29 research outputs found
Daily Work Stress and Relationship Satisfaction: Detachment Affects Romantic Couples' Interactions Quality
Psychologically detaching from work in the private setting is crucial to recover from work stress and promotes well-being. Moreover, broad evidence documents negative effects of stress on relationship quality. However, the interpersonal consequences of detachment have barely been studied. We seek to investigate, in daily life, whether and how detachment affects the interaction quality with the romantic partner. We propose that stress impedes detaching from work, and that detachment in turn, promotes individualsâ ability to engage in positive interactions at home, which increases individual and relational well-being. In a first experience sampling study, involving 106 dual-earner couples with young children, detachment mediated the association between work stress and not only the stressed individualâs, but also their partnerâs relationship quality. However, positive (affectionate) behaviors did not play a significant role in this process. In a second experience sampling study, involving 53 dual-earner couples with preschool children, detachment was associated with more affectionate interactions, which in turn, predicted lower actor, but not partner evening strain. These results suggest that detachment from work not only affects the working individualâs, but also their close partnerâs the perception of their interactions, showing that detachment plays an important mediating role in the stress spillover and crossover process. This emphasizes the relevance of addressing interpersonal processes in the association between detachment and well-being
Sepsis-induced long-term immune paralysis â results of a descriptive, explorative study
Background: Long-lasting impairment of the immune system is believed to be the underlying reason for delayed deaths after surviving sepsis. We tested the hypothesis of persisting changes to the immune system in survivors of sepsis for the first time. Methods: In our prospective, cross-sectional pilot study, eight former patients who survived catecholamine-dependent sepsis and eight control individuals matched for age, sex, diabetes and renal insufficiency were enrolled. Each participant completed a questionnaire concerning morbidities, medications and infection history. Peripheral blood was collected for determination of i) immune cell subsets (CD4+, CD8+ T cells; CD25+ CD127- regulatory T cells; CD14+ monocytes), ii) cell surface receptor expression (PD-1, BTLA, TLR2, TLR4, TLR5, Dectin-1, PD-1 L), iii) HLA-DR expression, and iv) cytokine secretion (IL-6, IL10, TNF-α, IFN-γ) of whole blood stimulated with either α-CD3/28, LPS or zymosan. Results: After surviving sepsis, former patients presented with increased numbers of clinical apparent infections, including those typically associated with an impaired immune system. Standard inflammatory markers indicated a low-level inflammatory situation in former sepsis patients. CD8+ cell surface receptor as well as monocytic HLA-DR density measurements showed no major differences between the groups, while CD4+ T cells tended towards two opposed mechanisms of negative immune cell regulation via PD-1 and BTLA. Moreover, the post-sepsis group showed alterations in monocyte surface expression of distinct pattern recognition receptors; most pronouncedly seen in a decrease of TLR5 expression. Cytokine secretion in response to important activators of both the innate (LPS, zymosan) and the adaptive immune system (α-CD3/28) seemed to be weakened in former septic patients. Conclusions: Cytokine secretion as a reaction to different activators of the immune system seemed to be comprehensively impaired in survivors of sepsis. Among others, this could be based on trends in the downregulation of distinct cell surface receptors. Based on our results, the conduct of larger validation studies seems feasible, aiming to characterize alterations and to find potential therapeutic targets to engage
Discovery of 9 New Companions to Nearby Young M Stars with the Altair AO System
We present results of a high-resolution, near-infrared survey of 41 nearby,
young (<~300 Myr) M0-M5.0 dwarfs using the Altair natural guide star adaptive
optics system at the Gemini North telescope. Twelve of the objects appear to be
binaries, 7 of which are reported here for the first time. One triple system
was discovered. Statistical properties are studied and compared with earlier (F
to K) and later (>= M6 very low-mass, VLM) populations. We find that the
separation distribution of the binaries in this sample peaks at 13+14-9 AU,
which is consistent with previous measurements of early-M binaries. Hence,
early-M binaries seem to occur in--on average--tighter systems than G binaries.
At the same time they are significantly wider than field VLM binary stars. The
distribution of mass ratios q of primary and secondary stars was found to show
an intermediate distribution between the strongly q-->1 peaked distribution of
field VLM systems and the almost flat distribution of earlier-type stars.
Consequently, we show evidence for relatively young, early-M binaries
representing a transition between the well known earlier star distributions and
the recently examined field VLM population characteristics. Despite the fact
that this survey was dedicated to the search for faint brown dwarf and
planetary mass companions, all planetary mass candidates were background
objects. We exclude the existence of physical companions with masses greater
than 10 Jupiter masses (M_Jup) at separations of >~40 AU and masses greater
than 24 M_Jup for separations >~10 AU around 37 of the 41 observed objects.Comment: To appear in the January 1, 2007 issue of the Astrophysical Journal,
12 pages, 13 figures. Minor typographical and grammatical changes. Wrong
round off in binary fraction correcte
Formation and Evolution of Planetary Systems (FEPS): Properties of Debris Dust around Solar-type Stars
We present Spitzer photometric (IRAC and MIPS) and spectroscopic (IRS low
resolution) observations for 314 stars in the Formation and Evolution of
Planetary Systems (FEPS) Legacy program. These data are used to investigate the
properties and evolution of circumstellar dust around solar-type stars spanning
ages from approximately 3 Myr to 3 Gyr. We identify 46 sources that exhibit
excess infrared emission above the stellar photosphere at 24um, and 21 sources
with excesses at 70um. Five sources with an infrared excess have
characteristics of optically thick primordial disks, while the remaining
sources have properties akin to debris systems. The fraction of systems
exhibiting a 24um excess greater than 10.2% above the photosphere is 15% for
ages < 300 Myr and declines to 2.7% for older ages. The upper envelope to the
70um fractional luminosity appears to decline over a similar age range. The
characteristic temperature of the debris inferred from the IRS spectra range
between 60 and 180 K, with evidence for the presence of cooler dust to account
for the strength of the 70um excess emission. No strong correlation is found
between dust temperature and stellar age. Comparison of the observational data
with disk models containing a power-law distribution of silicate grains suggest
that the typical inner disk radius is > 10 AU. Although the interpretation is
not unique, the lack of excess emission shortwards of 16um and the relatively
flat distribution of the 24um excess for ages <300~Myr is consistent with
steady-state collisional models.Comment: 85 pages, 18 figures, 4 tables; accepted for publication in ApJ
Impact of human sepsis on CCCTC-binding factor associated monocyte transcriptional response of Major Histocompatibility Complex II components.
BACKGROUND:Antigen presentation on monocyte surface to T-cells by Major Histocompatibility Complex, Class II (MHC-II) molecules is fundamental for pathogen recognition and efficient host response. Accordingly, loss of Major Histocompatibility Complex, Class II, DR (HLA-DR) surface expression indicates impaired monocyte functionality in patients suffering from sepsis-induced immunosuppression. Besides the impact of Class II Major Histocompatibility Complex Transactivator (CIITA) on MHC-II gene expression, X box-like (XL) sequences have been proposed as further regulatory elements. These elements are bound by the DNA-binding protein CCCTC-Binding Factor (CTCF), a superordinate modulator of gene transcription. Here, we hypothesized a differential interaction of CTCF with the MHC-II locus contributing to an altered monocyte response in immunocompromised septic patients. METHODS:We collected blood from six patients diagnosed with sepsis and six healthy controls. Flow cytometric analysis was used to identify sepsis-induced immune suppression, while inflammatory cytokine levels in blood were determined via ELISA. Isolation of CD14++ CD16-monocytes was followed by (i) RNA extraction for gene expression analysis and (ii) chromatin immunoprecipitation to assess the distribution of CTCF and chromatin modifications in selected MHC-II regions. RESULTS:Compared to healthy controls, CD14++ CD16-monocytes from septic patients with immune suppression displayed an increased binding of CTCF within the MHC-II locus combined with decreased transcription of CIITA gene. In detail, enhanced CTCF enrichment was detected on the intergenic sequence XL9 separating two subregions coding for MHC-II genes. Depending on the relative localisation to XL9, gene expression of both regions was differentially affected in patients with sepsis. CONCLUSION:Our experiments demonstrate for the first time that differential CTCF binding at XL9 is accompanied by uncoupled MHC-II expression as well as transcriptional and epigenetic alterations of the MHC-II regulator CIITA in septic patients. Overall, our findings indicate a sepsis-induced enhancer blockade mediated by variation of CTCF at the intergenic sequence XL9 in altered monocytes during immunosuppression
Sepsis induces specific changes in histone modification patterns in human monocytes.
Sepsis is a global burden and the primary cause of death in intensive care units worldwide. The pathophysiological changes induced by the host's systemic inflammatory response to infection are not yet fully understood. During sepsis, the immune system is confronted with a variety of factors, which are integrated within the individual cells and result in changes of their basal state of responsiveness. Epigenetic mechanisms like histone modifications are known to participate in the control of immune reactions, but so far the situation during sepsis is unknown.In a pilot approach, we performed combined chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by high-throughput sequencing to assess the genome-wide distribution of the chromatin modifications histone 3 lysine 4 and 27 trimethylation and lysine 9 acetylation in monocytes isolated from healthy donors (n = 4) and patients with sepsis (n = 2). Despite different underlying causes for sepsis, a comparison over promoter regions shows a high correlation between the patients for all chromatin marks. These findings hold true also when comparing patients to healthy controls. Despite the global similarity, differential analysis reveals a set of distinct promoters with significant enrichment or depletion of histone marks. Further analysis of overrepresented GO terms show an enrichment of genes involved in immune function. To the most prominent ones belong different members of the HLA family located within the MHC cluster together with the gene coding for the major regulator of this locus-CIITA.We are able to show for the first time that sepsis in humans induces selective and precise changes of chromatin modifications in distinct promoter regions of immunologically relevant genes, shedding light on basal regulatory mechanisms that might be contributing to the functional changes occurring in monocytes
Studienerfolg nachhaltig fördern â BeitrĂ€ge des LearningCenters der Hochschule OsnabrĂŒck
In der Schriftenreihe âVoneinander Lehren lernenâ der Hochschule OsnabrĂŒck werden anwendungsbezogene BeitrĂ€ge zur QualitĂ€tsentwicklung in Studium und Lehre publiziert. Die Schriftenreihe ist an das Konzept des âScholarship of Teaching and Learningâ (SoTL) angelehnt. Demnach soll sie insbesondere den Fachlehrenden aller StudiengĂ€nge als Plattform dienen, um ihre eigenen Erfahrungen, Ideen und Konzepte zur Lehr- und Studiengangentwicklung systematisch zu reflektieren und entsprechende Erkenntnisse fĂŒr andere nutzbar zu machen. Ziel ist es, den Diskurs ĂŒber hochschuldidaktische Themen in die FĂ€cher zu tragen und so die QualitĂ€t der Lehr-Lernprozesse in den StudiengĂ€ngen zu fördern. WĂ€hrend die bislang publizierten BĂ€nde der Schriftenreihe eng an das SoTL-basierte Lehrkolleg der Hochschule OsnabrĂŒck angelehnt waren, handelt es sich bei diesem Band um eine Sonderausgabe. Abweichend vom eigentlichen Konzept enthĂ€lt er nicht ĂŒberwiegend BeitrĂ€ge von Fachlehrenden, sondern dient als Abschlusspublikation des BMBF-geförderten Projektes âVoneinander Lernen lernenâ, auf das der Titel der Schriftenreihe indirekt Bezug nimmt. In allen AufsĂ€tzen werden ausgewĂ€hlte MaĂnahmen und Ideen vorgestellt, die im Rahmen des Projektes oder in damit verwandten ArbeitszusammenhĂ€ngen umgesetzt wurden. Die Texte wurden von Mitarbeitenden des LearningCenters verfasst, das als hochschuldidaktische Organisationseinheit aus dem Projekt âVoneinander Lernen lernenâ hervorgegangen ist
Chromatin changes in the promoter region of the IL1R2 gene.
<p>Genome browser snapshot of a 591,455 bp region of chromosome 2 (102,282,711â102,874,166): Top panel shows the gene models. For two patients (red; #P1 and #P2) and four controls (blue; #C1-#C4) we show normalized ChIP-seq coverage vectors for 3 modifications (H3K4me3, H3K27me3 and H3K9ac). We indicate three regions (grey filled boxes) showing a clear induction of active marks (H3K4me3 and H3K9Ac).</p