Molecular epidemiology of clonal diploids: a quick overview and a short DIY (do it yourself) notice.

In this short review we report the basic notions needed for understanding the population genetics of clonal diploids. We focus on the consequences of clonality on the distribution of genetic diversity within individuals, between individuals and between populations. We then summarise how to detect clonality in mainly sexual populations, conversely, how to detect sexuality in mainly clonal populations and also how genetic differentiation between populations is affected by clonality in diploids. This information is then used for building recipes on how to analyse and interpret genetic polymorphism data in molecular epidemiology studies of clonal diploids.

Medical residents' feedback on needs and acquired skills following a short course on cross-cultural competence

Objectives The purpose of this study is to assess short and long term changes in knowledge, attitudes, and skills among medical residents following a short course on cultural competency and to explore their perspectives on the experience. Methods Eighteen medical residents went through a short training programme comprised of two seminars lasting 30' and 60' respectively over two days. Three months later, we conducted three focus groups, with 17 residents to explore their thoughts, perspectives and feedback about the course. To measure changes over time, we carried out a quantitative sequential survey before the seminars, three days after, and three months later using the Multicultural Assessment Questionnaire. Results Residents expressed a wide variety of perspectives on the main themes related to the content of the training - culture, trialogue, stereotypes, status, epidemiology, history and geopolitics - and related to its organization - relevance, volume, timing, target audience, training tools, and working material. Using the MAQ, we observed a higher global performance score (n=16) at three days (median=38) compared to results before the training (median=33) revealing a median difference of 5.5 points (z=2.4, p=0.015). This difference was still present at three months (∆=4.5, z=2.4, p=0.018), mainly due to knowledge acquisition (∆=3) rather than attitudes (∆=0) or skills (∆=1). Conclusions Cross-cultural competence training not only brings awareness of multicultural issues but also helps participants understand their own cultures, perception of others and preconceived ideas. Physicians' education should however also focus on improving implementation of acquired knowledge in cross-cultural competence.

Three short perioperative infusions of n-3 PUFAs reduce systemic inflammation induced by cardiopulmonary bypass surgery: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Fish oil (FO) has antiinflammatory effects, which might reduce systemic inflammation induced by a cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). OBJECTIVE: We tested whether perioperative infusions of FO modify the cell membrane composition, inflammatory responses, and clinical course of patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass surgery. DESIGN: A prospective randomized controlled trial was conducted in cardiac surgery patients who received 3 infusions of 0.2 g/kg FO emulsion or saline (control) 12 and 2 h before and immediately after surgery. Blood samples (7 time points) and an atrial biopsy (during surgery) were obtained to assess the membrane incorporation of PUFAs. Hemodynamic data, catecholamine requirements, and core temperatures were recorded at 10-min intervals; blood triglycerides, nonesterified fatty acids, glucose, lactate, inflammatory cytokines, and carboxyhemoglobin concentrations were measured at selected time points. RESULTS: Twenty-eight patients, with a mean ± SD age of 65.5 ± 9.9 y, were enrolled with no baseline differences between groups. Significant increases in platelet EPA (+0.86%; P = 0.0001) and DHA (+0.87%; P = 0.019) were observed after FO consumption compared with at baseline. Atrial tissue EPA concentrations were higher after FO than after control treatments (+0.5%; P < 0.0001). FO did not significantly alter core temperature but decreased the postoperative rise in IL-6 (P = 0.018). Plasma triglycerides increased transiently after each FO infusion. Plasma concentrations of glucose, lactate, and blood carboxyhemoglobin were lower in the FO than in the control group on the day after surgery. Arrhythmia incidence was low with no significant difference between groups. No adverse effect of FO was detected. CONCLUSIONS: Perioperative FO infusions significantly increased PUFA concentrations in platelet and atrial tissue membranes within 12 h of the first FO administration and decreased biological and clinical signs of inflammation. These results suggest that perioperative FO may be beneficial in elective cardiac surgery with CPB. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00516178.

Short term behavioural consequences of denied access to environmental facilities in milk

Selostus: Eräiden ympäristövirikkeiden saatavuuden estämisen välittömät vaikutukset tarhaminkin käyttäytymiseen

Hyponatremia and short-term outcomes in patients with acute pulmonary embolism

BACKGROUND: Hyponatremia, a marker of neurohormonal activation, is associated with poor outcomes in acute cardiorespiratory diseases such as myocardial infarction, right and left ventricular heart failure, and pneumonia. The prognostic value of hyponatremia in patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is unknown. We sought to assess whether hyponatremia at presentation was associated with mortality and hospital readmission in patients hospitalized with PE. METHODS: We studied patient discharges with a primary diagnosis of PE from 185 acute care hospitals in Pennsylvania (1/2000-11/2002). We defined hyponatremia as a serum sodium level ≤135 mmol/l, measured at the time of patient presentation. The study outcomes were 30-day all-cause mortality and hospital readmission. We used random-intercept logistic regression to examine the association between hyponatremia and mortality. We adjusted for baseline patient (race, insurance, severity of illness using the Pulmonary Embolism Severity Index) and hospital characteristics (region, hospital size and teaching status). We used the same approach to examine the association between hyponatremia and readmission among patients who were discharged alive. RESULTS: Among 13,728 patient discharges with PE, 2907 (21.1%) had hyponatremia at the time of presentation. Patients with hyponatremia were older (P<0.001) and more likely to have a history of cancer (P<0.001), heart failure (P<0.001), or chronic lung disease (P=0.002) than patients without hyponatremia. Patients with hyponatremia had a higher unadjusted cumulative 30-day mortality (15.2% vs 8.0%;P<0.001) and readmission rate (15.9% vs 11.8%; P< 0.001) than patients without hyponatremia (Figure). After adjustment for race, insurance, severity of illness, and hospital factors, hyponatremia was associated with a significantly greater odds of death (OR 1.71, 95% CI: 1.50-1.95) and hospital readmission (OR 1.29, 95% CI: 1.14-1.46). CONCLUSIONS: In this large, statewide sample of unselected patients with acute PE, hyponatremia was relatively common and was an independent predictor of short-term mortality and hospital readmission. Given that sodium is a low-cost, easily available laboratory parameter, it may be potentially useful in risk-stratifying patients with PE.

In vivo measurement of glycine with short echo-time 1H MRS in human brain at 7 T.

OBJECT: To determine whether glycine can be measured at 7 T in human brain with (1)H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The glycine singlet is overlapped by the larger signal of myo-inositol. Density matrix simulations were performed to determine the TE at which the myo-inositol signal was reduced the most, following a single spin-echo excitation. (1)H MRS was performed on an actively shielded 7 T scanner, in five healthy volunteers. RESULTS: At the TE of 30 ms, the myo-inositol signal intensity was substantially reduced. Quantification using LCModel yielded a glycine-to-creatine ratio of 0.14 +/- 0.01, with a Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) of 7 +/- 1%. Furthermore, quantification of metabolites other than glycine was possible as well, with a CRLB mostly below 10%. CONCLUSION: It is possible to detect glycine at 7 T in human brain, at the short TE of 30 ms with a single spin-echo excitation scheme.

The influence of bacterial activity on phosphorite formation in the Miocene Monterey Formation, California

Authigenic phosphorites from the Miocene Monterey Formation (California) including an autochthonous phosphatic laminite were analyzed for molecular biomarkers, element content, and sulfur isotopic composition of associated pyrite and sulfate to evaluate the role of bacterial activity in the precipitation of phosphate minerals. The phosphorites formed in a depositional environment typified by upwelling with dynamic bottom currents and hardground formation. Pyrite enclosed in the phosphorites shows delta S-34 values as low as -36.5 parts per thousand VCDT, which is consistent with bacterial sulfate reduction. In a three-step extraction phosphorite dissolution extraction procedure, molecular fossils of sulfate-reducing bacteria (di-O-alkyl glycerol ethers and short-chain branched fatty acids i- and ai-C-15:0, i- and ai-C-17:0, and 10MeC(16:0)) were preferentially released from the mineral lattice. This suggests that the molecular fossils were tightly bound to carbonate fluorapatite, indicating that sulfate-reducing bacteria were involved in mineral formation. A close association of sulfate-reducing bacteria with large sulfide-oxidizing bacteria, which was previously suggested to favor carbonate fluorapatite precipitation, could neither be confirmed nor excluded for the Miocene Monterey Formation phosphorites. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A circuit-based gatekeeper for adult neural stem cell proliferation: Parvalbumin-expressing interneurons of the dentate gyrus control the activation and proliferation of quiescent adult neural stem cells.

Newborn neurons are generated in the adult hippocampus from a pool of self-renewing stem cells located in the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the dentate gyrus. Their activation, proliferation, and maturation depend on a host of environmental and cellular factors but, until recently, the contribution of local neuronal circuitry to this process was relatively unknown. In their recent publication, Song and colleagues have uncovered a novel circuit-based mechanism by which release of the neurotransmitter, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), from parvalbumin-expressing (PV) interneurons, can hold radial glia-like (RGL) stem cells of the adult SGZ in a quiescent state. This tonic GABAergic signal, dependent upon the activation of γ(2) subunit-containing GABA(A) receptors of RGL stem cells, can thus prevent their proliferation and subsequent maturation or return them to quiescence if previously activated. PV interneurons are thus capable of suppressing neurogenesis during periods of high network activity and facilitating neurogenesis when network activity is low.

Coffee consumption attenuates short-term fructose-induced liver insulin resistance in healthy men.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiologic and experimental data have suggested that chlorogenic acid, which is a polyphenol contained in green coffee beans, prevents diet-induced hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance. OBJECTIVE: We assessed whether the consumption of chlorogenic acid-rich coffee attenuates the effects of short-term fructose overfeeding, dietary conditions known to increase intrahepatocellular lipids (IHCLs), and blood triglyceride concentrations and to decrease hepatic insulin sensitivity in healthy humans. DESIGN: Effects of 3 different coffees were assessed in 10 healthy volunteers in a randomized, controlled, crossover trial. IHCLs, hepatic glucose production (HGP) (by 6,6-d2 glucose dilution), and fasting lipid oxidation were measured after 14 d of consumption of caffeinated coffee high in chlorogenic acid (C-HCA), decaffeinated coffee high in chlorogenic acid, or decaffeinated coffee with regular amounts of chlorogenic acid (D-RCA); during the last 6 d of the study, the weight-maintenance diet of subjects was supplemented with 4 g fructose · kg(-1) · d(-1) (total energy intake ± SD: 143 ± 1% of weight-maintenance requirements). All participants were also studied without coffee supplementation, either with 4 g fructose · kg(-1) · d(-1) (high fructose only) or without high fructose (control). RESULTS: Compared with the control diet, the high-fructose diet significantly increased IHCLs by 102 ± 36% and HGP by 16 ± 3% and decreased fasting lipid oxidation by 100 ± 29% (all P < 0.05). All 3 coffees significantly decreased HGP. Fasting lipid oxidation increased with C-HCA and D-RCA (P < 0.05). None of the 3 coffees significantly altered IHCLs. CONCLUSIONS: Coffee consumption attenuates hepatic insulin resistance but not the increase of IHCLs induced by fructose overfeeding. This effect does not appear to be mediated by differences in the caffeine or chlorogenic acid content. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00827450.

Lag-one autocorrelation in short series: Estimation and hypothesis testing

In the first part of the study, nine estimators of the first-order autoregressive parameter are reviewed and a new estimator is proposed. The relationships and discrepancies between the estimators are discussed in order to achieve a clear differentiation. In the second part of the study, the precision in the estimation of autocorrelation is studied. The performance of the ten lag-one autocorrelation estimators is compared in terms of Mean Square Error (combining bias and variance) using data series generated by Monte Carlo simulation. The results show that there is not a single optimal estimator for all conditions, suggesting that the estimator ought to be chosen according to sample size and to the information available of the possible direction of the serial dependence. Additionally, the probability of labelling an actually existing autocorrelation as statistically significant is explored using Monte Carlo sampling. The power estimates obtained are quite similar among the tests associated with the different estimators. These estimates evidence the small probability of detecting autocorrelation in series with less than 20 measurement times.

Metric Short Course for the Office of Bridges and Structures, HR-378, 1995

This metric short course was developed in response to a request from the Office of Bridges and Structures to assist in the training of engineers in the use of metric units of measure which will be required in all highway designs and construction after September 30, 1996 (CFR Presidential Executive Order No. 12770). The course notes which are contained in this report, were developed for a half-day course. The course contains a brief review of metrication in the U.S., metric units, prefixes, symbols, basic conversions, etc. The unique part of the course is that it presents several typical bridge calculations (such as capacity of reinforced concrete compression members, strength of pile caps, etc.) worked two ways: inch-pound units throughout with end conversion to metric and initial hard conversion to metric with metric units throughout. Comparisons of partial results and final results (obtained by working the problems the two ways) are made for each of the example problems.

Islands of euchromatin-like sequence and expressed polymorphic sequences within the short arm of human chromosome 21.

The goals of the human genome project did not include sequencing of the heterochromatic regions. We describe here an initial sequence of 1.1 Mb of the short arm of human chromosome 21 (HSA21p), estimated to be 10% of 21p. This region contains extensive euchromatic-like sequence and includes on average one transcript every 100 kb. These transcripts show multiple inter- and intrachromosomal copies, and extensive copy number and sequence variability. The sequencing of the "heterochromatic" regions of the human genome is likely to reveal many additional functional elements and provide important evolutionary information.

Comparison of short-wood forwarding systems used in Iberia

Abstract