Addressing Internal Displacement through National Laws and Policies: A Plea for a Promising Means of Protection

Unlike in the case of refugees, there is neither an international convention nor a dedicated UN agency in place to protect internally displaced persons. This discrepancy has, however, not stopped the law on internal displacement from emerging, filling the normative void around internal displacement. The UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement of 1998, a soft law instrument on the protection of the rights of internally displaced persons, is a success story, having faced disapproval in the past but now being an internationally recognized standard. Most importantly, the principles have become the point of reference for states developing national laws and policies addressing internal displacement. These national developments across the globe are an expression of the recognized and assumed responsibility of national authorities for the displaced and, although such instruments show shortcomings and weaknesses, their greater good for the better protection of internally displaced persons is undeniable. While national instruments on the protection of internally displaced persons are a still emerging tool of protection, they are also the future of the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacemen

Hegelian Freedom and the Communitarian Critique of the Market

Market structures have come to dominate every area of our society, and market logic—in the form of rational choice theory, the law and economics movement, and the like—has equally dominated our thinking about society. In this thesis, I will examine one critique of this state of affairs: that offered by G.W.F. Hegel. I compare Hegel’s critique of the market to the similar critique of modern communitarians like Charles Taylor and Michael Sandel, and argue that Hegel’s distinctive conception of freedom allows him to capture what is right about the modern communitarian view while avoiding most of the common criticisms

Imaging in-stent restenosis: an inexpensive, reliable, and rapid preclinical model.

Preclinical models of restenosis are essential to unravel the pathophysiological processes that lead to in-stent restenosis and to optimize existing and future drug-eluting stents. A variety of antibodies and transgenic and knockout strains are available in rats. Consequently, a model for in-stent restenosis in the rat would be convenient for pathobiological and pathophysiological studies. In this video, we present the full procedure and pit-falls of a rat stent model suitable for high throughput stent research. We will show the surgical procedure of stent deployment, and the assessment of in-stent restenosis using the most elegant technique of OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography). This technique provides high accuracy in assessing plaque CSAs (cross section areas) and correlates well with histological sections, which require special and time consuming embedding and sectioning techniques. OCT imaging further allows longitudinal monitoring of the development of in-stent restenosis within the same animal compared to one-time snapshots using histology

Dichloroacetate prevents restenosis in preclinical animal models of vessel injury

PMCID: PMC4323184.-- et al.Despite the introduction of antiproliferative drug-eluting stents, coronary heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States. In-stent restenosis and bypass graft failure are characterized by excessive smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation and concomitant myointima formation with luminal obliteration. Here we show that during the development of myointimal hyperplasia in human arteries, SMCs show hyperpolarization of their mitochondrial membrane potential (Δ Ψ m) and acquire a temporary state with a high proliferative rate and resistance to apoptosis. Pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase isoform 2 (PDK2) was identified as a key regulatory protein, and its activation proved necessary for relevant myointima formation. Pharmacologic PDK2 blockade with dichloroacetate or lentiviral PDK2 knockdown prevented Δ Ψ m hyperpolarization, facilitated apoptosis and reduced myointima formation in injured human mammary and coronary arteries, rat aortas, rabbit iliac arteries and swine (pig) coronary arteries. In contrast to several commonly used antiproliferative drugs, dichloroacetate did not prevent vessel re-endothelialization. Targeting myointimal Δ Ψ m and alleviating apoptosis resistance is a novel strategy for the prevention of proliferative vascular diseases. © 2014 Macmillan Publishers Limited.This study was funded by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), SCHR992/3-1 and SCHR992/4-1 to S.S.), the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT, to S.S.), the Förderverein des Universitären Herzzentrums Hamburg (to S.S.), the Hermann and Lilly Schilling Foundation (to C.K.), the MINECO (SAF2013-41177-R, to J.P.B.) and the NIH (NIH 1R01HL105299, to P.S.T.).Peer Reviewe

Inklusive Schule : Diese Fertigkeiten benötigt eine Ergotherapeutin/ein Ergotherapeut im Ausland

Darstellung des Themas: Ergotherapeutinnen, welche in ausländischen Regelschulen arbeiten, wenden unterschiedliche Fertigkeiten an, um die Partizipation von Kindern mit einer Behinderung im inklusiven Schulsetting zu fördern. Diese ergotherapeutische Unterstützung führt bei den Kindern zu einer höheren Sozialkompetenz und einer schnelleren Aneignung neuer Fertigkeiten. Ziel: Diese Bachelorarbeit zeigt auf, welche Enablement Skills eine Ergotherapeutin in der inklusiven Beschulung in den Ländern Amerika, Kanada, Australien oder England in der gegenwärtigen Zeit benötigt. Methode: Für die systematische Literaturrecherche wurden Ein- und Ausschlusskriterien definiert. Resultierend aus der Datenbankrecherche wurden vier Hauptstudien kritisch beurteilt. Die Ergebnisse wurden den Enablement Skills zugeordnet und diskutiert. Ergebnisse: Ergotherapeutinnen wenden im inklusiven Schulsetting alle zehn Enablement Skills in unterschiedlichem Masse an. Die Fertigkeit „Collaborate“ wurde in den Ergebnissen mit der grössten Reichweite abgedeckt und ist für Ergotherapeutinnen im Ausland elementar. Schlussfolgerung: Die Ergotherapeutin hat mit ihren Fertigkeiten die Möglichkeit, Schweizer Schulen in vielen Bereichen in ihrer Entwicklung zur Inklusion zu unterstützen. Durch die Etablierung der Ergotherapie in Schulen könnte das Wissen der Pädagogen mit dem medizinisch-therapeutischen Fachwissen der Ergotherapeutinnen ergänzt und dadurch die Partizipation von Kindern mit einer Behinderung verbessert werden

Blood markers of alcohol use in epistaxis patients

Epistaxis and alcohol overconsumption are frequently encountered in patients admitted to emergency wards. The aim of the study was to analyze indirect markers of alcohol overconsumption in epistaxis patients and evaluate its role as a risk factor. In a cohort of 510 epistaxis patients indirect markers of alcohol overuse were measured including the mean corpuscular volume (MCV), gamma glutamyltransferase (GGT), aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase. The results were compared to the normal findings in literature. Pathologic mean levels of GGT were found in epistaxis patients. Almost 5% had macrocytosis and MCV correlated positively with liver enzyme levels. Platelet counts were negatively correlated with both corpuscular volumes and liver enzymes. Indirect markers of alcohol overconsumption were found to be elevated in epistaxis patients. These results suggest that a subgroup of epistaxis patients overconsumes alcoholic beverages supporting the idea of alcohol abuse being a risk factor in epistaxis. Questioning about drinking habits should be employed and help offered to affected patient

Media Coverage of Online Social Network Privacy Issues in Germany: A Thematic Analysis

The massive growth of online social networking platforms in recent years has brought with it increasing privacy concerns. Rarely do long periods of time pass without some major privacy issue being brought to light. In this paper we present our study regarding media coverage of privacy issues in social networks, and the effects thereof. We gathered all news articles from over 30 German media sources, published between September 1st, 2007 and August 31st, 2008. Using ‘thematic analysis’, we categorized and coded those articles, and identified the major themes among them. The results showed the main themes of interest in the media, and, more importantly, the very significant effect media coverage has on providers, and on the redesign of privacy-compromising features. The results emphasized the need for more regulation of privacy-preserving practices. This study also set the stage for further inquiries into the topic in U.S. media

Molecular dynamics study of taxadiene synthase catalysis

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been performed to study the dynamic behavior of noncovalent enzyme carbocation complexes involved in the cyclization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate to taxadiene catalyzed by taxadiene synthase (TXS). Taxadiene and the observed four side products originate from the deprotonation of carbocation intermediates. The MD simulations of the TXS carbocation complexes provide insights into potential deprotonation mechanisms of such carbocations. The MD results do not support a previous hypothesis that carbocation tumbling is a key factor in the deprotonation of the carbocations by pyrophosphate. Instead water bridges are identified which may allow the formation of side products via multiple proton transfer reactions. A novel reaction path for taxadiene formation is proposed on the basis of the simulations

Outcomes of Primary Flexor Tendon Repairs in Zones 2 and 3: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

PURPOSE The aims of this retrospective cohort study were to present outcomes of zone 2 and 3 primary flexor tendon repairs and to evaluate how clinical outcomes change over time within and between zones of injury at weeks 6, 13, and 26. METHODS Data were retrieved from a multicenter flexor tendon cohort registry from 2014 to 2021. The inclusion criteria were: (1) adult patients after primary flexor tendon surgery in zone 2 or 3, (2) flexor digitorum profundus laceration of >50%, (3) 4-6 multistrand flexor digitorum profundus core suture, and (4) early active motion protocol. The primary outcome was the range of motion. Secondary outcomes were strength, patient satisfaction on an 11-point Likert scale, and self-reported physical function measured with the Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand questionnaire 6, 13, and 26 weeks after surgery. RESULTS We evaluated 33 patients after 39 tendon repairs in zone 3 and 174 repairs in zone 2 of 163 patients. Range of motion significantly improved over time in both zones (P < .001 to .01). Between-group range of motion differences were nonsignificant except for week 26 (P < .001) for the zone 3 group. Hand strength significantly improved in both zones over time (P < .001 to .01), while between-zone strength differences were statistically nonsignificant (P = .37 to .93). Patient satisfaction was generally good to high (mean 6.8 to 8.0 points) with significant within-group changes in both zones (P < .001). There were no relevant between-zone differences in Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand scores at any time point. CONCLUSIONS Patients had significantly improved clinical outcomes in both zones. The zone of injury significantly affected the total active motion scores at the final assessment after 26 weeks for the zone 3 injuries. For the secondary outcomes hand strength, patient satisfaction, and Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand scores, we discovered no significant between-group differences. TYPE OF STUDY/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Therapeutic IV