Background: Infection with the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) is a widespread transmittable disease with a diagnosed prevalence of 2.0%. Fortunately, it is now curable in most patients. Sales of medicines to treat HCV infection grew 2.7% per year between 2004 and 2011, enhanced by the launch of the protease inhibitors (PIs) boceprevir (BCV) and telaprevir (TVR) in addition to ribavirin and pegylated interferon (pegIFN). Costs will continue to rise with new treatments including sofosbuvir, which now include interferon free regimens. Objective: Assess the uptake of BCV and TVR across Europe from a health authority perspective to offer future guidance on dealing with new high cost medicines. Methods: Cross-sectional descriptive study of medicines to treat HCV (pegIFN, ribavirin, BCV and TVR) among European countries from 2008 to 2013. Utilization measured in defined daily doses (DDDs)/1000 patients/quarter (DIQs) and expenditure in Euros/DDD. Health authority activities to influence treatments categorized using the 4E methodology (Education, Engineering, Economics and Enforcement). Results: Similar uptake of BCV and TVR among European countries and regions, ranging from 0.5 DIQ in Denmark, Netherlands and Slovenia to 1.5 DIQ in Tayside and Catalonia in 2013. However, different utilization of the new PIs vs. ribavirin indicates differences in dual vs. triple therapy, which is down to factors including physician preference and genotypes. Reimbursed prices for BCV and TVR were comparable across countries. Conclusion: There was reasonable consistency in the utilization of BCV and TVR among European countries in comparison with other high priced medicines. This may reflect the social demand to limit the transmission of HCV. However, the situation is changing with new curative medicines for HCV genotype 1 (GT1) with potentially an appreciable budget impact. These concerns have resulted in different prices across countries, with their impact on budgets and patient outcomes monitored in the future to provide additional guidance.

A PCR-free, optics-free device is used for the detection of Escherichia coli (E. coli) 16S rRNA at 10 fM, which corresponds to ~100–1000 colony forming units/mL (CFU/mL) depending on cellular rRNA levels. The development of a rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective nucleic acid detection platform is sought for the detection of pathogenic microbes in food, water and body fluids. Since 16S rRNA sequences are species specific and are present at high copy number in viable cells, these nucleic acids offer an attractive target for microbial pathogen detection schemes. Here, target 16S rRNA of E. coli at 10 fM concentration was detected against a total RNA background using a conceptually simple approach based on electromechanical signal transduction, whereby a step change reduction in ionic current through a pore indicates blockage by an electrophoretically mobilized bead-peptide nucleic acid probe conjugate hybridized to target nucleic acid. We investigated the concentration detection limit for bacterial species-specific 16S rRNA at 1 pM to 1 fM and found a limit of detection of 10 fM for our device, which is consistent with our previous finding with single-stranded DNA of similar length. In addition, no false positive responses were obtained with control RNA and no false negatives with target 16S rRNA present down to the limit of detection (LOD) of 10 fM. Thus, this detection scheme shows promise for integration into portable, low-cost systems for rapid detection of pathogenic microbes in food, water and body fluids.

Dalmatian sage (Salvia officinalis L., Lamiaceae) is a well-known aromatic and medicinal Mediterranean plant that is native in coastal regions of the western Balkan and southern Apennine Peninsulas and is commonly cultivated worldwide. It is widely used in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Knowledge of its genetic diversity and spatiotemporal patterns is important for plant breeding programmes and conservation. We used eight microsatellite markers to investigate evolutionary history of indigenous populations as well as genetic diversity and structure within and among indigenous and cultivated/naturalised populations distributed across the Balkan Peninsula. The results showed a clear separation between the indigenous and cultivated/naturalised groups, with the cultivated material originating from one restricted geographical area. Most of the genetic diversity in both groups was attributable to differences among individuals within populations, although spatial genetic analysis of indigenous populations indicated the existence of isolation by distance. Geographical structuring of indigenous populations was found using clustering analysis, with three sub-clusters of indigenous populations. The highest level of gene diversity and the greatest number of private alleles were found in the central part of the eastern Adriatic coast, while decreases in gene diversity and number of private alleles were evident towards the northwestern Adriatic coast and southern and eastern regions of the Balkan Peninsula. The results of Ecological Niche Modelling during Last Glacial Maximum and Approximate Bayesian Computation suggested two plausible evolutionary trajectories: 1) the species survived in the glacial refugium in southern Adriatic coastal region with subsequent colonization events towards northern, eastern and southern Balkan Peninsula; 2) species survived in several refugia exhibiting concurrent divergence into three genetic groups. The insight into genetic diversity and structure also provide the baseline data for conservation of S. officinalis genetic resources valuable for future breeding programmes.

Trata-se de um estudo exploratorio-descritivo, com abordagem quali-quantitativa, que avaliou a qualidade da ESF de areas de Porto Velho.  A populacao foi composta por 96 usuarios de sete USF. Os dados foram coletados no domicilio do usuario por intermedio de entrevista semi-estruturada. Os resultados apontam que dos n=96 usuarios pesquisados, 60,4% sao do sexo feminino, com ensino fundamental incompleto 44,7% e 47,9% classificaram o acesso aos servicos das USF’s como bom, sendo a consulta medica agendada e o servico mais procurado por 71,8% dos entrevistados. As narrativas apontaram que o programa Mais Medicos melhorou os servicos de saude da localidade, sendo apontado que antes do programa nao havia medicos, ou este se mantinha na localidade por curto periodo de tempo. Assim, podemos classificar a satisfacao dos usuarios da area rural de Porto Velho como boa, mesmo havendo discrepância de opinioes percebidas nas narrativas dos proprios usuarios.

Introduction: Most everyday activities, performed over a long period leads to performance degradation of skeletal muscles as well as spinal column which is reflected in the reduction of maximum force, reduction of the speed of response, reducing control of the movement etc. Although until now many mathematical models of muscles are developed, very small number takes into account the fatigue, and those models that take into account changes in the characteristics of muscles for extended activities, generally considered tiring under certain conditions. Given that the current models of muscle fatigue under arbitrary conditions of activation and load are very limited, this article presents a new model that includes scale of muscles overload. Material and Methods: There are three female cardiac surgeons working performing these surgeries in operating rooms, and their average anthropometric measures for this population is: a) Weight: 62 kg; b) Height: 166 cm. Age: 45 taken in the calculation within the CATIA software, that entity is entitled to 50% of healthy female population that is able to execute these and similar jobs. During the surgery is investigated the two most common positions: position “1” and “2”. We wish to emphasize that the experiment or surgical procedure lasted for two positions for five hours, with the position “1” lasted 0.5 hours, and position “2” lasted about 4.5 hours. The additional load arm during surgery is about 1.0 kg. Results: The analysis was done in three positions: “Operating position 1”, “Operating position 2 ‘, and each of these positions will be considered in its characteristic segments. These segments are: when the body takes the correct position, but is not yet burdened with external load, then when the surgeon receives the load and the third position when the load is lifted at the end of the position. Calculation of internal energy used on the joints is carried out in the context of software analysis of this model using CATIA R5v19. The proposed model is based on CATIA software model, which consists of visual indicators of the burden on certain parts of the body as well as the forces acting in these parts of the body. Conclusion: Based on these indicators to define which muscles, as well as that part of the skeletal system is overloaded, what is the position and what needs to be done that specific load be within permitted limits.

Margaret Belle (Oakley) Dayhoff (1925-1983) was an American physical chemist and a pioneer in the field of bioinformatics. She dedicated her career to applying the evolving computational technologies to support advances in biology and medicine, most notably the creation of protein and nucleic acid databases and tools to interrogate the databases. Dayhoff graduated from New York University in 1945 with a bachelor of arts and earned a PhD. in quantum chemistry in 1948 at Columbia University. She was a research assistant at the Rockefeller Institute from 1948 to 1951 and had been associate director of the National Biomedical Research Foundation in Washington, DC, since 1960. Dr. Dayhoff was widely known in the scientific community for establishing a large computer data base of protein structures as well as for being the author of the Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure, a multivolume reference work. She initiated this collection of protein sequences in the Atlas, a book collecting all known protein sequences that she published in 1965. It was subsequently republished in several editions. This led to the Protein Information Resource database of protein sequences, which was developed by her group. It and the parallel effort by Walter Goad which led to the GenBank database of nucleic acid sequences are the twin origins of the modern databases of molecular sequences. The Atlas was organized by gene families, and she is regarded as a pioneer in their recognition. Her approach to proteins was always determinedly evolutionary. Her work is used in genetic engineering and medical research. As a noted archivist of proteins, Dr. Dayhoff contributed to the understanding of the evolutionary process by developing evolutionary “trees” based on correlations between proteins and living organisms. She and her staff made several discoveries, including one indicating that certain genes normally found in most body tissue cells are closely related to genes found in many cancer cells. She did postdoctoral studies at the Rockefeller Institute (now Rockefeller University) and the University of Maryland, and joined the newly established National Biomedical Research Foundation in 1959. She was the first woman to hold office in the Biophysical Society. She originated one of the first substitution matrices, Point accepted mutations (PAM). The oneletter code used for amino acids was developed by her, reflecting an attempt to reduce the size of the data files used to describe amino acid sequences in an era of punch-card computing.

H-index is an index that attempts to measure the productivity and impact of published work of scientists. H-index has several advantages – it combines productivity with echo, is not sensitive to extreme values in terms of articles without citation or to articles with above-average number of citations and directly enables the identification of the most relevant articles with regard to the number of citations received. H-index has great potential in the academic community, but it still has not realistic indicator of the quality of work of one author. Authors described most used indices for scientific assessment.

Objective: To show the place and role of continuous electrocardiographic twenty-four-hour ECG monitoring in daily clinical practice of pediatric cardiologists. Methods: According to protocol, 2753 patients underwent dynamic continuous ECG Holter monitoring (data collected from the “Register of ECG Holter monitoring” of Pediatric Clinic, UCC Sarajevo in period April 2003- April 2015). Results: There were 50,5% boys and 49,5% girls, aged from birth to 19 years (1,63% - neonates and infants, 2,6% - toddlers, 9,95% - preschool children, 35,5% - gradeschoolers and 50,3% children in puberty and adolescence). In 68,1% of patients Holter was performed for the first time. Indications for conducting Holter were: arrhythmias in 42,2% cases, precordial pain in 23,5%, suspicion of pre-excitation and/or pre-excitation in 10%, crisis of consciousness in 8%, uncorrected congenital/acquired heart defects in 4,2%, operated heart defects in 3,7%, hypertension in 3,1% cases, control of the pacemaker in 1,63% and other causes in 3,5% cases. Discharge diagnosis after ECG Holter monitoring were: insignificant arrhythmias in 47,1% cases, wandering pacemaker in 21,3%, pre-excitation in 16,2%, benign ventricular premature beats in 6,3%, atrioventricular block in 3%, sinus pause in 2.2% cases and other arrhythmias in 3,5%. In mentioned period 57 cases of Wolf Parkinson White syndrome were registered, in 4,5% of patients antiarrhythmic therapy was administered. Radiofrequent ablation was performed in 23 cases. Conclusion: The development of pediatric cardiac surgery has initiated development of pediatric arrhythmology as imperative segment of pediatric cardiology. Continuous ECG Holter monitoring has become irreplaceable method in everyday diagnostics and therapy of arrhythmias in children.