The philosophical foundations of classical "rDzogs chen" in Tibet : investigating the distinction between dualistic mind (sems) and primordial knowing (ye shes)

While the syncretistic Tibetan tradition known as rDzogs chen ("Great Perfection") has attracted considerable attention over the past few decades, its philosophical foundations remain largely unknown to those unacquainted with its primary sources. This thesis looks at the essentials of rDzogs chen philosophy through the lens of two principal distinctions that the tradition has considered indispensable for understanding its distinctive views and practices: dualistic mind (sems) versus primordial knowing (ye shes) and dharmakâya versus the 'ground of all' (kun gzhi) conditioned experience. Arguing that the distinctions provided classical rDzogs chen scholars with a crucial framework for (a) articulating the necessary conditions of nondual primordial knowing, the conditio sine qua non of rNying ma soteriology, and (b) schematizing the relationship between the exoteric and esoteric vehicles of Indian Buddhism within a unifying conception of the Buddhist path as the progressive disclosure of primordial knowing, the thesis shows how the rDzogs chen philosophy of mind has been integral to the tradition's complex soteriology. The thesis consists of two parts: (1) a detailed philosophical investigation of the distinctions and (2) an anthology of previously untranslated Tibetan materials on the distinctions accompanied by critical editions and introductions. The first part systematically invesigates the nature and scope of the distinctions and traces their evolution and complex relationships with Indian Buddhist Cittamâtra, Madhyamaka, Pramàriavàda, and Vajrayâna views. It concludes with an exploration of some soteriological implications of the mind/primordial knowing distinction that became central to rDzogs chen path hermeneutics in the classical period as authors of rDzogs chen path summaries used this distinction to reconcile progressivist sutric and non-progressivist tantric models of the Buddhist path. The translations and texts included in part two of the thesis consist of (a) a short treatise from Klong chen pa's Miscellaneous Writings entitled Sems dang ye shes kyi dris lan (Reply to Questions Concerning Mind and Primordial Knowing), (b) selected passages on the distinctions from this author's monumental summary of the rDzogs chen snying thig system, the Theg mchog mdzod (Treasury of the Supreme Vehicle), and (c) an excerpt on rDzogs chen distinctions taken from 'Jigs med gling pa's (1729-1798) 18th century Klong chen sNying thig path summary entitled Treasury of Qualities (Yon tan mdzod) along with a word-by- word commentary by Yon tan rgya mtsho (b. 19th c.).

Flow-R, a model for susceptibility mapping of debris flows and other gravitational hazards at a regional scale: some case studies

Every year, debris flows cause huge damage in mountainous areas. Due to population pressure in hazardous zones, the socio-economic impact is much higher than in the past. Therefore, the development of indicative susceptibility hazard maps is of primary importance, particularly in developing countries. However, the complexity of the phenomenon and the variability of local controlling factors limit the use of processbased models for a first assessment. A debris flow model has been developed for regional susceptibility assessments using digital elevation model (DEM) with a GIS-based approach.. The automatic identification of source areas and the estimation of debris flow spreading, based on GIS tools, provide a substantial basis for a preliminary susceptibility assessment at a regional scale. One of the main advantages of this model is its workability. In fact, everything is open to the user, from the data choice to the selection of the algorithms and their parameters. The Flow-R model was tested in three different contexts: two in Switzerland and one in Pakistan, for indicative susceptibility hazard mapping. It was shown that the quality of the DEM is the most important parameter to obtain reliable results for propagation, but also to identify the potential debris flows sources.

Never underestimate peace of mind

This leaflet explains the concept of safer sex and why everyone who is sexually active should protect themselves against sexually transmitted infections or the risk of getting pregnant.It also provides information on contraception, including emergency contraception, and a list of useful contacts including GUM clinics.

Never underestimate peace of mind (syphilis)

This leaflet explains what syphilis is and how it can be contracted through several forms of intimate contact including kissing, unprotected sex or genital contact. It explains what the possible symptoms may be like, as half of the people infected with this infection show no symptoms at all. It explains how syphilis is diagnosed and treated and how to protect yourself against catching it. Details of the�Genito Urinary Medicine (GUM) Clinics in Northern Ireland are included in the leaflet together with an explanation of the services provided by them.

Mind your head, a student guide to mental health

This booklet is full of practical tips and information on managing stress and achieving and maintaining positive mental health and emotional wellbeing. It also contains a comprehensive list of helpful local organisations and websites. The booklet targets first year students at university and further and higher education colleges as the transition from school to further education can be a very stressful time. It��'s distributed at universities and colleges during freshers week and is also available on request from student services or the students union at many campuses.

Re-mapping the molecular features of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 Brazilian sequences using a bioinformatics unit established in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, to give support to the viral epidemiology studies

The analysis of genetic data for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is essential to improve treatment and public health strategies as well as to select strains for vaccine programs. However, the analysis of large quantities of genetic data requires collaborative efforts in bioinformatics, computer biology, molecular biology, evolution, and medical science. The objective of this study was to review and improve the molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 and HTLV-1 viruses isolated in Brazil using bioinformatic tools available in the Laboratório Avançado de Sáude Pública (Lasp) bioinformatics unit. The analysis of HIV-1 isolates confirmed a heterogeneous distribution of the viral genotypes circulating in the country. The Brazilian HIV-1 epidemic is characterized by the presence of multiple subtypes (B, F1, C) and B/F1 recombinant virus while, on the other hand, most of the HTLV-1 sequences were classified as Transcontinental subgroup of the Cosmopolitan subtype. Despite the high variation among HIV-1 subtypes, protein glycosylation and phosphorylation domains were conserved in the pol, gag, and env genes of the Brazilian HIV-1 strains suggesting constraints in the HIV-1 evolution process. As expected, the functional protein sites were highly conservative in the HTLV-1 env gene sequences. Furthermore, the presence of these functional sites in HIV-1 and HTLV-1 strains could help in the development of vaccines that pre-empt the viral escape process.

Inter- and intrahemispheric dissociations in ideomotor apraxia: a large-scale lesion-symptom mapping study in subacute brain-damaged patients.

Pantomimes of object use require accurate representations of movements and a selection of the most task-relevant gestures. Prominent models of praxis, corroborated by functional neuroimaging studies, predict a critical role for left parietal cortices in pantomime and advance that these areas store representations of tool use. In contrast, lesion data points to the involvement of left inferior frontal areas, suggesting that defective selection of movement features is the cause of pantomime errors. We conducted a large-scale voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping analyses with configural/spatial (CS) and body-part-as-object (BPO) pantomime errors of 150 left and right brain-damaged patients. Our results confirm the left hemisphere dominance in pantomime. Both types of error were associated with damage to left inferior frontal regions in tumor and stroke patients. While CS pantomime errors were associated with left temporoparietal lesions in both stroke and tumor patients, these errors appeared less associated with parietal areas in stroke than in tumor patients and less associated with temporal in tumor than stroke patients. BPO errors were associated with left inferior frontal lesions in both tumor and stroke patients. Collectively, our results reveal a left intrahemispheric dissociation for various aspects of pantomime, but with an unspecific role for inferior frontal regions.

Fièvre à répétition chez l'enfant: penser au syndrome de PFAPA [Periodic fever in children: keep in mind the PFAPA syndrome]

Les maladies autoinflammatoires font partie du diagnostic différentiel de l'état fébrile à répétition chez l’enfant. Ces maladies sont caractérisées par des poussées inflammatoires sans cause évidente. Certaines de ces maladies, comme la Fièvre méditerranéenne familiale, ont une origine génétique et nécessitent un traitement régulier pour éviter des conséquences graves à long terme. Le syndrome de PFAPA est la plus fréquente des fièvres récurrentes et son diagnostic se base sur des critères diagnostiques peu précis. Son traitement reste controversé. La prednisone en dose unique permet d'interrompre la poussée et l'amygdalectomie peut induire une rémission dans une majorité des cas. The autoinflammatory diseases should be considered in the differential diagnosis of recurrent fever in childhood. These diseases are characterized by inflammatory episodes without an evident cause. Some of these diseases, like the Familial Mediterranean Fever, have a genetic origin and need a chronic treatment to avoid severe complications on the long term. PFAPA syndrome is the most frequent cause of recurrent fever and is diagnosed based on unspecific criteria. The treatment is still controversial. One dose of Prednisone is able to interrupt the flare and tonsillectomy may induce a remission in the majority of the cases

Analysis and chromosomal mapping of Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis amastigote expressed sequence tags

The characterization of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) generated from a cDNA library of Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis amastigotes is described. The sequencing of 93 clones generated new L. (L.) amazonensis ESTs from which 32% are not related to any other sequences in database and 68% presented significant similarities to known genes. The chromosome localization of some L. (L.) amazonensis ESTs was also determined in L. (L.) amazonensis and L. (L.) major. The characterization of these ESTs is suitable for the genome physical mapping, as well as for the identification of genes encoding cysteine proteinases implicated with protective immune responses in leishmaniasis.

How the mind constitutes itself through perceptual learning

Most theories of perception assume a rigid relationship between objects of the physical world and the corresponding mental representations. We show by a priori reasoning that this assumption is not fulfilled. We claim instead that all object-representation correspondences have to be learned. However, we cannot learn to perceive all objects that there are in the world. We arrive at these conclusions by a combinatory analysis of a fictive stimulus world and the way to cope with its complexity, which is perceptual learning. We show that successful perceptual learning requires changes in the representational states of the brain that are not derived directly from the constitution of the physical world. The mind constitutes itself through perceptual learning.

Mapping the molecular characteristics of Brazilian human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 Env (gp46) and Pol amino acid sequences for vaccine design

This study was carried out to evaluate the molecular pattern of all available Brazilian human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 Env (n = 15) and Pol (n = 43) nucleotide sequences via epitope prediction, physico-chemical analysis, and protein potential sites identification, giving support to the Brazilian AIDS vaccine program. In 12 previously described peptides of the Env sequences we found 12 epitopes, while in 4 peptides of the Pol sequences we found 4 epitopes. The total variation on the amino acid composition was 9 and 17% for human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I and class II Env epitopes, respectively. After analyzing the Pol sequences, results revealed a total amino acid variation of 0.75% for HLA-I and HLA-II epitopes. In 5 of the 12 Env epitopes the physico-chemical analysis demonstrated that the mutations magnified the antigenicity profile. The potential protein domain analysis of Env sequences showed the loss of a CK-2 phosphorylation site caused by D197N mutation in one epitope, and a N-glycosylation site caused by S246Y and V247I mutations in another epitope. Besides, the analysis of selection pressure have found 8 positive selected sites (w = 9.59) using the codon-based substitution models and maximum-likelihood methods. These studies underscore the importance of this Env region for the virus fitness, for the host immune response and, therefore, for the development of vaccine candidates.

Anatomical correlates for category-specific naming of objects and actions: A brain stimulation mapping study.

The production of object and action words can be dissociated in aphasics, yet their anatomical correlates have been difficult to distinguish in functional imaging studies. To investigate the extent to which the cortical neural networks underlying object- and action-naming processing overlap, we performed electrostimulation mapping (ESM), which is a neurosurgical mapping technique routinely used to examine language function during brain-tumor resections. Forty-one right-handed patients who had surgery for a brain tumor were asked to perform overt naming of object and action pictures under stimulation. Overall, 73 out of the 633 stimulated cortical sites (11.5%) were associated with stimulation-induced language interferences. These interference sites were very much localized (<1 cm(2) ), and showed substantial variability across individuals in their exact localization. Stimulation interfered with both object and action naming over 44 sites, whereas it specifically interfered with object naming over 19 sites and with action naming over 10 sites. Specific object-naming sites were mainly identified in Broca's area (Brodmann area 44/45) and the temporal cortex, whereas action-naming specific sites were mainly identified in the posterior midfrontal gyrus (Brodmann area 6/9) and Broca's area (P = 0.003 by the Fisher's exact test). The anatomical loci we emphasized are in line with a cortical distinction between objects and actions based on conceptual/semantic features, so the prefrontal/premotor cortex would preferentially support sensorimotor contingencies associated with actions, whereas the temporal cortex would preferentially underpin (functional) properties of objects. Hum Brain Mapp 35:429-443, 2014. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Genomic organization, fine-mapping, and expression of the human islet-brain 1 (IB1)/c-Jun-amino-terminal kinase interacting protein-1 (JIP-1) gene.

Islet-brain 1 (IB1), a regulator of the pancreatic beta-cell function in the rat, is homologous to JIP-1, a murine inhibitor of c-Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK). Whether IB1 and JIP-1 are present in humans was not known. We report the sequence of the 2133-bp human IB1 cDNA, the expression, structure, and fine-mapping of the human IB1 gene, and the characterization of an IB1 pseudogene. Human IB1 is 94% identical to rat IB1. The tissue-specific expression of IB1 in human is similar to that observed in rodent. The IB1 gene contains 12 exons and maps to chromosome 11 (11p11.2-p12), a region that is deleted in DEFECT-11 syndrome. Apart from an IB1 pseudogene on chromosome 17 (17q21), no additional IB1-related gene was found in the human genome. Our data indicate that the sequence and expression pattern of IB1 are highly conserved between rodent and human and provide the necessary tools to investigate whether IB1 is involved in human diseases.

Free-breathing 3 T magnetic resonance t(2)-mapping of the heart.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to establish an accurate and reproducible T(2)-mapping cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) methodology at 3 T and to evaluate it in healthy volunteers and patients with myocardial infarct. BACKGROUND: Myocardial edema affects the T(2) relaxation time on CMR. Therefore, T(2)-mapping has been established to characterize edema at 1.5 T. A 3 T implementation designed for longitudinal studies and aimed at guiding and monitoring therapy remains to be implemented, thoroughly characterized, and evaluated in vivo. METHODS: A free-breathing navigator-gated radial CMR pulse sequence with an adiabatic T(2) preparation module and an empirical fitting equation for T(2) quantification was optimized using numerical simulations and was validated at 3 T in a phantom study. Its reproducibility for myocardial T(2) quantification was then ascertained in healthy volunteers and improved using an external reference phantom with known T(2). In a small cohort of patients with established myocardial infarction, the local T(2) value and extent of the edematous region were determined and compared with conventional T(2)-weighted CMR and x-ray coronary angiography, where available. RESULTS: The numerical simulations and phantom study demonstrated that the empirical fitting equation is significantly more accurate for T(2) quantification than that for the more conventional exponential decay. The volunteer study consistently demonstrated a reproducibility error as low as 2 ± 1% using the external reference phantom and an average myocardial T(2) of 38.5 ± 4.5 ms. Intraobserver and interobserver variability in the volunteers were -0.04 ± 0.89 ms (p = 0.86) and -0.23 ± 0.91 ms (p = 0.87), respectively. In the infarction patients, the T(2) in edema was 62.4 ± 9.2 ms and was consistent with the x-ray angiographic findings. Simultaneously, the extent of the edematous region by T(2)-mapping correlated well with that from the T(2)-weighted images (r = 0.91). CONCLUSIONS: The new, well-characterized 3 T methodology enables robust and accurate cardiac T(2)-mapping at 3 T with high spatial resolution, while the addition of a reference phantom improves reproducibility. This technique may be well suited for longitudinal studies in patients with suspected or established heart disease.

Disparate activation of the coronary sinus and inferior left atrium during atrial tachycardia after persistent atrial fibrillation ablation: prevalence, pitfalls, and impact on mapping.

INTRODUCTION: Persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation may lead to partial disconnection of the coronary sinus (CS). As a result, disparate activation sequences of the local CS versus contiguous left atrium (LA) may be observed during atrial tachycardia (AT). We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of this phenomenon and its impact on activation mapping. METHODS: AT occurring after persistent AF ablation were investigated in 74 consecutive patients. Partial CS disconnection during AT was suspected when double potentials with disparate activation sequences were observed on the CS catheter. Endocardial mapping facing CS bipoles was performed to differentiate LA far-field from local CS potentials. RESULTS: A total of 149 ATs were observed. Disparate LA-CS activations were apparent in 20 ATs after magnifying the recording scale (13%). The most common pattern (90%) was distal to proximal endocardial LA activation against proximal to distal CS activation, the latter involving the whole CS or its distal part. Perimitral macroreentry was more common when disparate LA-CS activations were observed (67% vs 29%; P = 0.002). Partial CS disconnection also resulted in "pseudo" mitral isthmus (MI) block during LA appendage pacing in 20% of patients as local CS activation was proximal to distal despite distal to proximal activation of the contiguous LA. CONCLUSION: Careful analysis of CS recordings during AT following persistent AF ablation often reveals disparate patterns of activation. Recognizing when endocardial LA activation occurs in the opposite direction to the more obvious local CS signals is critical to avoid misleading interpretations during mapping of AT and evaluation of MI block.