Pre-hospital management protocols and perceived difficulty in diagnosing acute heart failure

Aim To illustrate the pre-hospital management arsenals and protocols in different EMS units, and to estimate the perceived difficulty of diagnosing suspected acute heart failure (AHF) compared with other common pre-hospital conditions. Methods and results A multinational survey included 104 emergency medical service (EMS) regions from 18 countries. Diagnostic and therapeutic arsenals related to AHF management were reported for each type of EMS unit. The prevalence and contents of management protocols for common medical conditions treated pre-hospitally was collected. The perceived difficulty of diagnosing AHF and other medical conditions by emergency medical dispatchers and EMS personnel was interrogated. Ultrasound devices and point-of-care testing were available in advanced life support and helicopter EMS units in fewer than 25% of EMS regions. AHF protocols were present in 80.8% of regions. Protocols for ST-elevation myocardial infarction, chest pain, and dyspnoea were present in 95.2, 80.8, and 76.0% of EMS regions, respectively. Protocolized diagnostic actions for AHF management included 12-lead electrocardiogram (92.1% of regions), ultrasound examination (16.0%), and point-of-care testings for troponin and BNP (6.0 and 3.5%). Therapeutic actions included supplementary oxygen (93.2%), non-invasive ventilation (80.7%), intravenous furosemide, opiates, nitroglycerine (69.0, 68.6, and 57.0%), and intubation 71.5%. Diagnosing suspected AHF was considered easy to moderate by EMS personnel and moderate to difficult by emergency medical dispatchers (without significant differences between de novo and decompensated heart failure). In both settings, diagnosis of suspected AHF was considered easier than pulmonary embolism and more difficult than ST-elevation myocardial infarction, asthma, and stroke. Conclusions The prevalence of AHF protocols is rather high but the contents seem to vary. Difficulty of diagnosing suspected AHF seems to be moderate compared with other pre-hospital conditions

Serotonin transporter (SERT) polymorphisms, personality and problem-solving in urban great tits

International audienceUnderstanding underlying genetic variation can elucidate how diversity in behavioral phenotypes evolves and is maintained. Genes in the serotonergic signaling pathway, including the serotonin transporter gene (SERT), are candidates for affecting animal personality, cognition and fitness. In a model species, the great tit (Parus major), we reevaluated previous findings suggesting relationships between SERT polymorphisms, neophobia, exploratory behavior and fitness parameters, and performed a first test of the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in SERT and problem-solving in birds. We found some evidence for associations between SERT SNPs and neophobia, exploratory behavior and laying date. Furthermore, several SNPs were associated with behavioral patterns and success rates during obstacle removal problem-solving tests performed at nest boxes. In females, minor allele homozygotes (AA) for nonsynonymous SNP226 in exon 1 made fewer incorrect attempts and were more likely to problem-solve. In both sexes, there was some evidence that minor allele homozygotes (CC) for SNP84 in exon 9 were more likely to problem-solve. Only one SNP-behavior relationship was statistically significant after correcting for multiple comparisons, but several were associated with substantial effect sizes. Our study provides a foundation for future research on the genetic basis of behavioral and cognitive variation in wild animal populations

The serotonin transporter gene and female personality variation in a free-living passerine

International audienceQuantifying variation in behaviour-related genes provides insight into the evolutionary potential of repeatable among-individual variation in behaviour (i.e. personality). Yet, individuals typically also plastically adjust their behaviour in response to environmental conditions and/or age, thereby complicating the detection of genotype-phenotype associations. Here, using a population of free-living great tits (Parus major), we assessed the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the serotonin transporter gene (SERT) and two repeatable behavioural traits, i.e. female-female aggression and female hissing behaviour. For female-female aggression, a trait showing age-related plasticity, we found no evidence for associations with SERT SNPs, even when assessing potential age-dependent effects of SERT genotype on aggression. We also found no strong support for associations between SERT SNPs and hissing behaviour, yet we identified two synonymous polymorphisms (exon 13 SNP66 and exon 12 SNP144) of particular interest, each explaining about 1.3% of the total variation in hissing behaviour. Overall, our results contribute to the general understanding of the biological underpinning of complex behavioural traits and will facilitate further (meta-analytic) research on behaviour-related genes. Moreover, we emphasize that future molecular genetic studies should consider age-dependent genotype-phenotype associations for behavioural trait (co)variation, as this will vastly improve our understanding of the proximate causes and ultimate consequences of personality variation in natural populations

Data from: Data for: Variation in animal personality traits across a metal pollution gradient in a free-living songbird

Anthropogenic contaminants could alter traits central to animal behavioral types, or personalities, including aggressiveness, boldness and activity level. Lead and other toxic metals are persistent inorganic pollutants that affect organisms worldwide. Metal exposure can alter behavior by affecting neurology, endocrinology, and health. However, the direction and magnitude of the behavioral effects of metal exposure remain equivocal. Moreover, the degree to which metal exposure simultaneously affects suites of correlated behavioral traits (behavioral syndromes) that are controlled by common mechanisms remains unclear, with most studies focusing on single behaviors. Using a model species for personality variation, the great tit (Parus major), we explored differences in multiple behavioral traits across a pollution gradient where levels of metals, especially lead and cadmium, are elevated close to a smelter. We employed the novel environment exploration test, a proxy for variation in personality type, and also measured territorial aggressiveness and nest defense behavior. At polluted sites birds of both sexes displayed slower exploration behavior, which could reflect impaired neurological or physiological function. Territorial aggression and nest defense behavior were individually consistent, but did not vary with proximity to the smelter, suggesting that metal exposure does not concurrently affect exploration and aggression. Rather, exploration behavior appears more sensitive to metal pollution. Effects of metal pollution on exploration behavior, a key animal personality trait, could have critical effects on fitness

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the **COL1A1** regulatory regions are associated with otosclerosis

The starting point of this article is a double observation. On the one hand, one can observe the strong presence of apocalyptic imagery in contemporary Western culture, from climatology to political history, to philosophical anthropology. On the other hand, in Hispano-American literature of the 20th and 21st century, reference to apocalyptic is both massive, variable and difficult to apprehend. Hence the interest in establishing a typology of the literary rewritings to which the Apocalypse has been subject. This article attempts to distinguish the categories of text which are categorized both by what is rewritten (which motifs are reused, what symbols and typical images of the apocalyptic genre are rewritten) and how (how were the apocalyptic texts of the Bible read in order to come to this appropriation).Cet article a pour point de départ un double constat. D’une part, on observe la forte présence d’un imaginaire apocalyptique dans la culture occidentale contemporaine, de la climatologie à l’histoire politique, en passant par l’anthropologie philosophique. D’autre part, dans la littérature hispanoaméricaine des XXe et XXIe siècles, la référence apocalyptique est à la fois massive, variable et difficile à appréhender : de là, l’intérêt d’établir une typologie des réécritures littéraires dont l’Apocalypse a fait l’objet. L’on s’efforcera de distinguer des catégories de textes caractérisées à la fois par le quoi de la réécriture apocalyptique (quels motifs sont réutilisés, quels symboles et images typiques du genre apocalyptique sont réécrits ?) et le comment (comment a-t-on lu les récits apocalyptiques bibliques pour arriver à cette appropriation ?).Fabry Geneviève. L’imaginaire apocalyptique dans la culture contemporaine. Essai de typologie appliqué à la littérature hispano-américaine. In: Revue théologique de Louvain, 42ᵉ année, fasc. 2, 2011. pp. 191-216