Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is the most common human enzyme defect. In this study, we aimed to perform a molecular investigation of G6PD deficiency in Tunisia and to associate clinical manifestations and the degree of deficiency with the genotype. A total of 161 Tunisian subjects of both sexes were screened by spectrophotometric assay for enzyme activity. Out of these, 54 unrelated subjects were selected for screening of the most frequent mutations in Tunisia by PCR/RFLP, followed by size-based separation of double-stranded fragments under non-denaturing conditions on a denaturing high performance liquid chromatography system. Of the 56 altered chromosomes examined, 75 % had the GdA(-) mutation, 14.28 % showed the GdB(-) mutation and no mutations were identified in 10.72 % of cases. Hemizygous males with GdA(-) mutation were mostly of class III, while those with GdB(-) mutation were mainly of class II. The principal clinical manifestation encountered was favism. Acute hemolytic crises induced by drugs or infections and neonatal jaundice were also noted. Less severe clinical features such as low back pain were present in heterozygous females and in one homozygous female. Asymptomatic individuals were in majority heterozygote females and strangely one hemizygous male. The spectrum of mutations seems to be homogeneous and similar to that of Mediterranean countries; nevertheless 10.72 % of cases remain with undetermined mutation thus suggesting a potential heterogeneity of the deficiency at the molecular level. On the other hand, we note a better association of the molecular defects with the severity of the deficiency than with clinical manifestations.
In this paper, a multi-item capacitated lot-sizing problem with setup times and backlogging (MICLSP_SB) is addressed with respect to two conflicting objective functions. This nondeterministic polynomial time (NP)-hard problem consists of finding optimal production plans while minimizing, simultaneously, the total cost and the total inventory level. To effectively solve the considered problem, two new versions of multiobjective binary particle swarm optimization are designed. In the first proposed version "standard multiobjective particle swarm optimization" (S-MOBPSO) algorithm, two main contributions are introduced. First, a new particle encoding and decoding method is developed to treat the MICLSP_SB decision variables. Second, the overall violation minimization method and the constraint handling method are combined to effectively handle the problem constraints. To further enhance the overall performance, an improvement procedure that minimizes the capacity constraints violations is developed and embedded into the S-MOBPSO algorithm. This second version is named improved MOBPSO (I-MOBPSO). An illustrative example is presented to explain the application of the proposed algorithms. Five performance metrics are considered to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms. Experimental results demonstrate the
IntroductionA history of childhood trauma is reportedly more prevalent in people suffering from psychosis than in the general population. Previous studies linked childhood trauma (CT) to neurocognitive impairments in schizophrenia (SCZ), but rarely to theory of mind (TOM) deficits.ObjectivesTo investigate the relationship between TOM deficits and CT in SCZ.MethodsFifty-eight outpatients with stable SCZ completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire retrospectively assessing five types of childhood trauma (emotional, physical and sexual abuse, and emotional and physical neglect). They also completed an intention-inferencing task, in which the ability to infer a character's intentions from information in a short story is assessed.ResultsOur results suggest a relationship between specific kinds of CT and TOM deficits. A history of childhood physical neglect was significantly correlated to a worse performance in the intention-inferencing task (P = 0,001). Patients with higher scores of CT denial also had less correct answers (P = 0,035) and more false answers (P = 0,013).ConclusionsOur results need replication but underline the necessity of investigating psychosocial mechanisms underlying the development of social cognition deficits, including deficits in TOM.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.
Background: Muslims fast each year during the Holy Month of Ramadan. This rite has major socio-cultural consequences. The circadian rhythms, energy expenditure, body temperature and biological clock are also influenced by Ramadan fasting. The impact of fasting on patients with mental disorders has been little studied. The aim of this study was to assess the number of hospitalizations in psychiatry during Ramadan compared to the other months of the lunar year. Method: A cross-sectional and retrospective study was conducted at Razi hospital, the psychiatric hospital in Tunis. The following data over the five lunar years (1434–1438) was checked for: The monthly and the annual number of hospitalizations in the different departments of Razi mental health hospital in Tunis as well as the monthly and annual rates of different legal modalities of admissions. Results: An important decrease in the number of hospitalizations during Ramadan was observed each year followed by a constant increase during the following month. Ramadan was the only lunar month to have had a consistently below-average number of admissions. There has been a significant increase in the mean number of hospitalizations per month over the years. A general trend towards an increase in the proportion of enforced hospitalizations has been noted. Conclusion: Ramadan stands out not only on a religious but also on a social level. Our results add support to the usefulness of research on mental health and Ramadan in the psychiatric community.
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