Lyme disease and pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS): an overview

Lyme disease (LD) is a complex, multisystemic illness. As the most common vector- borne disease in the United States, LD is caused by bacterial spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, with potential coinfections from agents of anaplasmosis, babesiosis, and ehrlichiosis. Persistent symptoms and clinical signs reflect multiorgan involvement with episodes of active disease and periods of remission, not sparing the coveted central nervous system. The capability of microorganisms to cause and exacerbate various neuropsychiatric pathology is also seen in pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS), a recently described disorder attributed to bacterium Streptococcus pyogenes of group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus in which neurologic tics and obsessive-compulsive disorders are sequelae of the infection. In the current overview, LD and PANDAS are juxtaposed through a review of their respective infectious etiologies, clinical presentations, mechanisms of disease development, courses of illness, and treatment options. Future directions related to immunoneuropsychiatry are also discussed

A-maize-ingTornado Footprint

Tornadoes often land in rural areas damaging a large area of corn field. They leave intriguing fall patterns that can be analyzed to help us estimate the tornado wind field. The estimating wind speed of tornado is extremely difficult because there are no instruments that can withstand the destructive nature of tornado. Even radar has limitations because it cannot measure wind speed near-surface. A safe and novel way to estimate the tornado wind sped is to look at the corn-fall pattern after the tornado. We look at the aerial photos of the corn field in the tornado track analyze the flow pattern of the tornado by studying the corn-fall pattern. We can back calculate the near-surface tornado wind field, which can be eventually used to help build tornado-resisting structures.Ope

First Results from the Large Area Lyman Alpha Survey

We report on a new survey for z=4.5 Lyman alpha sources, the Large Area Lyman Alpha (LALA) survey. Our survey achieves an unprecedented combination of volume and sensitivity by using narrow-band filters on the new 8192x8192 pixel CCD Mosaic Camera at the 4 meter Mayall telescope of Kitt Peak National Observatory. Well-detected sources with flux and equivalent width matching known high redshift Lyman alpha galaxies (i.e., observed equivalent width above 80 Angstroms and line+continuum flux between 2.6e-17 and 5.2e-17 erg/cm^2/sec in an 80 Angstrom filter) have an observed surface density corresponding to 11000 +- 700 per square degree per unit redshift at z=4.5. Spatial variation in this surface density is apparent on comparison between counts in 6561 and 6730 Angstrom filters. Early spectroscopic followup results from the Keck telescope included three sources meeting our criteria for good Lyman alpha candidates. Of these, one is confirmed as a z=4.52 source, while another remains consistent with either z=4.55 or z=0.81. We infer that 30 to 50% of our good candidates are bona fide Lyman alpha emitters, implying a net density of about 4000 Lyman alpha galaxies per square degree per unit redshift.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures (3 .ps files), uses AASTeX 4. Submitted to The Astrophysical Journal Letter

Assessment of wind speeds along the damage path of the Alonsa, Manitoba EF4 tornado on 3 August 2018

Given the impracticality of attempting to directly measure wind speeds in tornadoes, wind speed estimation typically relies on the assessment of damage to structures and vegetation using classifications described in the Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale. The advent of technology enabling the collection of large amounts of data, including detailed ground, drone, and aerial imagery, has led to a growth in research on non-conventional approaches for estimating tornado wind speeds. Research methods focused on defining the tornadic wind field based on forensic analysis of damage observations have shown promise for improving tornado assessments in a quantitative manner. In this study, novel methods for collecting forensic data following tornadoes are presented. Data from the Alonsa, MB tornado are applied to estimating the wind field along the damage path using treefall pattern analysis and threshold debris flight speed calculations. Comparison of the resulting wind speed estimates show reasonable agreement, with maximum speeds from both methods in the EF5 range. These research methods yield higher wind speeds than the maximum value obtained from the conventional EF-Scale assessment, which is in the low-end of the EF4 range based on a wood-frame house with sub-standard construction that was swept entirely from its foundation. Further work is still needed to make these methods operational for routine tornado intensity estimates

The Etiology of Observed Negative Emotionality from 14 to 24 Months

We examined the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences on observed negative emotionality at age 14, 20, and 24 months. Participants were 403 same-sex twin pairs recruited from the Longitudinal Twin Study whose emotional responses to four different situations were coded by independent raters. Negative emotionality showed significant consistency across settings, and there was evidence of a latent underlying negative emotionality construct. Heritability decreased, and the magnitude of shared environmental influences increased, for the latent negative emotionality construct from age 14 to 24 months. There were significant correlations between negative emotionality assessed at age 14, 20, and 24 months, and results suggested common genetic and shared environmental influences affecting negative emotionality across age, and that age-specific influences are limited to non-shared environmental influences, which include measurement error

Deviated nasal septum hinders intranasal sprays: A computer simulation study

This study investigates how deviated nasal septum affects the quantity and distribution of spray particles, and examines the effects of inspiratory airflow and head position on particle transport