Cortical Microhemorrhages Cause Local Inflammation but Do Not Trigger Widespread Dendrite Degeneration

Microhemorrhages are common in the aging brain, and their incidence is correlated with increased risk of neurodegenerative disease. Past work has shown that occlusion of individual cortical microvessels as well as large-scale hemorrhages can lead to degeneration of neurons and increased inflammation. Using two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy in anesthetized mice, we characterized the acute and chronic dynamics of vessel bleeding, tissue compression, blood flow change, neural degeneration, and inflammation following a microhemorrhage caused by rupturing a single penetrating arteriole with tightly-focused femtosecond laser pulses. We quantified the extravasation of red blood cells (RBCs) and blood plasma into the brain and determined that the bleeding was limited by clotting. The vascular bleeding formed a RBC-filled core that compressed the surrounding parenchymal tissue, but this compression was not sufficient to crush nearby brain capillaries, although blood flow speeds in these vessels was reduced by 20%. Imaging of cortical dendrites revealed no degeneration of the large-scale structure of the dendritic arbor up to 14 days after the microhemorrhage. Dendrites close to the RBC core were displaced by extravasating RBCs but began to relax back one day after the lesion. Finally, we observed a rapid inflammatory response characterized by morphology changes in microglia/macrophages up to 200 µm from the microhemorrhage as well as extension of cellular processes into the RBC core. This inflammation persisted over seven days. Taken together, our data suggest that a cortical microhemorrhage does not directly cause significant neural pathology but does trigger a sustained, local inflammatory response

Characterising competitive equilibrium in terms of opportunity

This paper analyses alternative profiles of opportunity sets for individuals in an exchange economy, without assuming that individuals’ choices reveal coherent preferences. It introduces the concept of a ‘market-clearing single-price regime’, representing a profile of opportunity sets consistent with competitive equilibrium. It also proposes an opportunity-based normative criterion, the Strong Opportunity Criterion, which is analogous with the core in preference-based analysis. It shows that every market-clearing single-price regime satisfies the Strong Opportunity Criterion and that, in the limit as an economy is replicated, only such regimes have this property

Cell cultures and molecular investigation on Polygonum tinctorium and Indigofera tinctoria plants to understand indican biosynthesis

Indican biosynthesis in Indigofera tinctoria and Polygonum tinctorium plants is of topical interest due to its academic and industrial relevance for indigo dye production. Dye yield depends on indican content in the plant biomass. Cell culture and molecular biological investigations were carried out to assess indican biosynthesis in these plants. Tissue culture protocols were optimized for explant identification, decontamination, in vitro culture medium & suitable growth regulators and culture conditions for P. tinctorium at Okayama University of Science, and I. tinctoria at CSIR-NEERI. Four different growth hormones i.e. BA, Kin, NAA, 2,4-D, at 0.01 –2 mg L-1 culture medium, in random combination, and two different explants i.e. leaf and internode of both plants were experimented. In both plants, callus proliferation was better from leaf tissue with growth index (GI) up to 10 on MS agar gelled medium fortified with BA+NAA in comparison to BA+2,4-D. Suspension cell cultures of I. tinctorium were induced in MS liquid medium with only 2,4-D through 3 stages with GI up to 30. In vitro raised cell biomass of I. tinctorium presented higher indican synthesis (p> 0.5) in comparison to that of P. tinctorium. Both of these plants synthesize indican, but the differential response under in vitro is interesting. Total transcriptomes of both plants were worked out and annotated. Comparative analysis of transcriptome profile indicated >80% genes are similar for the indican biosynthetic pathways. Complete alignment of both transcriptomes and validation for biosynthesis pathways specific genes is needed in both the plants to ascertain their differential expression

WMO Assessment of Weather and Climate Mortality Extremes: Lightning, Tropical Cyclones, Tornadoes, and Hail

A World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Commission for Climatology international panel was convened to examine and assess the available evidence associated with five weather-related mortality extremes: 1) lightning (indirect), 2) lightning (direct), 3) tropical cyclones, 4) tornadoes, and 5) hail. After recommending for acceptance of only events after 1873 (the formation of the predecessor of the WMO), the committee evaluated and accepted the following mortality extremes: 1) “highest mortality (indirect strike) associated with lightning” as the 469 people killed in a lightning-caused oil tank fire in Dronka, Egypt, on 2 November 1994; 2) “highest mortality directly associated with a single lightning flash” as the lightning flash that killed 21 people in a hut in Manica Tribal Trust Lands, Zimbabwe (at time of incident, eastern Rhodesia), on 23 December 1975; 3) “highest mortality associated with a tropical cyclone” as the Bangladesh (at time of incident, East Pakistan) cyclone of 12–13 November 1970 with an estimated death toll of 300 000 people; 4) “highest mortality associated with a tornado” as the 26 April 1989 tornado that destroyed the Manikganj district, Bangladesh, with an estimated death toll of 1300 individuals; and 5) “highest mortality associated with a hailstorm” as the storm occurring near Moradabad, India, on 30 April 1888 that killed 246 people. These mortality extremes serve to further atmospheric science by giving baseline mortality values for comparison to future weather-related catastrophes and also allow for adjudication of new meteorological information as it becomes available