Systematics and Population Level Analysis of Anopheles darlingi

A new phylogenetic analysis of the Nyssorhynchus subgenus (Danoff-Burg and Conn, unpub. data) using six data sets {morphological (all life stages); scanning electron micrographs of eggs; nuclear ITS2 sequences; mitochondrial COII, ND2 and ND6 sequences} revealed different topologies when each data set was analyzed separately but no heterogeneity between the data sets using the arn test. Consequently, the most accurate estimate of the phylogeny was obtained when all the data were combined. This new phylogeny supports a monophyletic Nyssorhynchus subgenus but both previously recognized sections in the subgenus (Albimanus and Argyritarsis) were demonstrated to be paraphyletic relative to each other and four of the seven clades included species previously placed in both sections. One of these clades includes both Anopheles darlingi and An. albimanus, suggesting that the ability to vector malaria effectively may have originated once in this subgenus. Both a conserved (315 bp) and a variable (425 bp) region of the mitochondrial COI gene from 15 populations of An. darlingi from Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, French Guiana, Peru and Venezuela were used to examine the evolutionary history of this species and to test several analytical assumptions. Results demonstrated (1) parsimony analysis is equally informative compared to distance analysis using NJ; (2) clades or clusters are more strongly supported when these two regions are combined compared to either region separately; (3) evidence (in the form of remnants of older haplotype lineages) for two colonization events; and (4) significant genetic divergence within the population from Peixoto de Azevedo (State of Mato Grosso, Brazil). The oldest lineage includes populations from Peixoto, Boa Vista (State of Roraima) and Dourado (State of São Paulo).

Research activities at european level performed at the Institute for Públic Safety of Catalonia

To start off, this document describes the Catalan model for emergencies response and its reference frame in terms of geography, location population…In addition, describes the main actors involved in emergencies response such as: police, the Fire and Rescue Emergency Service, the Emergency Medical System, Civil Protection, Reception and Management of Emergency Calls, Rural Agents, ADF’s and UME. Civil Protection, Firefighters and Police are includes in the training model developed by the Institute for Public Safety of Catalonia which at the same time does research in both security and safety matters. Research activities are performed by the Area for Research, Knowledge and International Cooperation at the ISPC and an example of these activities are European Research Projects such as COIM-Best (Coordination Improvement by Best Practices) and BESECU (cross-cultural differences of human behaviour in fire disasters and other crisis situations) among others.

Pale and dark reddish melanic tawny owls differentially regulate the level of blood circulating POMC prohormone in relation to environmental conditions.

Knowledge of the hormonal pathway controlling genotype-specific norms of reaction would shed light on the ecological factors to which each genotype is adapted. Environmentally mediated changes in the sign and magnitude of covariations between heritable melanin-based colouration and fitness components are frequent, revealing that extreme melanin-based phenotypes can display different physiological states depending on the environment. Yet, the hormonal mechanism underlying this phenomenon is poorly understood. One novel hypothesis proposes that these covariations stem from pleiotropic effects of the melanocortin system. Melanocortins are post-translationally modified bioactive peptides derived from the POMC prohormone that are involved in melanogenesis, anti-inflammation, energy homeostasis and stress responses. Thus, differential regulation of fitness components in relation to environmental factors by pale and dark melanic individuals may be due to colour-specific regulation of the POMC prohormone. Accordingly, we found that the degree of reddish melanic colouration was negatively correlated with blood circulating levels of the POMC prohormone in female tawny owls (Strix aluco) rearing a brood for which the size was experimentally reduced, but not when enlarged, and in females located in rich but not in poor territories. Our findings support the hypothesis that the widespread links between melanin-based colouration and fitness components may be mediated, at least in part, by the melanocortin system.

Number of X-ray examinations performed on paediatric and geriatric patients compared with adult patients.

The age of the patient is of prime importance when assessing the radiological risk to patients due to medical X-ray exposures and the total detriment to the population due to radiodiagnostics. In order to take into account the age-specific radiosensitivity, three age groups are considered: children, adults and the elderly. In this work, the relative number of examinations carried out on paediatric and geriatric patients is established, compared with adult patients, for radiodiagnostics as a whole, for dental and medical radiology, for 8 radiological modalities as well as for 40 types of X-ray examinations. The relative numbers of X-ray examinations are determined based on the corresponding age distributions of patients and that of the general population. Two broad groups of X-ray examinations may be defined. Group A comprises conventional radiography, fluoroscopy and computed tomography; for this group a paediatric patient undergoes half the number of examinations as that of an adult, and a geriatric patient undergoes 2.5 times more. Group B comprises angiography and interventional procedures; for this group a paediatric patient undergoes a one-fourth of the number of examinations carried out on an adult, and a geriatric patient undergoes five times more.

DETERMINE Working Document #1 'Policies and actions addressing the social determinants of health inequalities: examples of activity at EU member state level in Europe'

The Institute of Public Health in Ireland (IPH) is a partner in the European project DETERMINE, building on its previous involvement in the Closing the Gap project in 2004-2006. In the first year of the project (2007-2008) 15 DETERMINE partners identified policies and actions that have taken place within countries, and at the EU level, to address Social Determinants of Health Inequalities. These policies and actions were identified via a questionnaire, which also identified structures and tools/mechanisms being used in the country to support a 'health in all policy' approach.

Productivity and human capital: a business-level analysis

This paper aims to analyse the impact of human capital on business productivity, focusing the analysis on the possible effect of the complementarity that exists between human capital and new production technologies, particularly advanced manufacturing technologies (AMTs) for the specific case of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Catalonia. Additionally, following the theory of skill-biased technological change, the paper analyses whether technological change produces bias exclusively in the skills required for managers, or whether the bias extends to the skills required of production staff. With this objective, we have compared the possible existence of complementarity between AMTs and the level of human capital for different occupational groups. The results confirm the complementary relationship between human capital and new production technologies. The results by occupational group confirm that to maximise the productivity of new technologies, skilled staff are needed both in management and production, with managers and professionals as well as skilled operatives playing a vital role. Keywords: human capital, process technologies, complementarity, business productivity. (JEL D24, J24, O30).

Human Organs Inquiry - Post Mortem Examinations (PDF 441 KB)

Good Practice in Consent and Care of the Bereaved

Intra-Party Democracy and middle-level elites in Spain

The gradual implementation of new, more participatory and thus, more democratic mechanisms of intra-party decision-making has been pointed out by several party politics scholars. This phenomenon has been studied as the party elite’s reactions to a widespread trend in Western countries: the party membership decline. Spain is still a deviant case in both the party membership decline trend, and with regards to the introduction of more participatory and democratic decision-making mechanisms. However, the paper point out that support for intra-party democracy is quite widespread within Spanish party middle elites (party delegates). That is why the aim of this paper is to explain which factors are underpinning the supports for intra-party democracy amongst Spanish party delegates. After conducting a multivariate analysis, the results show that ideology, the involvement in intra-party experiences and the degree of pragmatism, amongst others, are factors strongly associated with the support for intraparty democracy in Spanish party middle elites.

Blood glucose level on postoperative day 1 is predictive of adverse outcomes after cardiovascular surgery

AIM: Hyperglycaemia is now a recognized predictive factor of morbidity and mortality after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). For this reason, we aimed to evaluate the postoperative management of glucose control in patients undergoing cardiovascular surgery, and to assess the impact of glucose levels on in-hospital mortality and morbidity. METHODS: This was a retrospective study investigating the association between postoperative blood glucose and outcomes, including death, post-surgical complications, and length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) and in hospital. RESULTS: A total of 642 consecutive patients were enrolled into the study after cardiovascular surgery (CABG, carotid endarterectomy and bypass in the lower limbs). Patients' mean age was 68+/-10 years, and 74% were male. In-hospital mortality was 5% in diabetic patients vs 2% in non-diabetic patients (OR: 1.66, P=0.076). Having blood glucose levels in the upper quartile range (> or =8.8 mmol/L) on postoperative day 1 was independently associated with death (OR: 10.16, P=0.0002), infectious complications (OR: 1.76, P=0.04) and prolonged ICU stay (OR: 3.10, P<0.0001). Patients presenting with three or more hypoglycaemic episodes (<4.1 mmol/L) had increased rates of mortality (OR: 9.08, P<0.0001) and complications (OR: 8.57, P<0.0001). CONCLUSION: Glucose levels greater than 8.8 mmol/L on postoperative day 1 and having three or more hypoglycaemic episodes in the postoperative period were predictive of mortality and morbidity among patients undergoing cardiovascular surgery. This suggests that a multidisciplinary approach may be able to achieve better postoperative blood glucose control. Conclusion: Objectif: L'hyperglycémie a été reconnue comme facteur prédictif de morbidité et mortalité après un pontage aortocoronaire. Notre étude avait pour objectif d'évaluer la prise en charge postopératoire des glycémies chez les patients qui avaient subi une intervention chirurgicale cardiovasculaire et d'évaluer l'impact de ces glycémies sur la mortalité et la morbidité intrahospitalières. Méthodes: Étude rétrospective recherchant une association entre la glycémie postopératoire et les complications postchirurgicales, la mortalité et la durée du séjour aux soins intensifs et à l'hôpital. Résultats: L'étude a été réalisée sur 642 patients qui avaient subi une intervention chirurgicale cardiovasculaire (ex. pontage aortocoronaire, endartérectomie de la carotide, pontage artériel des membres inférieurs). L'âge moyen est de 68 ± 10 ans et 74 % des patients étaient de sexe masculin. La mortalité intrahospitalière a été de 5 % parmi les patients diabétiques et 2 % chez les non-diabétiques (OR 1,66, p = 0,076). Les taux de glycémies situés dans le quartile supérieur (≥ 8,8 mmol/l) à j1 postopératoire sont associés de manière indépendante avec la mortalité (OR 10,16, 95 % CI 3,20-39,00, p = 0,0002), les complications infectieuses (OR 1,76, 95 % CI 1,02-3,00, p = 0,04) et la durée du séjour aux soins intensifs (OR 3,10, 95 % CI 1,83-5,38, p < 0,0001). Les patients qui avaient présenté trois hypoglycémies ou plus (< 4,1 mmol/l) ont présenté un taux augmenté de mortalité (OR 9,08, p ≤ 0,0001) et de complications (OR 8,57, p < 0,0001). Conclusion : Des glycémies supérieures à 8,8 mmol/l à j1 postopératoire et la présence de trois hypoglycémies ou plus en période postopératoire sont des facteurs prédictifs de mauvais pronostic chez les patients qui avaient subi une intervention chirurgicale cardiovasculaire. Ainsi, une approche multidisciplinaire devrait être proposée afin d'obtenir un meilleur contrôle postopératoire des glycémies.

Street-Level Bureaucracy and E-Government

With the intensive use of information and communication technologies, governments are transforming into e-governments. While public management research has given increased attention to this subject lately, this article reviews the limited literature that deals with the impacts of e-government technologies on street-level bureaucracies. A twofold argument is being developed. First, what can be called the 'curtailment thesis', stressing the reduction or disappearance of frontline policy discretion, is addressed. Second, the 'enablement thesis' gets attention, highlighting how technologies provide frontline workers and citizens with additional action resources. The article concludes with propositions for a future research agenda on the topic.

Perceptions of aging across 26 cultures and their culture-level associates

College students (N = 3,435) in 26 cultures reported their perceptions of age-related changes in physical cognitive, and socioemotional areas of functioning and rated societal views of aging within their culture. There was widespread cross-cultural consensus regarding the expected direction of aging trajectories with (a) perceived declines in societal views of aging, physical attractiveness, the ability to perform everyday tasks, and new learning; (b) perceived increases in wisdom, knowledge, and received respect; and (c) perceived stability in family authority and life satisfaction. Cross-cultural variations in aging perceptions were associated with culture-level indicators of population aging, education levels, values, and national character stereotypes. These associations were stronger for societal views on aging and perceptions of socioemotional changes than for perceptions of physical and cognitive changes. A consideration of culture-level variables also suggested that previously reported differences in aging perceptions between Asian and Western countries may be related to differences in population structure.

The Social Inclusion of Older People at Local Level: The Role and Contribution of CDBs

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Reduction of the hand representation in the ipsilateral primary motor cortex following unilateral section of the corticospinal tract at cervical level in monkeys.

BACKGROUND: After sub-total hemi-section of cervical cord at level C7/C8 in monkeys, the ipsilesional hand exhibited a paralysis for a couple of weeks, followed by incomplete recovery of manual dexterity, reaching a plateau after 40-50 days. Recently, we demonstrated that the level of the plateau was related to the size of the lesion and that progressive plastic changes of the motor map in the contralesional motor cortex, particularly the hand representation, took place following a comparable time course. The goal of the present study was to assess, in three macaque monkeys, whether the hand representation in the ipsilesional primary motor cortex (M1) was also affected by the cervical hemi-section.¦RESULTS: Unexpectedly, based on the minor contribution of the ipsilesional hemisphere to the transected corticospinal (CS) tract, a considerable reduction of the hand representation was also observed in the ipsilesional M1. Mapping control experiments ruled out the possibility that changes of motor maps are due to variability of the intracortical microstimulation mapping technique. The extent of the size reduction of the hand area was nearly as large as in the contralesional hemisphere in two of the three monkeys. In the third monkey, it represented a reduction by a factor of half the change observed in the contralesional hemisphere. Although the hand representation was modified in the ipsilesional hemisphere, such changes were not correlated with a contribution of this hemisphere to the incomplete recovery of the manual dexterity for the hand affected by the lesion, as demonstrated by reversible inactivation experiments (in contrast to the contralesional hemisphere). Moreover, despite the size reduction of M1 hand area in the ipsilesional hemisphere, no deficit of manual dexterity for the hand opposite to the cervical hemi-section was detected.¦CONCLUSION: After cervical hemi-section, the ipsilesional motor cortex exhibited substantial reduction of the hand representation, whose extent did not match the small number of axotomized CS neurons. We hypothesized that the paradoxical reduction of hand representation in the ipsilesional hemisphere is secondary to the changes taking place in the contralesional hemisphere, possibly corresponding to postural adjustments and/or re-establishing a balance between the two hemispheres.

Social Inclusion of Older People at Local Level:The Role and Contribution of the CDBs - Conference Proceedings

This is a publication of The National Council on Ageing and Older People The Conference took place on October 3, 2005 . It attracted almost 250 delegates from across the statutory, voluntary and private sectors, and from every county. The Conference provided the opportunity for delegates to focus on the issue of social inclusion of older people at local level and the challenges it presents. It also gave us the opportunity to examine the issue in the context of work done at the international and national levels as well as work done at local level. Read the Report (PDF, 317kb)