The Unemployed and Unemployment in an International Perspective

Dans chaque situation nationale le chômage est analysé comme une chaîne d'interdépendances entre des acteurs institutionnels et des acteurs individuels, comme une combinaison de processus structurels et de processus subjectifs, comme une intrication de régulations collectives et de stratégies individuelles, de normes institutionnelles et de mondes subjectifs, de règles codifiées et d'expériences vécues. Ces cohérences peuvent être considérées comme des configurations nationales, plutôt que comme des modèles, parce qu'elles sont à la fois structurées et dynamiques, précisément parce qu'elles sont traversées et travaillées par une tension permanente entre des phénomènes structurels eux-mêmes soumis à des changements macro-sociaux et des phénomènes subjectifs eux-mêmes soumis à des changements microsociaux.chômage; chômeurs; comparaison internationale; Japon; France; Brésil

Trace element concentrations in blood samples from dairy cows with uterine torsion and their neonatal calves

Background and Aim: Mineral deficiencies can lead to dystocia and abnormalities in neonates. Stillbirth of neonatal calves in dairy cows due to dystocia has become an economic problem. Uterine torsion (UT) is a common form of dystocia observed in dairy cows. However, to the best of our knowledge, there have been no reports on the characteristics of serum trace element concentrations in dairy cows with UT. This study aimed to comprehensively measure serum trace element concentrations in dairy cows with UT and dystocia. Materials and Methods: Dairy cows with (n = 15) and without (n = 27) UT and neonates (n = 9 and n = 26, respectively) were included in this study. Blood samples (10 mL) were collected, and serum trace element concentrations were evaluated using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrophotometry. Results: The mortality rate at birth was significantly higher in calves delivered by cows with UT than those delivered by cows without UT. The odds ratio for mortality rate at birth in dairy cows with UT was 7.85. Serum zinc (Zn) levels were significantly lower in cows with UT than in cows without UT (p = 0.01). The copper: Zn ratio was significantly higher in cows with UT than in cows without torsion (p = 0.05). In contrast, serum Cobalt (Co) concentrations were significantly higher in neonates from cows with UT than in neonates from cows without UT (p = 0.01). Conclusion: Uterine torsion is associated with a high mortality rate at birth and considerable economic losses. Cows with UT had low serum Zn levels, and neonates born to these cows had high serum Co levels

Association of liver enzyme levels and alveolar bone loss : a cross-sectional clinical study in Sado Island

The interaction of periodontopathic bacteria with host immune system induces the production of inflammatory mediators which leads to alveolar bone loss (ABL), the essential feature of periodontitis. Concurrently, periodontal diseases cause the elevation of blood cytokine levels, the alteration of gut microbiota and the dissemination of enterobacteria to the liver. Owing to these mechanisms, periodontal disease might be a risk for liver dysfunction. Several epidemiological studies have reported associations between periodontal diseases and liver dysfunction, although the association between ABL and liver dysfunction has not been investigated. This cross-sectional study determined if elevated serum liver enzyme levels were associated with ABL in Japanese adults. Japanese adults living on Sado Island who visited Sado General Hospital were invited to participate in the study. Participants over 40 years of age who underwent dental panoramic radiography and blood tests were included. Drinking and smoking habits were self-administered. After excluding patients with edentulous jaw, diagnosed liver diseases, and those on dialysis, data from 44 men and 66 women with a mean age of 73 years were analyzed. The average percentage of ABL for each participant was calculated for mesial and distal sites of all remaining teeth. The levels of serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) were determined. Univariate analyses were performed to select covariates to be put in multivariate analyses. The association between elevated serum liver enzyme levels and the highest quartile of ABL were assessed by multiple logistic regression analysis. After adjusting for covariates, no significant association was found between elevated serum AST, ALT, or GGT levels as dependent variables and the highest quartile of ABL as an explanatory variable. There was no significant association between the elevation of serum liver enzyme levels and ABL in Japanese adults

The Unemployed and Unemployment in an International Perspective: Comparative Studies of Japan, France and Brazil

In each national situation, unemployment is analyzed as an interdependent chain between institutional actors and individual actors, as a combination of structural processes and subjective processes, as an intricacy composed of collective regulations and individual strategies, institutional norms and subjective worlds, codified rules and life experiences. These coherences can be considered as national configurations, rather than as models, because they are both structured and dynamic, precisely because permanent tensions are present between structural phenomena, themselves submitted to macro-social changes, and subjective phenomena, which are in their turn submitted to micro-social changes.Dans chaque situation nationale le chômage est analysé comme une chaîne d'interdépendances entre des acteurs institutionnels et des acteurs individuels, comme une combinaison de processus structurels et de processus subjectifs, comme une intrication de régulations collectives et de stratégies individuelles, de normes institutionnelles et de mondes subjectifs, de règles codifiées et d'expériences vécues. Ces cohérences peuvent être considérées comme des configurations nationales, plutôt que comme des modèles, parce qu'elles sont à la fois structurées et dynamiques, précisément parce qu'elles sont traversées et travaillées par une tension permanente entre des phénomènes structurels eux-mêmes soumis à des changements macro-sociaux et des phénomènes subjectifs eux-mêmes soumis à des changements microsociaux

Repeated-Dose Pharmacodynamics of Pimobendan in Healthy Cats

The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of repeated and multiple-dose pimobendan on cardiac systolic function and the correlations between changes in cardiac systolic function and plasma concentrations of pimobendan and O-desmethylpimobendan (ODMP). Five clinically healthy cats were subjected to four different medication protocols for 14 days, with a washout period of at least 1 month between each protocol. The protocols were pimobendan 0.5 mg/kg q12h (high dosage [HD] group); pimobendan 0.25 mg/kg q12h (standard dosage [SD] group); pimobendan 0.125 mg/kg q12h (low dosage group); and Biofermin R, one tablet q12h (placebo group). Echocardiography and measurement of plasma concentrations of pimobendan and ODMP were performed prior to medication administration (baseline) and 20, 40, 60, 120, 240, 360, and 480 min after administration, and the correlation between the changes in cardiac systolic function and plasma concentration of pimobendan, ODMP, or the sum of both were examined. The cardiac systolic function increased in the HD and SD groups, and there were significant correlations between the lateral peak systolic myocardial velocity (S′) changes and plasma pimobendan, plasma ODMP, and the sum of both. Repeated doses of pimobendan in healthy cats increased cardiac systolic function, and there were significant correlations between cardiac function and plasma concentrations of pimobendan and ODMP. The results of this study highlight the effectiveness of a higher dose of pimobendan

Characterization and phylogenetic position of two sympatric sister species of toxic flatworms Planocera multitentaculata and Planocera reticulata (Platyhelminthes: Acotylea)

The complete mitochondrial genomes of two toxic flatworm species of the genus Planocera were determined. The total length of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was 15,657 bp in Planocera multitentaculata and 15,486 bp in Planocera reticulata and included 12 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, and 4 non-coding regions. The mitochondrial gene arrangement of these planocerid species was identical to that of previously described acotylean species, Hoploplana elisabelloi, and also to those of other polyclads. Maximum likelihood analysis against 14 Platyhelminthes showed that a tree was robustly constructed using 12 protein-coding genes than COI gene

Evaluation of the genotoxicity of PM2.5 collected by a high-volume air sampler with impactor

Abstract Background The harmful effects of fine particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) on respiratory organs are emphasized in pollution studies because PM2.5 have high deposition rates in the respiratory organs and contain various hazardous compounds. In this study, a sampling method combining a high-volume air sampler (HV) with a PM2.5 impactor was developed for collecting large quantities of PM2.5. The concentrations of elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), inorganic ions, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were measured in PM2.5 collected by the high-and low-volume air samplers (LV). Results Similar results were obtained from the HV and LV methods, with respect to inorganic carbon, organic carbon, sodium ions, ammonium ions, and PAHs with more than four rings. Because of the much larger amount of PM2.5 could be collected by the HV method, the trace constituents, that were difficult to detect by the conventional LV method, were readily detected by the HV method. Furthermore, when the microsuspension method that was modified more sensitive Ames mutagenicity test, was used to test the PM2.5 samples at four sites, mutagenic activities were detected by strains TA100 and TA98. Most of the mutagenic activity was associated with the PM2.5 fraction and mutagenic activity in winter was greater than that in summer. Conclusions The HV method produced results similar to those from the conventional LV method with respect to the PM2.5 components present in the atmosphere in relatively high concentrations, but its 40-fold greater flow rate enabled the detection of mutagenic compounds present in only trace concentrations