Old Saint and New Beatus: Saint Vincent de Paul and Blessed Alain de Solminihac

A brief biographical sketch of Alain de Solminihac, bishop of Cahors, is presented, along with a portrait of his friendship with Vincent de Paul and a discussion of de Solminihac’s relationships with the Double Family. The Vincentians directed the bishop’s seminary at Cahors, usually to the bishop’s great satisfaction. The superiors and their relationships with de Solminihac and Vincent are profiled. The Daughters of Charity oversaw the bishop’s home for orphan girls. The article recounts how Vincent and the Daughters decided to undertake this work, the plan for the Rule that Vincent gave the Daughters, and the qualities he instructed them to cultivate in themselves to make the work successful. A short summary of the other interests that Vincent and de Solminihac shared is also provided

The Congregation of the Mission: An Example of a Society of Apostolic Life

This article explains the new status that Societies of Apostolic Life were given under the Code of Canon Law of 1983. Historically, the law has been oriented toward the religious state, which created problems for communities like the Congregation. (These problems are discussed in the article.) The Congregation needed to be more flexible than a religious order to be able to function as missionaries, but Vincent de Paul wanted it to “[enjoy] all that is good about religious life without being religious in the canonical sense.” The canons for Societies of Apostolic Life are based on a “theology of mission,” as opposed to those for Institutes of Consecrated Life, which are founded on “the practice of evangelical counsels.” These theological differences are described in detail, as are the elements of the Societies and their “resemblance to Institutes of Consecrated Life.” The Congregation’s secular nature is protected by its Constitutions and by the legislation for the Societies. The article also explains why the Congregation is not canonically consecrated

Supermassive Binaries and Extragalactic Jets

Some quasars show Doppler shifted broad emission line peaks. I give new statistics of the occurrence of these peaks and show that, while the most spectacular cases are in quasars with strong radio jets inclined to the line of sight, they are also almost as common in radio-quiet quasars. Theories of the origin of the peaks are reviewed and it is argued that the displaced peaks are most likely produced by the supermassive binary model. The separations of the peaks in the 3C 390.3-type objects are consistent with orientation-dependent "unified models" of quasar activity. If the supermassive binary model is correct, all members of "the jet set" (astrophysical objects showing jets) could be binaries.Comment: 31 pages, PostScript, missing figure is in ApJ 464, L105 (see http://www.aas.org/ApJ/v464n2/5736/5736.html

Досягнення в середовищі розподіленого навчання (ADL) для підтримки трансформації

Multi-national partners identified in this report the need for a number of technology advancements and the need to address сurrent and future education and training shortfalls. It was кecommended to review the ADL needs of NATO, PfP, MD, and other Coalition Partners and determine what advancements were available and which ones were undergoing research and development, to leverage global best practices of ADL to improve readiness of military and civilian personnel. RTG HFM-212 was able to: 1) Develop a capability that ensures International Military Student Pre-Departure Brief (IMSPDB) students have a positive and successful experience in the U.S. along with their U.S. counterparts; 2) Identify the best methods for providing distance education for international military students; and 3) Evaluate the effectiveness of multiple learning formats to support Security Cooperation Education and Training Program (SCETP) requirements. Finally, RTG HFM-212 initiated application of ADL capabilities in the medical and health sciences community via its sponsor, the NATO Human Factors and Medicine Panel.Багатонаціональна група авторів визначила у цьому звіті необхідність у ряді технологічних удосконалень та потребу у подоланні поточних та майбутніх недоліків у навчанні та навчанні. Було рекомендовано переглянути потреби ADL в НАТО, PfP, MD та ін. партнерів по коаліції та визначити, які досягнення були доступні, а які вимагали досліджень та розробок, щоб використовувати найкращі світові практики ADl для поліпшення готовності військових та цивільних кадрів. Дослідницька група RTG HFM-212 змогла: 1) розробити можливості, які забезпечують зарубіжним військовим студентам стислу попередню підготовку (IMSPDB) для позитивного і успішного досвіду роботи в США разом зі своїми колегами в США; 2) визначити найкращі методи забезпечення дистанційної освіти для студентів міжнародних військових; та 3) оцініти ефективність декількох форматів навчання для підтримки освіти з питань безпеки та вимоги до Програми навчання (SCETP). Нарешті, RTG HFM-212 ініціювала застосування можливостей ADL серед фахівців медичних наук через свого спонсора, Комісію НАТО з людських факторів та медицини

Plasticity and cardiovascular applications of multipotent adult progenitor cells

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, which has encouraged the search for new therapies that enable the treatment of patients in palliative and curative ways. In the past decade, the potential benefit of transplantation of cells that are able to substitute for the injured tissue has been studied with several cell populations, such as stem cells. Some of these cell populations, such as myoblasts and bone marrow cells, are already being used in clinical trials. The laboratory of CM Verfaillie has studied primitive progenitors, termed multipotent adult progenitor cells, which can be isolated from adult bone marrow. These cells can differentiate in vitro at the single-cell level into functional cells that belong to the three germ layers and contribute to most, if not all, somatic cell types after blastocyst injection. This remarkably broad differentiation potential makes this particular cell population a candidate for transplantation in tissues in need of regeneration. Here, we focus on the regenerative capacity of multipotent adult progenitor cells in several ischemic mouse models, such as acute and chronic myocardial infarction and limb ischemia

SOBRINA Spanish study-analysing the frequency, cost and adverse events associated with overuse in primary care: protocol for a retrospective cohort study

Introduction Several institutions and quality national agencies have fostered the creation of recommendations on what not to do to reduce overuse in clinical practice. In primary care, their impact has hardly been studied. The frequency of adverse events (AEs) associated with doing what must not be done has not been analysed, either. The aim of this study is to measure the frequency of overuse and AEs associated with doing what must not be done (commission errors) in primary care and their cost. Methods and analysis A coordinated, multicentric, national project. A retrospective cohort study using computerised databases of primary care medical records from national agencies and regional health services will be conducted to analyse the frequency of the overuse due to ignore the do-not-do recommendations, and immediately afterwards, depending on their frequency, a representative random sample of medical records will be reviewed with algorithms (triggers) that determine the frequency of AEs associated with these recommendations. Cost will determine by summation of the direct costs due to the consultation, pharmacy, laboratory and imaging activities according to the cases. Ethics and dissemination The study protocol has been approved by the Ethics Committee of Primary Care Research of the Valencian Community. We aim to disseminate the findings through international peerreviewed journals and on the website (http://www. nohacer. es/). Outcomes will be used to incorporate algorithms into the electronic history to assist in making clinical decisions

Seroprevalencia de infección por el virus de leucosis bovina durante 2015 en rodeos de cría de la Zona Deprimida del Río Salado, provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina

La leucosis enzoótica bovina (LEB) es una enfermedad crónica, linfoproliferativa y altamente contagiosa producida por el virus de la leucosis bovina (VLB). La sangre es una fuente importante de infección, principalmente en la práctica veterinaria, considerando que solo 5 microlitros son suficientes para infectar a un bovino en forma experimental. La Zona Deprimida del Río Salado (ZDRS) está formada por poco más de 6 millones de hectáreas con una cantidad de terneros que representa el 16,05 % de las existencias nacionales y el 34,03 % de las provinciales, convirtiéndose, de ese modo,en la principal zona criadora de terneros de Argentina. Los últimos estudios sobre seroprevalencia de infección por el VLB en rodeos de cría en la provincia de Buenos Aires se realizaron hace poco más de 20 años, obteniéndose valores inferiores al 2 %. En este trabajo se analizaron un total de 1957 bovinos de cría provenientes de 90 establecimientos, representando poco más del 85 % de la superficie de la ZDRS, para determinar la presencia de anticuerpos contra el VLB mediante inmunodifusión en gel de agar, prueba utilizada en estudios epidemiológicos y en planes de erradicación de la enfermedad. La prevalencia en los establecimientos fue del 6,6 %, mientras que se obtuvo una seroprevalencia individual de 0,36 %. Debido a que la ZDRS es la de mayor productividad de terneros de cría en Argentina, es de sumo interés determinar la prevalencia de infección en esta región para establecer zonas libres de VLB.Enzootic bovine leukemia (EBL) is a chronic, lymphoproliferative and highly contagious disease caused by the bovine leukemia virus (BLV). Blood is an important source of infection in vet-erinary practice; only 5 microliters are enough to infect a cow experimentally. The Zona Deprimida del Río Salado (ZDRS) is the main region of breeding calves in Argentina, covering more than 6 million hectares with 16 % and 34 % of the national and provincial calf stock, respectively. The latest reports of ELB prevalence in cow-calf farms in Buenos Aires province were performed more than 20 years ago with values lower than 2 %. In this work, 1957 bovines from 90 cow-calf farms representing just over 85 % of the ZDRS were sampled to determine the presence of antibodies against BLV by agar gel immunodiffusion, a test used extensively in epidemiological studies, control and eradication of the disease. The prevalence in cow-calf farms was 6.6 % while the individual prevalence was 0.36 %. Since ZDRS is the main area of breeder calfs production in Argentina, it is relevant to determine EBL prevalence in this region in order to detect EBL free zones.Inst. de PatobiologíaFil: Panei, Carlos Javier. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Microbiología. Cátedra de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Tassara, F. Buenos Aires (provincia). Ministerio de Agroindustria; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Curso de Clínica y Sanidad en Rumiantes; ArgentinaFil: Perez Aguirreburualde, Maria Sol. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patobiología; ArgentinaFil: Echeverria, Maria Gabriela. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Microbiología. Cátedra de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Galosi, C.M. Buenos Aires (provincia). Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias; ArgentinaFil: Torres, A. Buenos Aires (provincia). Ministerio de Agroindustria; ArgentinaFil: Silva, H.J.E. Buenos Aires (provincia). Ministerio de Agroindustria; Argentin

Advances in greater amberjack (Seriola dumerili) research: the DIVERSIFY project

The greater amberjack (Seriola dumerili) is a species with high potential for the EU aquaculture due to its fast growth (6 kg in 2.5 years), excellent flesh quality and global market. Its farming in the Mediterranean region started in the 1990s with wild-caught juveniles, but the production is still negligible, as several bottlenecks exist for its industrial production. These include the absence of reliable reproduction, limited availability of juveniles, lack of knowledge on the nutrient requirements and pathology of the species. The EU FP7-funded DIVERSIFY project (www.diversifyfish.eu) examines the major aspects of greater amberjack aquaculture in order to overcome these bottlenecks and develop appropriate rearing methods for commercial production. This article provides some highlights from the first 2 years of the project.Postprin

Local mean-field study of capillary condensation in silica aerogels

We apply local mean-field (i.e. density functional) theory to a lattice model of a fluid in contact with a dilute, disordered gel network. The gel structure is described by a diffusion-limited cluster aggregation model. We focus on the influence of porosity on both the hysteretic and the equilibrium behavior of the fluid as one varies the chemical potential at low temperature. We show that the shape of the hysteresis loop changes from smooth to rectangular as the porosity increases and that this change is associated to disorder-induced out-of-equilibrium phase transitions that differ on adsorption and on desorption. Our results provide insight in the behavior of $^4$He in silica aerogels.Comment: 19 figure

Arsenic exposure, diabetes-related genes and diabetes prevalence in a general population from Spain

Inorganic arsenic exposure may be associated with diabetes, but the evidence at low-moderate levels is not sufficient. Polymorphisms in diabetes-related genes have been involved in diabetes risk. We evaluated the association of inorganic arsenic exposure on diabetes in the Hortega Study, a representative sample of a general population from Valladolid, Spain. Total urine arsenic was measured in 1451 adults. Urine arsenic speciation was available in 295 randomly selected participants. To account for the confounding introduced by non-toxic seafood arsenicals, we designed a multiple imputation model to predict the missing arsenobetaine levels. The prevalence of diabetes was 8.3%. The geometric mean of total arsenic was 66.0 µg/g. The adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence interval) for diabetes comparing the highest with the lowest tertile of total arsenic were 1.76 (1.01, 3.09) and 2.14 (1.47, 3.11) before and after arsenobetaine adjustment, respectively. Polymorphisms in several genes including IL8RA, TXN, NR3C2, COX5A and GCLC showed suggestive differential associations of urine total arsenic with diabetes. The findings support the role of arsenic on diabetes and the importance of controlling for seafood arsenicals in populations with high seafood intake. Suggestive arsenic-gene interactions require confirmation in larger studies