Studying at university involves demanding academic and clinical training requirements for students from Psychology and other health-allied fields, potentially having severe physical and mental health ...implications. Existing training programs for addressing burnout have focused thus far on specific areas (e.g., stress management, physical exercise, mindfulness meditation, etc.) with promising outcomes. However, no comprehensive programs have been developed to train students and staff in the early identification of burnout signs and characteristics as well as in self-assessing personal needs and habits (i.e., primary prevention), or in identifying community resources and evidence-based strategies to overcome burnout (i.e., secondary prevention). This paper describes the content development, refinement, and piloting process of the BENDiT-EU program as part of a European collaborative to address academic burnout for health-allied students. Piloting results showed that participants viewed the program positively and provided helpful suggestions for content improvement and training delivery. Future research directions should target experimental investigations of the program’s effectiveness and the longitudinal interaction of burnout with other variables (e.g., resilience).
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) represents a generalized myopathic process affecting both ventricular and atrial myocardium. We aimed to assess left atrial (LA) function by two-dimensional speckle ...tracking echocardiography and its relation with left ventricular (LV) function and clinical status in patients with HCM.
We prospectively enrolled 37 consecutive patients with HCM and 37 normal subjects with similar age and gender distribution. Longitudinal LV strain (ε) and LA ε and strain rate (Sr) parameters (systolic, early diastolic, and late diastolic during atrial contraction) were assessed.
Peak LAε and LA Sr parameters were significantly lower in patients compared with controls (P ≤ .001 for all). In patients, all LA function parameters correlated with LVε (P < .003 for all). Indexed LA volume, LA function parameters, and mitral regurgitation degree were the main correlates of New York Heart Association class; late diastolic strain rate during atrial contraction was the only independent predictor of symptomatic status.
In patients with HCM, LA function is significantly reduced and related to LV dysfunction. Moreover, LA booster pump function emerged as an independent correlate of heart failure symptoms in this setting.
Neuropsychiatric diseases have a rising incidence and cause a significantly higher risk of morbidity and premature mortality in the general population. Also, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are ...characterized by the highest prevalence in the population and are a major cause of early morbidity, especially through the occurrence of coronary ischemic events. Recently, it has been demonstrated the involvement of neuropsychiatric diseases in the aetiology of CVDs. On the one hand, the treatment of these diseases can improve the prognosis of CVD, but on the other hand iatrogenesis may play a very important role in their determinism. Administrating neuropsychiatric medication (NPM) can be very challenging for patients with CVD because of their cardiovascular side effects (CVSEs). NPM and CVDs have a double edged-sword relationship. The purpose of this review is to present the link between the treatment with antidepressants and antipsychotics and the cardiovascular system, and to summarize the current information of the various CVSEs of NPM.
Post-stroke depression and the aging brain Cojocaru, Gabriel R; Popa-Wagner, Aurel; Stanciulescu, Elena C ...
Journal of Molecular Psychiatry,
08/2013, Letnik:
1, Številka:
1
Journal Article
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Ageing is associated with changes in the function of various organ systems. Changes in the cardiovascular system affect both directly and indirectly the function in a variety of organs, including the ...brain, with consequent neurological (motor and sensory performance) and cognitive impairments, as well as leading to the development of various psychiatric diseases. Post-stroke depression (PSD) is among the most frequent neuropsychiatric consequences of cerebral ischemia. This review discusses several animal models used for the study of PSD and summarizes recent findings in the genomic profile of the ageing brain, which are associated with age-related disorders in the elderly. Since stroke and depression are diseases with increased incidence in the elderly, great clinical benefit may especially accrue from deciphering and targeting basic mechanisms underlying PSD. Finally, we discuss the relationship between ageing, circadian rhythmicity and PSD.
The long-term survival of a species requires, among other things, gene flow between populations. Approaches for the evaluation of fragmentation in the frame of freshwater habitats consider only a ...small amount of the information that combined demography and geography are currently able to provide. This study addresses two species of Austropotamobius crayfish in the light of population genetics, spatial ecology and protected areas of the Carpathians. Advancing the classical approaches, we defined ecological distances upon the rasterised river network as a surrogate of habitat resistance to migration, quantifying the deviations from the species´ suitability range for a set of relevant geospatial variables in each cell of the network. Molecular analyses revealed the populations of the two Austropotamobius crayfish species are clearly distinct, lacking hybridisation. Comparing pairs of populations, we found, in some cases, a strong disagreement regarding genetic and ecological distances, potentially due to human-mediated translocations or the geophysical phenomena of regressive erosion, which may have led to unexpected colonisation routes. Protected areas were found to offer appropriate local habitat conditions but failed to ensure connectivity. The methodology applied in this study allowed us to quantify the contribution of each geospatial (environmental) variable to the overall effect of fragmentation, and we found that water quality was the most important variable. A multilevel approach proved to reveal a better understanding of drivers behind the distribution patterns, which can lead to more adequate conservation measures.
The issue of nitrate contamination has become increasingly acute, with the awareness of their toxicity on the human body and the identification of increasing sources of contamination. Human ...intervention in the natural nitrogen cycle has serious repercussions that are manifested by its accumulation at one or more levels. The use of fertilizers in agriculture is crucial to ensure food security, but their unreasonable use causes accumulations of nitrogen in the form of nitrate ions in plants, and from here they reach human intake, over a certain amount becoming harmful. The aim of this paper is to quantify the amount of nitrates present in certain vegetables intensively consumed during spring, sources of food which if does not conform with the current recommendations of EFSA and EU, can become major factors of risk to public health. The studied material consists of 5 types of vegetables products intensively consumed in spring: lettuce (Lactuca sativa), curly lettuce (or Lollo - Lactuca sativa var Crispa), Iceberg lettuce (Lactuca sativa lime Iceberg), spinach (Spinacia oleracea) and wild garlic (Allium ursinum). The samples were collected from different commercial locations (outlets): hypermarkets (H), open markets (OM), street trade (ST) and house gate trade (HGT). The highest nitrate concentrations were found in lettuce in ST (4306 mg kg-1) and HGT (4175.5 mg kg-1), in Lollo salad in ST (4306.5 mg kg-1) and HGT (4602.75 mg kg-1) and spinach in OM (3469.25 mg kg-1). The study findings suggest that ST and HGT are commercial points that may constitute a danger to public health, the ADI value exceedingly even by 107.21% in the case of Lollo salad purchased from HGT. The issue calls for more drastic controls by the authorities.
Experimental and, retrospective, clinical data indicate that anaesthetic technique might influence the risk of metastasis after cancer surgery. Neutrophil extracellular trapping (NETosis) is an ...immunological mechanism strongly linked with increased metastatic risk. Similarly, vascular endothelial growth factor A is linked to angiogenesis implicated in recurrence. Therefore, we investigated the effect of four anaesthetic techniques on NETosis and angiogenic factors expression in women undergoing breast cancer resection.
Women (n=120) undergoing primary breast tumour resection were randomly assigned to receive one of four anaesthetics: sevoflurane (S), sevoflurane plus i.v. lidocaine (SL), propofol (P), and propofol plus i.v. lidocaine (PL). Venous blood was collected before induction and 20–28 h after operation. Neutrophil myeloperoxidase and citrullinated histone H3, biomarkers of NETosis, and biomarkers of angiogenesis were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Patient characteristic data and perioperative management did not differ between study groups. The anaesthetic technique including lidocaine decreased expression of citrullinated histone H3 compared with no lidocaine (109 23 vs 125 22 ng ml−1, P=0.01 for SL and S and 98 14 vs 130 32 mg ml−1, P=0.007, for PL and P, respectively). Similarly, myeloperoxidase was decreased by lidocaine (8.5 3.4 vs 10.8 1.8 ng ml−1, P=0.03 for SL and S and 8.6 3.1 vs 11.6 2.5 ng ml−1, P=0.01 for PL and P, respectively). Lidocaine also decreased expression of matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3) but not MMP9, whichever anaesthetic was used. Vascular endothelial growth factor A concentrations were not significantly influenced by the anaesthetic technique.
I.V. perioperative lidocaine decreased postoperative expression of NETosis and MMP3, regardless of general anaesthetic technique. This supports the hypothesis that i.v. lidocaine during cancer surgery of curative intent might reduce recurrence.
NCT02839668.
A new generation of scaffolds capable of acting not only as support for cells but also as a source of biological cues to promote tissue regeneration is currently a hot topic of in bone Tissue ...Engineering (TE) research. The inclusion of growth factor (GF) controlled release functionalities in the scaffolds is a possible strategy to achieve such goal. Platelet Lysate (PL) is an autologous source of GFs, providing several bioactive agents known to act on bone regeneration. In this study, chitosan-chondroitin sulfate nanoparticles loaded with PL were included in a poly(d,l-lactic acid) foam produced by supercritical fluid foaming. The tridimensional (3D) structures were then seeded with human adipose-derived stem cells (hASCs) and cultured in vitro under osteogenic stimulus. The osteogenic differentiation of the seeded hASCs was observed earlier for the PL-loaded constructs, as shown by the earlier alkaline phosphatase peak and calcium detection and stronger Runx2 expression at day 7 of culture, in comparison with the control scaffolds. Osteocalcin gene expression was upregulated in presence of PL during all culture period, which indicates an enhanced osteogenic induction. These results suggest the synergistic effect of PL and hASCs in combinatory TE strategies and support the potential of PL to increase the multifunctionality of the 3D hybrid construct for bone TE applications.
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Given the predominantly negative impact of heavy metals on living organisms, the present study proposed to evaluate the adsorption performances under static conditions of Cd (II) from aqueous ...solutions on unmodified Sarkanda grass lignin compared to the adsorption performances of polysaccharide polymers chemically functionalized, obtained by synthesis and in their native state, but which, although effective, have a cost price that does not allow for large-scale expansion. To improve the retention of Cd (II) on this aromatic component of the biomass resulting from the processing of lignocellulosic materials, different experimental conditions (pH, concentration, dose and contact time) were followed. The Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms were used to describe the equilibrium conditions. Adsorption kinetics were assessed using the Lagergren I and Ho and McKay II kinetic models, furnishing informative insights into the process mechanism. Lignin adsorption capacity was also analyzed by performing biological tests on tomato seeds (Lypercosium esculentum), since heavy metals are known to be a stress factor for seeds by disturbing the osmotic equilibrium. Through the prism of the investigated parameters and under precisely established experimental conditions, unmodified Sarkanda grass lignin—an aromatic biopolymer—can be recommended as a promising adsorbent for the retention of Cd (II) from aqueous solutions, successfully replacing polysaccharide, especially cellulose-based polymers.
The state of the local breeds of farm animals is increasingly precarious worldwide because of the aggressive introduction of breeds with improved economical traits. The preference of the breeders for ...local breeds is due to their higher adaptability to the particular climate and relief conditions of the mountain areas, to the high rate of assimilation of the feeds from these regions and to their increased resistance to diseases. This study analyzes the genetic variation of the main four local Romanian sheep breeds (Tsurcana, Tsigai, Ratska and Teleorman Blackhead) in terms of stock and economic importance, using 18 microsatellite markers. The mean number of alleles per locus was of 9.764. The values of genetic diversity parameters exhibited a high degree of polymorphism for the analyzed breeds, although inbreeding was highlighted particularly in Tsurcana and Tsigai. These breeds also showed an intense gene flow among them and were less differentiated in comparison with Ratska and Teleorman Blackhead. The results of this study may be useful for breeding programs and conservation plans since the genetic resources of the local breeds must be preserved so as to maintain an adequate level of biodiversity in animal husbandry.
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