Bort fördömda fläck, bort. En studie av självkänsla och utanförskap hos vuxna med psoriasis.

The purpose of this explorative study was to investigate any connections between self-esteem of individuals with psoriasis and their experience of their social environment. The basis of the study was Maarit Johnson's theory of inner and outer self-esteem, Aaron Antonovsky's theory of the sense of coherence and Gilbert's and Miles' model of shame. In the study a self constructed questionnaire based on the theory of shame was used, together with the questionnaire of sense of coherence and the scales of inner and outer self-esteem. The questionnaires were answered by 29 individuals living in Skåne, a county in the south part of Sweden, and with varying degrees in their spreading of psoriasis. The result of the study exhibit a strong correlation between the age of debut for individuals with psoriasis and an influence on their inner self-esteem. The study also found a strong connection in the relation between inner self-esteem and having children, to have family members with psoriasis and the level of individual's education, a strong connection related to shame and use of tobacco and also a relation between outer self-esteem and the visibility of psoriasis. No significant differences were found between sexes more than that women experienced a greater influence of stress then men. The results in the study confirm to a great amount the connection between individuals’ inner self-esteem with psoriasis and their experience of the social environment.Denna explorativa studie syftade till att undersöka eventuella samband mellan självkänsla och upplevelse av omvärlden hos individer med psoriasis. Utgångspunkten har varit Maarit Johnsons teori för inre och yttre självkänsla, Aaron Antonovskys teori om känslan av sammanhang samt Gilbert och Miles modell över upplevelse av skam. I undersökningen användes ett egenkonstruerat frågeformulär byggt på skamteorin, KASAM och skalor på inre och yttre självkänsla. Enkäten besvarades av 29 personer bosatta i Skåne och med olika utbredningsgrader av psoriasis. Resultaten visade på ett starkt samband mellan debutåldern av psoriasis och påverkan på individens inre självkänsla. Vidare visade studien på ett starkt samband mellan inre självkänsla och att ha barn, ett samband mellan psoriasis i familjen och individens utbildningsnivå, en stark relation mellan skam och tobakskonsumtionen samt ett samband mellan yttre självkänsla och synlighet av psoriasis. Inga signifikanta skillnader mellan könen kunde urskiljas utöver att kvinnor upplevde sig mer påverkade av stress än män. Resultaten i studien bekräftar till stor del sambandet mellan psoriatikerns inre självkänsla och upplevelse av omgivningen

Description des limites thermiques basales de Drosophila suzukii

editorial reviewe

Cold acclimation triggers major transcriptional changes in Drosophila suzukii

editorial reviewedInsect life is directly depending on environment temperature. Low temperatures can alter cellular homeostasis resulting in chill damages and in most extreme cases, lethality. To counteract these deleterious effects, insects can use acclimation-related physiological adjustments. The spotted wing drosophila (SWD) Drosophila suzukii is an invasive pest of red berries. SWD is known to be chill susceptible, succumbing to cold exposures way above 0 °C. Yet, it overwinters in harsh European winter conditions, which might be partly due to its highly plastic cold tolerance. However, little is known about underlying mechanisms of cold acclimation in SWD. Here, we promoted SWD cold tolerance through increasing acclimation periods (i.e. from 2 h to 9 days) and selected the most extreme phenotype to characterize transcriptional changes by RNAseq. Significative changes were noticed in SWD cold tolerance after acclimation: the longest the acclimation period, the highest the cold tolerance. Flies acclimated for 9 days were selected for sequencing. RNAseq revealed up to 2200 significantly differentially expressed genes (1200 up- and 1000 down-regulated) compared to non-acclimated flies. Functional annotations on the up-regulated set revealed many enriched GO-terms among which transport of ions across membranes and signaling were highly represented. We also noticed upregulations of several genes involved in thermal stress resistance, like heat shock proteins and Starvin. Involvements of a cluster of genes related to ion transport in cold-hardy flies is sensible, considering that loss of ion homeostasis is the major mechanism responsible for chill-injuries. Functional annotations on the down-regulated set revealed many GO-terms related to oogenesis. This likely reflects reduced reproductive process of acclimated females. Data were validated with rt-qPCR on selected genes. Overall, these results participate to our understanding of SWD low temperature biology, a knowledge of importance for better prediction of SWD population dynamics in temperate areas

Synchronous genitourinary lichen sclerosus signals a distinct urinary microbiome profile in men with urethral stricture disease.

PurposeAlterations in the urinary microbiome have been associated with urological diseases. The microbiome of patients with urethral stricture disease (USD) remains unknown. Our objective is to examine the microbiome of USD with a focus on inflammatory USD caused by lichen sclerosus (LS).MethodsWe collected mid-stream urine samples from men with LS-USD (cases; n = 22) and non-LS USD (controls; n = 76). DNA extraction, PCR amplification of the V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene, and sequencing was done on the samples. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were defined using a > 97% sequence similarity threshold. Alpha diversity measurements of diversity, including microbiome richness (number of different OTUs) and evenness (distribution of OTUs) were calculated and compared. Microbiome beta diversity (difference between microbial communities) relationships with cases and controls were also assessed.ResultsFifty specimens (13 cases and 37 controls) produced a 16S rRNA amplicon. Mean sample richness was 25.9 vs. 16.8 (p = 0.076) for LS-USD vs. non-LS USD, respectively. LS-USD had a unique profile of bacteria by taxonomic order including Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine. The beta variation of observed bacterial communities was best explained by the richness.ConclusionsMen with LS-USD may have a unique microbiologic richness, specifically inclusive of Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine compared to those with non-LS USD. Further work will be required to elucidate the clinical relevance of these variations in the urinary microbiome

Newly detected data from Haestasaurus and review of sauropod skin morphology suggests Early Jurassic origin of skin papillae

Discovered in 1852, the scaly skin belonging to Haestasaurus becklesii was the first to be described in any non-avian dinosaur. Accordingly, it has played a crucial role in the reconstruction of sauropod integument and dinosaurs more broadly. Here, we reassess this historic specimen using Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF), revealing extensive, previously unknown regions of skin that augment prior interpretations of its integumentary morphology and taphonomy. Under white light, polygonal–subrounded, convex scales are visible on one side of the block (‘side A’), but LSF reveals extensive smaller and more flattened scales, which are diagenetically fragmented, on the reverse block surface (‘side B’). Contrary to the prior interpretation that the visible scales are the epidermal undersides, the presence of convex, intrascale papilliform textures on side A suggests that the external skin surface is exposed. We define intrascale papillae and provide a review of sauropod skin morphology, which clarifies that intrascale papillae are unique to and widespread across stem Neosauropoda, and likely have an evolutionary origin in the Early Jurassic. Intrascale papillae may ultimately have been integral to the evolution of gigantism in this charismatic clade

Formation of one-dimensional self-assembled silicon nanoribbons on Au(110)-(2x1)

We report results on the self-assembly of silicon nanoribbons on the (2x1) reconstructed Au(110) surface under ultra-high vacuum conditions. Upon adsorption of 0.2 monolayer (ML) of silicon the (2x1) reconstruction of Au(110) is replaced by an ordered surface alloy. Above this coverage a new superstructure is revealed by low electron energy diffraction (LEED) which becomes sharper at 0.3 Si ML. This superstructure corresponds to Si nanoribbons all oriented along the [-110] direction as revealed by LEED and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). STM and high-resolution photoemission spectroscopy indicate that the nanoribbons are flat and predominantly 1.6 nm wide. In addition the silicon atoms show signatures of two chemical environments corresponding to the edge and center of the ribbons.Comment: Under publication in Applied Physics Letter

Sucrose-Formulated Recombinant Factor VIII Dosing Flexibility in Prophylaxis Regimens: Experience from Postmarketing Surveillance Studies

Objectives. Prophylaxis regimens for severe hemophilia A allowing more flexible dosing while maintaining efficacy may improve adherence and decrease the cost of prophylaxis. Here, we compared the clinical effectiveness of once- or twice-weekly versus ≥3-times-weekly prophylaxis with sucrose-formulated recombinant factor VIII (rFVIII-FS) in a “real-world” practice setting. Methods. Data from 3 postmarketing studies were pooled. Patients with severe hemophilia A receiving ≥1 prophylaxis infusion/wk of rFVIII-FS for ≥80% of a prophylaxis observation period (≥5 months) were included. Patients were categorized based on physician-assigned treatment regimens of 1-2 prophylaxis injections/wk (n=63) or ≥3 prophylaxis injections/wk (n=76). Descriptive statistics were determined for annualized bleeding rates (ABRs). Results. Median (quartile 1; quartile 3) ABR for all bleeds was 2.0 (0; 4.0) in the 1-2 prophylaxis injections/wk group and 3.9 (1.5; 9.3) in the ≥3 prophylaxis injections/wk group. Median ABRs for joint, spontaneous, and trauma-related bleeds were numerically lower with 1-2 prophylaxis injections/wk. As an estimate of prophylaxis success, 63% (≥3 prophylaxis injections/wk) to 84% of patients (1-2 prophylaxis injections/wk) had ≤4 annualized joint bleeds. Conclusions. Dosing flexibility and successful prophylaxis with rFVIII-FS were demonstrated. Very good bleeding control was achieved with both once-twice-weekly and ≥3-times-weekly prophylaxis dosing regimens

Pupal size as a proxy for fat content in laboratory-reared and field-collected Drosophila species.

peer reviewe

Physiological responses of cold acclimation in Drosophila suzukii

editorial reviewedThe spotted wing drosophila (SWD) Drosophila suzukii is an invasive pest. To control this pest, information about its cold tolerance is required. Several studies have focused on SWD overwintering strategies and reported increased cold tolerance of winter morph (WM) compared to summer morph (SM). However, underlying mechanisms of this difference are not yet known. Our first goal was to study the impact of WM-inducing conditions on SWD cold tolerance and their metabolites composition. We expected to find an accumulation of cryoprotectant metabolites in cold hardy WM flies. Flies were reared at 25°C to induce SM, or at 10°C to induce WM. Cold tolerance was assayed by measuring survival after a stress at -5°C/1h40, minimal critical temperature and chill coma recovery. All metrics confirmed that WM-inducing conditions deeply promoted cold tolerance. SM and WM metabotypes were compared using target and quantitative GC/MS profiling. WM were characterized by an accumulation of several carbohydrates and amino acids, but quantitative changes were rather small (max 6 fold-change). Because robustness in metabolic networks is supposed to be a key element of cold tolerance, we assessed whether different levels of cold acclimation would favor metabolic stability. We generated four different phenotypes: development at 10°C to generate WM that were next acclimated as adults for 7 days at 10 or 25°C (WM10 or WM25) and development at 25°C to generate SM that were next acclimated as adults for 7 days at 10 or 25°C (SM10 or SM25). Using the same measures of cold tolerance, we found that cold tolerance ranked as follow: WM10>SM10>WM25>SM25. Stability of metabolic homeostasis was assessed in these four phenotypic groups using time-series GC/MS profiling. We monitored profiles before, right after, 4h, 8h or 12h after an acute cold shock. During recovery, both WM25 and SM25 metabotypes strongly deviated from origin, and did not return to initial state. This alteration was correlated with uncontrolled augmentation of the total amount of amino acids, which is symptomatic of cold injuries. WM10 presented the strongest temporal stability of metabolic profiles, suggesting a capacity to maintain homeostasis in this cold hardy phenotype. Finally, SM10 presented an intermediate response (as for cold tolerance). Data suggest that the proximal acclimation treatment (ie. at adult stage) is more critical in promoting cold tolerance that acclimation during development. Data corroborate that cold hardiness is associated to metabolic stability during stress and recovery. These results give new information to understand SWD cold tolerance