Compulsory State Insurance of Workingmen

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Semiclassical Time Evolution and Trace Formula for Relativistic Spin-1/2 Particles

We investigate the Dirac equation in the semiclassical limit \hbar --> 0. A semiclassical propagator and a trace formula are derived and are shown to be determined by the classical orbits of a relativistic point particle. In addition, two phase factors enter, one of which can be calculated from the Thomas precession of a classical spin transported along the particle orbits. For the second factor we provide an interpretation in terms of dynamical and geometric phases.Comment: 8 pages, no figure

Incorporating prior knowledge improves detection of differences in bacterial growth rate

BACKGROUND: Robust statistical detection of differences in the bacterial growth rate can be challenging, particularly when dealing with small differences or noisy data. The Bayesian approach provides a consistent framework for inferring model parameters and comparing hypotheses. The method captures the full uncertainty of parameter values, whilst making effective use of prior knowledge about a given system to improve estimation. RESULTS: We demonstrated the application of Bayesian analysis to bacterial growth curve comparison. Following extensive testing of the method, the analysis was applied to the large dataset of bacterial responses which are freely available at the web-resource, ComBase. Detection was found to be improved by using prior knowledge from clusters of previously analysed experimental results at similar environmental conditions. A comparison was also made to a more traditional statistical testing method, the F-test, and Bayesian analysis was found to perform more conclusively and to be capable of attributing significance to more subtle differences in growth rate. CONCLUSIONS: We have demonstrated that by making use of existing experimental knowledge, it is possible to significantly improve detection of differences in bacterial growth rate

Symptom patterns in women with premenstrual syndrome complaints: a prospective assessment using a marker for ovulation and screening criteria for adequate ovarian function

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72929/1/j.1365-2648.1991.tb01727.x.pd

Stereological Analysis of Neuron, Glial and Endothelial Cell Numbers in the Human Amygdaloid Complex

Cell number alterations in the amygdaloid complex (AC) might coincide with neurological and psychiatric pathologies with anxiety imbalances as well as with changes in brain functionality during aging. This stereological study focused on estimating, in samples from 7 control individuals aged 20 to 75 years old, the number and density of neurons, glia and endothelial cells in the entire AC and in its 5 nuclear groups (including the basolateral (BL), corticomedial and central groups), 5 nuclei and 13 nuclear subdivisions. The volume and total cell number in these territories were determined on Nissl-stained sections with the Cavalieri principle and the optical fractionator. The AC mean volume was 956 mm3 and mean cell numbers (x106) were: 15.3 neurons, 60 glial cells and 16.8 endothelial cells. The numbers of endothelial cells and neurons were similar in each AC region and were one fourth the number of glial cells. Analysis of the influence of the individuals’ age at death on volume, cell number and density in each of these 24 AC regions suggested that aging does not affect regional size or the amount of glial cells, but that neuron and endothelial cell numbers respectively tended to decrease and increase in territories such as AC or BL. These accurate stereological measures of volume and total cell numbers and densities in the AC of control individuals could serve as appropriate reference values to evaluate subtle alterations in this structure in pathological conditions

The impact of education, country, race and ethnicity on the self-report of postpartum depression using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

Universal screening for postpartum depression is recommended in many countries. Knowledge of whether the disclosure of depressive symptoms in the postpartum period differs across cultures could improve detection and provide new insights into the pathogenesis. Moreover, it is a necessary step to evaluate the universal use of screening instruments in research and clinical practice. In the current study we sought to assess whether the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the most widely used screening tool for postpartum depression, measures the same underlying construct across cultural groups in a large international dataset. Ordinal regression and measurement invariance were used to explore the association between culture, operationalized as education, ethnicity/race and continent, and endorsement of depressive symptoms using the EPDS on 8209 new mothers from Europe and the USA. Education, but not ethnicity/race, influenced the reporting of postpartum depression [difference between robust comparative fit indexes (∆*CFI) 0.01), but not between European countries (∆*CFI < 0.01). Investigators and clinicians should be aware of the potential differences in expression of phenotype of postpartum depression that women of different educational backgrounds may manifest. The increasing cultural heterogeneity of societies together with the tendency towards globalization requires a culturally sensitive approach to patients, research and policies, that takes into account, beyond rhetoric, the context of a person's experiences and the context in which the research is conducted

Inflammation Triggers Emergency Granulopoiesis through a Density-Dependent Feedback Mechanism

Normally, neutrophil pools are maintained by homeostatic mechanisms that require the transcription factor C/EBPα. Inflammation, however, induces neutrophilia through a distinct pathway of “emergency” granulopoiesis that is dependent on C/EBPβ. Here, we show in mice that alum triggers emergency granulopoiesis through the IL-1RI-dependent induction of G-CSF. G-CSF/G-CSF-R neutralization impairs proliferative responses of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) to alum, but also abrogates the acute mobilization of BM neutrophils, raising the possibility that HSPC responses to inflammation are an indirect result of the exhaustion of BM neutrophil stores. The induction of neutropenia, via depletion with Gr-1 mAb or myeloid-specific ablation of Mcl-1, elicits G-CSF via an IL-1RI-independent pathway, stimulating granulopoietic responses indistinguishable from those induced by adjuvant. Notably, C/EBPβ, thought to be necessary for enhanced generative capacity of BM, is dispensable for increased proliferation of HSPC to alum or neutropenia, but plays a role in terminal neutrophil differentiation during granulopoietic recovery. We conclude that alum elicits a transient increase in G-CSF production via IL-1RI for the mobilization of BM neutrophils, but density-dependent feedback sustains G-CSF for accelerated granulopoiesis

Resisting the mantle of the monstrous feminine : women's construction and experience of premenstrual embodiment

The female reproductive body is positioned as abject, as other, as site of defciency and disease, the epitome of the ‘monstrous feminine.’ Premenstrual change in emotion, behavior or embodied sensation is positioned as a sign of madness within, necessitating restraint and control on the part of the women experiencing it (Ussher 2006). Breakdown in this control through manifestation of ‘symptoms’ is diagnosed as PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) or PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder), a pathology deserving of ‘treatment.’ In this chapter, we adopt a feminist material-discursive theoretical framework to examine the role of premenstrual embodiment in relation to women’s adoption of the subject position of monstrous feminine, drawing on interviews we have conducted with women who self-diagnose as ‘PMS sufferers.’ We theorize women’s self-positioning as subjectifcation, wherein women take up cultural discourse associated with idealized femininity and the reproductive body, resulting in self-objectifcation, distress, and self-condemnation. However, women can resist negative cultural constructions of premenstrual embodiment and the subsequent self-policing. We describe the impact of women-centered psychological therapy which increases awareness of embodied change, and leads to greater acceptance of the premenstrual body and greater self-care, which serves to reduce premenstrual distress