Phenotypic and functional aspects of CD8 + T cells in atopy: from populations to cells

The prevalence of allergic diseases has been increasing during the last decades. It is believed that the development of allergic diseases in susceptible individuals is dependent on T cells, especially type 2 CD4+ T cells. CD8+ T cells may also be involved in the pathophysiology of allergic diseases, albeit studies in animal models of asthma have found confounding results. With our study we attempted to clarify the phenotypic and functional properties of CD8+ T cells in allergic disease settings. The specific aims were to assess allergen-specific proliferation and cytokine synthesis of CD8+ T cells and evaluate their suppressor function on antigen-specific responses. In addition, it was also our goal to assess the presence of CD8+ T cells at the target organ and their activation status, correlating our findings with disease severity and control. In order to contextualize our cellular findings, we initially characterised our study population from an epidemiological point of view. We enrolled asthma and rhinitis patients attending the Allergy Clinic of the Cova da Beira Hospital. Asthma and rhinitis were diagnosed by a positive clinical history and specific diagnostic tests, and severity was assessed by current guidelines. We also identified the main co-morbidities in both disease settings and evaluated asthma symptoms in rhinitis patients and rhinitis symptoms in asthma patients. In the allergic groups we investigated the sensitisation profiles to aeroallergens and concluded that major allergens included grass and cereal pollen, mites and olive tree pollen. Sensitisation profiles and severity were also compared between rural and urban-based allergic patients. In this regard, we found contrasting results between asthmatic patients and patients with rhinitis. In the second part of our study we clarified the role of CD8+ T cells in allergic inflammation through basic cellular systems. We assessed proliferation capacity and cytokine synthesis in response to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus extract, and devised a co-culture system in order to evaluate the suppressor function of CD8+ T cells. CD8+CD28+ and CD28− T cells isolated from the peripheral blood had distinct phenotypes and proliferated at different levels to common stimuli, although sharing similar cytokine production patterns. A potential suppressor activity was not found in the co-culture systems, either for CD8+CD28+ or CD28− T cells. We then studied CD8+ T cells at the target-organ, assessing activation phenotype in cells from the induced sputum of asthmatic patients. We showed that CD8+ T cells are activated at the target-organ, although we were unable to demonstrate a relationship between activation of this T cell subset and severity or control of asthma.A prevalência das doenças alérgicas tem vindo a aumentar nas últimas décadas, especialmente nos países industrializados. Estas doenças surgem em indivíduos geneticamente predispostos, sob influência de factores ambientais. A “hipótese higiénica” procurou explicar este aumento de prevalência, relacionando-o com uma diminuição do contacto com microrganismos e do número de infecções, características do modo de vida ocidental. Inicialmente, pensou-se que a redução do contacto com microrganismos impedia o desvio imune de respostas do tipo T auxiliar 2 (“T helper 2” ou Th2) para respostas do tipo Th1, que ocorre geralmente com a idade (de acordo com o paradigma Th1/Th2). A inflamação, que ocorre particularmente ao nível das vias aéreas na asma e na rinite seria resultado de uma perda de equilíbrio entre respostas do tipo Th1, importantes nos mecanismos de defesa intracelular e respostas do tipo Th2, que caracterizam a inflamação alérgica. No entanto, estudos epidemiológicos posteriores puseram esta interpretação em causa. Foi então sugerido que, por diminuição da actividade reguladora/supressora dos linfócitos T, ocorre não um desvio imune, mas sim um desenvolvimento de respostas inadequadas face a estímulos antigénicos, resultando quer em doenças alérgicas quer em doenças auto-imunes. A atopia consiste numa predisposição genética para produzir anticorpos IgE contra antigénios ambientais comuns (alergénios) e correlaciona-se com o desenvolvimento de uma ou mais doenças alérgicas. Estas caracterizam-se pela infiltração ao nível do órgão-alvo de células inflamatórias activadas, das quais se destacam os eosinófilos, os mastócitos e os linfócitos T

“Here I Sit in this Dismal Crypt”: Insider Interpretations of the Canadian Carceral Necropolis

This paper draws from the art produced in the Cell Count archive, a quarterly bulletin that the Prisoners’ Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) Support Action Network distributes to persons incarcerated in Canadian prisons. The authors use necropolitical theory to undertake a content analysis of prisoner art to gain insights into how carceral life affects the incarcerated. Specifically, prisoners convey prisons as death-worlds. The mass incarceration practices, which are a mechanism of settler colonialism and white supremacy, strip populations down to bare life. First, prisoners depict their carceral experience as a kind of slow, protracted process of dying. Second, they describe themselves using imagery of the dead. Third, they explore notions of escape or release through an angelic or spiritual afterlife

Information sharing performance management: a semantic interoperability assessment in the maritime surveillance domain

Information Sharing (IS) is essential for organizations to obtain information in a cost-effective way. If the existing information is not shared among the organizations that hold it, the alternative is to develop the necessary capabilities to acquire, store, process and manage it, which will lead to duplicated costs, especially unwanted if governmental organizations are concerned. The European Commission has elected IS among public administrations as a priority, has launched several IS initiatives, such as the EUCISE2020 project within the roadmap for developing the maritime Common Information Sharing Environment (CISE), and has defined the levels of interoperability essential for IS, which entail Semantic Interoperability (SI). An open question is how can IS performance be managed? Specifically, how can IS as-is, and to-be states and targets be defined, and how can organizations progress be monitored and controlled? In this paper, we propose 11 indicators for assessing SI that contribute to answering these questions. They have been demonstrated and evaluated with the data collected through a questionnaire, based on the CISE information model proposed during the CoopP project, which was answered by five public authorities that require maritime surveillance information and are committed to share information with each other.Postprint (published version

Choice-Makers and Risk-Takers in Neo-Liberal Liquid Modernity: The Contradiction of the “Entrepreneurial” Sex Worker

The transformation from a welfare-based to a neo-liberal society, from a solid to liquid (post) modernity, has reconfigured the social category of the individual into one that is highly individualized, fragmented, commercialized and entangled in consumer culture. In this society individuals are conceptualized as being rational choice-makers and entrepreneurs – sifting through the multiple options available in order to appropriate the identity(ies)/role that will maximize benefits and minimize harms. Some identities, however, are still solid, unable to escape stigmatization and exclusion. Using the image of ‘the sex worker’, this paper aims to deconstruct this contradiction questioning why, under a socio-political system that values individuals who become entrepreneurs and take advantage of consumerism in a manner which maximizes financial benefits and minimizes risks, have sex workers not been redefined in this context? Rather, extending from Bauman’s (2007a) characterization of consumerism’s collateral casualties, they have come to be seen as ‘inconspicuous’ non-consumers

Governing female sexuality: Prostitution, problematic associations and the subcommittee on solicitation laws.

Fuelled by the murder and disappearance of sex workers in British Columbia, the Subcommittee on Solicitation Laws (SSLR) was enacted to review current solicitation laws and recommend changes to ensure the safety of sex workers and the communities in which they work. Discourses of prostitution used by the SSLR were analyzed using governmentality literature (Rose, 1999) and Fairclough\u27s (1992) social theory of discourse, to determine their continuity and variability from existing prostitution discourses, as well as their embodiment within the problematic of female sexuality. Although prostitution is not illegal in Canada, associations with crime, violence and public nuisance, serve to problematize prostitution and render it governable. It was found that discourses of prostitution used by the SSLR were similar to those of the previous Canadian governmental committees. This analysis also documents the shift from the problematization of prostitution (protectionist rationalities) to the problematization of the governance of prostitution (neo-liberal rationalities).Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2006 .M37. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-01, page: 0161. Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2006

Criterion related validity of the short form of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire in adults who are blind

This study examined the criterion validity and measurement bias of the IPAQ-S in adults who are blind using accelerometry as an objective measure of physical activity. Sixty-seven adults who were legally blind participated. The agreement between the ActiGraph and IPAQ-S for the time spent in moderate or vigorous physical activity and in sedentary behavior was examined by a Bland–Altman analysis, in which the differences between the ActiGraph and IPAQ-S were plotted against the means of both. We conclude that the IPAQ-S has acceptable criterion validity for use with young and middle-aged adults who are blind. However, there is limited agreement on physical activity and sedentary behavior measured with the accelerometer and IPAQ-S. The specificity of IPAQ-S to classify correctly people who achieved current physical activity guidelines was low, whereas the sensitivity was acceptable

Níveis de atividade física da população adulta cega da cidade de Lisboa

Objetivo. O objetivo principal deste estudo foi caracterizar e comparar os níveis de atividade física (AF) de adultos cegos. Método. Participaram 67 indivíduos (18 aos 65 anos) de ambos os géneros. Os dados foram recolhidos através de acelerometria onde foi estabelecido que cada participante tinha de usar pelo menos 600 minutos diários o aparelho durante pelo menos 3 dias (um dos quais de fim de semana). Para a recolha dos dados de aptidão física selecionaram-se alguns testes da bateria de Fullerton, o Functional Reach Test e um teste de força manual. Resultados. Cerca de 70% dos participantes não cumpriram com as recomendações de 30 minutos por dia de AF moderada a vigorosa na maior parte dos dias da semana. Não existem diferenças significativas na AF entre géneros, escalões etários, IMC e cegueira congénita ou adquirida. Existem poucas associações entre as variáveis de AF e as de aptidão física. Os homens têm melhores resultados na maior parte dos testes de aptidão física (excetua-se a flexibilidade em que as mulheres têm melhores resultados). Conclusões. O nível de AF dos adultos cegos é insuficiente. É necessário implementar estratégias adaptadas às condições das pessoas cegas para que os níveis de AF possam ser melhorados; ABSTRACT: Objective. The main objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the levels of physical activity (AF) of blind adults. Method. 67 individuals participated (18 to 65 years) of both genders. The data were collected through accelerometer where it was established that each participant would have to use at least 600 minutes a day the unit for at least 3 days (one day during weekend).For the data collection of physical fitness were selected a few battery tests of Fullerton, the Functional Reach Test and a test of strength. Results. About 70% of the participants failed to comply with the recommendations of 30 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous AF in most days of the week. There is no significant difference in gender AF, age, BMI and blindness, congenital or acquired. There are few associations between the variables of AF and physical fitness. Men have better results in most of the physical fitness tests (except the flexibility in which women have better results). Conclusions. It is necessary to implement strategies adapted to conditions of blind people so that level of AF can be improved

La intervención humor en la interacción enfermero-paciente

Objective: To describe the factors influencing the use of humor in nursing care, its applicability and benefits. Method: A scoping review was performed using the Arksey and O’Mally methodology. A search for articles published between 2008 and 2018 was performed using the platforms EBSCO Host, Virtual Health Library and Google Scholar. Results: From the initial 465 articles found, 17 were included for final revision. Data allowed to retrieve information on humor definition; its applicability as a nursing intervention; humor as a tool to improve nurse-patient communication and relationship; influence factors; type of humor interventions; humor benefits in health care context and; limitations and precautions of humor intervention. Conclusion: The use of humor promotes both communication and human interaction; it promotes well-being; helps deal/cope with difficult and unpleasant situations, reduces tension, discomfort and stress; and strengthens the immune system. This intervention should be used with caution

Improving the Mechanical Strength of Ductile Cast Iron Welded Joints Using Different Heat Treatments

The main advantage of welding cast iron is to recover parts by repairing defects induced by casting processes (porosities, etc.), before they enter their working cycle, as well as repair cracks or fractures when already in service. This method contributes to decreased foundry industrial waste and avoids the additional energy costs of their immediate recycling. Therefore, it is necessary to have a welded joint with similar or better characteristics than the parent material. The major problem of welding cast iron is that this material has a very high content of carbon in comparison to steel (≈3%). Therefore, when it is heated by the very high temperatures from arc welding and during its process of solidification, very hard and brittle phases originate, known as ledeburite and martensite, and appear in the partially melted zone and in the heat-affected zone. Eventually, this problem can be solved by implementing heat treatments such as preheat or post weld heat treatments under specific parameters. Therefore, in this study, the aim is to collect data about the effects of heat treatments performed at different temperatures on welded joints of high strength ductile cast iron (SiboDur® 450), and to evaluate the effects of heat treatments performed at diverse temperatures on welded joints of this type of material, using Shield Metal Arc Welding and nickel electrodes. Mechanical strength, hardness, and microstructure were analyzed, showing that the best mechanical strength in the joint (380 MPa) was obtained using two passes of E C Ni-Cl (ISO EN 1071:2015) filler metal and post weld heat treatments (PWHT) of 400 °C for two hours.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

CONEXIONES AFRO-ATLÁNTICAS: Rituales de vida y muerte en Brasil y Cuba

O presente artigo tem como objetivo principal buscar as conexões entre duas práticas religiosas de comunidades que proceden de zonas rurais e formadas por uma população maioritariamente negra. Neste estudio pretendemos aproximarmos aos diferentes rituais de vida e morte que se desenvolvem no Culto de São Sebastião (no Centro-Oeste brasileiro) e o Espiritismo de Cordón (na região oriental de Cuba) que podem ser explicados pela dinâmica das relações transculturais e o entrecruzamento cultural em ambos lugares.Palavras chave: Culto de São Sebastião, Espiritismo de Cordón, transculturação, entrecruzamento cultural.ResumenEl presente artículo tiene como objetivo principal buscar las conexiones entre dos práticas religiosas de comunidades que proceden de zonas rurales y formadas por una población mayoritariamente negra. En este estudio pretendemos acercarnos a los diferentes rituales de vida y muerte que se desarrollan en el Culto de São Sebastião (en el Centro-Oeste brasileño) y el Espiritismo de Cordón (en la región oriental de Cuba) que pueden ser explicados por la dinámica de las relaciones transculturales o entrecruzamiento cultural en ambos lugares.Palabras claves: Culto de São Sebastião, Espiritismo de Cordón, transculturación, entrecruzamento cultural.AFRO-ATLANTIC CONNECTIONS: Rituals of life and death in Brazil and CubaAbstractThe main objective of this article is to identify links between two religious practices among rural communities whose populations are predominantly black. This study examines the different rituals of life and death that take place in the Cult of São Sebastião (in the Brazilian midwest) and the Espiritismo de Cordón (in the eastern region of Cuba) and how they can be explained by the dynamics of cross-cultural relations or transculturation in both places.Key words: Cult of São Sebastião, Espiritismo del Cordón, transculturation, cultural interlinking