Changes in glass consumption in Pergamon (Turkey) from Hellenistic to late Byzantine and Islamic times

We present compositional data for nearly 100 glass samples from Pergamon, western Turkey, spanning 1500 years from the Hellenistic to Late Byzantine and Islamic periods. The data shows the use of already-known Roman glass groups during the first half of the time frame, for imported vessels as well as locally worked glass. No compositional change is seen related to the introduction of glass blowing for either of the glass groups in use during this time. During the first half of the 1st millennium AD, two previously little-known boron- and alumina-rich compositional groups emerge. These glass groups, thought to be regionally produced, dominate glass compositions in Pergamon during the mid-to late Byzantine and Islamic periods, indicating a major shift in glass supply and a fragmentation of the economy into more regional units. Plant-ash glass, from the 9th century AD replacing mineral natron glass in the Levant, plays only a minor role in Byzantine and Islamic Pergamon

Chromatin chemistry goes cellular.

Analysing post-translational modifications of histone proteins as they occur within chromatin is challenging due to their large number and chemical diversity. A major step forward has now been achieved by using split intein chemistry to engineer functionalized histones within cells

Self-rated mentalizing mediates the relationship between stress and coping in a non-clinical sample

Background: The clinical concept of mentalizing has recently been extended into non-clinical contexts. In particular, the protective function of robust mentalizing as a processing capacity of interpersonal and intrapsychic events has become a focus of consideration. Theoretical approaches hypothesize that mentalizing may allow for an adequate self-awareness in the face of aversive experiences such as stress, leading to a reappraisal of these experiences and therefore enables the use of adaptive coping behaviors. Objective: The study aimed to investigate the association between coping behavior, mentalizing and experiences of stress. Method: 534 healthy adults completed the German-language Stress Processing Questionnaire (SVF), the Mentalization Questionnaire (MZQ), and a short scale of the Trierer Inventory of Chronic Stress (TICS) in a cross-sectional research design. Results: Correlational analyses suggested associations between coping and mentalizing. Furthermore, MZQ scores predicted both positive and negative coping behavior. The relationship between stress and both negative and positive coping was mediated by mentalizing capacity. Conclusion: Findings confirm the hypothesis that mentalizing may represent a coping resource within a resilience framework. An implementation of the concept in preventive mental health interventions is discussed

Delayed Gastric Emptying in Patients with Prader Willi Syndrome

Background: A 15 year old girl with Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) died of gastric rupture. Systematic literature research revealed seven case reports of PWS patients with acute gastric dilatation, two had a lethal course. The objective of this study was to determine if delayed gastric emptying in PWS patients might contribute to gastric dilatation. Methods: Gastric emptying was measured in eight patients with PWS by nucleotid scintigraphy after a standardized test meal. Results: Median age was 17.8 years (range 10.1-19.5). Median BMI of the male patients was 29.5 (range 18.4-34.8), of the female patients 28 (range 20.0-44.8). Half time of gastric emptying was delayed in five of the eight patients (median 78.5 minutes, range 59-134). Conclusion: Scintigraphic measurement of gastric emptying in eight PWS patients revealed delay in comparison to normal values. This might be a risk factor for gastric dilatation and rupture in patients with PW

Faecalibacterium prausnitzii Strain HTF-F and Its Extracellular Polymeric Matrix Attenuate Clinical Parameters in DSS-Induced Colitis

Date of Acceptance: 26/02/2015 Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Effects of steam and vacuum administration during decontamination on essential oil content in herbal medicines

Saturated steam decontamination is an application for elimination of microorganisms from the surface of different materials. This technique has been optimized for the treatment of dried spices or pharmaceuticals, which could have been contaminated with microorganisms during cultivation, processing, storage or transport. The described saturated steam decontamination is based on the Lemgo process. This method does not kill microorganisms, but removes them physically from the surface.Our investigation focused on measuring the effects of steam temperatures at 120 °C and 100 °C, respectively, for 20 s with a subsequent fl ash vacuum of 20 s. Applications of fl ash vacuum as well as saturated steam heated to 120 °C were also tested separately. The impact of these parameters on the essential oil content and on the surface of different medicinal plants such as marjoram, oregano, fennel and eucalyptus was analysed using gas chromatography and scanning electron microscopy.Especially in herbal drugs with glandular trichomes such as marjoram and oregano severe surface destruction was visible accompanied by high losses of essential oil from 93 % in marjoram tissue to 59 % in oregano tissue. For fennel and eucalyptus that possess protected essential oil storage cells only minor or no reduction of volatiles has been observed during exposure to saturated steam. The experiments show clearly a positive correlation between stability of essential oil cavities and essential oil content preservation