Water and protein dynamics in protein-water mixtures over wide range of composition

© 2012 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.[EN] Water and protein dynamics in two globular protein-water systems, water-lysozyme and water-BSA (bovine serum albumine), were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS) and thermally stimulated depolarization currents (TSDC) techniques. Water equilibrium sorption isotherms (ESI) measurements were also recorded at room temperature. The samples covered a wide range of composition, from practically dry solid pellets (2wt% of water) to dilute solutions (82wt% of water). Crystallization and melting events of water were studied by DSC and the amount of uncrystallized water was calculated. The evolution of dynamics with hydration level was followed for various dielectric relaxation processes, the emphasis being given to relaxation processes of polar groups on the surface of the proteins and of uncrystallized water molecules. A relationship between the formation of a conductive percolating water cluster and the saturation of the water process was found.This research has been co-financed by the European Union (European Social Fund - ESF) and Greek national funds through the Operational Program "Education and Lifelong Learning" of the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) - Research Funding Program: Heracleitus II. Investing in knowledge society through the European Social Fund.Kyritsis, A.; Panagopoulou, A.; Pissis, P.; Sabater I Serra, R.; Gómez Ribelles, JL.; Shinyashiki, N. (2012). Water and protein dynamics in protein-water mixtures over wide range of composition. IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation. 19(4):1239-1246. https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2012.6259997S1239124619

Magnetostratigraphic and chronostratigraphic constraints on the Marathousa 1 Lower Palaeolithic site and the Middle Pleistocene deposits of the Megalopolis basin, Greece

We investigated the magnetostratigraphy of the Megalopolis basin in central Peloponnese, Greece, which encompasses a record of Pleistocene lacustrine and lignite-bearing sedimentation, where lithic tools stratigraphically associated with remnants of an almost complete skeleton of Palaeoloxodon antiquus were recently found at the Marathousa 1 site. A magnetic polarity reversal was observed within a 3c10 m-thick lignite seam at the base of the (exposed) stratigraphic sequence, and it was interpreted as a record of the Brunhes/Matuyama boundary (0.78 Ma). Assuming that lignite seams were deposited generally under warm and humid climate conditions, this finding is in agreement with data from the literature indicating that the Brunhes/Matuyama boundary occurs within warm Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 19. We then attempted to correlate the remainder of the lacustrine and lignite-bearing intervals above the Brunhes/Matuyama boundary to a standard oxygen isotope record of Pleistocene climate variability. Two age models of sedimentation were generated: according to preferred option #1, the artifact-bearing stratigraphic units of the Marathousa 1 site should have an age between 3c0.48 Ma and 3c0.42 Ma, while according to alternative option #2, the archaeological layers would have an age between 3c0.56 Ma and 3c0.54 Ma. Option #1 is at present considered the preferred option as it is in closer agreement with preliminary post-IR IRSL and ESR dates from the Marathousa 1 site. This age model has been exported to other areas of the Megalopolis basin, where additional archaeological and/or palaeontological sites could be present, by means of correlations to lithostratigraphic logs derived from commercial drill cores taken in the 1960s and 1970s for lignite exploitation

Overcoming job demands to deliver high quality of care in the hospital setting across Europe: the role of teamwork and positivity

Health care professionals deal on a daily basis with several job demands – emotional, cognitive, organizational and physical. They must also ensure high quality care to their patients. The aim of this study is to analyse the impact of job demands on quality of care and to investigate team (backup behaviors) and individual (positivity ratio) processes that help to shield that impact. Data was collected from 2,890 doctors and nurses in 9 European countries by means of questionnaires. Job demands have a negative impact on the quality of care delivered by health professionals. Backup behaviors had a mediating effect between job demands and quality of care. Also, the positivity ratio of professionals (ratio of positive and negative emotions experienced) was also found as a significant mediator between most job demands and quality of care dimensions. Finally, we found a double mediation between most job demands and quality of care, where backup behaviors influenced the positivity ratio. Quality of care in hospitals is closely related to job demands. Hospital managers should consider the importance of cooperation within health care professionals’ teams and ought to find ways to develop teamwork in order to promote patients’ safety

Mediterranean sea turtles: Current knowledge and priorities for conservation and research

This is the final version. Available on open access from Inter Research via the DOI in this recordThe available information regarding the 2 sea turtle species breeding in the Mediterranean (loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta and green turtle Chelonia mydas) is reviewed, including biometrics and morphology, identification of breeding and foraging areas, ecology and behaviour, abundance and trends, population structure and dynamics, anthropogenic threats and conservation measures. Although a large body of knowledge has been generated, research efforts have been inconsistently allocated across geographic areas, species and topics. Significant gaps still exist, ranging from the most fundamental aspects, such as the distribution of major nesting sites and the total number of clutches laid annually in the region, to more specific topics like age at maturity, survival rates and behavioural ecology, especially for certain areas (e.g. south-eastern Mediterranean). These gaps are particularly marked for the green turtle. The recent positive trends of nest counts at some nesting sites may be the result of the cessation of past exploitation and decades of conservation measures on land, both in the form of national regulations and of continued active protection of clutches. Therefore, the current status should be considered as dependent on such ongoing conservation efforts. Mitigation of incidental catch in fisheries, the main anthropogenic threat at sea, is still in its infancy. From the analysis of the present status a comprehensive list of re search and conservation priorities is proposed.C.C. is supported by the project CTM2013-48163 of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitivity. The Cyprus Wildlife Society (CWS) acknowledges the financial support of the Department of Fisheries and Marine Research of the Government to the CWS for the implementation of the Turtle Conservation Project in the period 2010−2016 and for all its assistance to the Society in previous years. J.T. is supported by project Prometeo II (2015-018) of the Generalitat Valenciana and projects MEDSEALITTER-INTERREG and INDICIT of the European Union

Thorough investigation of the phenolic profile of reputable Greek honey varieties:varietal discrimination and floral markers identification using liquid chromatography–high-resolution mass spectrometry

Honey is a highly consumed commodity due to its potential health benefits upon certain consumption, resulting in a high market price. This fact indicates the need to protect honey from fraudulent acts by delivering comprehensive analytical methodologies. In this study, targeted, suspect and non-targeted metabolomic workflows were applied to identify botanical origin markers of Greek honey. Blossom honey samples (n = 62) and the unifloral fir (n = 10), oak (n = 24), pine (n = 39) and thyme (n = 34) honeys were analyzed using an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-q-TOF-MS) system. Several potential authenticity markers were revealed from the application of different metabolomic workflows. In detail, based on quantitative targeted analysis, three blossom honey markers were found, namely, galangin, pinocembrin and chrysin, while gallic acid concentration was found to be significantly higher in oak honey. Using suspect screening workflow, 12 additional bioactive compounds were identified and semi-quantified, achieving comprehensive metabolomic honey characterization. Lastly, by combining non-targeted screening with advanced chemometrics, it was possible to discriminate thyme from blossom honey and develop binary discriminatory models with high predictive power. In conclusion, a holistic approach to assessing the botanical origin of Greek honey is presented, highlighting the complementarity of the three applied metabolomic approaches

A palaeoenvironmental reconstruction (based on palaeobotanical data and diatoms) of the Middle Pleistocene elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus) butchery site at Marathousa, Megalopolis, Greece

Bioarchaeolog

Feasibility and acceptability of expressive writing with postpartum women: a randomised controlled trial

Abstract Background: Pregnancy, birth and adjusting to a new baby is a potentially stressful time that can negatively affect women’s mental and physical health. Expressive writing, where people write about a stressful event for at least 15 minutes on three consecutive days, has been associated with improved health in some groups but it is not clear whether it is feasible and acceptable for use with postpartum women. This study therefore examined the feasibility and acceptability of expressive writing for postpartum women as part of a randomised controlled trial (RCT). Methods: The Health After Birth Trial (HABiT) was an RCT evaluating expressive writing for postpartum women which included measures of feasibility and acceptability. At 6 to 12 weeks after birth 854 women were randomised to expressive writing, a control writing task or normal care, and outcome measures of health were measured at baseline, one month later and six months later. Feasibility was measured by recruitment, attrition, and adherence to the intervention. Quantitative and qualitative measures of acceptability of the materials and the task were completed six months after the intervention. Results: Recruitment was low (10.7% of those invited to participate) and the recruited sample was from a restricted sociodemographic range. Attrition was high, increased as the study progressed (35.8% at baseline, 57.5% at one month, and 68.1% at six months) and was higher in the writing groups than in the normal care group. Women complied with instructions to write expressively or not, but adherence to the instruction to write for 15 minutes per day for three days was low (Expressive writing: 29.3%; Control writing: 23.5%). Acceptability measures showed that women who wrote expressively rated the materials/task both more positively and more negatively than those in the control writing group, and qualitative comments revealed that women enjoyed the writing and/or found it helpful even when it was upsetting. Conclusions: The feasibility of offering expressive writing as a universal self-help intervention to all postpartum women 6 to 12 weeks after birth in the HABiT trial was low, but the expressive writing intervention was acceptable to the majority of women who completed it

Effect of synbiotic supplementation in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis: a randomized controlled clinical trial

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES:Cystic fibrosis (CF) is characterized by excessive activation of immune processes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of synbiotic supplementation on the inflammatory response in children/adolescents with CF. SUBJECTS/METHODS:A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, clinical-trial was conducted with control group (CG, n = 17), placebo-CF-group (PCFG, n = 19), synbiotic CF-group (SCFG, n = 22), PCFG negative (n = 8) and positive (n = 11) bacteriology, and SCFG negative (n = 12) and positive (n = 10) bacteriology. Markers of lung function (FEV1), nutritional status [body mass index-for age (BMI/A), height-for-age (H/A), weight-for-age (W/A), upper-arm fat area (UFA), upper-arm muscle area (UMA), body fat (%BF)], and inflammation [interleukin (IL)-12, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), IL-10, IL-6, IL-1β, IL-8, myeloperoxidase (MPO), nitric oxide metabolites (NOx)] were evaluated before and after 90-day of supplementation with a synbiotic. RESULTS:No significance difference was found between the baseline and end evaluations of FEV1 and nutricional status markers. A significant interaction (time vs. group) was found for IL-12 (p = 0.010) and myeloperoxidase (p = 0.036) between PCFG and SCFG, however, the difference was not maintained after assessing the groups individually. NOx diminished significantly after supplementation in the SCFG (p = 0.030). In the SCFG with positive bacteriology, reductions were found in IL-6 (p = 0.033) and IL-8 (p = 0.009) after supplementation. CONCLUSIONS: Synbiotic supplementation shown promise at diminishing the pro-inflammatory markers IL-6, IL-8 in the SCFG with positive bacteriology and NOx in the SCFG in children/adolescents with CF