Capitalism, unemployment and the transition to the contemporary pattern of growth

A new model of unemployment based on an idea of Marx is presented and used to interpret the development of the British economy from the beginning of capitalism to the present. It is shown that unemployment may be created purposely by capitalists in order to weaken the bargaining position of the workers. This mechanism leads to complex temporal pattern of unemployment and can explain why wages took almost a century and a half to react to the growing capital to labour ratio that characterised early British capitalism.

Studies on Trypanosoma rangeli Tejera, 1920: V - Developmental pattern in the alimentary canal of Rhodnius prolixus

The morphological sequence of Trypanosoma rangeli development in the alimentary canal of Rhodnius prolixus, is described, with observation made in dissected guts from 6 hours to 45 days post-infection. No metacyclic-forms are produced in the digestive tract at any time, and transmission by the contaminative route must be considered atypical. Amastigotes appear to be an essential stage in the development of T. rangeli in the gut of R. prolixus. The epidemiological importance of the developmental pattern of T. rangeli in the vector´s gut is discussed, and its usefulness for aging infection is considered.

Studies on Trypanosoma rangeli Tejera 1920: VI. Developmental pattern in the haemolymph of Rhodnius prolixus

The morphological sequence of Trypanosoma rangeli development in the body cavity of Rhodnius prolixus is described. The metacyclic trypanosome is the product of successive division and transformation during the intra and extracellular development in the haemocoele. The significance of the early invasion of T. rangeli into the haemolymph is discussed. The epidemiological importance of the developmental pattern of T. rangeli in the vectors haemolymph and the host-response to the parasite are considered.

The changing pattern of pathology due to Schistosoma mansoni infection

A survey of the autopsy data on hepatosplenic schistosomiasis during periods, before and after the advent of new chemotherapeutic drugs, revealed that: a) the pathological presentation was the same for the two periods; b) the number of cases in the last five years is progressively decreasing; c) hepatosplenic disease due to schistosomiasis is becoming rare in young people. These data represent a change in the pattern of pathology in schistosomiasis, probably related to new chemotherapy.

New FFT/IFFT Factorizations with Regular Interconnection Pattern Stage-to-Stage Subblocks

Les factoritzacions de la FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) que presenten un patró d’interconnexió regular entre factors o etapes son conegudes com algorismes paral·lels, o algorismes de Pease, ja que foren originalment proposats per Pease. En aquesta contribució s’han desenvolupat noves factoritzacions amb blocs que presenten el patró d’interconnexió regular de Pease. S’ha mostrat com aquests blocs poden ser obtinguts a una escala prèviament seleccionada. Les noves factoritzacions per ambdues FFT i IFFT (Inverse FFT) tenen dues classes de factors: uns pocs factors del tipus Cooley-Tukey i els nous factors que proporcionen la mateix patró d’interconnexió de Pease en blocs. Per a una factorització donada, els blocs comparteixen dimensions, el patró d’interconnexió etapa a etapa i a més cada un d’ells pot ser calculat independentment dels altres.

High-resolution spatial mapping of changes in the neurochemical profile after focal ischemia in mice.

After ischemic stroke, the ischemic damage to brain tissue evolves over time and with an uneven spatial distribution. Early irreversible changes occur in the ischemic core, whereas, in the penumbra, which receives more collateral blood flow, the damage is more mild and delayed. A better characterization of the penumbra, irreversibly damaged and healthy tissues is needed to understand the mechanisms involved in tissue death. MRSI is a powerful tool for this task if the scan time can be decreased whilst maintaining high sensitivity. Therefore, we made improvements to a (1) H MRSI protocol to study middle cerebral artery occlusion in mice. The spatial distribution of changes in the neurochemical profile was investigated, with an effective spatial resolution of 1.4 μL, applying the protocol on a 14.1-T magnet. The acquired maps included the difficult-to-separate glutamate and glutamine resonances and, to our knowledge, the first mapping of metabolites γ-aminobutyric acid and glutathione in vivo, within a metabolite measurement time of 45 min. The maps were in excellent agreement with findings from single-voxel spectroscopy and offer spatial information at a scan time acceptable for most animal models. The metabolites measured differed with respect to the temporal evolution of their concentrations and the localization of these changes. Specifically, lactate and N-acetylaspartate concentration changes largely overlapped with the T(2) -hyperintense region visualized with MRI, whereas changes in cholines and glutathione affected the entire middle cerebral artery territory. Glutamine maps showed elevated levels in the ischemic striatum until 8 h after reperfusion, and until 24 h in cortical tissue, indicating differences in excitotoxic effects and secondary energy failure in these tissue types. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effect of vitamin D on Epstein-Barr (EBV)-specific CD8+T cells in patients with early multiple sclerosis (MS)

Background: Infection with EBV and a lack in vitamin D may be important environmental triggers of MS. 1,25-(OH)2D3 mediates a shift of antigen presenting cells (APC) and CD4+ T cells to a less inflammatory profile. Although CD8+ T cells do express the vitamin D receptor, a direct effect of 1,25(OH)2D3 on these cells has not been demonstrated until now. Since CD8+ T cells are important immune mediators of the inflammatory response in MS, we examined whether vitamin D directly affects the CD8+ T cell response, and more specifically if it modulates the EBV-specific CD8+ T cell response. Material and Methods: To explore whether the vitamin D status may influence the pattern of the EBV-specific CD8+ T cell response, PBMC of 10 patients with early MS and 10 healthy controls (HC) were stimulated with a pool of immunodominant 8-10 mer peptide epitopes known to elicit CD8+ T cell responses. PBMC were stimulated with this EBV CD8 peptide pool, medium (negative control) or anti- CD3/anti-CD28 beads (positive control). The following assays were performed: ELISPOT to assess the secretion of IFN-gamma by T cells in general; cytometric beads array (CBA) and ELISA to determine whichcytokines were released by EBV-specific CD8+ T cells after six days of culture; and intracellular cytokine staining assay to determine by which subtype of T cells secreted given cytokines. To examine whether vitamin D could directly modulate CD8+ T cell immune responses, we depleted CD4+ T cells using negative selection. Results: We found that pre-treatment of vitamin D had an antiinflammatory action on both EBV-specific CD8+ T cells and on CD3/ CD28-stimulated T cells: secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IFNgamma and TNF-alpha) was decreased, whereas secretion of antiinflammatory cytokines (IL-5 and TGF-beta) was increased. At baseline, CD8+ T cells of early MS patients showed a higher secretion of TNFalpha and lower secretion of IL-5. Addition of vitamin D did not restore the same levels of both cytokines as compared to HC. Vitamin D-pretreated CD8+T cells exhibited a decreased secretion of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha, even after depletion of CD4+ T cells from culture. Conclusion: Vitamin D has a direct anti-inflammatory effect on CD8+ T cells independently from CD4+ T cells. CD8+ T cells of patients with earlyMS are less responsive to the inflammatory effect of vitamin D than HC, pointing toward an intrinsic dysregulation of CD8+ T cells. The modulation of EBV-specific CD8+T cells by vitaminDsuggests that there may be interplay between these twomajor environmental factors of MS. This study was supported by a grant from the Swiss National Foundation (PP00P3-124893), and by an unrestricted research grant from Bayer to RDP.

Cohort profile: Antiretroviral Therapy Cohort Collaboration (ART-CC).

The advent of effective combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 1996 resulted in fewer patients experiencing clinical events, so that some prognostic analyses of individual cohort studies of human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals had low statistical power. Because of this, the Antiretroviral Therapy Cohort Collaboration (ART-CC) of HIV cohort studies in Europe and North America was established in 2000, with the aim of studying the prognosis for clinical events in acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and the mortality of adult patients treated for HIV-1 infection. In 2002, the ART-CC collected data on more than 12,000 patients in 13 cohorts who had begun combination ART between 1995 and 2001. Subsequent updates took place in 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010. The ART-CC data base now includes data on more than 70,000 patients participating in 19 cohorts who began treatment before the end of 2009. Data are collected on patient demographics (e.g. sex, age, assumed transmission group, race/ethnicity, geographical origin), HIV biomarkers (e.g. CD4 cell count, plasma viral load of HIV-1), ART regimen, dates and types of AIDS events, and dates and causes of death. In recent years, additional data on co-infections such as hepatitis C; risk factors such as smoking, alcohol and drug use; non-HIV biomarkers such as haemoglobin and liver enzymes; and adherence to ART have been collected whenever available. The data remain the property of the contributing cohorts, whose representatives manage the ART-CC via the steering committee of the Collaboration. External collaboration is welcomed. Details of contacts are given on the ART-CC website (www.art-cohort-collaboration.org).

Methylation profile of TP53 regulatory pathway and mtDNA alterations in breast cancer patients lacking TP53 mutations.

The present study investigated promoter hypermethylation of TP53 regulatory pathways providing a potential link between epigenetic changes and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) alterations in breast cancer patients lacking a TP53 mutation. The possibility of using the cancer-specific alterations in serum samples as a blood-based test was also explored. Triple-matched samples (cancerous tissues, matched adjacent normal tissues and serum samples) from breast cancer patients were screened for TP53 mutations, and the promoter methylation profile of P14(ARF), MDM2, TP53 and PTEN genes was analyzed as well as mtDNA alterations, including D-loop mutations and mtDNA content. In the studied cohort, no mutation was found in TP53 (DNA-binding domain). Comparison of P14(ARF) and PTEN methylation patterns showed significant hypermethylation levels in tumor tissues (P < 0.05 and <0.01, respectively) whereas the TP53 tumor suppressor gene was not hypermethylated (P < 0.511). The proportion of PTEN methylation was significantly higher in serum than in the normal tissues and it has a significant correlation to tumor tissues (P < 0.05). mtDNA analysis revealed 36.36% somatic and 90.91% germline mutations in the D-loop region and also significant mtDNA depletion in tumor tissues (P < 0.01). In addition, the mtDNA content in matched serum was significantly lower than in the normal tissues (P < 0.05). These data can provide an insight into the management of a therapeutic approach based on the reversal of epigenetic silencing of the crucial genes involved in regulatory pathways of the tumor suppressor TP53. Additionally, release of significant aberrant methylated PTEN in matched serum samples might represent a promising biomarker for breast cancer.

Hàbits alimentaris en nens de 8 a 12 anys de la comarca d'Osona

Introducció: La dieta mediterrània és considerada un dels patrons alimentaris més saludables ja que diversos estudis epidemiològics mostren que protegeix front diverses malalties cròniques com ara les malalties cardiovasculars, la diabetis i alguns càncers. Malauradament al nostre país els patrons alimentaris estan canviant a conseqüència de la modernització de la societat i estan portant a l’allunyament del patró de dieta mediterrània. Això és especialment crític entre la població infantil i juvenil, fet que predisposa a que en un futur augmenti la prevalença de malalties cròniques entre la població adulta. Objectiu: avaluar els hàbits alimentaris i l’estat nutricional d’escolars de 8 a 12 anys de la comarca d’Osona. Mètodes: estudi de disseny observacional i transversal. La mostra estava constituïda per 191 escolars de 4rt i 5è d’ensenyança primària d’escoles de la comarca d’Osona. La informació sobre la dieta es va recollir a través d’una enquesta alimentària, un recordatori de 24 hores, un qüestionari de freqüència de consum alimentari i el test KIDMED. Les determinacions antropomètriques que es van realitzar van ser talla, pes, IMC (Índex de Massa Corporal), plec tricipital, perímetre braquial i perímetre abdominal. L’anàlisi estadística de totes les dades es va portar a terme mitjançant el programa estadístic SPSS per Windows versió 12.0. Resultats: quan es valora la qualitat de l’esmorzar, s’observa que només en el 16.8% dels casos la qualitat era bona, en el 68.6% dels casos la qualitat havia de millorar i en el 12.6% era de qualitat insuficient i en el 2.1% era de mala qualitat. També s’observa que la dieta que segueixen és desequilibrada quantitativament, concretament és baixa en hidrats de carboni, rica en greixos i lleugerament elevada en proteïnes. L’anàlisi qualitativa mostra que hi ha un molt baix consum de verdures i hortalisses i de fruita, mentre que s’arriba a les racions recomanades de carnis i d’olis i greixos. El test KIDMED mostra una puntuació mitjana de 7.21±1.96 punts, el que indica que la dieta de la població és de qualitat millorable. Pel que fa a l’estat nutricional s’observa que un 24,6% presenta valors de baix pes i un 17,8% sobrepès o obesitat, el que indica que un 42,4% de la població estudiada presenta un estat nutricional incorrecte. Conclusions: La dieta del col·lectiu estudiat s’allunya de les recomanacions de la SENC (Sociedad Española de Nutrición Comunitaria). Els resultats del test KIDMED indiquen que només un 44% de la població segueix un patró òptim de Dieta mediterrània i l’anàlisi de l’estat nutricional mostra que un 42,4% presenta un estat nutricional incorrecte, sigui per excés o per defecte de pes. Per tant, es fa necessari dissenyar estratègies d’educació alimentària adequades per millorar els hàbits alimentaris dels escolars i aconseguir en un futur un estat òptim de salut.

Pharmacokinetic profile of tert-butylaminoethanethiol

A preliminary study of the pharmacokinetic parameters of t-Butylaminoethanethiol (TBAESH) was performed after administration of a single dose (35 mg/kg) either orally or intravenously. Plasma or blood samples were treated with dithiothreitol, perchloric acid and, after filtration, submitted to further purification with anionic resin. In the final step the drug was retained on a cationic resin column, eluted with NaCl lM and detected according to the method of Ellman (1958). The results suggested a pharmacokinetic behavior related to a one open compartment model with the following values for the total drug: area under the intravenous curve (AUC i.v.): 443(+ ou -) 24.0; AUC oral: 85.5(+ ou -) 14.5 ug min.ml(elevado a -1); elimination rate constant: 0.069(+ ou -) 0.0055 min(elevado a -1), biological half-life: 10.0(+ ou -) 0.80 min; distribution volume 1.15(+ ou -) 0.15 ml/g; biodisponibility: 0.19(+ ou -) 0.02. From a pharmacokinetic standpoint, TBAESH seems to have no advantage over the analogous disulfide compound.

Profile of a serial killer: cellular and molecular approaches to study individual cytotoxic T-cells following therapeutic vaccination.

T-cell vaccination may prevent or treat cancer and infectious diseases, but further progress is required to increase clinical efficacy. Step-by-step improvements of T-cell vaccination in phase I/II clinical studies combined with very detailed analysis of T-cell responses at the single cell level are the strategy of choice for the identification of the most promising vaccine candidates for testing in subsequent large-scale phase III clinical trials. Major aims are to fully identify the most efficient T-cells in anticancer therapy, to characterize their TCRs, and to pinpoint the mechanisms of T-cell recruitment and function in well-defined clinical situations. Here we discuss novel strategies for the assessment of human T-cell responses, revealing in part unprecedented insight into T-cell biology and novel structural principles that govern TCR-pMHC recognition. Together, the described approaches advance our knowledge of T-cell mediated-protection from human diseases.

Applications of the MuSIASEM approach to study changes in the metabolic pattern of Catalonia

This document presents an integrated analysis of the performance of Catalonia based on an analysis of how the energy consumption (measured at the societal level for the Catalan Society) is used within both the productive sectors of the economy and the household, to generate added value, jobs, and to guarantee a given level of material standard of living to the population. The trends found in Catalonia are compared to the trends of other European Countries to contextualize the performance of Catalonia with respect to other societies that have followed different paths of economic development. The first part of the document consists of the Multi-Scale Integrated Analysis of Societal and Ecosystem Metabolism (MuSIASEM) approach that has been used to provide this integrated analysis of Catalan Society across different scales (starting from an analysis of the specific sectors of the Catalan economy as an Autonomous Community and scaling up to an intra-regional (European Union 14) comparison) and across different dimensions of analyses of energy consumption coupled with added value generation. Within the scope of this study, we observe the various trajectories of changes in the metabolic pattern for Catalonia and the EU14 countries in the Paid Work Sectors composed of namely, the Agricultural Sector, the Productive Sector and the Services and Government Sector also in comparison with the changes in the household sector. The flow intensities of the exosomatic energy and the added value generated for each specific sector are defined per hour of human activity, thus characterized as exosomatic energy (MJ/hour) (or Exosomatic Metabolic Rate) and added value (€/hour) (Economic Labour Productivity) across multiple levels. Within the second part of the document, the possible usage of the MuSIASEM approach to land use analyses (using a multi-level matrix of categories of land use) has been conducted.