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An interdisciplinary study of the first-hand narratives of elderly Greek and Turkish Cypriots reveals that a shared past, fractured relationships, grief and regret are still raw four decades after the villagers of Agia Eirini were separated by the 1974 war. My Greek-Cypriot grandfather's stories inspired this research and his old friends and neighbours have shared their memories, opened their hearts and accepted me as one of them. My status as an insider has given me unanticipated access not only to the Greek Cypriots formerly of Agia Eirini, but also to the other group, the Turkish Cypriots still living there who fondly remember my grandfather's family. This chapter gives the labouring classes a voice, enabling them to reveal a counter-narrative to the two opposing, official post-war narratives. It focuses on the stories of five individuals who grew up in the once harmonious mixed village of Agia Eirini. These stories tell of intercommunality; cooperation; friendship; love; shared celebrations; deep familiarity with the religious practices of the other group; and the deep sense of loss felt by both groups after 1974. These stories can help re-establish understanding and trust among the two communities, during a time of intense peace negotiations and possible reunification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is considerable scientific interest in understanding how cell assemblies--the long-presumed computational motif--are organized so that the brain can generate intelligent cognition and flexible behavior. The Theory of Connectivity proposes that the origin of intelligence is rooted in a power-of-two-based permutation logic (N = 2i-1), producing specific-to-general cell-assembly architecture capable of generating specific perceptions and memories, as well as generalized knowledge and flexible actions. We show that this power-of-two-based permutation logic is widely used in cortical and subcortical circuits across animal species and is conserved for the processing of a variety of cognitive modalities including appetitive, emotional and social information. However, modulatory neurons, such as dopaminergic (DA) neurons, use a simpler logic despite their distinct subtypes. Interestingly, this specific-to-general permutation logic remained largely intact although NMDA receptors--the synaptic switch for learning and memory--were deleted throughout adulthood, suggesting that the logic is developmentally pre-configured. Moreover, this computational logic is implemented in the cortex via combining a random-connectivity strategy in superficial layers 2/3 with nonrandom organizations in deep layers 5/6. This randomness of layers 2/3 cliques--which preferentially encode specific and low-combinatorial features and project inter-cortically--is ideal for maximizing cross-modality novel patternextraction, pattern-discrimination and pattern-categorization using sparse code, consequently explaining why it requires hippocampal offline-consolidation. In contrast, the nonrandomness in layers 5/6--which consists of few specific cliques but a higher portion of more general cliques projecting mostly to subcortical systems--is ideal for feedback-control of motivation, emotion, consciousness and behaviors. These observations suggest that the brain's basic computational algorithm is indeed organized by the power-of-two-based permutation logic. This simple mathematical logic can account for brain computation across the entire evolutionary spectrum, ranging from the simplest neural networks to the most complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims To assess whether InterStim lead wire placement with the curved stylet achieves motor response at lower amplitudes compared to straight stylet use. Methods This was a prospective, randomized, crossover study of patients scheduled for InterStim lead wire placement. All patients underwent lead wire testing with both the curved and straight stylets. Patients were randomized to determine stylet order, and then crossed-over to the alternate. Intra-operatively, the amplitude achieving motor response at each electrode was recorded. The stylet with lowest overall amplitudes was used for final placement. Primary outcome measure was amplitude requirement in the two deepest (0 and 1) electrodes. Secondary outcomes included amplitudes at the number 2 and 3 electrodes, combined amplitudes, stylet order, and adverse outcomes. Results Forty-two patients were enrolled, 40 of whom were included in the final analysis. Mean age was 69 years (SD = 12.8) and mean BMI 27 (SD = 5.6). Indications for placement included: urge urinary incontinence (N = 26), urge/frequency (N = 25), non-obstructive urinary retention (N = 5), and fecal incontinence (N = 10). There were no significant differences between randomized groups. Regardless of order, the curved stylet achieved a motor response at lower amplitudes in the deepest electrodes ( P < 0.001). Combined amplitudes of all electrodes were also significantly lower with the curved stylet ( P < 0.001). Subsequently, 88% underwent final 'optimal' placement with curved stylet (N = 35). Conclusions The curved stylet for InterStim lead wire placement consistently achieved motor response at lower amplitudes. A brief intra-operative exchange of stylets represents a minor procedural alteration that could maximize Implantable Pulse Generator battery life and facilitate programming. Neurourol. Urodynam. 33:488-492, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prolonged ischemia causes cellular necrosis and myocardial infarction (MI) via intracellular calcium (Ca2+) overload. Manganese-enhanced MRI indirectly assesses Ca2+ influx movement in vivo as manganese (Mn2+) is a Ca2+ analog. To characterize myocardial Mn2+ efflux properties, T1-mapping manganese-enhanced MRI studies were performed on adult male C57Bl/6 mice in which Ca2+ efflux was altered using pharmacological intervention agents or MI-inducing surgery. Results showed that () Mn2+ efflux rate increased exponentially with increasing Mn2+ doses; () SEA0400 (a sodium-calcium exchanger inhibitor) decreased the rate of Mn2+ efflux; and () dobutamine (a positive inotropic agent) increased the Mn2+ efflux rate. A novel analysis technique also delineated regional features in the MI mice, which showed an increased Mn2+ efflux rate in the necrosed and peri-infarcted tissue zones. The T1-mapping manganese-enhanced MRI technique characterized alterations in myocardial Mn2+ efflux rates following both pharmacologic intervention and an acute MI. The Mn2+ efflux results were consistent with those in ex vivo studies showing an increased Ca2+ concentration under similar conditions. Thus, T1-mapping manganese-enhanced MRI has the potential to indirectly identify and quantify intracellular Ca2+ handling in the peri-infarcted tissue zones, which may reveal salvageable tissue in the post-MI myocardium. Magn Reson Med, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescents (10-19-years-old) account for almost 10% of the annual global tuberculosis (TB) incidence. Adolescents' experiences of TB care, TB stigma, and the consequences of TB for their relationships, schooling, and mental health are different, and often more severe, compared to younger children and adults. How TB impacts the lives of adolescents is not well described or understood. We aimed to locate adolescents' experiences of TB relative to their psychosocial contexts, describe the impact of TB on adolescents' wellbeing, and describe how TB and its treatment affects their socio-familial contexts. Teen TB was a prospective observational cohort study which recruited 50 adolescents with newly diagnosed TB disease (including both multidrug-resistant TB and drug-susceptible TB) in Cape Town, South Africa. A nested sub-sample of 20 adolescents were purposively sampled for longitudinal qualitative data collection. Nineteen participants completed all qualitative data collection activities between December 2020 and September 2021. Adolescents described their communities as undesirable places to live-rife with violence, poverty, and unemployment. The negative experiences of living in these conditions were exacerbated by TB episodes among adolescents or within their households. TB and its treatment disrupted adolescents' socio-familial connections; many participants described losing friendships and attachment to family members as people reacted negatively to their TB diagnosis. TB, inclusive of the experience of disease, diagnosis and treatment also negatively impacted adolescents' mental health. Participants reported feeling depressed, despondent, and at times suicidal. TB also disrupted adolescents' schooling and employment opportunities as adolescents were absent from school and college for substantial periods of time. Our findings confirm that adolescents' psychosocial experiences of TB are often highly negative, compounding underlying vulnerability. Future research should prioritize exploring the potential of social protection programmes providing adolescents and their families with psychosocial and economic support., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interest exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Wademan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Importance: The Latina population is the largest growing ethnic group in the United States with high levels of health disparities in urinary incontinence (UI) treatment and complications rates, which may be due to disproportionately high barriers to UI care-seeking among Latinas., Objectives: The objectives of this study were to compare barriers to UI care-seeking among Latina, non-Latina Black, and non-Latina White patients by utilizing the Barriers to Incontinence Care Seeking Questionnaire (BICS-Q) total scores, and to compare specific barriers utilizing BICS-Q subscales., Study Design: In this cross-sectional study, patients accessing primary care were recruited to complete the BICS-Q, International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form, and Prolapse and Incontinence Knowledge Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence. The BICS-Q total and subscale scores were compared among ethnic/racial groups., Results: A total of 298 patients were included in the study with 83 Black, 144 Latina, and 71 White participants per self-identified ethnicity/race. The total BICS-Q score was highest for Latina participants, followed by White and Black participants (11.2 vs 8.2 vs 4.9, respectively, P < 0.0001). Latina participants had significantly higher BICS-Q subscale scores compared with Black participants with no significant differences between Latina and White participants. After controlling for potential confounders, Latina ethnicity/race was still associated with a higher BICS-Q score when compared to Black ethnicity/race (P = 0.0077), and lower Prolapse and Incontinence Knowledge Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence scores remained independently associated with higher BICS-Q scores (P = 0.0078)., Conclusions: In our study population, Latina patients and patients with lower UI knowledge experience higher barriers to UI care-seeking compared with Black patients and patients with higher UI knowledge. Addressing these barriers may increase care-seeking and improve health equity in the field., Competing Interests: The authors have declared they have no conflicts of interest. A.P. received the Gender and Racial Justice Scholars Award through the Johns Hopkins University Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commemoration Committee. The authors of this paper report no conflict of interest and no further disclosures., (Copyright © 2024 American Urogynecologic Society. All rights reserved.)