66 research outputs found
Discovery of topological chiral crystals with helicoid arc states
The quantum behaviour of electrons in materials lays the foundation for
modern electronic and information technology. Quantum materials with novel
electronic and optical properties have been proposed as the next frontier, but
much remains to be discovered to actualize the promise. Here we report the
first observation of topological quantum properties of chiral crystals in the
RhSi family. We demonsrate that this material hosts novel phase of matter
exhibiting nearly ideal topological surface properties that emerge as a
consequence of the crystals' structural chirality or handedness. We also
demonstrate that the electrons on the surface of this crystal show a highly
unusual helicoid structure that spirals around two high-symmetry momenta
signalling its topological electronic chirality. Such helicoid Fermi arcs on
the surface experimentally characterize the topological charges of ,
which arise from the bulk chiral fermions. The existence of bulk high-fold
degenerate fermions are guaranteed by the crystal symmetries, however, in order
to determine the topological charge in the chiral crystals it is essential to
identify and study the helical arc states. Remarkably, these topological
conductors we discovered exhibit helical Fermi arcs which are of length ,
stretching across the entire Brillouin zone and orders of magnitude larger than
those found in all known Weyl semimetals. Our results demonstrate novel
electronic topological state of matter on a structurally chiral crystal
featuring helicoid Fermi arc surface states. The exotic electronic chiral
fermion state realised in these materials can be used to detect a quantised
photogalvanic optical response or the chiral magnetic effect and its optical
version in future devices as described by G. Chang \textit{et.al.,}
`Topological quantum properties of chiral crystals' Nature Mat. 17, 978-985
(2018).Comment: 28 pages, 12 figure
Monocytes induce STAT3 activation in human mesenchymal stem cells to promote osteoblast formation
A major therapeutic challenge is how to replace bone once it is lost. Bone loss is a characteristic of chronic inflammatory and degenerative diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. Cells and cytokines of the immune system are known to regulate bone turnover by controlling the differentiation and activity of osteoclasts, the bone resorbing cells. However, less is known about the regulation of osteoblasts (OB), the bone forming cells. This study aimed to investigate whether immune cells also regulate OB differentiation. Using in vitro cell cultures of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), it was shown that monocytes/macrophages potently induced MSC differentiation into OBs. This was evident by increased alkaline phosphatase (ALP) after 7 days and the formation of mineralised bone nodules at 21 days. This monocyte-induced osteogenic effect was mediated by cell contact with MSCs leading to the production of soluble factor(s) by the monocytes. As a consequence of these interactions we observed a rapid activation of STAT3 in the MSCs. Gene profiling of STAT3 constitutively active (STAT3C) infected MSCs using Illumina whole human genome arrays showed that Runx2 and ALP were up-regulated whilst DKK1 was down-regulated in response to STAT3 signalling. STAT3C also led to the up-regulation of the oncostatin M (OSM) and LIF receptors. In the co-cultures, OSM that was produced by monocytes activated STAT3 in MSCs, and neutralising antibodies to OSM reduced ALP by 50%. These data indicate that OSM, in conjunction with other mediators, can drive MSC differentiation into OB. This study establishes a role for monocyte/macrophages as critical regulators of osteogenic differentiation via OSM production and the induction of STAT3 signalling in MSCs. Inducing the local activation of STAT3 in bone cells may be a valuable tool to increase bone formation in osteoporosis and arthritis, and in localised bone remodelling during fracture repair
MedShapeNet -- A Large-Scale Dataset of 3D Medical Shapes for Computer Vision
Prior to the deep learning era, shape was commonly used to describe the
objects. Nowadays, state-of-the-art (SOTA) algorithms in medical imaging are
predominantly diverging from computer vision, where voxel grids, meshes, point
clouds, and implicit surface models are used. This is seen from numerous
shape-related publications in premier vision conferences as well as the growing
popularity of ShapeNet (about 51,300 models) and Princeton ModelNet (127,915
models). For the medical domain, we present a large collection of anatomical
shapes (e.g., bones, organs, vessels) and 3D models of surgical instrument,
called MedShapeNet, created to facilitate the translation of data-driven vision
algorithms to medical applications and to adapt SOTA vision algorithms to
medical problems. As a unique feature, we directly model the majority of shapes
on the imaging data of real patients. As of today, MedShapeNet includes 23
dataset with more than 100,000 shapes that are paired with annotations (ground
truth). Our data is freely accessible via a web interface and a Python
application programming interface (API) and can be used for discriminative,
reconstructive, and variational benchmarks as well as various applications in
virtual, augmented, or mixed reality, and 3D printing. Exemplary, we present
use cases in the fields of classification of brain tumors, facial and skull
reconstructions, multi-class anatomy completion, education, and 3D printing. In
future, we will extend the data and improve the interfaces. The project pages
are: https://medshapenet.ikim.nrw/ and
https://github.com/Jianningli/medshapenet-feedbackComment: 16 page
Cabbage and fermented vegetables : From death rate heterogeneity in countries to candidates for mitigation strategies of severe COVID-19
Large differences in COVID-19 death rates exist between countries and between regions of the same country. Some very low death rate countries such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, or the Balkans have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods. Although biases exist when examining ecological studies, fermented vegetables or cabbage have been associated with low death rates in European countries. SARS-CoV-2 binds to its receptor, the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). As a result of SARS-CoV-2 binding, ACE2 downregulation enhances the angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT(1)R) axis associated with oxidative stress. This leads to insulin resistance as well as lung and endothelial damage, two severe outcomes of COVID-19. The nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) is the most potent antioxidant in humans and can block in particular the AT(1)R axis. Cabbage contains precursors of sulforaphane, the most active natural activator of Nrf2. Fermented vegetables contain many lactobacilli, which are also potent Nrf2 activators. Three examples are: kimchi in Korea, westernized foods, and the slum paradox. It is proposed that fermented cabbage is a proof-of-concept of dietary manipulations that may enhance Nrf2-associated antioxidant effects, helpful in mitigating COVID-19 severity.Peer reviewe
Nrf2-interacting nutrients and COVID-19 : time for research to develop adaptation strategies
There are large between- and within-country variations in COVID-19 death rates. Some very low death rate settings such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, the Balkans and Africa have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods whose intake is associated with the activation of the Nrf2 (Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2) anti-oxidant transcription factor. There are many Nrf2-interacting nutrients (berberine, curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate, genistein, quercetin, resveratrol, sulforaphane) that all act similarly to reduce insulin resistance, endothelial damage, lung injury and cytokine storm. They also act on the same mechanisms (mTOR: Mammalian target of rapamycin, PPAR gamma:Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor, NF kappa B: Nuclear factor kappa B, ERK: Extracellular signal-regulated kinases and eIF2 alpha:Elongation initiation factor 2 alpha). They may as a result be important in mitigating the severity of COVID-19, acting through the endoplasmic reticulum stress or ACE-Angiotensin-II-AT(1)R axis (AT(1)R) pathway. Many Nrf2-interacting nutrients are also interacting with TRPA1 and/or TRPV1. Interestingly, geographical areas with very low COVID-19 mortality are those with the lowest prevalence of obesity (Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia). It is tempting to propose that Nrf2-interacting foods and nutrients can re-balance insulin resistance and have a significant effect on COVID-19 severity. It is therefore possible that the intake of these foods may restore an optimal natural balance for the Nrf2 pathway and may be of interest in the mitigation of COVID-19 severity
The genomic basis of parasitism in the Strongyloides clade of nematodes.
Soil-transmitted nematodes, including the Strongyloides genus, cause one of the most prevalent neglected tropical diseases. Here we compare the genomes of four Strongyloides species, including the human pathogen Strongyloides stercoralis, and their close relatives that are facultatively parasitic (Parastrongyloides trichosuri) and free-living (Rhabditophanes sp. KR3021). A significant paralogous expansion of key gene families--families encoding astacin-like and SCP/TAPS proteins--is associated with the evolution of parasitism in this clade. Exploiting the unique Strongyloides life cycle, we compare the transcriptomes of the parasitic and free-living stages and find that these same gene families are upregulated in the parasitic stages, underscoring their role in nematode parasitism
Effects of Pedometer Use on Exercise Tolerance in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure
Routine physical exercise can improve exercise tolerance in individuals affected by chronic heart failure (HF). The purpose of this prospective randomized control study was to examine the effect of pedometer use on exercise tolerance in veterans with chronic HF
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