Mosquitoes can harbour yeasts of clinical significance and contribute to their environmental dissemination

There is still a lack of studies on fungal microbiota in mosquitoes, compared with the number available on bacterial microbiota. This study reports the identification of yeasts of clinical significance in laboratory mosquito species: Anopheles gambiae, Anopheles stephensi, Culex quinquefasciatus, Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Among the yeasts isolated, they focused on the opportunistic pathogen Candida parapsilosis, since there is a need to better understand breakthrough candidaemia with resistance to the usual antifungals, which requires careful consideration in the broad-spectrum therapy, as documented in many clinical reports. C. parapsilosis occurs widely and has been isolated from diverse sources, including insects, which may contribute to its dissemination. In this study, it was isolated from the gut of An. gambiae and its presence in developmental stages and organs of different mosquito species was studied. Our results indicated that there was a stable association between C. parapsilosis and reared mosquitoes during the entire life cycle, and in adult male and female gut and gonads. A wide occurrence of C. parapsilosis was also documented in several populations of wild mosquitoes. Based on these findings, it can be said that mosquitoes might participate in the spreading of this opportunistic pathogen, not only as a carrier

A cross-sectional exploratory analysis between pet ownership and sleep, exercise, health and neighborhood perceptions : The Whitehall II cohort study

A cross-sectional exploratory analysis between pet ownership and sleep, exercise, health and neighbourhood perceptions: The Whitehall II cohort study Gill Mein (corresponding author), Robert Grant. Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education. Kingston University and St George’s University of London Background: To explore associations between pets, and specifically dog ownership and sleep, health, exercise and neighbourhood. Methods: Cross sectional examination of 6575 participants of the Whitehall II study aged between 59-79 years. We used self-assessed measurement scales of the Short Form (SF36), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Control, Autonomy, Self-realisation and Pleasure (CASP), Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), sleep, exercise, and perceptions of local neighbourhood. In addition the Mini Mental State Examination which is administered to test global cognitive status (MMSE) Results: We found 2/7 people owned a pet and of those 64% were “very” attached to their pet. Mild exercise in metabolic equivalents (MET-hours) was significantly higher in pet owners than non-owners (median 27.8 (IQR 18.1 to 41.8) vs 25.7 (IQR 16.8 to 38.7), p=0.0001), and in dog owners than other pets (median 32.3 (IQR 20.8 to 46.1) vs 25.6 (IQR 16.8 to 38.5), p<0.0001). Moderate exercise was also significantly higher in pet owners than non pet owners (median 11.8 (IQR 4.2 to 21.9) vs 9.8 (IQR 2.8 to 19.5), p<0.0001), and dog owners than owners of other pets (median 12.3 (IQR 4.2 to 22.2) vs 10.1 (3.1 to 20.0), p=0.0002) but there were no significant differences with vigorous exercise. We found that pet owners were significantly more positive about their neighbourhood than non-owners on 8/9 questions, while dog owners were (significantly) even more positive than owners of other pets on 8/9 questions. Associations with sleep were mixed, although dog owners had less trouble falling asleep than non-dog owners, with borderline statistical significance. Conclusion: Dog owners feel more positive about their neighbourhood, do more exercise, and fall asleep more easily than non-dog owners. These results suggest that dog owners could be more likely to exercise by walking their dogs and therefore may be more familiar and positive about the area in which they walk their dog

The dynamic stator stalk of rotary ATPases

Rotary ATPases couple ATP hydrolysis/synthesis with proton translocation across biological membranes and so are central components of the biological energy conversion machinery. Their peripheral stalks are essential components that counteract torque generated by rotation of the central stalk during ATP synthesis or hydrolysis. Here we present a 2.25-Å resolution crystal structure of the peripheral stalk from Thermus thermophilus A-type ATPase/synthase. We identify bending and twisting motions inherent within the structure that accommodate and complement a radial wobbling of the ATPase headgroup as it progresses through its catalytic cycles, while still retaining azimuthal stiffness necessary to counteract rotation of the central stalk. The conformational freedom of the peripheral stalk is dictated by its unusual right-handed coiled-coil architecture, which is in principle conserved across all rotary ATPases. In context of the intact enzyme, the dynamics of the peripheral stalks provides a potential mechanism for cooperativity between distant parts of rotary ATPases

Children reading to dogs: a systematic review of the literature

Background Despite growing interest in the value of human-animal interactions (HAI) to human mental and physical health the quality of the evidence on which postulated benefits from animals to human psychological health are based is often unclear. To date there exist no systematic reviews on the effects of HAI in educational settings specifically focussing on the perceived benefits to children of reading to dogs. With rising popularity and implementation of these programmes in schools, it is essential that the evidence base exploring the pedagogic value of these initiatives is well documented. Methods Using PRISMA guidelines we systematically investigated the literature reporting the pedagogic effects of reading to dogs. Because research in this area is in the early stages of scientific enquiry we adopted broad inclusion criteria, accepting all reports which discussed measurable effects related to the topic that were written in English. Multiple online databases were searched during January-March 2015; grey literature searches were also conducted. The search results which met the inclusion criteria were evaluated, and discussed, in relation to the Oxford Centre for Evidence Based Medicine levels of evidence; 27 papers were classified as Level 5, 13 as Level 4, 7 as Level 2c and 1 as Level 2b. Conclusion The evidence suggests that reading to a dog may have a beneficial effect on a number of behavioural processes which contribute to a positive effect on the environment in which reading is practiced, leading to improved reading performance. However, the evidence base on which these inferences are made is of low quality. There is a clear need for the use of higher quality research methodologies and the inclusion of appropriate controls in order to draw causal inferences on whether or how reading to dogs may benefit children’s reading practices. The mechanisms for any effect remain a matter of conjectur

Inhibition of mTOR delayed but could not prevent experimental collapsing focal segmental glomerulosclerosis

Contains fulltext : 220207.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Impact of Early Acute Kidney Injury on Management and Outcome in Patients With Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A Secondary Analysis of a Multicenter Observational Study.

OBJECTIVES: To understand the impact of mild-moderate and severe acute kidney injury in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome.DESIGN: Secondary analysis of the "Large Observational Study to Understand the Global Impact of Severe Acute Respiratory Failure", an international prospective cohort study of patients with severe respiratory failure. SETTING: Four-hundred fifty-nine ICUs from 50 countries across five continents. SUBJECTS: Patients with a glomerular filtration rate greater than 60 mL/min/1.73 m prior to admission who fulfilled criteria of acute respiratory distress syndrome on day 1 and day 2 of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were categorized based on worst serum creatinine or urine output into: 1) no acute kidney injury (serum creatinine &lt; 132 \ub5mol/L or urine output 65 0.5 mL/kg/hr), 2) mild-moderate acute kidney injury (serum creatinine 132-354 \ub5mol/L or minimum urine output between 0.3 and 0.5mL/kg/hr), or 3) severe acute kidney injury (serum creatinine &gt; 354 \ub5mol/L or renal replacement therapy or minimum urine output &lt; 0.3 mL/kg/hr). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The primary outcome was hospital mortality, whereas secondary outcomes included prevalence of acute kidney injury and characterization of acute respiratory distress syndrome risk factors and illness severity patterns, in patients with acute kidney injury versus no acute kidney injury. One-thousand nine-hundred seventy-four patients met inclusion criteria: 1,209 (61%) with no acute kidney injury, 468 (24%) with mild-moderate acute kidney injury, and 297 (15%) with severe acute kidney injury. The impact of acute kidney injury on the ventilatory management of patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome was relatively limited, with no differences in arterial CO2 tension or in tidal or minute ventilation between the groups. Hospital mortality increased from 31% in acute respiratory distress syndrome patients with no acute kidney injury to 50% in mild-moderate acute kidney injury (p 64 0.001 vs no acute kidney injury) and 58% in severe acute kidney injury (p 64 0.001 vs no acute kidney injury and mild-moderate acute kidney injury). In multivariate analyses, both mild-moderate (odds ratio, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.24-2.09; p &lt; 0.001) and severe (odds ratio, 2.13; 95% CI, 1.55-2.94; p &lt; 0.001) acute kidney injury were independently associated with mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The development of acute kidney injury, even when mild-moderate in severity, is associated with a substantial increase in mortality in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome