Infideles Et Philosophi: Assent, Untruth, and Natural Knowledge of the Simple God

Victor Preller’s “reformulation” of St. Thomas has impacted many contemporary theologians and philosophers, among them, George Lindbeck, Stanley Hauerwas, Bruce Marshall, D. Stephen Long, Fergus Kerr, to name only a few. According to Kerr, Preller is responsible for bringing to the fore St. Thomas’s denial that unbelievers can be truly said to believe “God exists.” In particular, Preller draws our attention to ST II-II, q. 2, a. 2, ad 3. Seemingly, in light of this passage, all non-believers have a defect in cognition with respect to the simple God. As such, they cannot be said to believe “God exists” at all (totaliter). According to Preller, it suggests that pre-Christian pagan philosophers not only failed to know the existence of God, but that they could not in principle have known apart from the graces of special revelation and faith. By virtue of the Aristotelian axiom used by St. Thomas, which states, “to know simple things defectively is not to know them at all,” they were not merely wrong about God, but entirely ignorant of him. Given the impact of this interpretation, it is important that Preller has interpreted ST II-II, q. 2, a. 2, ad 3 rightly. I argue, however, that he has not. Preller’s inattentiveness to the context, as well as the specific meaning of certain terms, contributes to a misunderstanding. If we properly identify the infideles and determine the defectus cognitionis at issue, we see that St. Thomas is not claiming that the philosophers (philosophi) qua pagan per se suffer from the relevant defect. This would contradict the numerous affirmations of pagan philosophical knowledge of God found elsewhere in the corpus. Not suffering from this defect, they are not qua pagan ignorant of the existence of God. The philosophi are neither on St. Thomas’s radar in ST II-II, q. 2, a. 2, ad 3 nor necessarily (though potentially) guilty of the sort of defect in cognition that St. Thomas has in mind. Ultimately, this passage does not mean what Preller and others have taken it to mean. Consequently, it does not ground any denial of the possibility of pre-Christian pagan philosophical knowledge of God

Relationship between islet autoantibody status and the clinical characteristics of children and adults with incident type 1 diabetes in a UK cohort.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the characteristics of children and adults with incident type 1 diabetes in contemporary, multiethnic UK, focusing on differences between the islet autoantibody negative and positive. DESIGN: Observational cohort study. SETTING: 146 mainly secondary care centres across England and Wales. PARTICIPANTS: 3312 people aged ≥5 years were recruited within 6 months of a clinical diagnosis of type 1 diabetes via the National Institute for Health Research Clinical Research Network. 3021 were of white European ethnicity and 291 (9%) were non-white. There was a small male predominance (57%). Young people <17 years comprised 59%. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Autoantibody status and characteristics at presentation. RESULTS: The majority presented with classical osmotic symptoms, weight loss and fatigue. Ketoacidosis was common (42%), especially in adults, and irrespective of ethnicity. 35% were overweight or obese. Of the 1778 participants who donated a blood sample, 85% were positive for one or more autoantibodies against glutamate decarboxylase, islet antigen-2 and zinc transporter 8. Presenting symptoms were similar in the autoantibody-positive and autoantibody-negative participants, as was the frequency of ketoacidosis (43%vs40%, P=0.3). Autoantibody positivity was less common with increasing age (P=0.0001), in males compared with females (82%vs90%, P<0.0001) and in people of non-white compared with white ethnicity (73%vs86%, P<0.0001). Body mass index was higher in autoantibody-negative adults than autoantibody-positive adults (median, IQR 25.5, 23.1-29.2vs23.9, 21.4-26.7 kg/m2; P=0.0001). Autoantibody-negative participants were more likely to have a parent with diabetes (28%vs16%, P<0.0001) and less likely to have another autoimmune disease (4%vs8%, P=0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Most people assigned a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes presented with classical clinical features and islet autoantibodies. Although indistinguishable at an individual level, autoantibody-negative participants as a group demonstrated features more typically associated with other diabetes subtypes. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN66496918; Pre-results

Complete nucleotide sequences and genome organization of a cherry isolate of cherry leaf roll virus

The complete nucleotide sequence of cherry leaf roll virus (CLRV, genus Nepovirus) from a naturally infected cherry tree (Prunus avium cv. Bing) in North America was determined. RNA1 and RNA2 consist of 7,893 and 6,492 nucleotides, respectively, plus a poly-(A) tail. Each RNA encodes a single potential open reading frame. The first 657 nucleotides of RNA1 and RNA2 are 99% identical and include the 5′-UTR and the first 214 deduced amino acids of the polyproteins following the first of two in-frame start codons. Phylogenetic analysis reveals close relationships between CLRV and members of subgroup C of the genus Nepovirus

Adsorption at cell surface and cellular uptake of silica nanoparticles with different surface chemical functionalizations: impact on cytotoxicity

International audienceSilica nanoparticles are particularly interesting for medical applications because of the high inertness and chemical stability of silica material. However, at the nanoscale their innocuousness must be carefully verified before clinical use. The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro biological toxicity of silica nanoparticles depending on their surface chemical functionalization. To that purpose, three kinds of 50 nm fluorescent silica-based nanoparticles were synthesized: 1) sterically stabilized silica nanoparticles coated with neutral polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecules, 2) positively charged silica nanoparticles coated with amine groups and 3) negatively charged silica nanoparticles coated with carboxylic acid groups. RAW 264.7 murine macrophages were incubated for 20 hours with each kind of nanoparticles. Their cellular uptake and adsorption at the cell membrane were assessed by a fluorimetric assay and cellular responses were evaluated in terms of cytotoxicity, pro-inflammatory factor production and oxidative stress. Results showed that the highly positive charged nanoparticle, were the most adsorbed at cell surface and triggered more cytotoxicity than other nanoparticles types. To conclude, this study clearly demonstrated that silica nanoparticles surface functionalization represents a key parameter in their cellular uptake and biological toxicity

Promoting the achievement in schools of children and young people in care

As of March 2017, there were 72,670 children and young people in care in England. The number of looked after children has continued to increase steadily over the last eight years. Sixty per cent of these children are in care because of abuse or neglect and three-quarters are placed in foster care arrangements. Children and young people who are in or have experienced care remain one of the lowest performing groups in terms of educational outcomes. The average Attainment 8 score for children in care is 19.3 compared to 44.5 for non-looked after children and 19.3 for children in need. In 2017 there was an increase in the percentage of children in care achieving a pass in English and Mathematics from 17.4% to 17.5% and also in entering EBacc. Care leavers can experience poorer employment and health outcomes after leaving school compared to their peers. They are over-represented amongst the offender population and those who experience homelessness. However, research is emerging to show that children and young people in care can have very positive experiences of school if they are supported effectively to reach their full potential academically and socially. The purpose of this report is to share practice in local authorities (LA) from across England and Wales that is contributing to improved outcomes and school experiences for children and young people in care. The case studies were all undertaken as part of the Promoting the Achievement of Looked after Children (PALAC) programme between 2014 and 2017. This report presents an account of the programme, including the activities undertaken by the participants and the outcomes of the programme to date for pupils in care and staff in the participating virtual schools (VS) and local authorities

IgG and fibrinogen driven nanoparticle aggregation

A thorough understanding of how proteins induce nanoparticle (NP) aggregation is crucial when designing in vitro and in vivo assays and interpreting experimental results. This knowledge is also crucial when developing nano-applications and formulation for drug delivery systems. In this study, we found that extraction of immunoglobulin G (IgG) from cow serum results in lower polystyrene NPs aggregation. Moreover, addition of isolated IgG or fibrinogen to fetal cow serum enhanced this aggregation, thus demonstrating that these factors are major drivers of NP aggregation in serum. Counter-intuitively, NP aggregation was inversely dependent on protein concentration; i.e., low protein concentrations induced large aggregates, whereas high protein concentrations induced small aggregates. Protein-induced NP aggregation and aggregate size were monitored by absorbance at 400 nm and dynamic light scattering, respectively. Here, we propose a mechanism behind the protein concentration dependent aggregation; this mechanism involves the effects of multiple protein interactions on the NP surface, surface area limitations, aggregation kinetics, and the influence of other serum proteins.We thank Professor Sara Linse for scientific discussions and advice and Professor Patrik Brundin for enabling access to the light microscope. The project received financial support from Nanometer structure consortium at Lund University (nmC@LU), Lars Hierta Foundation, and the research school FLAK of Lund University

Cloaking nanoparticles with protein corona shield for targeted drug delivery

Targeted drug delivery using nanoparticles can minimize the side effects of conventional pharmaceutical agents and enhance their efficacy. However, translating nanoparticle-based agents into clinical applications still remains a challenge due to the difficulty in regulating interactions on the interfaces between nanoparticles and biological systems. Here, we present a targeting strategy for nanoparticles incorporated with a supramolecularly pre-coated recombinant fusion protein in which HER2-binding affibody combines with glutathione-S-transferase. Once thermodynamically stabilized in preferred orientations on the nanoparticles, the adsorbed fusion proteins as a corona minimize interactions with serum proteins to prevent the clearance of nanoparticles by macrophages, while ensuring systematic targeting functions in vitro and in vivo. This study provides insight into the use of the supramolecularly built protein corona shield as a targeting agent through regulating the interfaces between nanoparticles and biological systems

Long-term medical utilization following ventilator-associated pneumonia in acute stroke and traumatic brain injury patients: a case-control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The economic burden of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) during the index hospitalization has been confirmed in previous studies. However, the long-term economic impact is still unclear. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of VAP on medical utilization in the long term.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This is a retrospective case-control study. Study subjects were patients experiencing their first traumatic brain injury, acute hemorrhagic stroke, or acute ischemic stroke during 2004. All subjects underwent endotracheal intubation in the emergency room (ER) on the day of admission or the day before admission, were transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) and were mechanically ventilated for 48 hours or more. A total of 943 patients who developed VAP were included as the case group, and each was matched with two control patients without VAP by age ( ± 2 years), gender, diagnosis, date of admission ( ± 1 month) and hospital size, resulting in a total of 2,802 patients in the study. Using robust regression and Poisson regression models we examined the effect of VAP on medical utilization including hospitalization expenses, outpatient expenses, total medical expenses, number of ER visits, number of readmissions, number of hospitalization days and number of ICU days, during the index hospitalization and during the following 2-year period.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Patients in the VAP group had higher hospitalization expenses, longer length of stay in hospital and in ICU, and a greater number of readmissions than the control group patients.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>VAP has a significant impact on medical expenses and utilization, both during the index hospitalization during which VAP developed and in the longer term.</p

In situ measurement of bovine serum albumin interaction with gold nanospheres

Here we present in situ observations of adsorption of bovine serum albumin (BSA) on citratestabilized gold nanospheres. We implemented scattering correlation spectroscopy as a tool to quantify changes in the nanoparticle Brownian motion resulting from BSA adsorption onto the nanoparticle surface. Protein binding was observed as an increase in the nanoparticle hydrodynamic radius. Our results indicate the formation of a protein monolayer at similar albumin concentrations as those found in human blood. Additionally, by monitoring the frequency and intensity of individual scattering events caused by single gold nanoparticles passing the observation volume, we found that BSA did not induce colloidal aggregation, a relevant result from the toxicological viewpoint. Moreover, to elucidate the thermodynamics of the gold nanoparticle-BSA association, we measured an adsorption isotherm which was best described by an anti-cooperative binding model. The number of binding sites based on this model was consistent with a BSA monolayer in its native state. In contrast, experiments using poly-ethylene glycol capped gold nanoparticles revealed no evidence for adsorption of BSA