An exceptionally well-preserved skeleton of Palaeothentes from the Early Miocene of Patagonia, Argentina: new insights into the anatomy of extinct paucituberculatan marsupials

International audienc

Cognitive behaviour therapy response and dropout rate across purging and nonpurging bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder : DSM-5 implications

Background: With the imminent publication of the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), there has been a growing interest in the study of the boundaries across the three bulimic spectrum syndromes [bulimia nervosa-purging type (BN-P), bulimia nervosa-non purging type (BN-NP) and binge eating disorder (BED)]. Therefore, the aims of this study were to determine differences in treatment response and dropout rates following Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) across the three bulimic-spectrum syndromes. Method: The sample comprised of 454 females (87 BED, 327 BN-P and 40 BN-NP) diagnosed according to DSM-IV-TR criteria who were treated with 22 weekly outpatient sessions of group CBT therapy. Patients were assessed before and after treatment using a food and binging/purging diary and some clinical questionnaires in the field of ED. "Full remission" was defined as total absence of binging and purging (laxatives and/or vomiting) behaviors and psychological improvement for at least 4 (consecutive). Results: Full remission rate was found to be significantly higher in BED (69.5%) than in both BN-P (p < 0.005) and BN-NP (p < 0.001), which presented no significant differences between them (30.9% and 35.5%). The rate of dropout from group CBT was also higher in BED (33.7%) than in BN-P (p < 0.001) and BN-NP (p < 0.05), which were similar (15.4% and 12.8%, respectively). Conclusions: Results suggest that purging and non-purging BN have similar treatment response and dropping out rates, whereas BED appears as a separate diagnosis with better outcome for those who complete treatment. The results support the proposed new DSM-5 classification

Simulating multiple quantum well solar cells

The quantum well solar cell (QWSC) has been proposed as a route to higher efficiency than that attainable by homojunction devices. Previous studies have established that carriers escape the quantum wells with high efficiency in forward bias and contribute to the photocurrent. Progress in resolving the efficiency limits of these cells has been dogged by the lack of a theoretical model reproducing both the enhanced carrier gen- eration and enhanced recombination due to the quantum wells. Here we present a model which calculates the incremental generation and recombination due to the QWs and is verified by modelling the experimental light and dark current-voltage characteristics of a range of III-V quantum well structures. We find that predicted dark currents are significantly greater than experiment if we use lifetimes derived from homostructure devices. Successful simulation of light and dark currents can be obtained only by introducing a parameter which represents a reduction in the quasi-Fermi level separation.Comment: Preprint submitted to the 28th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, Anchorage, Alaska, USA, Sept. 2000, pp. 1304-130

Predicting Return to Work in Employees Sick-Listed Due to Minor Mental Disorders

Objective To investigate which factors predict return to work (RTW) after 3 and 6 months in employees sick-listed due to minor mental disorders. Methods Seventy GPs recruited 194 subjects at the start of sick leave due to minor mental disorders. At baseline (T0), 3 and 6 months later (T1 and T2, respectively), subjects received a questionnaire and were interviewed by telephone. Using multivariate logistic regression analyses, we developed three prediction models to predict RTW at T1 and T2. Results The RTW rates were 38% after 3 months (T1) and 61% after 6 months (T2). The main negative predictors of RTW at T1 were: (a) a duration of the problems of more than 3 months before sick leave; and (b) somatisation. The main negative predictors of RTW at T2 were: (a) a duration of the problems of more than 3 months before sick leave; (b) more than 3 weeks of sick leave before inclusion in the study; and (c) anxiety. The main negative predictors of RTW at T2 for those who had not resumed work at T1 were: (a) more than 3 weeks of sick leave before inclusion in the study; and (b) depression at T1. The predictive power of the models was moderate with AUC-values between 0.695 and 0.763. Conclusions The main predictors of RTW were associated with the severity of the problems. A long duration of the problems before the occurrence of sick leave and a long duration of sick leave before seeking help predict a relatively small probability to RTW within 3–6 months. High baseline somatisation and anxiety, and high depression after 3 months make the prospect even worse. Since these predictors are readily assessable with just a few questions and a symptom questionnaire, this opens the opportunity to select high-risk employees for a targeted intervention to prevent long-term absenteeism

Observation of associated near-side and away-side long-range correlations in √sNN=5.02 TeV proton-lead collisions with the ATLAS detector

Two-particle correlations in relative azimuthal angle (Δϕ) and pseudorapidity (Δη) are measured in √sNN=5.02  TeV p+Pb collisions using the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The measurements are performed using approximately 1  μb-1 of data as a function of transverse momentum (pT) and the transverse energy (ΣETPb) summed over 3.1<η<4.9 in the direction of the Pb beam. The correlation function, constructed from charged particles, exhibits a long-range (2<|Δη|<5) “near-side” (Δϕ∼0) correlation that grows rapidly with increasing ΣETPb. A long-range “away-side” (Δϕ∼π) correlation, obtained by subtracting the expected contributions from recoiling dijets and other sources estimated using events with small ΣETPb, is found to match the near-side correlation in magnitude, shape (in Δη and Δϕ) and ΣETPb dependence. The resultant Δϕ correlation is approximately symmetric about π/2, and is consistent with a dominant cos⁡2Δϕ modulation for all ΣETPb ranges and particle pT

Towards a target label-free suboptimum oligonucleotide displacement-based detection system

A novel method for the future development of label-free DNA sensors is proposed here. The approach is based on the displacement of a labelled suboptimum mutated oligonucleotide hybridised with the immobilised biotin-capture probe. The target fully complementary to the biotin-capture probe can displace the labelled oligonucleotide causing a subsequent decrease of the signal that verifies the presence of the target. The decrease of signal was demonstrated to be proportional to the target concentration. A study of the hybridisation of mutated and complementary labelled oligonucleotides with an immobilised biotin-capture probe was carried out. Different kinetic and thermodynamic behaviour was observed for heterogeneous hybridisation of biotin-capture probe with complementary or suboptimum oligonucleotides. The displacement method evaluated colourimetrically achieved the objective of decreasing the response time from 1 h for direct hybridisation of 19-mer oligonucleotides in the direct enzyme-linked oligonucleotide assay (ELONA) to 5 min in the case of displacement detection in the micromolar concentration range

Structural basis for the Pr-Pfr long-range signaling mechanism of a full-length bacterial phytochrome at the atomic level.

Phytochromes constitute a widespread photoreceptor family that typically interconverts between two photostates called Pr (red light–absorbing) and Pfr (far-red light–absorbing). The lack of full-length structures solved at the (near-)atomic level in both pure Pr and Pfr states leaves gaps in the structural mechanisms involved in the signal transmission pathways during the photoconversion. Here, we present the crystallographic structures of three versions from the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris virulence regulator XccBphP bacteriophytochrome, including two full-length proteins, in the Pr and Pfr states. The structures show a reorganization of the interaction networks within and around the chromophore-binding pocket, an α-helix/β-sheet tongue transition, and specific domain reorientations, along with interchanging kinks and breaks at the helical spine as a result of the photoswitching, which subsequently affect the quaternary assembly. These structural findings, combined with multidisciplinary studies, allow us to describe the signaling mechanism of a full-length bacterial phytochrome at the atomic level

The pedunculopontine nucleus is related to visual hallucinations in Parkinson’s disease: preliminary results of a voxel-based morphometry study

Visual hallucinations (VH) are common in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and lead to a poor quality of life. For a long time, dopaminergic therapy was considered to be the most important risk factor for the development of VH in PD. Recently, the cholinergic system, including the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN), has been implicated in the pathophysiology of VH. The aim of the present study was to investigate grey matter density of the PPN region and one of its projection areas, the thalamus. Thirteen non-demented PD patients with VH were compared to 16 non-demented PD patients without VH, 13 demented PD patients (PDD) with VH and 11 patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Isotropic 3-D T1-weighted MRI images (3T) were analysed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) with the PPN region and thalamus as ROIs. PD and PDD patients with VH showed grey matter reductions of the PPN region and the thalamus compared to PD patients without VH. VH in PD(D) patients are associated with atrophy of the PPN region and its thalamic target area, suggesting that a cholinergic deficit may be involved in the development of VH in PD(D)

Comparative Proteomic Analysis of Serum from Patients with Systemic Sclerosis and Sclerodermatous GVHD. Evidence of Defective Function of Factor H

BACKGROUND: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by immunological and vascular abnormalities. Until now, the cause of SSc remains unclear. Sclerodermatous graft-versus-host disease (ScGVHD) is one of the most severe complications following bone marrow transplantation (BMT) for haematological disorders. Since the first cases, the similarity of ScGVHD to SSc has been reported. However, both diseases could have different etiopathogeneses. The objective of this study was to identify new serum biomarkers involved in SSc and ScGVHD. METHODOLOGY: Serum was obtained from patients with SSc and ScGVHD, patients without ScGVHD who received BMT for haematological disorders and healthy controls. Bi-dimensional electrophoresis (2D) was carried out to generate maps of serum proteins from patients and controls. The 2D maps underwent image analysis and differently expressed proteins were identified. Immuno-blot analysis and ELISA assay were used to validate the proteomic data. Hemolytic assay with sheep erythrocytes was performed to evaluate the capacity of Factor H (FH) to control complement activation on the cellular surface. FH binding to endothelial cells (ECs) was also analysed in order to assess possible dysfunctions of this protein. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Fourteen differentially expressed proteins were identified. We detected pneumococcal antibody cross-reacting with double stranded DNA in serum of all bone marrow transplanted patients with ScGVHD. We documented higher levels of FH in serum of SSc and ScGVHD patients compared healthy controls and increased sheep erythrocytes lysis after incubation with serum of diffuse SSc patients. In addition, we observed that FH binding to ECs was reduced when we used serum from these patients. CONCLUSIONS: The comparative proteomic analysis of serum from SSc and ScGVHD patients highlighted proteins involved in either promoting or maintaining an inflammatory state. We also found a defective function of Factor H, possibly associated with ECs damage