Single-plant chambers to control humidity for pathological studies

The construction of a set of controlled-humidity chambers for single plants is described. Accurate control of relative humidity (r.h.) between 40% and 99% was achieved by mixing dry air with a saturated air stream using solenoid valves controlled by a programmable data logger. At values of r.h. >90%, mean values over periods greater than 1 min were constant to within ±0-1% and spot measurements at 3 s intervals were within 0-3% of the mean value. The system responded to a step change of r.h. in about 6-10 min and diurnal changes of r.h. were reproduced, similar to those observed in nature. The stability of control made it possible to differentiate between the requirement of liquid water and very high humidity (98% r.h.) for conidial germination and subsequent infection of groundnut by Phaeoisariopsis personata, the cause of late leaf spot disease

Infection efficiency of Phaeoisariopsis personata and the influence of different wetness patterns on germ-tube growth of the pathogen

Controlled environment studies with P. personata [Mycosphaerella berkeleyi], the causal agent of late leaf spot disease of groundnut, showed that infection is enhanced if leaves are exposed to alternate wet and dry periods (intermittent wetness) compared with continuous wetness. Detailed investigations to elucidate this phenomenon revealed more germ tubes per conidium and more branching of germ tubes with intermittent wetness than with continuous wetness. With intermittent wetness there was clear evidence of tropic growth of germ tubes and branches towards stomata and subsequent penetration. With continuous wetness, germ tube growth did not appear to be directional and germ tubes commonly passed over the stomatal guard cells, therefore leading to relatively few stomatal penetrations. For both wetness regimes, stomatal penetrations continued to increase with increased leaf wetness for at least 6 d after inoculation and there was a linear relationship between the number of stomatal penetrations and the number of resultant lesions. Infection efficiency was markedly increased when the spore load was reduced to 0.1 conidia/cm² (c. 1 spore/leaflet)

Situational awareness, relational coordination and integrated care delivery to hospitalized elderly in the Netherlands: A comparison between hospitals

__Abstract__ Background: It is known that interprofessional collaboration is crucial for integrated care delivery, yet we are still unclear about the underlying mechanisms explaining effectiveness of integrated care delivery to older patients. In addition, we lack research comparing integrated care delivery between hospitals. Therefore, this study aims to (i) provide insight into the underlying components 'relational coordination' and 'situational awareness' of integrated care delivery and the role of team and organizational context in integrated care delivery; and (ii) compare situational awareness, relational coordination, and integrated care delivery of different hospitals in the Netherlands. Methods. This cross-sectional study took place in 2012 among professionals from three different hospitals involved in the delivery of care to older patients. A total of 215 professionals filled in the questionnaire (42% response rate).Descriptive statistics and paired-sample t-tests were used to investigate the level of situational awareness, relational coordination, and integrated care delivery in the three different hospitals. Correlation and multilevel analyses were used to investigate the relationship between background characteristics, team context, organizational context, situational awareness, relational coordination and integrated care delivery. Results: No differences in background characteristics, team context, organizational context, situational awareness, relational coordination and integrated care delivery were found among the three hospitals. Correlational analysis revealed that situational awareness (r = 0.30; p < 0.01), relational coordination (r = 0.17; p < 0.05), team climate (r = 0.29; p < 0.01), formal internal communication (r = 0.46; p < 0.01), and informal internal communication (r = 0.36; p < 0.01) were positively associated with integrated care delivery. Stepwise multilevel analyses showed that formal internal communication (p < 0.001) and situational awareness (p < 0.01) were associated with integrated care delivery. Team climate was not significantly associated with integrated care delivery when situational awareness and relational coordination were included in the equation. Thus situational awareness acted as mediator between team climate and integrated care delivery among professionals delivering care to older hospitalized patients. Conclusions: The results of this study show the importance of formal internal communication and situational awareness for quality of care delivery to hospitalized older patients

Complexity Theory for a New Managerial Paradigm: A Research Framework

In this work, we supply a theoretical framework of how organizations can embed complexity management and sustainable development into their policies and actions. The proposed framework may lead to a new management paradigm, attempting to link the main concepts of complexity theory, change management, knowledge management, sustainable development, and cybernetics. We highlight how the processes of organizational change have occurred as a result of the move to adapt to the changes in the various global and international business environments and how this transformation has led to the shift toward the present innovation economy. We also point how organizational change needs to deal with sustainability, so that the change may be consistent with present needs, without compromising the future

Severe traumatic injury during long duration spaceflight: Light years beyond ATLS

Traumatic injury strikes unexpectedly among the healthiest members of the human population, and has been an inevitable companion of exploration throughout history. In space flight beyond the Earth's orbit, NASA considers trauma to be the highest level of concern regarding the probable incidence versus impact on mission and health. Because of limited resources, medical care will have to focus on the conditions most likely to occur, as well as those with the most significant impact on the crew and mission. Although the relative risk of disabling injuries is significantly higher than traumatic deaths on earth, either issue would have catastrophic implications during space flight. As a result this review focuses on serious life-threatening injuries during space flight as determined by a NASA consensus conference attended by experts in all aspects of injury and space flight

Frequent mutation of histone-modifying genes in non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Follicular lymphoma (FL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) are the two most common non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs). Here we sequenced tumour and matched normal DNA from 13 DLBCL cases and one FL case to identify genes with mutations in B-cell NHL. We analysed RNA-seq data from these and another 113 NHLs to identify genes with candidate mutations, and then re-sequenced tumour and matched normal DNA from these cases to confirm 109 genes with multiple somatic mutations. Genes with roles in histone modification were frequent targets of somatic mutation. For example, 32% of DLBCL and 89% of FL cases had somatic mutations in MLL2, which encodes a histone methyltransferase, and 11.4% and 13.4% of DLBCL and FL cases, respectively, had mutations in MEF2B, a calcium-regulated gene that cooperates with CREBBP and EP300 in acetylating histones. Our analysis suggests a previously unappreciated disruption of chromatin biology in lymphomagenesis