561 research outputs found
Location of divalent ion sites in acyl carrier protein using relaxation perturbed 2D NMR
AbstractThe T1-accordion COSY experiment has been applied to acyl carrier protein (ACP) to locate the divalent ion binding sites in the protein using the paramagnetic ion, Mn2+, as a substitute for Ca2+. Replacement with Mn2+ leads to an enhancement of proton spin-lattice (T1) relaxation rates. These enhancements have a l/r6, distance dependence that makes them extremely useful in structural analyses. Ion-proton distances ranging from 3.0 to 9.0 Ă
have been obtained from this experiment and subsequently used as constraints in the molecular mechanics module of AMBER to refine a protein structure
Aetiology-Specific Estimates of the Global and Regional Incidence and Mortality of Diarrhoeal Diseases Commonly Transmitted through Food
Diarrhoeal diseases are major contributors to the global burden of disease, particularly in children. However, comprehensive estimates of the incidence and mortality due to specific aetiologies of diarrhoeal diseases are not available. The objective of this study is to provide estimates of the global and regional incidence and mortality of diarrhoeal diseases caused by nine pathogens that are commonly transmitted through foods.We abstracted data from systematic reviews and, depending on the overall mortality rates of the country, applied either a national incidence estimate approach or a modified Child Health Epidemiology Reference Group (CHERG) approach to estimate the aetiology-specific incidence and mortality of diarrhoeal diseases, by age and region. The nine diarrhoeal diseases assessed caused an estimated 1.8 billion (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 1.1-3.3 billion) cases and 599,000 (95% UI 472,000-802,000) deaths worldwide in 2010. The largest number of cases were caused by norovirus (677 million; 95% UI 468-1,153 million), enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) (233 million; 95% UI 154-380 million), Shigella spp. (188 million; 95% UI 94-379 million) and Giardia lamblia (179 million; 95% UI 125-263); the largest number of deaths were caused by norovirus (213,515; 95% UI 171,783-266,561), enteropathogenic E. coli (121,455; 95% UI 103,657-143,348), ETEC (73,041; 95% UI 55,474-96,984) and Shigella (64,993; 95% UI 48,966-92,357). There were marked regional differences in incidence and mortality for these nine diseases. Nearly 40% of cases and 43% of deaths caused by these nine diarrhoeal diseases occurred in children under five years of age.Diarrhoeal diseases caused by these nine pathogens are responsible for a large disease burden, particularly in children. These aetiology-specific burden estimates can inform efforts to reduce diarrhoeal diseases caused by these nine pathogens commonly transmitted through foods
Dose-response associations of cardiorespiratory fitness with all-cause mortality and incidence and mortality of cancer and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases: the UK Biobank cohort study
Objective:
To investigate the association of cardiorespiratory fitness with all-cause mortality, and cardiovascular, respiratory, COPD and cancer mortality and incidence.
Design:
Prospective population based study.
Setting:
UK Biobank.
Participants:
Of the 502,628 (5.5% response rate) participants recruited by UK Biobank, we included 73,259 (14.6%) participants with available data in this analysis. Of these, 1,374 participants died and 4,210 developed circulatory diseases, 1,293 respiratory diseases and 4,281 cancer, over a median of 5.0 years [IQR 4.3â5.7] follow-up.
Main outcome measures - All-cause mortality and circulatory disease, respiratory disease, chronic obstructive e pulmonary disease (COPD) and cancer (any-type, colorectal, lung, breast and prostate) mortality/incidence. Fitness was estimated with a submaximal cycle ergometer test.
Results:
The hazard ratio for all-cause mortality for each MET higher fitness was 0.96 ([95% CI 0.93â0.98]). Similar results were observed for incident circulatory (HR 0.96 [0.95â0.97]), respiratory disease (HR 0.96 [0.94â0.98]), COPD (HR 0.90 [0.86â0.95]), and colorectal cancer (HR 0.96 [0.92â1.00]). Nonlinear analysis revealed that a high level of fitness (>10 METs) was associated with a greater incidence of atrial fibrillation (HR 1.24 [1.07â1.44]) and prostate cancer (HR 1.16 [1.02â1.32]) compared with average fitness. All results were adjusted for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and dietary factors, body composition, and morbidity at baseline and excluded events in the first 2 years of follow up.
Conclusions:
Higher cardiorespiratory fitness was associated with lower risk of premature mortality and incidence of cardiovascular, respiratory disease and colorectal cancer
Association between adiposity levels and cognitive impairment in the Chilean older adult population
Although both obesity and ageing are risk factors for cognitive impairment, there is no evidence in Chile on how obesity levels are associated with cognitive function. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the association between adiposity levels and cognitive impairment in older Chilean adults. This cross-sectional study includes 1384 participants, over 60 years of age, from the Chilean National Health Survey 2009â2010. Cognitive impairment was evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination. BMI and waist circumference (WC) were used as measures of adiposity. Compared with people with a normal BMI, the odds of cognitive impairment were higher in participants who were underweight (OR 4·44; 95 % CI 2·43, 6·45; P < 0·0001), overweight (OR 1·86; 95 % CI 1·06, 2·66; P = 0·031) and obese (OR 2·26; 95 % CI 1·31, 3·21; P = 0·003). The associations were robust after adjustment for confounding variables. Similar results were observed for WC. Low and high levels of adiposity are associated with an increased likelihood of cognitive impairment in older adults in Chile
The Eighth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Data from SDSS-III
The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) started a new phase in August 2008, with
new instrumentation and new surveys focused on Galactic structure and chemical
evolution, measurements of the baryon oscillation feature in the clustering of
galaxies and the quasar Ly alpha forest, and a radial velocity search for
planets around ~8000 stars. This paper describes the first data release of
SDSS-III (and the eighth counting from the beginning of the SDSS). The release
includes five-band imaging of roughly 5200 deg^2 in the Southern Galactic Cap,
bringing the total footprint of the SDSS imaging to 14,555 deg^2, or over a
third of the Celestial Sphere. All the imaging data have been reprocessed with
an improved sky-subtraction algorithm and a final, self-consistent photometric
recalibration and flat-field determination. This release also includes all data
from the second phase of the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and
Evolution (SEGUE-2), consisting of spectroscopy of approximately 118,000 stars
at both high and low Galactic latitudes. All the more than half a million
stellar spectra obtained with the SDSS spectrograph have been reprocessed
through an improved stellar parameters pipeline, which has better determination
of metallicity for high metallicity stars.Comment: Astrophysical Journal Supplements, in press (minor updates from
submitted version
The Ninth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data from the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey
The Sloan Digital Sky Survey III (SDSS-III) presents the first spectroscopic
data from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). This ninth data
release (DR9) of the SDSS project includes 535,995 new galaxy spectra (median
z=0.52), 102,100 new quasar spectra (median z=2.32), and 90,897 new stellar
spectra, along with the data presented in previous data releases. These spectra
were obtained with the new BOSS spectrograph and were taken between 2009
December and 2011 July. In addition, the stellar parameters pipeline, which
determines radial velocities, surface temperatures, surface gravities, and
metallicities of stars, has been updated and refined with improvements in
temperature estimates for stars with T_eff<5000 K and in metallicity estimates
for stars with [Fe/H]>-0.5. DR9 includes new stellar parameters for all stars
presented in DR8, including stars from SDSS-I and II, as well as those observed
as part of the SDSS-III Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and
Exploration-2 (SEGUE-2).
The astrometry error introduced in the DR8 imaging catalogs has been
corrected in the DR9 data products. The next data release for SDSS-III will be
in Summer 2013, which will present the first data from the Apache Point
Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) along with another year of
data from BOSS, followed by the final SDSS-III data release in December 2014.Comment: 9 figures; 2 tables. Submitted to ApJS. DR9 is available at
http://www.sdss3.org/dr
An image analysis toolbox for high-throughput C. elegans assays
We present a toolbox for high-throughput screening of image-based Caenorhabditis elegans phenotypes. The image analysis algorithms measure morphological phenotypes in individual worms and are effective for a variety of assays and imaging systems. This WormToolbox is available through the open-source CellProfiler project and enables objective scoring of whole-worm high-throughput image-based assays of C. elegans for the study of diverse biological pathways that are relevant to human disease.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (U54 EB005149
Hypertension and type 2 diabetes: What family physicians can do to improve control of blood pressure - an observational study
Background: The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rising, and most of these patients also have hypertension,
substantially increasing the risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The majority of these patients do not
reach target blood pressure levels for a wide variety of reasons. When a literature review provided no clear focus
for action when patients are not at target, we initiated a study to identify characteristics of patients and providers
associated with achieving target BP levels in community-based practice.
Methods: We conducted a practice- based, cross-sectional observational and mailed survey study. The setting was
the practices of 27 family physicians and nurse practitioners in 3 eastern provinces in Canada. The participants
were all patients with type 2 diabetes who could understand English, were able to give consent, and would be
available for follow-up for more than one year. Data were collected from each patientâs medical record and from
each patient and physician/nurse practitioner by mailed survey. Our main outcome measures were overall blood
pressure at target (< 130/80), systolic blood pressure at target, and diastolic blood pressure at target. Analysis
included initial descriptive statistics, logistic regression models, and multivariate regression using hierarchical
nonlinear modeling (HNLM).
Results: Fifty-four percent were at target for both systolic and diastolic pressures. Sixty-two percent were at systolic
target, and 79% were at diastolic target. Patients who reported eating food low in salt had higher odds of
reaching target blood pressure. Similarly, patients reporting low adherence to their medication regimen had lower
odds of reaching target blood pressure.
Conclusions: When primary care health professionals are dealing with blood pressures above target in a patient
with type 2 diabetes, they should pay particular attention to two factors. They should inquire about dietary salt
intake, strongly emphasize the importance of reduction, and refer for detailed counseling if necessary. Similarly,
they should inquire about adherence to the medication regimen, and employ a variety of patient-oriented
strategies to improve adherence
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