Benthic suspension feeders, key players in Antartic marine ecosystems?

Ja fa un cert temps que hom accepta, de manera general i a partir d'estudis de la columna d'aigua en mar obert, que en les comunitats marines de l'oceà Antàrtic hi ha un període prolongat d'activitat hivernal mínima que s'estén al llarg de sis mesos com a mínim, que és el temps que dura l'hivern austral. Tanmateix, investigacions recents en algunes espècies d'invertebrats suspensívors (filtradors) bentònics litorals han suggerit que el període d'inactivitat potser dura només unes poques setmanes. Això planteja una interessant qüestió: què és el que permet que aquests organismes antàrtics mengin, i per tant romanguin actius, durant períodes molt més llargs del que fins ara s'havia cregut? Hom ha suggerit adaptacions especials a menjar en concentracions molt baixes d'aliment, o bé a usar eficientment l'abundància ocasional d'aliment enmig de llargs períodes d'escassedat. Molts animals suspensívors podrien usar fonts alternatives al seu aliment usual, el fito- i el zooplàncton; per exemple, la ?fracció fina' de matèria orgànica, o microplàncton (bacteris, ciliats i flagel·lats, junt amb carboni inorgànic particulat d'orígens diversos), que hom ha demostrat recentment que té un paper molt més significatiu del que hom creia a l'hora de complementar la dieta i de subvenir a les demandes energètiques de moltes espècies de suspensívors. També s'ha esmentat el possible paper de la resuspensió de sediments i, atès l'elevat valor alimentari del component orgànic dels sediments antàrtics, àdhuc de fons pregons, serà interessant investigar més en aquesta línia. Observacions recents relacionades amb la dieta natural (captura de preses) d'algunes espècies d'aigües somes porten a suposar que alguns suspensívors antàrtics, si més no, tenen taxes de creixement i reproducció que són similars a les assenyalades per a espècies d'aigües temperades.For quite some time it was generally accepted, from water column and open sea studies, that in Antarctic marine communities there is a prolonged period of minimal winter activity which lasts for at least six months during the Southern winter. However, recent studies on certain littoral benthic suspension feeders have suggested that the period of inactivity may last only a few weeks. This raises the question of what allows these organisms to feed, and hence remain active, for considerably longer periods than previously thought. Special adaptations to feeding at low levels of food concentration, or to using occasional food abundance followed by long periods of starvation have been suggested. Many suspension feeders might use alternative food sources to phytoand zooplankton, e.g., the «fine fraction» of organic matter, or microplankton (bacteria, ciliates, and flagellates including POC of several origins), which has recently been shown to play a much more significant role than expected in complementing the diet and meeting energy demands in many species of suspension feeders. The possible role of sediment resuspension has also been reported, and given the high food value of the organic component of sediments even on deep bottoms further research would be of interest. Recent observations related to the natural diet (prey capture) of several shallow species lead to the assumption that part of Antarctic suspension feeders have similar growth and reproduction rates to those reported for temperate waters. Efficient food assimilation may contribute to our understanding of the continuous reproduction state observed in octocorals and, also, of the development of tridimensionally structured communities which are suspension-feeder dominated, highly diversified, and have a high biomass

Gender differences in GPs' strategies for coping with the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic in Catalonia: A cross-sectional study

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased stress levels in GPs, who have resorted to different coping strategies to deal with this crisis. Gender differences in coping styles may be contributing factors in the development of psychological distress.To identify differences by gender and by stress level in coping strategies of GPs during the Covid-19 pandemic.A cross-sectional, web-based survey conducted with GPs in Catalonia (Spain), in June-July 2021. via the institution's email distribution list, all GPs members of the Catalan Society of Family and Community Medicine were invited to complete a survey assessing sociodemographic, health and work-related characteristics, experienced stress (Stress scale of the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales-DASS 21) and the frequency of use of a range of coping strategies (Brief-COPE) classified as problem-focused, emotion-focused and avoidant strategies, some of which are adaptive and others maladaptive. We compared the scores of each strategy by gender and stress level using Student's t-test.Of 4739 members, 522 GPs participated in the study (response rate 11%; 79.1% women; mean age = 46.9?years, SD?=?10.5). Of these, 41.9% reported moderate-severe stress levels. The most common coping strategies were acceptance, active coping, planning, positive reframing and venting. More frequently than men, women resorted to emotional and instrumental support, venting, distraction and self-blame, whereas men used acceptance and humour more commonly than women. Moderate-severe stress levels were associated with non-adaptive coping, with increased use of avoidance strategies, self-blame, religion and venting, and decreased use of positive reframing and acceptance.The most common coping strategies were adaptive and differed by gender. However, highly stressful situations caused maladaptive strategies to emerge

Four-month incidence of suicidal thoughts and behaviors among healthcare workers after the first wave of the Spain COVID-19 pandemic

Healthcare workers (HCW) are at high risk for suicide, yet little is known about the onset of suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) in this important segment of the population in conjunction with the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a multicenter, prospective cohort study of Spanish HCW active during the COVID-9 pandemic. A total of n = 4809 HCW participated at baseline (May-September 2020; i.e., just after the first wave of the pandemic) and at a four-month follow-up assessment (October-December 2020) using web-based surveys. Logistic regression assessed the individual- and population-level associations of separate proximal (pandemic) risk factors with four-month STB incidence (i.e., 30-day STB among HCW negative for 30-day STB at baseline), each time adjusting for distal (pre-pandemic) factors. STB incidence was estimated at 4.2% (SE = 0.5; n = 1 suicide attempt). Adjusted for distal factors, proximal risk factors most strongly associated with STB incidence were various sources of interpersonal stress (scaled 0-4; odds ratio [OR] range = 1.23-1.57) followed by personal health-related stress and stress related to the health of loved ones (scaled 0-4; OR range 1.30-1.32), and the perceived lack of healthcare center preparedness (scaled 0-4; OR = 1.34). Population-attributable risk proportions for these proximal risk factors were in the range 45.3-57.6%. Other significant risk factors were financial stressors (OR range 1.26-1.81), isolation/quarantine due to COVID-19 (OR = 1.53) and having changed to a specific COVID-19 related work location (OR = 1.72). Among other interventions, our findings call for healthcare systems to implement adequate conflict communication and resolution strategies and to improve family-work balance embedded in organizational justice strategies.This work was supported by grants from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII)/Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/FEDER, Spain (Jordi Alonso, grant number COV20/00711); ISCIII-FEDER, Spain (Jordi Alonso, grant number PI17/00521); ISCIII-FSE, Spain: Sara Borrell and Miguel Servet grants (Philippe Mortier, grant number CD18/00049 and CP21/00078); Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain (2017SGR452); and PERIS, Departament de Salut, Spain (Itxaso Alayo; SLT017/20/000009). Additional partial funding was received from the Gerencia Regional de Salud de Castilla y León (SACYL), Spain (José María Pelayo Terán, grant number GRS COVID 32/A/20).S

Mental impact of Covid-19 among Spanish healthcare workers. A large longitudinal survey

Aims: Longitudinal data on the mental health impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic in healthcare workers is limited. We estimated prevalence, incidence and persistence of probable mental disorders in a cohort of Spanish healthcare workers (Covid-19 waves 1 and 2) -and identified associated risk factors. Methods: 8996 healthcare workers evaluated on 5 May-7 September 2020 (baseline) were invited to a second web-based survey (October-December 2020). Major depressive disorder (PHQ-8 ≥ 10), generalised anxiety disorder (GAD-7 ≥ 10), panic attacks, post-traumatic stress disorder (PCL-5 ≥ 7), and alcohol use disorder (CAGE-AID ≥ 2) were assessed. Distal (pre-pandemic) and proximal (pandemic) risk factors were included. We estimated the incidence of probable mental disorders (among those without disorders at baseline) and persistence (among those with disorders at baseline). Logistic regression of individual-level [odds ratios (OR)] and population-level (population attributable risk proportions) associations were estimated, adjusting by all distal risk factors, health care centre and time of baseline interview. Results: 4809 healthcare workers participated at four months follow-up (cooperation rate = 65.7%; mean = 120 days s.d. = 22 days from baseline assessment). Follow-up prevalence of any disorder was 41.5%, (v. 45.4% at baseline, p < 0.001); incidence, 19.7% (s.e. = 1.6) and persistence, 67.7% (s.e. = 2.3). Proximal factors showing significant bivariate-adjusted associations with incidence included: work-related factors [prioritising Covid-19 patients (OR = 1.62)], stress factors [personal health-related stress (OR = 1.61)], interpersonal stress (OR = 1.53) and financial factors [significant income loss (OR = 1.37)]. Risk factors associated with persistence were largely similar. Conclusions: Our study indicates that the prevalence of probable mental disorders among Spanish healthcare workers during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic was similarly high to that after the first wave. This was in good part due to the persistence of mental disorders detected at the baseline, but with a relevant incidence of about 1 in 5 of HCWs without mental disorders during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Health-related factors, work-related factors and interpersonal stress are important risks of persistence of mental disorders and of incidence of mental disorders. Adequately addressing these factors might have prevented a considerable amount of mental health impact of the pandemic among this vulnerable population. Addressing health-related stress, work-related factors and interpersonal stress might reduce the prevalence of these disorders substantially. Study registration number: NCT04556565.Instituto de Salud Carlos III/ Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/ FEDER (J. A., grant number COV20/00711); Project “PI17/00521”, funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) and co-funded by the European Union, PERIS, Health Dpt, Generaliat de Catalunya (I. A., grant number SLT017/20/000009); ISCIII-FSE+, Miguel Servet (P. M., grant number CP21/00078); ISCIII-FSE, Sara Borrell (P. M., grant number CD18/00049), Generalitat de Catalunya (2017SGR452). Additional partial funding was received from the Gerencia Regional de Salud de Castilla y León (SACYL) (J. M. P. T., grant number GRS COVID 32/A/20).S

Fine-Tuning Translation Kinetics Selection as the Driving Force of Codon Usage Bias in the Hepatitis A Virus Capsid

Hepatitis A virus (HAV), the prototype of genus Hepatovirus, has several unique biological characteristics that distinguish it from other members of the Picornaviridae family. Among these, the need for an intact eIF4G factor for the initiation of translation results in an inability to shut down host protein synthesis by a mechanism similar to that of other picornaviruses. Consequently, HAV must inefficiently compete for the cellular translational machinery and this may explain its poor growth in cell culture. In this context of virus/cell competition, HAV has strategically adopted a naturally highly deoptimized codon usage with respect to that of its cellular host. With the aim to optimize its codon usage the virus was adapted to propagate in cells with impaired protein synthesis, in order to make tRNA pools more available for the virus. A significant loss of fitness was the immediate response to the adaptation process that was, however, later on recovered and more associated to a re-deoptimization rather than to an optimization of the codon usage specifically in the capsid coding region. These results exclude translation selection and instead suggest fine-tuning translation kinetics selection as the underlying mechanism of the codon usage bias in this specific genome region. Additionally, the results provide clear evidence of the Red Queen dynamics of evolution since the virus has very much evolved to re-adapt its codon usage to the environmental cellular changing conditions in order to recover the original fitness

The Level of DING Proteins Is Increased in HIV-Infected Patients: In Vitro and In Vivo Studies

DING proteins constitute an interesting family, owing to their intriguing and important activities. However, after a decade of research, little is known about these proteins. In humans, at least five different DING proteins have been identified, which were implicated in important biological processes and diseases, including HIV. Indeed, recent data from different research groups have highlighted the anti-HIV activity of some DING representatives. These proteins share the ability to inhibit the transcriptional step of HIV-1, a key step of the viral cycle that is not yet targeted by the current therapies. Since such proteins have been isolated from humans, we undertook a comprehensive study that focuses on the relationship between these proteins and HIV-infection in an infectious context. Hence, we developed a home-made ELISA for the quantification of the concentration of DING proteins in human serum. Using this method, we were able to determine the concentration of DING proteins in healthy and HIV-infected patients. Interestingly, we observed a significant increase of the concentration of DING proteins in non treated and treated HIV-infected patients compared to controls. In addition, cell cultures infected with HIV also show an increased expression of DING proteins, ruling out the possible role of antiretroviral treatment in the increase of the expression of DING proteins. In conclusion, results from this study show that the organism reacts to HIV-infection by an overexpression of DING proteins

Collaborative Depression Trial (CADET): multi-centre randomised controlled trial of collaborative care for depression - study protocol

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Comprising of both organisational and patient level components, collaborative care is a potentially powerful intervention for improving depression treatment in UK primary Care. However, as previous models have been developed and evaluated in the United States, it is necessary to establish the effect of collaborative care in the UK in order to determine whether this innovative treatment model can replicate benefits for patients outside the US. This Phase III trial was preceded by a Phase II patient level RCT, following the MRC Complex Intervention Framework.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>A multi-centre controlled trial with cluster-randomised allocation of GP practices. GP practices will be randomised to usual care control or to "collaborative care" - a combination of case manager coordinated support and brief psychological treatment, enhanced specialist and GP communication. The primary outcome will be symptoms of depression as assessed by the PHQ-9.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>If collaborative care is demonstrated to be effective we will have evidence to enable the NHS to substantially improve the organisation of depressed patients in primary care, and to assist primary care providers to deliver a model of enhanced depression care which is both effective and acceptable to patients.</p> <p>Trial Registration Number</p> <p>ISRCTN32829227</p