Surviving to thriving: Impact of art interventions on the wellbeing of women who have experienced sexual violence

This evaluation report describes a series of art workshops designed to support the wellbeing of people who have experienced sexual violence, run through Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (SARSAS; www.sarsas.org.uk), led by socially engaged artist Pippa Grace (OneStory; www.one-story.co.uk) and evaluated by Drs Nicola Holt and Emma Halliwell from the University of the West of England.41 females participated in a programme of art workshops (‘Surviving to Thriving’), eight of whom took part in a subsequent programme to develop their art practice further (INSPIRE). The impact on their wellbeing was evaluated using mixed methods: 1) a pre-post evaluation using the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) at the start and end of programmes; 2) a process evaluation, examining the impact of each workshop on mood, attention and social connection; and 3) qualitative questionnaires and focus groups to examine the meaning of the programme for participants.The evaluation outcomes suggested that the art-based interventions were effective at improving the wellbeing of participants. During art workshops participants’ anxiety and loneliness decreased, while happiness and alertness increased. Participants with the greatestimprovements in mood during art workshops were also those who reported the greatest wellbeing benefits over time. A thematic analysis resulted in three themes, indicating that participants felt a special bond with others in the group with whom they felt a sense of understanding and of being understood (‘Social Connection’); this safe space allowed opportunities to relax, explore art and become absorbed in the process of making (‘Time for Self-care’). Through this process participants described a new sense of identity, feeling empowered, confident and creative (‘New Identities’).Future work is required to build on and replicate these findings, and to examine the sustainability and longitudinal impact of art workshops. However, these findings support the use of art interventions to help improve the wellbeing of women who have experienced sexual violence

Antioxidant Defenses Predict Long-Term Survival in a Passerine Bird

Normal and pathological processes entail the production of oxidative substances that can damage biological molecules and harm physiological functions. Organisms have evolved complex mechanisms of antioxidant defense, and any imbalance between oxidative challenge and antioxidant protection can depress fitness components and accelerate senescence. While the role of oxidative stress in pathogenesis and aging has been studied intensively in humans and model animal species under laboratory conditions, there is a dearth of knowledge on its role in shaping life-histories of animals under natural selection regimes. Yet, given the pervasive nature and likely fitness consequences of oxidative damage, it can be expected that the need to secure efficient antioxidant protection is powerful in molding the evolutionary ecology of animals. Here, we test whether overall antioxidant defense varies with age and predicts long-term survival, using a wild population of a migratory passerine bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica), as a model.Plasma antioxidant capacity (AOC) of breeding individuals was measured using standard protocols and annual survival was monitored over five years (2006-2010) on a large sample of selection episodes. AOC did not covary with age in longitudinal analyses after discounting the effect of selection. AOC positively predicted annual survival independently of sex. Individuals were highly consistent in their relative levels of AOC, implying the existence of additive genetic variance and/or environmental (including early maternal) components consistently acting through their lives.Using longitudinal data we showed that high levels of antioxidant protection positively predict long-term survival in a wild animal population. Present results are therefore novel in disclosing a role for antioxidant protection in determining survival under natural conditions, strongly demanding for more longitudinal eco-physiological studies of life-histories in relation to oxidative stress in wild populations

Candida glabrata : a review of its features and resistance

Candida species belong to the normal microbiota of the oral cavity and gastrointestinal and vaginal tracts, and are responsible for several clinical manifestations, from mucocutaneous overgrowth to bloodstream infections. Once believed to be non-pathogenic, Candida glabrata was rapidly blamable for many human diseases. Year after year, these pathological circumstances are more recurrent and problematic to treat, especially when patients reveal any level of immunosuppression. These difficulties arise from the capacity of C. glabrata to form biofilms and also from its high resistance to traditional antifungal therapies. Thus, this review intends to present an excerpt of the biology, epidemiology, and pathology of C. glabrata, and detail an approach to its resistance mechanisms based on studies carried out up to the present.The authors are grateful to strategic project PTDC/SAU-MIC/119069/2010 for the financial support to the research center and for Celia F. Rodrigues' grant

Global patient outcomes after elective surgery: prospective cohort study in 27 low-, middle- and high-income countries.

BACKGROUND: As global initiatives increase patient access to surgical treatments, there remains a need to understand the adverse effects of surgery and define appropriate levels of perioperative care. METHODS: We designed a prospective international 7-day cohort study of outcomes following elective adult inpatient surgery in 27 countries. The primary outcome was in-hospital complications. Secondary outcomes were death following a complication (failure to rescue) and death in hospital. Process measures were admission to critical care immediately after surgery or to treat a complication and duration of hospital stay. A single definition of critical care was used for all countries. RESULTS: A total of 474 hospitals in 19 high-, 7 middle- and 1 low-income country were included in the primary analysis. Data included 44 814 patients with a median hospital stay of 4 (range 2-7) days. A total of 7508 patients (16.8%) developed one or more postoperative complication and 207 died (0.5%). The overall mortality among patients who developed complications was 2.8%. Mortality following complications ranged from 2.4% for pulmonary embolism to 43.9% for cardiac arrest. A total of 4360 (9.7%) patients were admitted to a critical care unit as routine immediately after surgery, of whom 2198 (50.4%) developed a complication, with 105 (2.4%) deaths. A total of 1233 patients (16.4%) were admitted to a critical care unit to treat complications, with 119 (9.7%) deaths. Despite lower baseline risk, outcomes were similar in low- and middle-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: Poor patient outcomes are common after inpatient surgery. Global initiatives to increase access to surgical treatments should also address the need for safe perioperative care. STUDY REGISTRATION: ISRCTN5181700

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration genome wide association study replication confirms a risk locus shared with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a common cause of dementia especially in patients under the age of 65. FTLD has a high incidence of heritability with as many as 40% of patients reporting a family history of disease. Recently, the first genome wide association study was performed using only FTLD patients with a pathologically confirmed TDP-43 pathology. Genome wide significance was detected for a single gene (TMEM106B) on chromosome 7, though several other loci on chromosomes 1, 8, 9, 10 and 11 reached nominal significance. Here we have undertaken an attempt to replicate the association of these loci in FTLD cohorts of British origin. We failed to detect any association of TMEM106B in the Manchester or London cohort either when analyzed individually or when combined. Genotyping of the Manchester cohort failed to replicate any of the loci on chromosome 1, 8 and 10 but did detect association of the single SNP (rs2015747.) on chromosome 11. Association was also observed in the London cohort but in the opposite direction. Combining the 2 datasets yielded no association. Analysis of the chromosome 9 locus, revealed strong association in the London FTLD cohort and the Manchester FTLD+ALS cases. These data confirm that FTLD and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) share a common genetic risk factor on chromosome 9p. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Protective role of hydrogen peroxide in oxygen-deprived dopaminergic neurones of the rat substantia nigra

Hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) is a reactive oxygen species, responsible for cytotoxic damage through the formation of hydroxyl radicals. Dopamine (DA) neurones of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) are highly sensitive to metabolic stress, and they typically respond to energy deprivation with membrane hyperpolarization, mainly through opening of ATP-dependent K(+) channels. Accordingly, H(2)O(2) (3 mm) induced a tolbutamide-sensitive outward current in DA neurones. Conversely, in a hypoxic medium, H(2)O(2) reverted membrane hyperpolarization, which is associated with oxygen deprivation in DA neurones, restored their action potential firing, and reduced the hypoxia-mediated outward current in a concentration-dependent manner, between 0.1 and 3 mm (IC(50) 0.6 ± 0.1 mm). Notably, H(2)O(2) did not counteract membrane hyperpolarization associated with hypoglycaemia, moreover, when catalase was inhibited with 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (3-AT; 30 mm), H(2)O(2) did not reduce hypoxia-mediated outward current. The counteracting action of H(2)O(2) on hypoxia-mediated effects was further confirmed by single-unit extracellular recordings of presumed DA neurones in acute midbrain slices preparations, using a planar multi-electrode array device. Whilst a prolonged period of hypoxia (40 min) caused firing suppression, which did not recover after perfusion in normoxic conditions, the presence of H(2)O(2) (3 mm) during this prolonged hypoxic period rescued most of the neurones from irreversible firing inhibition. Accordingly, morphological studies showed that H(2)O(2) counteracts the cytochrome c release provoked by prolonged hypoxic treatment. Taken together, our data suggest that H(2)O(2) prevents the metabolic stress of DA neurones induced by hypoxia by serving as a supplementary source of molecular oxygen, through its degradation by catalase