Depression, Resilience and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Asylum-seeker War Refugees.

Background: The number of refugees and displaced people who have been forced to migrate due to war, mass violence and political instability has reached unprecedented levels.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the degree of depression, resilience and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in asylum-seeker war refugees, temporally stationed in Larisa, Central Greece, through self-administered questionnaire.

Methods: A cross-sectional study carried out with asylum-seeker war refugees residing in Larisa at a number of apartments rented and ran by the UNHCR and the municipality of Larisa.

Surface functionalization of electro-deposited nickel.

A new in situ electrochemical method of functionalizing an oxide-free Ni surface is demonstrated using octanethiol. Initial adsorption results in a multilayer molecular film, which blocks both the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and re-oxidation of the Ni by ambient oxygen. However, excess octanethiol can be removed by rinsing with ethanol, leaving behind a monolayer that continues to protect against re-oxidation but gives rise to an unexpected enhancement in the HER, with a greater enhancement for longer film formation times.

alpha1-Antitrypsin Portland, a bioengineered serpin highly selective for furin: application as an antipathogenic agent.

The important role of furin in the proteolytic activation of many pathogenic molecules has made this endoprotease a target for the development of potent and selective antiproteolytic agents. Here, we demonstrate the utility of the protein-based inhibitor alpha1-antitrypsin Portland (alpha1-PDX) as an antipathogenic agent that can be used prophylactically to block furin-dependent cell killing by Pseudomonas exotoxin A. Biochemical analysis of the specificity of a bacterially expressed His- and FLAG-tagged alpha1-PDX (alpha1-PDX/hf) revealed the selectivity of the alpha1-PDX/hf reactive site loop for furin (Ki, 600 pM) but not for other proprotein convertase family members or other unrelated endoproteases.