Rabies postexposure prophylaxis in routine practice in view of the new centers for disease control and prevention and world health organization recommendations.

Background. New recommendations for rabies postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) were published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization in 2010. In view of these new recommendations, we investigated the adequacy of rabies PEP among patients consulting our travel clinic. Methods. A retrospective analysis of the files of all patients who consulted for rabies PEP at the Travel Clinic of the University Hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland, between January 2005 and August 2011 was conducted. Results. A total of 110 patients who received rabies PEP were identified. The median age of the patients was 34 years (range, 2-79 years), and 53% were women. Ninety subjects were potentially exposed to rabies while travelling abroad. Shortcomings in the management of these patients were (1) late initiation of rabies PEP in travelers who waited to seek medical care until returning to Switzerland, (2) administration of human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) to only 7 of 50 travelers (14%) who sought care abroad and for whom HRIG was indicated, and (3) antibody levels <0.5 IU/mL in 6 of 90 patients (6.7%) after 4 doses of vaccine. Conclusions. Patients do not always receive optimal rabies PEP under real-life conditions. A significant proportion of patients did not develop adequate antibody levels after 4 doses of vaccine. These data indicate that the measurement of antibody levels on day 21 of the Essen PEP regimen is useful in order to verify an adequate immune response.

The Middle East in the American quest for world order : ideas of power, economics, and social development in United States foreign policy, 1953-1961

Doctoral dissertation, University of Tampere

Estudi estratègic del coblisme com a bé cultural

Aquest treball de final de carrera tracta sobre l’aplicació de les modernes tècniques de reflexió estratègica aplicades al sector de la cultura popular catalana, concretament la cultura popular catalana que engloba les manifestacions on el vincle comú és la formació musical pròpia: la cobla. Aprofitar aquest sector, a priori tant complex i tant allunyat en principi del món d’estratègia d’empresa com aquest, és l’excusa per veure el comportament d’aquestes eines i teories, i comprovar-ne la seva eficàcia i adaptabilitat als diferents casos de la realitat, a més de poder treballar un tema tant nou com la valoració d’intangibles. A la vegada, es produeix una síntesi de treballs orientats a l’organització d’entitats sense ànim de lucre existents en la bibliografia especialitzada, i que han tingut un inexistent ressò pràctic. Això pot ser un contrasentit en un país on l’associacionisme és tan arrelat i un dels pilars socials que ens vertebren i diferencien. En el cas de la música per a cobla, especialment destacable en un moment molt important i crític per estar en un temps de transició social molt fort. També, cal destacar vivament que té una sèrie de valors afegits de qualitat i complexitat que la situen en un interessant camí entre la cultura popular i les propostes de caràcter més comercial, en unes condicions actuals de gran desconeixement social. Les vinculacions entre estratègia, innovació, responsabilitat social i cultura del coneixement, donen a aquest treball un fort caràcter actual i adaptat a la realitat en les consideracions sobre el management en general.

Temporal and spatial origin of Gesneriaceae in the New World inferred from plastid DNA sequences

Gesneriaceae are represented in the New World (NW) by a major clade (c. 1000 species) currently recognized as subfamily Gesnerioideae. Radiation of this group occurred in all biomes of tropical America and was accompanied by extensive phenotypic and ecological diversification. Here we performed phylogenetic analyses using DNA sequences from three plastid loci to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Gesnerioideae and to investigate its relationship with other lineages of Gesneriaceae and Lamiales. Our molecular data confirm the inclusion of the South Pacific Coronanthereae and the Old World (OW) monotypic genus Titanotrichum in Gesnerioideae and the sister-group relationship of this subfamily to the rest of the OW Gesneriaceae. Calceolariaceae and the NW genera Peltanthera and Sanango appeared successively sister to Gesneriaceae, whereas Cubitanthus, which has been previously assigned to Gesneriaceae, is shown to be related to Linderniaceae. Based on molecular dating and biogeographical reconstruction analyses, we suggest that ancestors of Gesneriaceae originated in South America during the Late Cretaceous. Distribution of Gesneriaceae in the Palaeotropics and Australasia was inferred as resulting from two independent long-distance dispersals during the Eocene and Oligocene, respectively. In a short time span starting at 34 Mya, ancestors of Gesnerioideae colonized several Neotropical regions including the tropical Andes, Brazilian Atlantic forest, cerrado, Central America and the West Indies. Subsequent diversification within these areas occurred largely in situ and was particularly extensive in the mountainous systems of the Andes, Central America and the Brazilian Atlantic forest. Only two radiations account for 90% of the diversity of Gesneriaceae in the Brazilian Atlantic forest, whereas half of the species richness in the northern Andes and Central America originated during the last 10 Myr from a single radiation.

Intangible Capital: An opportunity for PhD students and junior researchers

El objetivo de esta editorial es exponer los hitos más importantes acontecidos durante el año 2008, en el que se publicó el volumen 4, los datos de visibilidad y por primera vez los resultados de una encuesta de satisfacción realizada a los autores que han enviado durante 2008 alguna publicación a evaluación. Además, en el anexo se expone la relación de revisores y miembros del Editorial Board que han hecho posible el cuarto volumen de Intangible Capital. También se informa sobre los aspectos que indican el principio de una consolidación de la revista, y la importancia de mantener los principios básicos que dieron origen a esta publicación. Concluimos la editorial animando a directores de tesis, estudiantes de doctorado y autores noveles a enviar sus primeros trabajos a evaluación.The aim of this editorial is to present the most important Intangible Capital milestones of 2008. During the last year, the intangible Capital published its 4th volume, together with information regarding the journal’s visibility and the first results of a satisfaction survey conducted among the authors, who submitted a paper for evaluation. In addition, the annex presents the list of reviewers and the Editorial Board members who have enabled the publication of the fourth volume of the Intangible Capital. This editorial also provides information regarding the aspects that indicate the beginning of the journal’s consolidation, and the importance of maintaining the basic principles that gave rise to this publication. The editorial concludes by encouraging PhD advisors, doctoral students and junior researchers the Intangible Capital a potential outlet for their work.

Intangible Capital: four years of growth as an open-access scientific publication

Con este nuevo número, la revista Intangible Capital, inicia el cuarto volumen avanzando hacia el quinto año de publicación. Como ya es tradición en la revista, iniciamos este nuevo volumen evaluando el anterior y presentando las nuevas direcciones. Como principales aportaciones del 2007, se destacan hechos relevantes como la renovación de convenios para la indexación científica de la revista, el cambio de plataforma a OJS, la inclusión de un nuevo editor, la nueva composición del editorial board, el equipo de revisores, el cambio a un modelo bilingüe de revista, la nueva financiación obtenida y el trabajo que estamos realizando gran número de editores científicos de acceso abierto en España para el reconocimiento por parte de la Comisión Nacional Evaluadora de la Actividad Investigadora.This issue opens the fourth volume of the Intangible Capital journal, which makes its way towards the fifth year of publication. As usually, we start this volume by evaluating the previous one and tracing new directions. Among the main contributions during the year 2007, we consider important to highlight the following aspects: the renewal of the scientific indexation agreements, the platform change to OJS, the appointment of a new editor, new members included in the editorial board, the board of reviewers, the change towards a bilingual model, the new financing obtained and, the last but not the least, the work undertaken together with many scientific editors of open access Spanish journals for obtaining the positive evaluation of the CNEAI (National Commission for the Evaluation of the Research Activity) and thus, being a proof of scientific excellence