Secondary Bilateral Angle Closure Glaucoma due to Topiramate

We examined a 39-year-old female with severe headache and blurred vision. She was on topiramate, 50 mg once a day for one week because of migraine. Periorbital edema, chemosis, myopia, high intraocular pressures, and shallow anterior chambers were present at the initial examination. Iridocorneal angles were closed, ultrasound showed choroidal effusions. We stopped topiramate and started antiglaucoma treatment. After one week the intraocular pressure was 10 mm Hg in both eyes without treatment. A new ultrasound showed no choroidal effusions. Topiramate has been associated with acute secondary angle closure glaucoma as an idiosyncratic reaction to the drug. Physicians prescribing topiramate need to alert patients of this potential sight-threatening idiosyncratic reaction

A many-analysts approach to the relation between religiosity and well-being

The relation between religiosity and well-being is one of the most researched topics in the psychology of religion, yet the directionality and robustness of the effect remains debated. Here, we adopted a many-analysts approach to assess the robustness of this relation based on a new cross-cultural dataset (N=10,535 participants from 24 countries). We recruited 120 analysis teams to investigate (1) whether religious people self-report higher well-being, and (2) whether the relation between religiosity and self-reported well-being depends on perceived cultural norms of religion (i.e., whether it is considered normal and desirable to be religious in a given country). In a two-stage procedure, the teams first created an analysis plan and then executed their planned analysis on the data. For the first research question, all but 3 teams reported positive effect sizes with credible/confidence intervals excluding zero (median reported β=0.120). For the second research question, this was the case for 65% of the teams (median reported β=0.039). While most teams applied (multilevel) linear regression models, there was considerable variability in the choice of items used to construct the independent variables, the dependent variable, and the included covariates

A Many-analysts Approach to the Relation Between Religiosity and Well-being

The relation between religiosity and well-being is one of the most researched topics in the psychology of religion, yet the directionality and robustness of the effect remains debated. Here, we adopted a many-analysts approach to assess the robustness of this relation based on a new cross-cultural dataset (N = 10, 535 participants from 24 countries). We recruited 120 analysis teams to investigate (1) whether religious people self-report higher well-being, and (2) whether the relation between religiosity and self-reported well-being depends on perceived cultural norms of religion (i.e., whether it is considered normal and desirable to be religious in a given country). In a two-stage procedure, the teams first created an analysis plan and then executed their planned analysis on the data. For the first research question, all but 3 teams reported positive effect sizes with credible/confidence intervals excluding zero (median reported β = 0.120). For the second research question, this was the case for 65% of the teams (median reported β = 0.039). While most teams applied (multilevel) linear regression models, there was considerable variability in the choice of items used to construct the independent variables, the dependent variable, and the included covariates

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

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

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival

The bottom of the ladder ? Study on the professional and social condition of garbage collectors and sweepers in the public sector in Paris and its region.

A partir d'une enquête de type ethnographique, cette thèse interroge, au croisement d'une sociologie du travail et des classes populaires, une condition professionnelle et sociale encore peu explorée : celle des éboueurs et des balayeurs du secteur public, à Paris et en région parisienne. Tandis que les milieux populaires ont été traversés par des évolutions structurelles majeures, un processus de déprolétarisation a conduit à transformer ce « sale boulot » en « bon plan » sur le marché du travail non qualifié pour des classes populaires désireuses de se stabiliser en entrant dans la fonction publique « par le bas ». Que veut dire être éboueur ou balayeur dans le secteur public aujourd'hui ? Que veut dire être stable, mais en « bas » de l'échelle professionnelle ? S'intéressant d'abord aux conditions de travail, la thèse montre que les bénéfices de l'emploi public s'étendent aux situations concrètes de travail, le secteur public pouvant alors représenter une alternative pour se soustraire aux contraintes du secteur privé. Elle rend également compte de la « tertiarisation » du travail et de ces travailleurs, dont la dimension relationnelle du métier a été renforcée, et qui sont donc aujourd'hui plus qu'hier des « ouvriers des services ». L'enquête parvient ensuite à éclairer la diversité interne du groupe en mettant en évidence l'espace des différences sociales en son sein. La thèse souligne la pluralité des rapports au travail, la diversité des usages ou fonctions de l'emploi public et les effets de ce dernier sur les trajectoires et les modes de vie. Ainsi, l'accès à la fonction publique peut autoriser une stabilisation voire une promotion sociale et le travail, positivement investi, est susceptible d'être considéré comme un véritable métier. Mais lorsqu'il est jugé indésirable, le travail peut aussi être vécu en négatif par des personnes qui se sentent captives de leur emploi ou en décalage par rapport à leur situation professionnelle. En montrant que ces divergences sont liées à des écarts en termes de trajectoires, de générations, de ressources, d'aspirations et de styles de vie, la thèse identifie des pôles de travailleurs et met au jour une stratification au sein du groupe. Enfin, en saisissant les rapports concrets que ces ouvriers entretiennent, dans le cadre de leur travail, avec des groupes sociaux situés « au-dessous » et « au-dessus » d'eux, l'enquête parvient à décrire empiriquement une condition ambivalente, caractérisée par la subalternité, une relative sécurité économique ainsi qu'un certain degré de participation sociale, mais aussi des formes de vulnérabilité. L'enquête montre ainsi comment la dualité qui caractérise la condition de ces travailleurs subalternes - stables et protégés, mais modestes donc fragiles - contribue à façonner des styles de vie et des propriétés culturelles à la croisée des classes populaires et des catégories intermédiaires. En appréhendant le salariat d'exécution au prisme de la stabilité et en mobilisant une sociologie du travail et des travailleurs, l'étude de ces ouvriers du public espère ainsi plus largement contribuer à l'exploration des fractions médianes - stables, mais modestes - des classes populaires contemporaines.Based on an ethnographic-type study, this thesis questions, at the crossroads of a sociology of work and the lower classes, a professional and social condition that has yet to be explored: that of garbage collectors and sweepers in the public sector, in Paris and its region. While the working-class circles have been crossed by major structural changes, a process of deproletarization has led to transforming this "dirty job" into a "good plan" on the non-qualified labor market for workers wishing to stabilize themselves by entering the public service "from below". What does being a garbage collector or sweeper mean in the public sector today? What does it mean to be socially stable, but at the "bottom" of the professional ladder? Focusing first on working conditions, the thesis shows that the benefits of public employment extend to concrete work situations, the public sector then being able to represent an alternative to escape the constraints of the private sector. It also gives an account of the "tertiarisation" of work and of these workers, whose relational dimension of the profession has been strengthened, and who are therefore today more than yesterday "service workers". The study then manages to shed light on the internal diversity of the group by highlighting the space of social differences within it. The thesis underlines the diversity of the workers, of uses or functions of public employment and its effects on trajectories and lifestyles. Access to the public service can allow stabilization or even social promotion and work, positively invested, is likely to be considered a real profession. But when it is deemed undesirable, work can also be viewed negatively by people who feel captive in their job or out of step with their professional situation. By showing that these divergences are linked to differences in terms of trajectories, generations, resources, aspirations and lifestyles, the thesis identifies poles of workers and brings to light a stratification within the group. Finally, by grasping the concrete relationships that these workers maintain, in the context of their work, with social groups located "below" and "above" them, the survey manages to empirically describe an ambivalent condition, characterized by subalternity, relative economic security and a certain degree of social participation, but also forms of vulnerability. The study thus shows how the duality that characterizes the condition of these subordinate workers - stable and protected, but modest and therefore fragile - contributes to shaping lifestyles and cultural properties at the crossroads of lower and middle classes. By apprehending executive labor through the prism of stability and by mobilizing a sociology of work and workers, the study of these public workers thus hopes more broadly to contribute to the exploration of the middle fractions - stable, but modest - of the contemporary working classes

Diversité des configurations professionnelles et effets sur les conditions de travail. Les agents de nettoyage en sous-traitance à l’université

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