Fitting Parton Distribution Data with Multiplicative Normalization Uncertainties

We consider the generic problem of performing a global fit to many independent data sets each with a different overall multiplicative normalization uncertainty. We show that the methods in common use to treat multiplicative uncertainties lead to systematic biases. We develop a method which is unbiased, based on a self--consistent iterative procedure. We demonstrate the use of this method by applying it to the determination of parton distribution functions with the NNPDF methodology, which uses a Monte Carlo method for uncertainty estimation.Comment: 33 pages, 5 figures: published versio

Anatomy of a wrong diagnosis: false Sinus Venosus Atrial Septal Defect

In contrast with transthoracic echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography provides a sure way to make the diagnosis of sinus venosus atrial septal defect; on the other hand this abnormality is more complex than that seen with the secundum atrial septal defect, and inexperienced operators may fail to recognize properly the defect. In front of a high reported sensitivity using transesophageal echocardiography, specificity is difficult to assess, due to possible underreporting of diagnostic errors. We describe a false positive diagnosis of sinus venosus atrial septal defect, in the setting of enlarged right chambers of the heart because of pressure overload. Modified anatomy of the heart, together with the presence of a prominent linear structure(probably Eustachian Valve) and an incomplete examination in this case made image interpretation very prone to misinterpretation. In this anatomical setting transesophageal longitudinal "bicaval" view may be sub-optimal for examining the atrial septum, potentially showing false images that need to be known for correct image interpretation. Nonetheless, a scan plane taken more accurately at the superior level would have demonstrated/excluded the pathognomonic feature of sinus venosus atrial septal defect in the high atrial septum, between the fatty limbus and the inferior aspect of the right pulmonary artery; moreover TEE allows morphological information about the posterior structures of the heart that need to be investigated in detail for a complete diagnosis

Unraveling Depressive Symptomatology and Risk Factors in a Changing World

Funding Information: The present publication was funded by the Fundação Ciência e Tecnologia, IP national support, through CHRC (UIDP/04923/2020). Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.Background: This study aimed to examine the prevalence and factors associated with symptoms of depression during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A representative sample of Portuguese adults was included in this populational survey, conducted between 25 March and 31 July 2021, with participants completing a structured questionnaire via phone interview. The symptoms of depression were measured using the Portuguese version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to examine the association between sociodemographic, health, and lifestyle factors and depression levels (normal, mild, or moderate/severe). Results: The estimated prevalence of depression symptoms among participants was 24%. Participants who were women, were in older age groups, had multimorbidity, lived in isolated Portuguese regions such as islands and Alentejo, and were retired or unemployed more frequently reported depression symptoms. Economic hardship was also found to be associated with an increased frequency of mild or moderate-to-severe depression. In contrast, higher levels of education, regular alcohol intake, and regular exercise were associated with a lower frequency of depression symptoms. Conclusions: These findings highlight that during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, a high proportion of Portuguese adults reported depression symptoms, particularly the COVID-19-vulnerable strata such seniors, patients with multimorbidity, and people in economic hardship. On the other hand, citizens who performed regular physical exercise reported lower depressive symptomology. Our work contributes to improving the planning of mental health promotion after the COVID-19 pandemic and future emergencies.publishersversionpublishe

Identification and characterization of the intracellular poly-3-hydroxybutyrate depolymerase enzyme PhaZ of Sinorhizobium meliloti

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>S. meliloti </it>forms indeterminate nodules on the roots of its host plant alfalfa (<it>Medicago sativa</it>). Bacteroids of indeterminate nodules are terminally differentiated and, unlike their non-terminally differentiated counterparts in determinate nodules, do not accumulate large quantities of Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) during symbiosis. PhaZ is in intracellular PHB depolymerase; it represents the first enzyme in the degradative arm of the PHB cycle in <it>S. meliloti </it>and is the only enzyme in this half of the PHB cycle that remains uncharacterized.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The <it>S. meliloti phaZ </it>gene was identified by <it>in silico </it>analysis, the ORF was cloned, and a <it>S. meliloti phaZ </it>mutant was constructed. This mutant exhibited increased PHB accumulation during free-living growth, even when grown under non-PHB-inducing conditions. The <it>phaZ </it>mutant demonstrated no reduction in symbiotic capacity; interestingly, analysis of the bacteroids showed that this mutant also accumulated PHB during symbiosis. This mutant also exhibited a decreased capacity to tolerate long-term carbon starvation, comparable to that of other PHB cycle mutants. In contrast to other PHB cycle mutants, the <it>S. meliloti phaZ </it>mutant did not exhibit any decrease in rhizosphere competitiveness; however, this mutant did exhibit a significant increase in succinoglycan biosynthesis.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p><it>S. meliloti </it>bacteroids retain the capacity to synthesize PHB during symbiosis; interestingly, accumulation does not occur at the expense of symbiotic performance. <it>phaZ </it>mutants are not compromised in their capacity to compete for nodulation in the rhizosphere, perhaps due to increased succinoglycan production resulting from upregulation of the succinoglycan biosynthetic pathway. The reduced survival capacity of free-living cells unable to access their accumulated stores of PHB suggests that PHB is a crucial metabolite under adverse conditions.</p

Vitamin A deficiency and inflammatory markers among preschool children in the Republic of the Marshall Islands

BACKGROUND: The exclusion of individuals with elevated acute phase proteins has been advocated in order to improve prevalence estimates of vitamin A deficiency in surveys, but it is unclear whether this will lead to sampling bias. The purpose of the study was to determine whether the exclusion of individuals with elevated acute phase proteins is associated with sampling bias and to characterize inflammation in children with night blindness. METHODS: In a survey in the Republic of the Marshall Islands involving 281 children, aged 1–5 years, serum retinol, C-reactive protein (CRP), and α(1)-acid glycoprotein (AGP) were measured. RESULTS: Of 281 children, 24 (8.5%) had night blindness and 165 (58.7%) had serum retinol <0.70 μmol/L. Of 248 children with AGP and CRP measurements, 123 (49.6%) had elevated acute phase proteins (CRP >5 mg/L and/or AGP >1000 mg/L). Among children with and without night blindness, the proportion with serum retinol <0.70 μmol/L was 79.2% and 56.8% (P = 0.03) and with anemia was 58.3% and 35.7% (P = 0.029), respectively. The proportion of children with serum retinol <0.70 μmol/L was 52.0% after excluding children with elevated acute phase proteins. Among children with and without elevated acute phase proteins, mean age was 2.8 vs 3.2 years (P = 0.016), the proportion of boys was 43.1% vs. 54.3% (P = 0.075), with no hospitalizations in the last year was 11.0% vs 23.6% (P = 0.024), and with anemia was 43.8% vs 31.7% (P = 0.05), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Exclusion of children with inflammation in this survey of vitamin A deficiency does not improve prevalence estimates for vitamin A deficiency and instead leads to sampling bias for variables such as age, gender, anemia, and hospitalization history

The gender perspective in climate change and global health. Global Health Action

This is a published version of a paper published in Global health action. Citation for the published paper: Preet, R., Nilsson, M., Schumann, B., Evengård, B

Economic impact of treatment for surgical site infections in cases of total knee arthroplasty in a tertiary public hospital in Brazil

The aim of this study was to estimate the additional cost of treatment of a group of nosocomial infections in a tertiary public hospital. A retrospective observational cohort study was conducted by means of analyzing the medical records of 34 patients with infection after total knee arthroplasty, diagnosed in 2006 and 2007, who met the criteria for nosocomial infection according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. To estimate the direct costs of treatment for these patients, the following data were gathered: length of hospital stay, laboratory tests, imaging examinations, and surgical procedures performed. Their costs were estimated from the minimum values according to the Brazilian Medical Association. The estimated cost of the antibiotics used was also obtained. The total length of stay in the ward was 976 days, at a cost of US$18,994.63, and, in the intensive care unit, it was 34 days at a cost of US$ 5,031.37. Forty-two debridement procedures were performed, at a cost of US$5,798.06, and 1965 tests (laboratory and imaging) were also performed, at a cost of US$ 15,359.25. US$20,845.01 was spent on antibiotics and US$ 1,735.16 on vacuum assisted closure therapy, microsurgical flaps, implant removal, spacer use, and surgical revision. The total additional cost of these cases of hospital infection in 2006 and 2007 was of US$ 91,843.75. Based on that, we demonstrate that the high cost of treatment for hospital infections emphasizes the importance of taking measures to prevent and control hospital infection

Iron Status and Analysis of Efficacy and Safety of Ferric Carboxymaltose Treatment in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Background and Aims:We analyzed iron deficiency and the therapeutic response following intravenous ferric carboxymaltose in a large single-center inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) cohort. Methods: 250 IBD patients were retrospectively analyzed for iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia. A subgroup was analyzed regarding efficacy and side effects of iron supplementation with ferric carboxymaltose. Results: In the cohort (n = 250), 54.4% of the patients had serum iron levels 60 mu g/dl, 61.6% had ferritin >100 ng/ml, and 90.7% reached Hb >12/13 g/dl at follow-up (p < 0.0001 for all parameters vs. pretreatment values). The most frequent adverse event was a transient increase of liver enzymes with male gender as risk factor (p = 0.008, OR 8.62, 95% CI 1.74-41.66). Conclusions: Iron deficiency and anemia are frequent in IBD patients. Treatment with ferric carboxymaltose is efficious, safe and well tolerated in iron-deficient IBD patients. Copyright (C) 2011 S. Karger AG, Base

IL-4-secreting CD4+ T cells are crucial to the development of CD8+ T-cell responses against malaria liver stages.

CD4+ T cells are crucial to the development of CD8+ T cell responses against hepatocytes infected with malaria parasites. In the absence of CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells initiate a seemingly normal differentiation and proliferation during the first few days after immunization. However, this response fails to develop further and is reduced by more than 90%, compared to that observed in the presence of CD4+ T cells. We report here that interleukin-4 (IL-4) secreted by CD4+ T cells is essential to the full development of this CD8+ T cell response. This is the first demonstration that IL-4 is a mediator of CD4/CD8 cross-talk leading to the development of immunity against an infectious pathogen