Uptake of UVc induced photoproducts of dipicolinic acid by Bacillus subtilis spores - Effects on the germination and UVc resistance of the spores.

Dipicolinic acid (DPA) is a specific molecule of bacterial spores which is essential to their resistance to various stresses such as ultraviolet (UV) exposure and to their germination. DPA has a particular photochemistry that remains imperfectly understood. In particular, due to its ability to absorb UVc radiation, it is likely to form in vitro a wide variety of photoproducts (DPAp) of which only about ten have been recently identified. The photochemical reactions resulting in DPAp, especially those inside the spores, are still poorly understood. Only one of these DPAp, which probably acts as a photosensitizer of DNA upon exposure to UVc, has been identified as having an impact on spores. However, as UVc is required to form DPAp, it is difficult to decouple the overall effect of UVc exposure from the possible effects of DPAp alone. In this study, DPAp were artificially introduced into the spores of the FB122 mutant strain of Bacillus subtilis, one that does not produce DPA. These experiments revealed that some DPAp may play a positive role for the spore. These benefits are visible in an improvement in spore germination rate and kinetics, as well as in an increase in their resistance to UVc exposure.

Effects of pulsed near infrared light (NIR) on Bacillus subtilis spores.

In this study, we develop a characterization of bacterial spore resistance to NIR pulsed light under modalities traditionally used in multiphoton microscopy. Energy dose and laser power are both key parameters in spore and bacterial cell inactivation. Surprisingly, spores and vegetative cells seem to show a similar sensitivity to pulsed NIR, spores being only 2-fold more resistant than their vegetative counterparts. This work enables us to eliminate certain hypotheses concerning the main driver of spore inactivation processes. Our findings suggest that damage leading to inactivation is mainly caused by photochemical reactions characterized by multiple possible pathways, including DNA damage or oxidation processes.

Vulnerability of a top marine predator to coastal storms: a relationship between hydrodynamic drivers and stranding rates of newborn pinnipeds.

Coastal storms have increased in recent decades, affecting many species, including the South American sea lion (Otaria byronia). Reports of stranded sea lion pups are becoming common in Chile, presumably due to the increase in the frequency and intensity of coastal storms. To validate this assumption, a 10-year database was built by coupling wave generation and coastal propagation models to correlate pure wave parameters (significant wave height Hs, peak period Tp, normalized wave power Hs2 Tp) and wave parameters including the tidal level (maximum surface elevation η, modified wave power η2 Tp) with records of stranded pups in Cobquecura, the largest breeding colony in central Chile. The correlation between the number of pups stranded per day and wave parameters in the first half of January and the last half of February is poor, while they are stronger for the second half of January and the first half of February. The higher number of stranded pups coincide with coastal storms with normalized wave power values exceeding a threshold of 100 m2/s. Conversely, below this threshold there is wide dispersion between the number of strandings and wave parameters. Identifying wave parameter thresholds could be used to predict when newborn pups will be most affected by coastal storms, and thus help institutions to develop remediation techniques for animals at risk.

Genetic profile of Brazilian patients with dystrophinopathies.

Different types of mutations in the DMD gene underlie Duchenne muscular dystrophies (DMD) and Becker muscular dystrophies (BMD). Large deletions and duplications are the most frequent causative genetic alterations worldwide, but little is known about DMD/BMD genetic profile in Brazil. Hence, we recruited patients with DMD and BMD from 8 neuromuscular reference centers along the country, and performed a comprehensive molecular investigation that included Multiplex Ligation-dependent Probe Amplification and Next generation sequencing (NGS) analyses. We evaluated 199 patients from 177 unrelated families: 166 with DMD, 32 with BMD and 1 1.5 years old asymptomatic patient with persistent hiperCKemia. Overall, large deletions (58.2%) followed by nonsense mutations (12.4%) and large duplications (11.3%) were the most frequent variants in Brazilian families. Large deletions were less frequent in BMD than in DMD (44.8% vs 60.8%). We identified 19 new DMD variants. Nonsense mutations were significantly more frequent in patients from northeastern region than from southern/southeastern regions of Brazil (27.7% vs 8.5%, P < .05). Genetic profile of Brazilian patients with DMD/BMD is similar to previously reported cohorts, but it is not uniform across the country. This information is important to plan rational clinical care for patients in face of the new coming mutation-specific therapies.

["Pathological intoxication."Diagnostic artefact or a reliable psychiatric diagnosis?]. / Der "pathologische Rausch." Diagnostische Fehlkonstruktion oder zuverlässige psychiatrische Diagnose?

"Pathological intoxication" has been a matter of controversial discussions during the last years. On one hand diagnosis of "pathological intoxication" in forensic expertise often is associated with the assumption of legal insanity. On the other hand it has been suggested that the term "pathological intoxication" should be abandoned in favor of more accurate clinical diagnosis, and recently "alcoholic idiosyncratic intoxication" was canceled as a separate diagnosis in DSM-IV. In order to register the diagnostic habits connected with "pathological intoxication" we had sent a questionnaire to all psychiatric institutes (n = 541) in Germany. We were then able to evaluate 338 questionnaires (62.5%) relating to number of diagnoses and diagnostic criteria. In synopsis diagnostic habits turned out to be very inhomogeneous. Nearly two third of psychiatric institutes reported not to have used the diagnostic category between 1991 and 1993, whereas nearly 50% of diagnoses (210 out of 456) were reported by only 13 (3.9%) institutes. Diagnosis of "pathological intoxication" is based predominantly on vague and non-distinct criteria, such as "violent excitation" or "strange unusual behavior". In accordance to DSM-IV we therefore suggest that the diagnostic term "pathological intoxication" should be abandoned, especially in the context of forensic psychiatric expertise. Instead, assessment of intoxication must be based on individual somatic and psychopathological symptoms.

[The concept of "compensation neurosis" in psychiatric expertise]. / Grundlagen der psychiatrischen Begutachtung sogenannter "Rentenneurosen".

The concept of "compensation neurosis" in German civil and social law is subject to controversial considerations. Despite long-standing discussions it still remains unclear, whether "compensation neurosis" means a genuine psychiatric disorder, or whether it merely stands for a person who claims unjustified demands after having suffered a traumatic situation. The term "compensation neurosis" therefore is not to be used as a diagnosis in psychiatric expertise. Diagnosis should be made according to ICD-10 or DSM-IV-criteria. The patient's psychic and psychosocial impairments must be related to the severity of his trauma and to the history of his pretraumatic and posttraumatic psychic symptoms. To help estimate posttraumatic financial compensation a complete psychopathological and psychodynamic examination with detailed assessments of individual psychic impairments is essential in psychiatric expertise.

[Quality criteria in psychiatric expert practice]. / Qualitätskriterien in der psychiatrischen Begutachtungspraxis.

Aspects of quality control are of significant importance in the field of psychiatric expertise. Better transparency and reliability should be aimed at. Formal quality criteria refer to organization, duration and extent of psychiatric exploration. Diagnosis should be made according to DSM-III-R or ICD-10 criteria. Estimation of individual degree of disability is necessary. Patients with neurotic or personality disorder require particular experience and qualification. Psychodynamic aspects of expert-patient-interaction should receive special attention. Limits of psychiatric expertise must be outlined.

[Comparison of the pharmacokinetics of a quick-release bezafibrate formulation with a sustained-release formulation. 1. Single-dose administration]. / Vergleich der Pharmakokinetik einer schnellfreisetzenden Bezafibrat-Formulierung mit einer Retard-Formulierung. 1. Mitteilung: Single-dose-Applikation.

Comparison of the Pharmacokinetic Profiles of a Quick and a Sustained Release Bezafibrate Formulation/1st Communication: Single-dose application The hypolipaemic agent bezafibrate (CAS 41859-67-0) is available as immediate and sustained release formulation. The pharmacokinetic profile of an immediate release 300 mg dragee (A) was compared in a two-way cross-over design to that of a 400 mg sustained release dragee (B). Neglecting the dose difference, the AUEC of A (28.8 micrograms/ml.h) was equal to that of B (27.6 micrograms/ml.h), whereas the bioavailability of A appeared to be higher than that of B when AUEC was corrected for dose (AUEC ratio = 137%). Regarding Cmax and tmax, both formulations exhibited the expected differences.