Patients with schizophrenia and their finances: how they spend their money

Introduction: Although most patients with schizophrenia rely on state financial support, little is known about their expenses and how they use the money at their discretion. However, the ability to budget is a predictive factor in rehabilitation. An assessment of financial management skills could make it possible to develop more appropriate psycho-social assistance. Method: Fifty-seven outpatients with schizophrenia treated in the public sector in Geneva, Switzerland took part in the study. Psychosocial, diagnostic, neurocognitive and symptomatological measures were collected. Data were gathered on patients' incomes and quality of life. A prospective analysis of their expenses during a 1-month period was also performed. Results: Median income was 4,125 Swiss francs per month (i.e., 3,372 US dollars). After paying fixed expenses (which were handled with or without the assistance of a representative payee), a mean of 400 Swiss francs remained at their disposal to use as they wished. Seventy-two percent of this money was devoted to the use of psychoactive substances (e.g., cigarettes, alcohol, cannabis) or various drinks in coffee houses, and 28% on leisure activities (trips, sports and other recreational activities). Eighty-four percent of patients would have liked to have more money for leisure activities. The study was well-accepted and led to modification of the treatment plan in 84% of cases. Conclusion: Most of the discretionary money patients received was used for buying substances with addictive properties; this may hinder the practice of activities favouring recovery. Thus, it appears essential to guide patients in the management of their budget

ERK Is Involved in the Reorganization of Somatosensory Cortical Maps in Adult Rats Submitted to Hindlimb Unloading

Sensorimotor restriction by a 14-day period of hindlimb unloading (HU) in the adult rat induces a reorganization of topographic maps and receptive fields. However, the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. Interest was turned towards a possible implication of intracellular MAPK signaling pathway since Extracellular-signal-Regulated Kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) is known to play a significant role in the control of synaptic plasticity. In order to better understand the mechanisms underlying cortical plasticity in adult rats submitted to a sensorimotor restriction, we analyzed the time-course of ERK1/2 activation by immunoblot and of cortical reorganization by electrophysiological recordings, on rats submitted to hindlimb unloading over four weeks. Immunohistochemistry analysis provided evidence that ERK1/2 phosphorylation was increased in layer III neurons of the somatosensory cortex. This increase was transient, and parallel to the changes in hindpaw cortical map area (layer IV). By contrast, receptive fields were progressively enlarged from 7 to 28 days of hindlimb unloading. To determine whether ERK1/2 was involved in cortical remapping, we administered a specific ERK1/2 inhibitor (PD-98059) through osmotic mini-pump in rats hindlimb unloaded for 14 days. Results demonstrate that focal inhibition of ERK1/2 pathway prevents cortical reorganization, but had no effect on receptive fields. These results suggest that ERK1/2 plays a role in the induction of cortical plasticity during hindlimb unloading

Extra short incubation microfluidic assisted – fluorescence in situ hybridization (ESIMA-FISH)

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) is a powerful technique for evaluating the HER2 gene status in breast cancer specimen (1). However, most of FISH assays currently used in clinical laboratories are expensive and require long experimental time, up to two days with an overnight incubation (2). Indeed, despite the development of faster FISH probes (HER2 IQFISH pharmDxTM from DAKO, Denmark) cutting the assay time to one day (3), the cost of these new probes is still high (more than 200$/test) and impedes the dissemination of this technique. In this study, we present the extra short incubation microfluidic assisted- fluorescence in situ hybridization (ESIMA-FISH) technique that uses microfluidics to improve FISH for HER2 assessment in breast cancer samples. ESIMA-FISH requires a very short incubation time (35 minutes) and uses 4-fold less probe solution per test. The system is based on a microfluidic chip, developed in our laboratory (4), that is clamped against a microscope slide containing a breast cancer tissue specimen (figure 1). A fluorescent DNA probe solution, specific to the target DNA, is then applied to the tissue section within a thin chamber using the microfluidic system. The probe solution used is obtained by diluting 4 times the standard HER2 IQFISH pharmDxTM probe solution (DAKO, Denmark). Oscillating flows can then be implemented using syringe pumps to improve the delivery of the probe to the tissue. Thanks to this hydrodynamic enhancement of mass transport, the probe-target hybridization efficiency is increased, resulting in overall reductions in the cost and duration of the assay. To validate the ESIMA-FISH technique, several tissue specimens were blindly tested with ESIMA-FISH and standard IQFISH. The results from these two techniques were comparable (figure 2, 3), supporting the possibility of a future clinical use of ESIMA-FISH

Complex nature of apparently balanced chromosomal rearrangements in patients with autism spectrum disorder

Background: Apparently balanced chromosomal rearrangements can be associated with an abnormal phenotype, including intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Genome-wide microarrays reveal cryptic genomic imbalances, related or not to the breakpoints, in 25% to 50% of patients with an abnormal phenotype carrying a microscopically balanced chromosomal rearrangement. Here we performed microarray analysis of 18 patients with ASD carrying balanced chromosomal abnormalities to identify submicroscopic imbalances implicated in abnormal neurodevelopment. Methods: Eighteen patients with ASD carrying apparently balanced chromosomal abnormalities were screened using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays. Nine rearrangements were de novo, seven inherited, and two of unknown inheritance. Genomic imbalances were confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization and quantitative PCR. Results: We detected clinically significant de novo copy number variants in four patients (22%), including three with de novo rearrangements and one with an inherited abnormality. The sizes ranged from 3.3 to 4.9 Mb; three were related to the breakpoint regions and one occurred elsewhere. We report a patient with a duplication of the Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome critical region, contributing to the delineation of this rare genomic disorder. The patient has a chromosome 4p inverted duplication deletion, with a 0.5 Mb deletion of terminal 4p and a 4.2 Mb duplication of 4p16.2p16.3. The other cases included an apparently balanced de novo translocation t(5;18)(q12;p11.2) with a 4.2 Mb deletion at the 18p breakpoint, a subject with de novo pericentric inversion inv(11)(p14q23.2) in whom the array revealed a de novo 4.9 Mb deletion in 7q21.3q22.1, and a patient with a maternal inv(2)(q14.2q37.3) with a de novo 3.3 Mb terminal 2q deletion and a 4.2 Mb duplication at the proximal breakpoint. In addition, we identified a rare de novo deletion of unknown significance on a chromosome unrelated to the initial rearrangement, disrupting a single gene, RFX3. Conclusions: These findings underscore the utility of SNP arrays for investigating apparently balanced chromosomal abnormalities in subjects with ASD or related neurodevelopmental disorders in both clinical and research settings

Recent progress in marine mycological research in different countries, and prospects for future developments worldwide

Early research on marine fungi was mostly descriptive, with an emphasis on their diversity and taxonomy, especially of those collected at rocky shores on seaweeds and driftwood. Subsequently, further substrata (e.g. salt marsh grasses, marine animals, seagrasses, sea foam, seawater, sediment) and habitats (coral reefs, deep-sea, hydrothermal vents, mangroves, sandy beaches, salt marshes) were explored for marine fungi. In parallel, research areas have broadened from micro-morphology to ultrastructure, ecophysiology, molecular phylogenetics, biogeography, biodeterioration, biodegradation, bioprospecting, genomics, proteomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics. Although marine fungi only constitute a small fraction of the global mycota, new species of marine fungi continue to be described from new hosts/substrata of unexplored locations/habitats, and novel bioactive metabolites have been discovered in the last two decades, warranting a greater collaborative research effort. Marine fungi of Africa, the Americas and Australasia are under-explored, while marine Chytridiomycota and allied taxa, fungi associated with marine animals, the functional roles of fungi in the sea, and the impacts of climate change on marine fungi are some of the topics needing more attention. In this article, currently active marine mycologists from different countries have written on the history and current state of marine fungal research in individual countries highlighting their strength in the subject, and this represents a first step towards a collaborative inter- and transdisciplinary research strategy

Évolution des paysages et occupation humaine en mer d’Iroise (Finistère, Bretagne) du Néolithique à l’Âge du Bronze

Depuis près de dix ans, des recherches archéologiques sont menées dans l’archipel de Molène par une équipe pluridisciplinaire. Ce secteur s’avère particulièrement riche en vestiges du Néolithique et de l’Âge du Bronze. Une concentration exceptionnelle de monuments mégalithiques y a été mise en évidence. Plusieurs habitats sont attestés par la présence d’un bâtiment (Beg ar Loued, Molène) ou de dépotoirs domestiques riches en faune et en mobilier. Ces données nous renseignent sur la chronologie des occupations du secteur et nous permettent, pour la première fois en Bretagne, d’esquisser le mode de vie des hommes de la Préhistoire récente. Afin de pousser plus loin la réflexion, il nous a paru nécessaire de mieux comprendre l’évolution de l’environnement en contexte insulaire, par de nouvelles recherches sur les variations du niveau marin corrélées à l’étude du paysage végétal, de la géomorphologie et de la faune.Les résultats issus des reconstitutions paléogéographiques montrent que l’archipel était déjà constitué au Néolithique moyen II, déconnecté du continent par le chenal du Four dont la traversée nécessitait l’utilisation d’embarcations. Très bien conservés, les monuments mégalithiques de l’archipel sont donc le fait de populations insulaires ayant fréquentées l’archipel sur une longue période, débutant dès le milieu du ve et jalonnant les ive, iiive et iie millénaires avant J.-C. La répartition des sépultures mégalithiques reflète des stratégies d’implantations qui répondent à des choix culturels et à des contraintes naturelles, sur un territoire soumis à un morcellement progressif du fait des dynamiques érosives qui accompagnent la remontée du niveau marin. Durant tout le Néolithique et l’Âge du Bronze, l’isolement géographique n’a cessé de s’accroître, sans donner lieu pour autant à des particularismes culturels marqués, les innovations techniques et artistiques de cette époque ayant pénétré au sein des sociétés insulaires. Néanmoins, l’éloignement croissant des îles a encouragé la recherche de moyens de subsistance basés sur l’exploitation intense des ressources littorales, à travers la collecte de coquillages et de crustacés, la pratique de la pêche et de la chasse côtière. Tournées vers la mer, ces populations n’ont pas négligé les ressources qu’offraient les zones terrestres, comme en témoigne la précocité des pratiques agropastorales dans l’archipel.During almost ten years, an archaeological survey has been carried out in Molène Archipelago by a multidisciplinary team. The area appears to be particularly rich in Neolithic and Bronze Age remains and an exceptional concentration of megaliths has been brought to light. Several settlments are confirmed by dry-stone structures like in Beg ar Loued or by shell middens harbouring large quantities of bones and artefacts. These data give precious indications on the occupation chronology of the area. Moreover they allow for the first time in Brittany to reconstruct the everyday life during the late Prehistory. A prerequisite to this reconstruction was a better understanding of the environment evolution during this period, which locally implies a better knowledge of sea level fluctuations and its effects on landscapes as well as on vegetal and faunal resources.Results obtained via the paleogeographic reconstructions show that the archipelago during the Middle Neolithic II was already disconnected from the mainland by the Four channel which required boats to be crossed. Very well preserved, the megalithic monuments have therefore been erected and used by islanders being present on the archipelago for a long period time, starting from the middle of the Vth millenium BC, and spreading through the IV, III and IInd millenia. The distribution of the megalithic tombs reveals landscape occupation strategies which answer both cultural choices and natural constraints in a territory that undergoes a progressive fragmentation due to the dynamic of erosion linked to the rise of the sea level. Throughout the entire Neolithic and Bronze Age, geographic isolation has continued to increase, but in the meantime it did not imply specific cultural aspects, technical and artistic innovations having reached these island societies. Nevertheless, the increasing remoteness of the islands has fostered the search for livelihoods based on the intense exploitation of coastal ressources, through the gathering of seashells and shellfishes, fishing and coastal hunting. Although facing the sea, these people did not neglect what the land areas could offer as evidenced by the earl agro-pastoral practices in the archipelago

Comparison of three nudge interventions (priming, default option, and perceived variety) to promote vegetable consumption in a self-service buffet setting.

BACKGROUND: Dietary choices in out-of-home eating are key for individual as well as for public health. These dietary choices are caused by a wide array of determinants, one of which is automatic decision-making. Nudging is attracting considerable interest due to its understanding and application of heuristic biases among consumers. The aim of this study is to test and compare three nudges in promoting vegetable consumption among test persons in a food lab-based experiment. METHODS: The initial sample consisted of 88 participants recruited in Copenhagen, Denmark. Each study participant was randomly assigned to one of the three experiments: priming, default and perceived variety. The priming arm of the experiment consisted of creating a leafy environment with green plants and an odour of herbs. In the default arm of the experiment, the salad was pre-portioned into a bowl containing 200g of vegetables. The third experiment divided the pre-mixed salad into each of its components, to increase the visual variety of vegetables, yet not providing an actual increase in items. Each individual was partaking twice thus serving as her/his own control, randomly assigned to start with control or experimental setting. RESULTS: The default experiment successfully increased the energy intake from vegetables among the study participants (124 kcal vs. 90 kcal in control, p<0.01). Both the priming condition and perceived variety reduced the total energy intake among the study participants (169 kcal, p<0.01 and 124 kcal, p<0.01, respectively), mainly through a decrease in the meat-based meal component. CONCLUSIONS: Considerable progress has been made with regard to understanding the use of nudging in promoting a healthier meal composition, including increasing vegetable intake. This study suggests that the nature of a nudge-based intervention can have different effects, whether it is increasing intake of healthy components, or limiting intake of unhealthy meal components. This work has demonstrated that consumer behaviour can be influenced without restricting or providing incentives for behaviour change. The present findings have promising application to the foodservice sector