Doble negació dins l'oració simple en català

En aquest treball estudiem una construcció del català que es caracteritza per codificar lingüísticament la lectura de doble negació dins l'oració simple. Aquesta construcció conté un adverbi negatiu oracional i un mot indefinit en posició de complement d'una preposició que fa d'adjunt oracional. La hipòtesi que defensem és que els mots del tipus exemplificat per res es poden comportar com a termes d'elecció lliure o com a mots-n perquè indueixen una ampliació de domini, ja sigui a dominis amplis (en entorns no negatius) o a dominis mínims (en entorns negatius). Formalment, postulem que aquests mots estan codificats amb un tret morfosintàctic que s'ha de comprovar en un operador que també codifiqui aquest mateix tipus de propietat.Quan res es troba dins un SP adjunt, aquesta estructura afavoreix que el domini en què es comprova el tret en qüestió sigui el seu especificador sintàctic: [[ Neg - s ] res[+s]]. Si, a més, a l'oració hi ha un segon operador Neg de forma indefectible es determina doble negació.In this piece of research we examine a structure that linguistically encodes a double negation reading in simple sentences in Catalan. This structure contains a sentential negative adverb and an indefinite which is the complement of a preposition that functions as an adjunct. We claim that words like res can behave as free choice items or as n-words because they cause domain expansion, both in broad domains (in a non-negative context) and in minimal domains (in negative contexts). Formally, we argue that these words bear a morphosyntactic feature that has to be checked by an operator endowed with a feature of the same kind. When res is in an adjoined prepositional phrase, the structure favours the checking of this feature in its Specifier: [[ Neg - s ] res[+s]]. If, in addition, there is a second Neg operator in the sentence, double negation necessarily obtains

A new approach to Negative Concord : Catalan as a case in point

Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UABPublished online: 25 August 2023In this paper, we revisit the phenomenon of Negative Concord focusing on the Strict vs. Non-Strict divide. With Catalan as a case in point, we show that Negative Concord Items (NCIs) are not negative quantifiers (NQs) or polarity items (PIs) but inherently negative indefinites by virtue of carrying a negative feature [neg] that contributes a negative semantics to the proposition and is subject to a syntax-phonology constraint that forces it to overtly c-command Tense in compliance with Jespersen's NegFirst principle. We argue that to satisfy such constraint, [neg] can disembody from the NCI via overt Move F(eature) to adjoin at a pre-Infl(ection) position and be Spelled-Out homophonous to the negative marker. The Strict vs. Non-Strict contrast follows from whether [neg] always moves independently from the rest of the NCI via Move F (Strict Negative Concord) or predates, whenever possible, on another movement of the NCI that places [neg] in the required pre-Infl position (Non-Strict Negative Concord) thus not having to disembody

Editorial : What Are (Un)Acceptability and (Un)Grammaticality? How Do They Relate to One Another and to Interpretation?

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How speakers interpret the negative markers no and no … pas in Catalan

This paper reports the results of an experimental investigation designed to test the interpretation of the optional doubling of the negative markers no and pas in Expletive Negation (EN) contexts and in preverbal Negative Concord Items (NCI) contexts in Catalan. We show that in EN contexts a negative interpretation of no is preferred to anexpletive one, with non-negative readings being less widespread than expected from what is described in traditional grammars. In NCI contexts the overt presence of no basically contributes to a single negation interpretation, thus confirming the status of Catalan as aNegative Concord language. We also show that, in the absence of discourse environments, pas in both EN and NCI contexts shows a variable interpretation, a characteristic of negative polarity items. Our results indicate that pas does not increase the amount of negative interpretation of no in EN contexts, or of Double Negation in NCI contexts, but is an item dependent on the interpretation of no. We conclude that the strengthening role of Catalan pas (at stage two of Jespersen's cycle), while associated with the expression of metalinguistic negation, does not reverse the truth or falsity of a proposition

On the status of NCIs : An experimental investigation on so-called Strict NC languages

Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UABPublished online by Cambridge University Press: 25 August 2023. First ViewThis paper investigates the status of Negative Concord Items (NCIs) in three so-called Strict Negative Concord (NC) languages (namely, Greek, Romanian, and Russian). An experimental study was designed to gather evidence concerning the speakers' acceptability and interpretation of sequences with argumental NCIs in subject, object, and both positions when dhen/nu/ne were not present. Our results show that NCIs are negative indefinites whose presence in a clausal domain is enough to assign a single negation reading to the whole sequence, thus arguing in support of the hypothesis that in NC structures the minimal semantic requirement to convey single negation is that one or more NCIs encoding a negative feature appear within a sentential domain. We argue that in these structures dhen/nu/ne are the instantiations of a negative feature [neg] disembodied from an indefinite negative NCI in order to obey a syntax-phonology interface constraint

Molecular characterization of resistance to Rifampicin in an emerging hospital-associated Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clone ST228, Spain

Background: Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) has been endemic in Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, Barcelona, since 1990. During the 1990-95 period the Iberian clone (ST-247; SCCmec-I) was dominant. Isolates of clonal complex 5 (ST-125; SCCmec-IV) gradually replaced the Iberian clone from 1996 to 2003. A new multiresistant MRSA phenotype showing rifampicin resistance emerged in 2004 and rapidly increased from 25% in 2004 to 45% in 2006. The aims of this study were i) the molecular characterisation of rifampicin resistant MRSA isolates, ii) the study of the rifampicin resistance expression by disk diffusion, microdilution and E-test, and iii) the analysis of the rpoB gene mutations involved in rifampicin resistance. Results: A sample of representative 108 rifampicin-resistant MRSA isolates belonged to a single PFGE genotype, ST-228, SCCmec type I and spa type t041. Of 108 isolates, 104 (96%) had a low-level rifampicin resistance (MICs, 2 to 4 mg/L) and 4 a high-level rifampicin resistance (MICs, 128 - ≥ 256 mg/L). Disk diffusion and E-test methods failed to identify a low-level rifampicin resistance in 20 and 12 isolates, respectively. A low-level rifampicin resistance was associated with amino acid substitution 481His/Asn in the beta-subunit of RNA polymerase. Isolates with a high-level rifampicin resistance carried additional mutations in the rpoB gene. Conclusions: The emergence of MRSA clone ST228-SCCmec I, related to the Southern Germany clone, involved a therapeutical challenge for treating serious MRSA infections. Decreased susceptibility to rifampicin in MRSA strains of ST228-SCCmecI was associated with one or two specific mutations in the rpoB gene. One fifth of isolates with low-level rifampicin-resistance were missed by the diffusion methods

SVA: Shape variation analyzer

Temporo-mandibular osteo arthritis (TMJ OA) is characterized by progressive cartilage degradation and subchondral bone remodeling. The causes of this pathology remain unclear. Current research efforts are concentrated in finding new biomarkers that will help us understand disease progression and ultimately improve the treatment of the disease. In this work, we present Shape Variation Analyzer (SVA), the goal is to develop a noninvasive technique to provide information about shape changes in TMJ OA. SVA uses neural networks to classify morphological variations of 3D models of the mandibular condyle. The shape features used for training include normal vectors, curvature and distances to average models of the condyles. The selected features are purely geometric and are shown to favor the classification task into 6 groups generated by consensus between two clinician experts. With this new approach, we were able to accurately classify 3D models of condyles. In this paper, we present the methods used and the results obtained with this new tool

Experimental study of cerebrospinal fluid tumor necrosis factor-alpha release in penicillin- and cephalosporin-resistant pneumococcal meningitis treated with different antibiotic schedules

Background/Purpose: To measure the inflammatory response in terms of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), using bacteriolytic versus nonbacteriolytic antibiotic therapy and adjunctive treatment with dexamethasone in an experimental rabbit model of pneumococcal meningitis. Methods: In a rabbit model of pneumococcal meningitis, we tested CSF TNF-α levels in several samples from rabbits infected with the HUB 2349 strain and treated with ceftriaxone 100 mg/kg/d, ceftriaxone plus vancomycin 30 mg/kg/d, or daptomycin at 15 mg/kg or 25 mg/kg. Daptomycin schedules were compared with the same doses in combination with dexamethasone at 0.125 mg/kg every 12 hours over a 26-hour period. Results: The ceftriaxone group had the highest levels of TNF-α. TNF-α levels were significantly higher after ceftriaxone administration than in both daptomycin groups. The high-dose daptomycin group presented the lowest inflammatory levels in CSF samples. Adjunctive treatment with dexamethasone in this group modulated the inflammatory response, bringing down CSF TNF-α levels. Conclusion: CSF TNF-α levels were significantly lower in rabbits treated with daptomycin than in rabbits treated with ceftriaxone. Daptomycin avoided the inflammatory peak after administration observed in ceftriaxone-treated rabbits. The use of daptomycin plus dexamethasone achieved a significantly larger reduction in CSF TNF-α levels

Clonal spread of Klebsiella pneumoniae producing OXA-1 betalactamase in a Spanish hospital

Multi-drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates are associated with nosocomial infections, in which colonized patients act as a reservoir and source of cross-infection for other patients. In this study, the antimicrobial susceptibility of K. pneumoniae was tested by microdilution using the commercial method MicroScan (Siemens). The genetic relatedness of K. pneumoniae strains was determined by pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and multilocus sequence typing (MLST). PCR experiments were carried out to obtain primer sets and positive PCR products were purified and sequenced. From May 2007 until December 2009, 98 clonally related K. pneumoniae isolates were detected from clinical samples of 38 patients admitted to the University Hospital of Bellvitge, Barcelona, Spain, including 27 admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). The most important sources of the isolates were: lower respiratory tract (n = 12), urine (n = 12), and blood (n = 11). The strains were resistant to amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, piperacillin/tazobactam, tobramycin, amikacin, and ciprofloxacin, and had diminished susceptibility to cefepime. All the isolates shared a common PFGE pattern related to sequence type 14 after MLST analysis. In K. pneumoniae isolates and their transconjugants, the blaOXA-1 gene was located in the variable region of a class I integron that also contains the aac(6′)Ib-cr gene. Sequencing of the quinolone resistance determinant regions of gyrA and parC revealed a S83F change in GyrA and no changes in ParC. [Int Microbiol 2013; 16(4):227-233]Keywords: Klebsiella pneumoniae · sequence type ST14 · gene blaOXA-1 · integrons · nosocomial outbreak

Low prevalence of Cfr-mediated linezolid resistance among methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in a Spanish hospital: case report on linezolid resistance acquired during linezolid therapy

Linezolid is an effective antimicrobial agent to treat methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Resistance to linezolid due to the cfr gene is described worldwide. The present study aimed to analyze the prevalence of the cfr-mediated linezolid resistance among MRSA clinical isolates in our area. A very low prevalence of cfr mediated linezolid resistance was found: only one bacteremic isolate out of 2 215 screened isolates. The only linezolid resistant isolate arose in a patient, previously colonized by MRSA, following linezolid therapy. Despite the low rate of resistance in our area, ongoing surveillance is advisable to avoid the spread of linezolid resistance