Job satisfaction of dietitians in South Florida

The purpose of this study was to examine job satisfaction of dietitians in South Florida and to identify significant differences in job satisfaction between dietitians working in traditional versus non-traditional settings. A job satisfaction questionnaire was developed, validated, and mailed to dietitians in Palm Beach, Broward, Dade, and Monroe counties. Out of 600 questionnaires mailed, 203 surveys were returned and 187 were valid and analyzed statistically. Seventy three percent of subjects practiced in traditional and 17% in non-traditional settings. Eighteen percent of 187 subjects surveyed reported feeling dissatisfied with their jobs and 59% reported feeling satisfied. There was no significant difference in satisfaction due to practice settings (traditional versus non-traditional). The subjects reported satisfaction with co-workers and supervisors. The two major areas where dissatisfaction was reported were compensation and professional recognition. The results showed that the majority of dietitians in South Florida are, in general, satisfied with their jobs. Although dietitians\u27 salaries have increased by approximately 80% since 1982, compensation was still viewed as inadequate by 48% of the subjects, given dietitians\u27 education, skills and experience. Because legislation to approve reimbursement of medical nutrition therapy is pending, increase in dietitians\u27 knowledge of reimbursement issues is recommended. Dietitians must also promote assertively their valuable contribution to wellness, health, and the treatment of disease

Toll-like receptor 4 contributes to vascular remodelling and endothelial dysfunction in angiotensin II-induced hypertension

This is the peer-reviewed version of the following article: "Toll-like receptor 4 contributes to vascular remodelling and endothelial dysfunction in angiotensin II-induced hypertension", British Journal of Pharmacology 172.12 (2015): 3159-76 which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.13117 This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley-VCH Terms and Conditions for Self-ArchivingBackground and Purpose Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signalling contributes to inflammatory cardiovascular diseases, but its role in hypertension and the associated vascular damage is not known. We investigated whether TLR4 activation contributed to angiotensin II (AngII)-induced hypertension and the associated vascular structural, mechanical and functional alterations. Experimental Approach AngII was infused (1.44 mg·kg−1·day−1, s.c.) for 2 weeks in C57BL6 mice, treated with a neutralizing anti-TLR4 antibody or IgG (1 μg·day−1); systolic BP (SBP) and aortic cytokine levels were measured. Structural, mechanical and contractile properties of aortic and mesenteric arterial segments were measured with myography and histology. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to analyse these tissues and cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) from hypertensive rats (SHR). Key Results Aortic TLR4 mRNA levels were raised by AngII infusion. Anti-TLR4 antibody treatment of AngII-treated mice normalised: (i) increased SBP and TNF-α, IL-6 and CCL2 levels; (ii) vascular structural and mechanical changes; (iii) altered aortic phenylephrine- and ACh-induced responses; (iv) increased NOX-1 mRNA levels, superoxide anion production and NAD(P)H oxidase activity and effects of catalase, apocynin, ML-171 and Mito-TEMPO on vascular responses; and (v) reduced NO release and effects of L-NAME on phenylephrine-induced contraction. In VSMC, the MyD88 inhibitor ST-2825 reduced AngII-induced NAD(P)H oxidase activity. The TLR4 inhibitor CLI-095 reduced AngII-induced increased phospho-JNK1/2 and p65 NF-κB subunit nuclear protein expression. Conclusions and Implications TLR4 up-regulation by AngII contributed to the inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, vascular remodelling and stiffness associated with hypertension by mechanisms involving oxidative stress. MyD88-dependent activation and JNK/NF-κB signalling pathways participated in these alterationsThis work was supported by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (SAF2012-36400), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (Red de Investigación Cardiovascular RD12/0042/0024 and RD12/0042/0033) and URJC (PRIN13_CS12). AMB was supported by the Ramón y Cajal Program (RYC-2010-06473)

On the Relevance of Considering the Intermolecular Interactions on the Prediction of the Vibrational Spectra of Isopropylamine

The effects of implicitly considering the effects of hydrogen bonding on the molecular properties, such as vibrational frequencies, were inferred on the basis of DFT calculations. Several clusters of isopropylamine were assembled and theoretically characterized. The results showed that maximum H-bond cooperativity is achieved when the amine group acts simultaneously as donor and acceptor. The effect of H-bond cooperativity manifests itself in the relative cluster stability and on the structural and vibrational frequency predictions. Referring to the vibrational frequencies it was found that the NH2 stretching and torsion vibrational modes are the most affected by the amine involvement in hydrogen bonding. Both stretching modes were found to be significantly redshifted relative to the monomer. The NH2 torsional mode, on the other hand, was found to be blueshifted up to 350 cm(-1). Finally, the comparative study between the theory levels performed allows to conclude that the small 6-31G* basis set is able to stabilize weak C-H center dot center dot center dot N interactions as long as the new dispersion corrected DFT methods are considered. The impairments observed with conventional DFT methods for describing weak interactions may be overcome with the improvement of basis set, but the associated increase of computational costs may turn the calculations unfeasible

estudos artísticos

A revista de estudos artísticos GAMA encontra, neste terceiro número, um caminho mais definido dentro do projeto global da comunicação de artistas sobre as obras de outros artistas. A Revista GAMA percorre tradições, registos, ações e intervenções artísticas, que assinalaram diversos momentos, com diferentes graus de difusão. Visa-se resgatar, recuperar a arte: é voltar a olhar, pelo escopo particular de um artista, a intervenção de um outro artista, com algum tempo de intervalo entre ambos. Este intervalo é um tempo de sedimentação, de filtragem, ou de recuperação de valores quase esquecidos. O tempo pode fornecer um ponto de vista privilegiado que permite novas interpretações, valorizações, interligações. Permite-se a reativação, o restauro: restauro não no sentido material, mas no sentido da reapresentação do conteúdo possibilitando reforçar um “museu imaginário,” livre de fronteiras e de hierarquias estabelecidas (Malraux). Os objetos de arte anteriores podem ter originado, ou vir a originar, novas obras, na sequência imprevisível dos discursos humanos mais significativos, reagrupando-se em termos de “ação” ou de “orientação,” de “imagem” ou de “palavra,” (Warburg) permitindo “restituir ao discurso o caráter de acontecimento” (Foucault). Entre a história e a memória, o arquivo e a deriva, a viagem e a identidade, a permanência e a resistência, a Revista GAMA vem assinalando um percurso de salvaguarda, de marcação de registos, de preservação de uma riqueza, ora material ora conceptual: a arte detém-se e debruça-se sobre as suas marcas, os seus projetos, os seus registos, as suas transições. Debruçamo-nos sobre os homens.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery