Computer use, sleep duration and health symptoms: a cross-sectional study of 15-year olds in three countries.

Objectives: This study investigated whether computer use is associated with health symptoms through sleep duration among 15-year olds in Finland, France and Denmark.

Methods: We used data from the WHO cross-national Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study collected in Finland, France and Denmark in 2010, including data on 5,402 adolescents (mean age 15.61 (SD 0.

Small head-to-tail macrocyclic α-peptoids.

A convenient and efficient methodology for the head-to-tail macrocyclization of small 3-mer, 4-mer, and 5-mer α-peptoid acids (9-, 12-, and 15-atom N-substituted glycine oligomers) is described. The cyclic trimer has a ccc amide sequence in the crystal structure, whereas the tetramer has ctct and the pentamer has ttccc stereochemistry. NMR analysis reveals rigid structures in solution.

Sonic Hedgehog activation is implicated in diosgenin-induced megakaryocytic differentiation of human erythroleukemia cells.

Differentiation therapy is a means to treat cancer and is induced by different agents with low toxicity and more specificity than traditional ones. Diosgenin, a plant steroid, is able to induce megakaryocytic differentiation or apoptosis in human HEL erythroleukemia cells in a dose-dependent manner. However, the exact mechanism by which diosgenin induces megakaryocytic differentiation has not been elucidated.

[Insomnia and sleep apnea].

The presence of insomnia in patients with sleep apnea seems paradoxical as excessive sleepiness is one of the major symptoms of sleep apnea. However, recent research has shown that about half of patients with sleep disorder breathing experience insomnia. Moreover, patients complaining of insomnia or non-restorative sleep may also present with moderate to severe sleep apnea syndromes.

Modafinil improves real driving performance in patients with hypersomnia: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled crossover clinical trial.

Study Objective: Patients with excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) are at high risk for driving accidents, and physicians are concerned by the effect of alerting drugs on driving skills of sleepy patients. No study has up to now investigated the effect of modafinil (a reference drug to treat EDS in patients with hypersomnia) on on-road driving performance of patients suffering from central hypersomnia. The objective is to evaluate in patients with central hypersomnia the effect of a wake-promoting drug on real driving performance and to assess the relationship between objective sleepiness and driving performance.

The role of actigraphy in the assessment of primary insomnia: a retrospective study.

Objective: The aim of our study was to evaluate quantitative actigraphic criteria obtained using the Actiwatch device (AW64; Cambridge Neurotechnology Ltd., Cambridge, UK) to differentiate participants with insomnia from normal sleepers.

Methods: In our retrospective study, we recovered 493 actigraphic records from two sleep measure databases of patients with insomnia (n=151) and one of normal sleepers (n=342).

Insomnia and accidents: cross-sectional study (EQUINOX) on sleep-related home, work and car accidents in 5293 subjects with insomnia from 10 countries.

The link between sleepiness and the risk of motor vehicle accidents is well known, but little is understood regarding the risk of home, work and car accidents of subjects with insomnia. An international cross-sectional survey was conducted across 10 countries in a population of subjects with sleep disturbances. Primary care physicians administered a questionnaire that included assessment of sociodemographic characteristics, sleep disturbance and accidents (motor vehicle, work and home) related to sleep problems to each subject.

Antimicrobial therapy of selected diseases in turkeys, laying hens, and minor poultry species in Canada.

This paper identifies common poultry diseases requiring antimicrobial therapy, antimicrobials deemed efficacious to treat these diseases, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in these commodity-pathogen combinations, and describes current residue issues and minor use minor species (MUMS) guidelines. Veterinarians with turkey/layer expertise and diagnosticians were surveyed to determine the bacterial and protozoal diseases diagnosed in the last 5 years. Avian pathogenic Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale were the 3 most frequently diagnosed pathogens of turkeys.

[Insomnia and total sleep time in France: prevalence and associated socio-demographic factors in a general population survey].

Introduction: Sleep is considered as a major protective factor for good health and quality of life. The epidemiology of chronic insomnia and other sleep disorders has recently been developed in France. The aim of this study was to evaluate total sleep time and the prevalence of chronic insomnia in the general population aged 15 to 85 years.

Sleep-disordered breathing in Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: a genetic model of OSA.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by cartilaginous defects, including nasal-maxillary cartilages.

Methods: A retrospective series of 34 patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and complaints of fatigue and poor sleep were evaluated by clinical history, physical examination, polysomnography (PSG), and, in some cases, anterior rhinomanometry.

Novel methylsulfonyl chalcones as potential antiproliferative drugs for human prostate cancer: involvement of the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis.

Limited success has been achieved in extending the survival of patients with metastatic and hormone-refractory prostate cancer (HRPC). There is a strong need for novel agents in the treatment and prevention of HRPC. In the present study, the apoptotic mechanism of action of RG003 (2'-hydroxy-4-methylsulfonylchalcone) and RG005 (4'-chloro-2'-hydroxy-4-methylsulfonylchalcone) in association with intracellular signalling pathways was investigated in the hormone-independent prostate carcinoma cells PC-3 and DU145.

Ciprofloxacin-resistant Campylobacter spp. in retail chicken, western Canada.

During 2005-2010, the Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance identified increased prevalence of ciprofloxacin (a fluororquinolone) resistance among Campylobacter isolates from retail chicken in British Columbia (4%-17%) and Saskatchewan (6%-11%), Canada. Fluoroquinolones are critically important to human medicine and are not labeled for use in poultry in Canada.

Seasonal skin darkening in Chinese women: the Shanghaiese experience of daily sun protection.

The facial skin tone of two groups of Chinese women from Shanghai was compared using standard colorimetric space techniques during a 6-month interval between January and July 2011. During the study period, one group of women (n = 40) applied a potent sun-protective cosmetic product daily, while the other group (n = 40) did not use any sun protection. The results, based on images taken using a standardized digital camera coupled to a spectroradiometer, showed that sun protection largely mitigated changes in the components of skin tone, ie, lightness, melanization, and individual typology angle parameters.

Review of antimicrobial therapy of selected bacterial diseases in broiler chickens in Canada.

This paper reviews common therapeutic applications of antimicrobials in broiler chicken production in relation to Canadian guidelines, surveillance data, and emerging public health concerns about antimicrobial use (AMU). Escherichia coli, Clostridium perfringens, and Staphylococcus spp., were reviewed because of their animal health and economic significance.

Maintenance of Wakefulness Test scores and driving performance in sleep disorder patients and controls.

Objective: Sleepiness at the wheel is a risk factor for traffic accidents. Past studies have demonstrated the validity of the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT) scores as a predictor of driving impairment in untreated patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), but there is limited information on the validity of the maintenance of wakefulness test by MWT in predicting driving impairment in patients with hypersomnias of central origin (narcolepsy or idiopathic hypersomnia). The aim of this study was to compare the MWT scores with driving performance in sleep disorder patients and controls.

Objective prevalence of insomnia in the São Paulo, Brazil epidemiologic sleep study.

Objective: Using polysomnography, the gold standard for sleep assessment, this study aimed to describe the objective prevalence of insomnia in the São Paulo, Brazil, Epidemiologic Sleep Study cohort of 1,101 adults (20-80 years old).

Methods: Objective insomnia was defined by meeting 1 of the following criteria: sleep onset latency >30 minutes (sleep initiating insomnia), wake after sleep onset lasting >30 minutes (sleep maintenance insomnia), total sleep time <360 minutes and a terminal wakefulness >30 minutes (insomnia with too short duration of sleep or early morning awakening), or a combination of the previous quantitative criteria (mixed disorder). Using validated questionnaires based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) criteria, subjective insomnia was categorized into 3 groups: good sleepers, insomnia symptoms, and DSM-IV insomnia.

Neuroendocrine, immune and oxidative stress in shift workers.

Shift work is commonly associated with disturbed life rhythms, resulting in chronic exposure to circadian desynchronization and sleep restriction. Epidemiological data have shown that shift workers are at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and breast cancer. In this review, we will explore how observed increases in neuroendocrine stress, non-specific immune responses and pro-oxidative status could act as biological mediators for these damaging health risks in shift workers.

Identifying associations in Escherichia coli antimicrobial resistance patterns using additive Bayesian networks.

While the genesis of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in animal production is a high profile topic in the media and the scientific community, it is still not well understood. The epidemiology of AMR is complex. This complexity is demonstrated by extensive biological and evolutionary mechanisms which are potentially impacted by farm management and husbandry practices - the risk factors.

[Role and actions of the orphan rare diseases reference center for central hypersomnias in France].

Narcolepsy (with or without cataplexy), idiopathic hypersomnia (with or without long sleep duration) and Kleine - Levin syndrome are the main central rare hypersomnias. They may be considered models to help us to better understand the mechanisms controlling sleep and waking regulation in humans. When creating the national centers for rare hypersomnias, the aims were: 1) screening and earlier treatment of patients with hypersomnia; 2) improving patient care with guidelines, a specific patient's card, coordination of treatments between centers and professionals, and the development of new treatments; 3) encouraging research studies into the epidemiology, pathophysiology and genotype/phenotype through the creation of clinical, DNA, sera and cerebrospinal fluid banks; 4) increasing public awareness among patients and their relatives, the general public and in the mass media of rare hypersomnias; and 5) regular evaluation of our activities.

Cyclooxygenase-2 positively regulates Akt signalling and enhances survival of erythroleukemia cells exposed to anticancer agents.

Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) has been found to be highly expressed in many types of cancers and to contribute to tumorigenesis via the inhibition of apoptosis, increased angiogenesis and invasiveness. In hematological malignancies, COX-2 expression was found to correlate with poor patient prognosis. However, the exact role of COX-2 expression in these malignancies, and particularly in erythroleukemias, remains unclear.

Cyclopamine and jervine induce COX-2 overexpression in human erythroleukemia cells but only cyclopamine has a pro-apoptotic effect.

Erythroleukemia is generally associated with a very poor response and survival to current available therapeutic agents. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) has been described to play a crucial role in the proliferation and differentiation of leukemia cells, this enzyme seems to play an important role in chemoresistance in different cancer types. Previously, we demonstrated that diosgenin, a plant steroid, induced apoptosis in HEL cells with concomitant COX-2 overexpression.

Total sleep time severely drops during adolescence.

Unlabelled: Restricted sleep duration among young adults and adolescents has been shown to increase the risk of morbidities such as obesity, diabetes or accidents. However there are few epidemiological studies on normal total sleep time (TST) in representative groups of teen-agers which allow to get normative data.

Purpose: To explore perceived total sleep time on schooldays (TSTS) and non schooldays (TSTN) and the prevalence of sleep initiating insomnia among a nationally representative sample of teenagers.

Antimicrobial resistance profiles of common mastitis pathogens on Canadian dairy farms.

Monitoring of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in bacteria has clinical and public health significance. The present study determined prevalence of AMR in common mastitis pathogens Staphylococcus aureus, including methicillin-resistant Staph. aureus (MRSA; n=1,810), Escherichia coli (n=394), and Klebsiella species (n=139), including extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing E.

[Review on sleep and awakening disorders].

Insomnia is the most prevalent sleep disorders and affects severely 10% of adults worldwide. From poor sleep to insomnia, the severity of sleep disorders should be assessed clinically and by the use of validated questionnaires based on international consensual definitions. One main sign of insomnia is impaired daytime functioning.