Forming ideal types by understanding. Application to the psychoanalytic treatment of suicidal men

This paper discusses the application of a qualitative methodology—forming ideal types by understanding—to the psychoanalytic psychotherapy of suicidal men. The paper focuses on a particular phase of the methodology: the validation through external expert replication. Data of cases from psychoanalytic treatment, analysed by the originating group in Germany, is analysed by a group in London, UK, which formed to undertake the task of blind comparison. We describe the contribution of this method in the field of psychoanalytic research, the method developed for generating data and the processes through which data are analysed. We demonstrate the comparative findings from the first (German) and second (UK) analyses and explore the meanings of the similarities and differences. The paper concludes with an appraisal of the strengths and limitations (in terms) of moderate levels of generalisation of results from this method for research in the field of qualitative psychotherapy researc

Condition number estimates for combined potential boundary integral operators in acoustic scattering

We study the classical combined field integral equation formulations for time-harmonic acoustic scattering by a sound soft bounded obstacle, namely the indirect formulation due to Brakhage-Werner/Leis/Panic, and the direct formulation associated with the names of Burton and Miller. We obtain lower and upper bounds on the condition numbers for these formulations, emphasising dependence on the frequency, the geometry of the scatterer, and the coupling parameter. Of independent interest we also obtain upper and lower bounds on the norms of two oscillatory integral operators, namely the classical acoustic single- and double-layer potential operators

Effective information and the influence of an extension event on perceptions and adoption

Perceptions are known to play an important role in the innovation adoption decision. Once influential perceptions have been identified, there is the potential for information to influence adoption by changing these perceptions. In this paper, the influence of an extension workshop targeting grain growers’ perceptions known to be associated with the adoption of integrated weed management and herbicide resistance management has been measured using regression analysis. Consistent with a Bayesian learning framework, the greatest influence on grower perceptions and intended adoption behaviour was observed where information could be delivered with a high degree of certainty and validity.Crop Production/Industries, Farm Management,

Quartz-amethyst hosted hydrocarbon-bearing fluid inclusions from the green ridge breccia in the snoqualmie granite, North Cascades,WA, USA

We wish to acknowledge the constructive criticisms made by the three anonymous reviewers.Their suggestions and comments greatly improved the first version of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Limits of small functors

For a small category K enriched over a suitable monoidal category V, the free completion of K under colimits is the presheaf category [K*,V]. If K is large, its free completion under colimits is the V-category PK of small presheaves on K, where a presheaf is small if it is a left Kan extension of some presheaf with small domain. We study the existence of limits and of monoidal closed structures on PK.Comment: 17 page

Nuclear distribution and chromatin association of DNA polymerase α-primase is affected by TEV protease cleavage of Cdc23 (Mcm10) in fission yeast

BACKGROUND: Cdc23/Mcm10 is required for the initiation and elongation steps of DNA replication but its biochemical function is unclear. Here, we probe its function using a novel approach in fission yeast, involving Cdc23 cleavage by the TEV protease. RESULTS: Insertion of a TEV protease cleavage site into Cdc23 allows in vivo removal of the C-terminal 170 aa of the protein by TEV protease induction, resulting in an S phase arrest. This C-terminal fragment of Cdc23 is not retained in the nucleus after cleavage, showing that it lacks a nuclear localization signal and ability to bind to chromatin. Using an in situ chromatin binding procedure we have determined how the S phase chromatin association of DNA polymerase α-primase and the GINS (Sld5-Psf1-Psf2-Psf3) complex is affected by Cdc23 inactivation. The chromatin binding and sub-nuclear distribution of DNA primase catalytic subunit (Spp1) is affected by Cdc23 cleavage and also by inactivation of Cdc23 using a degron allele, implying that DNA polymerase α-primase function is dependent on Cdc23. In contrast to the effect on Spp1, the chromatin association of the Psf2 subunit of the GINS complex is not affected by Cdc23 inactivation. CONCLUSION: An important function of Cdc23 in the elongation step of DNA replication may be to assist in the docking of DNA polymerase α-primase to chromatin

Silver nanoparticle-doped zirconia capillaries for enhanced bacterial filtration

Membrane clogging and biofilm formation are the most serious problems during water filtration. Silver nanoparticle (Agnano) coatings on filtration membranes can prevent bacterial adhesion and the initiation of biofilm formation. In this study, Agnano are immobilized via direct reduction on porous zirconia capillary membranes to generate a nanocomposite material combining the advantages of ceramics being chemically, thermally and mechanically stable with nanosilver, an efficient broadband bactericide for water decontamination. The filtration of bacterial suspensions of the fecal contaminant Escherichia coli reveals highly efficient bacterial retention capacities of the capillaries of 8 log reduction values, fulfilling the requirements on safe drinking water according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Maximum bacterial loading capacities of the capillary membranes are determined to be 3 × 109 bacterial cells/750 mm2 capillary surface until back flushing is recommendable. The immobilized Agnano remain accessible and exhibit strong bactericidal properties by killing retained bacteria up to maximum bacterial loads of 6 × 108 bacterial cells/750 mm2 capillary surface and the regenerated membranes regain filtration efficiencies of 95–100%. Silver release is moderate as only 0.8% of the initial silver loading is leached during a three-day filtration experiment leading to average silver contaminant levels of 100 μg/L

Essential role for proteinase-activated receptor-2 in arthritis

Using physiological, pharmacological, and gene disruption approaches, we demonstrate that proteinase-activated receptor-2 (PAR-2) plays a pivotal role in mediating chronic inflammation. Using an adjuvant monoarthritis model of chronic inflammation, joint swelling was substantially inhibited in PAR-2-deficient mice, being reduced by more than fourfold compared with wild-type mice, with virtually no histological evidence of joint damage. Mice heterozygous for PAR-2 gene disruption showed an intermediate phenotype. PAR-2 expression, normally limited to endothelial cells in small arterioles, was substantially upregulated 2 weeks after induction of inflammation, both in synovium and in other periarticular tissues. PAR-2 agonists showed potent proinflammatory effects as intra-articular injection of ASKH95, a novel synthetic PAR-2 agonist, induced prolonged joint swelling and synovial hyperemia. Given the absence of the chronic inflammatory response in the PAR-2-deficient mice, our findings demonstrate a key role for PAR-2 in mediating chronic inflammation, thereby identifying a novel and important therapeutic target for the management of chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis

The effectiveness of psychoanalytic/psychodynamic psychotherapy for reducing suicide attempts and self-harm: systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Preventing suicide and self-harm is a global health priority. Although there is a growing evidence base for the effectiveness of psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapies for a range of disorders, to date there has been no systematic review of its effectiveness in reducing suicidal and self-harming behaviours. Aims: To systematically review randomised controlled trials of psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapies for suicidal attempts and self-harm. Method: We searched PubMed, PsycINFO, Psycharticles, CINAHL, EMBASE and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for randomise controlled trials of psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapies for reducing suicide attempts and self-harm. Results: Twelve trials (17 articles) were included in the meta-analyses. Psychoanalytic and psychodynamic therapies were effective in reducing the number of patients attempting suicide (pooled odds ratio, 0.469; 95% CI 0.274–0.804). We found some evidence for significantly reduced repetition of self-harm at 6-month but not 12-month follow-up. Significant treatment effects were also found for improvements in psychosocial functioning and reduction in number of hospital admissions. Conclusions: Psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapies are indicated to be effective in reducing suicidal behaviour and to have short-term effectiveness in reducing self-harm. They can also be beneficial in improving psychosocial well-being. However, the small number of trials and moderate quality of the evidence means further high-quality trials are needed to confirm our findings and to identity which specific components of the psychotherapies are effective. Declaration of interest: None

Clusterin is an extracellular chaperone that specifically interacts with slowly aggregating proteins on their off-folding pathway

Clusterin is an extracellular mammalian chaperone protein which inhibits stress-induced precipitation of many different proteins. The conformational state(s) of proteins that interact with clusterin and the stage(s) along the folding and off-folding (precipitation-bound) pathways where this interaction occurs were previously unknown. We investigated this by examining the interactions of clusterin with different structural forms of α-lactalbumin, γ-crystallin and lysozyme. When assessed by ELISA and native gel electrophoresis, clusterin did not bind to various stable, intermediately folded states of α-lactalbumin nor to the native form of this protein, but did bind to and inhibit the slow precipitation of reduced α-lactalbumin. Reduction-induced changes in the conformation of α-lactalbumin, in the absence and presence of clusterin, were monitored by real-time 1H NMR spectroscopy. In the absence of clusterin, an intermediately folded form of α-lactalbumin, with some secondary structure but lacking tertiary structure, aggregated and precipitated. In the presence of clusterin, this form of α-lactalbumin was stabilised in a non-aggregated state, possibly via transient interactions with clusterin prior to complexation. Additional experiments demonstrated that clusterin potently inhibited the slow precipitation, but did not inhibit the rapid precipitation, of lysozyme and γ-crystallin induced by different stresses. These results suggest that clusterin interacts with and stabilises slowly aggregating proteins but is unable to stabilise rapidly aggregating proteins. Collectively, our results suggest that during its chaperone action, clusterin preferentially recognises partly folded protein intermediates that are slowly aggregating whilst venturing along their irreversible off-folding pathway towards a precipitated protein