Quality of life assessment using patient reported outcome (PRO) measures - still a Cinderella outcome?

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Activation of the PI3K/mTOR/AKT pathway and survival in solid tumors: systematic review and meta-analysis

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.-- et al.[Background]: Aberrations in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)/AKT pathway are common in solid tumors. Numerous drugs have been developed to target different components of this pathway. However the prognostic value of these aberrations is unclear. [Methods]: PubMed was searched for studies evaluating the association between activation of the PI3K/mTOR/AKT pathway (defined as PI3K mutation [PIK3CA], lack of phosphatase and tensin homolog [PTEN] expression by immunohistochemistry or western-blot or increased expression/activation of downstream components of the pathway by immunohistochemistry) with overall survival (OS) in solid tumors. Published data were extracted and computed into odds ratios (OR) for death at 5 years. Data were pooled using the Mantel-Haenszel random-effect model. [Results]: Analysis included 17 studies. Activation of the PI3K/mTOR/AKT pathway was associated with significantly worse 5-year survival (OR:2.12, 95% confidence intervals 1.42-3.16, p<0.001). Loss of PTEN expression and increased expression/ activation of downstream components were associated with worse survival. No association between PIK3CA mutations and survival was observed. Differences between methods for assessing activation of the PI3K/mTOR/AKT pathway were statistically significant (p = 0.04). There was no difference in the effect of up-regulation of the pathway on survival between different cancer sites (p = 0.13). [Conclusion]: Activation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, especially if measured by loss of PTEN expression or increased expression/activation of downstream components is associated with poor survival. PIK3CA mutational status is not associated with adverse outcome, challenging its value as a biomarker of patient outcome or as a stratification factor for patients treated with agents acting on the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway.Work in A.O. lab is supported by grant PI13/01444 from ISCIII and Diputación de Albacete. Work in A.P. lab is supported by the Fundación Científica de la AECC and the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BFU2012-39151) and Red Temática de Investigación Cooperativa en Cáncer. A.O. and A.P. receive support from CRIS Cancer foundation.Peer Reviewe

Transmission and survival of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii outside hospital setting

Acinetobacter baumannii origin and its epidemiology is under a great concern worldwide since this microorganism has become a leading nosocomial pathogen of the 21th century among the "ESKAPE" group of microorganisms. The aim of the study was to monitor and explore the epidemiology of this important hospital pathogen in the second largest clinical university hospital in Croatia. The presence of A. baumannii in hospital wastewater, as a route for possible transmission outside of the hospital setting, as well as its survival in environmental conditions including seawater, was investigated. During the examination period, ten both carbapenem and multidrug-resistant isolates of A. baumannii were recovered from hospital wastewater and compared to the clinical isolates originating from the same monitoring period. Multiplex PCR confirmed that four wastewater isolates harboured blaOXA-23-like, while five wastewater isolates harboured blaOXA-40-like genes sharing 100% sequence identity with blaOXA-72 sequence described in the same hospital in 2009, confirming the presence of an endemic cluster. Survival of A. baumannii in natural seawater was examined during 50 days of monitoring and to the best of our knowledge, was performed for the first time.Keywords:&nbsp;Acinetobacter baumannii &middot; hospital wastewater &middot; transmission &middot; seawate

A Study into Learning of Business and Informatics Students at University Level

This study investigates the perceptions of business and informatics students on their learning experiences at ACU National and provides a picture of this learning community

Geometric modelling of elastic and elastic-plastic solids by separation of deformation energy and Prandtl operators

A geometric method for analysis of elastic and elastic-plastic solids is proposed. It involves operators on naturally discrete domains representing a material’s microstructure, rather than the classical discretisation of domains for solving continuum boundary value problems. Discrete microstructures are considered as general cell complexes, which are circumcentre-dual to simplicial cell complexes. The proposed method uses the separation of the total deformation energy into volumetric and distortional parts as a base for introducing elastoplastic material behaviour. Volumetric parts are obtained directly from volume changes of dual cells, and the distortional parts are calculated from the distance changes between primal and dual nodes. First, it is demonstrated that the method can accurately reproduce the elastic behaviour of solids with Poisson’s ratios in the thermodynamically admissible range from -0.99 to 0.49. Further verification of the method is demonstrated by excellent agreement between analytical results and simulations of the elastic deformation of a beam subjected to a vertical displacement. Second, the Prandtl operator approach is used to simulate the behaviour of the solid during cyclic loading, considering its elastoplastic material properties. Results from simulations of cyclic behaviour during alternating and variable load histories are compared to expected macroscopic behaviour as further support to the applicability of the method to elastic-plastic problems

A Comparative Analysis of MOOC - Australia’s Position in the International Education Market

Tertiary education is one of the most important industries in Australia and a crucial source of income for its universities. Therefore, any new form of tertiary education that may have impact on Australian universities should be closely watched for implications on their business models. In the past decade, MOOC-Massive Open Online Courses have emerged with the promise to offer world class education accessible anywhere and anytime for free or at very reasonable costs. MOOC not only provide opportunities for lifelong learning, they are also designed to enrich, compliment and even (partly) substitute classic tertiary education. Hence, it is of crucial importance how and where Australia takes its stand in this rapidly evolving market. In this paper, Australia’s international position as a provider of MOOC is analysed and compared, in particular to Germany and the US

The aftermath of spanish transition to democracy: Generation X in the novel Historias del Kronen by José Ángel Mañas

No cabe duda alguna de que la transición trajo un éxito económico y político, no obstante ¿han sido todas sus consecuencias, especialmente las referentes a las cuestiones sociales, realmente favorables? Dentro de la generación de los jóvenes españoles, que no habían conocido el régimen franquista, los sociólogos han observado el surgimiento de tales problemas como la incapacidad de adaptarse a la nueva realidad, el deterioro de las relaciones familiares e interpersonales, el vacío ético-moral y, como consecuencia del último, la búsqueda de gratificación y recompensas rápidas. En este contexto, nos interesa analizar cómo y mediante qué procedimientos la novela de José Ángel Mañas, Historias delKronen (1994), calificada de emblemática de su generación, se corresponde conla nueva configuración social y en qué medida es representativa del cambio de cosmovisión, valores y modales de las y los jóvenes españoles. Para nuestros fines analíticos, hemos decidido ubicar nuestro estudio en el marco de las teorizaciones sobre la llamada “Generación X”, iniciadas en los años 60 y popularizadas gracias a la publicación de la novela Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture (1991) de Douglas Coupland.Without a doubt the Spanish transition to democracy brought enormous changes in political and material matters, nevertheless should we assume that all the consequences, especially those related to social issues, were really favorable? Among the members of the young generation, which had not had the possibility to experience Francoism personally, experts in sociology have noted the appearance of problems such as the incapacity to adjust to the new reality, the weakening of family and interpersonal relationships, the moral and ethical abyss and, as a consequence of the latter, yearning for immediate gratifications and compensations. In this context I would like to investigate how and by what means the novel by José Ángel Mañas is emblematic of the new social configuration and to what extent can we consider it representative of the changes in values, modals and general the Weltanschaung of the young Spaniards. In order to accomplish this goal, I decided to recur to the theories on the mentioned Generation X, initiated in the 60s and popularized due to the publication of a novel written by the Canadian writer, Douglas Coupland, entitled Generation X:Tales for an accelerated culture.La transition espagnole est devenue un succès économique et politique. Ses conséquences sociales ont-elle été vraiment favorables? Au sein de la génération de jeunes Espagnols qui n’ont pas connu le régime de Francisco Franco, les sociologues ont observé l’apparition de problèmes tels que l’incapacité de s’adapter à la nouvelle réalité, la détérioration des relations familiales et interpersonnelles, l’absence d’éthique et moral et, à la suite de celui-ci, la recherche de la satisfaction et de récompenses rapides. Dans ce contexte, nous voulons analyser comment et par quelles procédures le roman de José Ángel Mañas, Historias del Kronen (1994), consideré comme emblématique de sa génération, reflète le nouveau contexte social et dans quelle mesure il est représentatif du changement de la vision du monde, des valeurs et des moeurs de jeunes espagnols. Nous avons décidé de placer notre étude dans le contexte des théories sur la «Génération X», initiées dans les années 60 et popularisées par la publication de Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture (1991) de Douglas Coupland

My memories of Wojciech Kosiński

Artykuł zawiera wspomnienia autora z 59-letniej znajomości z profesorem Wojciechem Kosińskim. Autor wraca myślami do okresu studiów i wspomnień ze wspólnej wspinaczki w podkrakowskich skałkach i drugiej, wysokogórskiej, w Tatrach, a także do wędrówek po Tatrach i wspólnych wyjazdów narciarskich. Omawia wpływ gór na postawę twórczą Wojciecha Kosińskiego. Szkicuje jego sylwetkę jako architekta, naukowca i pedagoga, a także intelektualisty i człowieka o rozległych zainteresowaniach.This paper presents a collection of my memories of the fity-nine-year-long acquaintance with Professor Wojciech Kosiński. In it, I return to my university years and reminisce of our joint climbing expedition to Krakow’s Skałki and the Tatras, as well as our hiking and skiing trips, in these mountains and elsewhere. I also discuss the impact the mountains had had on Wojciech Kosiński’s artistic stance. I outline his figure as an architect, researcher and teacher, as well as an intellectual and a man of extensive interests