Complete genome sequence of Mycobacterium chelonae type strain CCUG 47445, a rapidly growing species of nontuberculous mycobacteria

Mycobacterium chelonae strains are ubiquitous rapidly growing mycobacteria associated with skin and soft tissue infections, cellulitis, abscesses, osteomyelitis, catheter infections, disseminated diseases, and postsurgical infections after implants with prostheses, transplants, and even hemodialysis procedures. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of M. chelonae type strain CCUG 47445.This work, including the efforts of Antoni Bennasar-Figueras, was funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO) (CGL2012-39604).Peer Reviewe

PseudoMLSA: a database for multigenic sequence analysis of Pseudomonas species

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The genus <it>Pseudomonas </it>comprises more than 100 species of environmental, clinical, agricultural, and biotechnological interest. Although, the recommended method for discriminating bacterial species is DNA-DNA hybridisation, alternative techniques based on multigenic sequence analysis are becoming a common practice in bacterial species discrimination studies. Since there is not a general criterion for determining which genes are more useful for species resolution; the number of strains and genes analysed is increasing continuously. As a result, sequences of different genes are dispersed throughout several databases. This sequence information needs to be collected in a common database, in order to be useful for future identification-based projects.</p> <p>Description</p> <p>The PseudoMLSA Database is a comprehensive database of multiple gene sequences from strains of <it>Pseudomonas </it>species. The core of the database is composed of selected gene sequences from all <it>Pseudomonas </it>type strains validly assigned to the genus through 2008. The database is aimed to be useful for MultiLocus Sequence Analysis (MLSA) procedures, for the identification and characterisation of any <it>Pseudomonas </it>bacterial isolate. The sequences are available for download via a direct connection to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). Additionally, the database includes an online BLAST interface for flexible nucleotide queries and similarity searches with the user's datasets, and provides a user-friendly output for easily parsing, navigating, and analysing BLAST results.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The PseudoMLSA database amasses strains and sequence information of validly described <it>Pseudomonas </it>species, and allows free querying of the database via a user-friendly, web-based interface available at <url>http://www.uib.es/microbiologiaBD/Welcome.html</url>. The web-based platform enables easy retrieval at strain or gene sequence information level; including references to published peer-reviewed articles, and direct external links to more specialized strain information databases (StrainInfo) and GeneBank (NCBI). The PseudoMLSA is intended to provide helpful strain-sequence information for a better and more comprehensive discriminative multigenic sequence based analysis of this special group of bacteria, contributing to enhance our understanding of the evolution of <it>Pseudomonas </it>species.</p

Draft genome sequence of Pseudomonas stutzeri strain B1SMN1, a nitrogen-fixing and naphthalene-degrading strain isolated from wastewater

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Tabagismo em enfermeiras de cuidados primários à saúde: um estudo qualitativo

The aim of this work was to characterize the views of nurses about factors modulating smoking cessation. Results of this study will allow us to design helping interventions with the maximum specificity for nurses. A qualitative study through a semi-structured interview of 15 Primary Health Care nurses who were smokers was performed. In contrast with other studies in which nurses were not aware of any particular social pressure to give up smoking, 18 months after the application of the Anti-Smoking Spanish Law, this feeling was expressed. Therefore, the main reasons for giving up smoking include that smoking in public is every day worse seen, together with a sense of shame and guilt in front of their social and family environment, especially for being a professional group dedicated to health.El objetivo de este trabajo fue identificar los factores percibidos por las enfermeras fumadoras como moduladores del cese tabáquico, con el fin de diseñar posteriormente intervenciones de ayuda con la máxima especificidad para este colectivo. Se realizó un estudio cualitativo mediante entrevista semiestructurada a 15 enfermeras fumadoras de Atención Primaria de Salud. Contrariamente a otros estudios en los que las enfermeras no percibían una especial presión social para dejar el hábito tabáquico, 18 meses después de vigencia de la Ley de Prevención del Tabaquismo sí que la expresan. Por ello, entre los principales motivos de cese figura el que cada día esté peor considerado fumar en público, unido a un sentimiento de vergüenza y de culpa ante su entorno social y familiar, especialmente por tratarse de un colectivo profesional dedicado a los cuidados de salud.O objetivo deste estudo foi identificar os fatores percebidos por enfermeiras fumantes como facilitadores ao abandono do tabagismo, com o propósito de, posteriormente, elaborar intervenções de ajuda com maior especificidade para esse grupo. Foi realizado estudo qualitativo, por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas, com 15 enfermeiras de cuidados primários à saúde, que eram fumantes. Ao contrário de outros estudos, os quais as enfermeiras não percebiam pressão social para deixar o hábito tabágico, 18 meses após a vigência da Lei de Prevenção ao Tabagismo, as enfermeiras entrevistadas expressaram sentir pressão social. Portanto, entre os principais motivos para abandonar o hábito tabágico é que, a cada dia, fumar em público é malvisto, e está aliado a sentimentos de vergonha e culpa no seu entorno social e familiar, principalmente por se tratar de um grupo profissional dedicado aos cuidados da saúde

Hypertension prevalence in active working population in the Balearic Islands: gender and age socioeconomic inequalities and differences

Introducción: La clase social a partir de la ocupación constituye uno de los determinantes sociales de la salud más importantes. Muchos estudios confirman la influencia de las condiciones del trabajo sobre la salud de los individuos así como la prevalencia de determinados factores de riesgo cardiovascular como la hipertensión arterial. Objetivos: Determinar la prevalencia de hipertensión arterial en población laboral activa y analizar si las diferencias por clase social varían según edad y sexo. Material y método: Estudio transversal sobre una muestra de 1.910 trabajadores de entre 20 y 65 años de las Islas Baleares. Las variables de estudio fueron: clase social, medidas antropométricas, perfil lipídico, glucosa y presión arterial. Resultados: En general el grupo formado por las clases sociales más favorecidas tenía menor prevalencia de hipertensión arterial que el grupo formado por las clases sociales más desfavorecidas. En cuanto al sexo, según el análisis estratificado por clase social, los hombres pertenecientes a las clases sociales más favorecidas presentan una prevalencia de hipertensión arterial similar a la de los hombres de clases sociales más desfavorecidas. Las mujeres de clase social favorecida, en cambio, presentan menos hipertensión que las pertenecientes a las clases sociales más desfavorecidas. En relación a la edad, se obtiene que a mayor edad aumenta la prevalencia de hipertensión arterial. Conclusiones: Las desigualdades por clase social en la prevalencia de hipertensión arterial fueron mayores entre las mujeres que entre los hombres. La edad juega un papel crucial en la prevalencia de hipertensión arterial en cualquier estrato social.Background: Social class determined from occupation is one of the most important social determinants of health. Many studies confirm the influence of working conditions on the health of individuals and the acquisition of cardiovascular risk factors such as arterial hypertension. Aims: To determine the prevalence of hypertension in active working population and to analyze whether social class differences change with age and gender. Material and methods: A cross-sectional study in a sample of 1,910 workers aged 20-65 years in the Balearic Islands. The following study variables were collected: social class, anthropometric measurements, lipid profile, glucose and blood pressure. Results: Participants belonging to higher social classes presented, in general, lower prevalence of hypertension than participants belonging to lower social classes. When participants in the study were stratified by gender and social class, men belonging to the highest social classes showed similar prevalence of hypertension than men located in the lower social classes. However, women belonging to the higher social classes presented lower prevalence of hypertension than those belonging to the lower social classes. Regarding the effect of age, it was found that hypertension prevalence increases with aging. Conclusions: Social class inequalities in the prevalence of hypertension were higher among women than among men. Age plays an essential role in the prevalence of hypertension in any social class

Agreement between Type 2 Diabetes Risk Scales in a Caucasian Population: A Systematic Review and Report

Early detection of people with undiagnosed type 2 diabetes (T2D) is an important public health concern. Several predictive equations for T2D have been proposed but most of them have not been externally validated and their performance could be compromised when clinical data is used. Clinical practice guidelines increasingly incorporate T2D risk prediction models as they support clinical decision making. The aims of this study were to systematically review prediction scores for T2D and to analyze the agreement between these risk scores in a large cross-sectional study of white western European workers. A systematic review of the PubMed, CINAHL, and EMBASE databases and a cross-sectional study in 59, 042 Spanish workers was performed. Agreement between scores classifying participants as high risk was evaluated using the kappa statistic. The systematic review of 26 predictive models highlights a great heterogeneity in the risk predictors; there is a poor level of reporting, and most of them have not been externally validated. Regarding the agreement between risk scores, the DETECT-2 risk score scale classified 14.1% of subjects as high-risk, FINDRISC score 20.8%, Cambridge score 19.8%, the AUSDRISK score 26.4%, the EGAD study 30.3%, the Hisayama study 30.9%, the ARIC score 6.3%, and the ITD score 3.1%. The lowest agreement was observed between the ITD and the NUDS study derived score (kappa = 0.067). Differences in diabetes incidence, prevalence, and weight of risk factors seem to account for the agreement differences between scores. A better agreement between the multi-ethnic derivate score (DETECT-2) and European derivate scores was observed. Risk models should be designed using more easily identifiable and reproducible health data in clinical practice

Effect of common drinking water disinfectants, chlorine and heat, on free legionella and amoebae-associated legionella

Chlorine and thermal treatments are the most commonly used procedures to control and prevent Legionella proliferation in drinking water systems of large buildings. However, cases of legionellosis still occur in facilities with treated water. The purpose of this work was to model the effect of temperature and free chlorine applied in similar exposure condi- tions as in drinking water systems on five Legionella spp. strains and two amoebal strains of the genera Acanthamoeba . Inactivation models obtained were used to determine the effec- tiveness of the treatments applied which resulted more effective against Legionella than Acanthamoeba , especially those in cystic stages. Furthermore, to determine the influence of the relationship between L . pneumophila and Acanthamoeba spp. on the treatment effec- tiveness, inactivation models of the bacteria-associated amoeba were also constructed and compared to the models obtained for the free living bacteria state. The Legionella -amoeba association did not change the inactivation models, but it reduced the effectiveness of the treatments applied. Remarkably, at the lowest free chlorine concentration, 0.5 mg L -1 ,as well as at the lowest temperatures, 50°C and 55°C, the influence of the Legionella -amoeba associate state was the strongest in reducing the effectiveness of the treatments compared to the free Legionella state. Therefore, the association established between L . pneumophila and amoebae in the water systems indicate an increased health risk in proximal areas of the system (close to the tap) where lower free chlorine concentrations and lower tempera- tures are commonly observed

Analysis of the psychometric properties of the Sense of Coherence scale (SOC‑13) in patients with cardiovascular risk factors: a study of the method efects associated with negatively worded items

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to analyze the psychometric properties of the Sense of Coherence scale (SOC-13), determine the role of the method efect in the performance of the instrument, and identify the relationship with health perception, quality of life, and sleep quality in patients at cardiovascular risk. Methods: The fnal sample consisted of 293 patients at cardiovascular risk, with a mean age of 61.9 years (SD=8.8), 49.8% of whom were women. The SOC-13, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Medical Outcomes Study-Sleep Scale (MOS-Sleep) were administered. In addition, the participant’s self-perceived health and quality of life were also evaluated. All analyses were carried out with SPSS 26.0 and EQS 6.1 statistical software. Results: The results showed adequate reliability for the SOC-13, with a Cronbach’s alpha of .789. The ft of the structures was not adequate in any of the cases (.26 to .62 for one factor, .26 to.73 for three factors, .20 to .54 for one second-order factor, and .25, .42, and .54 for three frst-order factors). The three structure models showed an improved ft when adding a latent factor resulting from the method efect (.6 to .85 for one factor, .11 to.90 for three factors, and .11 to .96 for one second-order factor). Moreover, positive correlations were found with health perception, perceived quality of life, and perceived sleep quality. Conclusion: The SOC-13 is a suitable instrument for patients with cardiovascular risk in Spain, and it is also an indica‑ tor of health perception, quality of life, and perceived quality of sleep. Control of the method efect improves the ft of the instrument’s structure. As a future direction, it is recommended to conduct new studies in this and other samples and using diferent versions of the SOC. Trial registration: International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number: ISRCTN76069254, 08/04/2015 retro‑ spectively registered.This work has been granted from Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias of Insti‑ tuto de Salud Carlos III (PI13/01477) of the Spanish Government cofnanced by FEDER-Unión Europea (“Una manera de hacer Europa”) and by Department of Social, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Education Sciences, University of Huelva. The funding sources had not involvement in the study design, in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in the writing of the article and in the decision to submit it for publication

Body Adiposity Index Utilization in a Spanish Mediterranean Population: Comparison with the Body Mass Index

BACKGROUND: Body fat content and fat distribution or adiposity are indicators of health risk. Several techniques have been developed and used for assessing and/or determining body fat or adiposity. Recently, the Body Adiposity Index (BAI), which is based on the measurements of hip circumference and height, has been suggested as a new index of adiposity. The aim of the study was to compare BAI and BMI measurements in a Caucasian population from a European Mediterranean area and to assess the usefulness of the BAI in men and women separately. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in a Caucasian population. All participants in the study (1,726 women and 1,474 men, mean age 39.2 years, SD 10.8) were from Mallorca (Spain). Anthropometric data, including percentage of body fat mass obtained by Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, were determined. Body Mass Index (BMI) and BAI were calculated. BAI and BMI showed a good correlation (r = 0.64, p<0.001). A strong correlation was also found between BAI and the % fat determined using BIA (r = 0.74, p<0.001), which is even stronger than the one between BMI and % fat (r = 0.54, p<0.001). However, the ROC curve analysis showed a higher accuracy for BMI than for the BAI regarding the discriminatory capacity. CONCLUSION: The BAI could be a good tool to measure adiposity due, at least in part, to the advantages over other more complex mechanical or electrical systems. Probably, the most important advantage of BAI over BMI is that weight is not needed. However, in general it seems that the BAI does not overcome the limitations of BMI

L’aprenentatge de les matemàtiques: la influència de l’autoconcepte, de la motivació i de la percepció que es té de l’assignatura

[cat] El procés d’ensenyament-aprenentatge inclou tot un conjunt d’ítems que en condicionen la qualitat. Després d’una recerca bibliogràfica s’ha pogut observar que hi ha factors molt importants com poden ser l’autoconcepte, la motivació, les emocions... que puguin tenir els infants influeix fortament en el seu procés d’aprenentatge i les matemàtiques no en són una excepció. El mestre és el responsable de que els infants aprenguin, però és necessari que no només es centri en la transmissió de conceptes sinó que també tingui present l’estat emocional i la percepció de l’infant, tan a nivell personal com referit a les matemàtiques. Una experiència a quatre escoles completament diferents en quan a context, metodologia i tipologia d’alumnes ha permès veure una pinzellada del que passa actualment a les escoles, sempre des d’un punt de vista completament objectiu i sense afirmar res de forma concloent[eng] The process of teaching and learning includes a set of items that conditions its quality. After a bibliographic research, we could observe that there are a lot of important factors that can be self-concept, motivation, emotions, etc., that can have a big influence in an infant learning process and mathematics is not an exception. The teacher is the one responsible for the kids to learn, but it is necessary for the teacher not only to concentrate in the transmission of concepts but should also have in mind the emotional state and the perception of the infant, both at a personal level and in a mathematical area. An experience in four different schools in terms of context, methodology and typology of students allowed us to see a touch of what is really happening in schools, always from a completely objective point of view