Unspecified Verticality of Franck-Condon Transitions, Absorption and Emission Spectra of Cyanine Dyes, and a Classically Inspired Approximation

The computed vertical energy, Ev,a/f, from the equilibrium geometry of the initial electronic state is frequently considered as representative of the experimental excitation/emission energy, Eabs/fl = hc/λmax. Application of the quantum mechanical version of the Franck–Condon principle does not involve precise specification of nuclear positions before, after, or during an electronic transition. Moreover, the duration of an electronic transition is not experimentally accessible in spectra with resolved vibrational structure. It is shown that computed vibronic spectra based on TDDFT methods and application of quantum mechanical FC analysis predict Eabs = hc/λmax with a 10-fold improvement in accuracy compared to Ev,a for nine cyanine dyes. It is argued that part of the reason for accuracy when this FC analysis is compared to experiment as opposed to Ev,a/f is the unspecified verticality of transitions in the context of the quantum version of the FC principle. Classical FC transitions that preserve nuclear kinetic energy before and after an electronic transition were previously found to occur at a weighted average of final and initial electronic state molecular geometries known as the r-centroid. Inspired by this approach a qualitative method using computed vertical and adiabatic energies and the harmonic approximation is developed and applied yielding a 5-fold improvement in accuracy compared to Ev,a. This improvement results from the dominance of low frequency vibronic transitions in the cyanine dye major band. The model gives insight into the nature of the redshift when qPCR dye EvaGreen is complexed to λDNA and is applicable to the low frequency band of similar non cyanine dyes such as curcumin. It is found that the computed vibronic cyanine dye spectra from time-dependent FC analysis at 0 K and 298 K show decreased intensity at higher temperature suggestive of increased intensity with restricted motion shown when cyanine dyes are used in biomedical imaging. A 2-layer ONIOM model of the DNA minor groove indicates restricted motion of the TC-1 dye excited state in this setting indicative of enhanced fluorescence

Life-Long Radar Tracking of Bumblebees

This work was supported by European Research Council Advanced Grant no. 339347

Prognostic model to predict postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery based on a national prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Acute illness, existing co-morbidities and surgical stress response can all contribute to postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery. The aim of this study was prospectively to develop a pragmatic prognostic model to stratify patients according to risk of developing AKI after major gastrointestinal surgery. Methods: This prospective multicentre cohort study included consecutive adults undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection, liver resection or stoma reversal in 2-week blocks over a continuous 3-month period. The primary outcome was the rate of AKI within 7 days of surgery. Bootstrap stability was used to select clinically plausible risk factors into the model. Internal model validation was carried out by bootstrap validation. Results: A total of 4544 patients were included across 173 centres in the UK and Ireland. The overall rate of AKI was 14·2 per cent (646 of 4544) and the 30-day mortality rate was 1·8 per cent (84 of 4544). Stage 1 AKI was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (unadjusted odds ratio 7·61, 95 per cent c.i. 4·49 to 12·90; P < 0·001), with increasing odds of death with each AKI stage. Six variables were selected for inclusion in the prognostic model: age, sex, ASA grade, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, planned open surgery and preoperative use of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker. Internal validation demonstrated good model discrimination (c-statistic 0·65). Discussion: Following major gastrointestinal surgery, AKI occurred in one in seven patients. This preoperative prognostic model identified patients at high risk of postoperative AKI. Validation in an independent data set is required to ensure generalizability

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Design and baseline characteristics of the finerenone in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in diabetic kidney disease trial

Background: Among people with diabetes, those with kidney disease have exceptionally high rates of cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality and progression of their underlying kidney disease. Finerenone is a novel, nonsteroidal, selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist that has shown to reduce albuminuria in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) while revealing only a low risk of hyperkalemia. However, the effect of finerenone on CV and renal outcomes has not yet been investigated in long-term trials. Patients and Methods: The Finerenone in Reducing CV Mortality and Morbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease (FIGARO-DKD) trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of finerenone compared to placebo at reducing clinically important CV and renal outcomes in T2D patients with CKD. FIGARO-DKD is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, event-driven trial running in 47 countries with an expected duration of approximately 6 years. FIGARO-DKD randomized 7,437 patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate >= 25 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio >= 30 to <= 5,000 mg/g). The study has at least 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in the risk of the primary outcome (overall two-sided significance level alpha = 0.05), the composite of time to first occurrence of CV death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. Conclusions: FIGARO-DKD will determine whether an optimally treated cohort of T2D patients with CKD at high risk of CV and renal events will experience cardiorenal benefits with the addition of finerenone to their treatment regimen. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2015-000950-39; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02545049

Genomic reconstruction of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in England.

The evolution of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus leads to new variants that warrant timely epidemiological characterization. Here we use the dense genomic surveillance data generated by the COVID-19 Genomics UK Consortium to reconstruct the dynamics of 71 different lineages in each of 315 English local authorities between September 2020 and June 2021. This analysis reveals a series of subepidemics that peaked in early autumn 2020, followed by a jump in transmissibility of the B.1.1.7/Alpha lineage. The Alpha variant grew when other lineages declined during the second national lockdown and regionally tiered restrictions between November and December 2020. A third more stringent national lockdown suppressed the Alpha variant and eliminated nearly all other lineages in early 2021. Yet a series of variants (most of which contained the spike E484K mutation) defied these trends and persisted at moderately increasing proportions. However, by accounting for sustained introductions, we found that the transmissibility of these variants is unlikely to have exceeded the transmissibility of the Alpha variant. Finally, B.1.617.2/Delta was repeatedly introduced in England and grew rapidly in early summer 2021, constituting approximately 98% of sampled SARS-CoV-2 genomes on 26 June 2021

The mixed diol–dithiol 2,2-bis(sulfanylmethyl)propane-1,3-diol: characterization of key intermediates on a new synthetic pathway

A new synthetic route to 2,2-bis(sulfanylmethyl)propane-1,3-diol, (II), is described starting from the commercially available 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)propane-1,3-diol. The structures of two intermediates on this route are described. 5,5-Dimethenyl-2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxane bis(thiocyanate) (systematic name: {[5-(cyanosulfanyl)-2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxan-5-yl]sulfanyl}formonitrile), C10H14N2O2S2, (X), crystallizes in the space group P21/c with no symmetry relationship between the two thiocyanate groups. There is a short intramolecular NS contact for one thiocyanate group, while the second group is positioned such that this type of interaction is not possible. 1,3-(Hydroxymethyl)propane-1,3-diyl bis(thiocyanate), C7H10N2O2S2, (XI), also features a single short NS contact in the solid state. Hydrogen bonding between two molecules of compound (XI) results in the formation of dimers in the crystal, which are then linked together by a second hydrogen-bond interaction between the dimers. In addition, the structures of two intermediates from an unsuccessful alternative synthesis of (II) are reported. 2,2-Bis(chloromethyl)propane-1,3-diol, C5H10Cl2O2, (VI), crystallized as an inversion twin with a minor twin fraction of 0.43 (6). It forms a zigzag structure as a result of intermolecular hydrogen bonding. The structure of 9,9-dimethyl-2,4,8,10-tetraoxa-34-thiaspiro[5.5]undecan-3-one, C8H14O5S, (VII), shows evidence for a weak SO contact with a distance of 3.2529 (11) Å