Components of cultural complexity relating to emotions: A conceptual framework

Many cultural variations in emotions have been documented in previous research, but a general theoretical framework involving cultural sources of these variations is still missing. The main goal of the present study was to determine what components of cultural complexity interact with the emotional experience and behavior of individuals. The proposed framework conceptually distinguishes five main components of cultural complexity relating to emotions: 1) emotion language, 2) conceptual knowledge about emotions, 3) emotion-related values, 4) feelings rules, i.e. norms for subjective experience, and 5) display rules, i.e. norms for emotional expression

REFERRING TO A FRAME? SOME REFLECTIONS ON THE EUROPEAN CONTRACT LAW PROJECT

In 2005 the Joint Network on European Private Law was entrusted by the European Commission with drafting a Common Frame of Reference (CFR) for European contract law. In the Commission’s own words, the CFR is to be ‘a tool box for the Commission when preparing proposals, both for the existing acquis and for new instruments’. The Commission could not have emphasised more often that the CFR is not to become a new European Civil Code. Nevertheless, and perhaps paradoxically, the expected outcome of the Network’s efforts is indeed a model law, ie a code, which is to be presented by the end of 2007. This article focuses on two aspects of the overall harmonisation project. First, the constitutional setting for harmonising private law is highlighted. Are there limits to the internal market mandate? It would seem that the post-Maastricht challenge of setting such limits has not yet been resolved. The EC Treaty’s post-Tobacco Advertising Article 95 does not provide unlimited competence to adopt a comprehensive European contract law. However, the lack of concrete criteria leaves much room for activity by the EC legislator. The article describes the criteria stipulated by the European Court of Justice, and also critically discusses the use of empirical data in this respect. In the second part, the meaning of the frame of reference and the first statements on the work in progress are examined. The new instrument will assume a concrete form very soon, and the paradox of drafting a CFR code while making ‘no-code’ claims demands attention. The Commission has defined what the Network should elaborate for the CFR as ‘best solutions’. The article outlines the scope of the CFR and discusses the necessity of such an instrument, as well as the idea of finding ‘best solutions’. In this respect, the idea of a regulatory competition scheme for European contract law is supported. Differences between national legal systems are the essential precondition for a learning process within the Community. At the same time, detecting inconsistencies within the existing acquis is a reasonable concern. One possible role of the CFR is to serve as a quality control instrument when drafting European legislation

Reninoma: an uncommon cause of renin-mediated hypertension

Reninoma (juxtaglomerular cell tumor) is a rare cause of renin-mediated hypertension. Reninomas are usually diagnosed in adolescents and young adults with occasional reports in younger children. Patients typically present with a long history of headaches leading to a diagnosis of severe hypertension that responds well to antihypertensive treatment targeting the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. The clue to clinical diagnosis is the presence of hypokalemia and metabolic alkalosis on the first blood sample drawn before any treatment is instituted. Elevated blood levels of renin and aldosterone confirm the clinical suspicion of renin-mediated hypertension. Diagnostic imaging is employed to identify the source of excessive renin production. While renal ultrasound can miss reninoma, contrast CT or magnetic resonance imaging of the kidneys are diagnostic modalities of choice leading to the correct diagnosis. Renal vein renin sampling with lateralization might help to identify the site of excessive renin production. Nephron-sparing surgery is curative with maintenance of normal blood pressure after discontinuation of antihypertensive medications in the majority of patients. In this paper, we present the case of reninoma in an adolescent girl emphasizing clinical presentation, diagnostic evaluation, and medical and surgical treatment of this rare tumor. We also discuss important points in the management of children presenting with renin-mediated hypertension

Antenatally diagnosed ADPKD

[Extract] Advances in antenatal ultrasonographyhave substantially improved the counseling of pregnantwomen.1�4With this advancement comes a diagnosticdilemma in the approach to antenatal diagnoses of cystickidney disease. The differential diagnosis of enlargedcystic echogenic kidneys includes autosomal dominantpolycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), autosomal recessivepolycystic kidney disease, renal cysts and diabetessyndrome, and other syndromic disorders

Phenotypic Transition of the Collecting Duct Epithelium in Congenital Urinary Tract Obstruction

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has emerged in recent years as an important process in the development of organ fibrosis in many human diseases. Our previous experience in a nonhuman primate model of obstructive nephropathy suggested that EMT of collecting duct epithelium contributes to the development of interstitial fibrosis. In this study we demonstrate for the first time in humans that obstructed fetal collecting duct epithelium undergoes transition to mesenchymal phenotype, characterized by decreased expression of epithelial markers, de novo expression of mesenchymal markers with subsequent loss of cell-cell interaction, disruption of the basement membrane, and increased deposition of extracellular matrix into the expanded interstitium of the obstructed kidney. The results of this study therefore support the previous findings from animal studies and suggest that EMT of the collecting duct epithelium might contribute to the development of interstitial fibrosis in human fetal obstructive nephropathy

La asociación : revista de primera enseñanza: Año XI Número 541 - (07/07/23)

There have been few new therapies for patients with chronic kidney disease in the last decade. However, the management of patients affected by genetic kidney disease is rapidly evolving. Inherited or genetic kidney disease affects around 10% of adults with end-stage kidney disease and up to 70% of children with early onset kidney disease. Advances in next-generation sequencing have enabled rapid and cost-effective sequencing of large amounts of DNA. Next-generation sequencing-based diagnostic tests now enable identification of a monogenic cause in around 20% of patients with early-onset chronic kidney disease. A definitive diagnosis through genomic testing may negate the need for prolonged diagnostic investigations and surveillance, facilitate reproductive planning and provide accurate counselling for at-risk relatives. Genomics has allowed the better understanding of disease pathogenesis, providing prognostic information and facilitating development of targeted treatments for patients with inherited or genetic kidney disease. Although genomic testing is becoming more readily available, there are many challenges to implementation in clinical practice. Multidisciplinary renal genetics clinics serve as a model of how some of these challenges may be overcome. Such clinics are already well established in most parts of Australia, with more to follow in future. With the rapid pace of new technology and gene discovery, collaboration between expert clinicians, laboratory and research scientists is of increasing importance to maximize benefits to patients and health-care systems

The Evolving Role of Diagnostic Genomics in Kidney Transplantation

Monogenic forms of heritable kidney disease account for a significant proportion of chronic kidney disease (CKD) across both pediatric and adult patient populations and up to 11% of patients under 40 years reaching end-stage kidney failure (KF) and awaiting kidney transplant. Diagnostic genomics in the field of nephrology is ever evolving and now plays an important role in assessment and management of kidney transplant recipients and their related donor pairs. Genomic testing can help identify the cause of KF in kidney transplant recipients and assist in prognostication around graft survival and rate of recurrence of primary kidney disease. If a gene variant has been identified in the recipient, at-risk related donors can be assessed for the same and excluded if affected. This paper aims to address the indications for genomic testing in the context for kidney transplantation, the technologies available for testing, the conditions and groups in which testing should be most often considered, and the role for the renal genetics multidisci-plinary team in this process

Are Adolescent Religious Attendance/Spirituality Associated with Family Characteristics?

The family environment is associated with religiosity and spirituality as well as many aspects of adolescent lives, including their health behaviour. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess family environment associations with adolescent religious attendance (RA), i.e., weekly participation in religious services, and spirituality in a highly secular country. A nationally representative sample (n = 4182, 14.4 +/- 1.1 years, 48.6% boys) of Czech adolescents participated in the 2014 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children cross-sectional study. RA, spirituality and the family environment, i.e., family communication, perceived emotional support, and parental monitoring, were measured. Higher adolescent RA was associated with lower self-reported easiness of communication with mother (odds ratio (OR) = 0.68; 99% confidence interval (99% CI) = 0.47-0.99; p <0.01). In contrast, spiritual respondents were more likely to report both easier communication with their father (OR per standard deviation (SD) change = 1.12, 99% CI 1.02-1.23; p <0.01) and mother (OR per SD change = 1.38 (1.23-1.55); p <0.001) and higher perceived emotional support (OR per SD change = 1.73 (1.55-1.92); p <0.001). Parents of respondents who attended religious services at least once a week, as well as parents of spiritual respondents, were generally more likely to monitor adolescent behaviour. Thus, this study provides information for parents, mental health workers, and pastoral carers. Further research should assess the association of a lower easiness of family communication with dissonances in adolescent-parent religiosity/spirituality and with higher parental monitoring

Modeling Semantic Emotion Space Using a 3D Hypercube-Projection: An Innovative Analytical Approach for the Psychology of Emotions

The widely accepted two-dimensional circumplex model of emotions posits that most instances of human emotional experience can be understood within the two general dimensions of valence and activation. Currently, this model is facing some criticism, because complex emotions in particular are hard to define within only these two general dimensions. The present theory-driven study introduces an innovative analytical approach working in a way other than the conventional, two-dimensional paradigm. The main goal was to map and project semantic emotion space in terms of mutual positions of various emotion prototypical categories. Participants (N = 187; 54.5% females) judged 16 discrete emotions in terms of valence, intensity, controllability and utility. The results revealed that these four dimensional input measures were uncorrelated. This implies that valence, intensity, controllability and utility represented clearly different qualities of discrete emotions in the judgments of the participants. Based on this data, we constructed a 3D hypercube-projection and compared it with various two-dimensional projections. This contrasting enabled us to detect several sources of bias when working with the traditional, two-dimensional analytical approach. Contrasting two-dimensional and three-dimensional projections revealed that the 2D models provided biased insights about how emotions are conceptually related to one another along multiple dimensions. The results of the present study point out the reductionist nature of the two-dimensional paradigm in the psychological theory of emotions and challenge the widely accepted circumplex model