The Promotion of Drug Abuse - PO*

The problem of drug abuse is both international and multifactorial. Traditional approaches toward finding a solution have so far achieved little. Lateral thinking, a recent concept providing freedom from the constraints of logic, offers the basis for a different kind of evaluation of the problem. The normal concepts are reversed and one starts with the proposition of promoting  drug abuse. In defining a promotional programme one becomes increasingly aware of those elements which are important contributory factors. The solution to some parts of the problem becomes self-evident and new insights into other facets are suggested.S. Afr. Med. J., 48, 407 (1974

Systematic Review of Risk and Protective Factors for Externalizing Problems in Children Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue with innumerable costs to the victims, children, and families affected as well as society at large. The evidence is conclusive regarding a strong association between exposure to IPV and children’s externalizing problems. Moving forward, the next step is to enhance our understanding of risk and protective factors associated with these outcomes in order to tailor treatments to meet the needs of both parents and children. The databases Medline, PubMed, and PsyINFO were searched combining variations of the key words such as parent*, child*, mother, partner abuse, domestic abuse, spousal abuse, interpersonal violence, domestic violence, or intimate partner violence. This search were combined with child externalizing behaviors specifically conduct*, oppositional defiant disorder, externaliz*, aggress*, hyperactivity, and ADHD. A total of 31 studies from all three databases were reviewed following application of inclusion and exclusion criteria. The main findings were that child age and gender, callous–unemotional traits, cognitive appraisals, maternal mental health, and quality of parenting emerged as key mediating and moderating factors of the relationship between IPV exposure and child externalizing problems. These findings suggest that interventions provided to families exposed to IPV need to target both maternal and child risk factors in order to successfully reduce child externalizing problems

The cytoplasmic filaments of the nuclear pore complex are dispensable for selective nuclear protein import

The nuclear pore complex (NPC) mediates bidirectional macromolecular traffic between the nucleus and cytoplasm in eukaryotic cells. Eight filaments project from the NPC into the cytoplasm and are proposed to function in nuclear import. We investigated the localization and function of two nucleoporins on the cytoplasmic face of the NPC, CAN/Nup214 and RanBP2/Nup358. Consistent with previous data, RanBP2 was localized at the cytoplasmic filaments. In contrast, CAN was localized near the cytoplasmic coaxial ring. Unexpectedly, extensive blocking of RanBP2 with gold-conjugated antibodies failed to inhibit nuclear import. Therefore, RanBP2-deficient NPCs were generated by in vitro nuclear assembly in RanBP2-depleted Xenopus egg extracts. NPCs were formed that lacked cytoplasmic filaments, but that retained CAN. These nuclei efficiently imported nuclear localization sequence (NLS) or M9 substrates. NPCs lacking CAN retained RanBP2 and cytoplasmic filaments, and showed a minor NLS import defect. NPCs deficient in both CAN and RanBP2 displayed no cytoplasmic filaments and had a strikingly immature cytoplasmic appearance. However, they showed only a slight reduction in NLS-mediated import, no change in M9-mediated import, and were normal in growth and DNA replication. We conclude that RanBP2 is the major nucleoporin component of the cytoplasmic filaments of the NPC, and that these filaments do not have an essential role in importin /ß– or transportin-dependent import

Mach's Principle and the Origin of Inertia

The current status of Mach's principle is discussed within the context of general relativity. The inertial properties of a particle are determined by its mass and spin, since these characterize the irreducible unitary representations of the inhomogeneous Lorentz group. The origin of the inertia of mass and intrinsic spin are discussed and the inertia of intrinsic spin is studied via the coupling of intrinsic spin with rotation. The implications of spin-rotation coupling and the possibility of history dependence and nonlocality in relativistic physics are briefly mentioned.Comment: 14 pages. Dedicated to Carl Brans in honor of his 80th birthday. To appear in the Brans Festschrift; v2: typo corrected, published in: At the Frontier of Spacetime, edited by T. Asselmeyer-Maluga (Springer, 2016), Chapter 10, pp. 177-18

A Discrete Event Simulation model to evaluate the treatment pathways of patients with Cataract in the United Kingdom

Background The number of people affected by cataract in the United Kingdom (UK) is growing rapidly due to ageing population. As the only way to treat cataract is through surgery, there is a high demand for this type of surgery and figures indicate that it is the most performed type of surgery in the UK. The National Health Service (NHS), which provides free of charge care in the UK, is under huge financial pressure due to budget austerity in the last decade. As the number of people affected by the disease is expected to grow significantly in coming years, the aim of this study is to evaluate whether the introduction of new processes and medical technologies will enable cataract services to cope with the demand within the NHS funding constraints. Methods We developed a Discrete Event Simulation model representing the cataract services pathways at Leicester Royal Infirmary Hospital. The model was inputted with data from national and local sources as well as from a surgery demand forecasting model developed in the study. The model was verified and validated with the participation of the cataract services clinical and management teams. Results Four scenarios involving increased number of surgeries per half-day surgery theatre slot were simulated. Results indicate that the total number of surgeries per year could be increased by 40% at no extra cost. However, the rate of improvement decreases for increased number of surgeries per half-day surgery theatre slot due to a higher number of cancelled surgeries. Productivity is expected to improve as the total number of doctors and nurses hours will increase by 5 and 12% respectively. However, non-human resources such as pre-surgery rooms and post-surgery recovery chairs are under-utilized across all scenarios. Conclusions Using new processes and medical technologies for cataract surgery is a promising way to deal with the expected higher demand especially as this could be achieved with limited impact on costs. Non-human resources capacity need to be evenly levelled across the surgery pathway to improve their utilisation. The performance of cataract services could be improved by better communication with and proactive management of patients.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Matrix Development in Self-Assembly of Articular Cartilage

Articular cartilage is a highly functional tissue which covers the ends of long bones and serves to ensure proper joint movement. A tissue engineering approach that recapitulates the developmental characteristics of articular cartilage can be used to examine the maturation and degeneration of cartilage and produce fully functional neotissue replacements for diseased tissue.This study examined the development of articular cartilage neotissue within a self-assembling process in two phases. In the first phase, articular cartilage constructs were examined at 1, 4, 7, 10, 14, 28, 42, and 56 days immunohistochemically, histologically, and through biochemical analysis for total collagen and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content. Based on statistical changes in GAG and collagen levels, four time points from the first phase (7, 14, 28, and 56 days) were chosen to carry into the second phase, where the constructs were studied in terms of their mechanical characteristics, relative amounts of collagen types II and VI, and specific GAG types (chondroitin 4-sulfate, chondroitin 6-sulfate, dermatan sulfate, and hyaluronan). Collagen type VI was present in initial abundance and then localized to a pericellular distribution at 4 wks. N-cadherin activity also spiked at early stages of neotissue development, suggesting that self-assembly is mediated through a minimization of free energy. The percentage of collagen type II to total collagen significantly increased over time, while the proportion of collagen type VI to total collagen decreased between 1 and 2 wks. The chondroitin 6- to 4- sulfate ratio decreased steadily during construct maturation. In addition, the compressive properties reached a plateau and tensile characteristics peaked at 4 wks.The indices of cartilage formation examined in this study suggest that tissue maturation in self-assembled articular cartilage mirrors known developmental processes for native tissue. In terms of tissue engineering, it is suggested that exogenous stimulation may be necessary after 4 wks to further augment the functionality of developing constructs

The role of parental achievement goals in predicting autonomy-supportive and controlling parenting

Although autonomy-supportive and controlling parenting are linked to numerous positive and negative child outcomes respectively, fewer studies have focused on their determinants. Drawing on achievement goal theory and self-determination theory, we propose that parental achievement goals (i.e., achievement goals that parents have for their children) can be mastery, performance-approach or performance-avoidance oriented and that types of goals predict mothers' tendency to adopt autonomy-supportive and controlling behaviors. A total of 67 mothers (aged 30-53 years) reported their goals for their adolescent (aged 13-16 years; 19.4 % girls), while their adolescent evaluated their mothers' behaviors. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that parental performance-approach goals predict more controlling parenting and prevent acknowledgement of feelings, one autonomy-supportive behavior. In addition, mothers who have mastery goals and who endorse performance-avoidance goals are less likely to use guilt-inducing criticisms. These findings were observed while controlling for the effect of maternal anxiety

Coxiella burnetii Phagocytosis Is Regulated by GTPases of the Rho Family and the RhoA Effectors mDia1 and ROCK

The GTPases belonging to the Rho family control the actin cytoskeleton rearrangements needed for particle internalization during phagocytosis. ROCK and mDia1 are downstream effectors of RhoA, a GTPase involved in that process. Coxiella burnetii, the etiologic agent of Q fever, is internalized by the host´s cells in an actin-dependent manner. Nevertheless, the molecular mechanism involved in this process has been poorly characterized. This work analyzes the role of different GTPases of the Rho family and some downstream effectors in the internalization of C. burnetii by phagocytic and non-phagocytic cells. The internalization of C. burnetii into HeLa and RAW cells was significantly inhibited when the cells were treated with Clostridium difficile Toxin B which irreversibly inactivates members of the Rho family. In addition, the internalization was reduced in HeLa cells that overexpressed the dominant negative mutants of RhoA, Rac1 or Cdc42 or that were knocked down for the Rho GTPases. The pharmacological inhibition or the knocking down of ROCK diminished bacterium internalization. Moreover, C. burnetii was less efficiently internalized in HeLa cells overexpressing mDia1-N1, a dominant negative mutant of mDia1, while the overexpression of the constitutively active mutant mDia1-ΔN3 increased bacteria uptake. Interestingly, when HeLa and RAW cells were infected, RhoA, Rac1 and mDia1 were recruited to membrane cell fractions. Our results suggest that the GTPases of the Rho family play an important role in C. burnetii phagocytosis in both HeLa and RAW cells. Additionally, we present evidence that ROCK and mDia1, which are downstream effectors of RhoA, are involved in that processFil: Salinas Ojeda, Romina Paola. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Ortiz Flores, Rodolfo Matias. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Distel, Jesús Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Aguilera, Milton Osmar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Colombo, Maria Isabel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Beron, Walter. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin