German evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of Psoriasis vulgaris (short version)

Psoriasis vulgaris is a common and chronic inflammatory skin disease which has the potential to significantly reduce the quality of life in severely affected patients. The incidence of psoriasis in Western industrialized countries ranges from 1.5 to 2%. Despite the large variety of treatment options available, patient surveys have revealed insufficient satisfaction with the efficacy of available treatments and a high rate of medication non-compliance. To optimize the treatment of psoriasis in Germany, the Deutsche Dermatologische Gesellschaft and the Berufsverband Deutscher Dermatologen (BVDD) have initiated a project to develop evidence-based guidelines for the management of psoriasis. The guidelines focus on induction therapy in cases of mild, moderate, and severe plaque-type psoriasis in adults. The short version of the guidelines reported here consist of a series of therapeutic recommendations that are based on a systematic literature search and subsequent discussion with experts in the field; they have been approved by a team of dermatology experts. In addition to the therapeutic recommendations provided in this short version, the full version of the guidelines includes information on contraindications, adverse events, drug interactions, practicality, and costs as well as detailed information on how best to apply the treatments described (for full version, please see Nast et al., JDDG, Suppl 2:S1–S126, 2006; or http://www.psoriasis-leitlinie.de)

Cocoa-flavanols enhance moderate-intensity pulmonary [Formula: see text] kinetics but not exercise tolerance in sedentary middle-aged adults.

INTRODUCTION: Cocoa flavanols (CF) may exert health benefits through their potent vasodilatory effects, which are perpetuated by elevations in nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability. These vasodilatory effects may contribute to improved delivery of blood and oxygen (O2) to exercising muscle. PURPOSE: Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine how CF supplementation impacts pulmonary O2 uptake ([Formula: see text]) kinetics and exercise tolerance in sedentary middle-aged adults. METHODS: We employed a double-blind cross-over, placebo-controlled design whereby 17 participants (11 male, 6 female; mean ± SD, 45 ± 6 years) randomly received either 7 days of daily CF (400 mg) or placebo (PL) supplementation. On day 7, participants completed a series of 'step' moderate- and severe-intensity exercise tests for the determination of [Formula: see text] kinetics. RESULTS: During moderate-intensity exercise, the time constant of the phase II [Formula: see text] kinetics ([Formula: see text]) was decreased by 15% in CF as compared to PL (mean ± SD; PL 40 ± 12 s vs. CF 34 ± 9 s, P = 0.019), with no differences in the amplitude of [Formula: see text] (A[Formula: see text]; PL 0.77 ± 0.32 l min-1 vs. CF 0.79 ± 0.34 l min-1, P = 0.263). However, during severe-intensity exercise, [Formula: see text], the amplitude of the slow component ([Formula: see text]) and exercise tolerance (PL 435 ± 58 s vs. CF 424 ± 47 s, P = 0.480) were unchanged between conditions. CONCLUSION: Our data show that acute CF supplementation enhanced [Formula: see text] kinetics during moderate-, but not severe-intensity exercise in middle-aged participants. These novel effects of CFs, in this demographic, may contribute to improved tolerance of moderate-activity physical activities, which appear commonly present in daily life. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered under ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier no. NCT04370353, 30/04/20 retrospectively registered

Rapport IV-12 La micro-irrigation. Réalisations et perspectives notamment dans le département du Lot-et-Garonne

Micro-irrigation is a technique for making water available at specific locations or in small sections of an irrigated area, in controlled quantities applied at very frequent intervals. The water, to which fertilizers may be added, is conveyed directly to the root zone. This provides many advantages including increased water efficiency, and the method is currently being used in more than 7,000 hectares of French farmland. The Departement of Lot et Garonne is one of the most developed in this respect, mainly because of the widespread use of the capillary system. Design criteria, development constraints and capital requirements are discussed. Tests carried out in the Departement on various crops including maize proved negative (the systems were not suited to high-density cropping patterns) whereas field-grown tomatoes gave excellent results in terms of early maturity, quality, crop yields and profitability.La micro-irrigation est une technique d’apport de l’eau en localisation ponctuelle, linéaire ou sur de faibles fractions de la surface irriguée, avec des doses faibles et des fréquences élevées. L’eau, et les éléments fertilisants que l’on peut éventuellement y adjoindre, sont mis directement à la disposition des racines. Ceci entraîne divers avantages découlant notamment d’une meilleure efficacité de l’eau. Plus de 7 000 ha sont ainsi équipés en France. Le département du Lot-et-Garonne est l’un de ceux où cette technique s’est le plus développée grâce en particulier à la diffusion du système par capillaires. Des indications sont données sur la conception d’une installation, les contraintes entraînées et les investissements nécessaires. Toujours dans le même département divers essais ont été conduits, notamment sur maïs, avec des résultats négatifs (les systèmes n’étant pas adaptés à des cultures de forte densité) et sur tomates de plein champ ; dans ce dernier cas les résultats ont été excellents tant en ce qui concerne la précocité, le calibre et le rendement des fruits que le revenu commercial.Duprat J., Decroix M., Turpin F., Andersen J. P., Serres F., Chossat J. C. Rapport IV-12 La micro-irrigation. Réalisations et perspectives notamment dans le département du Lot-et-Garonne. In: L'hydrotechnique au service d'une politique de l'eau. Evolution des problèmes de l'eau au cours de la dernière décennie. Compte rendu des XVes journées de l'hydraulique. Toulouse, 5, 6 et 7 septembre 1976. Tome 2, 1979

An algebraic approach to shape coexistence

A

Particle-hole excitations in the interacting boson model (I) General structure and symmetries

A version of the interacting boson model (IBM) is introduced that includes particle-like and hole-like bosons and allows the description of excitations across closed shells. The formal, algebraic aspects of the model are worked out in detail, Reduction of the dynamical algebra U-p(6) x U-h(6) leads to the definition of intruder or I spin which labels the character of the bosons (particle-like or hole-like). The I-spin properties of the Hamiltonian and electromagnetic transition operators are discussed. Embedding of U-p(6) x U-h(6) into a larger dynamical algebra gives rise to multiplets that connect either states in different nuclei with the same I spin [U(12)], or states that differ by two particles and two holes [U(6,6)],or states that differ by four particles or four holes [Sp(12)]