44-jähriger Patient mit kulturnegativer, purulenter Perikarditis

Zusammenfassung: Wir berichten über einen Patienten mit purulenter Perikarditis und drohender Perikardtamponade, verursacht durch Neisseria meningitidis. Bei negativen Kulturen aus Blut und Perikardpunktat, wahrscheinlich bedingt durch die Vorbehandlung mit Antibiotika, konnten wir mittels Breitspektrumpolymerasekettenreaktion aus dem Perikardpunktat und einem Latexagglutinationstest aus Pleurapunktat Meningokokken der SerogruppeC nachweisen. Eine Meningokokkenperikarditis ohne Meningitis ist selten. Diagnostische Methoden auf nicht-kultureller Basis spielen bei Patienten, die bereits mit Antibiotika vorbehandelt sind, eine wichtige Roll

Carbon balance assessment of a natural steppe of southern Siberia by multiple constraint approach

Steppe ecosystems represent an interesting case in which the assessment of carbon balance may be performed through a cross validation of the eddy covariance measurements against ecological inventory estimates of carbon exchanges (Ehman et al., 2002; Curtis et al., 2002). <br><br> Indeed, the widespread presence of ideal conditions for the applicability of the eddy covariance technique, as vast and homogeneous grass vegetation cover over flat terrains (Baldocchi, 2003), make steppes a suitable ground to ensure a constrain to flux estimates with independent methodological approaches. <br><br> We report about the analysis of the carbon cycle of a true steppe ecosystem in southern Siberia during the growing season of 2004 in the framework of the TCOS-Siberia project activities performed by continuous monitoring of CO<sub>2</sub> fluxes at ecosystem scale by the eddy covariance method, fortnightly samplings of phytomass, and ingrowth cores extractions for NPP assessment, and weekly measurements of heterotrophic component of soil CO<sub>2</sub> effluxes obtained by an experiment of root exclusion. <br><br> The carbon balance of the monitored natural steppe was, according to micrometeorological measurements, a sink of carbon of 151.7±36.9 g C m<sup>−2</sup>, cumulated during the growing season from May to September. This result was in agreement with the independent estimate through ecological inventory which yielded a sink of 150.1 g C m<sup>−2</sup> although this method was characterized by a large uncertainty (±130%) considering the 95% confidence interval of the estimate. Uncertainties in belowground process estimates account for a large part of the error. Thus, in particular efforts to better quantify the dynamics of root biomass (growth and turnover) have to be undertaken in order to reduce the uncertainties in the assessment of NPP. This assessment should be preferably based on the application of multiple methods, each one characterized by its own merits and flaws

Role of proneural genes in the formation of the larval olfactory organ of Drosophila

In this paper, we address the role of proneural genes in the formation of the dorsal organ in the Drosophila larva. This organ is an intricate compound comprising the multineuronal dome—the exclusive larval olfactory organ—and a number of mostly gustatory sensilla. We first determine the numbers of neurons and of the different types of accessory cells in the dorsal organ. From these data, we conclude that the dorsal organ derives from 14 sensory organ precursor cells. Seven of them appear to give rise to the dome, which therefore may be composed of seven fused sensilla, whereas the other precursors produce the remaining sensilla of the dorsal organ. By a loss-of-function approach, we then analyze the role of atonal, amos, and the achaete-scute complex (AS-C), which in the adult are the exclusive proneural genes required for chemosensory organ specification. We show that atonal and amos are necessary and sufficient in a complementary way for four and three of the sensory organ precursors of the dome, respectively. AS-C, on the other hand, is implicated in specifying the non-olfactory sensilla, partially in cooperation with atonal and/or amos. Similar links for these proneural genes with olfactory and gustatory function have been established in the adult fly. However, such conserved gene function is not trivial, given that adult and larval chemosensory organs are anatomically very different and that the development of adult olfactory sensilla involves cell recruitment, which is unlikely to play a role in dome formatio

Émotions épistémiques et créativité dans la formation enseignante : un duo gagnant ?

L’importance des émotions dans la créativité a été mise en évidence dans la littérature. Néanmoins, dans ce contexte, plus rares sont les recherches qui se sont intéressées à une catégorie particulière d’émotions : les émotions épistémiques. Ces dernières désignent tous les états affectifs émanant d’activités cognitives (Scheffler, 2010 ; Silvia, 2010) et notamment dans un contexte d’appropriation des connaissances (Pekrun et al., 2017). Cette contribution vise à évaluer dans quelle mesure ces émotions sont effectivement impliquées dans des contextes créatifs, et si elles le sont, avec quelle intensité. Des données ont été récoltées dans un contexte de formation à la créativité chez des futurs enseignants. Durant la formation à deux techniques de créativité, les participants ont tenu un carnet de bord dans lequel ils pouvaient rapporter les émotions ressenties (Botella et al., 2017) et répondu à des questionnaires mesurant les émotions épistémiques qu’ils avaient ressenties durant leur participation aux différentes techniques de créativité. Nos résultats suggèrent que les participants ont effectivement ressenti des émotions épistémiques durant des techniques de créativité, en particulier de la curiosité, de l’enthousiasme et dans une moindre mesure de la surprise. Les carnets de bord suggèrent que les premières émotions ressenties pouvaient être parfois négatives (telles que de la peur ou de l’anxiété) mais qu’au fur et à mesure de l’avancée dans la technique de créativité, celles-ci se transformaient en émotions positives telles que la joie ou l’intérêt.The importance of emotions, both positive and negative, in creativity has been highlighted in the literature. Nevertheless, in this context, few studies have been focusing on epistemic emotions. These refer to all affective states emanating from cognitive activities (Scheffler, 2010; Silvia, 2010) and particularly in a context of knowledge appropriation (Pekrun et al., 2017). This research aims to study 1) whether these emotions are involved in creative contexts and 2) if so, to which intensity. Data was collected during a course on creativity for future teachers. Participants were asked to participate to two creativity technics and to 1) keep a logbook to report the emotions they felt during these activities (Botella et al., 2017) and 2) to answer a questionnaire measuring the intensity of their epistemic emotions. Results suggest that participants actually experienced epistemic emotions during the creativity techniques. More specifically they felt curiosity, enthusiasm and, to a lesser extent, surprise. These results are corroborated by the logbooks, which further explain the emotional process felt in a creative context: while the first emotions felt were sometimes negative (such as fear or anxiety), these were transformed into positive emotions such as enjoyment or interest as the creative technique progressed

Candida auris - recommendations on infection prevention and control measures in Switzerland.

Candida auris, a globally emerging pathogen, has been repeatedly introduced into European healthcare settings, leading to large and long-lasting nosocomial outbreaks. The pathogen has already been isolated in Switzerland, requiring clinicians and microbiologists to become alert. This is the first comprehensive guidance document on prevention and control of C. auris in Swiss acute care hospitals. It brings to light the most recent evidence from published original articles and reviews. We emphasise the importance of quickly identifying this yeast by means of screening in order to prevent an outbreak that could be difficult to contain. Key containment strategies include reinforcing early detection, hand hygiene, application of strict contact precautions for colonised and infected patients, and thorough specific environmental cleaning and disinfection