Hydra tropomyosin TROP1 is expressed in head-specific epithelial cells and is a major component of the cytoskeletal structure that anchors nematocytes

A cDNA clone encoding a 253 amino acid tropomyosin was isolated from Hydra in a differential screen for headspecific genes. The Hydra tropomyosin gene, designated trop1, is a single copy gene, lacks introns and is strongly expressed in tentacle-specific epithelial cells. Analysis of protein synthesis in head and gastric tissue indicated a high rate of tropomyosin synthesis in head tissue. Immunolocalization of tropomyosin in tentacle tissue revealed a cushion-like tropomyosin-containing structure within battery cells at the base of nematocytes. The structure appears to form part of the cytoskeletal anchor for nematocytes. Tropomyosin cushions were also observed in epithelial cells along the body column, which contain mounted stenotele nematocytes

Inequality in mortality in pre-industrial Southern Europe during an epidemic episode : socio-economic determinants (eighteenth - nineteenth centuries Spain)

The objective of this study is to gain more comprehensive knowledge about social inequality in mortality in pre-industrial periods. With this aim, we have reconstructed the life courses of the inhabitants of the town of Vera in south-east Spain for the period 1797-1812 in order to estimate the influence of socio-economic status on ordinary and extraordinary mortality, given that, during this period, the town suffered from several epidemic outbreaks of yellow fever. As a result of these outbreaks, around a quarter of the town's population died. The results obtained indicate social inequality in mortality at least from the end of the eighteenth century. Although the differences are higher in mortality caused by non-infectious diseases or ill-defined causes, the coefficients also show a certain social gradient in mortality derived from infectious diseases. However, with respect to this latter type of mortality, the place of residence - seems to have a greater influence on the chances of survival than socio-economic status

Biological control of Ctenarytaina eucalypti (Hem.: Psyllidae), pest of eucalyptus in Argentina

El objetivo de la presente nota técnica es registrar la presencia en Argentina del parasitoide Psyllaephagus pilosus Noyes (Hym.: Encyrtidae), enemigo natural específico de una plaga de los eucaliptos recientemente introducida, Ctenarytaina eucalypti (Maskell) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). Ambas especies son originarias de Australia e ingresaron accidentalmente en nuestro país. Se mencionan características importantes tanto de la plaga como de su agente de control y se brinda la bibliografía más importante relacionada con el tema.To record the presence in Argentina of the parasitoid Psyllaephagus pilosus Noyes (Hym.: Encyrtidae) an specific natural enemy of a recent introduced pest of eucalyptus, Ctenarytaina eucalypti (Maskell) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae), is the objective of the present technical note. Although the home range of both species is Australia, they were accidentally introduced in our country. Some important characteristics of the pest and its biological control agent are mentioned, and the most relevant literature on the subject is provided.Fil: Fidalgo, Alberto Antonio P.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja. - Universidad Nacional de La Rioja. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja. - Universidad Nacional de Catamarca. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja. - Secretaría de Industria y Minería. Servicio Geológico Minero Argentino. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja. - Provincia de La Rioja. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja; ArgentinaFil: Olivares, Tania S.. Universidad de Concepción; ChileFil: de Haro, Ana Maria. Universidad Nacional de Lujan. Departamento de Tecnología. Laboratorio de Zoología Agrícola; ArgentinaFil: Barañao, Justo Jose. Universidad Nacional de Luján; Argentin

Cognition and functionality in delusional disorder.

BACKGROUND: Even if neurocognition is known to affect functional outcomes in schizophrenia, no previous study has explored the impact of cognition on functionality in delusional disorder (DD). We aimed to assess the effect of clinical characteristics, symptom dimensions and neuropsychological performance on psychosocial functioning and self-perceived functional impairment in DD. METHODS: Seventy-five patients with a SCID-I confirmed diagnosis of DD underwent neurocognitive testing using a neuropsychological battery examining verbal memory, attention, working memory and executive functions. We assessed psychotic symptoms with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, and calculated factor scores for four clinical dimensions: Paranoid, Cognitive, Affective and Schizoid. We conducted hierarchical linear regression models to identify predictors of psychosocial functioning, as measured with the Global Assessment of Functioning scale, and self-perceived functional impairment, as measured with the Sheehan's Disability Inventory. RESULTS: In the final linear regression models, higher scores in the Paranoid (β= 0.471, p < .001, r2 = 0.273) and Cognitive (β = 0.325, p < .001, r2 = 0.180) symptomatic dimensions and lower scores in verbal memory (β = -0.273, p < .05, r2 = 0.075) were significantly associated with poorer psychosocial functioning in patients with DD. Lower scores in verbal memory (β= -0.337, p < .01, r2 = 0.158) and executive functions (β= -0.323, p < .01, r2 = 0.094) were significantly associated with higher self-perceived disability. CONCLUSIONS: Impaired verbal memory and cognitive symptoms seem to affect functionality in DD, above and beyond the severity of the paranoid idea. This suggests a potential role for cognitive interventions in the management of DD

Therapists make the switch to telepsychology to safely continue treating their patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. virtual reality telepsychology may be next

Before COVID-19, most therapists had concerns about telepsychology, and only treated patients in person. During the COVID-19 lockdown, patients still needed therapy, but in-person therapy sessions became unsafe. The current study measured how many therapists are using online therapy before vs. during COVID-19, how much training they have received, and their knowledge about legal restrictions on using telepsychology. A sample of 768 U.S.A. mental health professionals completed a 29-item online survey. Results show that before COVID-19, most therapists only saw their patients in person (e.g., at the therapists office), but during the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly all therapists used a wide range of telecommunication technologies to communicate with their quarantined patients, including texting, telephones, video conferences, and even virtual reality. According to within-subject related samples comparisons, 39% of survey respondents used telepsychology before COVID-19, vs. 98% during COVID-19 (χ2 = 450.02, p < 0.001). Therapists reported high treatment effectiveness using telepsychology (7.45 on 0–10 scale). However, overall, on a 0–10 scale, therapists reported a significant increase in feeling burned out during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mean = 3.93 (SD = 1.93) before vs. 6.22 (SD = 2.27) during the pandemic (Z = −18.57, p < 0.001). Although the APA ethics guidelines encourage therapists to use telepsychology with their patients during the crisis, gaps in respondents' knowledge identify a need for increased specialized training and education. Although the current study showed that virtual reality is rarely used by the therapists surveyed, virtual reality is a promising new telepsychology technology. Billions of dollars are currently being invested in mass producing immersive virtual reality systems. In the future, as networked immersive Virtual Reality becomes more widely available, therapists and patients in physically different locations will be able to “meet” in a shared computer-generated world designed for therapy sessions, potentially including group sessions. Telepsychology and virtual reality have the potential to be increasingly valuable tools to help therapists mitigate the consequences of COVID-19. Research, development and training is recommended.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Trabajadores mayores con discapacidad: Diferencias de satisfacción laboral en el sector público y el sector privado en Europa

Análisis de las diferencias en satisfacción laboral de las personas mayores con y sin discapacidad europeas (entre 50 y 64 años) que se encuentran empleadas en el sector público o privado. Usando los datos suministrados por la Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) para los años 2004 y 2007, se estiman ecuaciones de satisfacción laboral con técnicas de panel para los trabajadores del sector público y sector privado, las cuales incluyen variables relacionadas con el grado de discapacidad del trabajador (es decir, no discapacitado, discapacitado no limitado y discapacitado limitado). Los resultados muestran que aunque los trabajadores discapacitados limitados en sus actividades diarias están menos satisfechos que los no discapacitados y no limitados en ambos sectores, éstos poseen unos mayores niveles de satisfacción laboral cuando trabajan en el sector público que cuando lo hacen en el sector privado. Desde un punto de vista de políticas públicas es necesario diseñar y acometer medidas y acciones que contribuyan a mejorar los niveles de satisfacción laboral de los trabajadores mayores con discapacidad, en especial entre aquellos que están limitados en sus actividades diarias.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Influence of cavity type and size of composite restorations on cuspal flexure

Objectives: The present study examines the influence of cavity type, and size of composite restorations on cuspal flexure due to polymerization shrinkage. Methods: Thirty healthy premolars were selected and divided into two experimental groups. Group 1: Mesial, mesiodistal, and MOD cavities were successively prepared in each tooth by means of the SONICSYS approx system (KaVo ®) using a nº 2 (small) diamond tip. Group 2: The same cavity preparation sequence was followed but a nº 3 (medium) tip was used. Cavity preparations were performed and afterwards restored using the same adhesive system and resin composite. Cuspal displacement was measured 15 min after completion of each type of restoration. Results: Under the experimental conditions used, polymerization shrinkage of composite restorations resulted in an inward deflection of the cusps in all the situations evaluated. The Friedman global test found significant differences according to the cavity type and size (p0.05). Conclusions: The present study demonstrates that significantly higher cuspal deflection is observed in MOD restorations, showing that the degree of dental removal influences the cuspal flexure from polymerization shrinkage of composite restorations

Blunted autonomic reactivity to mental stress in depression quantified by nonlinear cardiorespiratory coupling indices

In this study, differences in autonomic reactivity to mental stress between Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) patients and healthy control (HC) subjects are assessed by nonlinear cardiorespiratory coupling indices derived from the Real Wavelet Biphase. The degree and strength of Quadratic Phase Coupling (QPC) between interacting oscillations of Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and respiration are quantified before, during and after the execution of acognitive task. Results show that the QPC strength and QPC degree between the respiration and the respiratory sinus arrhythmia component of HRV were lower in HC compared to MDD during stress, suggesting that the parasympathetic branch was less inhibited in MDD patients. During recovery, only in HC group, this degree of QPC increased, while the respiratory rate was reduced, compared to the basal stage. The degree of QPC between the respiration and components of HRV in the low frequency band ([0.04, 0.15] Hz) increased in HC during stress, compared to the basal stage, while remained unchanged in MDD patients. These results imply that depression is associated with blunted autonomic reactivity to mental stres

Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of Algerian propolis against fish pathogenic bacteria

Five different varieties of propolis from four sites from Sétif region (East of Algeria) (Babor, Setif; Ain-Abbassa and El-Hamma), and one site from the center of Algeria (Tizi-Ouzou) were chemically analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. One hundred and two compounds were identified including aromatic acids, linear hydrocarbons and their acids, terpenes and alcaloïdes. Furthermore, the in vitro bacteriostatic and bactericidal activities of the aqueous extracts were evaluated against one Gram positive (Bacillus subtilis, used as probiotics in aquaculture) and two Gram negative (Vibrio anguillarum and Vibrio harveyi, pathogenic for fish) bacteria. The obtained results showed that all aqueous extracts of propolis inhibit the growth of B. Subtilis while the growth inhibition of fish pathogens was achieved when using higher propolis concentrations. These antibacterial properties would warrant further studies on the clinical applications of propolis in aquaculture field. Keywords: Bactericidal activity; Chemical characterization; Propolis; Vibrio

Neuromotor development and visual acuity in premature infants submitted to early visuo-motor stimulation

To investigate the effects of early visual stimulation on the development of tonus and posture control and of grating visual acuity of preterm infants, eight infants received visual stimulation that induced head motion during the first 6 months of life in weekly sessions. Their performance was compared with that of unstimulated preterm infants of same age (n = 6). Both groups were evaluated in the developmental scale of Gesell and had their grating visual acuity measured by swept visually evoked potentials (sweep-VEP). Visuomotor performance and adoption and maintenance of postures were significantly better for the stimulated group (p < .05) compared to the unstimulated group. There was no statistical difference between the two groups for the development of visual acuity. Visuo-motor and postural development improved with the early visuo-motor stimulation program. The lack of influence of this program in the development of visual acuity may be attributed to differences in the pathways involved in the processing of visual acuity of patterns and in the responses elicited by visuo-motor stimulation.Universidade de São PauloUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESPSciEL