Quality of life and menopausal symptoms in women with liver transplants

PURPOSE: To assess quality of life and climacteric symptoms in women with and without liver transplants. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of 52 women undergoing follow-up at a university hospital in southeastern Brazil from February 4th, 2009 to January 5th, 2011. Twenty-four of these women were 35 years old or older and had undergone liver transplantation at least one year before study entry. The remaining 28 women had no liver disease and were matched by age and menstrual patterns to the patients with transplants. The abbreviated version of the World Health Organization (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used to assess quality of life. Menopausal symptoms were assessed using the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS). Statistical analysis was carried out by Student's t-test, Mann-Whitney test and analysis of variance. Correlations between MRS and the WHOQOL-BREF were established by correlation coefficients. RESULTS: The mean age of the women included in the study was 52.2 (±10.4) years and the mean time since transplantation was 6.1 (±3.3) years. Women with liver transplants had better quality of life scores in the environment domain (p=0.01). No difference was noted between the two groups in any domain of the MRS. For women in the comparison group, there was a strongly negative correlation between somatic symptoms in the MRS and the physical domain of the WHOQOL-BREF (p<0.01; r=-0.8). In contrast, there was only a moderate association for women with liver transplants (p<0.01; r=-0.5). CONCLUSIONS: Women with liver transplants had better quality of life scores in the domain related to environment and did not exhibit more intense climacteric symptoms than did those with no liver disease. Climacteric symptoms negatively influenced quality of life in liver transplant recipients, although less intensely than in women without a history of liver disease.

Itsen merellinen rakastaja – Itsen rakastamisen feminiininen versio Susanna Majurin valokuvissa

Tutkielma käsittelee suomalaisen nykyvalokuvaajan Susanna Majurin valokuvataidetta. Useissa Majurin kuvissa on rakennettu ja valokuvattu tila, jossa veteen upotettu suuri kangas tarjoaa taustan sitä vasten sukeltavalle mallille. Kangas siihen sijoittuvine maisemineen tai eläinhahmoineen leijuu kuvatilan täyttävässä vedessä muodostaen taustan sukelluksissa seikkaileville naishahmoille. Majuri luo veden avulla unenomaisia ja mielikuvituksellisia maisemia, jotka ovat tunnistettavia ja kuitenkin niissä on jotakin vierasta. Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan Majurin kuvia psykoanalyytikko, kielitieteilijä ja filosofi Luce Irigarayn itsen rakastamisen feminiinisen version kautta. Itsen rakastamisen teemoja Irigaray käsittelee teoksessaan Sukupuolieron etiikka (1984), mikä toimii tutkielmassa kuvien keskeisimpänä teoreettisena keskustelukumppanina. Tutkielman tarkoitus on luoda vuoropuhelu Majurin kuvien ja Irigarayn itsen rakastamisen feminiinisen version välille. Samalla sovellan Irigarayn vertauskuvallisen ja taipuisan kielen kautta itsen rakastamisen teemoja kuvantulkintaan. Tutkielma rakentuu näiden itsen rakastamisen käsitteeseen liittyvien teemojen ympärille ja niiden kautta luvuiksi. Nämä teemat ovat sisällyttäminen, positioon liittyvä leikki aktiivisen ja passiivisen välillä sekä itsen kahdentaminen ja kahdentuminen itsessä. Tutkielmassa perehdytään tarkemmin Majurin teoksiin Gravity (2011), Joutsen (2011), Mirror (2010) ja Kaksoset (2009), mutta viitataan myös laajemmin Majurin valokuvatuotantoon. Tarkastelussa painottuvat Majurin teoksissa esiintyvät naishahmot sekä kuvatilan täyttävä vesi. Tutkielmassa Majurin kuvat näyttäytyvät Irigarayn itsen rakastamisen feminiinisen version käsitteen mukaisina itsen rakastamisen toteutumisen tiloina, mielentiloina tai olotiloina – naisen omina paikkoina itsessään ja itselleen. Tutkielmassa ovat keskiössä Majurin valokuvat ja niiden katsominen itsen rakastamisen käsitteen lävitse, mutta toistensa yhteyteen tuotuna sekä Majurin teokset että Irigarayn itsen rakastamisen teema avautuvat uusiin suuntiin.

Yle Arkiston uusi organisaatio

Aki Kankaan esitys Tilastot ja kustannukset tehokkuudeksi -seminaarissa Helsingissä 3.12.2013.

Sucessão da comunidade de algas perifíticas em reservatório oligotrófico tropical (São Paulo, Brasil): comparação entre período seco e chuvoso

O trabalho visou avaliar a influência da escala temporal (sucessional e sazonal) sobre a biomassa, diversidade e estrutura específica da comunidade de algas perifíticas em reservatório oligotrófico tropical. A sucessão foi acompanhada em períodos seco e chuvoso com amostragens regulares a cada três dias, durante 27 dias, incluindo 16 variáveis abióticas e atributos do perifíton sobre substrato artificial. A clorofila-a foi baixa e similar entre períodos, porém com maiores perdas na época chuvosa. A diversidade foi elevada (3,4 a 4,5 bits ind-1) e relativamente estável entre períodos e durante a sucessão. As clorofíceas foram a classe mais abundante em quase toda sucessão, com destaque para Chlamydomonas planctogloea Skuja que contribuiu em média com 23% (seca) e 37% (chuva) da densidade total. A análise integrada entre as espécies e os fatores ambientais mostrou que a principal fonte de variabilidade ocorreu em função do período climático. Oocystis lacustris Chodat e Gymnodinium sp. apresentaram estreita associação com o período seco e aos menores valores de temperatura, amônio e maiores de pH, oxigênio dissolvido e fósforo total. Ao período chuvoso associaram-se Frustulia rhomboides (Ehr.) de Toni var. rhomboides e Cosmarium majae Strom correlacionadas de forma inversa às variáveis ambientais citadas. A estrutura do perifíton foi primordialmente controlada pela escala climática, sendo que os processos autogênicos sucessionais tiveram papel secundário. As associações de espécies de algas e o processo de acumulação de biomassa foram os atributos mais sensíveis a esta variação. Tais resultados contribuem para o escasso conhecimento sobre a estruturação do perifíton de reservatórios oligotróficos, servindo de referência para avaliação de sistemas tropicais alterados pela eutrofização.

Brazilian soybean Glycine max (L.) Merr. cultivars adapted to low latitude regions: seed composition and content of bioactive proteins

Among the goals of the Brazilian soybean improvement programmes, the breeding strategies for cultivars adapted to low latitudes have been included to extend crop areas and to increase production. Seeds of nine Brazilian soybean cultivars adapted to low latitudes were investigated regarding to their composition, and amino acid and antinutritional/toxic protein contents. Protein (394.5 ± 13.1 to 445.3 ± 8.0 g kg-1 dry matter) and oil (200.6 ± 1.2 to 232.3 ± 4.7 g kg-1 dry matter) contents showed low correlation to each other (r = -0.06). The total carbohydrate (141.7 ± 6.1 to 211.1 ± 15.0 g kg-1 dry matter) and ash contents (48.2 ± 4.2 to 52.2 ± 0.5 g kg-1 dry matter) were similar to data available for other soybean cultivars. All soybean cultivars presented low levels of tryptophan and sulphur amino acids. The lectin (1,152 to 147,456 HU kg-1 flour), trypsin inhibitor (34.45 ± 2.28 to 77.62 ± 2.63 g trypsin inhibited kg-1 flour), toxin (6,210 ± 134 to 34,650 ± 110 LD50 kg-1 flour) and urease (0.74 ± 0.02 to 1.22 ± 0.10 g kg¹ flour) presented variations in their contents amongst the cultivars. Compared to other soybean cultivars, urease was higher, the acute toxicity lower and the lectin and trypsin inhibitor contents similar to data available. In general, soybean cultivars showed similar biochemical composition to those developed in different geographic regions. The relevance of these findings to the agronomic features and to choice of soybean cultivars to be used as food or feed is discussed.