Obstetric violence: Clinical staff perceptions from a video of simulated practice

Objective(s) Obstetric Violence refers to professional deficiencies in maternity care. Examples include non-dignified care, discrimination and abandonment of care. Obstetric violence has been described in both low and high resource settings. The objective of this study was to assess knowledge and attitudes towards obstetric violence in a cohort of multinational obstetric nursing/midwifery staff and obstetricians at a private maternity hospital in Qatar. Study design An online survey for anonymous completion was sent to the hospital email accounts of obstetric nursing/midwifery staff and obstetricians at Sidra Medicine (n = 640). The survey incorporated a video showing a dramatized scenario of obstetric violence. The survey assessed the participant’s demographics and knowledge of the term obstetric violence. The participants scored their perceptions on the behaviors in the video using a visual analogue scale. The participants were then asked to reflect on their own practice. Comparisons of the survey responses were made between both doctors and nursing/midiwfery staff members using student’s t-test. Results 50 obstetricians and 167 obstetric nursing/midwifery staff fully completed the survey. Fifty two percent had previously heard of the term obstetric violence, and 48% could define it correctly. 136 (63%) had witnessed obstetric violence at some point in their career. Significant differences were seen when each professional group was asked to report on the behavior of the opposite professional team as depicted in the video (p = 0.01 and p < 0.001). Doctors completing the survey were also more critical of the doctors-in-training than were the midwifery/nursing staff (p = 0.06). Obstetricians and nursing/midiwfery responders identified patient dignity, privacy and patient-centred care as the leading professional deficiencies seen in the video. Obstetricians were significantly less likely to change their perceptions of how a care team should interact with a patient compared to the obstetric nursing/midwifery group (p < 0.001). Conclusions This questionnaire study demonstrates that the majority of staff in this cohort were aware of obstetric violence and able to identify negative behaviours in the video and then reflect on how this impacts care they provide. Further studies are needed to identify ways in which obstetric violence can be prevented in both low resource and high resource settings

Foliar lead uptake by lettuce exposed to atmospheric fallouts

Metal uptake by plants occurs by soil−root transfer but also by direct transfer of contaminants from the atmosphere to the shoots. This second pathway may be particularly important in kitchen gardens near industrial plants. The mechanisms of foliar uptake of lead by lettuce (Lactuca sativa) exposed to the atmospheric fallouts of a lead-recycling plant were studied. After 43 days of exposure, the thoroughly washed leaves contained 335 ± 50 mg Pb kg−1 (dry weight). Micro-X-ray fluorescence mappings evidenced Pb-rich spots of a few hundreds of micrometers in diameter located in necrotic zones. These spots were more abundant at the base of the central nervure. Environmental scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis showed that smaller particles (a few micrometers in diameter) were also present in other regions of the leaves, often located beneath the leaf surface. In addition, submicrometric particles were observed inside stomatal openings. Raman microspectrometry analyses of the leaves identified smelter-originated Pb minerals but also secondary phases likely resulting from the weathering of original particles. On the basis of these observations, several pathways for foliar lead uptake are discussed. A better understanding of these mechanisms may be of interest for risk assessment of population exposure to atmospheric metal contamination

Virtual unfolding of folded papyri

The historical importance of ancient manuscripts is unique since they provide information about the heritage of ancient cultures. Often texts are hidden in rolled or folded documents. Due to recent improvements in sensitivity and resolution, spectacular disclosures of rolled hidden texts were possible by X-ray tomography. However, revealing text on folded manuscripts is even more challenging. Manual unfolding is often too risky in view of the fragile condition of fragments, as it can lead to the total loss of the document. X-ray tomography allows for virtual unfolding and enables non-destructive access to hidden texts. We have recently demonstrated the procedure and tested unfolding algorithms on a mockup sample. Here, we present results on unfolding ancient papyrus packages from the papyrus collection of the Musée du Louvre, among them objects folded along approximately orthogonal folding lines. In one of the packages, the first identification of a word was achieved, the Coptic word for “Lord”

Microbiology of the phyllosphere: a playground for testing ecological concepts

Many concepts and theories in ecology are highly debated, because it is often difficult to design decisive tests with sufficient replicates. Examples include biodiversity theories, succession concepts, invasion theories, coexistence theories, and concepts of life history strategies. Microbiological tests of ecological concepts are rapidly accumulating, but have yet to tap into their full potential to complement traditional macroecological theories. Taking the example of microbial communities on leaf surfaces (i.e. the phyllosphere), we show that most explorations of ecological concepts in this field of microbiology focus on autecology and population ecology, while community ecology remains understudied. Notable exceptions are first tests of the island biogeography theory and of biodiversity theories. Here, the phyllosphere provides the unique opportunity to set up replicated experiments, potentially moving fields such as biogeography, macroecology, and landscape ecology beyond theoretical and observational evidence. Future approaches should take advantage of the great range of spatial scales offered by the leaf surface by iteratively linking laboratory experiments with spatial simulation models

Endophytic and epiphytic phyllosphere fungal communities are shaped by different environmental factors in a mediterranean ecosystem

The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-018-1161-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.The diversity and factors influencing fimgal assemblages in phyllosphere of Mediterranean tree species have been barely studied, especially when endophytic and epiphytic communities are simultaneously considered. In this work, the endophytic and epiphytic fungal communities from olive tree phyllosphere were studied. This tree species is natural from the Mediterranean region and adapted to grow under adverse climatic conditions. The main objectives were to determine whether there are differences between both fungal communities and to examine whether different abiotic (climate-related) and biotic (plant organs) factors play a pivotal role in structuring these communities. Both communities differed in size and composition, with epiphytic community being richer and more abundant, displaying also a dominance of melanized fungi. Season was the major driver of community composition, especially of epiphytes. Other drivers shaping epiphytes were wind speed and temperature, while plant organ, rainfall, and temperature were the major drivers for endophytic composition. In contrast, canopy orientation caused slight variations in community composition of fungi, but with distinct effects in spring and autumn seasons. In conclusion, epiphytic and endophytic communities are not driven by the same factors. Several sources of variation undergo complex interactions to form and maintain phyllosphere fungal community in Mediterranean climates. Climatic parameters have influence on these fungal communities, suggesting that they are likely to be affected by climate changes in a near future.This work is funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE (Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade) and by national funds by FCT (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia) within the framework of the project EXCL/AGR-PRO/0591/2012. T. Gomes thanks FCT, POPH-QREN, and FSE for PhD SFRH/BD/98127/2013 grant