Syntactic and emotional interplay in second language: emotional resonance but not proficiency modulates affective influences on L2 syntactic processing.

Previous research has demonstrated the influence of emotions during linguistic processing, indicating the interactivity of both processes in the brain. However, little is known regarding such interplay in a second language (L2). This study addressed this question by examining the reading effects of syntactic violations while processing L2 emotional and neutral statements. Forty-six Spanish-English bilinguals with various levels of L2 proficiency and emotional resonance (i.e. capability for emotional experience in L2) were presented with a self-paced sentence reading task. Sentences contained positive (16), neutral (16) and negative (16) verbs, half of them presented in agreement and half in disagreement with the preceding pronoun. Analysis of verb reading times using linear mixed effects modelling revealed a significant interaction between syntactic violation, verb valence and emotional resonance, suggesting that stronger emotional L2 experience results in a higher saliency of negative verbs, reducing the impact of syntactic violations.

Multiple paraganglioma in a female patient: review of genetic features.

We report the case of a female patient who presented with symptoms of catecholamine excess. Urinary catecholamines were elevated. Radiologic tests were compatible with paraganglioma. High parathyroid hormone and gastrin values were also detected, which excluded multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 and 2. Finally, the patient was diagnosed with multiple paraganglioma. This entity is associated with mutations in the SDHB-C-D genes. An SDHD mutation was found in our patient. The genetic bases, mutations, genotypephenotype associations, and tumorigenesis of SDH are currently being studied. The present article provides a review of the most recent data.

Enterobacterias productoras de betalactamasas de espectro extendido aisladas de pacientes ambulatorios y hospitalizados en un laboratorio privado de Asunción / Extended spectrum β lactamases producing Enterobacteriaceae isolated from outpatient and hospitalized patients in a private laboratory in Asunción, Paraguay

Entre los mecanismos de resistencia en Enterobacteriaceae, las ß-lactamasas de espectro extendido (BLEE) juegan un papel de gran importancia. Estas enzimas confieren resistencia a penicilinas, cefalosporinas de primera, segunda y tercera generación y al aztreonam y por su naturaleza plasmídica se diseminan con mucha facilidad. El presente estudio observacional, descriptivo de corte trasverso tuvo como objetivo determinar la frecuencia de enterobacterias productoras de BLEE en pacientes ambulatorios e internados del Laboratorio San Roque de septiembre a noviembre de 2012. La identificación bacteriana fue realizada por métodos convencionales y la determinación de BLEE por dos métodos fenotípicos; sinergismo de doble disco y el de disco combinado. De los 481 aislados, 88,1% era proveniente de pacientes ambulatorios y 11,9% de internados; resultó predominante Escherichia coli, seguido por Klebsiella pneumoniae. Fue confirmada la producción de BLEE por ambos métodos en 47 enterobacterias, 9,8%. Entre estas K. pneumoniae produjo BLEE con mayor frecuencia 30,8%, seguida de E coli, 6,6%. Todas las cepas productoras de BLEE aisladas en este estudio presentaron actividad cefotaximasa. La frecuencia obtenida es menor a lo reportado en países vecinos, lo que podría deberse a que la mayoría de los aislamientos provinieron de pacientes ambulatorios. Coincidente con estudios realizados en Latinoamérica, K. pneumoniae fue la productora de BLEE con mayor frecuencia y la acción de las BLEEs fue preferentemente sobre las cefotaximas. Si bien la cifra de BLEE encontrada no es alta, se debe insistir en tomar medidas para lograr la reducción de la frecuencia, considerando las graves implicancias que tiene la presencia de esta enzima.

Among resistance mechanisms of enterobacteriaceae, the production of ExtendedSpectrum Betalactamases (ESBL) plays an important role. These enzimes are capable ofinactivating, apart from penicillins, first and second generation cephalosporins, oxyiminocephalosporinsand aztreonam, and because of their plasmidic nature, they spread easily.We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive observational study. The objective was todetermine the frequency of ESBL producing enterobacteriaceae in outpatient andhospitalized patients at the San Roque laboratory from September to November 2012. Microbiological ESBL detection was performed by the double-disk synergy and combineddisk tests. Among 481 clinical isolates of Enterobacteriaceae, 88.1% was from outpatientsand 11.9% from hospitalized patients. Escherichia coli was predominant, followed byKlebsiella pneumoniae. ESBL production was confirmed by both methods in 47enterobacteriaceae, 9.8%. Among these, the most frequent producer of ESBL was K.pneumoniae 30.8% followed by E. coli, 6.6%. All ESBL-producing enterobacteriacea in thisstudy presented cefotaximase activity. The frequency obtained is lower than rates reportedin neighboring countries, which could be explained by the fact that most of the isolates werefrom outpatients. Like other studies in Latin America, ESBL- producing K. pneumoniae wasmore frequent and the action of ESBLs was mainly on cefotaximase. While the number ofESBL found is not high, we should insist on taking steps towards reducing the frequency,considering the serious implications of the presence of this enzyme.