Accurate and precise quantification of Cu,Zn-SOD in human red blood cells using species-specific double and triple IDMS

Acknowledgements This research was undertaken within the EMRP project HLT05. The EMRP was jointly funded by the EMRP participating countries within EURAMET and the European Union. We gratefully acknowledge support by the Braunschweig International Graduate School of Metrology B-IGSM.Peer reviewedPostprin

Terapia comunitária integrativa on-line como estratégia para promoção do florescimento humano no contexto da pandemia de Covid-19

Orientadora: Profa. Dra. Giovana Daniela PecharkiCoorientadora: Profa. Dra Milene Zanoni Da SilvaDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências da Saúde, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde da Família. Defesa : Curitiba, 26/08/2022Inclui referênciasResumo: Introdução: a pandemia de COVID-19 afetou expressivamente a saúde mental de indivíduos e comunidades, sendo necessário o uso de estratégias adaptadas ao momento de isolamento social. As práticas integrativas e complementares, em especial a Terapia Comunitária Integrativa, entraram como possibilidades de cuidado em saúde mental na modalidade on-line. Dentro da perspectiva do florescimento humano, seis domínios envolvem a manutenção do bem-estar humano, sendo eles: felicidade e satisfação com a vida; saúde física e mental; significado e propósito; caráter e virtude; vínculos sociais; e recursos financeiros e materiais. Objetivo: o objetivo foi analisar os efeitos da Terapia Comunitária Integrativa (TCI) na modalidade on-line como estratégia para promoção do florescimento humano durante a pandemia de COVID-19. Metodologia: estudo de delineamento misto (quanti-qualitativo) de intervenção (TCI on-line) com pré (T0) e pós-teste (T1), observacional e longitudinal, realizado no ambiente virtual das rodas de TCI on-line, com aplicação de instrumentos validados e análise de conteúdo dos participantes a partir da realização de uma roda de TCI temática. Resultados: foram avaliadas 24 rodas de TCI on-line, a maioria realizada pelo criador da metodologia (54,2%). A média de participantes por roda foi de 63 pessoas, com duração média de 78 minutos. Os temas mais prevalentes foram "Estresse" (25%), "Família" (20,8%) e "Depressão/Violência" (20,8%). A amostra foi de 65 participantes que responderam aos questionários nos momentos T0 e T1, com espaçamento de dois meses entre eles, resultando em uma análise socioeconômica com perfil predominante do sexo feminino, branco, entre 30 a 59 anos, com ensino superior completo, e que estavam em formação ou já eram terapeutas comunitários. A análise comparativa T0-T1 da escala de bem-estar psicológico apresentou significância estatística (valor de p 0,006), especificamente em três de suas seis categorias: "Relações positivas com os outros" (valor de p 0,004), "Domínio sobre o ambiente" (valor de p 0,021) e "Propósito na vida" (valor de p 0,048). A análise qualitativa apresentou predomínio de relatos sobre relações positivas com os outros. Conclusão: a TCI on-line realizada durante a pandemia de COVID-19 contribuiu para o desenvolvimento de aspectos relacionados ao florescimento dos indivíduos, especialmente nas categorias de "vínculos sociais" e "significado e propósito". O destaque da análise quali-quantitativa se refere ao fortalecimento de relações positivas com os outros, domínio sobre as situações do ambiente e desenvolvimento de propósito na vida.Abstract: Introduction: the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected the mental health of individuals and communities, requiring the use of strategies adapted to the moment of social isolation. The integrative and complementary practices, especially the Integrative Community Therapy, entered as possibilities of mental health care in the online modality. From the perspective of human flourishing, six domains involve the maintenance of human well-being, namely: happiness and life satisfaction; physical and mental health; meaning and purpose; character and virtue; social bonds; and financial and material resources. Aims: The objective was to analyze the effects of Community Integrative Therapy (ICT) in the online modality as a strategy to promote human flourishing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: study of mixed design (quanti-qualitative) of intervention (online TCI) with pre (T0) and post-test (T1), observational and longitudinal, carried out in the virtual environment of the TCI on-line wheels, with application of validated instruments and content analysis of the participants from the realization of a thematic ICT circle. Results: 24 online TCI wheels were evaluated, most of them carried out by the creator of the methodology (54.2%). The average number of participants per circle was 63 people, with an average duration of 78 minutes. The most prevalent themes were "Stress" (25%), "Family" (20.8%) and "Depression/Violence" (20.8%). The sample consisted of 65 participants who answered the questionnaires at times T0 and T1, with a spacing of two months between them, resulting in a socioeconomic analysis with a predominant profile of female, white, between 30 and 59 years old, with complete higher education, and who were in training or were already community therapists. The T0- T1 comparative analysis of the psychological well-being scale showed statistical significance (p-value 0.006), specifically in three of its six categories: "Positive relationships with others" (p-value 0.004), "Dominance over the environment" (pvalue 0.021) and "Purpose in life" (p-value 0.048). The qualitative analysis showed a predominance of reports about positive relationships with others. Conclusion the online ICT carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to the development of aspects related to the flourishing of individuals, especially in the categories of "social bonds" and "meaning and purpose". The emphasis of the qualitative-quantitative analysis refers to the strengthening of positive relationships with others, mastery over environmental situations and development of purpose in life

Collagen-induced arthritis in C57BL/6 mice is associated with a robust and sustained T-cell response to type II collagen

Many genetically modified mouse strains are now available on a C57BL/6 (H-2b) background, a strain that is relatively resistant to collagen-induced arthritis. To facilitate the molecular understanding of autoimmune arthritis, we characterised the induction of arthritis in C57BL/6 mice and then validated the disease as a relevant pre-clinical model for rheumatoid arthritis

Tuberculosis in Swiss captive Asian elephants: microevolution of Mycobacterium tuberculosis characterized by multilocus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis and whole-genome sequencingle-number tandem-repeat analysis and whole-genome sequencing

Zoonotic tuberculosis is a risk for human health, especially when animals are in close contact with humans. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was cultured from several organs, including lung tissue and gastric mucosa, of three captive elephants euthanized in a Swiss zoo. The elephants presented weight loss, weakness and exercise intolerance. Molecular characterization of the M. tuberculosis isolates by spoligotyping revealed an identical profile, suggesting a single source of infection. Multilocus variable-number of tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA) elucidated two divergent populations of bacteria and mixed infection in one elephant, suggesting either different transmission chains or prolonged infection over time. A total of eight M. tuberculosis isolates were subjected to whole-genome sequence (WGS) analysis, confirming a single source of infection and indicating the route of transmission between the three animals. Our findings also show that the methods currently used for epidemiological investigations of M. tuberculosis infections should be carefully applied on isolates from elephants. Moreover the importance of multiple sampling and analysis of within-host mycobacterial clonal populations for investigations of transmission is demonstrated

Skill and added value of the MiKlip regional decadal prediction system for temperature over Europe

In recent years, several decadal prediction systems have been developed to provide multi-year predictions of the climate for the next 5–10 years. On the global scale, high decadal predictability has been identified for the North Atlantic sector, often extending over Europe. The first full regional hindcast ensemble, derived from dynamical downscaling, was produced within the German MiKlip project (‘decadal predictions’). The ensemble features annual starting dates from 1960 to 2017, with 10 decadal hindcasts per starting year. The global component of the prediction system uses the MPI-ESM-LR and the downscaling is performed with the regional climate model COSMO-CLM (CCLM). The present study focusses on a range of aspects dealing with the skill and added value of regional decadal temperature predictions over Europe. The results substantiate the added value of the regional hindcasts compared to the forcing global model as well as to un-initialized simulations. The results show that the hindcasts are skilful both for annual and seasonal means, and that the scores are comparable for different observational reference data sets. The predictive skill increases from earlier to more recent start-years. A recalibration of the simulation data generally improves the skill further, which can also be transferred to more user-relevant variables and extreme values like daily maximum temperatures and heating degree-days. These results provide evidence of the potential for the regional climate predictions to provide valuable climate information on the Abstract Formulae display:MathJax Logo? In recent years, several decadal prediction systems have been developed to provide multi-year predictions of the climate for the next 5–10 years. On the global scale, high decadal predictability has been identified for the North Atlantic sector, often extending over Europe. The first full regional hindcast ensemble, derived from dynamical downscaling, was produced within the German MiKlip project (‘decadal predictions’). The ensemble features annual starting dates from 1960 to 2017, with 10 decadal hindcasts per starting year. The global component of the prediction system uses the MPI-ESM-LR and the downscaling is performed with the regional climate model COSMO-CLM (CCLM). The present study focusses on a range of aspects dealing with the skill and added value of regional decadal temperature predictions over Europe. The results substantiate the added value of the regional hindcasts compared to the forcing global model as well as to un-initialized simulations. The results show that the hindcasts are skilful both for annual and seasonal means, and that the scores are comparable for different observational reference data sets. The predictive skill increases from earlier to more recent start-years. A recalibration of the simulation data generally improves the skill further, which can also be transferred to more user-relevant variables and extreme values like daily maximum temperatures and heating degree-days. These results provide evidence of the potential for the regional climate predictions to provide valuable climate information on the decadal time-scale to users

Neurometabolic changes in neonates with congenital heart defects and their relation to neurodevelopmental outcome.

BACKGROUND Altered neurometabolite ratios in neonates undergoing cardiac surgery for congenital heart defects (CHD) may serve as a biomarker for altered brain development and neurodevelopment (ND). METHODS We analyzed single voxel 3T PRESS H1-MRS data, acquired unilaterally in the left basal ganglia and white matter of 88 CHD neonates before and/or after neonatal cardiac surgery and 30 healthy controls. Metabolite ratios to Creatine (Cr) included glutamate (Glu/Cr), myo-Inositol (mI/Cr), glutamate and glutamine (Glx/Cr), and lactate (Lac/Cr). In addition, the developmental marker N-acetylaspartate to choline (NAA/Cho) was evaluated. All children underwent ND outcome testing using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Third Edition (BSID-III) at 1 year of age. RESULTS White matter NAA/Cho ratios were lower in CHD neonates compared to healthy controls (group beta estimate: -0.26, std. error 0.07, 95% CI: -0.40 - 0.13, p value <0.001, FDR corrected p value = 0.010). We found no correlation between pre- or postoperative white matter NAA/Cho with ND outcome while controlling for socioeconomic status and CHD diagnosis. CONCLUSION Reduced white matter NAA/Cho in CHD neonates undergoing cardiac surgery may reflect a delay in brain maturation. Further long-term MRS studies are needed to improve our understanding of the clinical impact of altered metabolites on brain development and outcome. IMPACT NAA/Cho was reduced in the white matter, but not the gray matter of CHD neonates compared to healthy controls. No correlation to the 1-year neurodevelopmental outcome (Bayley-III) was found. While the rapid change of NAA/Cho with age might make it a sensitive marker for a delay in brain maturation, the relationship to neurodevelopmental outcome requires further investigation

Neurometabolic changes in neonates with congenital heart defects and their relation to neurodevelopmental outcome

BACKGROUND Altered neurometabolite ratios in neonates undergoing cardiac surgery for congenital heart defects (CHD) may serve as a biomarker for altered brain development and neurodevelopment (ND). METHODS We analyzed single voxel 3T PRESS H$^{1}$-MRS data, acquired unilaterally in the left basal ganglia and white matter of 88 CHD neonates before and/or after neonatal cardiac surgery and 30 healthy controls. Metabolite ratios to Creatine (Cr) included glutamate (Glu/Cr), myo-Inositol (mI/Cr), glutamate and glutamine (Glx/Cr), and lactate (Lac/Cr). In addition, the developmental marker N-acetylaspartate to choline (NAA/Cho) was evaluated. All children underwent ND outcome testing using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Third Edition (BSID-III) at 1 year of age. RESULTS White matter NAA/Cho ratios were lower in CHD neonates compared to healthy controls (group beta estimate: -0.26, std. error 0.07, 95% CI: -0.40 - 0.13, p value <0.001, FDR corrected p value = 0.010). We found no correlation between pre- or postoperative white matter NAA/Cho with ND outcome while controlling for socioeconomic status and CHD diagnosis. CONCLUSION Reduced white matter NAA/Cho in CHD neonates undergoing cardiac surgery may reflect a delay in brain maturation. Further long-term MRS studies are needed to improve our understanding of the clinical impact of altered metabolites on brain development and outcome. IMPACT NAA/Cho was reduced in the white matter, but not the gray matter of CHD neonates compared to healthy controls. No correlation to the 1-year neurodevelopmental outcome (Bayley-III) was found. While the rapid change of NAA/Cho with age might make it a sensitive marker for a delay in brain maturation, the relationship to neurodevelopmental outcome requires further investigation

The genetic background modulates the evolution of fluoroquinolone-resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Fluoroquinolones (FQ) form the backbone in experimental treatment regimens against drug-susceptible tuberculosis. However, little is known on whether the genetic variation present in natural populations of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) affects the evolution of FQ-resistance (FQ-R). To investigate this question, we used nine genetically distinct drug-susceptible clinical isolates of Mtb and measured their frequency of resistance to the FQ ofloxacin (OFX) in vitro. We found that the Mtb genetic background led to differences in the frequency of OFX-resistance (OFX-R) that spanned two orders of magnitude and substantially modulated the observed mutational profiles for OFX-R. Further, in vitro assays showed that the genetic background also influenced the minimum inhibitory concentration and the fitness effect conferred by a given OFX-R mutation. To test the clinical relevance of our in vitro work, we surveyed the mutational profile for FQ-R in publicly available genomic sequences from clinical Mtb isolates, and found substantial Mtb lineage-dependent variability. Comparison of the clinical and the in vitro mutational profiles for FQ-R showed that 51% and 39% of the variability in the clinical frequency of FQ-R gyrA mutation events in Lineage 2 and Lineage 4 strains, respectively, can be attributed to how Mtb evolves FQ-R in vitro. As the Mtb genetic background strongly influenced the evolution of FQ-R in vitro, we conclude that the genetic background of Mtb also impacts the evolution of FQ-R in the clinic