One-pot synthesis of 3-arylaminomaleimides from terminal alkynes and isocyanates

The reaction of aryl acetylide anions with phenyl isocyanate and subsequent addition of a protonating agent such as ethanol affords good yields of 3-aminomaleimides, formed by the cyclization of one molecule of alkyne with two isocyanates. When the reaction is quenched with water instead, cyclopentadienone imines are formed as the major products

Biological and chemical assessment of zinc ageing in field soils

As zinc (Zn) is both an essential trace element and potential toxicant, the effects of Zn fixation in soil are of practical significance. Soil samples from four field sites amended with ZnSO4 were used to investigate ageing of soluble Zn under field conditions over a 2-year period. Lability of Zn measured using 65Zn radioisotope dilution showed a significant decrease over time and hence evidence of Zn fixation in three of the four soils. However, 0.01 M CaCl2 extractions and toxicity measurements using a genetically modified lux-marked bacterial biosensor did not indicate a decrease in soluble/bioavailable Zn over time. This was attributed to the strong regulatory effect of abiotic properties such as pH on these latter measurements. These results also showed that Zn ageing occurred immediately after Zn spiking, emphasising the need to incubate freshly spiked soils before ecotoxicity assessments. Ageing effects were detected in Zn-amended field soils using 65Zn isotopic dilution as a measure of lability, but not with either CaCl2 extractions or a lux-marked bacterial biosensor

Improving the timeliness of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus antimicrobial decolonization therapy administration : a descriptive account

SummaryBackgroundIt is important to ensure that the timely administration of appropriate antimicrobial decolonization therapy occurs when patients are identified as meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-colonized. Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE) with embedded Clinical Decision Support (CDS) may help to facilitate this.AimTo investigate changes in the average time from patient admission to administration of MRSA decolonization antimicrobial therapy in the context of various national and local infection control interventions, including the use of CPOE.MethodsData concerning the time of admission and of administration of patients' first MRSA decolonization antimicrobials were extracted from a locally developed CPOE system (Prescribing Investigation and Communications System: PICS) which was introduced at a large university teaching hospital in the UK in 1998. Data were extracted retrospectively from January 2006 to March 2012.FindingsA variety of relevant local and national interventions occurred from 2006 to 2012. Notably, the automatic charting of MRSA decolonization antimicrobial therapy was introduced in December 2007. There was a significant decline of 15.0% per year (95% confidence interval: 11.1–18.7%; P < 0.001) in the time taken from admission to administration of MRSA decolonization antimicrobial therapy during the study period.ConclusionsNumerous factors may have contributed to the observed reductions in the time from admission to administration of MRSA decolonization antimicrobials, including the implementation of specific features within a CPOE system. By rapidly attending to positive MRSA colonizations there is decreased potential for MRSA to spread, which may help to reduce the prevalence of MRSA colonizations within hospitals and improve patient outcomes

Glucocorticoids regulate AKR1D1 activity in human liver in vitro and in vivo

Steroid 5β-reductase (AKR1D1) is highly expressed in human liver where it inactivates endogenous glucocorticoids and catalyses an important step in bile acid synthesis. Endogenous and synthetic glucocorticoids are potent regulators of metabolic phenotype and play a crucial role in hepatic glucose metabolism. However, the potential of synthetic glucocorticoids to be metabolised by AKR1D1 as well as to regulate its expression and activity has not been investigated. The impact of glucocorticoids on AKR1D1 activity was assessed in human liver HepG2 and Huh7 cells; AKR1D1 expression was assessed by qPCR and Western blotting. Genetic manipulation of AKR1D1 expression was conducted in HepG2 and Huh7 cells and metabolic assessments were made using qPCR. Urinary steroid metabolite profiling in healthy volunteers was performed pre- and post-dexamethasone treatment, using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. AKR1D1 metabolised endogenous cortisol, but cleared prednisolone and dexamethasone less efficiently. In vitro and in vivo, dexamethasone decreased AKR1D1 expression and activity, further limiting glucocorticoid clearance and augmenting action. Dexamethasone enhanced gluconeogenic and glycogen synthesis gene expression in liver cell models and these changes were mirrored by genetic knockdown of AKR1D1 expression. The effects of AKR1D1 knockdown were mediated through multiple nuclear hormone receptors, including the glucocorticoid, pregnane X and farnesoid X receptors. Glucocorticoids down-regulate AKR1D1 expression and activity and thereby reduce glucocorticoid clearance. In addition, AKR1D1 down-regulation alters the activation of multiple nuclear hormone receptors to drive changes in gluconeogenic and glycogen synthesis gene expression profiles, which may exacerbate the adverse impact of exogenous glucocorticoids

The roles of the formal and informal sectors in the provision of effective science education

For many years, formal school science education has been criticised by students, teachers, parents and employers throughout the world. This article presents an argument that a greater collaboration between the formal and the informal sector could address some of these criticisms. The causes for concern about formal science education are summarised and the major approaches being taken to address them are outlined. The contributions that the informal sector currently makes to science education are identified. It is suggested that the provision of an effective science education entails an enhanced complementarity between the two sectors. Finally, there is a brief discussion of the collaboration and communication still needed if this is to be effective

Representational predicaments for employees: Their impact on perceptions of supervisors\u27 individualized consideration and on employee job satisfaction

A representational predicament for a subordinate vis-à-vis his or her immediate superior involves perceptual incongruence with the superior about the subordinate\u27s work or work context, with unfavourable implications for the employee. An instrument to measure the incidence of two types of representational predicament, being neglected and negative slanting, was developed and then validated through an initial survey of 327 employees. A subsequent substantive survey with a fresh sample of 330 employees largely supported a conceptual model linking being neglected and negative slanting to perceptions of low individualized consideration by superiors and to low overall job satisfaction. The respondents in both surveys were all Hong Kong Chinese. Two case examples drawn from qualitative interviews illustrate and support the conceptual model. Based on the research findings, we recommend some practical exercises to use in training interventions with leaders and subordinates. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC

‘Creating an Ecological Citizenship’: Philosophical and Theological Perspectives on the Role of Contemporary Environmental Education

In its concern to evoke in its readership an appropriate response to the challenge posed by the contemporary environmental crisis, the recent papal encyclical Laudato Si': On Care for our Common Home differentiates between the task of human education, on the one hand, and the deeper and more abstract task of motivating the human will for change and action, on the other. What must take place, it asserts, is the creation of nothing less than an ‘ecological citizenship’. To describe how this might be brought about, the encyclical employs the theological language of ‘conversion’. However, the rationale for this suggestion, and the implications it would entail for the way in which educational programmes on the environment might be pursued, is developed only minimally in the encyclical itself. The objective of this article is to take up and develop this hint by offering some philosophical and theological perspectives on the idea of human motivation towards care for the environment, and by exploring the current state of affairs in environmental education in light of it. The article therefore aims to develop the encyclical's brief and unthematized suggestion regarding an ‘ecological citizenship’ in a practical and applied direction.© 2018 Trustees for Roman Catholic Purposes Registere

From nomadic herder-hunters to sedentary farmers : the relationship between climate change and ancient subsistence strategies in south-eastern Arabia

Despite the present hyper-aridity, archaeological investigations in South-east Arabia have demonstrated that the region supported extensive human communities throughout the Neolithic and Bronze Age. These early populations utilised the region’s natural environment in a variety of ways, ranging from the exploitation of coastal resources to practicing pastoral and agrarian lifestyles in the interior. Palaeoclimate data suggests the corresponding period was characterised by considerable climatic variability yet, to date, few studies have attempted to investigate the relationship between climate, the environment and early human populations in the region. This paper combines new high-resolution palaeoclimate data from Awafi palaeolake, United Arab Emirates (UAE), with the region’s archaeological record from the Neolithic through to the onset of the Bronze Age. The evidence presented in this paper suggests that the environment of South-east Arabia offered different constraints and opportunities for early human occupation and subsistence. In particular, abrupt phases of aridity are demonstrated to have had a profound impact. Most notable is the change which occurred following the onset of climatic aridity at 5900 cal yr BP, when the region’s semi-nomadic, herder-gatherer populations abandoned much of the landscape and concentrated in selected environmental refugia, such as along the northern Omani coast. Human repopulation during the Bronze Age coincided with a return to more pluvial conditions under which a network of oasis agricultural settlements appeared along the piedmont zone of the northern Hajar Mountains