The role of the cognitive model profile in knowledge representation and meaning construction: the case of the lexical item Europe

The paper addresses the role of the cognitive model profile, one of the fundamental constructs in LCCM Theory (a.k.a. access semantics), in meaning construction and knowledge representation with respect to the concept of Europe. The study is based on a corpus of news articles retrieved from the Guardian from May 2004 through December 2009 (approximately 930,000 words) and focuses on the lexical item Europe (over 4000 corpus occurrences). The study takes its theoretical underpinnings from LCCM Theory, a theory of lexical representation and semantic composition, which delineates the roles the linguistic and the conceptual systems play in meaning construction (e.g., Evans 2009, 2013).The paper documents the immense semantic potential of the lexical item Europe as manifest in the Guardian’s discourse under analysis. In terms of knowledge representation, to account for the coherent body of multimodal knowledge which the lexical item Europe affords access to, its cognitive model profiles relevant to its two lexical concepts are constructed. As far as the role of the cognitive model profile in meaning construction is concerned, the study demonstrates how the context, specifically the co-text, determines the activation of a respective portion of the cognitive model profile of the lexical item Europe.

Toxic substances in the household - cases of poisoning, therapy, complications

There are many toxic substances used in our houses. Rodent poisons are not the most common group of substances, but cases of poisoning still occur. Long-acting anticoagulant rodenticides, also called superwarfarins, are known for their greater potency, longer half-life and delayed onset of symptoms. Cases of superwarfarin poisoning can pose a diagnostic and clinical challenge due to a wide array of presentations and prolonged severe coagulopathy requiring months of high-dose oral vitamin K therapy. The most common presentation of long-acting anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning is mucocutaneous bleeding, with other common presentations including haematuria, gingival bleeding, epistaxis and gastrointestinal bleeding.We discuss a case of self-poisoning with long-acting anticoagulant rodenticides with a little presentation of sympthoms and disscus about another cases based on the found articles

Carbon monoxide poisoning - cases, pathophysiology, management

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a common clinical problem, especially in autumn and winter. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas and poisoning causes hypoxia, cell damage and consequently, can lead to death. Carbon monoxide exposure is measured directly from blood samples and expressed as a percentage of carboxyhemoglobin or indirectly using carbon monoxide in the breath. Carboxyhemoglobin percentage is the most commonly used biomarker of carbon monoxide exposure. Although the diagnosis of carbon monoxide poisoning can be confirmed by the detection of elevated levels of carboxyhemoglobin in the blood, the presence of clinical signs after known exposure to carbon monoxide should not be ignored. Carbon monoxide poisoning can have lasting effects. Physicians evaluating patients with acute poisoning should initiate treatment with normobaric oxygen and consider treatment with hyperbaric oxygen. Often, complete recovery after poisoning may not be possible and you should then refer for the treatment of complications to appropriate specialists

Changes in the clinical characteristics of women with gestational diabetes mellitus : a retrospective decade-long single center analysis

Aims: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is an emerging worldwide problem. Changes in clinical characteristics of women affected by GDM in a long-term perspective are still not properly investigated. We aimed to examine such changes over a decade in a retrospective single-center analysis. Methods: The medical documentation from Department of Metabolic Diseases, Krakow, Poland was analyzed. We included 633 women consecutively diagnosed with GDM in one of three time intervals: 2007-2008 (N = 157), 2012-2013 (N = 272), 2016-2017 (N = 234). Statistical analyses were performed. Results: Comparison of the three groups identified differences in the mean age of women at the GDM diagnosis (30.7 ± 5.0 years vs. 31.2 ± 4.7 vs. 32.5 ± 4.7, respectively, starting from the earliest 2007-2008 group), pregnancy week at GDM diagnosis (28.0 ± 5.3 wks. vs. 25.9 ± 4.9 vs. 23.4 ± 6.8), the proportion of women diagnosed before the 24th week of pregnancy (12.8% vs. 16.5% vs. 31.3%), and gestational weight gain (12.4 ± 5.0 kg vs. 10.4 ± 5.2 vs. 10.0 ± 5.7); (p = 0.001 or less for all comparisons). We also found differences for glucose values on fasting and at 2 hours with the highest (0 min) and lowest level (120 min) in the 2016–2017, respectively. Finally, a borderline difference for the weight, but not for BMI, was found (64.1 ± 14.1 kg vs. 66.2 ± 13.1 vs. 67.8 ± 15.6; p = 0.04). Differences were also identified in the post hoc analysis between cohorts. Conclusion: This retrospective analysis illustrates changes in characteristics of women with GDM occurring over the period of decade in Poland. They likely result from both epidemiological trends and modifications of the WHO criteria for the GDM diagnosis

DNA methylation analysis of negative pressure therapy effect in diabetic foot ulcers

Objective: Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been used to treat diabetic foot ulcerations (DFUs). Its action on the molecular level, however, is only partially understood. Some earlier data suggested NPWT may be mediated th rough modification of local gene expression. As methylation is a key epigenetic regulatory mechanism of gene expression, we assessed the effect of NPWT on its profile in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and neuropathic non-infected DFUs. Methods: Of 36 included patients, 23 were assigned to NPWT and 13 to standard therapy. Due to ethical concerns, the assignment was non-randomized and based on wound characteristics. Tissue samples were obtained before and 8 ± 1 days after therapy initiation. DNA methylation patterns were checked by Illumina Methylation EPIC kit. Results: In terms of clinical characteristics, the groups presented typical features of T2DM; however, the NPWT group had significantly greater wound ar ea: 16.8 cm2 vs 1.4 cm2 (P = 0.0003). Initially only one region at chromosome 5 was differentially methylated. After treatment, 57 differentially methylated genes were found, mainly located on chromosomes 6 (chr6p21) and 20 (chr20p13); they were associated with DNA repair and autocrine signaling via retinoic acid receptor. We performed differential analyses pre treatment and post treatment. The analysis reveale d 426 differentially methylated regions in the NPWT group, but none in the control group. The enrichment analysis showed 11 processes significantly associated with NPWT, of which 4 were linked with complement system activation. All but one were hypermethylated after NPWT. Conclusion: The NPWT effect on DFUs may be mediated through epigenetic chan ges resulting in the inhibition of complement system activation

Badania ultrasonograficzne tarczycy u pacjentek obciążonych występowaniem nowotworów rodzinnych

Background: Detection of new gene mutations, which increase the risk of neoplasm (e.g. breast and thyroid gland) improves the examinations that can help in early diagnosis and quick treatment. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of asymptomatic focal lesions in ultrasonographic examinations of women at confirmed risk of family neoplasm aggregation. Material/Methods: A total of 445 women aged 25-60 years were examined in 2004-2005. 278 patients descended from families with higher frequency of confirmed risk of familial neoplasm (I group), 167 belonged to the control group. Ultrasonographic examinations of the breast and thyroid gland were performed in all women. Patients were divided into selected groups depending on the kind of changes. Results: In the analyzed material asymptomatic focal changes in the thyroid gland were found in 46, 5% of the first group and 61,6% of the control group. The solid-cystic lesions in this material were ascertained in 36% of the first group and 51% of the second group. Conclusions: A large frequency (almost 50%) of the asymptomatic focal changes in thyroid glands were found. Detections of lesions were similar in both groups: the confirmed risk of familial neoplasm group and the control group. On the basis of these findings we can conclude, that it is reasonable to perform screening examinations of thyroid glands in connection with breast's diagnostics