Diversity of Anaplasma phagocytophilum Strains, USA

We analyzed the structure of the expression site encoding the immunoprotective protein MSP2/P44 from multiple Anaplasma phagocytophilum strains in the United States. The sequence of p44ESup1 had diverged in Ap-variant 1 strains infecting ruminants. In contrast, no differences were detected between A. phagocytophilum strains infecting humans and domestic dogs

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Solid Thermophilic Aerobic Reactor (STAR)

22 slides Provider Notes:Submitted by Jim Allema

Disparities in HPV vaccine uptake and provider recommendation by provider facility type

Background: Approximately 46,000 cases of human papillomavirus (HPV) attributable cancers are diagnosed annually in the United States. The HPV vaccine can prevent over 90% of HPV-attributable cancers, yet national uptake remains lower than the Healthy People 2030 target goal of 80% completion. To devise targeted interventions to increase the uptake of HPV vaccines, it is crucial to understand the vaccination rates across various health care settings. We examined the association between provider facility type and provider recommendation and HPV vaccine uptake among adolescents in the US. Methods: We conducted secondary data analysis of the 2020 National Immunization Survey-Teen data (n=20,162), which provides current, population-based estimates of vaccination coverage among adolescents. Provider facility type was classified as public facilities (i.e., public health department-operated clinic, community health center, rural health clinic, tribal/Indian health facility), hospital-based facilities, private facilities, and mixed facilities (i.e., vaccination provided in more than one of the above-mentioned locations). Self-reported provider recommendation was dichotomized as yes/no. HPV vaccine initiation was defined as the receipt of ≥1 dose of the HPV vaccine, and completion was defined as the receipt of ≥2 doses (if the adolescent received first dose before age 15) or ≥3 doses (if the adolescent was at least 15 years old). Weighted, multivariable logistic regression models estimated the odds of receiving provider recommendation and initiating and completing the HPV vaccine by provider facility type, adjusting for adolescents age, gender, race, poverty level, number of doctor visits per year, and mother\u27s age, marital status, and education. Results: Approximately 81% of adolescents received a provider recommendation for the HPV vaccine and 47.5% received their vaccination at providers based in private facilities. The prevalence of HPV vaccine initiation was 75.1% and completion was 58.6%. In the adjusted analyses, adolescents who received their vaccination from public facilities (aOR=0.63; 95% CI: 0.51-0.78) were less likely to receive provider recommendation for the vaccine compared to those who received their vaccination at private facilities. Similarly, adolescents who received their vaccination from public facilities were less likely to initiate (aOR=0.73; 95% CI: 0.59-0.90) and complete (aOR=0.62; 95% CI: 0.52-0.77) the HPV vaccination compared to those who received their vaccination at private facilities. There was no difference between hospital and mixed vs. private facilities for both provider recommendation and vaccination. Conclusions: Both the recommendation for and uptake of the vaccine regimen were less common in public facilities than private facilities. Given the populations served in public facilities and the health disparities that exist in these populations, a greater focus is needed on recommendation for vaccination and follow through

Cytotoxicity of a new tirucallane derivative isolated from Stereospermum acuminatissimum K. Schum stem bark.

Leutcha BP, Sema DK, Dzoyem JP, et al. Cytotoxicity of a new tirucallane derivative isolated from Stereospermum acuminatissimum K. Schum stem bark. Natural product research. 2020:1-6.One new tirucallan derivative, leutcharic acid (1) was isolated from Stereospermum acuminatissimum stem bark together with the known compounds 3-oxo-22-hydroxyhopane (2), 3,4-secotirucalla-4(28),7,24-trien-3,21-dioic acid (3), 3-oxotirucalla-7,24-dien-21-oic acid (7), lupeol (4), beta-sitosterol (5) and stigmasterol (6). The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated using 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy in combination with literature data. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the cytotoxic properties' constituents of S. acuminatissimum. Cytotoxicity of compounds 1 and 2 was assessed invitro with the WST-1 assay on human lung adenocarcinoma A549 and THP-1 human monocytic leukaemia cell lines. Both compounds showed antiproliferative activity on the cancer cells. Compound 2 was more active against THP-1 with an IC50 value of 26.83M. The sensitivity of THP-1 cells to compounds 1 and 2 indicated that these compounds might be potential leads for anticancer agent development against leukaemia

Demonstrating that speciation of organic fraction does matter for source apportionment : use of specific primary and secondary organic markers

Organic aerosol (OA) is a major part of atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM), accounting for approximately 20-60% w/w of PM in the continental mid-altitudes. However, ambient OA remains poorly understood due to mixed source origins and processes (anthropogenic and biogenic, primary and secondary). The objective of this study was to refine source apportionment of PM10 OA by Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) using specific primary and secondary organic molecular markers. PM10 samples were collected over a one year period (2013) at an urban station in Grenoble (France) every third day (24 h-basis sampling) on quartz filters, and an extended chemical characterization was performed (~216 species quantified) including specific primary organic markers i.e. levoglucosan, polyols (arabitol, mannitol), 1-nitropyrene (diesel emission), PAHs, alkanes, hopanes, etc. and secondary markers i.e. nitro- and oxy-PAHs, hydroxyglutaric acid (α-pinene secondary organic aerosol SOA), α-methyl glyceric acid (isoprene SOA), DHOPA (toluene SOA), etc. together with other PM chemical species such as OC/EC, Humic Like Substances (HuLiS), ions/cations (Na+, Mg2+, NH4+, Cl-, SO42-, NO3-), metals (Ba, Cu, Ti, Zn, Sb,...). Results showed that a better source apportionment of PM10 OA fraction was achieved using specific organic markers with additional sources resolved such as biogenic SOA, anthropogenic SOA, primary biogenic (fungi) and plant debris by comparison to more traditional PMF. More than 50% of OC seemed secondary in nature, and a high contribution of anthropogenic SOA was noticed in winter during a specific PM pollution event. Primary and secondary sources of HuLiS were also investigated in this study. Discussion will further underline the details of the chemical and temporal/seasonal profiles of each factor, and their relative contributions

Speciation of organic fraction does matter for source apportionment. Part 1 : A one-year campaign in Grenoble (France)

International audiencePM10 source apportionment was performed by positive matrix factorization (PMF) using specific primary and secondary organic molecular markers on samples collected over a one year period (2013) at an urban station in Grenoble (France). The results provided a 9-factor optimum solution, including sources rarely apportioned in the literature, such as two types of primary biogenic organic aerosols (fungal spores and plant debris), as well as specific biogenic and anthropogenic secondary organic aerosols (SOA). These sources were identified thanks to the use of key organic markers, namely, polyols, odd number higher alkanes, and several SOA markers related to the oxidation of isoprene, α-pinene, toluene and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Primary and secondary biogenic contributions together accounted for at least 68% of the total organic carbon (OC) in the summer, while anthropogenic primary and secondary sources represented at least 71% of OC during wintertime. A very significant contribution of anthropogenic SOA was estimated in the winter during an intense PM pollution event (PM10 > 50 μg m− 3 for several days; 18% of PM10 and 42% of OC). Specific meteorological conditions with a stagnation of pollutants over 10 days and possibly Fenton-like chemistry and self-amplification cycle of SOA formation could explain such high anthropogenic SOA concentrations during this period. Finally, PMF outputs were also used to investigate the origins of humic-like substances (HuLiS), which represented 16% of OC on an annual average basis. The results indicated that HuLiS were mainly associated with biomass burning (22%), secondary inorganic (22%), mineral dust (15%) and biogenic SOA (14%) factors. This study is probably the first to state that HuLiS are significantly associated with mineral dust

Study of the chemical processes involving nitro- and oxy-PAHs in ambient air and evaluation of SOA PAH contribution on PM via annual and intensive field campaigns

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous compounds emitted by all combustion sources. They are of major health concern because of their carcinogenic, mutagenic and teratogenic properties and are therefore, regulated pollutants in ambient air. In the atmosphere, PAH oxidation through homogeneous and heterogeneous reactions may lead to the formation of oxy- and nitro-PAHs (Keyte et al., 2013). These latter species are also emitted concomitantly with PAHs during incomplete combustion processes. Oxy- and nitro- PAHs are potentially more toxic than their parent PAHs. The identification of the origins of oxy- and nitro- PAHs is challenging, due to the coexistence of their primary and/or secondary sources. These species are also of prime interest because they are, typically part of the secondary organic aerosol (SOA) generated from gaseous PAH oxidation, which is significant in urban environments (Chan et al., 2009). The objective of this work is to better understand the chemical processes involved in the formation of nitroand oxy-PAHs based on ambient air field observations, to better understand the sources of these toxic compounds and to identify specific molecules that could further be used as molecular markers of PAH oxidation and SOA formation. Field measurements were performed over 1 year with samplings, every third day, of the gaseous and particulate (PM10) phases in Grenoble (2013) and at the SIRTA station (25 km SW from Paris city center) (2015). Intensive observations at SIRTA have been also performed with PM10 samples collected every 4- hour during a period of severe PM pollution event (PM>50 μg m-3 for several days) in March 2015, concomitantly with online measurements (e.g. ACSM, 7λ-Aethalometer). The study of the occurrence of nitro-, -oxy and parent PAHs in the atmosphere, the seasonal and diurnal variations of their concentrations and substance patterns and the assessment of the cancer risk induced by these compounds have been performed. Based on these observations combined with literature knowledge and an extended aerosol chemical characterization, specific molecules of PAH oxidation have been identified. These substances were then used in source-receptor models such as positive matrix factorization (PMF) to apportion the SOA contribution from PAH oxidation on PM10 mass

Experimental demonstration of a dispatchable latent heat storage system with aluminum-silicon as a phase change material

In this work, we present the design, construction, and experimental results of a prototype latent heat thermal energy storage system. The prototype consists of a thermal storage tank with 100 kg of the aluminum-silicon eutectic as a phase change material, a valved thermosyphon that controls heat flow from the thermal storage tank to the power block, and thermoelectric generators for conversion of heat to electricity. We tested the prototype over four simulated days, where each day consisted of four phases of operation: charging, discharging, simultaneous charging and discharging, and storage. Our results show three major conclusions. First, the thermal energy storage system was able to receive and distribute heat with small temperature gradients – less than 5 °C throughout the thermal storage tank. Second, the valved thermosyphon was able to effectively control heat transfer, demonstrating an on/off thermal conductance ratio of 430. Third, the interfaces between subsystems had small temperature drops: of the ∼ 560 °C temperature drop from the thermal storage tank to the heat rejection system, ∼ 525 °C occurred across the power block. This work overcomes the challenges of integrating previously-developed subsystems together, providing a proof-of-concept of this system