Imitators of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction

Exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) is described by transient narrowing of the airways after exercise. It occurs in approximately 10% of the general population, while athletes may show a higher prevalence, especially in cold weather and ice rink athletes. Diagnosis of EIB is often made on the basis of self-reported symptoms without objective lung function tests, however, the presence of EIB can not be accurately determined on the basis of symptoms and may be under-, over-, or misdiagnosed. The goal of this review is to describe other clinical entities that mimic asthma or EIB symptoms and can be confused with EIB

Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta

Screening out irrelevant cell-based models of disease

The common and persistent failures to translate promising preclinical drug candidates into clinical success highlight the limited effectiveness of disease models currently used in drug discovery. An apparent reluctance to explore and adopt alternative cell-and tissue-based model systems, coupled with a detachment from clinical practice during assay validation, contributes to ineffective translational research. To help address these issues and stimulate debate, here we propose a set of principles to facilitate the definition and development of disease-relevant assays, and we discuss new opportunities for exploiting the latest advances in cell-based assay technologies in drug discovery, including induced pluripotent stem cells, three-dimensional (3D) co-culture and organ-on-a-chip systems, complemented by advances in single-cell imaging and gene editing technologies. Funding to support precompetitive, multidisciplinary collaborations to develop novel preclinical models and cell-based screening technologies could have a key role in improving their clinical relevance, and ultimately increase clinical success rates

Integrated, Paper-based Potentiometric Electronic Tongue For The Analysis Of Beer And Wine

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)The following manuscript details the stages of construction of a novel paper-based electronic tongue with an integrated Ag/AgCl reference, which can operate using a minimal amount of sample (40 mu L). First, we optimized the fabrication procedure of silver electrodes, testing a set of different methodologies (electroless plating, use of silver nanoparticles and commercial silver paints). Later a novel, integrated electronic tongue system was assembled with the use of readily available materials such as paper, wax, lamination sheets, bleach etc. New system was thoroughly characterized and the ion-selective potentiometric sensors presented performance close to theoretical. An electronic tongue, composed of electrodes sensitive to sodium, calcium, ammonia and a cross-sensitive, anion-selective electrode was used to analyze 34 beer samples (12 types, 19 brands). This system was able to discriminate beers from different brands, and types, indicate presence of stabilizers and antioxidants, dyes or even unmalted cereals and carbohydrates added to the fermentation wort. Samples could be classified by type of fermentation (low, high) and system was able to predict pH and in part also alcohol content of tested beers. In the next step sample volume was minimalized by the use of paper sample pads and measurement in flow conditions. In order to test the impact of this advancement a four electrode system, with cross-sensitive (anion-selective, cation-selective, Ca2+/Mg2+, K+/Na+) electrodes was applied for the analysis of 11 types of wine (4 types of grapes, red/white, 3 countries). Proposed matrix was able to group wines produced from different varieties of grapes (Chardonnay, Americanas, Malbec, Merlot) using only 40 mu L of sample. Apart from that, storage stability studies were performed using a multimeter, therefore showing that not only fabrication but also detection can be accomplished by means of off-the-shelf components. This manuscript not only describes new paper-based, potentiometric sensors but also according to our knowledge is the first description of an electrochemical paper-based electronic tongue with integrated reference. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.9186068Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP)National Institute of Science and Technology in Bioanalytics (INCTBio)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP

Multimodal Imaging and Lighting Bias Correction for Improved μPAD-based Water Quality Monitoring via Smartphones

Smartphone image-based sensing of microfluidic paper analytical devices (mu PADs) offers low-cost and mobile evaluation of water quality. However, consistent quantification is a challenge due to variable environmental, paper, and lighting conditions, especially across large multi-target mu PADs. Compensations must be made for variations between images to achieve reproducible results without a separate lighting enclosure. We thus developed a simple method using triple-reference point normalization and a fast-Fourier transform (FFT)-based pre-processing scheme to quantify consistent reflected light intensity signals under variable lighting and channel conditions. This technique was evaluated using various light sources, lighting angles, imaging backgrounds, and imaging heights. Further testing evaluated its handle of absorbance, quenching, and relative scattering intensity measurements from assays detecting four water contaminants-Cr(VI), total chlorine, caffeine, and E. coli K12-at similar wavelengths using the green channel of RGB images. Between assays, this algorithm reduced error from mu PAD surface inconsistencies and cross-image lighting gradients. Although the algorithm could not completely remove the anomalies arising from point shadows within channels or some non-uniform background reflections, it still afforded order-of-magnitude quantification and stable assay specificity under these conditions, offering one route toward improving smartphone quantification of mu PAD assays for in-field water quality monitoring.National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship [DGE-1143953]; Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program; Water and Environmental Technology (WET) Center at the University of Arizona; Tucson WaterThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]