF and LMWLs. UV-vis spectroscopic titrations revealed the existence of supramolecular interactions between the fluorescein moiety of ZnAF-1 and ATP and His, which, however, did not contribute to fluorescence quenching. Therefore, the obtained results show that the ZnAF sensors, other currently used zinc sensors containing 20 the N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine unit, and, in general, all sensors that do not saturate the Zn(II) coordination sphere, may co-report cellular metabolites and Zn(II) ions, leading to misrepresentations of the concentrations and fluxes of biological zinc

Mutual powerlessness in client participation practices in mental health care

Background  Client participation has become a dominant policy goal in many countries including the Netherlands and is a topic much discussed in the literature. The success of client participation is usually measured in terms of the extent to which clients have a say in the participation process. Many articles have concluded that client participation is limited; professionals often still control the participation process and outcomes. Objective  The objective of this study is to gain insight into (i) the practice of client participation within a quality improvement collaborative in mental health care and (ii) the consequences of a Foucauldian conceptualization of power in analysing practices of client participation. Design  We used an ethnographic design consisting of observations of national events and improvement team meetings and interviews with the collaborative’s team members and programme managers. Results  Contrary to many studies on client participation, we found both clients and service providers frequently felt powerless in its practice. Professionals and clients alike struggled with the contributions clients could make to the improvement processes and what functions they should fulfil. Moreover, professionals did not want to exert power upon clients, but ironically just for that reason sometimes struggled with shaping practices of client participation. This mutual powerlessness (partly) disappeared when clients helped to determine and execute specific improvement actions instead of participating in improvement teams. Conclusion  Recognizing that power is inescapable might allow for a more substantive discussion concerning the consequences that power arrangements produce, rather than looking at who is exerting how much power

Domoic Acid-Induced Neurotoxicity Is Mainly Mediated by the AMPA/KA Receptor: Comparison between Immature and Mature Primary Cultures of Neurons and Glial Cells from Rat Cerebellum

Domoic acid (DomA) is a naturally occurring shellfish toxin that can induce brain damage in mammalians. Neonates have shown increased sensitivity to DomA-induced toxicity, and prenatal exposure has been associated with e.g. decreased brain GABA levels, and increased glutamate levels. Here, we evaluated DomA-induced toxicity in immature and mature primary cultures of neurons and glial cells from rat cerebellum by measuring the mRNA levels of selected genes. Moreover, we assessed if the induced toxicity was mediated by the activation of the AMPA/KA and/or the NMDA receptor. The expression of all studied neuronal markers was affected after DomA exposure in both immature and mature cultures. However, the mature cultures seemed to be more sensitive to the treatment, as the effects were observed at lower concentrations and at earlier time points than for the immature cultures. The DomA effects were completely prevented by the antagonist of the AMPA/KA receptor (NBQX), while the antagonist of the NMDA receptor (APV) partly blocked the DomA-induced effects. Interestingly, the DomA-induced effect was also partly prevented by the neurotransmitter GABA. DomA exposure also affected the mRNA levels of the astrocytic markers in mature cultures. These DomA-induced effects were reduced by the addition of NBQX, APV, and GABA

Mutual powerlessness in client participation practices in mental health care

Background Client participation has become a dominant policy goal in many countries including the Netherlands and is a topic much discussed in the literature. The success of client participation is usually measured in terms of the extent to which clients have a say in the participation process. Many articles have concluded that client participation is limited; professionals often still control the participation process and outcomes. Objective The objective of this study is to gain insight into (i) the practice of client participation within a quality improvement collaborative in mental health care and (ii) the consequences of a Foucauldian conceptualization of power in analysing practices of client participation. Design We used an ethnographic design consisting of observations of national events and improvement team meetings and interviews with the collaborative's team members and programme managers. Results Contrary to many studies on client participation, we found both clients and service providers frequently felt powerless in its practice. Professionals and clients alike struggled with the contributions clients could make to the improvement processes and what functions they should fulfil. Moreover, professionals did not want to exert power upon clients, but ironically just for that reason sometimes struggled with shaping practices of client participation. This mutual powerlessness (partly) disappeared when clients helped to determine and execute specific improvement actions instead of participating in improvement teams. Conclusion Recognizing that power is inescapable might allow for a more substantive discussion concerning the consequences that power arrangements produce, rather than looking at who is exerting how much power

Reaktywność naczyń mózgowych w warunkach hipokapnii i hiperkapnii u chorych na cukrzycę typu 2 z nadciśnieniem tętniczym i bez nadciśnienia tętniczego

Background and purpose Diabetes mellitus (DM) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The origin of diabetic microangiopathy is multifactorial; it affects all layers of the artery wall, causing endothelial and vasoreactivity impairment. The incidence of cerebral vasoreactivity failure in diabetic patients without stroke history is not precisely determined yet. The aim of the study was to assess the cerebrovascular reactivity in hypocapnia and hypercapnia in patients with type 2 DM with or without arterial hypertension without artery stenosis and stroke history, with the use of transcranial Doppler examination. Material and methods The mean blood flow velocity, pulsatility index and parameters of cerebrovascular reactivity were measured in 53 patients with type 2 DM (aged 42–72 years, mean 59.5 ± 7.9) and in 27 healthy volunteers (aged 36–74 years, mean 57.0 ± 10.4). Diabetics were further divided into two subgroups according to the presence or absence of arterial hypertension. Results The index of cerebrovascular reactivity in hypocapnia and hypercapnia was significantly worse and time needed to normalization of blood flow velocity was significantly longer in patients with DM in comparison with healthy volunteers. Conclusions Most DM type 2 patients without stroke history had decreased values of cerebral vasoreactivity parameters, which suggests the presence of microangiopathy.Wstęp i cel pracy Cukrzyca to niezależny czynnik ryzyka rozwoju chorób układu naczyniowego. Pochodzenie cukrzycowej angiopatii jest wieloczynnikowe. Nie określono dotąd dokładnie częstości występowania upośledzenia reakcji wazoaktywnych u chorych na cukrzycę typu 2 bez incydentów udarowych w wywiadzie. Celem pracy było zbadanie przy użyciu przezczaszkowej ultrasonografii prędkości średniej przepływu krwi, współczynnika pulsacji oraz parametrów reaktywności naczyń mózgowych w warunkach hipokapnii i hiperkapnii u chorych na cukrzycę typu 2 z nadciśnieniem tętniczym lub bez nadciśnienia tętniczego bez ultrasonograficznych cech zwężeń tętnic szyjnych i mózgowych oraz nieobciążonych udarem mózgu. Materiał i metody Badania wykonano u 53 chorych (27 kobiet i 26 mężczyzn) w wieku od 42 do 72 lat (średnia wieku 59,5 ± 7,9 roku) z cukrzycą typu 2. Wśród chorych wydzielono podgrupy z nadciśnieniem tętniczym i bez nadciśnienia. Grupę kontrolną stanowiło 27 ochotników w wieku 36–74 lat (średnia wieku 57,0 ± 10,4 roku). U wszystkich przeprowadzono badanie dopplerowskie tętnic szyjnych i mózgowych oraz oznaczono współczynnik reaktywności naczyń mózgowych w warunkach hipokapnii i hiperkapnii. Wyniki W hipokapnii i hiperkapnii u chorych na cukrzycę typu 2 stwierdzono istotnie mniejsze współczynniki reaktywności naczyń mózgowych oraz znamiennie dłuższy czas normalizacji prędkości przepływu krwi w prawej tętnicy środkowej mózgu w stosunku do grupy kontrolnej. Wnioski U znacznej części chorych na cukrzycę typu 2 bez incydentów niedokrwienia mózgu w wywiadzie występują w hipokapnii i hiperkapnii mniejsze wartości parametrów reaktywności naczyń mózgowych, mogące sugerować obecność mikroangiopatii

Cost-effectiveness of a pressure ulcer quality collaborative

ABSTRACT. BACKGROUND: A quality improvement collaborative (QIC) in the Dutch long-term care sector (nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home care) used evidence-based prevention methods to reduce the incidence and prevalence of pressure ulcers (PUs). The collaborative consisted of a core team of experts and 25 organizational project teams. Our aim was to determine its cost-effectiveness from a healthcare perspective. METHODS: We used a non-controlled pre-post design to establish the change in incidence and prevalence of PUs in 88 patients over the course of a year. Staff indexed data and prevention methods (activities, materials). Quality of life (Qol) weights were assigned to the PU states. We assessed the costs of activities and materials in the project. A Markov model was built based on effectiveness and cost data, complemented with a probabilistic sensitivity analysis. To illustrate the results of longer term, three scenarios were created in which change in incidence and prevalence measures were (1) not sust

A role for the Hsp90 molecular chaperone family in antigen presentation to T lymphocytes via major histocompatibility complex class II molecules

The heat shock protein (HSP) Hsp90 is known to chaperone cytosolic peptides for MHC class I (MHCI)-restricted antigen presentation to T lymphocytes. We now demonstrate a role for Hsp90 activity in presentation of antigens on MHCII. Treatment of mouse antigen-presenting cells (APC) with the pharmacological Hsp90 inhibitor, geldanamycin, inhibited MHCII-mediated presentation of endocytosed and cytosolic proteins as well as synthetic peptides to specific T cells. Ectopic expression of human Hsp90 in APC enhanced MHCII-mediated antigen presentation. Further, pharmacological Hsp90 inhibition reduced, while retroviral Hsp90 overexpression enhanced, the levels of stable compact MHCII heterodimers correlating with the antigen presentation phenotype. Pharmacological inhibition of Hsp90 activity in IFN-γ-treated APC resulted in severe abrogation of MHCII-restricted presentation of cytosolic antigen, but only partially inhibited exogenous antigen presentation. Our data suggest a major role for Hsp90 activity in MHCII-mediated antigen presentation pathways, and implicate IFN-γ-inducible Hsp90-independent mechanisms

Anna Fox photographs 1983-2007

This retrospective features selections from all of Fox's major projects. Beginning with her earliest projects, Basingstoke, Work Stations and Friendly Fire; each a critical exploration of the social make up and behaviour of Thatcher's Britain in the 1980s; the book charts her progress through more personal, diaristic bodies of work including Hewitt Road, Coackroach Diary and My Mother's Cupboards and My Father's Words. More recent projects, Country Girls and Pictures of Linda chronicle Fox's relationship with the musicians Alison Goldfrapp and Linda Lunus through a series of intimate, playful and performative portraits