Hidden Violence: Preventing and Responding to Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse of Adolescent Boys

Boys and girls experience sexual violence and sexual exploitation in gender differentiated ways. Numerous national-level surveys have found that boys experience these forms of violence at lower rates than girls do, but at rates that nevertheless merit great attention. Boys are less likely to seek help, especially from formal services, when they experience sexual violence. Particular groups of boys also face higher risk, such as street boys. Boys' experiences of sexual violence are tied to feelings of shame, uncertainty, confusion and homophobic attitudes from the part of parents, service providers and legal or police officials.This document summarizes results from the report, "Hidden Violence: Preventing and Responding to Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse of Adolescent Boys, Case Studies and Directions for Action", prepared in 2012 by Promundo for the OAK Foundation. It first introduces some of the literature on the topic, then follows with international project experiences featuring a case study and video clip produced in Nicaragua. Conclusions, emerging issues and final recommendations are then presented. Calling attention to sexual violence experienced by boys does not minimize the experiences of girls and women. Rather, we seek to apply a gender lens to boys' experiences of sexual violence and exploitation and to both raise awareness of particular challenges boys face, and in the case of sexual violence against girls, improve prevention and protection efforts

Journeys of Transformation: A Training Manual for Engaging Men as Allies in Women's Economic Empowerment

This manual provides group education sessions for engaging men as allies in women's economic empowerment. It emerges from CARE's experience, in Rwanda and elsewhere, that women's economic empowerment works, but that it can be made to work better and to achieve even more movement toward equality when men are deliberately engaged as allies. The activities presented in this manual were developed through a process of action-research involving qualitative and quantitative methods and incorporating the responses, realities, and perspectives of women beneficiaries of economic empowerment (via CARE's Voluntary Savings and Loan Associations, or VSLAs or VSLs) and their male partners. It was developed together with CARE-Rwanda staff, as well as with partners from the Rwandan Men's Resource Centre (Rwamrec)

The first homology group with twisted coefficients for the mapping class group of a non-orientable surface with boundary

We determine the first homology group with coefficients in $H_1(N;\mathbb{Z})$ for various mapping class groups of a non--orientable surface $N$ with punctures and/or boundary.Comment: To appear in Osaka Journal of Mathematic

Charakter dyskusji politycznej na portalach informacyjnych. Studium przypadku

The article offers a two-dimensional analysis of the discussion forums on Polish news and information websites, as a public space of political discourse. The author employed statistical analysis for quality variables and interpretation of narrative patterns. The primary aim of the study was to determine the nature of debate in the area under consideration, in the context of exacerbated political dispute. The obtained results were compared with previous findings of this author.The article offers a two-dimensional analysis of the discussion forums on Polish news and information websites, as a public space of political discourse. The author employed statistical analysis for quality variables and interpretation of narrative patterns. The primary aim of the study was to determine the nature of debate in the area under consideration, in the context of exacerbated political dispute. The obtained results were compared with previous findings of this author

Rozbudowa infrastruktury drogowej, a lokalizacja i rozwój przedsiębiorstw

The issues presented in the article are related to the occurrence of a research gap in the field of economic calculation of the effects of new road infrastructure on the enterprises operations. The presented topic was analyzed by the author because currently, companies rarely make detailed calculations of transport costs, not to mention, calculation of the reduction of costs for a given company related to the modernization or construction of a new road infrastructure. The purpose of research which is described in the article is to indicate this impact. Infrastructure investments are currently extremely important, they concern the development of various regions of the country and the enterprises operating there. In the presented article, the author focuses on enterprises located in Eastern Poland. With the current state of road infrastructure development, this region is still less developed as compared to other regions of the country in this aspect. Basic road infrastructure network should be completed as soon as possible, because connecting of the express roads and motorways in the whole road network could multiply positive effects of the economic development of regions. The first part of the article briefly presents issues related to infrastructure investments and the importance of the  transport factor. The second chapter presents theoretical considerations on economic calculation methods of the effects of road investments for enterprises. The last part of the article is an empirical part in which representative examples of three enterprises are described. The conducted research shows that it is possible to determine the detailed cost reduction values that are directly related to the activities of a given enterprise and the construction or modernization of road infrastructure. Demonstrated dependence allows to create individual, practical recommendations regarding the company’s operations, its development or the location of branches in connection with the expansion or relocation of activities.Przedstawiona w artykule problematyka wiąże się z występowaniem luki badawczej w zakresie prowadzenia rachunku ekonomicznego skutków powstawania nowej infrastruktury drogowej na lokalizację działalności przedsiębiorstw. Temat został przeanalizowany przez autora ponieważ obecnie przedsiębiorstwa rzadko dokonują szczegółowych obliczeń kosztów transportu, nie mówiąc o określaniu redukcji kosztów danego przedsiębiorstwa związanych z modernizacją lub budową nowej infrastruktury drogowej. Celem badawczym przedstawionym w artykule jest określenie tego wpływu. Inwestycje infrastrukturalne są obecnie niezwykle istotne, zwłaszcza dla rozwoju poszczególnych regionów kraju i przedsiębiorstw tam działających. W prezentowanym artykule autor skupia się na przedsiębiorstwach zlokalizowanych na terenie Polski Wschodniej. Przy obecnym stanie rozwoju infrastruktury drogowej region ten jest nadal słabiej rozwinięty infrastrukturalnie względem pozostałych regionów kraju. Należy dążyć do tego aby jak najszybciej ukończyć szkielet podstawowej sieci infrastruktury drogowej, ponieważ domykanie sieci dróg ekspresowych i autostrad jest czynnikiem mnożnikowym gospodarczego rozwoju regionów. Pierwsza część artykułu przedstawia pokrótce kwestie związane z inwestycjami infrastrukturalnymi i znaczenie czynnika transportu. W drugim rozdziale zaprezentowano rozważania teoretyczne na temat metod rachunku ekonomicznego skutków inwestycji drogowych dla przedsiębiorstw. Ostatnia część artykułu to element empiryczny, w którym opisane zostały reprezentatywne przykłady trzech przedsiębiorstw. Przeprowadzone badania pokazują, że da się określić szczegółowe wartości redukcji kosztów, które są bezpośrednio związane z działalnością danego przedsiębiorstwa oraz budową lub modernizacją infrastruktury drogowej. Wykazana zależność pozwala na tworzenie indywidualnych rekomendacji praktycznych dotyczących działalności przedsiębiorstwa, jego rozwoju czy lokalizacji placówek w związku z rozszerzaniem bądź relokacją działalności

The radiometal makes a difference. Synthesis and preliminary characterisation of DOTA-minigastrin analogue complexes with Ga, Lu and Y

BACKGROUND: The minigastrin analogue — CP04: DOTA-(DGlu)6-Ala-Tyr-Gly-Trp-Met-Asp-Phe-NH2 has been developed for CCK2R targeting. This analogue can be radiolabelled with 111In or 68Ga for imaging, or with 90Y and 177Lu for therapy. However, affinity of the chelator-peptide conjugates to the cell membrane receptors may vary depending on the metal incorporated into the complex. So far, there are no such studies for the ligands of gastrin/cholecystokinin receptor CCK2R. It is supposed that the reason for the differentiation of receptor affinity to the respective receptors is in the changes of structure of chelating system and their influence on the bioactive conformations of the metal conjugated peptides. Herein, we report on the radiolabeling of CP04 with 90Y, 177Lu and 68Ga and synthesis of cold CP04 complexes with respective stable metals for further structural and physico-chemical and biological studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 200 to 600 MBq of 90Y, 177Lu or 68Ga were used for radiolabelling of 20 μg of CP04 dissolved in ascorbic acid solution (50 mg/mL, pH 4.5). Non-radioactive complexes with Lu and Ga were synthesized in milligram amounts starting from 0.5 mg up to 5 mg of CP04 dissolved in ascorbic acid solution (50 mg/mL, pH 4.5) when using 2-molar excess of the metal ions. Complex formation needed 5 min in microwave oven or 12 min in thermo-block at 95°C. RP-HPLC isocratic method (Kinetex 150/4.6 mm; 25% AcN/0.1% TFA, 1 mL/min) with UV/Vis and radiometric detection was developed for investigation of the radiolabelled and “cold” complexes. For LC-MS investigations, HPLC method was modified replacing TFA by formic acid. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Yields of CP04 radiolabelling were greater than 90% for all three radionuclides. The HPLC method enabled identification of these radio-complexes based on comparison to their non-radioactive equivalents. In all cases, chromatograms revealed peaks that could be attributed to the metal-CP04 complexes and to impurities (including methionine oxidation). LC-MS analysis of Ga and Lu complexes revealed conformity of the observed molecular ions to the predicted formulas (m/z 2116 and 2220 Da for Ga and Lu, respectively). Different chromatographic behaviour observed for Ga-CP04 complex comparing to Lu- and Y- labelled peptide (relative retention to CP04: 1.08, 0.86 and 0.85, respectively) suggest different coordination of the metal ions. Therefore, further studies are planned using the non-radioactive complexes in order to assess their structural conformations

Combined perioperative plasma endoglin and VEGF-A assessment in colorectal cancer patients

Colorectal cancer growth and spread is absolutely dependent on angiogenesis with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) being the most important cytokine involved in the process. Endoglin, a membrane co-receptor for TGF-beta, has recently emerged as a sensitive index of cancer stage. There is now sufficient evidence indicating that microvessel density assessed by endoglin-immunostaining correlates with stage of colorectal cancer and patient survival. An association of a soluble form of endoglin with lymph node and distant metastases has recently been reported in two studies. Both of them used local elaborated immunoassays for endoglin assessment. The aim of our study was to determine the efficacy of plasma endoglin, assessed using a commercial kit, as a marker of tumor spread and distant metastases in colorectal cancer patients. We studied 48 colorectal cancer patients, compared with 22 healthy subjects, using ELISA. We observed that colorectal cancer patients had increased plasma VEGF-A, but not endoglin levels. However, we found an association of plasma endoglin with the stage of malignancy. Endoglin levels were increased in metastasis-positive patients when compared to both metastasis-negative patients and healthy volunteers. Plasma endoglin correlated with VEGF-A, CEA and CA19.9. Endoglin assessment in plasma does not seem useful as a maker of colorectal cancer. Our observations indicate however that it might be helpful in selecting patients with metastatic disease

Soluble angiogenesis markers in gastric tumor patients.

Gastric cancer is the second commonest cause of cancer-associated death in the world. Its molecular markers can be useful not only for diagnostic, but also prognostic purposes. The aim of the study was to assess the usefulness of soluble angiogenesis markers such as endoglin and VEGFR2 in gastric cancer patients and to compare these results with those of VEGF levels. As a secondary objective, we compared the concentrations of all three soluble markers in plasma and serum. The study was performed on 26 patients with gastric cancer (17 intestinal-type and 9 diffuse-type), and additionally in 2 patients with B cell lymphoma and 2 with gastro-intestinal stromal tumor. In summary, we showed increases in circulating VEGF-A in patients with both types of gastric cancer. The levels of VEGFR2 did not change significantly in patients with gastric cancer as compared to healthy subjects. Interestingly, after the operation greater levels of VEGFR2 were observed in patients without metastases. Both VEGF and VEGFR2 circulating levels were greater in patients with lymphoma, when compared to both gastric cancer patients and the control group. However, because of small number of patients, this requires further studies. Presented data suggests that endoglin does not seem to be a valuable tool in the assessment of gastric cancer invasion and spread

Tryptophan metabolism in experimental necrotizing acute pancreatitis

Pancreatic encephalopathy is a serious, often lethal complication of acute pancreatitis (AP). Its pathomechanism remains obscure. We have previously described increased blood levels of quinolinic acid (QUIN) – an endogeneous neurotoxine – during edematous experimental acute pancreatitis. Several other metabolites of tryptophan (TRP) are also known to be neuroactive. The aim of the present study was to assess tryptophan and its main metabolites: kynurenine (KYN), 3-hydroxykynurenine, quinolinic acid (QUIN), kynurenic acid (KYNA), serotonin (5HT) during experimental acute necrotizing acute pancreatitis. Experimental necrotizing acute pancreatitis was induced in rats by intraductal injection of 5% sodium taurocholate. Control groups consisted of sham-operated and not operated rats. The animals were sacrificed 5 and 24 hours after the operation. We evaluated -amylase, pancreas weight and histology as parameters of pancreatitis. A simplified neurological scoring system was applied. To assess TRP and its metabolites in plasma, we used high performance liquid chromatography. Five hours after the onset of AP we found significant increase in TRP metabolites: QUIN, KYNA, KYN, and 3HKYN in the plasma of animals with AP, as compared to the control group. When assessed 24 hours after induction of AP, those changes were no longer observed in blood. Instead, a decrease in TRP level appeared. Increase in plasma QUIN was associated with neurologic disturbances. In the present study we demonstrated transient activation of kynurenine pathway during early stages of experimental necrotizing AP, with increased blood levels of QUIN, KYNA, KYN, and 3HKYN and subsequent depletion of TRP. As some kynurenine derivatives, e.g. quinolinic acid, are endogenous toxins, they might contribute to neurologic and other organs disturbances during AP