Dual consent? Donors' and recipients' views about involvement in decision-making on the use of embryos created by gamete donation in research

Background Reasonable disagreement about the role awarded to gamete donors in decision-making on the use of embryos created by gamete donation (EGDs) for research purposes emphasises the importance of considering the implementation of participatory, adaptive, and trustworthy policies and guidelines for consent procedures. However, the perspectives of gamete donors and recipients about decision-making regarding research with EGDs are still under-researched, which precludes the development of policies and guidelines informed by evidence. This study seeks to explore the views of donors and recipients about who should take part in consent processes for the use of EGDs in research. Methods From July 2017 to June 2018, 72 gamete donors and 175 recipients completed a self-report structured questionnaire at the Portuguese Public Bank of Gametes (response rate: 76%). Agreement with dual consent was defined as the belief that the use of EGDs in research should be consented by both donors and recipients. Results The majority of participants (74.6% of donors and 65.7% of recipients) were willing to donate embryos for research. Almost half of the donors (48.6%) and half of the recipients (46.9%) considered that a dual consent procedure is desirable. This view was more frequent among employed recipients (49.7%) than among non-employed (21.4%). Donors were less likely to believe that only recipients should be involved in giving consent for the use of EGDs in research (25.0% vs. 41.7% among recipients) and were more frequently favourable to the idea of exclusive donors' consent (26.4% vs. 11.4% among recipients). Conclusions Divergent views on dual consent among donors and recipients indicate the need to develop evidence-based and ethically sustainable policies and guidelines to protect well-being, autonomy and reproductive rights of both stakeholder groups. More empirical research and further theoretical normative analyses are needed to inform people-centred policy and guidelines for shared decision-making concerning the use of EGDs for research

Fast-track referral for health interventions during pregnancy: study protocol of a randomised pragmatic experimental study to reduce low birth weight in Portugal (STOP LBW)

Introduction Low birth weight (LBW) is associated with a wide range of short-term and long-term consequences and is related to maternal psychosocial and behavioural determinants. The objective of this study is to estimate the effect of implementing fast-track referral for early intervention on psychosocial and behavioural risk factors—smoking, alcohol consumption, depression and physical violence—in reducing the incidence of LBW. Methods and analysis Parallel superiority pragmatic clinical trial randomised by clusters. Primary healthcare units (PHCU) located in Portugal will be randomised (1:1) to intervention or control groups. Pregnant women over 18 years of age attending these PHCU will be eligible to the study. Risk factors will be assessed through face-to-face interviews. In the intervention group, women who report at least one risk factor will have immediate access to referral services. The comparison group will be the local standard of care for these risk factors. We will use intention-to-treat analyses to compare intervention and control groups. We estimated a sample size of 2832 pregnant women to detect a 30% reduction in the incidence rate of LBW between the control and intervention groups. Secondary outcomes are the reduction of preterm births, reduction of the four risk factors and acceptance of the intervention. Ethics and dissemination The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Public Health Institute of the University of Porto (no CE20140). The findings will be disseminated to the public, the funders, health professionals, health managers and other researchers.This project was funded by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation under the Knowledge Challenge 'The Importance of the Right Weight at Birth'. Sponsor contact information: HB. ISPUP. [email protected]

Parenting very preterm infants and stress in Neonatal Intensive Care Units

BACKGROUND: Assessing parental stress during infants' hospitalization in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) is essential to identify parents at risk for immediate and extended physical and emotional burden. AIMS: To identify sources of stress in mothers and fathers of very preterm infants hospitalized in NICU, and their association with sociodemographic, obstetric and infants' characteristics. STUDY DESIGN: Observational and cross-sectional study conducted between July 2013 and June 2014. SUBJECTS: Parents of very preterm infants hospitalized in all level III NICU in the Northern Health Region of Portugal were consecutively and systematically invited to participate in this study, being included 120 mothers and 91 fathers (participation rate: 96.8%). OUTCOME MEASURES: The Portuguese version of the Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was used. RESULTS: The overall experience of hospitalization was classified as more stressful than the median for the subscales. "Change in parental role" was classified as the most stressful subscale by mothers (Median (P25-P75): 4.1(3.2-4.7)) and fathers (Median (P25-P75): 3.2(2.4-4.0)). Mothers scored significantly higher in all subscales. For mothers, multiple pregnancy was associated with lower levels of stress regarding "change in parental role" (β=-0.597; 95% CI=-1.020 to -0.174) and "overall stress" (β=-0.603; 95% CI=-1.052 to -0.153). Being ≥30years old was found to be a significant predictor for decreased fathers' stress. CONCLUSIONS: This study raises awareness for the need to develop sensitive instruments that take notice of gender, social support and family-centered care. The implementation of interventions focused on reducing parental stress is crucial to diminish disparities in family health

Preparation, structural characterisation and antibacterial properties of Ga-doped sol-gel phosphate-based glass

A sol-gel preparation of Ga-doped phosphate-based glass with potential application in antimicrobial devices has been developed. Samples of composition (CaO)(0.30)(Na2O)(0.20-x) (Ga2O3) (x) (P2O5)(0.50) where x = 0 and 0.03 were prepared, and the structure and properties of the gallium-doped sample compared with those of the sample containing no gallium. Analysis of the P-31 MAS NMR data demonstrated that addition of gallium to the sol-gel reaction increases the connectivity of the phosphate network at the expense of hydroxyl groups. This premise is supported by the results of the elemental analysis, which showed that the gallium-free sample contains significantly more hydrogen and by FTIR spectroscopy, which revealed a higher concentration of -OH groups in that sample. Ga K-edge extended X-ray absorption fine structure and X-ray absorption near-edge structure data revealed that the gallium ions are coordinated by six oxygen atoms. In agreement with the X-ray absorption data, the high-energy XRD results also suggest that the Ga3+ ions are octahedrally coordinated with respect to oxygen. Antimicrobial studies demonstrated that the sample containing Ga3+ ions had significant activity against Staphylococcus aureus compared to the control

Characterization of Generalized Young Measures Generated by Symmetric Gradients

This work establishes a characterization theorem for (generalized) Young measures generated by symmetric derivatives of functions of bounded deformation (BD) in the spirit of the classical Kinderlehrer\ue2\u80\u93Pedregal theorem. Our result places such Young measures in duality with symmetric-quasiconvex functions with linear growth. The \ue2\u80\u9clocal\ue2\u80\u9d proof strategy combines blow-up arguments with the singular structure theorem in BD (the analogue of Alberti\ue2\u80\u99s rank-one theorem in BV), which was recently proved by the authors. As an application of our characterization theorem we show how an atomic part in a BD-Young measure can be split off in generating sequences

Análise in vitro do potencial de bactéria do gênero Streptomyces no biocontrole de fitopatógenos de interesse agrícola.

O uso de produtos químicos nos campos agrícolas vem sendo utilizado há muito tempo no intuito de controlar os prejuízos causados por pragas como, insetos e microrganismos fitopatogênicos, porém, devido a efeitos nocivos à saúde humana e ao meio ambiente, novas tecnologias vêm sendo criadas para substituição desses químicos. O controle biológico torna-se uma opção para esta mudança, pois também funciona como controlador, porém sem a utilização dos compostos químicos. Podemos citar como os principais agentes de biocontrole os microrganismos, mais especificamente, fungos e bactérias, dentre as mais variadas espécies utilizadas, existe as bactérias do gênero Streptomyces, estas, quando associados à planta hospedeira, podem produizir antibióticos, sideróforos e enzimas com ação antimicrobiana. Com isto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi testar in vitro o potencial de uma espécie do gênero Streptomyces (MPUR 42.5) no controle de fitopatógenos de interesse agrícola

Eficácia do óleo de Carapa guianensis (Meliaceae) contra infestações de monogenéticos em Colossoma macropomum e seus efeitos hematológicos e histopatológicos.

Este estudo teve como objetivo investigar a eficácia de banhos terapêuticos com óleo de Carapa guianensis (andiroba) contra monogenéticos de Colossoma macropomum (tambaqui), bem como os efeitos hematológicos e histológicos nos peixes expostos.Enbrapoa

A study of Docetaxel-induced effects in MCF-7 cells by means of Raman microspectroscopy

Chemotherapies feature a low success rate of about 25%, and therefore, the choice of the most effective cytostatic drug for the individual patient and monitoring the efficiency of an ongoing chemotherapy are important steps towards personalized therapy. Thereby, an objective method able to differentiate between treated and untreated cancer cells would be essential. In this study, we provide molecular insights into Docetaxel-induced effects in MCF-7 cells, as a model system for adenocarcinoma, by means of Raman microspectroscopy combined with powerful chemometric methods. The analysis of the Raman data is divided into two steps. In the first part, the morphology of cell organelles, e.g. the cell nucleus has been visualized by analysing the Raman spectra with k-means cluster analysis and artificial neural networks and compared to the histopathologic gold standard method hematoxylin and eosin staining. This comparison showed that Raman microscopy is capable of displaying the cell morphology; however, this is in contrast to hematoxylin and eosin staining label free and can therefore be applied potentially in vivo. Because Docetaxel is a drug acting within the cell nucleus, Raman spectra originating from the cell nucleus region were further investigated in a next step. Thereby we were able to differentiate treated from untreated MCF-7 cells and to quantify the cell–drug response by utilizing linear discriminant analysis models

Quality of life among parents of preterm infants: a scoping review

Purpose: To synthesize the body of knowledge on the factors influencing the QoL of mothers and fathers of preterm infants. Methods: A scoping review was performed. Publications indexed in PubMed®, Web of Science™, CINAHL® and PsycINFO® were searched, targeting studies presenting original empirical data that examined parental perception on QoL after a preterm delivery. Eligibility and data extraction were conducted by two independent researchers. The main quantitative findings were synthesized and qualitative data were explored by content analysis. Results: The studies, 11 quantitative and 1 mixed methods, were derived mainly from the USA (n = 6). Heterogeneity across the studies was observed regarding the operationalization of QoL and the use of units of analysis (mothers, parents, families and caregivers). In a context where 40 out of 45 covariates were analysed by only one or two studies, results suggested that parental QoL after a preterm delivery is influenced by factors related with mother’s characteristics, family issues and health care environment rather than infants’ variables. Factors regarding fathers’ characteristics and structural levels were not addressed. Conclusions: Standardizing the operationalization of the QoL when analysing mothers and fathers of preterm infants calls for a structured questionnaire adapted to their specific needs. Further research should include both mothers and fathers, invest in mixed methods approaches and be performed in different countries and settings for allowing integration and comparison of findings.This work was supported by FEDER funding from the Operational Programme Factors of Competitiveness—COMPETE and by national funding from the Foundation for Science and Technology—FCT (Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education) under the project “Parenting roles and knowledge in Neonatal Intensive Care Units” (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-019902; Ref. FCT PTDC/CS-ECS/120750/2010) and the Unidade de Investigação em Epidemiologia—Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto (EPIUnit) (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006862; Ref. UID/DTP/04750/2013); the grants PD/BD/105830/2014 (to MA), SFRH/BPD/103562/2014 (to EA), co-funded by the FCT and the POPH/FSE Program and the FCT Investigator contract IF/01674/2015 (to SS)

On the mechanisms governing gas penetration into a tokamak plasma during a massive gas injection

A new 1D radial fluid code, IMAGINE, is used to simulate the penetration of gas into a tokamak plasma during a massive gas injection (MGI). The main result is that the gas is in general strongly braked as it reaches the plasma, due to mechanisms related to charge exchange and (to a smaller extent) recombination. As a result, only a fraction of the gas penetrates into the plasma. Also, a shock wave is created in the gas which propagates away from the plasma, braking and compressing the incoming gas. Simulation results are quantitatively consistent, at least in terms of orders of magnitude, with experimental data for a D 2 MGI into a JET Ohmic plasma. Simulations of MGI into the background plasma surrounding a runaway electron beam show that if the background electron density is too high, the gas may not penetrate, suggesting a possible explanation for the recent results of Reux et al in JET (2015 Nucl. Fusion 55 093013)