Retrieval-induced forgetting as motivated cognition

Recalling information from a particular category can reduce one's memory capability for related, non-retrieved information. This is known as the retrieval-induced forgetting effect (RIF; Anderson et al., 1994). The present paper reviews studies that show that the RIF effect is motivated. More specifically, we describe research showing that the need for closure (NFC; the motivation to attain epistemic certainty; Kruglanski and Webster, 1996) generally enhances the RIF, because this prevents uncertainty and confusion from the intrusion of unwanted memories during selective-retrieval. However, when the content of the to-be-forgotten information serves the retriever's goals, NFC reduces RIF. Overall, the present findings are consistent with the view that motivation can affect the magnitude of RIF effects which, in turn, can serve as a mechanism for reaching preferred conclusion

Psychological, emotional and social impairments are associated with adherence and healthcare spending in type 2 diabetic patients: an observational study

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to assess the association among anxiety, depression, stress, social support and emotional abilities with adherence and healthcare spending in type 2 diabetic patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-four patients were enrolled and completed: Interpersonal Processes of Care (IPC), 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), Rapid Stress Assessment Scale (RSAS), Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-4), International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ)-Short Form and a socio-anamnestic questionnaire regarding also the healthcare spending. RESULTS: Mathematical linear regressions models were performed showing the predictive effects of: anxiety and social support scores (RSAS) on adherence levels (respectively p =. 019; p =. 016); adherence levels on anxiolytic use (p =.04); aggressiveness scores (RSAS) on the number of general check-ups (p =.031); TAS-20 and physician-patient communication (IPC) on the number of hospitalization days (respectively p=.001; p=.008); physician patient decision making (IPC) scores on physical activity (IPAQ) levels (p=.025); physical activity (IPAQ) on the number of medical examinations (p=.039). CONCLUSIONS: An association among psychosocial impairment, adherence and health- care spending was found. Future studies should investigate the effect of a brief psychological intervention in increasing adherence levels and reducing the healthcare spending in this clinical population

Molecular methods: are their results of help or do they make more confuse the clinical management of patients?

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Global epidemiology of Zika and Chikungunya virus human infections

Zika virus was discovered in 1947. The first reported case of Zika fever was in a sentinel rhesus monkey in Uganda in 1947, while the first human cases were reported in Nigeria in 1954. Since the first evidence of human infection, Zika was active in several countries in Africa and Asia, as sporadic cases and serological evidence of Zika human infections have been demonstrated in several reports. The outbreak of Zika in Yap Island in 2007 is considered the first emergency of this infection. Since then Zika has spread worldwide with a large ongoing epidemic in South and Central America. A huge concern nowadays is about the relationship between Zika infection and microcephaly and about the sexual transmission of the virus. The first identified outbreak of Chikungunya human infection, with an incidence estimated at 23%, was reported from July 1952 to March 1953 in the Southern Province of the current Tanzania. Since then Chikungunya circulated mainly in continental Africa with limited outbreaks. The virus started to spread east bound involving most of the areas surroundings the Indian Ocean. In 2004/2005 a large outbreak developed in La Reunion a French territory in the Indian Ocean: from this point Chikungunya spread to India and from there, due a viraemic traveller returning from Kerala, to Italy where in the summer of 2007 the first outbreak with local viral transmission in a temperate climate zone occurred. In the following years Chikungunya moved to the Caribbean and South America. Recently also the USA experienced the spread of this virus and a limited outbreak based again on local spreading occurred in the French Department of Var, in August 2017

Chikungunya: an emerging and spreading arthropod-borne viral disease

The infection caused by the virus Chikungunya is known since the last 50 years, but since the disease was mainly diffuse in geographical areas located in developing countries, a few research work have been made available until the appearance of an important epidemiological outbreak in 2005 in the island of La Reunion, that is part of metropolitan France even if located in the Southern Eastern part of the Indian Ocean. In 2007, a smaller outbreak of Chikungunya developed in the Northern Eastern part of Italy, where the local transmission has been made possible by the enormous population of Aedes albopictus and the presence of a viremic patient coming from the Indian Ocean area. Nowadays, Chikungunya is spreading in Southeast Asia countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore. This paper reviews different aspects of the disease caused by Chikungunya virus, including: history, epidemiology, biological and pathogenetic aspects, clinical pictures, diagnosis and treatment

Single-reaction, multiplex, real-time rt-PCR for the detection, quantitation, and serotyping of dengue viruses.

open15siThis research was supported by the National Institutes of Health grant 1 RC4 TW008781-01. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Background: Dengue fever results from infection with one or more of four different serotypes of dengue virus (DENV). Despite the widespread nature of this infection, available molecular diagnostics have significant limitations. The aim of this study was to develop a multiplex, real-time, reverse transcriptase-PCR (rRT-PCR) for the detection, quantitation, and serotyping of dengue viruses in a single reaction. Methodology/Principal Findings: An rRT-PCR assay targeting the 5 9 untranslated region and capsid gene of the DENV genome was designed using molecular beacons to provide serotype specificity. Using reference DENV strains, the assay was linear from 7.0 to 1.0 log 10 cDNA equivalents/ m L for each serotype. The lower limit of detection using genomic RNA was 0.3, 13.8, 0.8, and 12.4 cDNA equivalents/ m L for serotypes 1–4, respectively, which was 6- to 275-fold more analytically sensitive than a widely used hemi-nested RT-PCR. Using samples from Nicaragua collected within the first five days of illness, the multiplex rRT-PCR was positive in 100% (69/69) of specimens that were positive by the hemi-nested assay, with full serotype agreement. Furthermore, the multiplex rRT-PCR detected DENV RNA in 97.2% (35/36) of specimens from Sri Lanka positive for anti-DENV IgM antibodies compared to just 44.4% (16/36) by the hemi-nested RT-PCR. No amplification was observed in 80 clinical samples sent for routine quantitative hepatitis C virus testing or when genomic RNA from other flaviviruses was tested. Conclusions/Significance: This single-reaction, quantitative, multiplex rRT-PCR for DENV serotyping demonstrates superior analytical and clinical performance, as well as simpler workflow compared to the hemi-nested RT-PCR reference. In particular, this multiplex rRT-PCR detects viral RNA and provides serotype information in specimens collected more than five days after fever onset and from patients who had already developed anti-DENV IgM antibodies. The implementation of this assay in dengue-endemic areas has the potential to improve both dengue diagnosis and epidemiologic surveillance.openWaggoner JJ;Abeynayake J;Sahoo MK;Gresh L;Tellez Y;Gonzalez K;Ballesteros G;Pierro AM;Gaibani P;Guo FP;Sambri V;Balmaseda A;Karunaratne K;Harris E;Pinsky BAWaggoner JJ;Abeynayake J;Sahoo MK;Gresh L;Tellez Y;Gonzalez K;Ballesteros G;Pierro AM;Gaibani P;Guo FP;Sambri V;Balmaseda A;Karunaratne K;Harris E;Pinsky B

Mosquito, Bird and Human Surveillance of West Nile and Usutu Viruses in Emilia-Romagna Region (Italy) in 2010

<div><h3>Background</h3><p>In 2008, after the first West Nile virus (WNV) detection in the Emilia-Romagna region, a surveillance system, including mosquito- and bird-based surveillance, was established to evaluate the virus presence. Surveillance was improved in following years by extending the monitoring to larger areas and increasing the numbers of mosquitoes and birds tested.</p> <h3>Methodology/Principal Findings</h3><p>A network of mosquito traps, evenly distributed and regularly activated, was set up within the surveyed area. A total of 438,558 mosquitoes, grouped in 3,111 pools and 1,276 birds (1,130 actively sampled and 146 from passive surveillance), were tested by biomolecular analysis. The survey detected WNV in 3 <em>Culex pipiens</em> pools while Usutu virus (USUV) was found in 89 <em>Cx. pipiens</em> pools and in 2 <em>Aedes albopictus</em> pools. Two birds were WNV-positive and 12 were USUV-positive. Furthermore, 30 human cases of acute meningoencephalitis, possibly caused by WNV or USUV, were evaluated for both viruses and 1,053 blood bags were tested for WNV, without any positive result.</p> <h3>Conclusions/Significance</h3><p>Despite not finding symptomatic human WNV infections during 2010, the persistence of the virus, probably due to overwintering, was confirmed through viral circulation in mosquitoes and birds, as well as for USUV. In 2010, circulation of the two viruses was lower and more delayed than in 2009, but this decrease was not explained by the relative abundance of <em>Cx. pipiens</em> mosquito, which was greater in 2010. The USUV detection in mosquito species confirms the role of <em>Cx. pipiens</em> as the main vector and the possible involvement of <em>Ae. albopictus</em> in the virus cycle. The effects of meteorological conditions on the presence of USUV-positive mosquito pools were considered finding an association with drought conditions and a wide temperature range. The output produced by the surveillance system demonstrated its usefulness and reliability in terms of planning public health policies.</p> </div

Defective proteasome biogenesis into skin fibroblasts isolated from Rett syndrome subjects with {MeCP}2 non-sense mutations

Rett Syndrome (RTT) is a rare X-linked neurodevelopmental disorder which affects about 1: 10000 live births. In &gt;95% of subjects RTT is caused by a mutation in Methyl-CpG binding protein-2 (MECP2) gene, which encodes for a transcription regulator with pleiotropic genetic/epigenetic activities. The molecular mechanisms underscoring the phenotypic alteration of RTT are largely unknown and this has impaired the development of therapeutic approaches to alleviate signs and symptoms during disease progression. A defective proteasome biogenesis into two skin primary fibroblasts isolated from RTT subjects harbouring non-sense (early-truncating) MeCP2 mutations (i.e., R190fs and R255X) is herewith reported. Proteasome is the proteolytic machinery of Ubiquitin Proteasome System (UPS), a pathway of overwhelming relevance for post-mitotic cells metabolism. Molecular, transcription and proteomic analyses indicate that MeCP2 mutations down-regulate the expression of one proteasome subunit, α7, and of two chaperones, PAC1 and PAC2, which bind each other in the earliest step of proteasome biogenesis. Furthermore, this molecular alteration recapitulates in neuron-like SH-SY5Y cells upon silencing of MeCP2 expression, envisaging a general significance of this transcription regulator in proteasome biogenesis

No urbano youth and urban inequalities

El texto ofrece la traducción al español de Juventudes y desigualdades en lo urbano, publicado por Oxfam Brasil en noviembre de 2015. El material se inicia con una entrevista a la Directora ejecutiva de esta sede de la organización, Kátia Maia, realizada por Silvio Caccia Bava y contiene los siguientes artículos: «Juventudes urbanas: ¿qué podemos hacer juntos?», de Regina Novaes; «Cultura y apropiación de la ciudad por medio de iniciativas juveniles», de Gabriel Di Pierro Siqueira y Maria Virginia de Freitas; «La segregación como norma», de Itamar Silva; «La invisibilidad de la juventud en las políticas públicas», de Cleomar Manhas; «Jóvenes negras en Brasil y la transmisión generacional del racismo y la desigualdad», de Evanildo Barbosa da Silva y Rachel Barros; y «Segregación territorial, juventud y derecho a la ciudad», de Anna Luiza Salles Souto.O texto oferece a tradução em espanhol de Juventudes e a desigualdade no urbano, publicado pela Oxfam Brasil em novembro de 2015. O material começa com uma entrevista com o diretor executivo da sede desta organização, Kátia Maia, de Silvio Caccia Bava e contém os seguintes artigos: «Juventudes urbanas: o que podemos fazer juntos?», por Regina Novaes; «Cultura e apropriação da cidade por meio de iniciativas juvenis», por Gabriel Di Pierro Siqueira y Maria Virginia de Freita; «A segregação como norma», por Itamar Silva; «A invisibilidade da juventude nas políticas públicas», por Cleomar Manhas; «Jovens negras do Brasil e a transmissão geracional do racismo e da desigualdade», por Evanildo Barbosa da Silva y Rachel Barro; e «Segregação socioterritorial, juventude e direito à cidade», por Anna Luiza Salles Souto.The text offers the Spanish translation of Youth and Urban Inequalities, published by Oxfam Brazil in November 2015. The material begins with an interview with the Executive Director of this organization’s headquarters, Kátia Maia, by Silvio Caccia Bava and contains the following articles: «Urban Youth: What Can We Do Together?», by Regina Novaes; «Culture and Appropriation of the City through Youth Initiatives», by Gabriel Di Pierro Siqueira and Maria Virginia de Freitas; «Segregation as a Norm», by Itamar Silva; «The Invisibility of Youth in Public Policies», by Cleomar Manhas; «Black Youth in Brazil and the Generational Transmission of Racism and Inequality», by Evanildo Barbosa da Silva and Rachel Barros; and «Territorial Segregation, Youth and the Right to the City», by Anna Luiza Salles Souto.Dossier: Juventudes y desigualdades en lo urbanoFacultad de Periodismo y Comunicación Socia