Contribution to the study of immune hemolysis by toad complement

EA (sheep erythrocytes carrying rabbit antibody) are lysed by toad complement under optimal conditions which include a low concentration of cells (1.54 x 10*8/ml), a low temperature of incubation (30°C) and the same amounts of Ca++ and Mg++ as required for the titration of guinea-pig complement. Kinetic studies of the role of cations mentioned above in immune lysis by toad C have disclosed a fundamental difference as compared to guinea-pig C. In a limited complement system, the lysis by amphibian C is completely blocked by EDTA, even when the chelating agent is added as late as 15 minutes after zero-time. Inhibition by EGTA is only partial and the findings suggest that Mg++ is required not only at the beginning, but also at late stages of the lytic process. It has been speculated that the activation of amphibian complement proceeds mainly by the alternative pathway.

Economic impact of alternative policy measures implemented on the energy activities of the Catalan production system: an input-output analysis

The aim of the paper is to analyse the economic impact of alternative policies implemented on the energy activities of the Catalan production system. Specifically, we analyse the effects of a tax on intermediate energy uses, a reduction in the final production of energy, and a reduction in intermediate energy uses. The methodology involves two versions of the input-output price model: a competitive price formulation and a mark-up price formulation. The input-output price framework will make it possible to evaluate how the alternative measures modify production prices, consumption prices, private welfare, and intermediate energy uses. The empirical application is for the Catalan economy and uses economic data for the year 2001.

Binge eating in binge eating disorder: a break-down of emotion regulatory process?

Current explanatory models for binge eating in binge eating disorder (BED) mostly rely onmodels for bulimianervosa (BN), although research indicates different antecedents for binge eating in BED. This studyinvestigates antecedents and maintaining factors in terms of positive mood, negative mood and tension in asample of 22 women with BED using ecological momentary assessment over a 1-week. Values for negativemood were higher and those for positive mood lower during binge days compared with non-binge days.During binge days, negative mood and tension both strongly and significantly increased and positive moodstrongly and significantly decreased at the first binge episode, followed by a slight though significant, andlonger lasting decrease (negative mood, tension) or increase (positive mood) during a 4-h observation periodfollowing binge eating. Binge eating in BED seems to be triggered by an immediate breakdown of emotionregulation. There are no indications of an accumulation of negative mood triggering binge eating followed byimmediate reinforcing mechanisms in terms of substantial and stable improvement of mood as observed inBN. These differences implicate a further specification of etiological models and could serve as a basis fordeveloping new treatment approaches for BED.

Estudis funcionals i de plegament dels dominis d'activació de les procarboxipeptidases

Els dominis d’activació (ADs) de les procarboxipeptidases de la subfamília A/B sempre han sorprès ja que representen una quarta part del proenzim. S’han realitzat alguns estudis per intentar descobrir-ne alguna possible funció alternativa, però no han estat fructífers. El descobriment de l’elevada velocitat de plegament del domini d’activació de la procarboxipeptidasa A2 humana, (ADA2h), emperò, va portar a proposar la possibilitat de que realitzessin una funció d’assistència al plegament del domini enzimàtic. Posteriorment, l’anàlisi del plegament d’ADA2h a pH baix va revelar la capacitat d’aquest domini per formar fibres amiloides, a més de demostrar que un increment de l’estabilitat proteica podia prevenir la formació d’aquests agregats. La profunda caracterització del plegament d’ADA2h va fer que aquesta proteïna fos un bon model amiloidogènic, de manera que es van proposar un seguit d’experiments que s’han desenvolupat en el present treball per tal de conèixer millor aquest procés. S’han dut a terme estudis cinètics d’agregació per tal de valorar la contribució dels diferents aminoàcids de la seqüència polipeptídica, utilitzant 29 variants puntuals d’ADA2h. Es va eliminar la contribució de l’estabilitat mitjançant la utilització d’urea, i per dicroïsme circular conjuntament amb un aparell de flux detingut, es van obtenir dues velocitats diferents, v1 i v2, que corresponen a la formació d’un intermediari i a la seva reorganització, respectivament. Experiments complementaris utilitzant espectroscòpia d’infraroig (IR) revelaren la reorganització de l’estat natiu (en aquest cas) per a donar la forma agregada. Les cinètiques d’IR van mostrar que ADA2h forma l’estructura _ típica de les fibres amiloides, previ desplegament les seves hèlixs-_. Finalment, s’han realitzat estudis de biocomputació per tal d’esbrinar possibles funcions alternatives dels ADs. Les superposicions estructurals semblen mostrar similaritat dels ADs amb dominis de reconeixement d’RNA (RRM). Aquesta hipòtesi s’ha comprovat experimentalment amb ADA4h, mostrant una dèbil, però existent, unió a RNA.

Traitement de la schistosomiase à S. mansoni : quelle alternative au praziquantel ?

Les schistosomiases sont des maladies parasitaires causées par des helminthes du genre Schistosoma (S.) qui touchent 200 millions de personnes dans le monde, mais restent rares chez le voyageur. Contrairement à S. heamatobium, agent de la bilharziose urinaire, S. mansoni, présent en Afrique subsaharienne, en Egypte ainsi qu'aux Antilles, au Surinam et dans le nordest du Brésil, est responsable des formes hépato-intestinales de la maladie. Les larves, vivant en eaux douces contaminées par des selles infectées, peuvent pénétrer la peau des baigneurs sans que l'individu ne s'en rende compte. Les parasites adultes s'établissent dans le système veineux digestif où ils se reproduisent et excrètent des oeufs qui migreront dans la lumière intestinale. Cette revue systématique évalue les effets des médicaments antibilharziens, utilisés seuls ou en association, pour traiter l'infection à S. mansoni.

Perinatal choline supplementation reveals a dissociation between two types of spatial strategies.

Choline supplementation improving memory functions in rodents is assumed to increase the synthesis and release of acetylcholine in the brain. We have found that a combined pre- and postnatal supplementation results in long-lasting facilitation of spatial memory in juvenile rats when training was conducted in presence of a local salient cue. The present work was aimed at analysing the effects of peri- and postnatal choline supplementation on spatial abilities of naive adult rats. Rats given a perinatal choline supplementation were trained in various cued procedures of the Morris navigation task when aged 5 months. The treatment had a specific effect of reducing the escape latency of the rats when the platform was at a fixed position in space and surrounded by a suspended cue. This effect was associated with an increased spatial bias when the cue and platform were removed. In this condition, the control rats showed impaired spatial discrimination following the removal of the target cue, most likely due to an overshadowing of the distant environmental cues. This impairment was not observed in the treated rats. Further training with the suspended cue at unpredictable places in the pool revealed longer escape latencies in the control than in the treated rats suggesting that this procedure induced a selective perturbation of the normal but not of the treated rats. A special probe trial with the cue at an irrelevant position and no escape platform revealed a significant bias of the control rats toward the cue and of the treated rats toward the uncued spatial escape position. This behavioural dissociation suggests that a salient cue associated with the target induces an alternative "non spatial" guidance strategy in normal rats, with the risk of overshadowing of the more distant spatial cues. In this condition, the choline supplementation facilities a spatial reliance on the cue, that is an overall facilitation of learning a set of spatial relations between several visual cues. As a consequence, the improved escape in presence of the cue is associated with a stronger memory of the spatial position following disappearance of the cue. This and previous observations suggest that a specific spatial attention process relies on the buffering of highly salient visual cues.to facilitate integration of their relative position in the environment.

Health education for children in the control of Schistosomasis

Health education for children is an important measure in the control of schistosomiasis especially considering the characteristics of the disease during childhood, such as high prevalence, high percent of treatment resistance, high rates of egg elimination and high level of reinfection, as reported in studies conducted in endemic areas. All of these facts indicate that children play a role in the maintenance and transmission of schistosomiasis. Historically in Brazil, Health Education concerning the major Brazilian endemies consists of a kind of vertical, interventionist and temporary action. An alternative would be to create a permanent health education process by assigning health education teachers to elementary schools. This would require expansion and improvement of teacher training and the development of programs taking into account: 1) the cognitive aspects of the child, the child's perception of reality and of the health/illness process; 2) the adaptation of instruction means and materials to the age group; 3) a "pedagogy of liberation" approach emphasizing the possibility of transforming life conditions since schistosomiasis is related to the lack of public services such as basic sanitation and clean domestic water supply.

Els agrocombustibles a Catalunya : mecanismes i efectes de l'europeïtzació en la política pública

En els darrers temps els agrocombustibles s’han promocionat com una alternativa als combustibles fòssils,adquirint un pes important en les agendes polítiques internacionals. Les dues grans potències econòmiques mundials, els Estats Units i la Unió Europea, han impulsat els agrocombustibles a través de diferents estratègies; plans, legislació, però també amb excempcions fiscals i obligacions de barreja amb combustibles fòssils. En aquest marc, Catalunya va ser de les comunitats autònomes de l’Estat espanyol pioneres en la potenciació d’experiències de producció i consum d’agrocombustibles. A partir de l’anàlisi de la política i el debat a Catalunya es pot destacar la gran influència de l’esfera europea a través de diversos mecanismes en el procés, el que s’ha anomenat en la literatura com europeïtzació. Darrerament Europa s’ha convertit en un important centre de producció de polítiques públiques, especialment en polítiques ambientals i agrícoles a partir dels anys 80. És per aquest motiu que resulta rellevant conèixer les dinàmiques europees en una política complexa com la dels agrocombustibles a Catalunya, que presenta components energètics, però també amb altres aspectes relacionats amb el món agràri i el medi ambient.

From creative ideas to new emerging ventures: the process of identification and exploitation among finnish design entrepreneurs

This study focuses on identification and exploitation processes among Finnish design entrepreneurs (i.e. selfemployed industrial designers). More specifically, this study strives to find out what design entrepreneurs do when they create new ventures, how venture ideas are identified and how entrepreneurial processes are organized to identify and exploit such venture ideas in the given industrial context. Indeed, what does educated and creative individuals do when they decide to create new ventures, where do the venture ideas originally come from, and moreover, how are venture ideas identified and developed into viable business concepts that are introduced on the markets? From an academic perspective: there is a need to increase our understanding of the interaction between the identification and exploitation of emerging ventures, in this and other empirical contexts. Rather than assuming that venture ideas are constant in time, this study examines how emerging ideas are adjusted to enable exploitation in dynamic market settings. It builds on the insights from previous entrepreneurship process research. The interpretations from the theoretical discussion build on the assumption that the subprocesses of identification and exploitation interact, and moreover, they are closely entwined with each other (e.g. McKelvie & Wiklund, 2004, Davidsson, 2005). This explanation challenges the common assumption that entrepreneurs would first identify venture ideas and then exploit them (e.g. Shane, 2003). The assumption is that exploitation influences identification, just as identification influences exploitation. Based on interviews with design entrepreneurs and external actors (e.g. potential customers, suppliers and collaborators), it appears as identification and exploitation of venture ideas are carried out in close interaction between a number of actors, rather than alone by entrepreneurs. Due to their available resources, design entrepreneurs have a desire to focus on identification related activities and to find external actors that take care of exploitation related activities. The involvement of external actors may have a direct impact on decisionmaking and various activities along the processes of identification and exploitation, which is something that previous research does not particularly emphasize. For instance, Bhave (1994) suggests both operative and strategic feedback from the market, but does not explain how external parties are actually involved in the decisionmaking, and in carrying out various activities along the entrepreneurial process.

Extracellular matrix components in peripheral nerve repair: how to affect neural cellular response and nerve regeneration?

Peripheral nerve injury is a serious problem affecting significantly patients' life. Autografts are the "gold standard" used to repair the injury gap, however, only 50% of patients fully recover from the trauma. Artificial conduits are a valid alternative to repairing peripheral nerve. They aim at confining the nerve environment throughout the regeneration process, and providing guidance to axon outgrowth. Biocompatible materials have been carefully designed to reduce inflammation and scar tissue formation, but modifications of the inner lumen are still required in order to optimise the scaffolds. Biomicking the native neural tissue with extracellular matrix fillers or coatings showed great promises in repairing longer gaps and extending cell survival. In addition, extracellular matrix molecules provide a platform to further bind growth factors that can be released in the system over time. Alternatively, conduit fillers can be used for cell transplantation at the injury site, reducing the lag time required for endogenous Schwann cells to proliferate and take part in the regeneration process. This review provides an overview on the importance of extracellular matrix molecules in peripheral nerve repair.

Assessing the assignation of public subsidies: Do the experts choose the most efficient R&D projects?

The implementation of public programs to support business R&D projects requires the establishment of a selection process. This selection process faces various difficulties, which include the measurement of the impact of the R&D projects as well as selection process optimization among projects with multiple, and sometimes incomparable, performance indicators. To this end, public agencies generally use the peer review method, which, while presenting some advantages, also demonstrates significant drawbacks. Private firms, on the other hand, tend toward more quantitative methods, such as Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), in their pursuit of R&D investment optimization. In this paper, the performance of a public agency peer review method of project selection is compared with an alternative DEA method.

Streamlining the medication process improves safety in the intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: Multiple interventions were made to optimize the medication process in our intensive care unit (ICU). 1 Transcriptions from the medical order form to the administration plan were eliminated by merging both into a single document; 2 the new form was built in a logical sequence and was highly structured to promote completeness and standardization of information; 3 frequently used drug names, approved units, and fixed routes were pre-printed; 4 physicians and nurses were trained with regard to the correct use of the new form. This study was aimed at evaluating the impact of these interventions on clinically significant types of medication errors. METHODS: Eight types of medication errors were measured by a prospective chart review before and after the interventions in the ICU of a public tertiary care hospital. We used an interrupted time-series design to control the secular trends. RESULTS: Over 85 days, 9298 lines of drug prescription and/or administration to 294 patients, corresponding to 754 patient-days were collected and analysed for the three series before and three series following the intervention. Global error rate decreased from 4.95 to 2.14% (-56.8%, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The safety of the medication process in our ICU was improved by simple and inexpensive interventions. In addition to the optimization of the prescription writing process, the documentation of intravenous preparation, and the scheduling of administration, the elimination of the transcription in combination with the training of users contributed to reducing errors and carried an interesting potential to increase safety.