335 research outputs found
A DISTURBANCE OF THE IL-2/IL-2 RECEPTOR SYSTEM PARALLELS THE ACTIVITY OF MULTIPLE-MYELOMA
No full textThe IL-2/IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) system has been investigated in 64 patients with multiple myeloma (MM), 31 with monoclonal gammopathies of undetermined significance (MGUS) and 20 normal controls. The MM data were related to clinical status by comparing active disease, i.e. at diagnosis and at relapse, and stable disease, i.e. complete remission and off-treatment plateau phase. Serum and urinary values of the soluble IL-2R (sIL-2R) were significantly increased in MM patients compared with normal controls and this increase was related to activity. MM patients with active disease gave significantly higher values than those with stable disease. Compared with normal controls, enriched B cell (but not T cell) preparations from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) showed significantly increased proportions of IL-2R+ cells in MM and MGUS. However, the highest proportions were detected in active MM compared with stable MM and MGUS. Also, 16% of all MM patients, as opposed to 9% of MGUS, had well-defined bone marrow IL-2R+ plasma cell populations. The lowest serum IL-2 values were found in active MM. Serial follow up of serum sIL-2R suggested that this peptide can be used as an additional marker of active malignancy. The data indicate that a disturbance of IL-2/IL-2R system is most pronounced in active MM. These findings may provide clues as to the T cell abnormalities in MM
Explaining discrepancies between spectral and in-situ plant diversity in multispectral satellite earth observation
No full textIn light of the ongoing global biodiversity crisis, the urge to monitor and map terrestrial plant biodiversity at large spatial extents has spurred research on adequate quantitative methods. The use of spectral diversity metrics from different remote sensing platforms has emerged as a promising tool for such biodiversity assessments. Satellite remote sensing presents the next frontier for implementation of these methods to assess plant diversity with spatial and temporal continuity at truly regional or global scales. However, the question of what exactly is monitored by spectral diversity metrics from relatively coarse multi-spectral satellite observations has remained largely unanswered.In this research, we examined which components contribute to satellite remotely sensed spectral diversity. We assessed the relationships between spectral diversity and in-situ taxonomic and trait diversity, and evaluated the role of confounding factors, vegetation cover, and landscape morphology (slope and elevation), in shaping these relationships. Hereto, we used Sentinel-2 imagery and in-situ field trait and species count data collected in the Montesinho-Nogueira Natura 2000 site (Portugal) together with radiative transfer models to quantify the theoretical link between in-situ trait diversity and simulated spectral diversity.Through the use of linear mixed-effect models, our results highlight that variation in vegetation cover dominates the Sentinel-2's spectral diversity signal (contributing 53–84% of the R2marginal). The vegetation cover component encompasses spatial variability in canopy architecture traits as well as the fraction of bare soil and plant litter spectra. These elements together strongly impact the overall spectral diversity signal, as shown both in our radiative transfer simulations and empirical comparisons. Next to vegetation cover, we found that taxonomic diversity is a significant predictor and covariate of spectral diversity, while the role of leaf trait diversity appeared insignificant in our multispectral dataset.Variation in vegetation cover dominated the spectral diversity signal in our study while it is not necessarily correlated with plant diversity. We, therefore, recommend that future applications of multi-spectral diversity metrics consider the impact of vegetation cover, including soil variability and the role of morphological traits, in shaping leaf trait - canopy reflectance relationships to better understand the ambiguous performance of spectral diversity as a proxy of plant diversity. This will result in higher robustness, consistency, and scalability of spectral diversity metrics for predicting in-situ plant diversity across scales, sensors, and ecosystems in regional biodiversity assessments
Evolutionary population synthesis and the Magellanic Clouds clusters
No full textSynthetic bolometric luminosities and U, B, V fluxes are computed for models of globular clusters using available stellar evolutionary tracks for two chemical compositions and for a large interval of age. The author presents some results and considerations relative to the study of some characteristics of the Magellanic Clouds globular clusters
Controversias religiosas y circulación de noticias impresas. Sobre las variantes editoriales de la “Relatione dello scisma anglicano” por Angelo Galioto
No full textIn 1597, the Franciscan Observant friar Angelo Galioto, Master of Theology and Philosophy, published a pro-Catholic text entitled Relatione dello scisma anglicano, e del glorioso martirio del b.p.f. Giovanni Foresta francescano osservante: e di altri santi martiri d’Inghilterra nella persecutione d’Enrico Ottavo (Palermo, Giovanni Antonio De Franceschi). The work was dedicated to Ludovico Foresta, a relative of Blessed Giovanni, who had been the confessor of the Queen of England Catherine of Aragon and had suffered detention and martyrdom (1538) for having disapproved of the sovereign in his plan for divorce. The work had a clear apologetic purpose, as it was not limited to describing the different stages of the schism but clearly advocated the Catholic revenge of Princess Mary against Elizabeth of England. The author also took the opportunity to celebrate an illustrious victim of the persecuted Catholicism, thus spreading glory over the Franciscan Observant Order to which both he and the martyr belonged.
Finally, it is very interesting to notice the existence of two different emissions for the same edition; in fact, the second version offers a more extensive and updated account of the Catholics’ persecutions in England during the last quarter of the 16th century.En 1597, el fraile franciscano observante Angelo Galioto, maestro de teología y filosofía, publicó en Palermo un texto filocatólico titulado Relatione dello scisma anglicano, e del glorioso martirio del b.p.f. Giovanni Foresta francescano osservante: e di altri santi martiri d’Inghilterra nella persecutione d’Enrico Ottavo. La obra se dedicó a Ludovico Foresta, un familiar del beato Giovanni, que había sido el confesor de la Reina de Inglaterra Catalina de Aragón, y había sufrido la cárcel y el martirio (1538) por haber desaprobado al soberano en su designio de divorcio. La obra tenía un claro propósito apologético, ya que no se limitaba a una descripción de las diversas etapas del cisma, sino que apoyaba la venganza católica de la Princesa María contra Isabel de Inglaterra. El autor aprovechaba la ocasión para celebrar una víctima ilustre de la catolicidad perseguida, y así también lograba esparcir gloria sobre la Orden franciscana observante, a la que pertenecían tanto él como el mártir.
Por último, es apropriado observar la presencia de dos emisiones diferentes de la misma edición; de hecho, la segunda presenta un relato más extenso y actualizado sobre las persecuciones de los católicos en Inglaterra en el último cuarto del siglo XVI
Interleukin-6, soluble interleukin-6 receptor/interleukin-6 complex and insulin resistance in obese children and adolescents
No full textBackground/aim: To study the characteristics of interleukin 6 (IL6), soluble form of interleukin 6 receptor (sILR)/IL6 complex in obese children and adolescents and its relationship with insulin resistance (IR).
Subjects and methods: 66 obese children and adolescents [34 boys, mean age 10.3 ± 2.9 years, z-score of body mass index (BMI) 4.76 ± 1.36] and 24 non-obese healthy sex- and age-matched controls. Fasting levels of glucose, insulin, IL6, sIL6, sgp130 were measured. IR was assessed by homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR).
Results: Obese subjects showed increased levels of insulin and IL-6 and higher HOMA-IR compared to controls (117.67 ± 50.9 vs. 62.42 ± 29.4 pmol/L, 2.73 ± 0.98 vs. 1.07 ± 0.41 pg/ml and 4.03 ± 2.16 vs. 1.83 ± 1.05 for insulin, IL-6 and HOMA-IR, respectively, p < 0.01 in all cases). sIL-6R levels were significantly lower in obese subjects (34.7 ± 14.2 vs. 55.6 ± 15.2 ng/ml in controls, p = 0.005), whereas sgp130 levels were not significantly different. In obese subjects, IL-6 directly correlated with z-score BMI (r = 0.481, p = 0.009) and with waist-to-height ratio (r = 0.494, p = 0.007), while sIL6-R was inversely related to HOMA-IR (r = -0.522, p = 0.002). Insulin resistant subjects showed higher levels of IL6 and lower levels of sIL6R (3.31 ± 0.72 vs. 2.25 ± 0.64 pg/ml, p = 0.020 and 25.3 ± 9.3 vs. 42.5 ± 10.4 ng/ml, p = 0.013, respectively).
Conclusions: In obese children and adolescents, IR is associated with elevated levels of IL-6 and diminished values of sIL-6R
Erratum: Internet and mobile-based psychological interventions: Applications, efficacy and potential for improving mental health. A report of the EFPA E-Health Taskforce (European Psychologist (2018) 23 (167-187) DOI: 10.1027/1016-9040/a000318)
No full textThe article entitled Internet and mobile-based psychological interventions: Applications, efficacy and potential for improving mental health. A report of the EFPA E-Health Taskforce. by Ebert, D. D., Van Daele, T., Nordgreen, T., Karekla, M., Compare, A., Zarbo, C., Brugnera, B., Overland, S., Trebbi, G., Jensen, K. L., Kaehlke, F. (on behalf of the EFPA E-Health Taskforce), & Baumeister, H. (2018, European Psychologist, 23(2), 167-187. https://doi.org/ 10.1027/1016-9040/a000318) contained an error on the first page: The author Jacqui Taylor is missing and the list of authors should correctly read as follows: David Daniel Ebert1, Tom Van Daele2, Tine Nordgreen3, Maria Karekla4, Angelo Compare6, Cristina Zarbo5, Agostino Brugnera5, Svein Overland7, Glauco Trebbi8, Kit L. Jensen9, Fanny Kaehlke (on behalf of the EFPA E-Health Taskforce)1, Harald Baumeister10, and Jacqui Taylor11 1Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen- Nrnberg, Erlangen, Germany 2Department of Applied Psychology, Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium 3Division of Psychiatry, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway 4Department of Psychology, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Republic of Cyprus 5Department of Human and Social Science, University of Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy 6Human Factors and Technology in Healthcare, University of Bergamo, Bergamo, BG, Italy 7SuperEgo AS, Trondheim, Norway 8Trebbipsicologie, Luxembourg & Societe Luxembourgeoise de Psychologie SLP, Luxembourg 9Private Practice, Skagen, Denmark 10Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Ulm, Germany 11Psychology Department, Bournemouth University, UK The authors regret any inconvenience or confusion this error may have caused
An unusual cause of pneumonia in a child. Eur. Respir. J. 2005; 26 (49): 630s.
No full textA case of rare pneumonia in children is described by the author
Legal regulation of prices in Tanzania : an examination of the Regulation of Prices Act 1973 as a tool of social change and development
No full textDrawing mainly from the Tazanian experience this study
attempts to review the principal issues in the legal regulation of
prices, by identifying both the general and specific importance
of law in this respect. The position I shall present is that
legal control is both necessary and desirable for the welfare
and social development of the people. The key issue is whether
the market-place will perform its function satisfactory: Will
it produce socially desirable results? If it will not, why will
it not? And will legal regulation help to do the job a little
better?
In an attempt to answer some of these questions,
first of all, outline the basic issues raised by the study in
the first Chapter. Then I examine the general case for price
controls - the theory about the controls, the motives and reasons
for their imposition and the manner in which they are effected
in different economic systems. This is done in Chapter Two. Relying
most on the available literature on the regulatory process, this
Chapter also looks at the relationship between law and economic
regulation and concludes that the effectiveness of law depends
on the existence of a conducive socio-economic environment. In
Chapter Three I describe the past record of price control laws
in Tanzania. I conclude that despite the failure in the past,
the controls still constitute an important policy instrument
in the transition to socialism. In Chapters Four and Five I describe
the manner in which the current regulations are implemented and
the problems encountered. I conclude that the operational performance
of the controls is constrained by internal and external influences on the economic and political life of the country. In the concluding
Chapter I assess the impact of the controls: Do the controls
work? Do people buy goods at the controlled prices? Why today
the controls are almost popularly accepted as worthwhile? I conclude
that while there may be no measurable economic gains derived
by consumers, the controls have a stabilising effect on the social
and political front. In the final section I argue that the
future success of the legislation depends on creating a correspondence
between the economic structures and the control system. What
makes the controls ineffective is not so much defects in the
law but the contradictions between the orientation of and functioning
of the economic system and the ideological commitment
Il disabile intellettivo lavora
No full textDa quindici anni, con il primo SIL (Servizio di Integrazione Lavorativa) sorto nel territorio veronese per volontà dei Comuni e ispirato al modello genovese (Montobbio e Lepri), l’Azienda ULSS n. 22 di Bussolengo (VR) promuove e sostiene l’integrazione nel mondo del lavoro delle persone con disabilità. L’équipe del servizio, in collaborazione con la cattedra di Pedagogia speciale dell’Università degli Studi di Verona, ha deciso di intraprendere un lavoro di ricerca finalizzato ad individuare le variabili che influenzano la tenuta lavorativa della persona con disabilità intellettiva. La ricerca ha esplorato la popolazione dei soggetti, collocati al lavoro in un periodo di circa un decennio di attività. Qualità e tenuta delle assunzioni sono state analizzate secondo un approccio di tipo interdisciplinare. La presente ricerca è stata segnalata dal Formez (Dipartimento della Funzione Pubblica) nell’ambito del Progetto La formazione all’innovazione attraverso la condivisione e la diffusione di Buoni Esempi
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