Analysis of volatile organic compounds in Irish rapeseed oils.

In recent years, consumer demand for health benefitting, pleasant-tasting rapeseed oil has increased, and so has production. Ireland's climate and agricultural background can support the production of high-quality rapeseed oil. Volatile organic compounds (VOC) can give rise to highly distinctive flavours in rapeseed oils, produced during crop growth and generated during processing.

Variability of Essential and Nonessential Fatty Acids of Irish Rapeseed Oils as an Indicator of Nutritional Quality.

The low saturated fatty acid content of rapeseed oil has resulted in it being classed as one of the most health-benefiting culinary oils. This study determines whether Irish rapeseed oils contain identical fatty acid profiles or whether distinct profiles exist between producers and producers' successive oil batches. The fatty acid content of Irish rapeseed oils was determined in terms of the desirable MUFA and PUFA and saturated content of these oils.

ERA5-based global meteorological wildfire danger maps.

Forest fires are an integral part of the natural Earth system dynamics, however they are becoming more devastating and less predictable as anthropogenic climate change exacerbates their impacts. In order to advance fire science, fire danger reanalysis products can be used as proxy for fire weather observations with the advantage of being homogeneously distributed both in space and time. This manuscript describes a reanalysis dataset of fire danger indices based on the Canadian Fire Weather Index system and the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis dataset, which supersedes the previous dataset based on ERA-Interim.

Mice Deficient in T-bet Form Inducible NO Synthase-Positive Granulomas That Fail to Constrain .

Clearance of intracellular infections caused by Typhimurium (STm) requires IFN-γ and the Th1-associated transcription factor T-bet. Nevertheless, whereas IFN-γ mice succumb rapidly to STm infections, T-bet mice do not. In this study, we assess the anatomy of immune responses and the relationship with bacterial localization in the spleens and livers of STm-infected IFN-γ and T-bet mice.

Balance Theory Revisited: Relationship Issue Relevance Affects Imbalance-Induced Tension in Workplace Relationships.

The present work applies and extends balance theory by examining the role of relevance of issue to the relationship in balance theory processes within the context of workplace relationships. In Experiment 1, a sample of working adults (N = 81) reported greater job tension when self-supervisor dissimilarity involved a relationship-relevant (vs. non-relationship) ethical dilemma.

ANCA-associated vasculitis: a comparison of cases presenting to nephrology and rheumatology services.

Background: Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) -associated vasculitis (AAV) is a disease characterized by inflammation of small vessels and detectable ANCA in the circulation. Patients may develop a broad spectrum of clinical features ranging from indolent sino-nasal disease and rashes to fulminant renal failure or acute life-threatening pulmonary haemorrhage. Consequently, patients with AAV present to a variety of specialties including nephrology and rheumatology, whose training and approaches to management of such patients may differ.

Cognitive Coping Style and the Effectiveness of Distraction or Sensation-Focused Instructions in Chronic Pain Patients.

Aim: This study set out to investigate whether cognitive coping strategies that match participants' preferred coping style effectively reduce pain intensity and situational anxiety in a population of people with chronic pain.

Method: Chronic pain patients (N = 43) completed questionnaires on coping style, pain intensity, self-efficacy, and situational/trait anxiety. Participants were classified as Monitors (n = 16) or Blunters (n = 19) based on their Miller Behavioural Style Scale score.

Leflunomide Use and Risk of Lung Disease in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Literature Review and Metaanalysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Objective: To evaluate the relative risk (RR) of pulmonary disease among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with leflunomide (LEF).

Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials to April 15, 2014. We included double-blind randomized controlled trials (RCT) of LEF versus placebo or active comparator agents in adults with RA.

Key data from the 17th International Workshop on Co-morbidities and Adverse Drug Reactions in HIV.

Combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) has significantly reduced HIV-related morbidity and mortality; however, residual inflammation often persists in the absence of detectable viral load. In addition, chronic use of cART and an ageing HIV-positive population present new challenges to treating physicians who must balance the need for good virological control with risk of treatment-related toxicities. Discussions at the 17th International Workshop on Co-morbidities and Adverse Drug Reactions in HIV once again sought a better understanding of the complex relationship between HIV-, treatment- and age-related factors in the development of comorbidities in those infected with HIV.

Risk of liver injury among methotrexate users: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.

Objective: Methotrexate is an effective treatment for a variety of inflammatory diseases. Robust evidence on the risk of serious liver injury is lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relative risk and severity of liver disease among patients treated with methotrexate.

Expanding access to rheumatology care: the rheumatology general practice toolbox.

Management guidelines for many rheumatic diseases are published in specialty rheumatology literature but rarely in general medical journals. Musculoskeletal disorders comprise 14% of all consultations in primary care. Formal post-graduate training in rheumatology is limited or absent for many primary care practitioners.

Methotrexate use and risk of lung disease in psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease: systematic literature review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.

Objective: To evaluate the relative risk of pulmonary disease among patients with psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease treated with methotrexate.

Data Sources: PubMed, Cochrane central register of controlled trials, and Embase to 9 January 2014.

Study Selection: Double blind randomised controlled trials of methotrexate versus placebo or active comparator agents in adults with psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis, or inflammatory bowel disease.

Resolving Salmonella infection reveals dynamic and persisting changes in murine bone marrow progenitor cell phenotype and function.

The generation of immune cells from BM precursors is a carefully regulated process. This is essential to limit the potential for oncogenesis and autoimmunity yet protect against infection. How infection modulates this is unclear.

Methotrexate and lung disease in rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Objective: Methotrexate has shown efficacy for the treatment of several diseases, especially rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methotrexate has also been implicated as a causative agent in interstitial lung disease. Patients with RA may develop pulmonary manifestations of their disease and are at increased risk of respiratory infection.

Appropriateness of referrals to a tertiary referral centre for bone mineral density testing.

Introduction: Evidence-based guidelines for who should have a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan are well established. Much attention has been appropriately focussed on increasing the proportion of persons at high risk for fracture who are being referred for such investigation. Little literature exists on the extent of inappropriate referrals for DXA.

The prevalence of vertebral fracture on vertebral fracture assessment imaging in a large cohort of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: RA accelerates bone loss, increasing the risk of osteoporosis (OP) and fracture. DXA imaging has been validated for identifying RA patients at risk of fracture. The objective of this study was to assess the presence of asymptomatic vertebral fractures (VFs) in a cohort of patients with established RA referred for DXA using VF assessment (VFA) technology.

Vertebral fracture assessment-detected abdominal aortic calcification and cardiovascular disease in rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: Individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Traditional prediction tools underestimate this risk. Vertebral fracture assessment (VFA)-detected aortic calcification enhances CVD risk stratification in the general population but its relationship in RA is unclear.

The prevalence of aortic calcification on vertebral fracture assessment imaging among patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk of osteoporosis (OP) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans have been validated for identifying patients with RA at risk for fracture. Reliable CVD risk stratification remains an unmet need in this population.

High prevalence of fibromyalgia in patients with HFE-related hereditary hemochromatosis.

Objectives: Subjects with HFE-related hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) may present with arthralgias, fatigue, and stiffness, yet little is known on the presence of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) in these subjects. We determined the prevalence of FMS in a cohort of subjects with HH and evaluated its relationship to subject demographics, disease status, and quality of life.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study we collected data on 395 consecutive subjects diagnosed with HH who were attending a tertiary referral Hepatology outpatient clinic at Galway University Hospital, Ireland (between October 2009 and June 2010).

Systemic flagellin immunization stimulates mucosal CD103+ dendritic cells and drives Foxp3+ regulatory T cell and IgA responses in the mesenteric lymph node.

Mucosal immunity is poorly activated after systemic immunization with protein Ags. Nevertheless, induction of mucosal immunity in such a manner would be an attractive and simple way to overcome the intrinsic difficulties in delivering Ag to such sites. Flagellin from Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (FliC) can impact markedly on host immunity, in part via its recognition by TLR5.

CD8 T cells induce T-bet-dependent migration toward CXCR3 ligands by differentiated B cells produced during responses to alum-protein vaccines.

Antibody-forming cells (AFCs) expressing the chemokine receptor CXCR3 are recruited to sites of inflammation where they help clear pathogens but may participate in autoimmune diseases. Here we identify a mechanism that induces CXCR3 expression by AFC and germinal center (GC) B cells. This happens when CD8 T cells are recruited into CD4 T cell-dependent B-cell responses.

Thymic function is maintained during Salmonella-induced atrophy and recovery.

Thymic atrophy is a frequent consequence of infection with bacteria, viruses, and parasites and is considered a common virulence trait between pathogens. Multiple reasons have been proposed to explain this atrophy, including premature egress of immature thymocytes, increased apoptosis, or thymic shutdown to prevent tolerance to the pathogen from developing. The severe loss in thymic cell number can reflect an equally dramatic reduction in thymic output, potentially reducing peripheral T cell numbers.