Factors associated with psychological disturbances during the COVID-19 pandemic:Multicountry online study

Background: Accumulating evidence suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the mental health of individuals. However, the susceptibility of individuals to be impacted by the pandemic is variable, suggesting potential influences of specific factors related to participants' demographics, attitudes, and practices. Objective: We aimed to identify the factors associated with psychological symptoms related to the effects of the first wave of the pandemic in a multicountry cohort of internet users. Methods: This study anonymously screened 13,332 internet users worldwide for acute psychological symptoms related to the COVID-19 pandemic from March 29 to April 14, 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic amidst strict lockdown conditions. A total of 12,817 responses were considered valid. Moreover, 1077 participants from Europe were screened a second time from May 15 to May 30, 2020, to ascertain the presence of psychological effects after the ease down of restrictions. Results: Female gender, pre-existing psychiatric conditions, and prior exposure to trauma were identified as notable factors associated with increased psychological symptoms during the first wave of COVID-19 (P<.001). The same factors, in addition to being related to someone who died due to COVID-19 and using social media more than usual, were associated with persistence of psychological disturbances in the limited second assessment of European participants after the restrictions had relatively eased (P<.001). Optimism, ability to share concerns with family and friends like usual, positive prediction about COVID-19, and daily exercise were related to fewer psychological symptoms in both assessments (P<.001). Conclusions: This study highlights the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic at the worldwide level on the mental health of internet users and elucidates prominent associations with their demographics, history of psychiatric disease risk factors, household conditions, certain personality traits, and attitudes toward COVID-19

Binary and Millisecond Pulsars at the New Millennium

We review the properties and applications of binary and millisecond pulsars. Our knowledge of these exciting objects has greatly increased in recent years, mainly due to successful surveys which have brought the known pulsar population to over 1300. There are now 56 binary and millisecond pulsars in the Galactic disk and a further 47 in globular clusters. This review is concerned primarily with the results and spin-offs from these surveys which are of particular interest to the relativity community.Comment: 59 pages, 26 figures, 5 tables. Accepted for publication in Living Reviews in Relativity (http://www.livingreviews.org

Cost-minimized combinations of wind power, solar power and electrochemical storage, powering the grid up to 99.9% of the time

AbstractWe model many combinations of renewable electricity sources (inland wind, offshore wind, and photovoltaics) with electrochemical storage (batteries and fuel cells), incorporated into a large grid system (72 GW). The purpose is twofold: 1) although a single renewable generator at one site produces intermittent power, we seek combinations of diverse renewables at diverse sites, with storage, that are not intermittent and satisfy need a given fraction of hours. And 2) we seek minimal cost, calculating true cost of electricity without subsidies and with inclusion of external costs. Our model evaluated over 28 billion combinations of renewables and storage, each tested over 35,040 h (four years) of load and weather data. We find that the least cost solutions yield seemingly-excessive generation capacity—at times, almost three times the electricity needed to meet electrical load. This is because diverse renewable generation and the excess capacity together meet electric load with less storage, lowering total system cost. At 2030 technology costs and with excess electricity displacing natural gas, we find that the electric system can be powered 90%–99.9% of hours entirely on renewable electricity, at costs comparable to today's—but only if we optimize the mix of generation and storage technologies

Evolution of the Aging Brain Transcriptome and Synaptic Regulation

Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders of aging are characterized by clinical and pathological features that are relatively specific to humans. To obtain greater insight into how brain aging has evolved, we compared age-related gene expression changes in the cortex of humans, rhesus macaques, and mice on a genome-wide scale. A small subset of gene expression changes are conserved in all three species, including robust age-dependent upregulation of the neuroprotective gene apolipoprotein D (APOD) and downregulation of the synaptic cAMP signaling gene calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IV (CAMK4). However, analysis of gene ontology and cell type localization shows that humans and rhesus macaques have diverged from mice due to a dramatic increase in age-dependent repression of neuronal genes. Many of these age-regulated neuronal genes are associated with synaptic function. Notably, genes associated with GABA-ergic inhibitory function are robustly age-downregulated in humans but not in mice at the level of both mRNA and protein. Gene downregulation was not associated with overall neuronal or synaptic loss. Thus, repression of neuronal gene expression is a prominent and recently evolved feature of brain aging in humans and rhesus macaques that may alter neural networks and contribute to age-related cognitive changes

Nipah Virus Transmission in a Hamster Model

Based on epidemiological data, it is believed that human-to-human transmission plays an important role in Nipah virus outbreaks. No experimental data are currently available on the potential routes of human-to-human transmission of Nipah virus. In a first dose-finding experiment in Syrian hamsters, it was shown that Nipah virus was predominantly shed via the respiratory tract within nasal and oropharyngeal secretions. Although Nipah viral RNA was detected in urogenital and rectal swabs, no infectious virus was recovered from these samples, suggesting no viable virus was shed via these routes. In addition, hamsters inoculated with high doses shed significantly higher amounts of viable Nipah virus particles in comparison with hamsters infected with lower inoculum doses. Using the highest inoculum dose, three potential routes of Nipah virus transmission were investigated in the hamster model: transmission via fomites, transmission via direct contact and transmission via aerosols. It was demonstrated that Nipah virus is transmitted efficiently via direct contact and inefficiently via fomites, but not via aerosols. These findings are in line with epidemiological data which suggest that direct contact with nasal and oropharyngeal secretions of Nipah virus infected individuals resulted in greater risk of Nipah virus infection. The data provide new and much-needed insights into the modes and efficiency of Nipah virus transmission and have important public health implications with regards to the risk assessment and management of future Nipah virus outbreaks

TCF7L2 Polymorphism, Weight Loss and Proinsulin∶Insulin Ratio in the Diabetes Prevention Program

Aims: TCF7L2 variants have been associated with type 2 diabetes, body mass index (BMI), and deficits in proinsulin processing and insulin secretion. Here we sought to test whether these effects were apparent in high-risk individuals and modify treatment responses. Methods: We examined the potential role of the TCF7L2 rs7903146 variant in predicting resistance to weight loss or a lack of improvement of proinsulin processing during 2.5-years of follow-up participants (N = 2,994) from the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), a randomized controlled trial designed to prevent or delay diabetes in high-risk adults. Results: We observed no difference in the degree of weight loss by rs7903146 genotypes. However, the T allele (conferring higher risk of diabetes) at rs7903146 was associated with higher fasting proinsulin at baseline (P, 0.001), higher baseline proinsulin: insulin ratio (p<0.0001) and increased proinsulin: insulin ratio over a median of 2.5 years of follow-up (P = 0.003). Effects were comparable across treatment arms. Conclusions: The combination of a lack of impact of the TCF7L2 genotypes on the ability to lose weight, but the presence of a consistent effect on the proinsulin: insulin ratio over the course of DPP, suggests that high-risk genotype carriers at this locus can successfully lose weight to counter diabetes risk despite persistent deficits in insulin production

VKORC1 Common Variation and Bone Mineral Density in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Osteoporosis, defined by low bone mineral density (BMD), is common among postmenopausal women. The distribution of BMD varies across populations and is shaped by both environmental and genetic factors. Because the candidate gene vitamin K epoxide reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1) generates vitamin K quinone, a cofactor for the gamma-carboxylation of bone-related proteins such as osteocalcin, we hypothesized that VKORC1 genetic variants may be associated with BMD and osteoporosis in the general population. To test this hypothesis, we genotyped six VKORC1 SNPs in 7,159 individuals from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). NHANES III is a nationally representative sample linked to health and lifestyle variables including BMD, which was measured using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) on four regions of the proximal femur. In adjusted models stratified by race/ethnicity and sex, SNPs rs9923231 and rs9934438 were associated with increased BMD (p = 0.039 and 0.024, respectively) while rs8050894 was associated with decreased BMD (p = 0.016) among non-Hispanic black males (n = 619). VKORC1 rs2884737 was associated with decreased BMD among Mexican-American males (n = 795; p = 0.004). We then tested for associations between VKORC1 SNPs and osteoporosis, but the results did not mirror the associations observed between VKORC1 and BMD, possibly due to small numbers of cases. This is the first report of VKORC1 common genetic variation associated with BMD, and one of the few reports available that investigate the genetics of BMD and osteoporosis in diverse populations

Notch static strength of additively manufactured acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)

The present theoretical/experimental investigation deals with the problem of performing the static assessment of notched components made of additively manufactured Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS). The notch strength of this 3D-printed material was investigated by testing a large number of specimens, with the experiments being run not only under tension, but also under three-point bending. The samples contained geometrical features of different sharpness and were manufactured (flat on the build plate) by changing the printing direction. Being supported by the experimental evidence, the hypothesis was formed that the mechanical response of 3D-printed ABS can be modelled effectively by treating it as a material that is linear-elastic, brittle, homogenous and isotropic. This simplifying hypothesis allowed the Theory of Critical Distances to be employed also to assess static strength of 3D-printed ABS containing geometrical features. The validation exercise based on the experimental results being generated demonstrates that this theory is highly accurate, with its use leading to predictions falling mainly within an error interval of about ±20%. This level of accuracy is certainly satisfactory especially because this static assessment methodology can be used in situations of engineering relevance by making use of the results obtained by solving standard linear-elastic Finite Element models