ABC for people with HIV: responses to sexual behaviour recommendations among people receiving antiretroviral therapy in Jinja, Uganda.

People living with HIV who are taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) are increasingly involved in 'positive prevention' initiatives. These are generally oriented to promoting abstinence, 'being faithful' (partner reduction) and condom use (ABC). We conducted a longitudinal qualitative study with people living with HIV using ART, who were provided with adherence education and counselling support by a Ugandan non-governmental organisation, The AIDS Support Organisation (TASO). Forty people were selected sequentially as they started ART, stratified by sex, ART delivery mode (clinic- or home-based) and HIV progression stage (early or advanced) and interviewed at enrollment and at 3, 6, 18 and 30 months. At initiation of ART, participants agreed to follow TASO's positive-living recommendations. Initially poor health prevented sexual activity. As health improved, participants prioritised resuming economic production and support for their children. With further improvements, sexual desire resurfaced and people in relationships cemented these via sex. The findings highlight the limitations of HIV prevention based on medical care/personal counselling. As ART leads to health improvements, social norms, economic needs and sexual desires increasingly influence sexual behaviour. Positive prevention interventions need to seek to modify normative and economic influences on sexual behaviour, as well as to provide alternatives to condoms

O instituto dos punitive damages como critério de arbitramento de indenizações por dano extrapatrimonial no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro

que a forma como ele é abordado em nosso ordenamento difere de suas hipóteses de aplicação no Direito estrangeiro. Concluiu-se que, no Brasil, a menção a punitive damages é utilizada como critério para arbitramento de indenização de danos extrapatrimoniais e não como verba com caráter punitivo apartada da verba indenizatória, sem previsão em nosso ordenamento. O presente trabalho propõe a discussão a respeito da importação de institutos de Direito Comparado cuja natureza guarda pouca ou nenhuma semelhança com o ordenamento jurídico pátrio. A positivação da indenizabilidade do dano de ordem extrapatrimonial no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro impôs a difícil tarefa aos julgadores de quantificar, com base nos preceitos de responsabilidade civil, um valor pecuniário correspondente a título de indenização para danos que não possuem valor tangível. Diferentemente de danos de ordem material, que, apesar de positivado, o legislador deixou de estabelecer parâmetros para a sua quantificação. Insatisfeitos com a suposta ineficiência do Direito Penal e com as consequências da sociedade industrializada, a doutrina e a jurisprudência brasileiras passaram a atribuir função que pudesse suprir tal demanda, atribuindo viés punitivo a indenizações de cunho extrapatrimonial, mesmo sem previsão no ordenamento jurídico pátrio, buscando, na experiência dos países de Common Law, influência para a importação de tal função no Direito brasileiro, com base no instituto dos punitive damages. Verificada a menção a instituto estrangeiro tanto na doutrina quanto na jurisprudência brasileiras relacionadas à indenização de dano imaterial, esta monografia objetiva analisar, por meio de revisão bibliográfica, em primeiro momento, as características fundamentais do instituto e as hipóteses de sua aplicação no Direito norte-americano, para, em segundo momento, analisar o histórico da positivação da indenizabilidade do dano extrapatrimonial no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro, de modo a responder o motivo pelo qual alguns operadores do Direito no Brasil entenderam pertinente buscar referência nos punitive damages. Para tanto, além de análise teórica por meio da doutrina especializada, utiliza-se de pesquisa jurisprudencial no Tribunal de Justiça do Rio Grande do Sul, de modo a verificar as hipóteses em que um dos tribunais pátrios invoca o instituto estrangeiro. A conclusão do estudo se verifica na maneira equivocada com a qual o instituto estrangeiro é mencionado, postocompensation amount – which is not included in our legal system. This research proposes a discussion about the importation of Comparative Law institutes whose nature barely resembles to the Brazilian legal system. The consolidation of the possibility of compensation for non-economic damage in the Brazilian legal system imposed on judges the complex task of quantifying a pecuniary amount as compensation for damages that have no tangible value – unlike property damages – based on the precepts of civil liability. This is because the legislator did not established parameters for the quantification, despite its validity by law. In view of the supposed inefficiency of Criminal Law and the consequences of industrialized society, Brazilian doctrine and court decisions began to assume a role that could handle such demand. Providing punitive function to such indemnities, even without compliance with the Brazilian legal system, the experience of Common Law countries was sought for the import of the possibility into Brazilian law, based on the institute of punitive damages. This research aims to analyze, at first, through a literature review, the fundamental characteristics of the legal institute and the hypotheses of its application in North American Law. In a second moment, this monograph analyzes the history of the legal consolidation of the compensation for non-economic damages in the Brazilian legal system, aiming to answer the reason why some legal practitioners in Brazil seek reference in the punitive damages institute. To fulfill these objectives, in addition to theoretical analysis through specialized doctrine, decisions of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Sul were analyzed to verify the hypothesis in which the Brazilian courts invoke the foreign institute. The study concludes that the way in which the foreign institute is mentioned is incorrect, and this is due to the way in which it is approached in our legal system, which differs from its hypothesis of application in foreign law. It’s concluded that, in Brazil, the mention of punitive damages is used as a criterion for compensation of non-economic damages, not with a punitive character apart from th

Water governance in the Kyrgyz agricultural sector: on its way to integrated water resource management?

"As a reaction to growing water scarcity worldwide, sustainable water allocation and use, and in particular the role of agriculture as a major water user, have become important topics in the development discourse. In recent years Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) emerged as an answer to many water management problems. IWRM approaches water management from a holistic perspective and encompasses, among others, the integration of economic, ecological and social aspects. Is implementation of such a holistic approach feasible in developing countries and countries in transition or does it rather overburden them? First experiences have been made with the implementation of IWRM in several developing and transition countries. The aim of this study is to provide some answers to the question of what has been achieved so far. Based on an analysis of Kyrgyz water governance, the study assesses the status quo as well as the potentials for and obstacles to the realization of the normative framework of IWRM in a transition country. Comparing today's institutional framework of water management with this normative concept, it reveals the most significant gaps between norm and reality, but also identifies progress towards IWRM. Recommendations on how to further develop Kyrgyz water governance towards IWRM are provided." (author's abstract

Human and Mouse Mast Cells Express and Secrete the GPI-Anchored Isoform of CD160

CD160 is expressed by human and mouse natural killer (NK) cells and other cytotoxic lymphocyte subpopulations. CD160 is mostly expressed as a trimeric 83kDa glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored activating NK receptor, cleaved upon IL-15 stimulation in a secreted trimeric soluble form (sCD160) that binds to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules, while a transmembrane isoform appears. sCD160 exhibits immunoregulatory function as it inhibits CD8+ T-lymphocyte cytotoxic activity. We show that human mast cells (MCs) express CD160. In human and mouse skin, resident MCs expressed CD160, whereas in C57BL/6-KitW-sh/W-sh mice, CD160+ cells were only identified at the site of reconstitution with syngeneic cultured MCs. In the human mast cell line, HMC-1, we only identified the transcripts of the GPI-anchored CD160 isoform. Furthermore, CD160 was identified in HMC-1 and mouse MC supernatants, suggesting that MCs release sCD160. Supporting this hypothesis, HMC-1 express the GPI-specific phospholipase D variant 2 involved in the NK lymphocyte membrane cleavage of CD160, and morphological studies highlighted a relative loss of CD160 expression in inflammatory skin sites, where MC degranulation is expected to occur. We also demonstrated an inhibition of T-cell cytotoxicity by HMC-1 supernatant that was partially reversed by anti-CD160 mAb. In conclusion, sCD160, produced by MCs, may have a role in T-cell–MC interactions in vivo

Da monogamia ao feminicídio: Algumas reflexões

La monogamia se entiende como un sistema hegemónico de la forma y la gestión de los afectos, las cuerpas y los deseos, hacia nosotres mismes, así como hacia nuestras relaciones con las demás (sean seres vivos humanos o no). Este estudio pretende realizar un análisis teórico de lo que sería la monogamia como estructura y sistema ético-político-afectivo hegemónico y sus relaciones con la salud, específicamente con la violencia de género, doméstica e intrafamiliar. Se percibe que aún hoy existe el imaginario de que los feminicidios son crímenes pasionales, lo cual es consecuencia de la construcción del amor romántico dentro de la monogamia, siendo los compañeros íntimos (hombres cis heterosexuales) los principales agresores de las mujeres.Entende-se a monogamia como um sistema hegemônico da forma e gestão dos afetos, corpos e desejos, para com nós mesmes, assim como para com as nossas relações com as outres (sejam seres vivos humanos ou não). Pretende-se neste estudo, realizar uma análise teórica do que seria a monogamia como estrutura e sistema hegemônico ético-político-afetivo e as suas relações com a saúde, especificamente com a violência de gênero, doméstica e intrafamiliar. Perceba-se que ainda hoje se tem o imaginário dos feminicídios serem crimes passionais, o qual é em decorrência da construção do amor romântico dentro da monogamia, sendo os parceiros íntimos (homem cis hetero) os principais agressores das mulheres

The post-mortem resilience of facial creases and the possibility for use in identification of the dead

The post-mortem resilience of facial creases was studied using donated bodies in order to establish the efficacy of crease analysis for identification of the dead. Creases were studied on normal (pre-embalmed) and bloated (embalmed) cadavers at the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification (CAHID) to establish whether facial bloating would affect facial crease visibility. Embalming was chosen to simulate the effects produced by post-mortem bloating. The results suggested that creases are resilient and changes were only detected for creases located on the periphery of the face, particularly at areas where the skin is thick, such as at the cheeks. Two new creases not previously classified were identified; these creases were called the vertical superciliary arch line and the lateral nose crease. This research suggests that facial creases may be resilient enough after death to be utilised for human identification

Everyday cosmopolitanism in representations of Europe among young Romanians in Britain

The paper presents an analysis of everyday cosmopolitanism in constructions of Europe among young Romanian nationals living in Britain. Adopting a social representations approach, cosmopolitanism is understood as a cultural symbolic resource that is part of everyday knowledge. Through a discursively-oriented analysis of focus group data, we explore the ways in which notions of cosmopolitanism intersect with images of Europeanness in the accounts of participants. We show that, for our participants, representations of Europe are anchored in an Orientalist schema of West-vs.-East, whereby the West is seen as epitomising European values of modernity and progress, while the East is seen as backward and traditional. Our findings further show that representations of cosmopolitanism reinforce this East/West dichotomy, within a discourse of ‘Occidental cosmopolitanism’. The paper concludes with a critical discussion of the diverse and complex ideological foundations of these constructions of European cosmopolitanism and their implications

Late diagnosis of human immunodeficiency virus infection is linked to higher rates of epilepsy in children in the Eastern Cape of South Africa

BackgroundHuman immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive children may present with a wide range of neurological disorders. Among these, epilepsy is of key concern because of its lifelong impact and potential for damage to the central nervous system (CNS). Few studies in developing regions have investigated the prevalence and aetiology of epilepsy in HIV-infected children as a key population.ObjectivesWe describe the prevalence of epilepsy, associated neurological disabilities, immunological status, clinical stage and history of CNS infection at epilepsy diagnosis in a cohort of HIV-infected children receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective study (2004-2014) at two major referral sites for HIV-infected children diagnosed with epilepsy aged 0-16 years. Eligible subjects were extracted from the electronic medicine bridging access to care in excellence (EMBRACE) Paediatric Cohort using the Paediatric ART Data Management Tool (PADMT). Fixed data fields were interrogated for exposures to antiepileptic drugs. Unstructured 'comments' fields were searched for the terms: epilepsy, seizures, fits and szs, as well as abbreviated versions of common antiepileptic drug names. Eligible subject folders were then retrieved to validate the digital data.ResultsFrom 2139 children enrolled in the two sites, 53 children were diagnosed with epilepsy (2.48%). In these, the median CD4 count was 591 cells/mm3, and the mean viral load was 4.9 log copies/mL, with undetectable viral loads in only seven children (14.0%). World Health Organization (WHO) clinical HIV stage was available for 46 patients of the sample, with 3, 6, 26 and 11 children graded at stages 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Forty percent children had a history of CNS infection prior to the epilepsy diagnosis, and 55% children were reported to have school problems.ConclusionsIn this descriptive study, the prevalence of epilepsy among children with HIV was 2.48%, mostly diagnosed in advanced HIV-disease stages. Our findings support the usefulness of early detection and initiation of ART in HIV-infected children in order to reduce the risk of epilepsy. In addition, our study demonstrates that novel techniques are effective in accessing cohort-level data that allow interrogation of both structured and unstructured clinical data