Conditional U1 gene silencing in Toxoplasma gondii

The functional characterisation of essential genes in apicomplexan parasites, such as Toxoplasma gondii or Plasmodium falciparum, relies on conditional mutagenesis systems. Here we present a novel strategy based on U1 snRNP-mediated gene silencing. U1 snRNP is critical in pre-mRNA splicing by defining the exon-intron boundaries. When a U1 recognition site is placed into the 3’-terminal exon or adjacent to the termination codon, pre-mRNA is cleaved at the 3’-end and degraded, leading to an efficient knockdown of the gene of interest (GOI). Here we describe a simple method that combines endogenous tagging with DiCre-mediated positioning of U1 recognition sites adjacent to the termination codon of the GOI which leads to a conditional knockdown of the GOI upon rapamycin-induction. Specific knockdown mutants of the reporter gene GFP and several endogenous genes of T. gondii including the clathrin heavy chain gene 1 (chc1), the vacuolar protein sorting gene 26 (vps26), and the dynamin-related protein C gene (drpC) were silenced using this approach and demonstrate the potential of this technology. We also discuss advantages and disadvantages of this method in comparison to other technologies in more detail

Renegotiating intimate relationships with men: how HIV shapes attitudes and experiences of marriage for South African women living with HIV: 'Now in my life, everything I do, looking at my health'

This paper explores marriage attitudes and practices among Xhosa-speaking women living with HIV (WLHIV) in Cape Town, South Africa. It reports on a study that assessed the fertility intentions of a cohort of people living with HIV, aimed at informing an HIV care intervention. It draws on qualitative data generated from 30 successive interviews with WHLIV in wave 1, 23 interviews in wave 2 and 20 follow-up interviews in wave 3. Gender inequality, marriage and HIV are strongly intertwined. Broader layers of South Africa's history, politics and socio-economic and cultural contexts have consequences for the fluidity in intimate relations, marriage and motherhood for WLHIV. Key and conflicting themes emerge that impact on marriage and motherhood. Firstly, marriage is the ‘last on a list of priorities’ for WLHIV, who wish to further their children's education, to work, to earn money, and to achieve this rapidly because of their HIV-positive status. We demonstrate that the pressure women face in marriage to bear children creates a different attitude to and experience of marriage for WLHIV. Some WLHIV wish to avoid marriage due to its accompanying pressure to have children. Other WLHIV experience difficulties securing intimacy. WLHIV may find it easier to seek partners who are also living with HIV. A partner living with HIV is perceived as sharing similar fertility goals. In this study, HIV accentuates existing issues and highlights new ones for WLHIV negotiating intimacy

Early Attention in COVID-19: Self Perception of Professionals Regarding Teleintervention Support

The health emergency situation, SARS-Cov-19, declared by the World Health Organization, prompts Early Care Centers to transform the role of the professional in order to continue with the proper functioning of the service. Down Madrid, a non-profit organization, develops a work protocol in response to the needs generated, redefining the priority functions of application in teleintervention. This study analyzes the assessment of professionals regarding the perceived competence in the transformation of the service, describes the manifest satisfaction regarding teleintervention during confinement and points out the change in the role of the associated family. Furthermore, this research identifies, under the construct Family Centered Planning, the true empowerment of families as the main pillar of treatment. The results allow us to affirm that 100 % of the professionals consider the interaction with the family successful and 83.3 % perceive a greater empowerment in the family members as transforming agents of change. As future lines of research, it is necessary to provide more scientific evidence that allows us to affirm that the symbiosis between professionals and families, in the telematic environment, is a reality.La situación de emergencia sanitaria, SARS-Cov-19, declarada por la Organización Mundial de la Salud aboca a los Centros de Atención Temprana a trasformar el rol del profesional para poder continuar con el buen funcionamiento del servicio. Down Madrid, entidad sin ánimo de lucro, desarrolla un protocolo de trabajo ante las necesidades generadas redefiniendo las funciones prioritarias de aplicación en la teleintervención. Este estudio analiza la valoración de los profesionales respecto a la competencia percibida en la transformación del servicio, describe la satisfacción manifiesta respecto a la teleintervención durante el confinamiento y señala el cambio de rol de la familia asociado. Además, esta investigación identifica, bajo el constructo Planificación Centrada en la Familia, el verdadero empoderamiento de las familias como pilar principal del tratamiento. Los resultados permiten afirmar que el 100 % de los profesionales considera exitosa la interacción con la familia y un 83,3 % percibe un empoderamiento mayor en los familiares como agentes trasformadores del cambio. Como futuras líneas de investigación se precisa aportar mayor evidencia científica que permita afirmar que la simbiosis entre los profesionales y las familias, en el medio telemático, es una realidad

The Role of Higher Education for Displaced and Marginalized Peoples – The SUEUAA Project

This thematic paper is a contribution to our understanding of ways in which universities within the Global South can and do engage with the challenge of internal and external migration. Migration is one of the most significant global challenges. According to the United Nations International Migration Report (2017), the number of international migrants worldwide has increased significantly from 173 million in 2000 to 258 million in 2017. In 2017, over 78 million international migrants lived in Europe, 80 million lived in Asia, and 25 million lived in Africa. Despite these patterns of migration, a Western-centric perspective dominates the literature and research with the focus being on Global South to Global North migration (i.e. migration to Europe or North America) or exclusively migration within the Global North. Less is known about Global South-Global South migration

Religion and Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors Among Postmenopausal Women: the Women\u27s Health Initiative

Worship attendance has been associated with longer survival in prospective cohort studies. A possible explanation is that religious involvement may promote healthier lifestyle choices. Therefore, we examined whether attendance is associated with healthy behaviors, i.e. use of preventive medicine services, non-smoking, moderate drinking, exercising regularly, and with healthy dietary habits. The population included 71,689 post-menopausal women enrolled in the Women\u27s Health Initiative observational study free of chronic diseases at baseline. Attendance and lifestyle behaviors information was collected at baseline using self-administered questionnaires. Healthy behaviors were modeled as a function of attendance using logistic regression. After adjustment for confounders, worship attendance (less than weekly, weekly, and more than weekly vs. never) was positively associated with use of preventive services [OR for mammograms: 1.34 (1.19, 1.51), 1.41 (1.26, 1.57), 1.33 (1.17, 1.52); breast self exams: 1.14 (1.02, 1.27), 1.33 (1.21, 1.48), 1.25 (1.1, 1.43); PAP smears: 1.22 (1.01, 1.47-weekly vs. none)]; non-smoking: [1.41 (1.35, 1.48), 1.76 (1.69, 1.84), 2.27 (2.15, 2.39)]; moderate drinking [1.35 (1.27, 1.45), 1.60 (1.52, 1.7), 2.19 (2.0, 2.4)]; and fiber intake [1.08 (1.03, 1.14), 1.16 (1.11, 1.22), 1.31 (1.23, 1.39), respectively], but not with regular exercise or with lower saturated fat and caloric intake. These findings suggest that worship attendance is associated with certain, but not all, healthy behaviors. Further research is needed to get a deeper understanding of the relationship between religious involvement and healthy lifestyle behaviors and of the inconsistent patterns in this association

State of the Tropics 2014 report

[Extract] Is life in the Tropics getting better? The landmark State of the Tropics 2014 Report addresses this nominally simple question. It provides the first in-depth, objective assessment of the Tropics as an environmental and geopolitical entity in its own right. Drawing on the knowledge, experience and diverse backgrounds of leading institutions across the Tropics the report assesses the state of the region and examines the implications of the immense changes the region is experiencing. The assessment demonstrates that nations in the Tropics have made extraordinary progress across a wide range of environmental, social and economic indicators in recent decades. Rapid population and economic growth mean its influence is set to rise dramatically in coming decades. The nature of this influence will depend on how the region addresses its many challenges, and whether it realises its potential and opportunities. The report provides a basis from which to work towards a prosperous, sustainable and equitable future for the Tropics and will be a valuable resource for policy makers, geopolitical analysts, researchers, students and other stakeholders interested in the Tropics

Shared genetic variance between obesity and white matter integrity in Mexican Americans.

peer reviewedObesity is a chronic metabolic disorder that may also lead to reduced white matter integrity, potentially due to shared genetic risk factors. Genetic correlation analyses were conducted in a large cohort of Mexican American families in San Antonio (N = 761, 58% females, ages 18-81 years; 41.3 +/- 14.5) from the Genetics of Brain Structure and Function Study. Shared genetic variance was calculated between measures of adiposity [(body mass index (BMI; kg/m(2)) and waist circumference (WC; in)] and whole-brain and regional measurements of cerebral white matter integrity (fractional anisotropy). Whole-brain average and regional fractional anisotropy values for 10 major white matter tracts were calculated from high angular resolution diffusion tensor imaging data (DTI; 1.7 x 1.7 x 3 mm; 55 directions). Additive genetic factors explained intersubject variance in BMI (heritability, h (2) = 0.58), WC (h (2) = 0.57), and FA (h (2) = 0.49). FA shared significant portions of genetic variance with BMI in the genu (rhoG = -0.25), body (rhoG = -0.30), and splenium (rhoG = -0.26) of the corpus callosum, internal capsule (rhoG = -0.29), and thalamic radiation (rhoG = -0.31) (all p's = 0.043). The strongest evidence of shared variance was between BMI/WC and FA in the superior fronto-occipital fasciculus (rhoG = -0.39, p = 0.020; rhoG = -0.39, p = 0.030), which highlights region-specific variation in neural correlates of obesity. This may suggest that increase in obesity and reduced white matter integrity share common genetic risk factors