Pilgrims and MERS-CoV: What's the risk?

10.1186/s12982-015-0025-8Emerging Themes in Epidemiology12

Nearly 30 Years of Treatment for Recurrent Granulosa Cell Tumor of the Ovary: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

A 30-year-old woman was diagnosed with a stage IA granulosa cell tumor (GCT) of the ovary in 1979. Following removal of the adnexal mass and complete surgical staging, she remained disease-free for 12 years. In 1991 she underwent a resection of a retroperitoneal mass, confirmed to be a recurrent GCT. Despite adjuvant radiation treatment at the time of recurrence, the patient presented five years later with abdominal pain, and was found to have a second recurrence. Over the next 10 years the patient had multiple recurrences and progressive disease despite surgical resection, cytotoxic, hormonal and targeted chemotherapy treatments. In conclusion, there is no standard management for recurrent GCT of the ovary. We review this patient's treatment in the context of the current literature

A Risk Assessment Model on Pine Wood Nematode in the EU

Pine wood nematode, B. xylophilus poses a serious threat for the European forest industry. This study applies a quantitative risk assessment to analyze the risk of pine wood nematode in the EU, by estimating the reduction expected within forestry stock available for wood supply and its downstream roundwood market. Spatial analysis is used to join information on climate suitability, host distribution, pest spread and value of assets. Economic impacts are presented spatially on a NUTS-2 scale based on partial budgeting technique and for the EU as a whole based on partial equilibrium modeling. Results highlight the Southern regions of Europe as high risk areas with a total impact on available forestry stock of 19,000 M € after 20 years of an outbreak and no regulatory control measures. Welfare analysis of the roundwood market, in which its production represents 2,5% of forestry stock, demonstrates the ability of the producers to pass most of the negative impact to the consumers by charging higher prices. Reduction in social welfare estimated at 2,043 M €, where consumer surplus decreased by 2,622 M € and net producer surplus, affected and non-affected producers, increased by 579 M €.Risk assessment, pine wood nematode, economic analysis, EU, Crop Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty,

Učinak opuštanja na prekidačka svojstva tankih slojeva CuInSeTe

The switching properties of amorphous CuInSeTe thin films have been investigated. The amorphous quaternary semiconductor CuInSeTe thin films ∼ 220 nm and ∼ 330 nm thick have been prepared by thermal evaporation of the bulk compound under vacuum of about 10−4 Pa and with deposition rate about 8 nm/s. The structure of the bulk and thin films were investigated by the X-ray diffraction technique. The compositional studies of CuInSeTe in both powder and thin films were carried out by Perkin Elmer Model 1100 atomic absorption spectrometer. The annealing of the films at different annealing temperatures (300, 350, 400, 450 and 500 K) improves the switching characteristics and decrease the threshold voltage Vth. The threshold switching voltage and the threshold activation energy Es were found to decrease linearly with increasing annealing temperature. Moreover, the threshold switching voltage decreased exponentially with temperature.Istraživali smo prekidačka svojstva amorfnih tankih slojeva CuInSeTe. Tanke amorfne slojeve četiritvornog poluvodiča CuInSeTe debljine ∼ 220 nm i ∼ 330 nm pripremali smo naparavanjem spoja u vakuumu pri oko 10−4 Pa, brzinom naparavanja od oko 8 nm/s. Strukturu praha i tankih slojeva odredili smo rendgenskom difrakcijom. Sastav CuInSeTe u prahu i tankih slojeva ispitali smo pomoću Perkin Elmer-ovog (model 1100) apsorpcijskog spektrometra. Opuštanje tankih slojeva na nizu temperatura (300, 350, 400, 450 i 500 K) poboljšava njihova preklopna svojstva i smanjuje napon praga preklopnog napona Vth. Našli smo da se prag preklopnog napona i prag aktivacijske energije Es linearno smanjuju s povećanjem temperature opuštanja. K tome, prag preklopnog napona smanjuje se eksponencijalno s temperaturom opuštanja

Outer Trench Slope Flexure and Faulting at Pacific Basin Subduction Zones

Flexure and fracturing of the seafloor on the outer trench wall of subduction zones reflects bending of the lithosphere beyond its elastic limit. To investigate these inelastic processes, we have developed a full non-linear inversion approach for estimating the bending moment, curvature, and outer trench wall fracturing using shipboard bathymetry and satellite altimetry derived gravity data as constraints. Bending moments and downward forces are imposed along curved trench axes and an iterative method is used to calculate the non-linear response for 26 sites in the circum-Pacific region having seafloor age ranging from 15 to 148 Ma. We use standard thermal and yield strength envelope models to develop the non-linear moment versus curvature relationship. Two coefficients of friction of 0.6 and 0.3 are considered and we find the lower value provides a better overall fit to the data. The main result is that the lithosphere is nearly moment saturated at the trench axis. The effective elastic thickness of the plate on the outer trench slope is at least three times smaller than the elastic thickness of the plate before bending at the outer rise, in agreement with previous studies. The average seafloor depth of the unbent plate in these 26 sites matches the Parsons & Sclater (1977) depth versus age model beyond 120 Ma. We also use the model to predict the offsets of normal faults on the outer trench walls and compare this with the horst and graben structures observed by multibeam surveys. The model with the lower coefficient of friction fits the fault offset data close to the trench axis. However, the model predicts significant fracturing of the lithosphere between 75 and 150 kilometres away from the trench axis where no fracturing is observed. To reconcile these observations, we impose a thermoelastic pre-stress in the lithosphere (Wessel 1992) prior to subduction. This pre-stress delays the onset of fracturing in better agreement with the data

Is the relation between non-controlling interests and parent companies misleading?

This article investigates whether different levels of investor protection affect the equity market’s valuation of non-controlling interests (NCIs) in a consolidated corporate entity. Using a set of publicly listed European firms, our findings suggest a positive (negative) association of NCIs with parent companies’ share prices in countries with low (high) levels of investor protection. We interpret the findings as evidence that when non-controlling investors are not well-protected, parent companies have an opportunity to extract rents from non-controlling owners, leading to a positive valuation of NCIs’ equity. However, in countries where non-controlling investors are well-protected, parent companies are not able to extract rents but still must monitor and govern the related subsidiary; thus, NCIs become a net cost, and the relation inverts.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

André Rousseau (éd.), «Histoire de la syntaxe 1870-1940»

La revue Modèles linguistiques consacre deux volumes aux études syntaxiques allant de 1870 à 1940. Les apports qui ont contribué à l’évolution de la conception de la syntaxe y sont présentés chronologiquement et de manière détaillée. Dans le premier volume, dans la section d’ouverture «L’héritage du XIX siècle», Monique Vanneufville (pp. 15-30) nous présente Hermann Paul (1846-1921), théoricien néogrammairien allemand qui opéra une analyse physiologique en phonétique et mena une étude psychol..

Estimating the viral loads of SARS-CoV-2 in the oral cavity when complicated with periapical lesions

Background: The oral cavity represents a main entrance of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2), neuropilin-1 (NRP-1), and transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) are essential for the entry of SARS-CoV-2 to the host cells. Both ACE-2 and NRP-1 receptors and TMPRSS2 have been identified in the oral cavity. However, there is limited knowledge about the impact of periapical lesions and their metabolites on the expression of these critical genes. This study aims to measure the impact of periapical lesions and their unique fatty acids (FAs) metabolites on the expression of the aforementioned genes, in addition to interleukin 6 (IL-6) gene and hence SARS-CoV-2 infection loads can be estimated. Methods: Gene expression of ACE-2, NRP-1, TMPRSS2, and IL-6 was performed in periapical lesions in comparison to healthy oral cavity. Since FAs are important immunomodulators required for the lipid synthesis essential for receptors synthesis and viral replication, comparative FAs profiling was determined in oral lesions and healthy pulp tissues using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The effect of major identified and unique FAs was tested on mammalian cells known to express ACE-2, NRP-1, and TMPRSS2 genes. Results: Gene expression analysis indicated that ACE-2, NRP-1, and TMPRSS2 were significantly upregulated in healthy clinical samples compared to oral lesions, while the reverse was true with IL-6 gene expression. Saturated and monounsaturated FAs were the major identified shared and unique FAs, respectively. Major shared FAs included palmitic, stearic and myristic acids with the highest percentage in the healthy oral cavity, while unique FAs included 17-octadecynoic acid in periapical abscess, petroselinic acid and l-lactic acid in periapical granuloma, and 1-nonadecene in the radicular cyst. Computational prediction showed that the binding affinity of identified FAs to ACE-2, TMPRSS2 and S protein were insignificant. Further, FA-treated mammalian cells showed significant overexpression of ACE-2, NRP-1 and TMPRSS2 genes except with l-lactic acid and oleic acid caused downregulation of NRP-1 gene, while 17-octadecynoic acid caused insignificant effect. Conclusion: Collectively, a healthy oral cavity is more susceptible to viral infection when compared to that complicated with periapical lesions. FAs play important role in viral infection and their balance can affect the viral loads. Shifting the balance towards higher levels of palmitic, stearic and 1-nonadecene caused significant upregulation of the aforementioned genes and hence higher viral loads. On the other hand, there is a reverse correlation between inflammation and expression of SARS-CoV-2 receptors. Therefore, a mouth preparation that can reduce the levels of palmitic, stearic and 1-nonadecene, while maintaining an immunomodulatory effect can be employed as a future protection strategy against viral infection

Comparative Metabolomics Reveals the Microenvironment of Common T-Helper Cells and Differential Immune Cells Linked to Unique Periapical Lesions

Periapical abscesses, radicular cysts, and periapical granulomas are the most frequently identified pathological lesions in the alveolar bone. While little is known about the initiation and progression of these conditions, the metabolic environment and the related immunological behaviors were examined for the first time to model the development of each pathological condition. Metabolites were extracted from each lesion and profiled using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry in comparison with healthy pulp tissue. The metabolites were clustered and linked to their related immune cell fractions. Clusters I and J in the periapical abscess upregulated the expression of MMP-9, IL-8, CYP4F3, and VEGF, while clusters L and M were related to lipophagy and apoptosis in radicular cyst, and cluster P in periapical granuloma, which contains L-(+)-lactic acid and ethylene glycol, was related to granuloma formation. Oleic acid, 17-octadecynoic acid, 1-nonadecene, and L-(+)-lactic acid were significantly the highest unique metabolites in healthy pulp tissue, periapical abscess, radicular cyst, and periapical granuloma, respectively. The correlated enriched metabolic pathways were identified, and the related active genes were predicted. Glutamatergic synapse (16–20),-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids, lipophagy, and retinoid X receptor coupled with vitamin D receptor were the most significantly enriched pathways in healthy control, abscess, cyst, and granuloma, respectively. Compared with the healthy control, significant upregulation in the gene expression of CYP4F3, VEGF, IL-8, TLR2 (P < 0.0001), and MMP-9 (P < 0.001) was found in the abscesses. While IL-12A was significantly upregulated in cysts (P < 0.01), IL-17A represents the highest significantly upregulated gene in granulomas (P < 0.0001). From the predicted active genes, CIBERSORT suggested the presence of natural killer cells, dendritic cells, pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages, and anti-inflammatory M2 macrophages in different proportions. In addition, the single nucleotide polymorphisms related to IL-10, IL-12A, and IL-17D genes were shown to be associated with periapical lesions and other oral lesions. Collectively, the unique metabolism and related immune response shape up an environment that initiates and maintains the existence and progression of these oral lesions, suggesting an important role in diagnosis and effective targeted therapy