[New Educational Tool for 3D Simulation of Auditory Hallucinations, Co-Created with Voice Hearers: Pilot Study with Psychiatry Residents]. / Nouvel outil pédagogique de simulation 3D d'hallucinations auditives, cocréé avec des entendeur(-se)s de voix : étude pilote auprès des résident(e)s en psychiatrie.

Objective Therapeutic relationship is a cornerstone in the treatment of schizophrenia. However, certain personal factors on the part of psychiatrists can hinder it, notably the lack of experience with auditory hallucinations. Such factors can lead to a decrease in empathy and, consequently, a negative alteration in the therapeutic relationship. Previous studies have shown that auditory hallucination simulators have a positive impact on mental health professionals. Yet, to our knowledge, no such test has been conducted on the psychiatry resident population. To address this gap, a research team was formed, including voice hearers, psychiatrists, acoustical engineering researchers, qualitative research experts, and actor-authors. This team collaboratively created the first three-dimensional voice simulator (3DV simulator) using binaural sound reproduction technology. The objective of this pilot study is to evaluate the reaction of psychiatry residents to this 3DV simulator. Methods In this exploratory and descriptive study, psychiatry residents (n=12) were included and invited to listen to the 3DV simulator for 15 minutes. Empathy was assessed before and after the 3DV simulation using the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE©), a scale to evaluate empathy in healthcare professionals. Following the simulation, participants were invited to participate in a brief semi-structured interview consisting of an open-ended and general question about their experiences, along with additional questions. Results Participants (83.3%) found the 3DV simulator interesting and useful. They perceived the simulation as an aid to better understand the patients' experience and to better identify with their lived realities. Our study did not find a statistically significant difference in the total JSPE© score before and after the simulation (p = 0.797). Conclusion This article addresses the need to enhance the empathy of psychiatry residents towards individuals suffering from auditory hallucinations. One uniqueness of this pilot project is how the simulator was designed collaboratively by a multidisciplinary and inclusive team involving voice hearers throughout the research process. The results of this pilot study presented in this article underscore the necessity of continually improving educational interventions to support the development of empathy among psychiatry residents. They also suggest that the 3DV simulator was well-received by the residents, encouraging the conduct of larger-scale studies.

In silico comparison of Yersinia pestis and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis transcriptomes reveals a higher expression level of crucial virulence determinants in the plague bacillus.

Although Yersinia pestis and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis are genetically very similar (97% nucleotide sequence identity for most of the chromosomal genes), they exhibit very different patterns of infection. Y. pestis causes plague which is usually fatal in the absence of treatment, whereas Y. pseudotuberculosis generally triggers non-life-threatening intestinal symptoms. This drastic difference in pathogenicity may result from the acquisition of a few species-specific genes, but also from differences in their transcriptional regulation networks. In this study, we performed an in silico comparative whole-genome transcriptome analysis of Y. pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis grown in parallel under 8 distinct conditions to determine whether they exhibit differences in their regulatory networks. In this analysis, 304 genes common to both species were found to display significant inter-species differences in transcriptional levels, with 91% of them being more expressed in Y. pestis. Remarkably, 3 major virulence determinants conserved in the 2 species (the pYV virulence plasmid, the High Pathogenicity Island, and the ail locus) were among the genes more expressed in Y. pestis. Furthermore, the induction at 37°C of pYV-borne genes was considerably greater in Y. pestis than in Y. pseudotuberculosis. Conversely, the rovA transcriptional regulator gene was more transcribed in Y. pseudotuberculosis. We also performed a clustering analysis of the transcriptome data of both Y. pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis, which allowed to group genes according to their expression profiles. This analysis identified groups of genes with unknown functions which, based on regulation patterns similar to those of known virulence genes, are potential new virulence determinants in Y. pestis. In conclusion, this is the first comparative analysis at the whole-genome level of the transcription profiles of Y. pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis. Our results suggest that the higher pathogenicity of the plague bacillus may not only result from the acquisition of new genetic material, but also from a higher expression level of common crucial virulence genes. This in silico analysis thus opens new avenues for investigating Y. pestis gain of pathogenicity and new potential virulence factors.

Genoscape: a Cytoscape plug-in to automate the retrieval and integration of gene expression data and molecular networks.

UNLABELLED: Genoscape is an open-source Cytoscape plug-in that visually integrates gene expression data sets from GenoScript, a transcriptomic database, and KEGG pathways into Cytoscape networks. The generated visualisation highlights gene expression changes and their statistical significance. The plug-in also allows one to browse GenoScript or import transcriptomic data from other sources through tab-separated text files. Genoscape has been successfully used by researchers to investigate the results of gene expression profiling experiments. AVAILABILITY: Genoscape is an open-source software freely available from the Genoscape webpage (http://www.pasteur.fr/recherche/unites/Gim/genoscape/). Installation instructions and tutorial can also be found at this URL.

GenoList: an integrated environment for comparative analysis of microbial genomes.

The multitude of bacterial genome sequences being determined has generated new requirements regarding the development of databases and graphical interfaces: these are needed to organize and retrieve biological information from the comparison of large sets of genomes. GenoList (http://genolist.pasteur.fr/GenoList) is an integrated environment dedicated to querying and analyzing genome data from bacterial species. GenoList inherits from the SubtiList database and web server, the reference data resource for the Bacillus subtilis genome. The data model was extended to hold information about relationships between genomes (e.g. protein families). The web user interface was designed to primarily take into account biologists' needs and modes of operation. Along with standard query and browsing capabilities, comparative genomics facilities are available, including subtractive proteome analysis. One key feature is the integration of the many tools accessible in the environment. As an example, it is straightforward to identify the genes that are specific to a group of bacteria, export them as a tab-separated list, get their protein sequences and run a multiple alignment on a subset of these sequences.

French good practice guidelines for medical and occupational surveillance of the low back pain risk among workers exposed to manual handling of loads.

Several clinical practice guidelines related to the assessment and management of low back pain (LBP) have been published with varied scopes and methods. This paper summarises the first French occupational guidelines for management of work-related LBP (October 2013). There main originality is to treat all the three stages of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of work-related LBP. The guidelines were written by a multidisciplinary working group of 24 experts, according to the Clinical Practice Guidelines method proposed by French National Health Authority, and reviewed by a multidisciplinary peer review committee of 50 experts. Recommendations were based on a large systematic review of the literature carried out from 1990 to 2012 and rated as strong (Level A), moderate (B), limited (C) or based on expert consensus (D) according to their level of evidence. It is recommended to deliver reassuring and consistent information concerning LBP prognosis (Level B); to perform a clinical examination looking for medical signs of severity related to LBP (Level A), encourage continuation or resumption of physical activity (Level A), identify any changes in working conditions and evaluate the occupational impact of LBP (Level D). In case of persistent/recurrent LBP, assess prognostic factors likely to influence progression to chronic LBP, prolonged disability and delayed return to work (Level A). In case of prolonged/repeated sick leave, evaluate the pain, functional disability and their impact and main risk factors for prolonged work disability (Level A), promote return to work measures and inter professional coordination (Level D). These good practice guidelines are primarily intended for professionals of occupational health but also for treating physicians and paramedical personnel participating in the management of LBP, workers and employers.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress-sensing mechanism is activated in Entamoeba histolytica upon treatment with nitric oxide.

The Endoplasmic Reticulum stores calcium and is a site of protein synthesis and modification. Changes in ER homeostasis lead to stress responses with an activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR). The Entamoeba histolytica endomembrane system is simple compared to those of higher eukaryotes, as a canonical ER is not observed. During amoebiasis, an infection of the human intestine and liver by E. histolytica, nitric oxide (NO) triggers an apoptotic-like event preceded by an impairment of energy production and a loss of important parasite pathogenic features. We address the question of how this ancient eukaryote responds to stress induced by immune components (i.e. NO) and whether stress leads to ER changes and subsequently to an UPR. Gene expression analysis suggested that NO triggers stress responses marked by (i) dramatic up-regulation of hsp genes although a bona fide UPR is absent; (ii) induction of DNA repair and redox gene expression and iii) up-regulation of glycolysis-related gene expression. Enzymology approaches demonstrate that NO directly inhibits glycolysis and enhance cysteine synthase activity. Using live imaging and confocal microscopy we found that NO dramatically provokes extensive ER fragmentation. ER fission in E. histolytica appears as a protective response against stress, as it has been recently proposed for neuron self-defense during neurologic disorders. Chronic ER stress is also involved in metabolic diseases including diabetes, where NO production reduces ER calcium levels and activates cell death. Our data highlighted unique cellular responses of interest to understand the mechanisms of parasite death during amoebiasis.

Retroviral interleukin 1alpha gene transfer in bone marrow stromal cells in a primate model: induction of myelopoiesis stimulation.

Effects of interleukin 1-alpha (IL-1alpha), a proinflammatory cytokine with pleiotropic activity, in the myelopoietic setting, is mainly linked to its ability to increase haematopoietic growth factor production by bone marrow stromal cells. In order to minimize systemic effects of IL-1alpha therapy, we proposed a model of retroviral IL-1alpha gene transfer within bone marrow stromal cells in the macaque cynomolgus. Invitro, 10-15% of bone marrow stromal cells was effectively transduced by retroviral vector (murine Moloney leukaemia virus-derived) expressing IL-1alpha/LacZ, or LacZ alone as control marker, as assessed by betaGal staining. IL-1alpha gene expression was upregulated [semiquantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)] within the transduced cells and the cell supernatant showed an increased production of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and granulocyte-macrophage (GM)-CSF (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) and an increased clonogenic activity (colony-forming cell assay). Ex vivo autologous expanded IL-1alpha/LacZ transduced bone marrow stromal cells were reinfused in two macaques (and two control animals for LacZ alone as controls), without clinical systemic toxicity; LacZ expression by RT-PCR was detected in one animal of each group between d 4 and 9. A slight increase of the peripheral blood leucocyte counts (both polymorphonuclear cells and monocytes) of the two animals transduced with IL-1alpha/LacZ was observed within 10 d, indicating stimulation of myelopoiesis.