A new species of Trichodina (Ciliophora: Peritrichia) from the urinary bladder of Bufo gutturalis Power, 1927

A taxonomic description of Trichodina dampanuia sp. n. (Ciliophora: Peritrichia), an endoparasite infecting the urinary bladder and ureters of Bufo gutturalis Power, 1927, is provided

Understanding uptake of continuous quality improvement in Indigenous primary health care: lessons from a multi-site case study of the Audit and Best Practice for Chronic Disease project

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Experimentation with continuous quality improvement (CQI) processes is well underway in Indigenous Australian primary health care. To date, little research into how health organizations take up, support, and embed these complex innovations is available on which services can draw to inform implementation. In this paper, we examine the practices and processes in the policy and organisational contexts, and aim to explore the ways in which they interact to support and/or hinder services' participation in a large scale Indigenous primary health care CQI program.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We took a theory-driven approach, drawing on literature on the theory and effectiveness of CQI systems and the Greenhalgh diffusion of innovation framework. Data included routinely collected regional and service profile data; uptake of tools and progress through the first CQI cycle, and data collected quarterly from hub coordinators on their perceptions of barriers and enablers. A total of 48 interviews were also conducted with key people involved in the development, dissemination, and implementation of the Audit and Best Practice for Chronic Disease (ABCD) project. We compiled the various data, conducted thematic analyses, and developed an in-depth narrative account of the processes of uptake and diffusion into services.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Uptake of CQI was a complex and messy process that happened in fits and starts, was often characterised by conflicts and tensions, and was iterative, reactive, and transformational. Despite initial enthusiasm, the mixed successes during the first cycle were associated with the interaction of features of the environment, the service, the quality improvement process, and the stakeholders, which operated to produce a set of circumstances that either inhibited or enabled the process of change. Organisations had different levels of capacity to mobilize resources that could shift the balance toward supporting implementation. Different forms of leadership and organisational linkages were critical to success. The Greenhalgh framework provided a useful starting point for investigation, but we believe it is more a descriptive than explanatory model. As such, it has limitations in the extent to which it could assist us in understanding the interactions of the practices and processes that we observed at different levels of the system.</p> <p>Summary</p> <p>Taking up CQI involved engaging multiple stakeholders in new relationships that could support services to construct shared meaning and purpose, operationalise key concepts and tools, and develop and embed new practices into services systems and routines. Promoting quality improvement requires a system approach and organization-wide commitment. At the organization level, a formal high-level mandate, leadership at all levels, and resources to support implementation are needed. At the broader system level, governance arrangements that can fulfil a number of policy objectives related to articulating the linkages between CQI and other aspects of the regulatory, financing, and performance frameworks within the health system would help define a role and vision for quality improvement.</p

The state of the Martian climate

60°N was +2.0°C, relative to the 1981–2010 average value (Fig. 5.1). This marks a new high for the record. The average annual surface air temperature (SAT) anomaly for 2016 for land stations north of starting in 1900, and is a significant increase over the previous highest value of +1.2°C, which was observed in 2007, 2011, and 2015. Average global annual temperatures also showed record values in 2015 and 2016. Currently, the Arctic is warming at more than twice the rate of lower latitudes

Genome Analysis of Multi- and Extensively-Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The KZN strain family of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a highly virulent strain endemic to the KwaZulu-Natal region of South Africa, which has recently experienced an outbreak of extensively-drug resistant tuberculosis. To investigate the causes and evolution of drug-resistance, we determined the DNA sequences of several clinical isolates - one drug-susceptible, one multi-drug resistant, and nine extensively drug-resistant - using whole-genome sequencing. Analysis of polymorphisms among the strains is consistent with the drug-susceptibility profiles, in that well-known mutations are observed that are correlated with resistance to isoniazid, rifampicin, kanamycin, ofloxacin, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide. However, the mutations responsible for rifampicin resistance in rpoB and pyrazinamide in pncA are in different nucleotide positions in the multi-drug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant strains, clearly showing that they acquired these mutations independently, and that the XDR strain could not have evolved directly from the MDR strain (though it could have arisen from another similar MDR strain). Sequencing of eight additional XDR strains from other areas of KwaZulu-Natal shows that they have identical drug resistant mutations to the first one sequenced, including the same polymorphisms at sites associated with drug resistance, supporting the theory that this represents a case of clonal expansion

Sexually dimorphic gene expression emerges with embryonic genome activation and is dynamic throughout development

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public DomainVKR is supported by grants from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, UK (BB/M012494/1), VKR and CG by (BB/G00711/X/1). MLH is supported by a Research Council UK Academic Fellowship. RL is supported by EU-FP7 BLUEPRINT

Fatigue and physical disability in patients with multiple sclerosis: a structural equation modeling approach

Although fatigue is one of the most common and disabling symptoms in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), its pathogenesis is still poorly understood and it is difficult to treat. The aim of the current study was to test the assumptions of a cognitive-behavioral model that explains fatigue and physical disability in MS patients, by comparing this approach with a more traditional biomedical approach. Structural equation modeling was applied to a sample of 262 MS patients. Neither the cognitive-behavioral, nor the biomedical model showed an adequate fit of our data. The modification indices supported an integration of both models, which showed a better fit than those of the separate models. This final model, is notable for at least three features: (1) fatigue is associated with depression and physical disability, (2) physical disability is associated with disease severity and fatigue-related fear and avoidance behavior, and (3) catastrophic interpretations about fatigue, fueled by depression, mediated the relationship between fatigue and fatigue-related fear and avoidance behavior. Our results suggest that an integrated approach, including the modification of catastrophic thoughts about fatigue, would be beneficial in the treatment of fatigue in MS patients

Insights on Glucocorticoid Receptor Activity Modulation through the Binding of Rigid Steroids

Background: The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a transcription factor that regulates gene expression in a ligand-dependent fashion. This modular protein is one of the major pharmacological targets due to its involvement in both cause and treatment of many human diseases. Intense efforts have been made to get information about the molecular basis of GR activity. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here, the behavior of four GR-ligand complexes with different glucocorticoid and antiglucocorticoid properties were evaluated. The ability of GR-ligand complexes to oligomerize in vivo was analyzed by performing the novel Number and Brightness assay. Results showed that most of GR molecules form homodimers inside the nucleus upon ligand binding. Additionally, in vitro GR-DNA binding analyses suggest that ligand structure modulates GRDNA interaction dynamics rather than the receptor's ability to bind DNA. On the other hand, by coimmunoprecipitation studies we evaluated the in vivo interaction between the transcriptional intermediary factor 2 (TIF2) coactivator and different GR-ligand complexes. No correlation was found between GR intranuclear distribution, cofactor recruitment and the homodimerization process. Finally, Molecular determinants that support the observed experimental GR LBD-ligand/TIF2 interaction were found by Molecular Dynamics simulation. Conclusions/Significance: The data presented here sustain the idea that in vivo GR homodimerization inside the nucleus can be achieved in a DNA-independent fashion, without ruling out a dependent pathway as well. Moreover, since at least one GR-ligand complex is able to induce homodimer formation while preventing TIF2 coactivator interaction, results suggest that these two events might be independent from each other. Finally, 21-hydroxy-6,19-epoxyprogesterone arises as a selective glucocorticoid with potential pharmacological interest. Taking into account that GR homodimerization and cofactor recruitment are considered essential steps in the receptor activation pathway, results presented here contribute to understand how specific ligands influence GR behavior. © 2010 Presman et al.Fil:Presman, D.M. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Alvarez, L.D. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Levi, V. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Martí, M.A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Veleiro, A.S. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Burton, G. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina.Fil:Pecci, A. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina