Service provision and barriers to care for homeless people with mental health problems across 14 European capital cities

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A substantial prehistoric European ancestry amongst Ashkenazi maternal lineages

The origins of Ashkenazi Jews remain highly controversial. Like Judaism, mitochondrial DNA is passed along the maternal line. Its variation in the Ashkenazim is highly distinctive, with four major and numerous minor founders. However, due to their rarity in the general population, these founders have been difficult to trace to a source. Here we show that all four major founders, similar to 40% of Ashkenazi mtDNA variation, have ancestry in prehistoric Europe, rather than the Near East or Caucasus. Furthermore, most of the remaining minor founders share a similar deep European ancestry. Thus the great majority of Ashkenazi maternal lineages were not brought from the Levant, as commonly supposed, nor recruited in the Caucasus, as sometimes suggested, but assimilated within Europe. These results point to a significant role for the conversion of women in the formation of Ashkenazi communities, and provide the foundation for a detailed reconstruction of Ashkenazi genealogical history

The Gnat and the Bull: Do Climate Outlook Forums Make a Difference?

Little has been documented about the benefits and impacts of the recent growth in climate services, despite a growing call to justify their value and stimulate investment. Regional Climate Outlook Forums (RCOFs), an integral part of the public and private enterprise of climate services, have been implemented over the last 20 years with the objectives of producing and disseminating seasonal climate forecasts to inform improved climate risk management and adaptation. In proposing guidance on how to measure the success of RCOFs, we offer three broad evaluative categories that are based on the primary stated goals of the RCOFs: 1) quality of the climate information used and developed at RCOFs; 2) legitimacy of RCOF processes focused on consensus forecasts, broad user engagement, and capacity building; and 3) usability of the climate information produced at RCOFs. Evaluating the quality of information relies largely on quantitative measures and statistical techniques that are standardized and transferrable, but assessing the RCOF processes and perceived usability of RCOF products will necessitate a combination of quantitative and qualitative social science methods that are sensitive to highly variable regional contexts. As RCOFs have taken up different formats and procedures to adapt to diverse institutional and political settings and varied technical and scientific capacities, objective evaluation methods adopted should align with the goals and intent of the evaluation and be performed in a participatory, coproduction manner where producers and users of climate services together design the evaluation metrics and processes. To fully capture the potential benefits of the RCOFs, it may be necessary to adjust or recalibrate the goals of these forums to better fit the evolving landscape of climate services development, needs, and provision

Mutations in genes encoding condensin complex proteins cause microcephaly through decatenation failure at mitosis

Correction to Martin et al. available at: Genes & Development 30 (19): 2158 (http://genesdev.cshlp.org/content/31/9/953.full.pdf+html).Compaction of chromosomes is essential for accurate segregation of the genome duringmitosis. In vertebrates, two condensin complexes ensure timely chromosome condensation, sister chromatid disentanglement, and maintenance of mitotic chromosome structure. Here,we report that biallelic mutations inNCAPD2,NCAPH, orNCAPD3, encoding subunits of these complexes, cause microcephaly. In addition, hypomorphic Ncaph2 mice have significantly reduced brain size, with frequent anaphase chromatin bridge formation observed in apical neural progenitors during neurogenesis. Such DNA bridges also arise in condensin-deficient patient cells, where they are the consequence of failed sister chromatid disentanglement during chromosome compaction. This results in chromosome segregation errors, leading to micronucleus formation and increased aneuploidy in daughter cells. These findings establish “condensinopathies” as microcephalic disorders, with decatenation failure as an additional disease mechanism for microcephaly, implicating mitotic chromosome condensation as a key process ensuring mammalian cerebral cortex size.This work was supported by funding from the Medical Research Council, the Lister Institute for Preventative Medicine, and the European Research Council (ERC; 281847 to A.P.J.); a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council grant (BB/ K017632/1 to P.V); a Sir Henry Dale Fellowship (grant 102560/ Z/13/Z to A.J.W.); Medical Research Scotland (to L.S.B.); the Potentials Foundation (to C.A.W.); and the Indian Council of Medical Research (BMS 54/2/2013 to S.R.P). The Deciphering Developmental Disorders Study presents independent research commissioned by the Health Innovation Challenge Fund (grant no. HICF-1009-003), a parallel funding partnership between the Wellcome Trust and the Department of Health, and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (grant no. WT098051). The views expressed here are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Wellcome Trust or the Department of Health. The study has UK Research Ethics Committee approval (10/H0305/83) granted by the Cambridge South Research Ethics Committee, and GEN/ 284/12 granted by the Republic of Ireland. We acknowledge the support of the National Institute for Health Research through the Comprehensive Clinical Research Network

Microbiological quality of drinking rainwater in the inland region of Pajeú, Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil

Despite all efforts to store and reduce its consumption, water is becoming less inexhaustible and its quality is falling faster. Considering that water is essential to animal life, it is necessary to adopt measures to ensure its sanitary conditions in order to be fit for consumption. The aim of this study was to analyze the microbiological quality of drinking rainwater used by rural communities of Tuparetama, a small town located in Northeast Brazil. The study covered seven rural communities, totaling 66 households. In each household two samples were collected, one from a tank and the other from a clay pot located inside the home, resulting in 132 samples (tank plus clay pot). Approximately 90% of samples were below the standard recommended by the current legislation, being considered unfit for human consumption. Part of this high microbiological contamination of drinking rainwater could be related to the lack of sanitary education and of an adequate sewerage sanitation system

Accidental Jorge Lobo's disease in a worker dealing with Lacazia loboi infected mice: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Jorge Lobo's disease (Lacaziosis) is a subcutaneous infection of humans living in the Amazon region of Latin America, and in dolphins inhabiting the east coastal areas of the United States. The disease mainly affects people from rural areas living or working in close contact with vegetation and aquatic environments. Most patients refer having developed lesions after accidental trauma with plant thorns or insect bites. Inter-human transmission has never been confirmed suggesting that <it>Lacazia loboi </it>is acquired from environmental propagules.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a 41-year-old woman from São Paulo, Brazil, a non-endemic area of Jorge Lobo's disease, with <it>L. loboi </it>skin infection most likely accidentally acquired while manipulating experimentally infected mice in the laboratory.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Because many patients with Jorge Lobo's disease do not recall accidental skin trauma before their infections, the possibility of accidentally acquired Jorge Lobo's disease through unnoticed broken skin should be considered during the clinical investigation of nodular skin diseases in people who have contact with the fungus or who live in endemic areas. This is the second report of animal to human transmission of this disease.</p

Desvio fonológico e alterações práxicas orofaciais e do sistema estomatognático

OBJETIVO: verificar, bem como relacionar entre si, o desempenho de crianças com Desvio Fonológico e com Desenvolvimento Fonológico Típico na avaliação do Sistema Estomatognático e em testes de habilidades práxicas orofaciais avaliando suas habilidades práxicas orofaciais. MÉTODOS: amostra constituiu-se de 50 sujeitos, com idades entre quatro e oito anos, com Desvio Fonológico e com Desenvolvimento Fonológico Típico. Avaliou-se a fonologia por meio do instrumento Avaliação Fonológica da Criança e a gravidade do desvio por meio do Percentual de Consoantes Corretas. Posteriormente, aplicou-se a Avaliação do sistema estomatongático e o The Orofacial Praxis Test, para avaliar as habilidades práxicas orofaciais. Os dados foram tabulados e submetidos a tratamento estatístico, considerando-se p<0,05. RESULTADOS: com relação ao sistema estomatongático, observou-se diferença estatística entre os grupos apenas nas tarefas de assobio, contração e vibração de lábios e de língua, apresentando desempenho inferior as crianças com Desvio Fonológico. O mesmo foi observado quanto à postura de língua na sucção. As médias obtidas nas tarefas de habilidades práxicas orofaciais realizadas após Imitação foram melhores que após Solicitação Verbal, para todas as idades. Ainda, as crianças com menor idade apresentaram mais alterações que as crianças maiores, da mesma forma que as crianças com Desvio Fonológico apresentaram mais dificuldades que aquelas sem alterações de fala. CONCLUSÃO: as crianças com Desvio Fonológico apresentaram mais alterações do sistema estomatognático e das habilidades práxicas orofaciais que aquelas com Desenvolvimento Fonológico Típico, havendo melhora no desempenho com o avanço da idade e encontrando-se estas alterações relacionadas com as alterações de fala

Influence of pH, bleaching agents, and acid etching on surface wear of bovine enamel

ABSTRACT Development of new materials for tooth bleaching justifies the need for studies to evaluate the changes in the enamel surface caused by different bleaching protocols. Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the bovine dental enamel wear in function of different bleaching gel protocols, acid etching and pH variation. Material and Methods Sixty fragments of bovine teeth were cut, obtaining a control and test areas. In the test area, one half received etching followed by a bleaching gel application, and the other half, only the bleaching gel. The fragments were randomly divided into six groups (n=10), each one received one bleaching session with five hydrogen peroxide gel applications of 8 min, activated with hybrid light, diode laser/blue LED (HL) or diode laser/violet LED (VHL) (experimental): Control (C); 35% Total Blanc Office (TBO35HL); 35% Lase Peroxide Sensy (LPS35HL); 25% Lase Peroxide Sensy II (LPS25HL); 15% Lase Peroxide Lite (LPL15HL); and 10% hydrogen peroxide (experimental) (EXP10VHL). pH values were determined by a pHmeter at the initial and final time periods. Specimens were stored, subjected to simulated brushing cycles, and the superficial wear was determined (μm). ANOVA and Tukey´s tests were applied (α=0.05). Results The pH showed a slight decrease, except for Group LPL15HL. Group LPS25HL showed the highest degree of wear, with and without etching. Conclusion There was a decrease from the initial to the final pH. Different bleaching gels were able to increase the surface wear values after simulated brushing. Acid etching before bleaching increased surface wear values in all groups