Neck circumference and clustered cardiovascular risk factors in children and adolescents: Cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: Early detection of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, such as obesity, is crucial to prevent adverse long-term effects on individuals' health. Therefore, the aims were: (1) to explore the robustness of neck circumference (NC) as a predictor of CVD and examine its association with numerous anthropometric and body composition indices and (2) to release sex and age-specific NC cut-off values to classify youths as overweight/obese. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: 23 primary schools and 17 secondary schools from Spain. PARTICIPANTS: 2198 students (1060 girls), grades 1-4 and 7-10. MEASURES: Pubertal development, anthropometric and body composition indices, systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP, respectively), cardiorespiratory fitness, blood sampling triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), glucose and inflammatory markers. Homoeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR) and cluster of CVD risk factors were calculated. RESULTS: NC was negatively associated with maximum oxygen consumption (R2=0.231, P<0.001 for boys; R2=0.018, P<0.001 for girls) and adiponectin (R2=0.049, P<0.001 for boys; R2=0.036, P<0.001 for girls); and positively associated with SBP, DBP, TC/HDL-c, TG, HOMA, complement factors C-3 and C-4, leptin and clustered CVD risk factor in both sexes (R2 from 0.035 to 0.353, P<0.01 for boys; R2 from 0.024 to 0.215, P<0.001 for girls). Moreover, NC was positively associated with serum C reactive protein and LDL-c only in boys (R2 from 0.013 to 0.055, P<0.05). CONCLUSION: NC is a simple, low-cost and practical screening tool of excess of upper body obesity and CVD risk factors in children and adolescents. Paediatricians can easily use it as a screening tool for overweight/obesity in children and adolescents. For this purpose, sex and age-specific thresholds to classify children and adolescents as normal weight or overweight/obese are provided.This work was supported by the DEP 2010 21662 C04 00 (DEP 2010 21662 C04 01: DEP 2010 21662 C04 02: DEP 2010 21662 C04 03: DEP 2010 21662 C04 04) grant from the National Plan for Research: Development and Innovation (R+D+i) MICINN

Design of the Cruise and Flap Airfoil for the X-57 Maxwell Distributed Electric Propulsion Aircraft

A computational and design study on an airfoil and high-lift flap for the X-57 Maxwell Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) testbed aircraft was conducted. The aircraft wing sizing study resulted in a wing area of 66.67 sq ft and aspect ratio of 15 with a design requirement of V(stall) = 58 KEAS, at a gross weight of 3,000 lb. To meet this goal an aircraft C(L,max) of 4.0 was required. The design cruise condition is 150 KTAS at 8,000 ft. This resulted in airfoil requirements of c(l) is approximately 0.90 for the cruise condition at Re = 2.35 x 10 (exp 6). A flapped airfoil with a c(l,max) of approximately 2.5 or greater, at Re = 1.0 x 10 (exp 6), was needed to have enough lift to meet the stall requirement with the DEP system. MSES computational analyses were conducted on the GAW-1, GAW-2, and the NACA 5415 airfoil sections, however they had limitations in either high drag or low c(l,max) on the cruise airfoil, which was the impetus for a new design. A design was conducted to develop a low drag airfoil for the X-57 cruise conditions with high c(l,max). The final design was the GNEW5BP93B airfoil with a minimum drag coefficient of c(d) = 0.0053 at c(l) = 0.90 and achieved laminar flow back to 69% chord on the upper surface and 62% chord on the lower surface. With fully turbulent flow, the drag increases to c(d) = 0.0120. The predicted maximum lift with turbulent flow is a c(l,max) of 1.95 at alpha = 19 deg. The airfoil is characterized by relatively flat pressure gradient regions on both surfaces at alpha = 0 deg, and aft camber to get extra lift out of the lower surface concave region. A 25% chord slotted flap was designed and analyzed with MSES for a 30 deg flap deflection. Additional 30 deg and 40 deg flap deflection analyses for two flap positions were conducted with USM3D using several turbulence models, for two angles of attack, to assess near c(l,max) with varied flap position. The maximum c(l) varied between 2.41 and 3.35. An infinite-span powered high-lift study was conducted on a GAW-1 constant chord 40 deg flapped airfoil section with FUN3D to quantify the airfoil lift increment that can be expected from a DEP system. The 16.7 hp/propeller blown wing increases the maximum C(L) from 3.45 to C(L) = 6.43, which is an effective q ratio of 1.86. This indicates that if the unblown high-lift flapped airfoil of the X-57 airplane achieves a c(l,max) of 2.78, then the high-lift augmentation blowing could yield a sectional lift coefficient of approximately 4.95 at c(l,max). Finally, a computational study was conducted with FUN3D on an infinite-span constant chord GAW-1 cruise airfoil to determine the impact of high-lift propeller diameter to wing chord ratio on the lift increment of the DEP system. A constant diameter propeller and nacelle size were used in the study. Three computational grids were made with airfoil chords of 0.5*chord, 1.0*chord, and 2.0*chord. Results of the propeller diameter to wing chord ratio study indicated that the blown to unblown C(L) ratio increased as the chord was decreased. However, because of the increase in relative size of the high-lift nacelle to the wing, which impacted wing lift performance, the study indicated that a propeller diameter to wing chord ratio of 1.0 gives the overall best maximum lift on the wing with the DEP system

Suelos loéssicos influenciados por depósitos de conchilla pleistocenos de la formación pascua, noreste de la provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina

En el litoral de la provincia de Buenos Aires se encuentran varias unidades litoestratigr&aacute;ficas cuaternarias carbon&aacute;ticas vinculadas a ingresiones marinas. En la Formaci&oacute;n Las Escobas (Holoceno) se desarrollan suelos calc&aacute;reos litog&eacute;nicos que han sido objeto de estudios taxon&oacute;micos, mineral&oacute;gicos y micromorfol&oacute;gicos. La unidad marina m&aacute;s antigua es la Formaci&oacute;n Pascua (Pleistoceno medio a superior) intercalada en la parte superior de sedimentos lo&eacute;ssicos de la Formaci&oacute;n Pampiano y constituida por sedimentos arenosos, cuya parte superior posee alta concentraci&oacute;n de valvas de moluscos fuertemente cementadas con carbonato de calcio, constituyendo una coquina. Los suelos actuales, de los cuales hay escasa informaci&oacute;n y son motivo de esta presentaci&oacute;n, se desarrollan principalmente en los sedimentos suprayacentes de la Formaci&oacute;n Pampiano y est&aacute;n afectados por procesos de carbonataci&oacute;n, argiluviaci&oacute;n y vertisolizaci&oacute;n. Los objetivos de esta contribuci&oacute;n son: a) analizar las propiedades de los suelos desarrollados en sedimentos lo&eacute;ssicos que cubren a la Formaci&oacute;n Pascua, y b) estimar la influencia de los dep&oacute;sitos carbon&aacute;ticos de esta formaci&oacute;n en la g&eacute;nesis de los suelos. Se estudiaron cinco pedones (cuatro Molisoles y un Vertisol) en los partidos de La Plata, Magdalena y Punta Indio (provincia de Buenos Aires), en los cuales los dep&oacute;sitos carbon&aacute;ticos tienen influencia en los horizontes inferiores de los suelos. Los pedones se desarrollan en sucesiones estratigr&aacute;ficas donde en la parte inferior se encuentra la Formaci&oacute;n Pascua y donde los procesos de pedog&eacute;nesis afectan a veces el techo de la misma. Es decir, que en algunos suelos hay un ciclo pedol&oacute;gico completo (horizontes A, B y C) desarrollado en materiales lo&eacute;ssicos y en otros casos, parte del ciclo pedol&oacute;gico (solum: horizontes A y B) se desarrolla en el loess y parte en la coquina (horizontes C). Todos los suelos poseen evoluci&oacute;n calc&aacute;rea, con horizontes enriquecidos con carbonato de calcio y/o horizontes c&aacute;lcicos y/o horizontes petroc&aacute;lcicos (calcreta). Los horizontes enriquecidos en carbonato de calcio y los horizontes c&aacute;lcicos est&aacute;n desarrollados en los dep&oacute;sitos lo&eacute;ssicos, mientras que el horizonte petroc&aacute;lcico se desarrolla en la parte superior de la coquina, por alteraci&oacute;n epig&eacute;nica de la misma, y cuyo contacto con el dep&oacute;sito lo&eacute;ssico suprayacente es neto (espesor &amp;lt;2 cm) y de forma plana u ondulada. Los horizontes petroc&aacute;lcicos constituyen una calcreta pedog&eacute;nica de clima h&uacute;medo, compacta, sin estructura (masiva) o laminar, de menos de 10 cm de espesor. El origen del carbonato pedog&eacute;nico puede atribuirse a varios mecanismos: a) disoluci&oacute;n de carbonatos en la parte superior del perfil, translocaci&oacute;n descendente y precipitaci&oacute;n; b) ascenso capilar y evaporaci&oacute;n de agua carbonatada acumulada en la parte superior de capas compactas, casi impermeables; c) disoluci&oacute;n y reprecipitaci&oacute;n in situ de los carbonatos de la coquina y d) precipitaci&oacute;n biog&eacute;nica debida a la acci&oacute;n de bacterias, hongos y ra&iacute;ces, como proceso complementario. El proceso de carbonataci&oacute;n ser&iacute;a de origen mixto: a) por reorganizaci&oacute;n de la roca basal y b) por translocaci&oacute;n en clima h&uacute;medo; en ambos casos el carbonato pedogen&eacute;tico tendr&iacute;a origen abi&oacute;tico con participaci&oacute;n bi&oacute;tica. Predomina la cristalizaci&oacute;n y recristalizaci&oacute;n, ya sea por disoluci&oacute;n de dep&oacute;sitos preexistentes o por soluciones carbonatadas de desplazamiento vertical y lateral, interviniendo asimismo la biomineralizaci&oacute;n en estructuras org&aacute;nicas

Interactions between FLORAL ORGAN NUMBER₄ and floral homeotic genes in regulating rice flower development

The floral meristem (FM) is self-maintaining at the early stages of flower development, but it is terminated when a fixed number of floral organs are produced. The FLORAL ORGAN NUMBER4 (FON4; also known as FON2) gene, an ortholog of Arabidopsis CLAVATA3 (CLV3), is required for regulating FM size and determinacy in rice. However, its interactions with floral homeotic genes remain unknown. Here, we report the genetic interactions between FON4 and floral homeotic genes OsMADS15 (an A-class gene), OsMADS16 (also called SUPERWOMAN1, SPW1, a B-class gene), OsMADS3 and OsMADS58 (C-class genes), OsMADS13 (a D-class gene), and OsMADS1 (an E-class gene) during flower development. We observed an additive phenotype in the fon4 double mutant with the OsMADS15 mutant allele dep (degenerative palea). The effect on the organ number of whorl 2 was enhanced in fon4 spw1. Double mutant combinations of fon4 with osmads3, osmads58, osmads13, and osmads1 displayed enhanced defects in FM determinacy and identity, respectively, indicating that FON4 and these genes synergistically control FM activity. In addition, the expression patterns of all the genes besides OsMADS13 had no obvious change in the fon4 mutant. This work reveals how the meristem maintenance gene FON4 genetically interacts with C, D, and E floral homeotic genes in specifying FM activity in monocot rice.Wei Xu, Juhong Tao, Mingjiao Chen, Ludovico Dreni, Zhijing Luo, Yun Hu, Wanqi Liang and Dabing Zhan

A microfluidic device enabling drug resistance analysis of leukemia cells via coupled dielectrophoretic detection and impedimetric counting

© 2021, The Author(s).We report the development of a lab-on-a-chip system, that facilitates coupled dielectrophoretic detection (DEP-D) and impedimetric counting (IM-C), for investigating drug resistance in K562 and CCRF-CEM leukemia cells without (immuno) labeling. Two IM-C units were placed upstream and downstream of the DEP-D unit for enumeration, respectively, before and after the cells were treated in DEP-D unit, where the difference in cell count gave the total number of trapped cells based on their DEP characteristics. Conductivity of the running buffer was matched the conductivity of cytoplasm of wild type K562 and CCRF-CEM cells. Results showed that DEP responses of drug resistant and wild type K562 cells were statistically discriminative (at p = 0.05 level) at 200 mS/m buffer conductivity and at 8.6 MHz working frequency of DEP-D unit. For CCRF-CEM cells, conductivity and frequency values were 160 mS/m and 6.2 MHz, respectively. Our approach enabled discrimination of resistant cells in a group by setting up a threshold provided by the conductivity of running buffer. Subsequent selection of drug resistant cells can be applied to investigate variations in gene expressions and occurrence of mutations related to drug resistance

Diesel Exhaust Activates & Primes Microglia: Air Pollution, Neuroinflammation, & Regulation of Dopaminergic Neurotoxicity

BACKGROUND: Air pollution is linked to central nervous system disease, but the mechanisms responsible are poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: Here, we sought to address the brain-region-specific effects of diesel exhaust (DE) and key cellular mechanisms underlying DE-induced microglia activation, neuroinflammation, and dopaminergic (DA) neurotoxicity. METHODS: Rats were exposed to DE (2.0, 0.5, and 0 mg/m3) by inhalation over 4 weeks or as a single intratracheal administration of DE particles (DEP; 20 mg/kg). Primary neuron-glia cultures and the HAPI (highly aggressively proliferating immortalized) microglial cell line were used to explore cellular mechanisms. RESULTS: Rats exposed to DE by inhalation demonstrated elevated levels of whole-brain IL-6 (interleukin-6) protein, nitrated proteins, and IBA-1 (ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1) protein (microglial marker), indicating generalized neuroinflammation. Analysis by brain region revealed that DE increased TNFα (tumor necrosis factor-α), IL-1β, IL-6, MIP-1α (macrophage inflammatory protein-1α) RAGE (receptor for advanced glycation end products), fractalkine, and the IBA-1 microglial marker in most regions tested, with the midbrain showing the greatest DE response. Intratracheal administration of DEP increased microglial IBA-1 staining in the substantia nigra and elevated both serum and whole-brain TNFα at 6 hr posttreatment. Although DEP alone failed to cause the production of cytokines and chemokines, DEP (5 μg/mL) pretreatment followed by lipopolysaccharide (2.5 ng/mL) in vitro synergistically amplified nitric oxide production, TNFα release, and DA neurotoxicity. Pretreatment with fractalkine (50 pg/mL) in vitro ameliorated DEP (50 μg/mL)-induced microglial hydrogen peroxide production and DA neurotoxicity. CONCLUSIONS: Together, these findings reveal complex, interacting mechanisms responsible for how air pollution may cause neuroinflammation and DA neurotoxicity

Escape from an optoelectronic tweezer trap: experimental results and simulations

Optoelectronic tweezers (OET) are a microsystem actuation technology capable of moving microparticles at mm s−1 velocities with nN forces. In this work, we analyze the behavior of particles manipulated by negative dielectrophoresis (DEP) forces in an OET trap. A user-friendly computer interface was developed to generate a circular rotating light pattern to control the movement of the particles, allowing their force profiles to be conveniently measured. Three-dimensional simulations were carried out to clarify the experimental results, and the DEP forces acting on the particles were simulated by integrating the Maxwell stress tensor. The simulations matched the experimental results and enabled the determination of a new “hopping” mechanism for particle-escape from the trap. As indicated by the simulations, there exists a vertical DEP force at the edge of the light pattern that pushes up particles to a region with a smaller horizontal DEP force. We propose that this phenomenon will be important to consider for the design of OET micromanipulation experiments for a wide range of applications

D₂ Dopamine Receptors Colocalize Regulator of G-Protein Signaling 9-2 (RGS9-2) via the RGS9 DEP Domain, and RGS9 Knock-Out Mice Develop Dyskinesias Associated with Dopamine Pathways

Regulator of G-protein signaling 9-2 (RGS9-2), a member of the RGS family of Gα GTPase accelerating proteins, is expressed specifically in the striatum, which participates in antipsychotic-induced tardive dyskinesia and in levodopa-induced dyskinesia. We report that RGS9 knock-out mice develop abnormal involuntary movements when inhibition of dopaminergic transmission is followed by activation of D₂-like dopamine receptors (DRs). These abnormal movements resemble drug-induced dyskinesia more closely than other rodent models. Recordings from striatal neurons of these mice establish that activation of D₂-like DRs abnormally inhibits glutamate-elicited currents. We show that RGS9-2, via its DEP domain (for Disheveled, EGL-10, Pleckstrin homology), colocalizes with D₂DRs when coexpressed in mammalian cells. Recordings from oocytes coexpressing D₂DR or the m2 muscarinic receptor and G-protein-gated inward rectifier potassium channels show that RGS9-2, via its DEP domain, preferentially accelerates the termination of D₂DR signals. Thus, alterations in RGS9-2 may be a key factor in the pathway leading from D₂DRs to the side effects associated with the treatment both of psychoses and Parkinson's disease