RESUMEN
There are two important Belgian laws referring to psychiatric disturbances that may prove dangerous. The Civil Code includes the law relating to the protection of the mentally ill person, dated 26th June 1990, better known as the law of civil commitment of the mentally ill. Since April, 2007, the Penal Code has contained a new law on the internment of people with a psychiatric disorder; this new law replaces the old law of the 1st July, 1964, meant to protect the society. Although the two laws apply to different fields, in clinical practice there are sometimes 'grey areas' where it is not immediately evident which legal framework is applicable. Starting from a case study in which the civil judge ordered the civil commitment of a detainee, we explore these 'grey areas' and compare the two legal frameworks. We base our study on the new law on internment, clarify it and sketch the legal history of internment in Belgium.
Asunto(s)
Internamiento Obligatorio del Enfermo Mental/legislación & jurisprudencia , Psiquiatría Forense/legislación & jurisprudencia , Psiquiatría Forense/normas , Enfermos Mentales/legislación & jurisprudencia , Adulto , Bélgica , Conducta Peligrosa , Medicina Basada en la Evidencia , Humanos , MasculinoRESUMEN
AIMS: Based on preliminary observations, we tested the hypothesis that construction-related occupations are associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHODS: The professional occupation of 91 patients with SSc (71 females and 20 males) was recorded. Categorisation into construction-related and other professions was performed. A double definition was used for construction-related occupations. The first (limited) definition was based upon categories of the Belgian National Institute of Statistics (NIS) occupational list. The following occupations were considered construction-related: electricians, joiners, masons and tilers, plumbers and pipefitters. The use of this list also allows us to compare the distribution of professions in these patients with that in the general population. As the NIS occupational list is limitative and leaves out some "real-life" construction-related occupations, a second and broader interpretation was given to the concept of construction-related occupations. RESULTS: The prevalence of construction-related professions in males with SSc, according to the limited definition, was 10-fold higher than in the general working population (50% vs 5%; p<0.001). Interestingly, most of the patients with construction-related occupations were electricians. In the broader interpretation, 75% of the men with SSc fell into the category of construction-related occupations. CONCLUSIONS: The data show an association between SSc and professional occupation.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades Profesionales/etiología , Esclerodermia Sistémica/etiología , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Ocupaciones , Índice de Severidad de la Enfermedad , Factores SexualesRESUMEN
Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) genes from Corynebacterium glutamicum (cppc), Escherichia coli (eppc) or Flaveria trinervia (fppc) were transferred to Solanum tuberosum. Plant regenerants producing foreign PEPC were identified by Western blot analysis. Maximum PEPC activities measured in eppc and fppc plants grown in the greenhouse were doubled compared to control plants. For cppc a transgenic plant line could be selected which exhibited a fourfold increase in PEPC activity. In the presence of acetyl-CoA, a known activator of the procaryotic PEPC, a sixfold higher activity level was observed. In cppc plants grown in axenic culture PEPC activities were even higher. There was a 6-fold or 12-fold increase in the PEPC activities compared to the controls measured in the absence or presence of acetyl-CoA, respectively. Comparable results were obtained by transient expression in Nicotiana tabacum protoplasts. PEPC of C. glutamicum (PEPC C.g.) in S. tuberosum leaf extracts displays its characteristic K(m) (PEP) value. Plant growth was examined with plants showing high expression of PEPC and, moreover, with a plant cell line expressing an antisense S. tuberosum (anti-sppc) gene. In axenic culture the growth rate of a cppc plant cell line was appreciably diminished, whereas growth rates of an anti-sppc line were similar or slightly higher than in controls. Malate levels were increased in cppc plants and decreased in antisense plants. There were no significant differences in photosynthetic electron transport or steady state CO2 assimilation between control plants and transformants overexpressing PEPC C.g. or anti-sppc plants. However, a prolonged dark treatment resulted in a delayed induction of photosynthetic electron transport in plants with less PEPC. Rates of CO2 release in the dark determined after a 45 min illumination period at a high proton flux density were considerably enhanced in cppc plants and slightly diminished in anti-sppc plants. When CO2 assimilation rates were corrected for estimated rates of mitochondrial respiration in the light, the electron requirement for CO2 assimilation determined in low CO2 was slightly lower in transformants with higher PEPC, whereas transformants with decreased PEPC exhibited an appreciably elevated electron requirement. The CO2 compensation point remained unchanged in plants (cppc) with high PEPC activity, but might be increased in an antisense plant cell line. Stomatal opening was delayed in antisense plants, but was accelerated in plants overexpressing PEPC C.g. compared to the controls.
Asunto(s)
Fosfoenolpiruvato Carboxilasa/genética , Solanum tuberosum/genética , Aminoácidos/metabolismo , Dióxido de Carbono/metabolismo , Corynebacterium/enzimología , ADN sin Sentido/genética , Oscuridad , Transporte de Electrón , Escherichia coli/enzimología , Vectores Genéticos , Malatos/metabolismo , Fosfoenolpiruvato Carboxilasa/metabolismo , Fotosíntesis , Hojas de la Planta/metabolismo , Plantas/enzimología , Plantas Modificadas Genéticamente , Plantas Tóxicas , Ácido Pirúvico/metabolismo , Proteínas Recombinantes/genética , Proteínas Recombinantes/metabolismo , Solanum tuberosum/crecimiento & desarrollo , NicotianaRESUMEN
Compensation of victims of major industrial accidents requires the introduction of an elaborate system capable of providing substantial financial resources to victims while spreading the costs. The more hazardous activities in the oil and chemicals industries could be required to provide the same insurance or financial guarantees as is already required for nuclear power plants.
Asunto(s)
Accidentes de Trabajo/legislación & jurisprudencia , Exposición a Riesgos Ambientales/legislación & jurisprudencia , Seguro de Responsabilidad Civil/legislación & jurisprudencia , Enfermedades Profesionales/etiología , Política Pública , Contaminantes Ocupacionales del Aire/envenenamiento , Humanos , Factores de RiesgoRESUMEN
In 77 of 115 cultures from uterine/tubal flushes performed in women undergoing diagnostic laparoscopy for reasons of infertility, epithelioid colonies of "tadpole-like" cells appeared. In cultured jet washings from the uterine cavities in women with ligated tubes, the same tadpole-like cells are present. These cells are also observed in vitro in laparoscopic biopsy specimens of active endometriosis nodules. Judged by the presence of cytokeratin in these cells, demonstrated by polyvalent or monoclonal antikeratin antibodies (the latter as a marker for glandular epithelia), there can be no doubt about their origin from the lining and glandular epithelium of part of the genital tract. Peritoneal washings not preceded by uterine/tubal flushing never contained the tadpole-like cells in culture. True epithelial cells were observed in the peritoneal cavity after flushing, and the proliferative capacity of these cells in vitro during the preovulatory phase was proven.