Characterization of Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec (SCCmec) in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis Strains Isolated from Biomaterial-Associated Infections and their Antibiotic Resistance Patterns

This work aims to provide an insight into staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec elements and antibiotic resistance in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus epidermidis. The dominating type was SCCmec – IV. Fifteen isolates were assigned to SCCmec type III, two isolates to SCCmec type II. Most isolates were resistant to at least three of the non-β-lactam antibiotics tested. None of the strains exhibited resistance to new generation antibiotics, such as daptomycin and linezolid. Also, none of these strains showed resistance to tigecycline and only four strains were resistant to rifampin i.e. antibiotics which are very efficient in treating biofilm-associated infections

Distribution of microtubules during regular and disturbed microsporogenesis and pollen grain development in Gagea lutea (L.) Ker.-Gaw.

The microtubular cytoskeleton in dividing microsporocytes and developing pollen grains of Gagea lutea (L.) Ker.-Gaw.(Liliaceae) was investigated with a modified indirect immunofluorescence method. Meiotic and mitotic stages were identified by DAPI staining. The microtubular cytoskeleton was compared in plants originating from natural localities and others grown in the laboratory. In natural conditions, microsporocytes and pollen grains of wild early-spring Gagea lutea plants are subjected to abiotic factors including cold exposure and lack of water. The persistent influence of these factors can disturb microtubular cytoskeleton functioning. The following disturbances were observed in the course of microsporogenesis and pollen development: abnormal chromosome configurations in the metaphase of meiosis I; abnormally divided dyads with irregular, radial microtubule systems around the nuclei; the formation of differently sized microspores with irregular shapes, and irregular division; and the formation of pollen grains with vacuoles abnormal for their development stage. Similar kinds of disturbances were observed after 1.5 months of cold treatment (4 ^{\circ}C) and drying in the laboratory. These abiotic factors simulated in laboratory conditions caused more disturbances in the course of microsporogenesis and produced more frequent defective pollen grains than in the sample that had experienced cold and drying in natural conditions

Brood hiding test: a new bioassay for behavioral and neuroethological ant research

We describe a new bioassay for behavioral and neuroethological ant research, the brood hiding test. A group of adult ants is taken out of the nest, confined together with brood and exposed to strong light. Ants may interact with brood, and, in particular, transport it to the provided shadowed area. The brood hiding test may be accompanied by administration of neuroactive compounds and/or by measurements of their levels in the brain and/or in specific brain structures. During pilot tests with workers of Formica polyctena the values of the score quantifying ant behavior were positively correlated with the group size

Development of the pollen in the antarctic flowering plant Colobanthus quitensis (Kunth) Bartl.

Colobanthus quitensis (Kunth) Bartl. produced two types very small bisexual fl owers. In the Antarctic natural conditions chasmogamic and cleistogamic fl owers most often form fi ve stamina with short fi laments. Two microsporangia with a three-layer wall form in the anther. Microspore mother cells, which develop into microspores after meiosis, form inside the microsporangium. Microsporocytes of Colobanthus quitensis are surrounded with a thick callose layer, the special wall. After meiosis, the callose wall is dissolved and microspores are released from the tetrad. The production of proorbicules, orbicules and peritapetal membrane, and the construction of a complex sporoderm with numerous apertural sites were observed. When microspore and pollen protoplasts underwent necrosis, probably as a result of temperature and osmotic stress, sporoderm layers formed around microspores, and the cell tapetum did not disintegrate. However, woody wall layers did not accumulate in endothecium cells

What policies are there and what policies are missing? A Photovoice study of adolescents' perspectives on obesity‐prevention policies in their local environment

Ana Rito: Departamento de Alimentação e Nutrição do INSA; Centre for Studies and Research in Social Dynamics and Health - CEIDSS.Part of Special Issue: The CO‐CREATE Project:Co‐creating policy with youthThe aim of this study was to investigate adolescents' critical awareness of whether obesity prevention policies targeting physical activity (PA) and nutrition were operating in their local community. Participants were 41 adolescents (aged 16–18, 90%women) recruited from three communities in Poland. Prior to this study, they were involved in obesity-prevention participatory initiatives (conducted within the CO-CREATE project), where obesity-related public policy limitations were analyzed in a youth-led discussion. A Photovoice exercise was designed to capture obesity-related public policies that were either present or absent in young people's local environments. The photographs (N=213) were coded and mapped according to the policy themes they illustrated, using the MOVING and NOURISHING frameworks. The public policies represented in the photographs are most frequently related to: healthy retail or food service environments; food advertising or promotion; structures and surroundings that promote PA; and infrastructure and opportunities that support public or active transport. Adolescents are critically aware of the presence and lack of specific public policies operating in their local environment, particularly policies affecting structural aspects of food and PA environments. Policy-oriented photovoice exercises may prompt critical awareness among adolescents and empower them to contribute to obesity prevention policy processes.KEYWORDSadolescence, framework, obesity prevention policies, PhotovoiceAbbreviations:CO-CREATE, confronting obesity: co-creating policy with youth; PA, physical activity; SES, socioeconomic status; YPAR, youth-led participatory action research.Received: 11 April 2023 Revised: 15 June 2023 Accepted: 13 July 2023DOI: 10.1111/obr.13617This is an open access article under the terms of theCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercialLicense, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.The CO-CREATE project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement no. 774210.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

What policies are there and what policies are missing? A Photovoice study of adolescents' perspectives on obesity-prevention policies in their local environment

The aim of this study was to investigate adolescents' critical awareness of whether obesity prevention policies targeting physical activity (PA) and nutrition were operating in their local community. Participants were 41 adolescents (aged 16-18, 90% women) recruited from three communities in Poland. Prior to this study, they were involved in obesity-prevention participatory initiatives (conducted within the CO-CREATE project), where obesity-related public policy limitations were analyzed in a youth-led discussion. A Photovoice exercise was designed to capture obesity-related public policies that were either present or absent in young people's local environments. The photographs (N = 213) were coded and mapped according to the policy themes they illustrated, using the MOVING and NOURISHING frameworks. The public policies represented in the photographs are most frequently related to: healthy retail or food service environments; food advertising or promotion; structures and surroundings that promote PA; and infrastructure and opportunities that support public or active transport. Adolescents are critically aware of the presence and lack of specific public policies operating in their local environment, particularly policies affecting structural aspects of food and PA environments. Policy-oriented photovoice exercises may prompt critical awareness among adolescents and empower them to contribute to obesity prevention policy processes