A coupled stability and eco-hydrological model to predict shallow landslides

Knowledge of spatio-temporal dynamics of soil water content, groundwater and infiltration processes is of considerable importance for the understanding and prediction of landslides. Rainfall and consequent water infiltration affect slope stability in various ways, mainly acting on the pore pressure distribution whose increase causes a decrease of the shearing resistance of the soil. For such reasons rainfall and transient changes in the hydrological systems are considered the most common triggers of landslides. So far, the difficulty to monitor groundwater levels or soil moisture contents in unstable terrain have made modeling of landslide a complex issue. At the present, the availability of sophisticated hydrological and physically based models, able to simulate the main hydrological processes, has allowed the development of coupled hydrologicalstability models able to predict when and where a failure could occur. In this study, a slope-failure module, with capability to predict shallow landslides, implemented into an ecohydrological model, tRIBS-VEGGIE (Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN)-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator with VEGetation Generator for Interactive Evolution), is presented. The model evaluates the stability dynamics in term of factor of safety consequent to the soil moisture dynamics, strictly depending on the textural soil characteristics and hillslope geometry. Failure criterion used to derive factor of safety equation accounts for the stabilizing effect of matric suction arising in unsaturated soils. The eco-hydrological framework allows also to take into account the effect of vegetation with its cohesive effect as well as its weight load. The Mameyes basin, located in the Luquillo Experimental Forest in Puerto Rico, has been selected for modeling based on the availability of soil, vegetation, topographical, meteorological and historic landslide data. A static analysis based on susceptibility mapping approach was also carried out on the same area at a larger spatial scale, providing the hot spot of landsliding area. Application of the model yields a temporal and spatial distribution of predicted rainfall-induced landslides. Moreover, stability dynamics have been assessed for different meteorological forcing and soil types, to better evaluate the influence of hydrological dynamics on slope stability

A coupled stability and eco-hydrological model to predict shallow landslides

4openopenARNONE, Elisa; NOTO, Leonardo; Lepore, C; Bras RLArnone, Elisa; Noto, Leonardo; Lepore, C; Bras, R

Protein Antigens Increase the Protective Efficacy of a Capsule-Based Vaccine against Staphylococcus aureus in a Rat Model of Osteomyelitis

Staphylococcus aureus is an invasive bacterial pathogen, and antibiotic resistance has impeded adequate control of infections caused by this microbe. Moreover, efforts to prevent human infections with single-component S. aureus vaccines have failed. In this study, we evaluated the protective efficacy in rats of vaccines containing both S. aureus capsular polysaccharides (CPs) and proteins. The serotypes 5 CP (CP5) and 8 CP (CP8) were conjugated to tetanus toxoid and administered to rats alone or together with domain A of clumping factor A (ClfA) or genetically detoxified alpha-toxin (dHla). The vaccines were delivered according to a preventive or a therapeutic regimen, and their protective efficacy was evaluated in a rat model of osteomyelitis. Addition of dHla (but not ClfA) to the CP5 or CP8 vaccine induced reductions in bacterial load and bone morphological changes compared with immunization with either conjugate vaccine alone. Both the prophylactic and therapeutic regimens were protective. Immunization with dHla together with a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine used as a control did not reduce staphylococcal osteomyelitis. The emergence of unencapsulated or small-colony variants during infection was negligible and similar for all of the vaccine groups. In conclusion, addition of dHla to a CP5 or CP8 conjugate vaccine enhanced its efficacy against S. aureus osteomyelitis, indicating that the inclusion of multiple antigens will likely enhance the efficacy of vaccines against both chronic and acute forms of staphylococcal disease.Fil: Lattar, Santiago Martín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; ArgentinaFil: Noto Llana, Mariangeles. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; ArgentinaFil: Denoël, Philippe. GlaxoSmithKline Vaccines; BélgicaFil: Germain, Sophie. GlaxoSmithKline Vaccines; BélgicaFil: Buzzola, Fernanda Roxana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; ArgentinaFil: Lee, Jean C.. Harvard Medical School; Estados UnidosFil: Sordelli, Daniel Oscar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentin

A dynamic model of ballasted rail track with bituminous sub-ballast layer

The bituminous sub-ballast layer within the ballasted rail track allows some mechanical and environmental advantages. An analytical model of a ballasted rail track with sub-ballast layer has been proposed by considering the rail as viscous-elastic continuous beam discretely supported, at four levels of elasticity. The model was used to compare the mechanical performance of both ballasted track with and without bituminous sub-ballast layer. The results confirmed that the bituminous sub-ballast layer reduces the dynamic forces on the ground and achieves the technical objectives as reduction of ground borne vibrations and increase of the design life of the rail track

Psychoactive drug advertising: analysis of scientific information

OBJECTIVE: According to the World Health Organization, medicinal drug promotion should be reliable, accurate, truthful, informative, balanced, up-to-date and capable of substantiation. The objective of the present study was to review psychoactive drug advertisements to physicians as for information consistency with the related references and accessibility of the cited references. METHODS: Data was collected in the city of Araraquara, Southeastern Brazil, in 2005. There were collected and reviewed 152 drug advertisements, a total of 304 references. References were requested directly from pharmaceutical companies' customer services and searched in UNESP (Ibict, Athenas) and BIREME (SciELO, PubMed, free-access indexed journals) library network and CAPES journals. Advertisement statements were checked against references using content analysis. RESULTS: Of all references cited in the advertisements studied, 66.7% were accessed. Of 639 promotional statements identified, 346 (54%) were analyzed. The analysis showed that 67.7% of promotional statements in the advertisements were consistent with their references, while the remaining was either partially consistent or inconsistent. Of the material analyzed, an average 2.5 (1-28) references was cited per advertisement. In the text body, there were identified 639 pieces of information clearly associated with at least one cited reference (average 3.5 pieces of information per advertisement). CONCLUSIONS: The study results evidenced difficult access to the references. Messages on efficacy, safety and cost, among others, are not always supported by scientific studies. There is a need for regulation changes and effective monitoring of drug promotional materials.OBJETIVO: Segundo a Organização Mundial da Saúde, as propagandas de medicamentos devem ser fidedignas, exatas, verdadeiras, informativas, equilibradas, atualizadas e passíveis de comprovação. O objetivo do estudo foi avaliar as propagandas de medicamentos psicoativos divulgadas a médicos, em relação à concordância das informações contidas nas peças publicitárias com as suas respectivas referências bibliográficas e à acessibilidade dessas referências citadas. MÉTODOS: A coleta de dados foi realizada durante o ano de 2005, em Araraquara, SP. Foram coletadas e analisadas propagandas de 152 medicamentos, num total de 304 referências. As referências bibliográficas foram solicitadas aos serviços de atendimento ao cliente dos laboratórios e consultadas nas bibliotecas da rede UNESP (Ibict, Athenas), BIREME (SciELO, PubMed, periódicos catalogados de acesso livre) e periódicos CAPES. As afirmações das propagandas foram conferidas com as das referências por meio da técnica de análise de conteúdo. RESULTADOS: Das referências citadas nas propagandas, 66,7% foram acessadas. De 639 afirmações identificadas, foi possível analisar 346 (54%). Verificou-se que 67,7% das afirmações das propagandas conferiam com suas referências e as demais não conferiam ou conferiam parcialmente. Entre as propagandas analisadas, foi observada média de 2,5 (1-28) referências citadas por propaganda. No corpo das propagandas, foram identificadas 639 informações que estavam explicitamente associadas à pelo menos uma das referências citadas (média de 3,5 informações por propaganda). CONCLUSÕES: Os resultados evidenciaram a dificuldade de acesso às referências. As mensagens de eficácia, segurança, custos, entre outras, nem sempre estão respaldadas por estudos científicos. São necessárias mudanças nas exigências legais e fiscalização efetiva das promoções de medicamentos.Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio Mesquita Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas. Departamento de Fármacos e MedicamentosUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de PsicobiologiaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de PsicobiologiaSciEL

A Performance Management System in Healthcare for All Seasons?

Health systems face challenges which are inherent to care demand and supply evolution (i.e., demographic change, new technologies) or are the results of unexpected occurrence originating outside the health system, such as economic shocks or epidemic outbreaks. Both challenges often require a paradigm shift in governance and organization, financing and resource allocation, accountability frameworks, as well as public health system responses. Based on key reviews and seminal papers of performance management, public health, sustainability and resilience, the article presents three emerging challenges for performance management systems in healthcare: i) the inclusion of the population approach; ii) the measurement and consideration of the multi-facets concepts of value; iii) the importance of resilience and sustainability. Performance management systems need to evolve to cope with this changing scenario. The article sheds light on uncovered areas by performance management, and it proposes a research agenda for scholars of both performance management and health service research

Ecological validity of Session RPE method for quantifying internal training load in Fencing

Session rating of perceived exertion (sRPE) is known to significantly relate to heart rate (HR) based methods of quantifying internal training load (TL) in a variety of sports. However, to date this has not been investigated in fencing and was therefore the aim of this study. TL was calculated by multiplying the session rating of perceived exertion (sRPE) with exercise duration, and through Heart rate (HR) -based methods calculated using Banister’s and Edward’s TRIMP. Seven male elite foil fencers (Mean ± SD: Age = 22.3 ± 1.6 years, height = 181.3 ± 6.5 cm, body mass = 77.7 ± 7.6 kg) were monitored over the period of one competitive season. The sRPE and HR of 67 training sessions and three competitions (87 poule bouts and 12 knockout rounds) were recorded and analysed. Correlation analysis was used to determine any relationships between sRPE and HR-based methods, accounting for individual variation, mode of training (footwork drills vs. sparring sessions) and stage of competition (poules vs. knockouts). Across two footwork sessions, sRPE, Banister’s and Edward’s TRIMP were found to be reliable, with coefficient of variation values of 6.0, 5.2 and 4.5% respectively. Significant correlations with sRPE for individual fencers (r = 0.84 – 0.98) and across mode of exercise (r = 0.73 – 0.85) and competition stages (r = 0.82 – 0.92) were found with HR-based measures. sRPE is a simple and valuable tool coaches can use to quantify TL in fencing

Brain amyloid in preclinical Alzheimer\u27s disease is associated with increased driving risk

INTRODUCTION: Postmortem studies suggest that fibrillar brain amyloid places people at higher risk for hazardous driving in the preclinical stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHODS: We administered driving questionnaires to 104 older drivers (19 AD, 24 mild cognitive impairment, and 61 cognitive normal) who had a recent (18)F-florbetapir positron emission tomography scan. We examined associations of amyloid standardized uptake value ratios with driving behaviors: traffic violations or accidents in the past 3 years. RESULTS: The frequency of violations or accidents was curvilinear with respect to standardized uptake value ratios, peaking around a value of 1.1 (model r(2) = 0.10, P = .002); moreover, this relationship was evident for the cognitively normal participants. DISCUSSION: We found that driving risk is strongly related to accumulating amyloid on positron emission tomography, and that this trend is evident in the preclinical stage of AD. Brain amyloid burden may in part explain the increased crash risk reported in older adults

The relevance of sperm morphology in male infertility

This brief report concerns the role of human sperm morphology assessment in different fields of male infertility: basic research, genetics, assisted reproduction technologies, oxidative stress. One of the best methods in studying sperm morphology is transmission electron microscopy (TEM) that enables defining the concept of sperm pathology and classifying alterations in non-systematic and systematic. Non-systematic sperm defects affect head and tail in variable ratio, whereas the rare systematic defects are characterized by a particular anomaly that marks most sperm of an ejaculate. TEM analysis and fluorescence in situ hybridization represent outstanding methods in the study of sperm morphology and cytogenetic in patients with altered karyotype characterizing their semen quality before intracytoplasmic sperm injection. In recent years, the genetic investigations on systematic sperm defects, made extraordinary progress identifying candidate genes whose mutations induce morphological sperm anomalies. The question if sperm morphology has an impact on assisted fertilization outcome is debated. Nowadays, oxidative stress represents one of the most important causes of altered sperm morphology and function and can be analyzed from two points of view: 1) spermatozoa with cytoplasmic residue produce reactive oxygen species, 2) the pathologies with inflammatory/oxidative stress background cause morphological alterations. Finally, sperm morphology is also considered an important endpoint in in vitro experiments where toxic substances, drugs, antioxidants are tested. We think that the field of sperm morphology is far from being exhausted and needs other research. This parameter can be still considered a valuable indicator of sperm dysfunction both in basic and clinical research

Activation of iNKT Cells Prevents Salmonella-Enterocolitis and Salmonella-Induced Reactive Arthritis by Downregulating IL-17-Producing γδT Cells

Reactive arthritis (ReA) is an inflammatory condition of the joints that arises following an infection. Salmonella enterocolitis is one of the most common infections leading to ReA. Although the pathogenesis remains unclear, it is known that IL-17 plays a pivotal role in the development of ReA. IL-17-producers cells are mainly Th17, iNKT, and γδT lymphocytes. It is known that iNKT cells regulate the development of Th17 lineage. Whether iNKT cells also regulate γδT lymphocytes differentiation is unknown. We found that iNKT cells play a protective role in ReA. BALB/c Jα18−/− mice suffered a severe Salmonella enterocolitis, a 3.5-fold increase in IL-17 expression and aggravated inflammation of the synovial membrane. On the other hand, activation of iNKT cells with α-GalCer abrogated IL-17 response to Salmonella enterocolitis and prevented intestinal and joint tissue damage. Moreover, the anti-inflammatory effect of α-GalCer was related to a drop in the proportion of IL-17-producing γδT lymphocytes (IL17-γδTcells) rather than to a decrease in Th17 cells. In summary, we here show that iNKT cells play a protective role against Salmonella-enterocolitis and Salmonella-induced ReA by downregulating IL17-γδTcells.Fil: Noto Llana, Mariangeles. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; ArgentinaFil: Sarnacki, Sebastian Hernan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; ArgentinaFil: Morales, Andrea Lorena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; ArgentinaFil: Aya Castañeda, Maria del Rosario. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; ArgentinaFil: Giacomodonato, Mónica Nancy. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; ArgentinaFil: Blanco, Guillermo Armando C.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Estudios de la Inmunidad Humoral Prof. Ricardo A. Margni. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Estudios de la Inmunidad Humoral Prof. Ricardo A. Margni; ArgentinaFil: Cerquetti, Maria Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiología; Argentin