An implementation trial of ACT-based bibliotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Background: Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a gastrointestinal disorder that is associated with pain, discomfort, constipation and diarrhoea. It affects around 20% of adults in Western countries. Reports of distress and self-consciousness, as well as experiential and situational avoidance are common. Previous studies have shown that ACT may be effective for people with IBS. Methods: An uncontrolled trial of ACT based bibliotherapy was undertaken in a specialist motility clinic. Outcomes were measured with standardised self-report questionnaires pre-treatment, and at two and six months. Missing data was handled using maximum likelihood imputation. Data was analysed using repeated measures ANOVA. Results: 45 participants enrolled in the study, with 36 providing data at two months, and 24 at six months. Participants were predominantly female, with an average tenyear history of IBS, and 71% of the sample had moderate or severe symptoms. At six months,participants had improved on symptom severity (hp 2 = .09, 90% CI = .01 - .18), GI specific anxiety (hp 2 = .07, 90% CI = .01 - .16) and IBS willingness (hp 2 = .14, 90% CI = .04 - .24), but had not shown behavioural changes towards greater activity, (hp 2 = .01, 90% CI = .0 - .05) or to reduce IBS avoidance behaviours (hp 2 = .05, 90% CI = .0 = .13). Contrary to hypothesis, intervention did not reduce the impact of IBS on quality of life(hp 2 = .04, 90% CI = .0 - .09). Discussion: Bibliotherapy interventions may be useful for people with refractory IBS, though greater contact and structured exposure may be necessary to change behaviour. The study was limited by problems with attrition, though these data suggest future research in this area would be worthwhile

Diodos emisores de luz para irradiación de plantas

Los recientes desarrollos conseguidos en el área de la iluminación con diodos emisores de luz (LEDs, cuando son inorgánicos, y OLEDs, cuando son orgánicos) resultan de gran interés en horticultura, al permitir manipular el espectro radiante que va a incidir sobre las plantas, con el objetivo de aumentar su producción o de generar determinados efectos fisiológicos, sobre todo en invernaderos. Puesto que los vegetales crecen mejor cuando son iluminados (irradiados) en las regiones roja y azul del espectro, resulta aconsejable sustituir los sistemas de iluminación fotosintética actuales, fundamentalmente mediante lámparas de descarga en gases (vapor de sodio a alta presión y, en menor medida, halogenuros metálicos), por LEDs comerciales que emiten separadamente en esas regiones o por OLEDs susceptibles de emisión conjunta. Además, estos dispositivos son más eficientes que las lámparas incandescentes (consumen mucha menor energía eléctrica y poseen una vida media de uso mucho más larga), no generan exceso de calor (y por tanto no dañan a plantas térmicamente sensibles), e incluso, en el caso de los LEDs rojos, repelen insectos, por lo que contribuyen a la disminución en el uso de agrotóxicos. En el presente artículo, se revisan las últimas contribuciones en Fitofotónica relacionadas con los diodos emisores de luz, se aporta la experiencia existente sobre la aplicación de LEDs a invernaderos y se divulga el estado de las investigaciones que algunos grupos de investigación estamos realizando sobre OLEDs emisores bien en el rojo o bien en las regiones del rojo y el azul

Vaccination of rabbits with immunodominant antigens from Sarcoptes scabiei induced high levels of humoral responses and pro-inflammatory cytokines but confers limited protection

Vaccination is an attractive ecological alternative to the use of acaricides for parasite control. However, effective anti-parasite vaccines against sarcoptic mange have not yet been developed. The purpose of this study was first to identify Sarcoptes scabiei immunodominant antigens and second to evaluate them as vaccine candidates in a rabbit/ S. scabiei var. cuniculi model. The S. scabiei Ssλ15 immunodominant antigen was selected by immunoscreening of a S. scabiei var. hominis cDNA. The full-length cDNA was sequenced and cloned into the pGEX vector and the recombinant protein expressed in BL21 (DE3) cells and purified. A vaccination trial was performed consisting of a test group (n = 8) immunised with recAgs (a mix of two recombinant antigens, Ssλ15 and the previously described Ssλ20∆B3) and a control group (n = 8) immunised with PBS. All analyses were performed with R Statistical Environment with α set at 0.050. The full-length open reading frame of the 1,821 nt cloned cDNA encodes a 64 kDa polypeptide, the sequence of which had 96 % identity with a hypothetical protein of S. scabiei. Ssλ15 was localised by immunostaining of skin sections in the tegument surrounding the mouthparts and the coxa in the legs of mites. Rabbit immunisation with recAgs induced high levels of specific IgG (P < 0.010) and increased levels of total IgEs. However, no significant clinical protection against S. scabiei challenge was detected. Unexpectedly, the group immunised with the recAgs mix had significantly higher lesion scores (P = 0.050) although lower mean mite densities than those observed in the control group. These results might indicate that the lesions in the recAgs group were due not only to the mites density but also to an exacerbated immunological response after challenge, which is in agreement with the specific high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1 and TNFα) detected after challenge in this group. The selected antigens delivered as recombinant proteins had no clinical protective efficacy against S. scabiei infestation although immunisation reduced mite density. However, these results pave the way for future studies on alternative production systems, adjuvants, delivery methods and combinations of antigens in order to manage stimulation of clinical protective immune responses. The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1717-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Narrative-based computational modelling of the Gp130/JAK/STAT signalling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Appropriately formulated quantitative computational models can support researchers in understanding the dynamic behaviour of biological pathways and support hypothesis formulation and selection by "in silico" experimentation. An obstacle to widespread adoption of this approach is the requirement to formulate a biological pathway as machine executable computer code. We have recently proposed a novel, biologically intuitive, narrative-style modelling language for biologists to formulate the pathway which is then automatically translated into an executable format and is, thus, usable for analysis via existing simulation techniques. RESULTS: Here we use a high-level narrative language in designing a computational model of the gp130/JAK/STAT signalling pathway and show that the model reproduces the dynamic behaviour of the pathway derived by biological observation. We then "experiment" on the model by simulation and sensitivity analysis to define those parameters which dominate the dynamic behaviour of the pathway. The model predicts that nuclear compartmentalisation and phosphorylation status of STAT are key determinants of the pathway and that alternative mechanisms of signal attenuation exert their influence on different timescales. CONCLUSION: The described narrative model of the gp130/JAK/STAT pathway represents an interesting case study showing how, by using this approach, researchers can model biological systems without explicitly dealing with formal notations and mathematical expressions (typically used for biochemical modelling), nevertheless being able to obtain simulation and analysis results. We present the model and the sensitivity analysis results we have obtained, that allow us to identify the parameters which are most sensitive to perturbations. The results, which are shown to be in agreement with existing mathematical models of the gp130/JAK/STAT pathway, serve us as a form of validation of the model and of the approach itself

Acute Diarrhea Associated with Heat-stable Enteroxin Producing Strains of Vibrio cholerae Non-O1: First Report from Cuba

A five month old male infant was referred withwatery diarrhea, vomiting and fever, to the paedi-atric ward of the provincial Pediatric Hospital ofLas Tunas, Cuba. Abdominal examination revealedtenderness; liver and spleen were normal.Chest, cardiovascular and other systems werenormal. The patient was rehydratated with oralrehydratation with solution according to the WorldHealth Organization formula and breast-feedingwas continued. The clinical picture improvedgradually and the patient was discharged after sixdays without diarrhea and in good condition. Onadmission stool sample was taken and cultured onSalmonella-Shigella and MacConkey agar for iso-lation of Salmonella, Shigella spp., enterotoxigenicand enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Vibrio spp .,Aeromonas spp ., and Plesiomonas shigelloides (JFMcFaddin 1980, p. 19-34. Biochemical Test forIdentification of Medical Bacteria, 2nd ed., TheWilliams and Wilkins Co, Baltimore).Blood agar suplemented with Butzler's antimi-crobials was employed for the isolation ofCampylobacter spp. The presence of Rotavirus wasruled out by latex agglutination assay. Three dif-ferent samples of feaces were analyzed by conven-tional microscopic examination for the presenceof ova, cyst or vegetative forms of parasites(Organizacion Mundial de la Salud 1992, p. 10-20, Metodos Basicos de Laboratorio enParasitologia Medica, OMS, Geneva).The stool specimen plated on MacConkey agaryielded a pure culture of lactose non-fermentingGram-negative rods, moved by polar flagella, iden-tified at genus level as Vibrio. The national strat-egy for cholera control in Cuba shows that thecountry is still free from cholera. A slide aggluti-nation with polyvalent O1 group antiserum for pre-sumptive identification of V. cholerae O1 strain wasperformed; the test was negative.The coproparasitological examination wasnegative and no Rotavirus or other bacterialenterophatogen were found or isolated from stoolsamples. The Vibrio strain isolated was sent to theNational Reference Laboratory for Diarrhoeal Dis-eases and Cholera Control at the "Pedro Kouri"Institute of Tropical Medicine, Havana City, andconfirmed to be a non-O1 and non-O139 V.cholerae by standard methods (JJ Farmer & FWHickman Brenner 1992, p. 2552-3011. In ABallows, HG Truper, M Dworkin, W Harder, KHSchleifer (eds), The Prokaryotes: a Handbook onthe Biology of Bacteria, Vol. 3, Springer, Verlag,New York). The strain was susceptible to 10- and150 µg disks of the vibriostatic agent O/129; theantimicrobial susceptibility test, performed with theKirby-Bauer method, showed that the strain wassusceptible to tetracycline, ampicillin, cloram-phenicol, trimethoprim, sulphametoxazol, nalid-ixic acid, ciprofloxacin, streptomycin, erytromycin,gentamicin, cefuroxime and furazolidone (CWStratton & RC Cooksey 1991, p. 1153-1165. In ABalows, WJ Hausler Jr, KL Herrmann, HDIsenberg, HJ Shadomy (eds), Manual of ClinicalMicrobiology, 5th ed., ASM, Washington, DC). Thestrain was analyzed for the presence of genomicsequences related to the V. cholerae O1 ctx ge-netic element, that includes the cep, orFU, ace, zot,and ctxAB genes, by using a colony-blot hybrid-ization procedure (T Karasawa et al. 1993 FEMSMicrobiol Letters 106: 143-146). The hybridiza-tion probe used was a 4.4 kbp cloned DNA frag-ment containing the entire ctx element of V.cholerae, and was labeled with (a 32P) dCTP bythe random priming technique.The presence of aheat-stable enterotoxin gene was investigated byPCR amplification as previously described (PGuglielmetti et al. 1994 Mol Cell Probes 8: 39-44). The biological activity of the strain was testedby the conventional suckling mouse assay (YTakeda et al. 1979 Infec Immun 25 : 978-985). Theresults of the molecular characterization of th

Guia de benvinguda a l’ASPCAT

Benvinguda; Acompanyament pràctic; Itinerari formatiu; Personal de nova incorporacióWelcoming; Mentoring; Training; NewcomerBienvenida; Tutoría; Itinerario formativo; Personal de nueva incorporaciónLa Guia és el document de referència que estableix com s’ha de dur a terme el procés de benvinguda i acollida del personal de nova incorporació a l’ASPCAT, amb la intenció d’acompanyar-lo durant el procés d’adaptació a la nostra organització i al seu lloc de treball. L’estandardització del procés de benvinguda i acollida del nou personal garanteix que la seva incorporació es dugui a terme de la mateixa forma, sigui quin sigui el lloc de treball i àmbit funcional on s’incorpori, i facilita que pugui exercir les funcions i tasques pròpies del lloc de treball amb efectivitat i autonomia, i com més aviat millor. Si la persona nouvinguda se sent ben acollida, rep la informació del que és l’Agència com a institució, coneix clarament quines són les funcions i tasques pròpies del seu lloc de treball, tant del vessant de funcionariat com del tècnic, si li oferim un acompanyament pràctic i pot seguir un itinerari formatiu bàsic i de perfeccionament, facilitarem la seva integració a l’organització i generarem un sentiment de pertinença que ens ajudarà a capitalitzar i retenir el talent. El contingut de la Guia recull com ha de ser la benvinguda i acollida del personal de nova incorporació, quin acompanyament pràctic ha de rebre, quins recursos d’ajuda i suport té al seu abast i la necessitat d’establir quin itinerari formatiu ha de seguir. Per identificar àrees de millora, es preveu una enquesta de satisfacció del procés de benvinguda i el retiment de comptes periòdic a la direcció de l’Agència.La Guía es el documento de referencia que establece cómo debe llevarse a cabo el proceso de bienvenida y acogida del personal de nueva incorporación a la ASPCAT, con la intención de acompañarlo durante el proceso de adaptación a nuestra organización y a su puesto de trabajo. La estandarización del proceso de bienvenida y acogida del nuevo personal garantiza que su incorporación se lleve a cabo de la misma forma, sea cual sea el puesto de trabajo y ámbito funcional adonde se incorpore, y facilita que pueda desempeñar las funciones y tareas propias del puesto de trabajo con efectividad y autonomía, y lo antes posible. Si la persona recién llegada se siente bien acogida, recibe la información de lo que es la Agencia como institución, conoce claramente cuáles son las funciones y tareas propias de su puesto de trabajo, tanto desde la vertiente de funcionariado público como la de técnico, si le ofrecemos un acompañamiento práctico y puede seguir un itinerario formativo básico y de perfeccionamiento, facilitaremos su integración en la organización y generaremos un sentimiento de pertenencia que nos ayudará a capitalizar y retener el talento. El contenido de la Guía describe cómo debe ser la bienvenida y acogida del personal de nueva incorporación, qué acompañamiento práctico debe recibir, qué recursos de ayuda y apoyo tiene a su alcance y la necesidad de establecer qué itinerario formativo debe seguir. Para identificar áreas de mejora, se prevé una encuesta de satisfacción del proceso de bienvenida y la rendición de cuentas de forma periódica a la dirección de la Agencia.The Guide is the reference document that establishes how the process of welcoming and the actual welcoming of new staff to ASPCAT should be carried out, with the aim of accompanying them during the process of adapting to our organisation and to their new job. The standardisation of the welcoming and reception process for new staff guarantees that their incorporation is carried out in equity whatever the job and the functional area they join, and makes it easier for them to carry out the functions and tasks of the job effectively and autonomously, as well as and as soon as possible. If the newcomer feels at home, receives information about what the Agency is as an institution, clearly knows what demands and tasks the job puts on him pretty early on, both from the civil service standpoint and from its technical one too, if we offer them practical support and if they can follow a basic and advanced training itinerary, we will be facilitating their integration into the organisation and thus generating a feeling of belonging that will pay off and help us retain talent. The content of the Guide describes how new staff should be welcomed and received, what practical support they should receive, what help and support resources are available to them and the need to establish what training path they should follow. In order to identify areas for improvement, a satisfaction survey of the welcome process and regular reporting to the Agency's management are foreseen

RNA interference in Lepidoptera: an overview of successful and unsuccessful studies and implications for experimental design

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Multi-Messenger Astronomy with Extremely Large Telescopes

The field of time-domain astrophysics has entered the era of Multi-messenger Astronomy (MMA). One key science goal for the next decade (and beyond) will be to characterize gravitational wave (GW) and neutrino sources using the next generation of Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs). These studies will have a broad impact across astrophysics, informing our knowledge of the production and enrichment history of the heaviest chemical elements, constrain the dense matter equation of state, provide independent constraints on cosmology, increase our understanding of particle acceleration in shocks and jets, and study the lives of black holes in the universe. Future GW detectors will greatly improve their sensitivity during the coming decade, as will near-infrared telescopes capable of independently finding kilonovae from neutron star mergers. However, the electromagnetic counterparts to high-frequency (LIGO/Virgo band) GW sources will be distant and faint and thus demand ELT capabilities for characterization. ELTs will be important and necessary contributors to an advanced and complete multi-messenger network.Comment: White paper submitted to the Astro2020 Decadal Surve