The incidence of pneumatised inferior turbinate and relation to close anatomic structures

Background: Pneumatisation of the inferior turbinate (PIT) is a rare abnormality of the paranasal sinus. It is very difficult to differentiate from the hypertrophia of the inferior turbinate clinically. Thus, it is important to be considered, especially in cases with no response to medical treatments. We aimed to investigate the presence and the frequency of PIT by computed tomography (CT). Materials and methods: A total of 2905 cases (1381 female, 1524 male) with an age range between 16 and 84 were included. Results: The pneumatisation of the inferior turbinate was observed in 1.72% of the cases with a percentage of 1.88% in women and 1.57% in men. In PIT (+) cases the bilaterality was found in 54% of them. According to the subtypes, 70% was lamellar, 28% was bullous and 2% was extensive. No statistically significant difference was found for age distribution. The most commonly associated variations were the pneumatisation of the middle and upper turbinate and the septal deviation. Conclusions: The pneumatisation of the inferior turbinate is a rare variation with a similar frequency among men and women. It is diagnosed by CT and when symptomatic, the optimal treatment is surgery

Efecto del ultrasonido en la extracción de aceite de oliva y optimización de la extracción asistida por ultrasonido del aceite de oliva virgen extra mediante metodología de superficie de respuesta (RSM)

In this study, the effects of different extraction parameters including ultrasound time, temperature and malaxation time on olive oil quality were investigated. The extraction variables ultrasound initial temperature (20–50 °C), ultrasound time (2–10 min) and malaxation time (30–50 min) were studied to obtain ideal conditions of ultrasonic treatment on the olive paste for obtaining of a greater yield in the extraction of oil, while maintaining a maximum level of commercial quality. To evaluate the level of commercial quality, absorbance in the UV region, peroxide (PV) and free acidity values (AV), the total chlorophyll, carotenoid, phenol contents, total antioxidant activity and sensory analysis of EVOOs extracted from Edremit cultivar were determined. The optimum conditions were found to be 50 °C, 2 min and 43.23 min for ultrasound initial temperature, sonication time and malaxation time, respectively. This optimal condition gave an extraction yield of 8.25 % and the acidity value of 0.24 mg oleic acid/100 g olive oil. The experimental values obtained under optimal conditions were in agreement with the theoretical values.En este estudio se investigó el efecto de diferentes parámetros de extracción, incluyendo tiempo de ultrasonido, temperatura y tiempo de malaxación en la calidad del aceite de oliva. Se estudiaron las variables de la extracción como temperatura inicial de ultrasonido (20–50 °C), tiempo de ultrasonido (2–10 min) y tiempo de malaxación (30–50 min) para obtener las condiciones ideales del tratamiento ultrasónico en la pasta de oliva para obtener un mayor rendimiento en la extracción de aceite y manteniendo un máximo de calidad comercial. Para determinar el nivel de calidad comercial, se determinaron la absorbancia en la región UV, índice de peróxido (PV) y los valores de acidez libre (AV), contenido total de clorofila, carotenoides, fenoles, actividad antioxidante total y análisis sensorial de aceites de oliva extraídos del cultivar Edremit. Las condiciones óptimas fueron de 50 °C, 2 min y 43,23 min para temperatura inicial del ultrasonido, tiempo de sonicación y tiempo de malaxación, respectivamente. Estas condiciones óptimas dieron un rendimiento de extracción del 8,25% y un valor de acidez de 0,24 mg de ácido oleico/100 g de aceite de oliva. Los valores experimentales obtenidos en condiciones óptimas estuvieron de acuerdo con los valores teóricos

Structural and biochemical characterization of the exopolysaccharide deacetylase Agd3 required for Aspergillus fumigatus biofilm formation

The exopolysaccharide galactosaminogalactan (GAG) is an important virulence factor of the fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus. Deletion of a gene encoding a putative deacetylase, Agd3, leads to defects in GAG deacetylation, biofilm formation, and virulence. Here, we show that Agd3 deacetylates GAG in a metal-dependent manner, and is the founding member of carbohydrate esterase family CE18. The active site is formed by four catalytic motifs that are essential for activity. The structure of Agd3 includes an elongated substrate-binding cleft formed by a carbohydrate binding module (CBM) that is the founding member of CBM family 87. Agd3 homologues are encoded in previously unidentified putative bacterial exopolysaccharide biosynthetic operons and in other fungal genomes. The exopolysaccharide galactosaminogalactan (GAG) is an important virulence factor of the fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus. Here, the authors study an A. fumigatus enzyme that deacetylates GAG in a metal-dependent manner and constitutes a founding member of a new carbohydrate esterase family.Bio-organic Synthesi

Respir Res

Background: Sexual function is often affected in patients suffering from chronic diseases especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, the effect of COPD on sexual satisfaction is underappreciated in clinical practice. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of COPD on patient’s sexuality and the explanatory variables of sexual dissatisfaction. Methods: Questionnaires were emailed to participants and they submitted their responses on the Santé Respiratoire France website. Data about sexual well-being (Arizona Sexual Experience Scale, ASEX), Quality of life (VQ11), anxiety, depression (Hospitalized anxiety and depression, HAD) and self-declared COPD grade were collected. Results: Seven hundred and fifty one subjects were included and were characterized as follows: women—51%, mean age—61 years, in a couple—62% and 70%—retired. Every grade of COPD was represented. Out of 751 participants, 301 participants (40%) had no sexual activity and 450 (60%) had sexual activity. From the 450 participants, 60% needed to change their sexual life because of their disease (rhythm, frequency and position). Subjects often used medications to improve sexual performance (43% used short-acting bronchodilator and 13% -specific erectile dysfunction drugs). ASEX questionnaire confirmed patients’ dissatisfaction (diminution of sexual appetite for 68% and sexual desire for 60%) because of breathlessness and fatigue. Eighty one percent of the responders had an altered quality of life (VQ11 mean score 35) and frequent suspected anxiety or depression (HAD mean score 10.8). Ninety percent declared that sexual dysfunction had never been discussed by their doctors, while 36% of patients would have preferred to undergo a specialized consultation. Conclusion: Sexual dysfunction is frequent among COPD patients and leads to an altered well-being, however being a cultural taboo, it remains frequently neglected. Sexual guidance should be a part of patient’s consultations improve quality of sexual life. © 2020, The Author(s)

Group 2i Isochrysidales produce characteristic alkenones reflecting sea ice distribution

AbstractAlkenones are biomarkers produced solely by algae in the order Isochrysidales that have been used to reconstruct sea surface temperature (SST) since the 1980s. However, alkenone-based SST reconstructions in the northern high latitude oceans show significant bias towards warmer temperatures in core-tops, diverge from other SST proxies in down core records, and are often accompanied by anomalously high relative abundance of the C37 tetra-unsaturated methyl alkenone (%C37:4). Elevated %C37:4 is widely interpreted as an indicator of low sea surface salinity from polar water masses, but its biological source has thus far remained elusive. Here we identify a lineage of Isochrysidales that is responsible for elevated C37:4 methyl alkenone in the northern high latitude oceans through next-generation sequencing and lab-culture experiments. This Isochrysidales lineage co-occurs widely with sea ice in marine environments and is distinct from other known marine alkenone-producers, namely Emiliania huxleyi and Gephyrocapsa oceanica. More importantly, the %C37:4 in seawater filtered particulate organic matter and surface sediments is significantly correlated with annual mean sea ice concentrations. In sediment cores from the Svalbard region, the %C37:4 concentration aligns with the Greenland temperature record and other qualitative regional sea ice records spanning the past 14 kyrs, reflecting sea ice concentrations quantitatively. Our findings imply that %C37:4 is a powerful proxy for reconstructing sea ice conditions in the high latitude oceans on thousand- and, potentially, on million-year timescales.</jats:p

Designing a magic flask: a new activity for teaching nature of science in both formal and informal learning environments

The magic flask, which is a kind of black box activity, builds an environment for science teachers to discuss nature of science in a formal or/and informal learning environment in the context of the history of science through an explicit-reflective approach. In the activity, the nature of science (NOS) aspects are explicitly addressed and opportunities are provided for high school students to reflect on how these ideas relate to the working principle of the magic flask. This activity could be conducted not only in a science center where the "magic flask" exhibition has introduced but also in a classroom environment where a science teacher presented a video about how the magic flask works. Students, who work a team of three to four, create their own model and test and evaluate it by comparing other models formed by their peers through the engineering design. The Magic flask activity could be assessed through informal questioning and NOS assessment scales. It is a very useful activity since NOS aspects could be discussed explicitly in the formal or informal settings within the history of science while students were actively engaged in an engineering design process

Science Teachers' Professional Development about Science Centers Enhancing Science Teachers' Views Concerning Nature of Science

The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to delve into professional development (PD) of science teachers' views about nature of science (NOS) throughout activities linking NOS aspects to science centers (SCs), and second, to reveal how a science teacher uses NOS aspects while teaching in SCs. An instrumental qualitative case study method with different data sources was used. There were 18 elementary science teachers participating voluntarily in this study. Additionally, one science teacher among the participants was observed two times during her SCs visit with her grade 6th and 7th students. Researchers trained science teachers for using the facilities of SCs and supported their understanding of NOS. Before and after the workshop, open-ended VNOS-C questionnaire was administered, and follow-up interviews were conducted. Observations in SCs were made to check whether the teacher were able to use NOS concepts while teaching science. Findings revealed that the majority of science teachers exhibited improved views about NOS, and improvement was attained particularly on the aspects of tentativeness, methods of scientific investigation, social and cultural embeddedness, and creativity and imagination, while the least improvement was noted for scientific theories and laws. During the SC visits, the teacher employed all aspects of NOS except the theory and law tenet and mostly discuss about the observation, inference, and experiment while teaching. Further PD activities are suggested to support teachers to develop their own teaching plans specific to each exhibit by employing NOS concepts for teaching with/in SCs