Cultural differences in personality and aggressive behavior in intimate partner violence offenders: a comparison of English and Spanish offenders

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a ubiquitous and serious problem, the prevalence of which varies greatly around the world. Previous research shows that cultural factors interact with personality and that this interaction influences cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors that are related to personal and individual styles of resolving conflicts. In relation to this, the present study has three aims: comparing the self-reported IPV (physical, psychological and sexual) of English and Spanish offenders, comparing the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory III (MCMI-III) scores of the two groups, and examining the association between country of origin, psychopathology, and IPV. The sample consists of 147 IPV offenders (80 English and 67 Spanish). The measures used were the MCMI-III and the Conflict Tactics Scale 2. The Mann−Whitney U tests were used to compare the English and Spanish sample, and independent logistic regressions were used to examine the relationship between personality patterns, psychopathology and culture, and IPV. Higher frequencies of physical and psychological aggression were found in the English group compared with the Spanish group as well as several differences in personality patterns and psychopathology between the groups. Some MCMI-III subscales also interact with nationality and predict physical and psychological aggression. The relevance of these results for intervention is discussed. </jats:p

A molecular dynamics model to measure forces between cellulose fibril surfaces: on the effect of non-covalent polyelectrolyte adsorption

This study describes the development of representative models of cellulose fibril surface (CFS) as a first approximation to the study of the molecular interactions that are developed between cellulose fibres. In order to assess its sensitivity and representativeness towards the main factors affecting the bonding properties at the fibre scale, these models were non-covalently surface modified with two types of polyelectrolytes, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC–ONa) and a cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM). From the analysis of pair correlation functions (g(r)) it was possible to assess the main interactions of adsorption of polyelectrolytes towards the (1–10) hydrophilic cellulose, which were due to electrostatic interactions coupled with hydrogen bonding. Besides, the bond strength between fibril surfaces through the (100) hydrophobic surface was calculated from pull out simulations (using steered molecular dynamics). Using a rate of change of force of 0.159 nN ps-1, the calculated bond strength for the neat CFS model (nanometer scale) was two to three orders of magnitude higher than the experimental values observed at the fibre scale (micrometer scale). The results for the polyelectrolyte modified setups supported the validity of the CFS models to reproduce the expected behavior of inter-fibre joints in terms of the specific bond strength and the relative bonded area at the fibre scale in cellulose materials, and thereby the CFS models are a suitable complement, in conjunction with other techniques, for the systematic study of the effect (in qualitative terms) of chemical or physical factors on the bond strength properties of cellulosic materials. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]

Divergent evolution and purifying selection of the flaA gene sequences in Aeromonas

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The bacterial flagellum is the most important organelle of motility in bacteria and plays a key role in many bacterial lifestyles, including virulence. The flagellum also provides a paradigm of how hierarchical gene regulation, intricate protein-protein interactions and controlled protein secretion can result in the assembly of a complex multi-protein structure tightly orchestrated in time and space. As if to stress its importance, plants and animals produce receptors specifically dedicated to the recognition of flagella. Aside from motility, the flagellum also moonlights as an adhesion and has been adapted by humans as a tool for peptide display. Flagellar sequence variation constitutes a marker with widespread potential uses for studies of population genetics and phylogeny of bacterial species.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We sequenced the complete flagellin gene <it>(flaA</it>) in 18 different species and subspecies of <it>Aeromonas</it>. Sequences ranged in size from 870 (<it>A. allosaccharophila</it>) to 921 nucleotides (<it>A. popoffii</it>). The multiple alignment displayed 924 sites, 66 of which presented alignment gaps. The phylogenetic tree revealed the existence of two groups of species exhibiting different FlaA flagellins (FlaA1 and FlaA2). Maximum likelihood models of codon substitution were used to analyze <it>flaA </it>sequences. Likelihood ratio tests suggested a low variation in selective pressure among lineages, with an ω ratio of less than 1 indicating the presence of purifying selection in almost all cases. Only one site under potential diversifying selection was identified (isoleucine in position 179). However, 17 amino acid positions were inferred as sites that are likely to be under positive selection using the branch-site model. Ancestral reconstruction revealed that these 17 amino acids were among the amino acid changes detected in the ancestral sequence.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The models applied to our set of sequences allowed us to determine the possible evolutionary pathway followed by the <it>flaA </it>gene in <it>Aeromonas</it>, suggesting that this gene have probably been evolving independently in the two groups of <it>Aeromonas </it>species since the divergence of a distant common ancestor after one or several episodes of positive selection.</p> <p>Reviewers</p> <p>This article was reviewed by Alexey Kondrashov, John Logsdon and Olivier Tenaillon (nominated by Laurence D Hurst).</p

Analysis of ecosystem services provision in the Colombian Amazon using participatory research and mapping techniques

Over the last two decades indigenous peoples in the lower Caquetá River basin in Colombia have experienced detrimental changes in the provision of important ecosystem services in ways that have significant implications for the maintenance of their traditional livelihoods. To assess these changes we conducted eight participatory mapping activities and convened 22 focus group discussions. We focused the analysis on two types of change: (1) changes in the location of ecosystem services provisioning areas and (2) changes in the stock of ecosystem services. The focal ecosystem services include services such as provision of food, raw materials and medicinal resources. Results from the study show that in the past two decades the demand for food and raw materials has intensified and, as a result, locations of provisioning areas and the stocks of ecosystem services have changed. We found anecdotal evidence that these changes correlate well with socio-economic factors such as greater need for income generation, change in livelihood practices and consumption patterns. We discuss the use of participatory mapping techniques in the context of marginalized and data-poor regions. We also show how this kind of information can strengthen existing ecosystem-based management strategies used by indigenous peoples in the Colombian Amazon

Allelic diversity and population structure in Vibrio cholerae O139 Bengal based on nucleotide sequence analysis

Comparative analysis of gene fragments of six housekeeping loci, distributed around the two chromosomes of Vibrio cholerae, has been carried out for a collection of 29 V. cholerae O139 Bengal strains isolated from India during the first epidemic period (1992 to 1993). A toxigenic O1 ElTor strain from the seventh pandemic and an environmental non-O1/non-O139 strain were also included in this study. All loci studied were polymorphic, with a small number of polymorphic sites in the sequenced fragments. The genetic diversity determined for our O139 population is concordant with a previous multilocus enzyme electrophoresis study in which we analyzed the same V. cholerae O139 strains. In both studies we have found a higher genetic diversity than reported previously in other molecular studies. The results of the present work showed that O139 strains clustered in several lineages of the dendrogram generated from the matrix of allelic mismatches between the different genotypes, a finding which does not support the hypothesis previously reported that the O139 serogroup is a unique clone. The statistical analysis performed in the V. cholerae O139 isolates suggested a clonal population structure. Moreover, the application of the Sawyer's test and split decomposition to detect intragenic recombination in the sequenced gene fragments did not indicate the existence of recombination in our O139 population

Análisis y distribución de hidrocarburos policíclicos aromáticos (PAH's) en suelos y aguas de escombreras en Puertollano (Ciudad Real)

The aim of this study was to examine if the soils and waters of Puertollano area are affected by pollution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their quantification. The results show that PAHs concentrations are higher in all samples than the reference levels gathered in the Spanish legislation. The possible actions for the coal waste remediation (re-wash of waste dumps, photodegradation and biorremediation) seems to be unviable in this case because of the large volume of materials affected, the slowness of these processes, and the geomorphological characteristics of the carboniferous Puertollano basin. During the spatial regional planning, maps showing the concentration of PAHs should be made to adapt the soil for its corresponding use. It is proposed to consider as contaminants more PAHs, such as naftalene or fluorantene in waters, and phenanthrene and benzo[ghi] perilene in soils

Divergent evolution and purifying selection of the flaA gene sequences in Aeromonas

BACKGROUND: The bacterial flagellum is the most important organelle of motility in bacteria and plays a key role in many bacterial lifestyles, including virulence. The flagellum also provides a paradigm of how hierarchical gene regulation, intricate protein-protein interactions and controlled protein secretion can result in the assembly of a complex multi-protein structure tightly orchestrated in time and space. As if to stress its importance, plants and animals produce receptors specifically dedicated to the recognition of flagella. Aside from motility, the flagellum also moonlights as an adhesion and has been adapted by humans as a tool for peptide display. Flagellar sequence variation constitutes a marker with widespread potential uses for studies of population genetics and phylogeny of bacterial species. RESULTS: We sequenced the complete flagellin gene (flaA) in 18 different species and subspecies of Aeromonas. Sequences ranged in size from 870 (A. allosaccharophila) to 921 nucleotides (A. popoffii). The multiple alignment displayed 924 sites, 66 of which presented alignment gaps. The phylogenetic tree revealed the existence of two groups of species exhibiting different FlaA flagellins (FlaA1 and FlaA2). Maximum likelihood models of codon substitution were used to analyze flaA sequences. Likelihood ratio tests suggested a low variation in selective pressure among lineages, with an omega ratio of less than 1 indicating the presence of purifying selection in almost all cases. Only one site under potential diversifying selection was identified (isoleucine in position 179). However, 17 amino acid positions were inferred as sites that are likely to be under positive selection using the branch-site model. Ancestral reconstruction revealed that these 17 amino acids were among the amino acid changes detected in the ancestral sequence. CONCLUSION: The models applied to our set of sequences allowed us to determine the possible evolutionary pathway followed by the flaA gene in Aeromonas, suggesting that this gene have probably been evolving independently in the two groups of Aeromonas species since the divergence of a distant common ancestor after one or several episodes of positive selection. REVIEWERS: This article was reviewed by Alexey Kondrashov, John Logsdon and Olivier Tenaillon (nominated by Laurence D Hurst)

Biochemical identification and numerical taxonomy of Aeromonas spp. isolated from environmental and clinical samples in Spain

Aims: To study the phenotypic characteristics of Aeromonas spp. from environmental and clinical samples in Spain and to cluster these strains by numerical taxonomy. Methods and Results: A collection of 202 Aeromonas strains isolated from bivalve molluscs, water and clinical samples was tested for 64 phenotypic properties; 91% of these isolates were identified at species level. Aeromonas caviae was predominant in bivalve molluscs and Aerom. bestiarum in freshwater samples. Cluster analyses revealed eight different phena: three containing more than one DNA-DNA hybridization group but including strains that belong to the same phenospecies complex (Aerom. hydrophila, Aerom. sobria and Aerom. caviae), Aerom. encheleia, Aerom. trota and three containing unidentified Aeromonas strains isolated from bivalve molluscs. Conclusions: Aeromonas spp. are widely distributed in environmental and clinical sources. A selection of 16 of the phenotypical tests chosen allowed the identification of most isolates (91%), although some strains remain unidentified, mainly isolates from bivalve molluscs, suggesting the presence of new Aeromonas species. Numerical taxonomy was not in total concordance with the identification of the studied strains. Significance and Impact of the Study: Numerical taxonomy of Aeromonas strains isolated from different sources revealed the presence of potentially pathogenic Aeromonas spp., especially in bivalve molluscs, and phena with unidentified strains that suggest new Aeromonas species

Pseudomonas deceptionensis sp. nov., a psychrotolerant bacterium from the Antarctic

During the taxonomic investigation of cold-adapted bacteria from samples collected in theAntarctic area of the South Shetland Islands, one Gram-reaction-negative, psychrotolerant,aerobic bacterium, designated strain M1T, was isolated from marine sediment collected onDeception Island. The organism was rod-shaped, catalase- and oxidase-positive and motile bymeans of a polar flagellum. This psychrotolerant strain grew at temperatures ranging from"46Cto 346C. Phylogenetic studies based on 16S rRNA gene sequences confirmed that Antarcticisolate M1Twas a member of the genusPseudomonasand was located in thePseudomonas fragicluster. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values were.98% between 13 type strainsbelonging to thePseudomonas fluorescenslineage. However, phylogenetic analysis ofrpoDgene sequences showed that strain M1Texhibited high sequence similarity only with respect toPseudomonas psycrophila(97.42%) andP. fragi(96.40%) and DNA-DNA hybridizationexperiments between the Antarctic isolate M1Tand the type strains of these two closely relatedspecies revealed relatedness values of 58 and 57%, respectively. Several phenotypiccharacteristics, together with the results of polar lipid and cellular fatty acid analyses, were used todifferentiate strain M1Tfrom related pseudomonads. Based on the evidence of this polyphasictaxonomic study, strain M1Trepresents a novel species, for which the namePseudomonasdeceptionensissp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is M1T(5LMG 25555T5CECT 7677T)

Prediction of whole-genome DNA G+C content within the genus Aeromonas based on housekeeping gene sequences

Different methods are available to determine the G+C content (e.g. thermal denaturation temperature or high performance liquid chromatography, HPLC), but obtained values may differ significantly between strains, as well as between laboratories. Recently, several authors have demonstrated that the genomic DNA G+C content of prokaryotes can be reliably estimated from one or several protein coding gene nucleotide sequences. Few G+C content values have been published for the Aeromonas species described and the data, when available, are often incomplete or provide only a range of values. Our aim in this current work was twofold. First, the genomic G+C content of the type or reference strains of all species and subspecies of the genus Aeromonas was determined with a traditional experimental method in the same laboratory. Second, we wanted to see if the sequence-based method to estimate the G+C content described by Fournier et al. [7] could be applied to determine the G+C content of the different species of Aeromonas from the sequences of the genes used in taxonomy or phylogeny for this genus