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Ferrocene bridged nucleosides: synthesis, electrochemistry, antitrypanosomal and antiviral activity studies
No full textFive ferrocenyl–containing dinucleosides were obtained using the copper(I)–catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddi tion reaction of a 1,1’–dipropargylated ferrocenyl synthon with nucleosides or nucleobase azides. Cyclic vol tammetry measurements revealed that the newly synthesized compounds can undergo reversible, one–electron oxidation–reduction at potential E0 of ca. +0.5 V vs. decamethyl ferrocene, and thus behave similar to ferrocene. Antitrypanosomal evaluation using Trypanosoma brucei bloodstream forms showed overall low activity with the exception for the diadenosine compound 1 for which a GI50 of 42 ± 5 µM was determined. Likewise, 1 showed also weak activity against the HCoV–OC43 coronavirus with an IC50 of 211 ± 68 µM. This activity was only slightly better than that of the diadenine (3) and the thymidine (4) dinucleosides. Despite the lack of strong antimicrobial activity, ferrocene–bridged dinucleosides add new knowledge to a growing field of organometallic nucleic acid components
Constructing 'One Firm': Discursive Identify Work and Power in a Global Professional Service Firm
No full textProfessional service firms (PSFs) have long pursued a one-firm model promising borderless collaboration and consistent quality. Yet integration typically relies on standardized practices, while those expected to enact them value local autonomy and context-sensitive judgment. Prior research has examined this challenge largely through structural and institutional lenses, showing how dispersed ownership, consensus-based governance, and cross-jurisdictional heterogeneity constrain standardization and coordination across offices. However, less is known about the discursive work by which professionals make sense of—and account for—the integration–autonomy tension in situated accounts. We address this gap by analyzing 31 semi-structured interviews with professionals across roles and offices in a global, confederated PSF network through the lens of discursive identity work. We identify three recurring discursive practices—constructing mediated authority, enacting stewardship-and-innovation, and relational positioning—through which participants produce locally grounded framings of the one-firm mandate. Rather than straightforward endorsement or resistance, these practices sustain an ambivalence about integration’s compatibility with professional discretion, configuring commitment, discretion, and entitlement across roles and network positions. This paper contributes to one-firm scholarship by showing how professionals enact “one firm” in talk through the discursive repertoires these practices mobilize. On this basis, we reframe the model’s apparent incompleteness as ongoing discursive negotiation rather than an implementation deficit. The paper also contributes to PSF power research by specifying how these same accounts reproduce, qualify, and sometimes reconfigure center–periphery relations, with hierarchy emerging as a provisional accomplishment rather than a settled property of formal structure alone
Quality, reliability and misinformation in mental health and neurodivergence content on social media: a systematic review
No full textSocial media is increasingly used for health information seeking, yet no systematic review has assessed the quality of mental health or neurodivergence-related information on social media. This systematic review aimed to assess the quality, reliability, and prevalence of misinformation in such content, comparing findings by platform and topic. Searches were performed in MEDLINE Ultimate, APA PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Scopus. Studies were eligible if they evaluated the accuracy, quality, or reliability of mental health or neurodivergent-related information on social media platforms. Twenty-seven studies met the inclusion criteria and were critically appraised using a bespoke tool assessing the search, evaluation, and methodological quality. Due to heterogeneity, the findings were synthesized narratively. Across the 27 included studies, 5057 social media posts were analysed. Misinformation prevalence ranged from 0% to 56.9% and was higher on TikTok than YouTube, and neurodivergence-related content showed higher misinformation prevalence than mental health topics. Information quality and reliability varied widely but were generally higher for professionally created content. These findings highlight a clear need for action: mental health and neurodivergence organizations should create and share accurate, evidence-based content to counter misinformation, and clinicians should be supported to do the same. There is a need for strengthened content moderation, as well as consistent definitions and measures of mental health misinformation. Addressing these issues is vital to protect public mental health and improve the reliability of online information
Vulval squamous cell carcinoma: A review
No full textVulval squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) represents approximately 90% of all vulval cancers. Despite its rarity relative to other gynaecological or skin malignancies, the recent growing body of epidemiological and clinical evidence has resulted in important refinements to national guidelines. This review offers a comprehensive overview of the current evidence regarding the epidemiology, clinical features, diagnosis, and management of VSCC. There are two distinct aetiological pathways currently identified in the pathogenesis of VSCC. Human papillomavirus (HPV)-dependent VSCC is commonly found in younger people, driven by a persistent infection of high-risk HPV genotypes (most commonly HPV16). HPV-independent VSCC arises in association with chronic inflammatory dermatoses (typically lichen sclerosus) owing to mounting DNA damage by oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. Globally, the incidence of vulval cancer has been rising. In 2020, the Global Cancer Observatory reported the highest incidence rates in Western Europe, Northern America and Northern Europe. Although VSCC commonly presents with a ‘suspicious vulval lesion’, early symptoms may be wide-ranging and nonspecific, leading to diagnostic delays. This is further compounded by the stigma and embarrassment felt when discussing vulval symptoms. Diagnostic workup involves a clinical history and examination, vulvoscopy and multiple biopsies. The mainstay of treatment involves surgical excision with or without chemoradiotherapy, immunotherapy and lymph node biopsies, dependent on the Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics staging and progression. The prognosis is heavily dependent on stage. In England, 5-year crude net survival of early-stage VSCC (stage 1–2) is 78.2%, but it falls to 33.1% at later stages (stage 3–4). This is significantly poorer than cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas elsewhere. The advent of the HPV vaccine may be the first significant medical intervention to have an impact on VSCC incidence in decades
Highly Efficient Nonlinear Torque Control of Induction Motor Drives Considering Magnetic Saturation and Iron Losses
Get PDFIn this article, an input-output feedback linearization (IOFL)-based direct torque control (DTC) is proposed for induction motor (IM) drives using the maximum torque per ampere (MTPA) strategy and full nonlinear IM model. In contrast to conventional IOFL technique, the stability of the proposed IOFL is proven by Lyapunov theory. The proposed method not only provides an appropriate tracking of electromagnetic torque, but also leads to an optimal relation between direct (d)- quadrature (q) axis stator currents. Since both MTPA strategy and IOFL control depend on the IM model, more accurate dynamic modelling including effects of magnetic saturation and iron losses is essential. In this regard, a fifth-order IM model developed based on a full nonlinear model is used in the controller design by considering variations of magnetizing inductance and iron loss resistance in terms of the magnetic current and rotor speed, respectively. The proposed control scheme is validated by experimental results showing a significant reduction in the stator current for a light load compared to the conventional model, in which saturation and iron losses are neglected
Two regimes of waste and value: 'Post-disaster' landscapes in a New India
No full textIn this age of ‘disaster capitalism’, catastrophes are neither ‘natural’ nor ‘external’. They are political events mediating and vitally shaping the unequal and exploitative use of environmental resources. India's ‘post-disaster’ landscapes at the turn of the new millennium powerfully demonstrate how visions of the new-normal can be imposed in the aftermath of a catastrophe by indomitable state–capital alliances. Insidious ideas of entrepreneurship and a muscular Hindutva-tinged liberalization have served as the main tropes of post-disaster recovery and management interventions in India over the past two decades. The article demonstrates how these post-disaster landscapes, as seen in the cases of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake and 1999 Odisha super-cyclone, can be understood through regimes of waste and value, which redefine the meanings of space and nature. At their core, these regimes rely on the purposive use of institutions, laws and discourses by powerful actors at multiple levels. The article suggests that the post-disaster landscape offers a unique perspective into the everyday environmental authoritarianism unfolding throughout India today
The impact of credit and savings interventions on women’s economic empowerment and agency: A meta-regression analysis
Get PDFCredit and savings interventions have been heralded as a promising path to empowering women. However, the evidence base is inconclusive. Thus, the objective of this review is to synthesise the evidence in relation to the impact of credit and savings interventions on women’s economic empowerment and agency adopting a meta-regression approach. Eighteen experimental studies were identified and synthesised finding that effect sizes are very small and mixed in their sign and level of significance. Upon examining whether specific characteristics are associated with the effectiveness of credit and savings interventions, no statistically significant effects could be identified for credit interventions and only small effects for savings interventions, possibly because the latter have less of a risk of indebtedness. Overall, effects are small, levels of heterogeneity are high, risk of bias concerns of the included studies prevail, and publication bias exists. Credit and savings interventions by themselves are not the path to economically empower women. It may be that the non-financial features that emphasise awareness raising, skills training, education on women’s rights and enhancing women’s social networks are the driving force behind the empowerment of women, more so than financial features
Amplified warming in tropical and subtropical cities under 2 °C climate change
Get PDFCities are often warmer than rural surroundings due to a phenomenon known as the urban heat island, which can be influenced by various factors, such as regional climate and land surface types. Under climate change, cities face not only the challenge of increasing temperatures in their surrounding hinterland but also the challenge of potential changes in their heat islands. However, even high-resolution global Earth system models (ESMs) with "urban tiles" can only properly resolve the largest urban areas or megacities. Here, we address these limitations by applying a process-based statistical learning model to ESM outputs to provide projections of changes in land surface temperature (LST) for 104 medium-sized cities of population 300 K to 1 M in the subtropics and tropics. Under a 2 °C global warming scenario, annual mean LST in 81% of these cities is projected to increase faster than the surrounding area. In 16% of these cities, mostly in India and China, mean LST is projected to increase by an additional 50-112% above ESM projections of the surrounding area. Our findings underscore the importance of investigating the specific effects of climate change on urban heat exposure
Churchill and Germany: A “Special” Relationship
No full textNo other country defined the trajectory of Churchill's political career more than Germany, a country of which he had little direct knowledge but which he either sought to emulate, accommodate or oppose throughout his time in politics. This article traces Churchill's relationship with Germany from his entry into politics at the beginning of the Edwardian era through to the end of his life, when a newly prosperous West Germany had become a fixture in Cold War international politics