The symbolism of the door knocker "Hand of Fatima" : A proposal of sensory tourist experiences in the city of Lagos

The advantages of applying a multi-sensorial approach to the experimentation of objects, historical sites and heritage practices have been widely discussed and applied, especially in the sphere of the sensory tourist experience. Expanding opportunities to understand the past through a broader sensorium is fundamental to awakening interest, encouraging tourists/visitors to use the five senses to explore the surrounding environment, facilitating the creation of memorable experiences and contributing to inclusive tourism. The vernacular architecture, as a cultural heritage of symbolic value and belonging to the imaginary of collective memory, is an important vector of the aesthetic values of urban landscapes. Therefore, there is a need to stimulate synergies between tourism and heritage to develop tourism products that help in the valorization and preservation of vernacular architecture in historical territories/centres. The "Hand of Fatima", the door knocker shaped as a closed-hand, is one of these decorative elements and part of the collective cultural heritage, which, more than achieving a utilitarian function, has a symbolic and even superstitious role, for being considered by many as talismans of protection. This research investigates the perceived sensorial experiences in the city of Lagos, located in the Algarve region, south of Portugal, and the specific sensitive element of door knockers known as the "Hand of Fatima" at the historic centre of this city. Many of these objects are true works of art that allow inclusive sensory experiences for many people. Therefore, a qualitative and exploratory approach was adopted, and a Geographic Information System was used to compile and analyze the data. The research concludes that there are diverse sensory experiences. Concerning hand doors knockers, there is a great concentration in this urban area, which enable multiple sensory experiences, contributing to the understanding of the historic centre of Lagos as a living museum.Peer Reviewe

Linezolid Resistance Genes and Mutations among Linezolid-Susceptible Enterococcus spp.—A Loose Cannon?

The National Reference Centre for Enterococci receives an increasing number of linezolid-resistant Enterococcus isolates. Linezolid (LIN) resistance is mediated by G2576T 23S rDNA gene mutations and/or acquisition of resistance genes (cfr, optrA, poxtA). There are anecdotal reports that those resistance traits may be present in phenotypically linezolid-susceptible isolates. We aimed to determine the prevalence of LIN resistance genes and mutations in enterococci with a LIN MIC of 4 mg/L in broth microdilution (EUCAST = susceptible) isolated from German hospital patients 2019-2021. LIN MICs were additionally determined by ETEST (R) and VITEK2. Selected strains were subjected to LIN selective pressure and growth was monitored with increasing antibiotic concentrations. We received 195 isolates (LIN MIC = 4 mg/L). In total, 78/195 (40%) isolates contained either a putative resistance gene, the G2576T mutation, or a combination thereof. Very major error was high for broth microdilution. The ability to predict phenotypic resistance from genotypic profile was highest for G2576T-mediated resistance. Selection experiments revealed that, in particular, E. faecium isolates with resistance gene mutations or poxtA rapidly adapt to MICs above the clinical breakpoint. In conclusion, LIN resistance genes and mutations can be observed in phenotypically linezolid-susceptible enterococci. Those isolates may rapidly develop resistance under LIN selective pressure potentially leading to treatment failure

Clinical implementation of an algorithm for predicting exacerbations in patients with COPD in telemonitoring:a study protocol for a single-blinded randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Acute exacerbations have a significant impact on patients with COPD by accelerating the decline in lung function leading to decreased health-related quality of life and survival time. In telehealth, health care professionals exercise clinical judgment over a physical distance. Telehealth has been implemented as a way to monitor patients more closely in daily life with an intention to intervene earlier when physical measurements indicate that health deteriorates. Several studies call for research investigating the ability of telehealth to automatically flag risk of exacerbations by applying the physical measurements that are collected as part of the monitoring routines to support health care professionals. However, more research is needed to further develop, test, and validate prediction algorithms to ensure that these algorithms improve outcomes before they are widely implemented in practice. METHOD: This trial tests a COPD prediction algorithm that is integrated into an existing telehealth system, which has been developed from the previous Danish large-scale trial, TeleCare North (NCT: 01984840). The COPD prediction algorithm aims to support clinical decisions by predicting the risk of exacerbations for patients with COPD based on selected physiological parameters. A prospective, parallel two-armed randomized controlled trial with approximately 200 participants with COPD will be conducted. The participants live in Aalborg municipality, which is located in the North Denmark Region. All participants are familiar with the telehealth system in advance. In addition to the participants’ usual weekly monitored measurements, they are asked to measure their oxygen saturation two more times a week during the trial period. The primary outcome is the number of exacerbations defined as an acute hospitalization from baseline to follow-up. Secondary outcomes include changes in health-related quality of life measured by both the 12-Item Short Form Survey version 2 and EuroQol-5 Dimension Questionnaire as well as the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio. DISCUSSION: This trial seeks to explore whether the COPD prediction algorithm has the potential to support early detection of exacerbations in a telehealth setting. The COPD prediction algorithm may initiate timely treatment, which may decrease the number of hospitalizations. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT05218525 (pending at clinicaltrials.gov) (date, month, year

Introducing a Problem Analysis Tool Implies Increasement in Understanding the Problem Analysis Among Students

Problem-based learning (PBL) is the through-going didactics at Aalborg University, but literature shows how integrating PBL into project work is challenging for students. Studies indicate that students especially struggle with the problem analysis section, i.e., what it consists of, how the structure of the analysis should be, etc. Moreover, literature shows that ignorance among students leads to conflicts among group members. The aim of the study was to evaluate the consequences of introducing a problem analysis tool to master students working with a PBL project. Data analysis showed an increase (with significant p values) in the following 5 topics: 1) the problem analysis term, 2) problem analysis structure, 3) scientific argumentation, 4) learn to analyze instead of explaining, and 5) using literature to argue for a scientific problem. Significant results showed that students believed that they had increased their understanding of the term problem analysis after being introduced to the problem analysis tool.

Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/AKT pathway inhibition by doxazosin promotes glioblastoma cells death, upregulation of p53 and triggers low neurotoxicity

Glioblastoma is the most frequent and malignant brain tumor. Treatment includes chemotherapy with temozolomide concomitant with surgical resection and/or irradiation. However, a number of cases are resistant to temozolomide, as well as the human glioblastoma cell line U138-MG. We investigated doxazosin’s (an antihypertensive drug) activity against glioblastoma cells (C6 and U138-MG) and its neurotoxicity on primary astrocytes and organoptypic hippocampal cultures. For this study, the following methods were used: citotoxicity assays, flow cytometry, western-blotting and confocal microscopy. We showed that doxazosin induces cell death on C6 and U138-MG cells. We observed that doxazosin’s effects on the PI3K/Akt pathway were similar as LY294002 (PI3K specific inhibitor). In glioblastoma cells treated with doxasozin, Akt levels were greatly reduced. Upon examination of activities of proteins downstream of Akt we observed upregulation of GSK-3β and p53. This led to cell proliferation inhibition, cell death induction via caspase-3 activation and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase in glioblastoma cells. We used in this study Lapatinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, as a comparison with doxazosin because they present similar chemical structure. We also tested the neurocitotoxicity of doxazosin in primary astrocytes and organotypic cultures and observed that doxazosin induced cell death on a small percentage of non-tumor cells. Aggressiveness of glioblastoma tumors and dismal prognosis require development of new treatment agents. This includes less toxic drugs, more selective towards tumor cells, causing less damage to the patient. Therefore, our results confirm the potential of doxazosin as an attractive therapeutic antiglioma agent

Calcium isotopes in scleractinian fossil corals since the Mesozoic: Implications for vital effects and biomineralization through time

We present a Cenozoic record of δ^(44/40)Ca from well preserved scleractinian fossil corals, as well as fossil coral δ^(44/40)Ca data from two time periods during the Mesozoic (84 and 160 Ma). To complement the coral data, we also extend existing bulk pelagic carbonate records back to ∼80 Ma. The same fossil corals used for this study were previously shown to be excellently preserved, and to be faithful archives of past seawater Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca since ∼200 Ma (Gothmann et al., 2015). We find that the δ^(44/40)Ca compositions of bulk pelagic carbonates from ODP Site 807 (Ontong Java Plateau) and DSDP Site 516 (Rio Grande Rise) have not varied by more than ∼±0.20‰ over the last ∼80 Myr. In contrast, the δ^(44/40)Ca compositions of Mesozoic and Early Cenozoic fossil corals are ∼1‰ lighter than those of modern corals. The observed change in coral δ^(44/40)Ca does not likely reflect secular variations in seawater δ^(44/40)Ca. Instead, we propose that it reflects a vital effect of calcification – specifically, a sensitivity of coral Ca isotope discrimination to changing seawater [Ca] and/or pH. Support for this hypothesis comes from the presence of an empirical correlation between our coral δ^(44/40)Ca record and records of seawater [Ca] and pH since the Mesozoic (Lowenstein et al., 2003 and Hönisch et al., 2012). We explore various mechanisms that could give rise to such a vital effect, including: (1) changes in calcification rate, (2) changes in proton pumping in exchange for Ca^(2+), (3) variable Rayleigh distillation from an isolated calcifying fluid, and (4) changes in the calcium mass balance of the extracellular calcifying fluid (termed here the “leaky Ca model”). We test for the dependence of seawater δ^(44/40)Ca on external seawater [Ca] by measuring the δ^(44/40)Ca of cultured corals grown in seawater solutions with [Ca] ranging from 10 to 15 mmol/kg. Corals grown under elevated [Ca] conditions show a slight, ∼0.15‰ depletion of δ^(44/40)Ca at higher seawater [Ca] – a supportive but not definitive result

AVALIAÇÃO DE DANO NO DNA EM PORTADORES DE DOENÇA PULMONAR OBSTRUTIVA CRÔNICA PELO ENSAIO COMETA

A Doença Pulmonar Obstrutiva Crônica- DPOC é definida como uma doença respiratória inflamatória, causada principalmente pela exposição à fumaça de cigarro, caracterizada pela progressão e incompleta reversibilidade da obstrução das vias aéreas. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi quantificar o Índice de Dano ao DNA em portadores de DPOC e controles. Estudo do tipo caso-controle avaliou 43 portadores de DPOC e 50 controles emparelhados por gênero, idade e índice de massa corporal (IMC). Foi utilizado sangue periférico para realizar o ensaio cometa nas versões alcalino (pH> 13) e neutro (pH ~ 8,5). Avaliação de danos no DNA usando o ensaio cometa na versão alcalina revelou um maior Índice de Dano ao DNA em portadores de DPOC quando comparados aos controles (ID 40,12+26,17 vs ID 26,28+28,12, p=0,03). Na versão Neutra do teste também é possível observar maior Índice de Dano nos casos do que em controles (ID 52,88+32,38 vs ID 38,12+38,17, p=0,018), indicando a presença de quebras duplas, devido a inflamação persistente. Dados preliminares mostram que os portadores de DPOC têm maior índice de dano no DNA do que controles, reforçando assim a necessidade de compreender melhor os mecanismos pelos quais isso acontece no processo da doença

AVALIAÇÃO DE DANO NO DNA EM PORTADORES DE DOENÇA PULMONAR OBSTRUTIVA CRÔNICA PELO ENSAIO COMETA

A Doença Pulmonar Obstrutiva Crônica- DPOC é definida como uma doença respiratória inflamatória, causada principalmente pela exposição à fumaça de cigarro, caracterizada pela progressão e incompleta reversibilidade da obstrução das vias aéreas. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi quantificar o Índice de Dano ao DNA em portadores de DPOC e controles. Estudo do tipo caso-controle avaliou 43 portadores de DPOC e 50 controles emparelhados por gênero, idade e índice de massa corporal (IMC). Foi utilizado sangue periférico para realizar o ensaio cometa nas versões alcalino (pH> 13) e neutro (pH ~ 8,5). Avaliação de danos no DNA usando o ensaio cometa na versão alcalina revelou um maior Índice de Dano ao DNA em portadores de DPOC quando comparados aos controles (ID 40,12+26,17 vs ID 26,28+28,12, p=0,03). Na versão Neutra do teste também é possível observar maior Índice de Dano nos casos do que em controles (ID 52,88+32,38 vs ID 38,12+38,17, p=0,018), indicando a presença de quebras duplas, devido a inflamação persistente. Dados preliminares mostram que os portadores de DPOC têm maior índice de dano no DNA do que controles, reforçando assim a necessidade de compreender melhor os mecanismos pelos quais isso acontece no processo da doença