Effective treatment of experimental acute otitis media by application of volatile fluids into the ear canal

To access publisher version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Link fieldTo access full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink "View/Open" at the bottom of this pageEssential oils are volatile and can have good antimicrobial activity. We compared the effects of oil of basil (Ocimum basilicum) and essential oil components (thymol, carvacrol, and salicylaldehyde) to those of a placebo when placed in the ear canal of rats with experimental acute otitis media caused by pneumococci or Haemophilus influenzae. Progress was monitored by otomicroscopic examination and middle ear cultures. The treatment with oil of basil or essential oil components cured or healed 56%-81% of rats infected with H. influenzae and 6%-75% of rats infected with pneumococci, compared with 5.6%-6% of rats in the placebo group. Essential oils or their components placed in the ear canal can provide effective treatment of acute otitis media

Multidecadal fluctuations of the North Atlantic Ocean and feedback on the winter climate in CMIP5 control simulations

This study examines the relationship between the Atlantic Multidecadal Variability (AMV) and the wintertime atmospheric circulation of the North Atlantic in simulations of the fifth Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5). Comparisons of internal (using preindustrial control simulations) and externally forced (using historical and Representative Concentration Pathways 8.5 simulations) simulated AMV with observations suggest that the CMIP5 models lack internally generated AMV, except for two models (GFDL-ESM2G and HadGEM2-ES). A long-term influence of the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) on the AMV is identified, but no consistent feedback of the AMV onto the atmospheric circulation is found among the models. However, GFDL-ESM2G and HadGEM2-ES show a small lagged NAO signal that suggests a driving role of the ocean on decadal fluctuations of the atmosphere, with two different potential mechanisms. HadGEM2-ES exhibits a latitudinal shift of the Atlantic Intertropical Convergence Zone that can modulate the NAO through a Rossby wave train emanating from the tropics. In GFDL-ESM2G, the AMV is associated with a decrease in storm track activity and a shift of the intraseasonal weather regimes toward the negative NAO regime. These results raise hope that some long-term predictability of the winter climate over the North Atlantic and surrounding continents could be extracted from long-term oceanic fluctuations of the North Atlantic Ocean, provided that the AMV is correctly represented in coupled ocean-atmosphere models

Metabolic changes during carbon monoxide poisoning:An experimental study

Carbon monoxide (CO) is the leading cause of death by poisoning worldwide. The aim was to explore the effects of mild and severe poisoning on blood gas parameters and metabolites. Eleven pigs were exposed to CO intoxication and had blood collected before and during poisoning. Mild CO poisoning (carboxyhaemoglobin, COHb 35.2 ± 7.9%) was achieved at 32 ± 13 minutes, and severe poisoning (69.3 ± 10.2% COHb) at 64 ± 23 minutes from baseline (2.9 ± 0.5% COHb). Blood gas parameters and metabolites were measured on a blood gas analyser and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer, respectively. Unsupervised principal component, analysis of variance and Pearson's correlation tests were applied. A P‐value ≤ .05 was considered statistically significant. Mild poisoning resulted in a 28.4% drop in oxyhaemoglobin (OHb) and 12‐fold increase in COHb, while severe poisoning in a 65% drop in OHb and 24‐fold increase in COHb. Among others, metabolites implicated in regulation of metabolic acidosis (lactate, P < .0001), energy balance (pyruvate, P < .0001; 3‐hydroxybutyrc acid, P = .01), respiration (citrate, P = .007; succinate, P = .0003; fumarate, P < .0001), lipid metabolism (glycerol, P = .002; choline, P = .0002) and antioxidant‐oxidant balance (glutathione, P = .03; hypoxanthine, P < .0001) were altered, especially during severe poisoning. Our study adds new insights into the deranged metabolism of CO poisoning and leads the way for further investigation

Case Report: Successful Implementation of Integrative Cognitive Remediation for Early Psychosis.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked DownloadMany individuals demonstrate functionally relevant impairment in neurocognition as well as social cognition early on in the course of their psychotic disorder. There is robust evidence supporting cognitive remediation as an effective treatment of cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. Increasingly it is accepted that earlier treatment is associated with better outcome and that it is important to systematically assess and treat cognitive dysfunction before the cognitive and functional disabilities are fully realized. However, the clinical availability of these interventions remains sparse. As we move forward with implementing evidence-based interventions into multi-component treatment for early psychosis, it is important to reflect on experience as well as evidence. This case report aims to describe the implementation of an integrative cognitive remediation program in coordinated specialty care (CSC) for early psychosis in Iceland and investigate whether the intervention is sustainable in a CSC setting. Data on the number of patients treated, facilitators trained, groups conducted, and funding was used to assess the sustainability. The results show that since initial implementation in 2016, the intervention has been routinely available as part of standard care, with over 100 patients having received the treatment. The report discusses key factors in the successful implementation of the program. Keywords: compensatory cognitive training; functional outcome; rehabilitation; schizophrenia; social cognition and interaction training.Research Fund Landspitali-The National University Hospital of Iceland 2017/2018 University of Icelan

Unbound states in quantum heterostructures

We report in this review on the electronic continuum states of semiconductor Quantum Wells and Quantum Dots and highlight the decisive part played by the virtual bound states in the optical properties of these structures. The two particles continuum states of Quantum Dots control the decoherence of the excited electron – hole states. The part played by Auger scattering in Quantum Dots is also discussed

Globally gridded satellite observations for climate studies

Geostationary satellites have now been providing weather data for 50 years. Much of these data have been neglected by climate observation studies due to difficulties with calibration and data processing over such a long period. Collection and data ownership rights were spread out across several international agencies. The ISCCP project is overcoming these barriers and this paper has presented details on the most up-to-date and easily accessible global satellite record: GridSat. This new record provides equal-angle gridded uniform observations of brightness temperatures every 3 h from 1980 to the present for most of the globe. We have demonstrated the multiple and diverse uses of the data for climate analysis made possible by GridSat data-from predicting drought and food security in Africa to the detailed and historical tracking of hurricanes. This only touches on some of the potential uses of GridSat. Accurate records of global atmospheric fields are essential for future research on climate change as well as the understanding of the planet's meteorology. By reconstructing past satellite data and combining them with current satellite observations, a seamless data record has been obtained for the study of Earth's atmospheric state. In addition, GridSat has given a wide range of users very easy access to this new data record. Development of GridSat will continue, focusing on improving the current data files and supporting more applications. © 2011 American Meteorological Society

Genome-wide methylation analysis identifies genes silenced in non-seminoma cell lines

Silencing of genes by DNA methylation is a common phenomenon in many types of cancer. However, the genome wide effect of DNA methylation on gene expression has been analysed in relatively few cancers. Germ cell tumours (GCTs) are a complex group of malignancies. They are unique in developing from a pluripotent progenitor cell. Previous analyses have suggested that non-seminomas exhibit much higher levels of DNA methylation than seminomas. The genomic targets that are methylated, the extent to which this results in gene silencing and the identity of the silenced genes most likely to play a role in the tumours’ biology have not yet been established. In this study, genome-wide methylation and expression analysis of GCT cell lines was combined with gene expression data from primary tumours to address this question. Genome methylation was analysed using the Illumina infinium HumanMethylome450 bead chip system and gene expression was analysed using Affymetrix GeneChip Human Genome U133 Plus 2.0 arrays. Regulation by methylation was confirmed by demethylation using 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine and reverse transcription–quantitative PCR. Large differences in the level of methylation of the CpG islands of individual genes between tumour cell lines correlated well with differential gene expression. Treatment of non-seminoma cells with 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine verified that methylation of all genes tested played a role in their silencing in yolk sac tumour cells and many of these genes were also differentially expressed in primary tumours. Genes silenced by methylation in the various GCT cell lines were identified. Several pluripotency-associated genes were identified as a major functional group of silenced genes

The high fidelity and unique error signature of human DNA polymerase ε

Bulk replicative DNA synthesis in eukaryotes is highly accurate and efficient, primarily because of two DNA polymerases (Pols): Pols δ and ε. The high fidelity of these enzymes is due to their intrinsic base selectivity and proofreading exonuclease activity which, when coupled with post-replication mismatch repair, helps to maintain human mutation rates at less than one mutation per genome duplication. Conditions that reduce polymerase fidelity result in increased mutagenesis and can lead to cancer in mice. Whereas yeast Pol ε has been well characterized, human Pol ε remains poorly understood. Here, we present the first report on the fidelity of human Pol ε. We find that human Pol ε carries out DNA synthesis with high fidelity, even in the absence of its 3′→5′ exonucleolytic proofreading and is significantly more accurate than yeast Pol ε. Though its spectrum of errors is similar to that of yeast Pol ε, there are several notable exceptions. These include a preference of the human enzyme for T→A over A→T transversions. As compared with other replicative DNA polymerases, human Pol ε is particularly accurate when copying homonucleotide runs of 4–5 bases. The base pair substitution specificity and high fidelity for frameshift errors observed for human Pol ε are distinct from the errors made by human Pol δ