Low back pain around retirement age and physical occupational exposure during working life

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Physical occupational exposure is a risk factor for low back pain in workers but the long term effects of exposure remain unclear. As several countries consider increasing the retirement age, further information on this topic is relevant. This study aimed to describe the prevalence of low back pain among middle aged and aging individuals in the general French population according to physical occupational exposure and retirement status.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study population originated from the French national survey 'Enquête décennale santé 2002'. Low back pain for more than 30 days within the previous twelve months (LBP) was assessed using a French version of the Nordic questionnaire. Occupational exposure was self assessed. Subjects were classified as "exposed" if they were currently or had previously been exposed to handling of heavy loads and/or to tiring postures. The weighted prevalence of LBP was computed separately for men and women, for active (aged 45-59) and retiree (aged 55-74), according to 5-year age group and past/present occupational exposure.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For active men, the prevalence of LBP was significantly higher in those currently or previously exposed (n = 1051) compared with those never exposed (n = 1183), respectively over 20% versus less than 11%. Among retired men, the prevalence of LBP tended towards equivalence with increasing age among those previously exposed (n = 748) and those unexposed (n = 599).</p> <p>Patterns were quite similar for women with a higher prevalence in exposed active women (n = 741) compared to unexposed (n = 1260): around 25% versus 15%. Similarly, differences between previously exposed (n = 430) and unexposed (n = 489) retired women tended to reduce with age.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The prevalence of LBP in active workers was associated with occupational exposure. The link with past exposure among retirees decreased with age. These results should be considered for policies dealing with prevention at the workplace and retirement.</p

Polycomb-mediated silencing in neuroendocrine prostate cancer

BACKGROUND: Neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC) is a highly aggressive subtype of prostate cancer (PCa) for which the median survival remains less than a year. Current treatments are only palliative in nature, and the lack of suitable pre-clinical models has hampered previous efforts to develop novel therapeutic strategies. Addressing this need, we have recently established the first in vivo model of complete neuroendocrine transdifferentiation using patient-derived xenografts. Few genetic differences were observed between parental PCa and relapsed NEPC, suggesting that NEPC likely results from alterations that are epigenetic in nature. Thus, we sought to identify targetable epigenetic regulators whose expression was elevated in NEPC using genome-wide profiling of patient-derived xenografts and clinical samples. RESULTS: Our data indicate that multiple members of the polycomb group (PcG) family of transcriptional repressors were selectively upregulated in NEPC. Notably, CBX2 and EZH2 were consistently the most highly overexpressed epigenetic regulators across multiple datasets from clinical and xenograft tumor tissues. Given the striking upregulation of PcG genes and other transcriptional repressors, we derived a 185-gene list termed 'neuroendocrine-associated repression signature' (NEARS) by overlapping transcripts downregulated across multiple in vivo NEPC models. In line with the striking upregulation of PcG family members, NEARS was preferentially enriched with PcG target genes, suggesting a driving role for PcG silencing in NEPC. Importantly, NEARS was significantly associated with high-grade tumors, metastatic progression, and poor outcome in multiple clinical datasets, consistent with extensive literature linking PcG genes and aggressive disease progression. CONCLUSIONS: We have explored the epigenetic landscape of NEPC and provided evidence of increased PcG-mediated silencing associated with aberrant transcriptional regulation of key differentiation genes. Our results position CBX2 and EZH2 as potential therapeutic targets in NEPC, providing opportunities to explore novel strategies aimed at reversing epigenetic alterations driving this lethal disease

Structure and chromosomal location of the bovine gene for the heart muscle isoform of cytochrome c oxidase subunit VIII

We have isolated the bovine COX8H gene for the heart/muscle isoform of cytochrome c oxidase (COX) subunit VIII from a library of bovine genomic DNA cloned into lambda EMBL3. Primer extension assays on bovine heart mRNA mapped the 5′ ends of COX8H transcripts to a CA dinucleotide 62-bp upstream from the ATG codon. The gene thus spans 1565-bp and comprises two exons and one large intron of 1227 bp. Exon 1 encodes the 5′ untranslated region, a 24-amino acid presequence, and the first 13 amino acids of the mature COX VIII-H protein. Exon 2 encodes the remainder of the cDNA: amino acids 14 to 46 plus the 66-bp 3′ untranslated region. The exon-intron boundaries matched the consensus splice junction sequences. Two protein polymorphisms were seen: an Ala/Val polymorphism at position-6 in the presequence and the previously noted Lys/Arg polymorphism at residue 7 of the mature protein. A Taq I polymorphism occurs in the intron. The COX8H gene was mapped by bovine x rodent somatic cell hybrid mapping panels to bovine (BTA) Chromosome (Chr) 25 with 100% concordancy. BTA25 is conserved relative to the long arm of human (HSA) Chr 11, which contains COX8, the gene for the single human COX VIII subunit that is homologous to the liver isoform.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47018/1/335_2004_Article_BF00303255.pd

Essays on real Exchange rate and competitiveness

In the planning of a country's economic policy, exchange rate policy has a major role, especially in less developed countries where industrial policies and foreign trade are mainly based on the exchange rate competitiveness. Therefore, it is not surprising that the exchange rate policy is used by governments and policy makers to assess the country's competitive position in the world trade. In practice, the real exchange rate (RER) is associated with the evaluation of the external position of countries through the price elasticity analysis between exports and imports. However, the assessment of countries competitive position on the basis of price elasticity is a simplified overview for understanding reality. Despite the research efforts made to cast light on the field of concern, a causal relationship between the behavior of the RER and highest competitiveness indicators remain unclear. In fact, this relationship disregards the effects of non-price competitiveness, such as competitive advantages based on the value added like high technologies applied to new products developments and new processes designs. To round up, some authors and policy makers support the assumption that the overvaluation of a currency deteriorates the competitive position of a country and that competitive devaluations facilitate growth through its positive impact on the share of the tradable goods in the economy, especially in the industry. Nevertheless, there is vast empirical evidence supporting that an appreciation of the RER will not always result in a loss of competitiveness and, conversely, RER depreciation will not always imply a higher competitiveness performance. Thus, competitiveness policies strongly based on the RER evolution through time can lead to misleading conclusions. This thesis is focused on the effects of the real exchange rate as an instrument of macroeconomic policy aimed at achieving higher indicators of competitiveness in the business sector. Theoretical and empirical evidence is offered to business decision-makers as useful information

Essays on real Exchange rate and competitiveness

In the planning of a country's economic policy, exchange rate policy has a major role, especially in less developed countries where industrial policies and foreign trade are mainly based on the exchange rate competitiveness. Therefore, it is not surprising that the exchange rate policy is used by governments and policy makers to assess the country's competitive position in the world trade. In practice, the real exchange rate (RER) is associated with the evaluation of the external position of countries through the price elasticity analysis between exports and imports. However, the assessment of countries competitive position on the basis of price elasticity is a simplified overview for understanding reality. Despite the research efforts made to cast light on the field of concern, a causal relationship between the behavior of the RER and highest competitiveness indicators remain unclear. In fact, this relationship disregards the effects of non-price competitiveness, such as competitive advantages based on the value added like high technologies applied to new products developments and new processes designs. To round up, some authors and policy makers support the assumption that the overvaluation of a currency deteriorates the competitive position of a country and that competitive devaluations facilitate growth through its positive impact on the share of the tradable goods in the economy, especially in the industry. Nevertheless, there is vast empirical evidence supporting that an appreciation of the RER will not always result in a loss of competitiveness and, conversely, RER depreciation will not always imply a higher competitiveness performance. Thus, competitiveness policies strongly based on the RER evolution through time can lead to misleading conclusions. This thesis is focused on the effects of the real exchange rate as an instrument of macroeconomic policy aimed at achieving higher indicators of competitiveness in the business sector. Theoretical and empirical evidence is offered to business decision-makers as useful information

Determination of damage caused by different populations of Diloboderus abderus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) larvae on wheat

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is the most widely cultivated cereal crop worldwide because it is an important food source for humans. South America has long been associated with wheat production and export. Given the increased application of no till in the last decades, the scarabid Diloboderus abderus has become the main soil pest of this crop. The larvae of this insect (white grubs) feed on roots, causing plant weakening and death. The aim of this work was to determine the relationship between the soil population of D. abderus larvae and the number of established wheat plants. In a plot cultivated with the wheat cultivar Don Mario Algarrobo at a seeding rate of 130 kg ha-1 and with high population levels of this pest, 1-m2 sites with 20-39; 40-60; 80-100; 120-160 and or 200-240 plants were established. At the tillering phenological stage, the number of tillers per plant and of insect larvae in each subplot was counted. The results showed a significant reduction in plant density with increasing soil larval population. The crop counterbalanced the reduction in plant number by increasing the tiller number per unit area. The present work shows that population levels above 11 larvae m-2 generate a significant reduction in the number of wheat plants established in the crop.Fil: del Valle, Eleodoro Eduardo. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe; ArgentinaFil: Mayer, Gabriel F.. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Mazuquín, Gabriel. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Nari, Pablo. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Toffoli Arnaudo, Guillermo Daniel. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Imvinkelried, Horacio Omar. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentin

Power generation system for l-moxie: Concept proposal and trade-off analysis

The manned exploration of Mars is a demanding goal, requiring a large amount of resources. Among them, oxygen is without doubt pivotal since it is needed for the crew to breathe and for the Mars Ascent Vehicle to fuel the return journey to the Earth. In light of this, In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) practices become useful. We know that carbon dioxide constitutes about 96% of Martian atmosphere and it is the candidate for oxygen extraction through a Solid Oxide Electrolysis reaction. The Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment (MOXIE) demonstrator proved this concept on board of the Perseverance Rover in April 2021. A full-scale device suitable for a human mission, called L-MOXIE, will be more than 200 times larger. In this work, we evaluate the power requirements of L-MOXIE through process simulations obtaining a consumption of 22.8 kW. This result suggests a thorough redesign of the power generation system. To perform this design activity, we employ a forcing technique based on C-K theory pillars to broaden the spectrum of options retrieved from the literature review. The degrees of freedom are design variables associated with the power generation technology, the power transmission system and the power storage system while the constraints are set forth by the Martian environment, the oxygen handling and storage requirements, and the overall system safety and maintenance requirements. From the partial solutions, we build a morphological chart, and three concepts are then generated based on nuclear, grounded solar, and orbiting photovoltaic Power Generation System. We performed a Multi-Attribute Utility Analysis (MAUA) to assess them, and the nuclear and grounded solar concepts proved more attractive than the orbiting photovoltaic concept. These results are intended to support future activities such as a feasibility analysis and a multi-objective optimization for the nuclear and grounded solar concept