Trauma-related psychological disorders among Palestinian children and adults in Gaza and West Bank, 2005-2008

BACKGROUND: Trauma from war and violence has led to psychological disorders in individuals living in the Gaza strip and West Bank. Few reports are available on the psychiatric disorders seen in children and adolescents or the treatment of affected populations. This study was conducted in order to describe the occurrence and treatment of psychiatric disorders in the Palestinian populations of the Gaza strip and Nablus district in the West Bank. METHODS: From 2005 to 2008, 1369 patients aged more than 1 year were identified through a local mental health and counseling health network. All were clinically assessed using a semi-structured interview based on the DSM-IV-TR criteria. RESULTS: Among 1254 patients, 23.2% reported post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD], 17.3% anxiety disorder (other than PTSD or acute stress disorder), and 15.3% depression. PTSD was more frequently identified in children < or = 15 years old, while depression was the main symptom observed in adults. Among children < or = 15 years old, factors significantly associated with PTSD included being witness to murder or physical abuse, receiving threats, and property destruction or loss (p < 0.03). Psychological care, primarily in the form of individual, short-term psychotherapy, was provided to 65.1% of patients, with about 30.6% required psychotropic medication. Duration of therapy sessions was higher for children < or = 15 years old compared with adults (p = 0.05). Following psychotherapy, 79.0% had improved symptoms, and this improvement was significantly higher in children < or = 15 years old (82.8%) compared with adults (75.3%; p = 0.001). CONCLUSION: These observations suggest that short-term psychotherapy could be an effective treatment for specific psychiatric disorders occurring in vulnerable populations, including children, living in violent conflict zones, such as in Gaza strip and the West Bank

Dermanyssus gallinae in layer farms in Kosovo: a high risk for salmonella prevalence

Background The poultry red mite (PRM), Dermanyssus gallinae (D.g.) is a serious ectoparasitic pest of poultry and potential pathogen vector. The prevalence of D. g. and the prevalence of Salmonella spp. within mites on infested laying poultry farms were investigated in Kosovo. Findings In total, 14 populated layer farms located in the Southern Kosovo were assessed for D. g. presence. Another two farms in this region were investigated 6 months after depopulation. Investigated flocks were all maintained in cages, a common housing system in Kosovo. A total of eight farms were found to be infested with D. g. (50%) at varying levels, including the two depopulated farms. The detection of Salmonella spp. from D. g. was carried out using PCR. Out of the eight layer farms infested with D. g., Salmonella spp. was present in mites on three farms (37.5%). Conclusions This study confirms the high prevalence of D. g. in layer flocks in Kosovo and demonstrates the link between this mite and the presence of Salmonella spp. on infested farms

Association of Plasmid Bearing Multi Drug Resistant Bacteria with High Mortalities in Nigerian Poultry

Bacteriological investigations were carried out on reported cases of low and high mortalities in commercial poultry in the year 2007-2009 in commercial flocks of breeders, layers, broilers, chicks and growers. Pure bacterial isolates obtained from dead birds, mainly Gram negative,  were tested for their biochemical and antibiotic susceptibility profiles using Microscan® Dried Gram-negative Breakpoint Combo Pannels. The microscan panel analysis bacterial isolates for 24 biochemical tests and up to 25 antimicrobial agents following 16-20 hours of incubation at 35-37oC. Bacteria isolated were Escherichia coli, Salmonella Enteritidis, Salmonella Pullorum, Salmonella Gallinarum, Citrobacter youngae, Klebsiella ozaneae, Klebsiella variicola, Enterobacter cloaceae, Hafnia alvei, Pasteurella gallinarum and Pasteurella multocida. The bacterial isolates showed resistance to 6-23 of the 25 antibiotics tested. Tetracycline and ampicilllin were found as the least potent drugs, with 90 and 90.91% resistance respectively. Resistance was obtained against antibacterial agents that are not in use in Nigerian poultry industry, such as the cephalosporins, carbapenems, piperacillin, tircacillin, amikacin, tobramcycin and levofloxacin suggesting possible genetic contribution to resistance. Thirty-four (85%) of the 40 pathogenic bacteria isolates treated for plasmid profile were found to be carrying plasmids. Plasmid DNA size 11.50 kbp was commonly observed (about 65%) among all the plasmid borne mdr bacteria, plasmid DNA size 10kbp (incidence of about 22% in plasmid borne bacteria) as well as a 26.3 kbp plasmid DNA and a 6.6 kbp plasmid DNA. The susceptibility of the plasmid bearing bacteria to antibiotics was enhanced following plasmid curing with sodium deodecyl sulphate.  Antibiotic susceptibility testing should guide treatment in all infections where organism can be cultured in veterinary medicine practice Keywords: Antibiotics, high mortalities, multi-drug resistant bacteria, plasmid, poultry

Dyslipidemia in Special Populations, the Elderly, Women, HIV, Chronic Kidney Disease and ESRD, and Minority Groups

This chapter discusses the management of dyslipidemia in special patient populations: the elderly, woman and pregnancy, renal disease, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and different racial/ethnic groups. In the elderly, dyslipidemia is often underdiagnosed and undertreated. Consideration for potential atherosclerotic risk-reduction benefits, risk of adverse effects, drug-drug interactions, and patient preferences should precede the initiation of statin therapy. Data on pregnant women are lacking and need future research. Dyslipidemia and its effects on the cardiovascular system in chronic kidney disease (CKD), end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and HIV are dynamic and multimodal. These conditions are states of chronic inflammation, where it is difficult to associate quantities of cholesterol types with outcomes. Among all racial groups, Asian Indians, Filipinos, and Hispanics are at a higher risk for dyslipidemia. Genetic differences in statin metabolism may explain this racial/ethnic difference

La perspectiva filosófica de un concepto: una analogía de Bachelard

Es nuestra intención en este trabajo, construir las imágenes analógicas que implícitamente están bocetadas en "La filosofía del no" de Bachelard, tratando de mostrar a un Bachelard analógico al momento de exponer sus ideas, mostrándonos como la ciencia misma ha recurrido a imágenes que al destruirlas condujeron al pensamiento científico a descubrir sus leyes orgánicas. Así vemos como Bachelard si bien marca una ruptura entre las imágenes, metáforas y analogías de la experiencia cotidiana, nos muestra la necesidad de recurrir a ellas por parte de la ciencia, la cuál crea formas realistas y racionales de sus objetos que le otorgan una razón polémica. La historia de la imaginería científica conforma un plan estratégico pedagógico ineluctable para el crecimiento científico (Bachelard, 2003:115)

Análisis del ciclo de vida de la ventana de madera

Se analiza el ciclo de vida de una ventana de madera y se calcula su huella ecológica. Se compara con la bibliografía existente la huella ecológica de la ventana de madera con la de PVC y la de alumni

Metformin Decreases the Incidence of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Promoted by Diet-induced Obesity in the Conditional KrasG12D Mouse Model.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a particularly deadly disease. Chronic conditions, including obesity and type-2 diabetes are risk factors, thus making PDAC amenable to preventive strategies. We aimed to characterize the chemo-preventive effects of metformin, a widely used anti-diabetic drug, on PDAC development using the KrasG12D mouse model subjected to a diet high in fats and calories (HFCD). LSL-KrasG12D/+;p48-Cre (KC) mice were given control diet (CD), HFCD, or HFCD with 5 mg/ml metformin in drinking water for 3 or 9 months. After 3 months, metformin prevented HFCD-induced weight gain, hepatic steatosis, depletion of intact acini, formation of advanced PanIN lesions, and stimulation of ERK and mTORC1 in pancreas. In addition to reversing hepatic and pancreatic histopathology, metformin normalized HFCD-induced hyperinsulinemia and hyperleptinemia among the 9-month cohort. Importantly, the HFCD-increased PDAC incidence was completely abrogated by metformin (p &lt; 0.01). The obesogenic diet also induced a marked increase in the expression of TAZ in pancreas, an effect abrogated by metformin. In conclusion, administration of metformin improved the metabolic profile and eliminated the promoting effects of diet-induced obesity on PDAC formation in KC mice. Given the established safety profile of metformin, our findings have a strong translational potential for novel chemo-preventive strategies for PDAC

Hm1 muscarinic cholinergic receptor internalization requires a domain in the third cytoplasmic loop

Selected regions of the Hm1 muscarinic cholinergic receptor were mutated to analyze the molecular mechanisms of agonist-induced receptor internalization (or sequestration). The wild-type and mutant Hm1 genes were expressed, using pSG5, in U293 human kidney cells. Whereas surface receptor density measured with the polar tracer N-[3H]methylscopolamine was rapidly reduced by carbachol exposure, total receptor content measured with [3H]quinuclidinyl benzilate did not decline for at least 24 h, indicating the absence of extensive receptor down-regulation in U293 cells. Carbachol stimulation of phosphatidylinositol turnover paralleled receptor internalization, both with EC50 values of 10-20 µM. Furthermore, a D71N point mutation that prevented receptor activation also abolished carbachol-induced receptor internalization, indicating that receptor activation (but not necessarily second messenger stimulation) was required for internalization. Truncation of the COOH-terminal tail (K447 trunc) and point mutations of several potential Ser and Thr phosphorylation sites to Ala failed to affect receptor activation and internalization. In contrast, partial deletions of the third intracellular loop (i3) (Tyr208-Thr366) resulted in receptor mutants deficient in agonist-induced receptor internalization/sequestration. Various deletions caused either complete loss of internalization (d 232-358) or impaired internalization, ranging from 10 to 30% over 2 h, whereas wild-type Hm1 internalized to approximately ~50%. Whereas the reason for the observed differences among the deficient deletion mutants remains unclear, the initial rate of N-[3H]methylscopolamine binding loss from the cell surface was much slower than that of wild-type Hm1 in each case. The deletion of only one single domain, 284-292 (SMESLTSSE), in the middle of i3 was consistently associated with impaired internalization. Domain 284-292 is partially conserved among closely related muscarinic receptors, whereas most of the remainder of i3 is not (except for the i3 membrane junctions), and similar Ser- and Thr-rich regions are present in many other G protein-coupled receptors. We propose that a small receptor domain in the middle of the i3 loop of Hm1 is involved in agonist-induced receptor internalization

Integration of risk and uncertainty on levelized cost of electricity calculation

The electric sector is still largely dependent on non-renewable energy sources. The importance of using renewable energies is increasingly recognized all across the world yet they are not fully ready to compete with the mature and ancient technologies that use non-renewable energies. The economic characteristics of different energy technologies can be compared by using the method of levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). LCOE represents the total cost of a power plant including investment and operation and maintenance costs over the assumed life-cycle and discounted to account for the time-value of money. In this paper, an analysis of the levelized costs is proposed for two renewable technologies in Portugal: wind power and solar photovoltaic. Firstly, a deterministic value of LCOE was computed for both technologies. Secondly, recognizing the uncertainty associated with all the assumed parameters, a probabilistic risk analysis was conducted with Monte Carlo simulation to complement the analysis. The results show the high variability of the obtained LCOE values, largely influenced by the investment values and load factors.INCT-EN - Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia para Excitotoxicidade e Neuroproteção(UID/CEC/00319/2013