In the present study physicochemical characterization of slate sample was carried out which was collected from slate mine in Lasbela District, Baluchistan. Slate was evaluated for its effectiveness as partial replacement of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) in the production of Portland Pozzolana cement (PPC). The grain size analysis of crushed slate sample using ball mill revealed that maximum fraction retained on 44 μm was about 72.8 %. Sum of the major oxides (SiO2 + Al2O3 + Fe2O3) is about 90.09 % that meet the requirement as per ASTM C 618 (minimum 70.0 %). Other oxides including SO3 (<0.05), CaO (4.04), MgO (1.66), K2O (0.10), Na2O (0.16), TiO2 (0.35), MnO (<0.02) and Cl (0.12) also meet the international standard of ASTM C 618 for PPC. OPC without and with using slate sample in a ratio of 5 % and 10 % with clinker was tested to measure compressive strength, physical tests and setting time. The results showed that after 5 % and 10 % replacement, insignificant effect was observed on the physical properties, setting time and compressive strength in 2-, 7- and 28-days curing. Hence, slate can be used as natural pozzolan for manufacturing PPC. It is cost effective for the production of cement as well as to sustain the resources of limestone for long time and reducing emission of CO2 in the environment. It can also be used in the sulfate rich environment, coastal areas especially for the construction of dams and bridges.
The majority of the conservation strategies for threatened dragonflies are designed to protect only their aquatic habitats. Sympetrum depressiusculum is a species threatened not only by the destruction of its aquatic habitats but also by its association with a specific terrestrial environment. In this study, we aimed to identify the key elements of the terrestrial environment of adult S. depressiusculum. We used generalized linear mixed models to determine habitat preferences of adults and the particular features of habitat patches, such as vegetation cover, vegetation structure and the availability of potential prey. Our results indicate that S. depressiusculum adults preferred mainly riparian vegetation but beyond ponds they utilized only certain terrestrial habitats (abandoned fields, meadows, forest clearings). Adults responded positively to habitat patches with a high cover of vegetation and suitable vegetation structure. Adult abundance was affected also by the distance of patches from the natal site. In an agricultural landscape, the availability of such habitat patches may be limited and could influence the abundance and distribution of this species. We suggest that conservation efforts for this species should not only focus on the larval environment but also include suitable surrounding terrestrial habitats. Effective management around natal sites should concentrate on maintaining a heterogeneous landscape, which is extensively managed (e.g. leaving several fields fallow, maintaining managed hay meadows)., Michal Hykel, Filip Harabiš, Aleš Dolný., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Toxoplasmosis is one of the world's most prevalent zoonoses. The causative agent, Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908) is a facultative heteroxenic, polyxenic apicomplexan protist. There are several potential pathways of transmission within and between host species. Most infections with T. gondii result from close contact with pets/cats, ingestion of tissue cysts in undercooked meat of infected animals, and oocysts from food or water contaminated by feline faeces. Recently, epidemiological studies have shown that T. gondii infection plays a prominent role in the pathogenesis of several psychiatric disorders. This report reviews the association between T. gondii infection and patients with psychiatric disorders, particularly schizophrenia, depressive disorders and bipolar disorders.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between various clinical aspects of schizophrenia and seropositivity against Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908). We selected 94 patients with schizophrenia and investigated the seropositivity rate for anti-T. gondii IgG antibodies by ELISA. Clinical parameters of schizophrenic patients such as illness type and status, clinical course, awareness of the illness and need for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) were compared with their serological status. Anti-T. gondii IgG antibodies were detected in 43 (46%) of schizophrenic patients. Chronic patients had a rate of 34 (72%) seropositivity, whereas 9 (22%) of the patients with partial remission showed evidence of latent toxoplasmosis. Of continuous patients, 35 (81%) were found to be seropositive and this rate was significantly more than in the other groups. The rate of latent toxoplasmosis was detected significantly higher in patients who lack awareness of schizophrenia (36, i.e. 72%) than the patients who were aware of their illnesses (7, i.e. 16%). Anti-T. gondii IgG antibodies were detected in 38 (70%) of ECT performed patients while this percentage was 13% in the ones who had never been treated with ECT. This difference was also statistically significant. We showed that Toxoplasma-infected subjects had 15× higher probability of having continuous course of disease than Toxoplasma-free subjects. Our results put forth the possibility of latent toxoplasmosis to have a negative impact on the course of schizophrenia and treatment response of schizophrenic patients., Tuncay Çelik, Şükrü Kartalci, Özgür Aytaş, Gülay Aral Akarsu, Harika Gözükara, Süheyla Ünal., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The ascarid nematodes Toxocara canis (Werner, 1782) and Toxocara cati (Schrank, 1788) may infect humans resulting in toxocariasis. A prior study associated species of Toxocara Stiles, 1905 with cognitive deficits in children. To determine if a similar association between toxocariasis and cognition exists in adults, we analysed a large dataset from the United States' Center for Disease Control's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We used linear-regression and multivariate models to examine the association between toxocariasis as assessed by the presence of anti-Toxocara IgG antibodies and three measures of cognitive function - simple reaction time (SRT), symbol-digit substitution (SDS) and serial-digit learning (SDL) in 4 279 adults aged 21 to 59 years. Toxocara seroprevalence did not vary with age or blood-lead concentration but did vary with gender, ethnicity, educational attainment and poverty-to-income ratio. Controlling for gender, age, blood-lead concentration, educational attainment, ethnic background and the poverty-to-income ratio, we found that toxocariasis predicted worse performance on the SDS but not on the SRT or the SDL. Moreover, there were significant interactions between toxocariasis and age, gender and educational attainment. In conclusion, toxocariasis appears to be associated with decreased cognitive function. Interactions between toxocariasis and gender, age and educational attainment further suggest that certain groups may be more susceptible than others to the cognitive dysfunction associated with toxocariasis in adults., Lance D. Erickson, Shawn D. Gale, Andrew Berrett, Bruce L. Brown, Dawson W. Hedges., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The nematodes Toxocara canis (Werner, 1782) and Toxocara cati (Schrank, 1788) have been associated with worse human cognitive function in children and middle-aged adults. In this study, we sought to determine the association between Toxocara seropositivity and serointensity determined by detection of IgG antibodies against the Toxocara antigen recombinant Tc-CTL-1 and cognitive function in older adults, including approximately 1,350 observations from the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Mean fluorescence intensity was used to quantify IgG antibodies against the Toxocara recombinant Tc-CTL-1 antigen, and respondents were considered positive at values greater than 23.1. In adjusted models from sample sizes ranging from 1,274 to 1,288 depending on the individual cognitive task, we found that Toxocara seropositivity was associated with worse performance on the animal-fluency task (b = -1.245, 95% CI: -2.392 to -0.099, P< 0.05) and the digit-symbol coding task (b = -5.159, 95% CI: -8.337 to -1.980, P< 0.001). Toxocara serointensity assessed using log-transformed mean fluorescence intensity as a continuous variable was associated with worse performance on the digit-symbol coding task (b = -1.880, 95% CI: -2.976 to -0.783, P < 0.001). There were no significant associations with tasks assessing memory. Further, age modified the association between Toxocara and cognitive function, although sex, educational attainment, and income did not. These findings suggest that Toxocara might be associated with deficits in executive function and processing speed in older U.S. adults, although additional research is required to better describe cognitive function in older adults who are seropositive for Toxocara spp.
The endothelin system may play a role in the pathogenesis of vasovagal syncope (VVS) because it is implicated in blood pressure regulation. We hypothesized that endothelin-related genetic polymorphisms might modulate susceptibility to VVS. This study aimed to evaluate the possible influence of endothelin-1 (EDN1) and endothelin receptor A (EDNRA) gene variants on the occurrence of tilt-induced VVS and autonomic nervous system activity during the head-up tilt test (HUT). Results were expressed as mean ± SEM. In 254 patients with recurrent syncope (age 45.33±1.22 years, 94 males, 160 females), heart rate variability (HRV) was measured during HUT. EDN1 rs5370 G>T and EDNRA rs5333 T>C gene polymorphisms were assessed using high-resolution melting analysis. There was no statistically significant association between polymorphisms EDN1 rs5370 and EDNRA rs5333 and positivity of HUT or hemodynamic types of VVS. Patients with GT or TT genotypes at the rs5370 locus of the EDN1 had significantly higher values of high-frequency (HF) and the standard deviation of the average NN intervals at the time of the syncope, and they tended to have lower low-frequency (LF) and LF/HF ratio when compared to homozygotes (GG). No statistically significant differences were found in HRV parameters concerning the EDNRA rs5333 genotypes. Our findings suggest the potential role of EDN1 rs5370 variants in regulating autonomic nervous activity and pathogenesis of VVS.
Objectives.Religiosity and spirituality (R/S) are associated with many dimensions of human life and could contribute to one’s self-esteem; how-ever, there is no certainty that this is also appli-cable to non-religious countries. Therefore, the aim of the study was to explore the association of different aspects of R/S with self-esteem in a secular environment.Participants and setting.An online sample of 464 Czech respondents aged 15 and over (mean age 30.7; SD=12.63; 27.2% men) participated in the survey. Self-esteem, religiosity, religious attendance, frequency of prayer, negative re-ligious coping, image of God and spirituality were measured. Results. Regular prayer, spirituality (per stan-dard deviation, SD), a low level of religious struggles (per SD) and a positive God image (per SD) were associated with higher self-esteem, with odds ratios ranging from 1.28 to 2.16 (p˂0.05 to p˂0.001). In contrast, compared to non-religious respondents, religious respon-dents had an approximately 60% lower chance of having a high level of self-esteem (p˂0.05). However, a combination of R and S showed that while religious/spiritual respondents did not dif-fer significantly from non-religious respondents, religious/non-spiritual respondents had approxi-mately 79% lower chance of having good self-esteem (p˂0.001).Study limitations.The main limitation of this study is that it did not reach a representative sample, which limits the generalizability of the findings to the whole population. This is also the first study using this kind of research approach, which, however, limits the interpretation of re-sults. Moreover, it is a cross-sectional study, so any conclusions on causality cannot be made, and the questionnary used only self-report mea-sures, which could be influenced by a social de-sirability bias. and Cíle. Religiozita a spiritualita (R/S) jsou spojeny s mnoha oblastmi lidského života a mohou mít pozitivní vliv i na lidskou sebeúctu. Přesto není jisté, zda je větší intenzita náboženského a spirituálního prožívání spojena s vyšší sebe-úctou i v ateistických zemích. Cílem studie bylo zkoumat vztahy různých aspektů R/S v sekulárním prostředí. Soubor. Výzkumný vzorek tvořilo 464 českých respondentů starších 15 let (průměrný věk 30,7 let; SD = 12,63; 27,2 % muži). Prostřednictvím online dotazníku byla měřena sebeúcta, religiozita, náboženská účast, četnost modlitby, míra náboženských zápasů, obraz Boha a spiritualita. Výsledky. Pravidelná modlitba, spiritualita (SD), nižší míra náboženských zápasů (SD) a pozitiv-ní obraz Boha (SD) byly spojeny s vyšší sebe-úctou, s odds ratio v rozmezí od 1,28 do 2,16 (p ˂ 0,05 až p ˂ 0,001). Oproti těm nereligiózním měli religiózní respondenti přibližně o 60 % nižší šanci mít vyšší úroveň sebeúcty (p ˂ 0,05). Kombinace R a S ukázala, že zatímco religiózní, ale nespirituální respondenti se od těch nereligiózních v míře sebeúcty výrazně nelišili, religiózní, ale nespirituální respondenti měli přibližně o 79 % nižší pravděpodobnost dobré sebeúcty (p ˂ 0,001). Omezení studie. Tato studie nepracuje s reprezentativním vzorkem populace a výsledky se tudíž nedají zobecnit na celkovou populaci. Jedná se o první studii užívající tento přístup, což ztěžuje interpretaci výsledků. Navíc se jedná o průřezovou studii, nelze tedy dělat závěry ohledně kauzality a studie využívala pouze sebehodnotící dotazníky, které mohou být zkresleny tendencí odpovídat sociálně žádoucím způsobem.
Autonomic nervous system (ANS) disorders are common in multiple sclerosis (MS). Previous studies showed differences in insulin resistance (IR) and lipoprotein levels in MS subjects compared to controls. Lipolysis caused by increased sympathetic activity could be one of the possible linking mechanisms leading to dyslipidemia in MS. Our study aimed to evaluate ANS activity in the context of glucose and lipid metabolism in people with MS. We prospectively measured short-term heart rate variability (HRV), fasting lipoprotein concentrations, and calculated IR indices based on plasma glucose and insulin levels during oral glucose tolerance test (oGTT) in 32 patients with MS and 29 healthy controls matched for age, sex and body mass index in our study. There was no significant difference in HRV parameters and lipoprotein levels between MS and controls. A significant positive correlation was found between low/high-frequency power ratio (LF/HF) and triglycerides (r=0.413, p=0.021) in MS subjects but not in controls. A significantly lower whole-body insulin sensitivity index (ISIMat) was found in patients with MS compared to the control group (7.3±3.7 vs. 9.8±5.6, p=0.041). No significant correlations were found between LF/HF and IR parameters. In MS subjects, the positive correlation of LF/HF with triglycerides could reflect the effects of sympathetic activity on lipolysis. Positive correlations of sympathetic activity with increased lipoprotein levels could rather reflect processes associated with immune system activation/inflammation, than processes involved in glucose homeostasis maintenance.
Objectives. This study aims to expand previous research findings by focusing on the mechanism of the frustration and satisfaction of basic psy-chological needs that links parental psychologi-cal control and autonomy support to the drive for thinness as an indicator of disordered eating among early adolescent boys and girls in Slo-vakia. Participants and setting. 443 pupils (47.6% girls) reported on the explored variables in a cross-sectional data collection. Hypotheses. The drive for thinness was hypoth-esised to be (1) negatively associated with the satisfaction of basic psychological needs and (2) positively associated with the frustration of basic psychological needs. Autonomy support from the mother (3) and father (4) was hypoth-esised to be positively related to basic psycho-logical needs satisfaction. Psychological control from the mother (5) and father (6) was hypothe-sised to be positively linked to basic psychologi-cal needs frustration. Autonomy support from the mother (7) and father (8) and psychological control from the mother (9) and father (10) were also hypothesised to be indirectly associated with the drive for thinness. Statistical analysis. Structural equation model-ling was carried out and the model was found to be statistically equivalent for boys and girls.Results. The psychological control from the mother was significantly associated with the frustration of basic psychological needs, which was subsequently associated with the drive for thinness. Autonomy support from the mother and father significantly positively explained the satisfaction of basic psychological needs. Limitations. The mediation model was tested using a cross-sectional design. However, the temporal ordering of the examined variables is clear. Furthermore, while the used measures are standardized and widely used abroad, their vali-dation in the population of Slovak adolescents is needed. Other inaccuracies could have been caused by the exclusion of the part of the sample from the analyses and the self-reporting nature of the data. and Cieľ.Táto štúdia presahuje zistenia predošlých výskumov zameraním sa na mechanizmus frustrácie a naplnenia základných psychologic-kých potrieb, ktorý spája rodičovskú psycholo-gickú kontrolu a podporu autonómie s túžbou po štíhlosti, ktorá je indikátorom dysfunkčného stravovania u chlapcov a dievčat v ranej adoles-cencii.Súbor a výskumný dizajn. 443 žiakov (47,6 % dievčatá) zo Slovenska poskytlo informácie ohľadne skúmaných premenných pomocou prierezového zberu dát. Hypotézy. Na základe aktuálneho stavu poznania autori predpokladali, že túžba po štíhlosti bude (1) negatívne asociovaná s naplnením zák-ladných psychologických potrieb a (2) pozitívne asociovaná s frustráciou základných psycholo-gických potrieb. Ďalej predpokladali, že podpo-ra autonómie (3) zo strany matky a (4) otca bude pozitívne asociovaná s naplnením základných psychologických potrieb. Tiež sa predpoklada-lo, že psychologická kontrola (5) matky a (6) otca bude pozitívne asociovaná s frustráciou zá-kladných psychologických potrieb. Napokon sa očakávalo, že podpora autonómie (7) zo strany matky a (8) otca a psychologická kontrola (9) zo strany matky a (10) otca budú v nepriamom vzťahu s túžbou po štíhlosti. Štatistické analýzy. Bolo realizované modelova-nie pomocou štrukturálnych rovníc a model bol štatisticky ekvivalentný pre chlapcov aj dievča-tá. Výsledky. Psychologická kontrola matky bola signifikantne asociovaná s frustráciou základ-ných psychologických potrieb, ktorá bola ná-sledne asociovaná s túžbou po štíhlosti. Podpora autonómie zo strany matky aj otca vysvetľovala naplnenie základných psychologických potrieb.Limity. Po prvé, mediačný model bol testovaný použitím prierezového dizajnu. Avšak časové usporiadanie skúmaných premenných je zrejmé. Po druhé, hoci sú používané metodiky štandar-dizované a široko používané v zahraničí, je po-trebná ich validácia aj v populácii slovenských adolescentov. Napokon nepresnosti mohli byť spôsobené aj vylúčením časti vzorky z analýz a seba posudzujúcim charakterom údajov.