Political conspiracy in Napoleonic France: the Malet affair

The French Revolution ushered in a period of political unrest in France which appeared never-ending, even when a seemingly stable government rose to power. After a series of failed Republican governments, Napoleon Bonaparte seized control on 18 Brumaire VIII, promising to uphold the revolutionary ideals that had permeated the nation. As time passed, however, it became clear that he aimed at gathering all political power for himself. With his consular and imperial regimes accepted by French citizens, Napoleon effectively returned the country to autocratic rule. Needing talented officials to serve in his military, ministries, and prefectures, Napoleon enlisted the services of men whose ideologies ranged from Republican, to monarchist, to imperialists. Relying on officials whose political beliefs conflicted with those of the current regime engendered instability within his new government, making it possible for any enterprising political hopeful to strike a devastating blow against the Empire. Throughout the Napoleonic era, many dissidents attempted to overthrow Bonaparte’s regimes, but only one man achieved enough success to unsettle the Emperor’s belief that his government was secure. General Claude-François de Malet was a fervent Republican and despite frequent prison breaks and constant denunciations of Napoleon and his government, few people considered him a serious threat. Opinion would change after the night of 22 October 1812. The event, simply known as the Malet Conspiracy, was the single most successful coup attempted against the Napoleonic regime. During this attempt, Malet successfully deceived several high-ranking military officials, prompting them to place their troops under his control. The readiness with which these men followed Malet’s orders without question speaks to the fragility of Napoleon’s Empire, even among those he considered his most trustworthy devotees. Fearing that his Empire was on the verge of collapse, Napoleon chose to return to Paris from Russia only after hearing of the events set into motion by Malet. After the nearly successful attempt, it became clear to Napoleon that running an imperial government required close, personal supervision, especially in the homeland of liberté, égalité, and fraternité

Intestinal barrier tightening by a cell-penetrating antibody to Bin1, a candidate target for immunotherapy of ulcerative colitis.

Patients afflicted with ulcerative colitis (UC) are at increased risk of colorectal cancer. While its causes are not fully understood, UC is associated with defects in colonic epithelial barriers that sustain inflammation of the colon mucosa caused by recruitment of lymphocytes and neutrophils into the lamina propria. Based on genetic evidence that attenuation of the bridging integrator 1 (Bin1) gene can limit UC pathogenicity in animals, we have explored Bin1 targeting as a therapeutic option. Early feasibility studies in the dextran sodium sulfate mouse model of experimental colitis showed that administration of a cell-penetrating Bin1 monoclonal antibody (Bin1 mAb 99D) could prevent lesion formation in the colon mucosa in part by preventing rupture of lymphoid follicles. In vivo administration of Bin1 mAb altered tight junction protein expression and cecal barrier function. Strikingly, electrophysiology studies in organ cultures showed that Bin1 mAb could elevate resistance and lowe

Unsafe abortion requiring hospital admission in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea - a descriptive study of women’s and health care workers’ experiences

Background: In Papua New Guinea induced abortion is restricted under the Criminal Code Law. Unsafe abortions are known to be widely practiced and sepsis due to unsafe abortion is a leading cause of maternal mortality.\ud \ud Methods: We undertook a six month, prospective, mixed methods study at the Eastern Highlands Provincial Hospital. Semi structured and in depth interviews were undertaken with women presenting following induced abortion. This paper describes the reasons why women resorted to unsafe abortion, the techniques used, decision to seek post abortion care and women's reflections post abortion.\ud \ud Results: 28 women were admitted to hospital following an induced abortion. Reasons for inducing an abortion included: wanting to continue with studies, relationship problems and socio-cultural factors. Misoprostol was the most frequently used method to end the pregnancy. Physical and mechanical means, traditional herbs and spiritual beliefs were also reported. Women sought care post abortion due to excessive vaginal bleeding, and severe abdominal pain with some afraid they would die if they did not seek help.\ud \ud Conclusion: In the absence of contraceptive information and services to avoid, postpone or space pregnancies, women in this setting are resorting to unsafe means to end an unwanted pregnancy, putting their lives at risk. Women need access to safe, effective means of abortion

The CATFISH study protocol: an evaluation of a water fluoridation scheme

Abstract Background Tooth decay is the commonest disease of childhood. We have known for over 90 years that fluoride can prevent tooth decay; it is present in nearly all toothpastes and can be provided in mouthwashes, gels and varnishes. The oldest method of applying fluoride is via the water supply at a concentration of 1 part per million. The two most important reviews of water fluoridation in the United Kingdom (the York Review and MRC Report on water fluoridation and health) concluded that whilst there was evidence to suggest water fluoridation provided a benefit in caries reduction, there was a need to improve the evidence base in several areas. Methods/Design This study will use a natural experiment to assess the incidence of caries in two geographical areas, one in which the water supply is returned to being fluoridated following a discontinuation of fluoridation and one that continues to have a non-fluoridated water supply. The oral health of two discrete study populations will be evaluated - those born 9 months after the water fluoridation was introduced, and those who were in their 1st year of school after the introduction of fluoridated water. Both populations will be followed prospectively for 5 years using a census approach in the exposed group along with matched numbers recruitment in a non-exposed control. Parents of the younger cohort will complete questionnaires every 6 months with child clinical examination at ages 3 and 5, whilst the older cohort will have clinical examinations only, at approximately 5, 7 and 11 years old. Discussion This project provides a unique opportunity to conduct a high quality evaluation of the reintroduction of a water fluoridation scheme, which satisfies the inclusion criteria stipulated by the York systematic review and can address the design issues identified in the MRC report. The research will make a major contribution to the understanding of the costs and effects of water fluoridation in the UK in the 21st Century. Its findings will help inform UK policy on this important public health intervention and may have a significant impact on public health policy in other developed countries. There is currently true equipoise in relation to the effectiveness of water fluoridation in contemporary populations and while the biological plausibility is well established, there is a need to examine impact on the changing epidemiological status of dental decay

Modelling coseismic displacements during the 1997 Umbria-Marche earthquake (central Italy)

We propose a dislocation model for the two normal faulting earthquakes that struck the central Apennines (Umbria-Marche, Italy) on 1997 September 26 at 00:33 (Mw 5.7) and 09:40 GMT (Mw 6.0). We fit coseismic horizontal and vertical displacements resulting from GPS measurements at several monuments of the IGMI (Istituto Geografico Militare Italiano) by means of a dislocation model in an elastic, homogeneous, isotropic half-space. Our best-fitting model consists of two normal faults whose mechanisms and seismic moments have been taken from CMT solutions; it is consistent with other seismological and geophysical observations. The first fault, which is 6 km long and 7 km wide, ruptured during the 00:33 event with a unilateral rupture towards the SE and an average slip of 27 cm. The second fault is 12 km long and 10 km wide, and ruptured during the 09:40 event with a nearly unilateral rupture towards the NW. Slip distribution on this second fault is non-uniform and is concentrated in its SE portion (maximum slip is 65 cm), where rupture initiated. The 00:33 fault is deeper than the 09:40 one: the top of the first rupture is deeper than 1.7 km; the top of the second is 0.6 km deep. In order to interpret the observed epicentral subsidence we have also considered the contributions of two further moderate-magnitude earthquakes that occurred on 1997 October 3 (Mw 5.2) and 6 (Mw 5.4), immediately before the GPS survey, and were located very close to the 09:40 event of September 26. We compare the pattern of vertical displacements resulting from our forward modelling of GPS data with that derived from SAR interferograms: the fit to SAR data is very good, confirming the reliability of the proposed dislocation model

Mother’s little helper? Contrasting accounts of benzodiazepine and methadone use among drug-dependent parents in the UK.

Aims: To explore the ways in which opioid-dependent parents accounted for their use of opioids and benzodiazepines during and after pregnancy. Methods: Longitudinal qualitative interviews [n?=?45] with 19 opioid-dependent adults recruited in Scotland, UK, were held during the antenatal and post-natal period. Interviews focused on parenting and parenting support within the context of problem drug use and were analysed using a narrative informed, thematic analysis. Findings: The majority of participants described using benzodiazepines in addition to opioids. Almost all indicated a desire to stop or reduce opioid use, whereas cessation or reduction of benzodiazepines was rarely prioritised. In stark contrast to opioid dependence, benzodiazepine dependence was portrayed as unproblematic, therapeutic and acceptable in the context of family life. Whereas opioid dependence was framed as stigmatising, benzodiazepine use and dependence was normalised. An exception was benzodiazepine use by men which was occasionally associated with aggression and domestic abuse. Conclusions: Drug-dependent parents attach different meanings to opioid and benzodiazepine use and dependence in the context of parenthood. Divergent meanings, and stigma, may impact on stated commitment to stability or recovery from dependent drug-use. Attention should be paid to the way in which policy and practice regarding OST and benzodiazepines reflects this divergenc