Molecular marker analysis of Lr34 in Canada Western Red Spring wheat cultivars

Trabalho final de mestrado integrado em Medicina (Medicina Interna-Nutrição Clínica), apresentado à Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de CoimbraO Carcinoma Colorretal é uma neoplasia frequente, particularmente nos Países Ocidentais, tendo-se observado um aumento na sua incidência em Portugal nos últimos 30 anos. Pensa-se que para este aumento tenha contribuído decisivamente a progressiva mudança do estilo de vida, particularmente no que diz respeito à alimentação e atividade física, tendencialmente reduzida. Vários estudos sugerem uma relação direta entre a alimentação e o CCR, ditando o possível papel da alimentação como fator de risco ou fator protetor de CCR. A carne vermelha e processada, bem como o consumo de álcool, estão frequentemente associados ao aumento de risco de CCR. Por outro lado, frutos, vegetais, outros alimentos ricos em fibras e peixe, associam-se a um risco diminuído de CCR. Os mecanismos subjacentes à alimentação não são ainda totalmente conhecidos. Até ao momento foram descritas funções essenciais dos componentes dietéticos na inibição ou progressão da inflamação do cólon, evento fundamental na carcinogénese colorretal e transversal a todas as situações de CCR. Objetivos: Comprovar a relação entre a alimentação e o risco de CCR; identificar quais os alimentos que estão associados a um aumento ou à diminuição do risco da doença; identificar os mecanismos subjacentes ao efeito potenciador ou protetor que os alimentos conferem; identificar através dos quais os alimentos interferem na carcinogénese colorretal; definir quais as estratégias necessárias para otimizar a prevenção primária desta doença. Métodos: Foi efetuada uma revisão pormenorizada com base na literatura recente e disponível na base de dados PubMed e B-on, referente ao possível papel da alimentação no desenvolvimento de Carcinoma Colorretal e os mecanismos pelos quais exerce a sua ação. Conclusões: os resultados dos estudos analisados sugerem que o CCR pode em grande parte percentagem de casos ser prevenido através do recurso à adoção de uma alimentação e estilo de vida saudáveis. As carnes vermelhas e processadas estão associadas a um aumento do risco desenvolver Carcinoma Colorretal, principalmente devido à produção de aminas heterocíclicas, devendo o seu consumo ser reduzido. or outro lado, o peixe produz um efeito oposto, exercendo um efeito protetor, principalmente através da diminuição da produção de mediadores pró-inflamatórios. Também os frutos e vegetais se associam a um risco menor de desenvolver esta neoplasia, devendo o seu consumo ser elevado. As propriedades quimiopreventivas destes alimentos devem-se, sobretudo, à inibição da inflamação no cólon, e também a mecanismos antioxidantes, pró-apoptóticos e de paragem do ciclo celular.Introduction: Colorectal carcinoma is a tumor with high incidence rate, particularly in Western countries, having been noticed an increase in incidence in Portugal in the past 30 years. It is widely accepted that progressive changes in lifestyle, regarding diet and reduced physical activity has decisively contributed to this increase. Several studies suggest a direct relationship between diet and CRC, dictating the possible role of diet as a risk factor or protective factor for CRC. Red and processed meat and alcohol consumption are often associated to increased risk of CRC. On the other hand, fruit, vegetables, other fiber rich foods and fish are associated to decreased risk of CRC. The underlying mechanisms of diet are not yet fully known. Up until now the essential functions of dietary components have been described as to inhibiting or helping to progress inflammations of the colon, the key event in colorectal carcinogenesis and transversal to all situations of CRC. Objectives: Demonstrate the relationship between diet and the risk of Colorectal Carcinoma; identify which food is associated with an increased or decreased risk of disease; identify the mechanisms of diet underlying the potentiating effect; determine necessary strategies to optimize the primary prevention of this disease. Methods: A detailed review was performed, based on the literature available on CRC and the mechanisms by which exerts its action. Conclusions: The results of the studies reviewed suggest that the CCR can be largely prevented by adopting a healthy diet and lifestyle. Red and processed meat are associated with increased risk of CRC, mainly due to the production of heterocyclic amines and its consumption should be reduced. On the other hand, fish produces an opposite effect, exerting a protective effect, mainly by decreasing the production of pro-inflammatory mediators. Fruit and vegetables are also associated with decreased risk of developing the disease, and its consumption should be increased. The chemopreventive properties of these foods are due mainly to the inhibition of colon inflammation, as well as antioxidant, pro-apoptotic and cell cycle arrest mechanisms

Letter processing and font information during reading: beyond distinctiveness, where vision meets design

Letter identification is a critical front end of the reading process. In general, conceptualizations of the identification process have emphasized arbitrary sets of distinctive features. However, a richer view of letter processing incorporates principles from the field of type design, including an emphasis on uniformities across letters within a font. The importance of uniformities is supported by a small body of research indicating that consistency of font increases letter identification efficiency. We review design concepts and the relevant literature, with the goal of stimulating further thinking about letter processing during reading

Age-related differences in selection by visual saliency

We examined the ability of older adults to select local and global stimuli varying in perceptual saliency – a task requiring non-spatial visual selection. Participants were asked to identify in separate blocks a target at either the global or local level of a hierarchical stimulus, while the saliency of each level was varied (across different conditions either the local or the global form was the more salient and relatively easier to identify). Older adults were less efficient than young adults in ignoring distractors that were higher in saliency than targets, and this occurred across both the global and local levels of form. The increased effects of distractor saliency on older adults occurred even when the effects were scaled by overall differences in task performance. The data provide evidence for an age-related decline in non spatial attentional selection of low-salient hierarchical stimuli, not determined by the (global or local) level at which selection was required. We discuss the implications of these results for understanding both the interaction between saliency and hierarchical processing and the effects of aging on non-spatial visual attention

Chiropractic and children: Is more research enough?

Many health science research and review articles end with the words: "More research is needed". However, when it comes to research, it is not as much a question of quantity as of quality. There are a number of important prerequisites before research should be initiated. The three pillars, relevance, quality and ethics should be respected but for a project to be meaningful, it must also be based on plausible rationale

The courage to change: Patient perceptions of 12-Step fellowships

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>From a health services perspective, peer-based resources merit special attention. Participation in self-help fellowships, like the Twelve Step Groups (TSGs), have been shown to improve outcomes of patients with substance use disorder (SUD) and they represent a valuable adjunct to the SUD treatment system. This study investigated the relationship between patient perceptions of TSGs and the intent to participate in TSGs after receiving detoxification treatment.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We included 139 patients that entered a detoxification unit (detox) in Kristiansand, Norway. We analyzed factors associated with the intention to participate in TSGs post-discharge with contingency tables and ordinal regression analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Forty-eight percent of patients had participated in TSGs before entering detox. Respondents saw more advantages than disadvantages in TSG participation, but only 40% of patients showed high intentions of participating in TSGs post-discharge. A high intention to participate in TSGs was most strongly correlated with the notion that participation in TSGs could instill the courage to change. In a multivariate analysis, the perception that TSGs were beneficial was the strongest factor related to a high intention of TSG participation after treatment.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our findings increased the understanding of factors most likely to influence decisions to attend TSGs in SUD treatment contexts with uncommon TSG participation. Our results suggested that the majority of patients may be sufficiently influenced by highlighting the potential gains of TSG participation. Treatment programs that do not focus on self-help group attendance during and after treatment should consider implementing facilitative measures to enhance utilization of these fellowships.</p

Primary and malignant cholangiocytes undergo CD40 mediated Fas dependent Apoptosis, but are insensitive to direct activation with exogenous fas ligand

Introduction Cholangiocarcinoma is a rare malignancy of the biliary tract, the incidence of which is rising, but the pathogenesis of which remains uncertain. No common genetic defects have been described but it is accepted that chronic inflammation is an important contributing factor. We have shown that primary human cholangiocyte and hepatocyte survival is tightly regulated via co-operative interactions between two tumour necrosis family (TNF) receptor family members; CD40 and Fas (CD95). Functional deficiency of CD154, the ligand for CD40, leads to a failure of clearance of biliary tract infections and a predisposition to cholangiocarcinoma implying a direct link between TNF receptor-mediated apoptosis and the development of cholangiocarcinoma. Aims To determine whether malignant cholangiocytes display defects in CD40 mediated apoptosis. By comparing CD40 and Fas-mediated apoptosis and intracellular signalling in primary human cholangiocytes and three cholangiocyte cell lines. Results Primary cholangiocytes and cholangiocyte cell lines were relatively insensitive to direct Fas-mediated killing with exogenous FasL when compared with Jurkat cells, which readily underwent Fas-mediated apoptosis, but were extremely sensitive to CD154 stimulation. The sensitivity of cells to CD40 activation was similar in magnitude in both primary and malignant cells and was STAT-3 and AP-1 dependent in both. Conclusions 1) Both primary and malignant cholangiocytes are relatively resistant to Fas–mediated killing but show exquisite sensitivity to CD154, suggesting that the CD40 pathway is intact and fully functional in both primary and malignant cholangiocytes 2) The relative insensitivity of cholangiocytes to Fas activation demonstrates the importance of CD40 augmentation of Fas dependent death in these cells. Agonistic therapies which target CD40 and associated intracellular signalling pathways may be effective in promoting apoptosis of malignant cholangiocytes

Macro-Climatic Distribution Limits Show Both Niche Expansion and Niche Specialization among C4 Panicoids

Grasses are ancestrally tropical understory species whose current dominance in warm open habitats is linked to the evolution of C4 photosynthesis. C4 grasses maintain high rates of photosynthesis in warm and water stressed environments, and the syndrome is considered to induce niche shifts into these habitats while adaptation to cold ones may be compromised. Global biogeographic analyses of C4 grasses have, however, concentrated on diversity patterns, while paying little attention to distributional limits. Using phylogenetic contrast analyses, we compared macro-climatic distribution limits among ~1300 grasses from the subfamily Panicoideae, which includes 4/5 of the known photosynthetic transitions in grasses. We explored whether evolution of C4 photosynthesis correlates with niche expansions, niche changes, or stasis at subfamily level and within the two tribes Paniceae and Paspaleae. We compared the climatic extremes of growing season temperatures, aridity, and mean temperatures of the coldest months. We found support for all the known biogeographic distribution patterns of C4 species, these patterns were, however, formed both by niche expansion and niche changes. The only ubiquitous response to a change in the photosynthetic pathway within Panicoideae was a niche expansion of the C4 species into regions with higher growing season temperatures, but without a withdrawal from the inherited climate niche. Other patterns varied among the tribes, as macro-climatic niche evolution in the American tribe Paspaleae differed from the pattern supported in the globally distributed tribe Paniceae and at family level.Fil: Aagesen, Lone. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; ArgentinaFil: Biganzoli, Fernando. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Métodos Cuantitativos y Sistemas de Información; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Bena, María Julia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; ArgentinaFil: Godoy Bürki, Ana Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; ArgentinaFil: Reinheimer, Renata. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Agrobiotecnología del Litoral. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Agrobiotecnología del Litoral; ArgentinaFil: Zuloaga, Fernando Omar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; Argentin

A Blast Wave from the 1843 Eruption of Eta Carinae

Very massive stars shed much of their mass in violent precursor eruptions as luminous blue variables (LBVs) before reaching their most likely end as supernovae, but the cause of LBV eruptions is unknown. The 19th century eruption of Eta Carinae, the prototype of these events, ejected about 12 solar masses at speeds of 650 km/s, with a kinetic energy of almost 10^50 ergs. Some faster material with speeds up to 1000-2000 km/s had previously been reported but its full distribution was unknown. Here I report observations of much faster material with speeds up to 3500-6000 km/s, reaching farther from the star than the fastest material in earlier reports. This fast material roughly doubles the kinetic energy of the 19th century event, and suggests that it released a blast wave now propagating ahead of the massive ejecta. Thus, Eta Car's outer shell now mimics a low-energy supernova remnant. The eruption has usually been discussed in terms of an extreme wind driven by the star's luminosity, but fast material reported here suggests that it was powered by a deep-seated explosion rivalling a supernova, perhaps triggered by the pulsational pair instability. This may alter interpretations of similar events seen in other galaxies.Comment: 10 pages, 3 color figs, supplementary information. Accepted by Natur

Is it pleasure or health from leisure that we benefit from most?:An analysis of well-being alternatives and implications for policy

International policy now constantly advocates a need for populations to engage in more physical activity to promote health and to reduce society’s health care costs. Such policy has developed guidelines on recommended levels and intensity of physical activity and implicitly equates health with well-being. It is assumed that individual, and hence social welfare will be enhanced if the activity guidelines are met. This paper challenges that claim and raises questions for public policy priorities. Using an instrumental variable analysis to value the well-being from active leisure, it is shown that the well-being experienced from active leisure that is not of a recommended intensity to generate health benefits, perhaps due to its social, recreational or fun purpose, has a higher value of well-being than active leisure that does meet the guidelines. This suggests rethinking the motivation and foundation of existing policy and perhaps a realignment of priorities towards activity that has a greater contribution to social welfare through its intrinsic fun and possibly social interaction