Aristotle's Poetics and Aristotle's Nature

Aristotle's Poetics and Aristotle's Natur

Patterns of population genetic structure among Australian and South Pacific humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

Humpback whales undertake long-distance seasonal migrations between low latitude winter breeding grounds and high latitude summer feeding grounds. Although arguably one of the best studied of all baleen whales, there remain some critical gaps in our understanding of their population structure, migratory movement and the mixing of putative populations on the feeding grounds. Addressing these uncertainties is important in the development of demographic models that reconstruct the historical trajectory of population decline and recovery following the cessation of commercial whaling. Utilising both mitochondrial and nuclear genetic markers, this thesis examines the population structure and distribution of humpback whales that migrate to separate winter breeding grounds along the north-western and north-eastern coasts of Australia, and their interaction with the endangered populations of the South Pacific. The project investigated three important gaps in knowledge: population structure among putative breeding populations, the mixing of breeding populations on high latitude Antarctic feeding grounds and evidence for sex-specific migration along the eastern Australian migratory corridor. The thesis also reports the discovery and utility of novel nuclear genetic markers (single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs). These markers hold promise for facilitating more effective multi-laboratory collaboration. Among the Australian putative populations, weak but significant differentiation was detected across ten microsatellite loci and mitochondrial control region sequences. This pattern of low level differentiation is emerging as a characteristic of Southern Hemisphere humpback whale populations indicating extensive movement at least historically, if not presently. As the first step towards assessing the mixing of Australian and endangered South Pacific humpback whale breeding populations on the Antarctic feeding grounds, a series of simulations were conducted to estimate the statistical power of both mitochondrial and nuclear microsatellite data from these populations for a mixed-stock analysis (MSA). The results of these simulations confirmed that we can draw robust conclusions from our MSA of Antarctic feeding ground samples collected south of eastern Australia and New Zealand in 2010. Using combined mtDNA and microsatellite datasets revealed substantial contributions from both eastern Australia and New Caledonia, but not western Australia; strengthening emerging evidence that these Antarctic waters are utilized by humpback whales from both eastern Australia and the more vulnerable breeding population of New Caledonia, representing Oceania. There was no compelling evidence for sex-specific migration within the eastern Australian breeding population as indicated by the lack of significant differences detected in the patterns of haplotype sharing, haplotype frequency or haplotype differentiation between males and females. Instead, the significant differentiation revealed between the sexes at the nucleotide level for one sampling location and between sampling locations at the haplotype level suggests that humpback whale migration along eastern Australia may be more complex than previously thought. Increasing the statistical power of our genetic datasets through the addition of new informative markers, including the SNPs discovered in this project, and incorporating non-genetic data, will assist in future studies of the population genetic structure and dynamics of Southern Hemisphere humpback whales

Sozioökonomische Ungleichheiten in der Gesundheit und im Gesundheitsverhalten. Aktuelle Entwicklungen in Deutschland und Europa

Die Ergebnisse des Kinder- und Jugendgesundheitssurveys (KiGGS) enthüllen Unterschiede im Gesundheitsstatus und Gesundheitsverhalten in Deutschland je nach Einkommen, Bildungsstand und Berufswahl der Kinder und Jugendlichen selbst bzw. von deren Eltern. Besonders stark ausgeprägt sind die sozialen Unterschiede im Hinblick auf den allgemeinen Gesundheitszustand, psychische und Verhaltensauffälligkeiten sowie Übergewicht. Auch in allen anderen europäischen Staaten kumulieren Mortalität, Morbidität und verhaltensbedingte Risikofaktoren in den unteren sozioökonomischen Statusgruppen. In Europa differiert die Lebenserwartung bei Männern in höheren und niedrigeren sozialen Positionen durchschnittlich um fünf Jahre. Die Entwicklung von Strategien zur Bekämpfung sozialer Ungleichheiten in der Gesundheit ist eine der größten Herausforderungen unserer heutigen Gesellschaft.The national representative survey on the health of children and adolescents in Germany (KiGGS) revealed social inequalities in health and health behaviour in Germany according to income, education and occupation of both the children and adolescents themselves and their parents. Social inequalities in general health status, psychological or behavioural disorders, and overweight seem to be most alarming. Mortality, morbidity and detrimental health behaviour accumulate in the subpopulation with a low socioeconomic position (SEP) across Europe. The average difference in life expectancy in European men with a high and low SEP is 5 years. The development of policies and strategies to tackle this important public health issue is a major present and future challenge

Downeast Fisheries Trail: Celebrating the Fisheries Heritage of Downeast Maine, Then and Now

Road map of the Downeast Fisheries Trail from Penobscot to Passamaquoddy Bay, connecting historic and active fisheries sites that illustrate the region’s maritime heritage. Marine resources sustain the culture and economy of Downeast Maine. The Downeast Fisheries Trail builds on these local resources to strengthen community life and the experience of visitors. Map includes brief descriptions of 45 businesses, wharves, museums, and parks located along the trail

Genetic variations in bile acid homeostasis are not overrepresented in alcoholic cirrhosis compared to patients with heavy alcohol abuse and absent liver disease

Increased serum bile salt levels have been associated to a single-nucleotide polymorphism in the bile salt export pump (BSEP; ABCB11) in several acquired cholestatic liver diseases but there is little evidence in alcoholic liver disease (ALD). Furthermore, a crosstalk between vitamin D and bile acid synthesis has recently been discovered. Whether this crosstalk has an influence on the course of ALD is unclear to date. Our aim was to analyse the role of genetic polymorphisms in BSEP and the vitamin D receptor gene (NR1I1) on the emergence of cirrhosis in patients with ALD. Therefore, 511 alcoholic patients (131 with cirrhosis and 380 without cirrhosis) underwent ABCB11 genotyping (rs2287622). Of these, 321 (131 with cirrhosis and 190 without cirrhosis) were also tested for NR1I1 polymorphisms (bat-haplotype: BsmI rs1544410, ApaI rs7975232 and TaqI rs731236). Frequencies of ABCB11 and NR1I1 genotypes and haplotypes were compared between alcoholic patients with and without cirrhosis and correlated to serum bile salt, bilirubin and aspartate aminotransferase levels in those with cirrhosis. Frequencies of ABCB11 and NR1I1 genotypes and haplotypes did not differ between the two subgroups and no significant association between genotypes/haplotypes and liver function tests could be determined for neither polymorphism. We conclude that ABCB11 and NR1I1 polymorphisms are obviously not associated with development of cirrhosis in patients with AL

Roboter Charlie zu Besuch in der Schule

Um Kinder beim Erlernen überfachlicher Kompetenzen zu unterstützen, haben Forschende der Berner Fachhochschule einen humanoiden Roboter in zwei Primarschulklassen eingesetzt. Dabei konnten sie wichtige Erkenntnisse zur Mensch-Maschine-Interaktion sammeln. Diese helfen, digitale Ansätze im Gesundheitswesen umzusetzen

New Zealand blue whales: initial photo-identification of a little-known population

ABSTRACT Eighteen blue whales were photo-identified from coastal waters around the North and South Islands of New Zealand from 2004-2013 in five different months of the year. No photographic matches were found between locations. The photo-ID collection provides a foundation for future study on this little-known population. Fourteen of the photo-identifications were obtained in January and March 2013 during transits of the Antarctic Blue Whale Voyage from Nelson, NZ to Antarctica and return. This voyage also allowed for observations of the external morphology and behaviour of the blue whales encountered. Body length and proportion, head shape, body condition and skin condition were similar to Australian but not Antarctic blue whales. Feeding behaviour was observed off the South Island's west coast in January 2013 and strong evidence of feeding off the east coast in March 2013, the first this has been reported for these locations

Classification des potentiels évoqués par corrélation de Pearson dans une interface cerveau-ordinateur

National audienceDans cette communication, nous décrivons et évaluons les performances d'une technique d'apprentissage des coefficients d'un classifieur linéaire utilisé dans une interface cerveau-ordinateur. Les signaux de l'électroencéphalogramme d'un individu sont analysés au moyen de cette technique afin de mettre en évidence les réponses de ce dernier à des stimuli visuels. Le traitement et la classification des signaux sont utilisés afin d'implanter un système de communication palliative permettant à l'individu d'épeler des mots. Les performances de la méthode de classification ont été évaluées par une expérimentation sur huit personnes

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

The Nlrp3 inflammasome regulates acute graft-versus-host disease

The success of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation is limited by acute graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), a severe complication accompanied by high mortality rates. Yet, the molecular mechanisms initiating this disease remain poorly defined. In this study, we show that, after conditioning therapy, intestinal commensal bacteria and the damage-associated molecular pattern uric acid contribute to Nlrp3 inflammasome-mediated IL-1β production and that gastrointestinal decontamination and uric acid depletion reduced GvHD severity. Early blockade of IL-1β or genetic deficiency of the IL-1 receptor in dendritic cells (DCs) and T cells improved survival. The Nlrp3 inflammasome components Nlrp3 and Asc, which are required for pro-IL-1β cleavage, were critical for the full manifestation of GvHD. In transplanted mice, IL-1β originated from multiple intestinal cell compartments and exerted its effects on DCs and T cells, the latter being preferentially skewed toward Th17. Compatible with these mouse data, increased levels of active caspase-1 and IL-1β were found in circulating leukocytes and intestinal GvHD lesions of patients. Thus, the identification of a crucial role for the Nlrp3 inflammasome sheds new light on the pathogenesis of GvHD and opens a potential new avenue for the targeted therapy of this severe complication