A preliminary analysis of gender violence among migrants and displaced people in Europe

Background. The vulnerability of migrant women, especially those coming from patriarchal societies, leads to the increase of gender violence. This is incremented by a myriad of socioecological determinants related to the immigration process and to the nature of male-female relationships. Objectives. The main objective is to conduct a preliminary analysis of recent publications dealing with the relations between gender violence and migrant populations in the European Union, including internally displaced people. Materials and methods. This paper is based on a revision of scientific publications from SCOPUS that relate to migrant women who are victims of gender violence in the European Union. The qualitative thematic analysis was used in order to identify the main issues targeted in the articles. Results. The thematic analysis of the studies reviewed dealing with migration and gender violence highlighted several important themes, including prevalence of violence against migrant women; the forms and contexts of gender violence; the impact of legal, economic environments and sociocultural barriers; the influence of conflict and war; the impact and consequences of violence, especially on women’s mental health, as well as strategies and suggestions for interventions. Conclusions. Increasing the awareness of migration, regarding the conflicts and problems experienced by migrants (of both genders), could enable health and legal authorities to offer more significant culture and gender sensitive services, thus reducing gender violence

In1-ghrelin splicing variant is associated with reduced disease-free survival of breast cancer patients and increases malignancy of breast cancer cells lines

OXFORD UNIVERSITY: This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Carcinogenesis following peer review. The version of record David Rincón-Fernández, Michael D Culler, Natia Tsomaia, Gema Moreno-Bueno, Raúl M Luque, Manuel D Gahete, Justo P Castaño; In1-ghrelin splicing variant is associated with reduced disease-free survival of breast cancer patients and increases malignancy of breast cancer cells lines, Carcinogenesis, Volume 39, Issue 3, 8 March 2018, Pages 447–457, https://doi.org/10.1093/carcin/bgx146Ghrelin gene generates several variants that regulate multiple pathophysiological functions, including tumor-related processes. In1-ghrelin is a splicing variant that was previously shown to be overexpressed in breast cancer (BCa), where it correlated with proliferation markers; however, its possible association with clinical outcome of BCa patients and underlying mechanisms are still unknown. To address this issue, expression levels and clinical associations of In1-ghrelin were analyzed in a cohort of 117 BCa samples. Additionally, a battery of cellular and molecular assays was implemented using two BCa cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231), wherein the role of In1-ghrelin on proliferation, migration, dedifferentiation and signaling pathways was explored. The results generated revealed that high expression of In1-ghrelin in BCa samples was associated with lymph node metastasis and reduced disease-free survival. Indeed, In1-ghrelin overexpression stimulated proliferation and migration in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. Similar results were found by treating MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 with In1- ghrelin-derived peptides. Conversely, In1-ghrelin silencing decreased proliferation and migration capacities of MDA-MB-231. Furthermore, In1-ghrelin (but not ghrelin) overexpression increased the capacity to form mammospheres in both cell lines. These effects could be associated with activation of MAPK-ERK, Jag1/Notch, Wnt/β-catenin and/or TGF-β1 pathways. Altogether, our data indicate that In1-ghrelin could play relevant functional roles in the regulation of BCa development and progression and may provide insights to identify novel biomarkers and new therapeutic approaches for this pathology.BIO-0139, CTS-1406, PI-639-2012, PI-0541-2013 (Junta de Andalucia), BFU2013-43282-R, BFU2016-80360-R (MINECO), PI13-00651, PI16/00264 (Proyectos de Investigación en Salud FIS, funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III), GETNE Grant 2014, Merck Serono Grant 2013 and CIBERobn (to RML and JPC); PI13/00132, RETICC RD12/0036/0007, CIBERonc and S2010/BMD-2303 (to GMB

Family Resemblances? Ligand Binding and Activation of Family A and B G-Protein-Coupled Receptors Structural characterization of the parathyroid hormone receptor domains determinant for ligand binding

Abstract Over the years, the association of peptide ligands to Family B GPCRs (G-protein coupled receptors) has been characterized by a number of experimental and theoretical techniques. For the PTH (parathyroid hormone) ligand-receptor system, important insight has been provided by photoaffinity labelling experiments and the elucidation of direct contact points between ligand and receptor. Our research has focused on the structural elucidation of the receptor domains shown to be involved in the binding of PTH. Employing a combination of carefully designed receptor domains, solution-state NMR carried out in the presence of membrane mimetics and extensive computer simulations, we have obtained a well-resolved model of the ligandreceptor complex for PTH. Here, we review the development of this model and highlight some inherent limitations of the methods employed and their consequences on interpretation of the ligand-receptor model

In1-ghrelin splicing variant is overexpressed in pituitary adenomas and increases their aggressive features

Pituitary adenomas comprise a heterogeneous subset of pathologies causing serious comorbidities, which would benefit from identification of novel, common molecular/cellular biomarkers and therapeutic targets. The ghrelin system has been linked to development of certain endocrine-related cancers. Systematic analysis of the presence and functional implications of some components of the ghrelin system, including native ghrelin, receptors and the recently discovered splicing variant In1-ghrelin, in human normal pituitaries (n 5 11) and pituitary adenomas (n 5 169) revealed that expression pattern of ghrelin system suffers a clear alteration in pituitary adenomasas comparedwith normal pituitary, where In1-ghrelin is markedly overexpressed. Interestingly, in cultured pituitary adenoma cells In1-ghrelin treatment (acylated peptides at 100 nM; 24–72 h) increasedGHandACTHsecretion, Ca21 and ERK1/2 signaling and cell viability, whereas In1-ghrelin silencing (using a specific siRNA; 100 nM) reduced cell viability. These results indicate that an alteration of the ghrelin system, specially its In1-ghrelin variant, could contribute to pathogenesis of different pituitary adenomas types, and suggest that this variant and its related ghrelin system could provide new tools to identify novel, more general diagnostic, prognostic and potential therapeutic targets in pituitary tumors

Acid weathering of basalt and basaltic glass: 2. Effects of microscopic alteration textures on spectral properties

Acid alteration has long been proposed for the Martian surface, and so it is important to understand how the resulting alteration textures affect surface spectra. Two basaltic materials of varying crystallinity were altered in two different H2SO4 solutions (pH 1 and pH 3) for 220 days. The unaltered and altered samples were studied in the visible and near infrared (VNIR) and thermal infrared (TIR), and select samples were chosen for scanning electron microscopy analysis. Materials altered in pH 3 solutions showed little to no physical alteration, and their spectral signatures changed very little. In contrast, all materials altered in pH 1 acid displayed silica-rich alteration textures, and the morphology differed based on starting material crystallinity. The more crystalline material displayed extensive alteration reaching into the sample interiors and had weaker silica spectral features. The glass sample developed alteration layers tens of microns thick, exhibiting amorphous silica-rich spectral features that completely obscured the substrate. Thus, the strong absorption coefficient of silica effectively decreases the penetration depth of TIR spectral measurements, causing silica abundances to be grossly overestimated in remote sensing data. Additionally, glass samples with silica layers exhibited distinct concave up blue spectral slopes in the VNIR. Spectra from the northern lowland plains of Mars are modeled with high abundances of amorphous silica and exhibit concave up blue spectral slopes and are thus consistent with acid altered basaltic glass. Therefore, we conclude that large regions of the Martian surface may have formed through the interaction of basaltic glass with strongly acidic fluids.This work was funded in part by the NASA 2001 Mars Odyssey THEMIS project (Jet Propulsion Laboratory contract 1228404 through Arizona State University) and by the Arizona State University Exploration Postdoctoral Fellowship. …the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Space Agency, the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Manitoba Research Innovations Fund, and the University of Winnipeg for supporting the establishment and operation of the Planetary Spectrophotometer Facility.https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/2016JE00511

Особенности распределения снежного покрова и рекомендации по предотвращению с ним связанных опасных по-следствий на новой трассе железной дороги Ахалкалаки-Карцахи

ახალი რკინიგზის ტრასის 21 კმ-ის სიგრძეზე, რომელიც მდებარეობს 1800-1900 მ სიმაღლეზე ზღვის დონიდან, შესწავლილია თოვლის საფარისა და მასთან დაკავშირებული ნამქერიანობის, ასევე მათი მაფორმირებული ფაქ-ტორების განაწილების თავისებურებანი. დადგენილია, რომ ტრასა მოქცეულია საშუალოზე ძლიერ კატეგორიის ნამქერთოვლდაგროვების ზონაში. გზის შეუფერხებელი მუშაობისათვის საჭიროა 11 კმ-ის სიგრძეზე ტყის საფარის გაშენება ფიჭვის ნერგებისაგან, 2 კმ-ს მანძილზე 2 რიგის რკინა-ბეტონის ანუ ხე-ფიცრულის ღობეების დადგმა.Specific features of snow cover distribution and related snow drifts origination in the elevation zone 1800-1900 m for new Akhalkalaki – Kartsakhi 21 km long railway route are studied. It/s derived that the route accupies a zone of mid to severe categories of snow-drifts. The planting of windbreaks on 11 km long section and arrangement of 2 km long two-row concrete or wooden shields is recommended.Изучены особенности распределения снежного покрова и с ним связанных снежных заносов и факторов их образования в пределах высотной зоны 1800-1900м 21 км длины новой железной дороги Ахалкалаки-Карцахи. Установлено, что трасса находится в пределах зоны средне-сильных категорий снежных заносов. Рекомендуется лесонасаждение на протяжении 11 км длины ж.д., двух рядных железобетонных или деревянных щитов (заьоров) на протяжении 2 км

Satellite remote sensing outputs of the certain glaciers on the territory of East Georgia

The variations in glaciers are the important indicators of regional climate change. The glaciers play an important role in the regulation of water balance. In the conditions of global warming they recede and degrade that is expressed in the related changes in glacier runoff. The research of glacier melting is important for studies of sea/ocean level changes. The Caucasian glacial dimensions (area, volume, length) have been changed over the centuries. The scientific study of glaciers in the Caucasus was started during the first half of 18th century. In the last century the terrestrial observations on glaciers were carried out. Due to the difficulties of organization and conducting of field works the received observational data sets consists from different series of various temporal duration characteristics of glaciers. The data received contain uncertainties. From another hand carrying out of such field works are expensive. With the launch of the Earth’s satellites it was determined that satellite remote sensing is the best technology allowing to receive data with needed regularity in terms of both time and space resolution. Some uncertainties remain in the data as the observational tool is too far away from the Earth’s surface. So, the necessity for the strong quality assessment/quality control (QA/QC) remains. A lot of studies showed that the best method for investigation of glaciers is application of satellite remote sensing combined with terrestrial observations and expert knowledge of separate glaciers

მდინარე რიონის წყლის მაქსიმალური ხარჯები რკინიგზის გადაკვეთის უბანზე სადგურ რიონთან

დახასიათებულია მდინარის მაქსიმალური ხარჯი და მისი ფორმირების პირობები 1911 - 1992 წლებში მდ.რიონზე სოფ. ალპანასთან და ნამოხვანთან, კაშხლის ზემოთ რიონჰესთან და ქ. ქუთაისთან. დადგინდა ანთროპოგენული ფაქტორების გავლენა მაქსიმალური ხარჯის სიდიდეზე. მოცემულია დაკვირვების მასალების სტატისტიკური ანალიზი და გაანგარიშებულია წყალშემკრები აუზისათვის წყლის მაქსიმალური ხარჯი რედუქციის ფორმულით "ტრასეკას" ძირითადი ობიექტისათვის (მდ. რიონზე მშენებარე რკინიგზის ახალი ხიდი). დამუშავდა პროექტის ტექნიკურ-ეკონომიკური დასაბუთებისათვის საჭირო მდ. რიონის წყლის მაქსიმალური ხარჯი სხვადასხვა უზრუნველყოფით. ილ.2,ცხრ.2,ლიტ.დას.9.Maximum discharges of water of the R.Rioni for the period of 1911-1992 have been characterised at the villages Alpana, Namokhvani, higher the dam of Rioni Hydropower plant and the city of Kutaisi under the conditions of their formation. Peculiarities of the influence of anthropogenic factors on the amount of maximum water discharge have been establisted. Results of statistical processing of observation data and estimation by the reduction formula of water discharges in the catchment area are presented. Maximum water discharges of different provision for technical and economic grounding of the project of construction of a new railway dridge on the river Rioni, higher than the old bridge, have been established with the purpose of improving the capacity of the railway as the main object of “TRACECA’.Fig.2,Tab.2,Ref.9.Характеризуются максимальные расходы воды за период 1911-1992 гг. на гидростворах р.Риони у сел Алпана, Намохвани, выше плотины РиониГЭС и г.Кутаиси, и условия их фор¬мирования. Установлены особенности влияния антропогенных факторов на величины максимальных расходов воды. Приведены результаты статистической обработки материалов наблюдений и расчета максимальных расходов воды по формулам редукции. Установлены значения максимальных расходы воды различной обеспеченности для технико-экономического обоснования проекта строительства нового ж/д моста на р.Риони в целях улучшения пропускной способности ж/д, как основного объекта "Трасека". Рис.2,таб.2,лит.9