The LGBTQ+ People-Animal Bond: A Systematic Review of the Effects of Companion Animals on LGBTQ+ People.

LGBTQ+ people tend to experience prejudice, stigma, and discrimination, which increases their risk of developing mental health difficulties. Support networks, including companion animals, can be used to cope with these challenges. We performed a systematic review of studies related to the effects of human-animal interactions on the LGBTQ+ population. The review included 18 empirical studies; the findings showed that participants tended to view companion animals as family members, as well as providers of love, acceptance, and social support. Thus, companion animals could alleviate stress and increase resilience. However, certain costs were also cited and, under some circumstances, poorer health was observed. The results are discussed considering three unique aspects of the "LGBTQ+ people-animal bond": (1) it promotes self-acceptance, (2) provides a sense of protection against sexuality-based stigma and social acts of aggression based on sex or gender, and (3) exposes animal guardians requesting animal care services to potential discrimination. By characterizing the LGBTQ+ people-animal bond, more effective responses to meet their needs and promote inclusion may be achieved.

Avaliação da ação de uma virose na produção e qualidade de tubérculos de batata-doce / Action evaluation of a virus on yield and quality of sweet potato tubers

O oeste do estado de São Paulo responde por cerca de 40% da produção estadual de batata-doce, mesmo sem a adoção, pelos agricultores da região, de tecnologias fundamentais para o aumento da produtividade. Este trabalho avaliou o impacto de viroses sobre variáveis da produção de batata-doce. O experimento foi conduzido em área comercial no município de Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brasil, utilizando plantas de Ipomoea batatas L, grupo rosada, cv. Canadense. Como material de propagação foram utilizadas mudas livres de vírus produzidas em viveiros e mudas originadas de lavoura comercial infectada por vírus. Na colheita foram demarcadas três parcelas de 10 x 4 m em cada uma das metades do campo (com e sem vírus), quando se avaliou, aleatoriamente, número, massa, comprimento e diâmetro dos tubérculos de dez plantas localizadas na área central de cada parcela. As parcelas sem vírus produziram cerca de 50% a mais e o dobro em massa (kg) de tubérculos colhidos em relação aos provenientes das parcelas com vírus. Os tubérculos obtidos das plantas não infectadas apresentaram maior massa (p < 0,01), comprimento (p < 0,01) e diâmetro médio (p < 0,05) do que os colhidos das plantas infectadas. Foi constatada também uma frequência de 65% de tubérculos com classificação 2A (150 a 299 g) para o grupo rosada-CEAGESP, que representa 70% do volume comercializado no CEAGESP, o que confere maior lucratividade ao produtor.(AU)

The Western region of São Paulo State, Brazil, is responsible for approximately 40% of the production of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) in the state, even under low-technology. The study aimed to evaluate the impact of viruses on sweet potato production variables. The experiment was conducted in Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brazil, in a commercial sweet potato crop of pink group, cv. Canadense, with and without virus. In three randomly chosen plots of 10 x 4 m in each half of the field (with and without virus), ten central plants were randomly collected. The number, weight, length and diameter were evaluated. The plots without virus produced 50% more tubers and 100% more weight during harvesting. Tubers obtained from virus-free seedlings showed a greater mass (p < 0.01), height (p < 0.01) and mean diameter (p < 0.05) than those harvested from infected plants. From free-of-virus seedlings, 65% of tubers were classified as 2A (150 to 299 g), the standard that represents 70% of the trading volume at a Food Market place, which provides greater profitability to the producer.(AU)

Procesos de control ejecutivo en la enfermedad de Alzheimer / Executive control processes in Alzheimer’s disease

El control ejecutivo (CE) es un mecanismo complejo compuesto por distintos subprocesos y vinculado al funcionamiento del lóbulo frontal. En los últimos años se ha generado una gran cantidad de investigación sobre los déficit de control ejecutivo (CE) en pacientes con enfermedad de Alzheimer (EA). Este análisis resulta de gran interés porque, por una parte, estudios recientes han observado precisamente alteraciones en regiones frontales en estos pacientes, y por otra parte, porque sus manifestaciones clínicas y conductuales en el inicio de la enfermedad están relacionadas con la afectación del CE. En este artículo se revisa detalladamente la evidencia existente sobre la afectación de los subprocesos del CE al inicio de la EA, determinando si habría un deterioro generalizado o disociaciones entre los componentes, así como sus posibles implicaciones básicas y aplicadas (AU)

It has been recently proposed that executive control (EC) is composed by different subprocesses. In recent times, EC deficits in Alzheimer’s disease patients (AD) have been widely investigated. This analysis is very interesting because, on the one hand, recent studies have observed frontal lobe alterations on these demented patients, and on the other hand, Alzheimer’s disease clinical and behavioural manifestations could be explained by the involvement of EC. This paper discusses in detail the possible involvement of EC subprocesses at the beginning of AD, determining if there would be a widespread decline or dissociations between components and their basic and clinical implications (AU)

Baseline characteristics of patients with chronic kidney disease stage 3 and stage 4 in Spain: the MERENA observational cohort study.

BACKGROUND: To obtain information on cardiovascular morbidity, hypertension control, anemia and mineral metabolism based on the analysis of the baseline characteristics of a large cohort of Spanish patients enrolled in an ongoing prospective, observational, multicenter study of patients with stages 3 and 4 chronic kidney diseases (CKD). METHODS: Multicenter study from Spanish government hospital-based Nephrology outpatient clinics involving 1129 patients with CKD stages 3 (n = 434) and 4 (n = 695) defined by GFR calculated by the MDRD formula. Additional analysis was performed with GFR calculated using the CKD-EPI and Cockcroft-Gault formula. RESULTS: In the cohort as a whole, median age 70.9 years, morbidity from all cardiovascular disease (CVD) was very high (39.1%). In CKD stage 4, CVD prevalence was higher than in stage 3 (42.2 vs 35.6% p < 0.024). Subdividing stage 3 in 3a and 3b and after adjusting for age, CVD increased with declining GFR with the hierarchy (stage 3a < stage 3b < stage 4) when calculated by CKD-EPI (31.8, 35.4, 42.1%, p 0.039) and Cockcroft-Gault formula (30.9, 35.6, 43.4%, p 0.010) and MDRD formula (32.5, 36.2, 42.2%,) but with the latter, it did not reach statistical significance (p 0.882). Hypertension was almost universal among those with stages 3 and 4 CKD (91.2% and 94.1%, respectively) despite the use of more than 3 anti-hypertensive agents including widespread use of RAS blockers. Proteinuria (> 300 mg/day) was present in more than 60% of patients and there was no significant differences between stages 3 and 4 CKD (1.2 ± 1.8 and 1.3 ± 1.8 g/day, respectively). A majority of the patients had hemoglobin levels greater than 11 g/dL (91.1 and 85.5% in stages 3 and 4 CKD respectively p < 0.001) while the use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) was limited to 16 and 34.1% in stages 3 and 4 CKD respectively. Intact parathyroid hormone (i-PTH) was elevated in stage 3 and stage 4 CKD patients (121 ± 99 and 166 ± 125 pg/mL p 0.001) despite good control of calcium-phosphorus levels. CONCLUSION: This study provides an overview of key clinical parameters in patients with CKD Stages 3 and 4 where delivery or care was largely by nephrologists working in a network of hospital-based clinics of the Spanish National Healthcare System.

Proteomic analysis of plasma in the polycystic ovary syndrome identifies novel markers involved in iron metabolism, acute-phase response, and inflammation.

CONTEXT: Hypothesis-free approaches such as proteomic analysis may identify novel biomarkers for disease. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to compare the plasma proteome of patients presenting with the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) with that of women without hyperandrogenism. DESIGN: This was a case-control study. SETTINGS: The study was conducted at an academic hospital. PATIENTS: Patients included 12 PCOS patients and 12 women without hyperandrogenism. INTERVENTIONS: Interventions included basal blood sampling. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Two-dimensional difference in-gel electrophoresis, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry, Western blot, and ELISA analyses were measured. RESULTS: Two-dimensional difference in-gel electrophoresis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry analyses identified haptoglobin beta-chain and alpha2-macroglobulin as proteins underexpressed in PCOS samples, whereas transferrin and kappa-free light chain were overexpressed. We were able to confirm only the underexpression of haptoglobin beta-chain in subsequent Western blot and ELISA analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Proteomic analysis of plasma from PCOS patients revealed changes in protein expression in several acute-phase response proteins including isoforms of plasma haptoglobin, alpha2-macroglobulin, and transferrin and in kappa-free light chain. In addition to their role as inflammatory markers, some of these molecules play major roles in iron metabolism, further suggesting that iron metabolism and low-grade chronic inflammation may be involved in the pathogenesis of insulin-resistant disorders such as PCOS.

Peripheral arterial disease in patients with stages IV and V chronic renal failure.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disorders are frequently found among chronic renal failure (CRF) patients due to their higher susceptibility to develop atherosclerosis. However, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), that is associated with a high mortality rate, is not usually assessed in these patients. The aims of this study are to find out the prevalence of PAD affecting lower limbs in a population of CRF patients in stages IV/V, and to assess how much PAD determines the 5-year patient survival. METHODS: The study population (44 males and 29 females) was aged 58 +/- 15 years. They suffered from advanced CRF (18.6 +/- 6.1 ml/min creatinine clearance), but they were not on dialysis. These patients were sequentially referred initially to the predialysis unit over a period of 14 months. The vascular lesions were assessed by carotid and transcranial ultrasound, as well as by ankle-brachial index test (ABI). Routine 24 h blood and urine laboratory tests were performed for each patient. Cardiovascular morbidity and cardiovascular disease risk factors were evaluated through personal interview. RESULTS: Fourteen patients had an ABI index of less than 0.91 (PAD indicative), 11 of them also suffered from intermittent claudication. PAD affected significantly more males (P = 0.001) and diabetics (P = 0.001). Also, PAD prevalence was significantly higher in patients with a previous clinical record of coronary heart disease (P = 0.001), increased clinical record of cerebrovascular disease (P = 0.005), a thickness of the left ventricular posterior wall (P = 0.03) and lower cardiac ejection fraction (P = 0.02). PAD patients had a significantly different protein intake (P = 0.003), calcium-phosphorus product (P = 0.001), risk of coronary heart disease based on the Framingham score (P = 0.001) and 5-year survival rate (P = 0.004). There were no significant differences for PAD patients in terms of body mass index, creatinine clearance, lipid profile, Ca and P. Multivariate risk factor analysis revealed that a previous clinical record of coronary heart disease and diabetes increased the risk of developing PAD, as defined by ABI < 0.91. After 5 years, 21 patients (29%) had died: 64% of patients that suffered PAD (9/14) and 20% of the non-PAD population (12/59). The Cox proportional hazards model demonstrated that older age and a lower ABI increased the risk of death. CONCLUSIONS: The present study, conducted on CRF patients in stages IV and V not undergoing dialysis, showed; (a) that a high percentage of these patients developed PAD (19%) or other vascular pathologies; (b) that there was an associated high mortality rate (29%) after 5 years; (c) that the 5-year mortality rate was significantly higher (P = 0.004) in PAD patients (64 vs 20%).