University College Cork

About: University College Cork is a education organization based out in Cork, Ireland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 12056 authors who have published 28452 publications receiving 958414 citations. The organization is also known as: Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh & National University of Ireland, Cork.

Moral distress: A review of the argument-based nursing ethics literature

Abstract: Aim:The aim of this review is to examine the ways in which the concept of moral distress has been delineated and deployed in the argument-based nursing ethics literature. It adds to what we already know about moral distress from reviews of the qualitative and quantitative research.Data sources:CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Knowledge, EMBASE, Academic Search Complete, PsycInfo, Philosophers’ Index and Socindex.Review methods:A total of 20 argument-based articles published between January 1984 and December 2013 were analysed.Results:We found that like the empirical literature, most authors in this review draw on Jameton’s original definition and describe moral distress in psychological–emotional–physiological terms. They also agree that moral distress is linked to the presence of some kind of constraint on nurses’ moral agency, and that it is best understood as a two-staged process that can intensify over time. There is also consensus that moral distress has an important normative meaning, although different views...

Impact on Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Formation of Pseudomonas Strains Used as Inoculants for Biocontrol of Soil-Borne Fungal Plant Pathogens

Abstract: The arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis, a key component of agroecosystems, was assayed as a rhizosphere biosensor for evaluation of the impact of certain antifungal Pseudomonas inoculants used to control soil-borne plant pathogens. The following three Pseudomonas strains were tested: wild-type strain F113, which produces the antifungal compound 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol (DAPG); strain F113G22, a DAPG-negative mutant of F113; and strain F113(pCU203), a DAPG overproducer. Wild-type strain F113 and mutant strain F113G22 stimulated both mycelial development from Glomus mosseae spores germinating in soil and tomato root colonization. Strain F113(pCU203) did not adversely affect G. mosseae performance. Mycelial development, but not spore germination, is sensitive to 10 mM DAPG, a concentration that might be present in the rhizosphere. The results of scanning electron and confocal microscopy demonstrated that strain F113 and its derivatives adhered to G. mosseae spores independent of the ability to produce DAPG.

The Electrochemistry of Gold: II The Electrocatalytic Behaviour of the Metal in Aqueous Media

Abstract: Chemistry Department, University College Cork, Ireland Although it is the noblest and most inert of metals, and is a very weak chemisorber, gold displays a very wide range of electrocatalytic activity — especially in base. Such unexpected behaviour is rationalized here in terms of the unusual properties of nanocluster, microparticles or quantum dots. Such species, present as defects at the metal surface, undergo oxidation at unusually low potentials (significantly lower than that of bulk gold) in a process known as premonolayer oxidation. The resulting low coverage (or incipient) oxide species are assumed to be the mediators for oxidation reactions while unoxidized active gold atoms, present at lower potentials, often act as the mediators for reduction. Electrocatalysis on noble metals is quite often confined to the double layer region and only low coverage metal atoms at active sites are involved. The enhanced activity of gold in base is readily rationalized in terms of a super-Nernstian E/pH effect. The unusual properties of metal nanoclusters may also be used to rationalize the surprisingly high level of catalytic activity of oxide-supported gold microparticles as reported recently by Haruta and co-workers.

Gender differences in the effects of cardiovascular drugs

Abstract: Although sex-specific differences in cardiovascular medicine are well known, the exact influences of sex on the effect of cardiovascular drugs remain unclear. Women and men differ in body composition and physiology (hormonal influences during the menstrual cycle, menopause, and pregnancy) and they present differences in drug pharmacokinetics (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion) and pharmacodynamics, so that is not rare that they may respond differently to cardiovascular drugs. Furthermore, women are also less often treated with evidence-based drugs thereby preventing optimization of therapeutics for women of all ages, experience more relevant adverse drug reactions than men, and remain underrepresented in most clinical trials. Thus, current guidelines for prevention, diagnosis, and medical treatment for cardiovascular diseases are based on trials conducted predominantly in middle-aged men. A better understanding of these sex-related differences is fundamental to improve the safety and efficacy of cardiovascular drugs and for developing proper individualized cardiovascular therapeutic strategies both in men and women. This review briefly summarizes gender differences in the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of cardiovascular drugs and provides recommendations to close the gaps in our understanding of sex-specific differences in drug efficacy and safety.