Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders, Ahead of Print.
Δευτέρα 1 Οκτωβρίου 2018
Objectively Measured Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Metabolic Syndrome in Adults: Systematic Review of Observational Evidence
Hybrid UV-C/microfiltration process in membrane photoreactor for wastewater disinfection
Abstract
A novel hybrid UV-C/microfiltration process for water disinfection is presented, and its application in continuous mode operation to the removal of different pathogen germs (Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, and Candida albicans) present in urban wastewater. The membrane photoreactor is based on porous stainless steel membranes coated with a TiO2 layer and illuminated by a UV-C lamp (254 nm). A valve actuator in the outlet of the UV-C stream allows operation of the system under conditions of constant transmembrane pressure (TMP) keeping the UV-C contact time in few seconds, significantly lower than the typical irradiation time employed in TiO2 photocatalytic processes. An E. coli removal of up to 4-log in the permeate stream and up to 2-log in the UV-C outlet was achieved with a 0.2 μm membrane operating with a TMP of 0.5 bar and a UV-C contact time as low as 8 s. The microbial balance data from the cells recovered from the membrane confirmed that 96–98% of the removed microorganisms died due to the UV-C action over the membrane surface. Modification of the membrane with a TiO2 layer has been also shown to be a suitable way to improve both the UV-C inactivation and the filtration efficiency. The results reported in this work constitute a proof of concept of the synergy between UV-C and filtration that can be achieved in a hybrid UV-C/microfiltration system, being a good example of process intensification where two products of different quality can be simultaneously obtained.
Interactions between oil prices and financial sectors’ performances: empirical evidence from Amman Stock Exchange
Abstract
The present study searches the effects of international oil prices on the performance of financial sector firms in the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE). Using the daily data which range from July 3, 2006 to April 12, 2018, we found that financial performance of the ASE firms is downturn during this data period and oil prices do not impact on these performances. It is found that downward movement of financial performances in the ASE is totally independent of the movements in international oil prices.
Schmerztherapie bei Darmkrebspatienten
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund
Die adäquate Behandlung von Schmerzen ist ein wichtiger Bestandteil in der Versorgung von Krebspatienten, doch mangelt es bisher an Studien, die den Gebrauch von Schmerzmitteln bzw. adjuvanten Schmerztherapeutika bei Krebspatienten systematisch untersuchen.
Ziel
Die Quantifizierung des Gebrauchs von Schmerzmitteln und adjuvanten Schmerztherapeutika wird am Beispiel von Darmkrebspatienten in verschiedenen Zeiträumen vor und nach Diagnose beschrieben.
Material und Methoden
Für die Studie wurde die pharmakoepidemiologische Forschungsdatenbank GePaRD (German Pharmacoepidemiological Research Database) verwendet, die Abrechnungsdaten von 4 gesetzlichen Krankenkassen enthält. Darmkrebspatienten mit Erstdiagnose im Jahr 2010 wurden mittels ICD-Kodes (C18-C20) identifiziert und über 5 Jahre nachbeobachtet. Die Autoren berechneten für verschiedene Zeiträume vor und nach Diagnose jeweils den Anteil an Patienten, die Opioide, nichtopioide Schmerzmittel, bestimmte adjuvante Schmerztherapeutika (Antidepressiva und die Antikonvulsiva Pregabalin und Gabapentin) und Benzodiazepine erhielten (Verordnungsprävalenz) und ermittelten für die Arzneimittelgruppen die am häufigsten verordneten Wirkstoffe. Je nach Schweregrad der Erkrankung bei Diagnose bzw. Metastasenbildung im Verlauf wurde zwischen 3 Patientengruppen unterschieden.
Ergebnisse
Insgesamt wurden 9596 Patienten mit inzidentem Darmkrebs im Jahr 2010 eingeschlossen. Für Opioide stieg die Verordnungsprävalenz von ~8 % vor Diagnose auf maximal 31 % bei Patienten mit Metastasenbildung. Auf schwach wirksame Opioide entfielen bei Patienten mit fortgeschrittenem Darmkrebs bzw. Metastasenbildung etwa ein Drittel der Tagesdosen, bei den übrigen Patienten zwei Drittel. Die Verordnungsprävalenzen für nichtopioide Schmerzmittel stiegen von ~35 % vor Diagnose auf bis zu 56 % nach Diagnose, für Antidepressiva von ~9 % auf maximal 18 %, für Pregabalin und Gabapentin von 2 % bis maximal 9 % und für Benzodiazepine von 5 % auf maximal 14 %.
Diskussion
Vergleicht man die Ergebnisse mit der verfügbaren Literatur, könnten diese tendenziell auf einen zurückhaltenden Einsatz von Opioiden bei (Darm‑)Krebspatienten hindeuten. In Anbetracht der hohen Verordnungsprävalenz von Arzneimitteln, deren gleichzeitige Gabe schwerwiegende Konsequenzen haben kann, ist bei dieser Patientengruppe hinsichtlich Arzneimittelinteraktionen besondere Vorsicht geboten.
Visual Narrative and Jargon Minimization Underpin Anatomy Teaching to Animation/VFX Industry Professionals and Health Professions Students
Abstract
Whether diagrammatic or deeply detailed, most anatomical illustration adheres to established archetypes - identical views of similar dissections, exhibiting neither variability nor originality. These conventional views are replicated from one generation of anatomy textbooks, atlases and now digital sources, with little modification or reference to original dissection. In this paper, I argue that more effective communication in the field of anatomy requires rethinking conventional anatomical images and avoiding over-reliance on anatomic terminology. The ubiquity and emphasis on the image in the emerging digital learning ecosystem challenges science educators to revisit their use of the conventional visuals. The tools of narrative creating engaging science communication can also be used in constructing better images. After brief review of the role of anatomical jargon and its discontents, I present several examples of "readable" images. These examples have been refined in the course of communicating detailed anatomy and movement for two decades to medical and other health professions students, as well as to character designers, modelers, riggers and animators in the animation and gaming industries. That "reading an image" promotes understanding without jargon is both anecdotally self-evident and yet scientifically largely untested. Rather than subsisting on images of convenience, the intersection of narrative tools and anatomical imagery provides the opportunity to structure images with intentionality and ultimately evaluate their impact. Such key images and their stories will ultimately require testing to validate the extensive anecdotal evidence that visual stories promote learning.Remodeling ancestral phenotypic plasticity in local adaptation: A new framework to explore the role of genetic compensation in the evolution of homeostasis
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity is not universally adaptive. In certain cases, plasticity can result in phenotypic shifts that reduce fitness relative to the un-induced state. A common cause of such maladaptive plasticity is the co-option of ancestral developmental and physiological response systems to meet novel challenges. Because these systems evolved to meet specific challenges in an ancestral environment (e.g. localized and transient hypoxia), their co-option to meet a similar, but novel, stressor (e.g. reductions in ambient pO2 at high elevation) can lead to misdirected responses that reduce fitness. In such cases, natural selection should act to remodel phenotypic plasticity to suppress the expression of these maladaptive responses. Because these maladaptive responses reduce the fitness of colonizers in new environments, this remodeling of ancestral plasticity may be among the earliest steps in adaptive walks towards new local optima. Genetic compensation has been proposed as a general form of adaptive evolution that leads to the suppression of maladaptive plasticity to restore the ancestral trait value in the face of novel stimuli. Given their central role in the regulation of basic physiological functions, we argue that genetic compensation may often be achieved by modifications of homeostatic regulatory systems. We further suggest that genetic compensation to modify homeostatic systems can be achieved by two alternative strategies that differ in their mechanistic underpinnings; to our knowledge, these strategies have not been formally recognized by previous workers. We then consider how the mechanistic details of these alternative strategies may constrain their evolution. These considerations lead us to argue that genetic compensation is most likely to evolve by compensatory physiological changes that safeguard internal homeostatic conditions to prevent the expression of maladaptive portions of conserved reaction norms, rather than direct evolution of plasticity itself. Finally, we outline a simple experimental framework to test this hypothesis. Our goal is to stimulate research aimed at providing a deeper mechanistic understanding of whether and how phenotypic plasticity can be remodeled following environmental shifts that render ancestral responses maladaptive, an issue with increasing importance in our current era of rapid environmental change.The use of Bone Conduction Hearing Implants (BCHI) in Paediatric Chronic Otitis Media: An audit of outcomes of 32 devices in 22 patients
Clinical Otolaryngology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.
Reversibility of alexithymia with effective treatment of moderate to severe psoriasis: longitudinal data from EPIDEPSO
British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.
Fatigue in systemic lupus erythematosus and other autoimmune skin diseases
British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.
Downregulation of miR‐145‐5p contributes to hyperproliferation of keratinocytes and skin inflammation in psoriasis
British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.
FRT—Fondation Rene Touraine
Experimental Dermatology, Volume 27, Issue 10, Page 1179-1189, October 2018.
Lactic and lactobionic acids as typically moisturizing compounds
International Journal of Dermatology, EarlyView.
Pathway dysregulation analysis of the nucleotide excision repair mechanisms reveals it is not a common feature of melanomas
Pigment Cell &Melanoma Research, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.
Eccrine porocarcinoma of the nose: A case report and literature review
Australasian Journal of Dermatology, EarlyView.
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