Comparative Genomic Hybridization Analysis of Astrocytomas: Prognostic and Diagnostic Implications.

Astrocytoma is comprised of a group of common intracranial neoplasms that are classified into four grades based on the World Health Organization histological criteria and patient survival. To date, histological grade, patient age, and clinical performance, as reflected in the Karnofsky score, are the most reliable prognostic predictors. Recently, there has been a significant effort to identify additional prognostic markers using objective molecular genetic techniques. We believe that the identification of such markers will characterize new chromosomal loci important in astrocytoma progression and aid clinical diagnosis and prognosis. To this end, our laboratory used comparative genomic hybridization to identify DNA sequence copy number changes in 102 astrocytomas. Novel losses of 19p loci were detected in low-grade pilocytic astrocytomas and losses of loci on 9p, 10, and 22 along with gains on 7, 19, and 20 were detected in a significant proportion of high-grade astrocytomas. The Cox proportional hazards statistical modeling showed that the presence of +7q and -10q comparative genomic hybridization alterations significantly increased a patient\u27s risk of dying, independent of histological grade. This investigation demonstrates the efficacy of comparative genomic hybridization for identifying tumor suppressor and oncogene loci in different astrocytic grades. The cumulative effect of these loci is an important consideration in their diagnostic and prognostic implications

Vegetation response to invasive Tamarix control in southwestern U.S. rivers: a collaborative study including 416 sites

Most studies assessing vegetation response following control of invasive Tamarix trees along southwestern U.S. rivers have been small in scale (e.g., river reach), or at a regional scale but with poor spatial-temporal replication, and most have not included testing the effects of a now widely used biological control. We monitored plant composition following Tamarix control along hydrologic, soil, and climatic gradients in 244 treated and 172 reference sites across six U.S. states. This represents the largest comprehensive assessment to date on the vegetation response to the four most common Tamarix control treatments. Biocontrol by a defoliating beetle (treatment 1) reduced the abundance of Tamarix less than active removal by mechanically using hand and chain-saws (2), heavy machinery (3) or burning (4). Tamarix abundance also decreased with lower temperatures, higher precipitation, and follow-up treatments for Tamarix resprouting. Native cover generally increased over time in active Tamarix removal sites, however, the increases observed were small and was not consistently increased by active revegetation. Overall, native cover was correlated to permanent stream flow, lower grazing pressure, lower soil salinity and temperatures, and higher precipitation. Species diversity also increased where Tamarix was removed. However, Tamarix treatments, especially those generating the highest disturbance (burning and heavy machinery), also often promoted secondary invasions of exotic forbs. The abundance of hydrophytic species was much lower in treated than in reference sites, suggesting that management of southwestern U.S. rivers has focused too much on weed control, overlooking restoration of fluvial processes that provide habitat for hydrophytic and floodplain vegetation. These results can help inform future management of Tamarix-infested rivers to restore hydrogeomorphic processes, increase native biodiversity and reduce abundance of noxious species

Redes e parcerias na indústria têxtil e de vestuário em Portugal

Dissertação de mestrado em Engenharia IndustrialA inovação é o pilar de crescimento de uma organização, e cada vez mais percebida como uma obrigatoriedade continua e não apenas uma exigência do cliente, pelo facto da realização de atividades de inovação, através do desenvolvimento de novos produtos e processos, ou da melhoria dos já existentes, proporcionar às empresas vantagens competitivas. Também é amplamente assumido que não há inovação sem novo conhecimento, sendo este um recurso de extrema importância na economia. Ao conhecimento está associada a aprendizagem, que é um processo predominantemente interativo. Como tal, a inovação não deve ser vista como o produto de um único agente, mas sim como o resultado da interação entre vários parceiros, quer institucionais quer organizacionais. Este projeto de investigação pretende contribuir para a discussão da temática da inovação, tendo como objetivo perceber o funcionamento da rede de inovação na Indústria Têxtil e de Vestuário em Portugal (ITVP), constituída pelos seguintes parceiros: (1) clientes; (2) fornecedores; (3) centros tecnológicos; (4) associações industriais; (5) organizações de capital financeiro; (6) universidades; e (7) centros de investigação. Para tal utilizou-se um questionário que foi respondido por 90 empresas da ITVP. Constatou-se, que independentemente da dimensão da empresa, o tipo de inovação mais realizada é a inovação de produto, seguindo-se a inovação de processo, a inovação organizacional e a inovação de marketing. Ao analisar os parceiros de inovação da ITVP, os resultados sugerem que os mais frequentes são os clientes, seguidos pelos fornecedores de matérias-primas e fornecedores de equipamentos e maquinaria. Os parceiros de inovação menos frequentes são as universidades, os centros de investigação e as organizações de capital financeiro. Ao considerar o efeito da dimensão da empresa, os resultados indicaram que as grandes empresas tendem a colaborar mais frequentemente com os diferentes parceiros de inovação do que as pequenas empresas. Também é possível constatar que as grandes empresas colaboram mais frequentemente com centros de investigação, universidades, organizações de capital financeiro, associações industriais e concorrentes. Por sua vez, as pequenas empresas relacionam-se essencialmente com clientes e fornecedores.Innovation is the growth pillar of an organization, and increasingly perceived as a continuing obligation and not just a requirement of the customer, through the performance of innovation activities, through the development of new products and processes, or through the improvement of already existing, provide companies with competitive advantages. It is also widely assumed that there is no innovation without new knowledge, and this is an extremely important resource in the economy. Knowledge is associated with learning, which is a predominantly interactive process. As such, innovation should not be seen as the product of a single agent, but as the result of the interaction between various partners, both institutional and organizational. This research project aims to contribute to the discussion of the innovation theme, aiming to understand the operation of the innovation network in the Textile and Clothing Industry in Portugal (ITVP), made up of the following partners: (1) customers; (2) suppliers; (3) technology centers; (4) industrial associations; (5) financial capital organizations; (6) universities; and (7) research centers. For this purpose a questionnaire was used, which was answered by 90 ITVP companies. It was found that, regardless of the size of the company, the most innovated type of innovation is product innovation, followed by process innovation, organizational innovation and marketing innovation. When analyzing ITVP's innovation partners, the results suggest that customers are the most frequent, followed by suppliers of raw materials and suppliers of equipment and machinery. Less frequent innovation partners are universities, research centers and financial capital organizations. When considering the effect of company size, the results indicated that large firms tend to collaborate more frequently with different innovation partners than small firms. It is also possible to see that large companies collaborate more frequently with research centers, universities, financial capital organizations, industrial associations and competitors. In turn, small businesses are essentially related to customers and suppliers

The Politics of Social Inclusion: Bridging Knowledge and Policies Towards Social Change

This volume looks at concepts and processes of social exclusion and social inclusion. It traces a number of discourses, all of them routed in a relational power analysis, examining them in the context of the UN Agenda for Sustainable Development 2030 with its commitment to "leave no one behind." The book combines analysis that is fundamentally critical of the rhetoric of social inclusion in academic and UN discourse with narratives of social exclusion processes and social inclusion contestation, based on ethnographic field research findings in La Paz, Kingston, Port-au-Prince, Kampala, Beijing, Chongqing, Mumbai, Delhi, and villages in Northern India. As a result, it contributes to revealing the politics of social inclusion, offering policy proposals towards overcoming exclusions.Comparative Research Programme on Poverty (CROP) at the University of Bergen.publishedVersio

Effectiveness of the Chest Pain Choice decision aid in emergency department patients with low-risk chest pain: study protocol for a multicenter randomized trial

BACKGROUND: Chest pain is the second most common reason patients visit emergency departments (EDs) and often results in very low-risk patients being admitted for prolonged observation and advanced cardiac testing. Shared decision-making, including educating patients regarding their 45-day risk for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and management options, might safely decrease healthcare utilization. METHODS/DESIGN: This is a protocol for a multicenter practical patient-level randomized trial to compare an intervention group receiving a decision aid, Chest Pain Choice (CPC), to a control group receiving usual care. Adults presenting to five geographically and ethnically diverse EDs who are being considered for admission for observation and advanced cardiac testing will be eligible for enrollment. We will measure the effect of CPC on (1) patient knowledge regarding their 45-day risk for ACS and the available management options (primary outcome); (2) patient engagement in the decision-making process; (3) the degree of conflict patients experience related to feeling uninformed (decisional conflict); (4) patient and clinician satisfaction with the decision made; (5) the rate of major adverse cardiac events at 30 days; (6) the proportion of patients admitted for advanced cardiac testing; and (7) healthcare utilization. To assess these outcomes, we will administer patient and clinician surveys immediately after each clinical encounter, obtain video recordings of the patient-clinician discussion, administer a patient healthcare utilization diary, analyze hospital billing records, review the electronic medical record, and conduct telephone follow-up. DISCUSSION: This multicenter trial will robustly assess the effectiveness of a decision aid on patient-centered outcomes, safety, and healthcare utilization in low-risk chest pain patients from a variety of geographically and ethnically diverse EDs. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT01969240

Vegetation response to invasive Tamarix control in southwestern U.S. rivers: a collaborative study including 416 sites

Most studies assessing vegetation response following control of invasive Tamarix trees along southwestern U.S. rivers have been small in scale (e.g., river reach), or at a regional scale but with poor spatial-temporal replication, and most have not included testing the effects of a now widely used biological control. We monitored plant composition following Tamarix control along hydrologic, soil, and climatic gradients in 244 treated and 172 reference sites across six U.S. states. This represents the largest comprehensive assessment to date on the vegetation response to the four most common Tamarix control treatments. Biocontrol by a defoliating beetle (treatment 1) reduced the abundance of Tamarix less than active removal by mechanically using hand and chain-saws (2), heavy machinery (3) or burning (4). Tamarix abundance also decreased with lower temperatures, higher precipitation, and follow-up treatments for Tamarix resprouting. Native cover generally increased over time in active Tamarix removal sites, however, the increases observed were small and was not consistently increased by active revegetation. Overall, native cover was correlated to permanent stream flow, lower grazing pressure, lower soil salinity and temperatures, and higher precipitation. Species diversity also increased where Tamarix was removed. However, Tamarix treatments, especially those generating the highest disturbance (burning and heavy machinery), also often promoted secondary invasions of exotic forbs. The abundance of hydrophytic species was much lower in treated than in reference sites, suggesting that management of southwestern U.S. rivers has focused too much on weed control, overlooking restoration of fluvial processes that provide habitat for hydrophytic and floodplain vegetation. These results can help inform future management of Tamarix-infested rivers to restore hydrogeomorphic processes, increase native biodiversity and reduce abundance of noxious species

Body fatness and cancer - viewpoint of the IARC working group

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Pancreaticoduodenectomy for the treatment of pancreatic neoplasms in children: A Pediatric Surgical Oncology Research Collaborative study

Background: To better characterize short-term and long-term outcomes in children with pancreatic tumors treated with pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD). Methods: Patients 21 years of age or younger who underwent PD at Pediatric Surgical Oncology Collaborative (PSORC) hospitals between 1990 and 2017 were identified. Demographic, clinical information, and outcomes (operative complications, long-term pancreatic function, recurrence, and survival) were collected. Results: Sixty-five patients from 18 institutions with a median age of 13 years (4 months-22 years) and a median (IQR) follow-up of 2.8 (4.3) years were analyzed. Solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas (SPN) was the most common histology. Postoperative complications included pancreatic leak in 14% (n = 9), delayed gastric emptying in 9% (n = 6), marginal ulcer in one patient, and perioperative (30-day) death due to hepatic failure in one patient. Pancreatic insufficiency was observed in 32% (n = 21) of patients, with 23%, 3%, and 6% with exocrine, or endocrine insufficiencies, or both, respectively. Children with SPN and benign neoplasms all survived. Overall, there were 14 (22%) recurrences and 11 deaths (17%). Univariate analysis revealed non-SPN malignant tumor diagnosis, preoperative vascular involvement, intraoperative transfusion requirement, pathologic vascular invasion, positive margins, and need for neoadjuvant chemotherapy as risk factors for recurrence and poor survival. Multivariate analysis only revealed pathologic vascular invasion as a risk factor for recurrence and poor survival. Conclusion: This is the largest series of pediatric PD patients. PD is curative for SPN and benign neoplasms. Pancreatic insufficiency is the most common postoperative complication. Outcome is primarily associated with histology