Estrone and estradiol concentrations in human ovaries, testes, and adrenals during the first two years of life

To determine the origin of estrogens in infant blood, we measured estrone (E1) and estradiol (E2) in the gonads of 50 girls and 64 boys who died suddenly between birth and 2 yr of age as well as in the adrenals of 18 of these infant girls and 16 of the boys. In the adrenals, E1 [median, 2.8 ng/g (10.4 pmol/g); range, 1.1-4.8 ng/g (4.1- 17.8 pmol/g)] and E2 [median, 3.0 ng/g (10.9 pmol/g); range, 1.2-5.3 ng/g (4.4-19.5 pmol/g)] were found in similar concentrations and were independent of age and sex. In the gonads, E2 was the major estrogen, but the concentrations differed markedly between the sexes; E2 exceeded E1 almost 10-fold in the ovaries and 2-fold in the testes. On the average, the gonads of the infant girls had 5 times more E2 and 2 times more E1 than those of the boys. As in plasma, E2 concentrations were highest in the ovaries of 1- to 6-month-old girls [median, 10.5 ng/g (38.5 pmol/g); range, 1.1-55.1 ng/g (4.0-202.0 pmol/g)] and in testes of 1- to 3-month-old boys [median, 1.8 ng/g (6.6 pmol/g); range, 0.6- 6.4 ng/g (2.3-23.5 pmol/g)]. Ovarian E2 concentrations declined to less than 3.0 ng/g (11.0 pmol/g) by the end of the first year of life, and testicular E2 declined to less than 1.0 ng/g (3.7 pmol/g) after only 6 months of age. Gonadal estrogen concentrations paralleled changes in gonadal morphology. Ovarian weights varied in a pattern of rise and fall similar to that of ovarian E2 concentrations; the biggest ovaries contained multiple macroscopic cysts. Testicular E2 closely correlated with Leydig cell development and testicular testosterone concentrations. We infer, therefore, that the surge of plasma E2 in infant girls originates from ovarian follicles and that of boys from testicular Leydig cells, and that these both occur as a result of the postnatal surge in gonadotropin secretion. The basal plasma E1 and E2 pool, however, is derived from the adrenals and remains at a comparatively constant level in both sexe

A 'p-n' diode with hole and electron-doped lanthanum manganite

The hole-doped manganite La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 and the electron-doped manganite La0.7Ce0.3MnO3 undergo an insulator to metal transition at around 250 K, above which both behave as a polaronic semiconductor. We have successfully fabricated an epitaxial trilayer (La0.7Ca0.3MnO3/SrTiO3/La0.7Ce0.3MnO3), where SrTiO3 is an insulator. At room temperature, i.e. in the semiconducting regime, it exhibits asymmetric current-voltage (I-V) characteristics akin to a p-n diode. The observed asymmetry in the I-V characteristics disappears at low temperatures where both the manganite layers are metallic. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of such a p-n diode, using the polaronic semiconducting regime of doped manganites.Comment: PostScript text and 2 figures, to be published in Appl. Phys. Lett

Deposition of aerially applied spray to a stream within a vegetative barrier

Drift of aerially applied forest herbicides can result in chemical deposition to streams. Riparian vegetation is expected to attenuate drift, but there is little corresponding data. A field study was conducted in the Coast Range west of Corvallis, Oregon, to evaluate the effectiveness of forested riparian buffers. The buffers studied are typical of those used for small and medium fish-bearing streams in western Oregon as mandated by the Oregon Forest Practices Act. A helicopter sprayed two tracers over four transects. Twenty trials were conducted, resulting in over 1400 tracer samples. Results confirm that these vegetative barriers are effective at reducing deposition into streams. Reduction of deposition on artificial foliage samplers placed immediately above the stream surface ranged from 37% to 99% and averaged 92%. Reductions were less clear in stable atmospheric conditions due to low wind speed and highly variable wind directions. Low wind speed conditions are not generally high-drift scenarios, but there is evidence that drift of suspended droplets beyond the barrier, comprising a small fraction of the total mass, increases in stable conditions

A Pluralistic Theory of Wordhood

What are words and how should we individuate them? There are two main answers on the philosophical market. For some, words are bundles of structural-functional features defining a unique performance profile. For others, words are non-eternal continuants individuated by their causal-historical ancestry. These conceptions offer competing views of the nature of words, and it seems natural to assume that at most one of them can capture the essence of wordhood. This paper makes a case for pluralism about wordhood: the view that there is a plurality of acceptable conceptions of the nature of words, none of which is uniquely entitled to inform us as to what wordhood consists in

Reduction in Asthma Morbidity in Children as a Result of Home Remediation Aimed at Moisture Sources

OBJECTIVE: Home dampness and the presence of mold and allergens have been associated with asthma morbidity. We examined changes in asthma morbidity in children as a result of home remediation aimed at moisture sources. DESIGN: In this prospective, randomized controlled trial, symptomatic, asthmatic children (n = 62), 2–17 years of age, living in a home with indoor mold, received an asthma intervention including an action plan, education, and individualized problem solving. The remediation group also received household repairs, including reduction of water infiltration, removal of water-damaged building materials, and heating/ventilation/air-conditioning alterations. The control group received only home cleaning information. We measured children’s total and allergen-specific serum immuno-globulin E, peripheral blood eosinophil counts, and urinary cotinine. Environmental dust samples were analyzed for dust mite, cockroach, rodent urinary protein, endotoxin, and fungi. The follow-up period was 1 year. RESULTS: Children in both groups showed improvement in asthma symptomatic days during the preremediation portion of the study. The remediation group had a significant decrease in symptom days (p = 0.003, as randomized; p = 0.004, intent to treat) after remodeling, whereas these parameters in the control group did not significantly change. In the postremediation period, the remediation group had a lower rate of exacerbations compared with control asthmatics (as treated: 1 of 29 vs. 11 of 33, respectively, p = 0. 003; intent to treat: 28.1% and 10.0%, respectively, p = 0.11). CONCLUSION: Construction remediation aimed at the root cause of moisture sources and combined with a medical/behavioral intervention significantly reduces symptom days and health care use for asthmatic children who live in homes with a documented mold problem

Photographic Validation of Target Versus Nontarget Take of Brown Treesnake Baits

Use of toxic baits or other tools for managing nuisance species must ensure that the species of interest is adequately targeted while exposure to nontarget species is minimized. Nontarget takes of acetaminophen‐laced baits for control of invasive brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) on Guam may put those animals at risk of lethal intoxication and render the bait unavailable to the intended target species. We used wildlife cameras to identify species removing toxic and nontoxic baits from brown treesnake bait stations designed to exclude nontarget taxa in 2015 and 2016. Throughout various sites and habitat types, and balanced by season (wet vs. dry), we monitored 512 bait stations. From those, 140 of the baits were taken and the species taking the bait was successfully identified. Brown treesnakes took 124 (88.6%) of the baits, 13 (9.3%) were taken by small coconut crabs (Birgus latro), and 3 (2.1%) were taken by monitor lizards (Varanus indicus). The greatest incidence of nontarget bait takes was by small coconut crabs at 2 adjacent sites atop the same cliff line during a single season; 96.9% of bait takes at all other sites were by brown treesnakes. Bait takes by brown treesnakes were particularly infrequent (2.3%) at sites associated with endangered swiftlet (Aerodramus bartschi) caves where intensive snake control was employed. Although the majority of baits in bait stations are taken by brown treesnakes, local and temporal pulses in nontarget species activity, particularly by crabs, may bias results, which would not be accounted for without supplemental validation by cameras

Life expectancy associated with different ages at diagnosis of type 2 diabetes in high-income countries:23 million person-years of observation

Background:The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is increasing rapidly, particularly among younger age groups. Estimates suggest that people with diabetes die, on average, 6 years earlier than people without diabetes. We aimed to provide reliable estimates of the associations between age at diagnosis of diabetes and all-cause mortality, cause-specific mortality, and reductions in life expectancy. Methods:For this observational study, we conducted a combined analysis of individual-participant data from 19 high-income countries using two large-scale data sources: the Emerging Risk Factors Collaboration (96 cohorts, median baseline years 1961–2007, median latest follow-up years 1980–2013) and the UK Biobank (median baseline year 2006, median latest follow-up year 2020). We calculated age-adjusted and sex-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause mortality according to age at diagnosis of diabetes using data from 1 515 718 participants, in whom deaths were recorded during 23·1 million person-years of follow-up. We estimated cumulative survival by applying age-specific HRs to age-specific death rates from 2015 for the USA and the EU. Findings: For participants with diabetes, we observed a linear dose–response association between earlier age at diagnosis and higher risk of all-cause mortality compared with participants without diabetes. HRs were 2·69 (95% CI 2·43–2·97) when diagnosed at 30–39 years, 2·26 (2·08–2·45) at 40–49 years, 1·84 (1·72–1·97) at 50–59 years, 1·57 (1·47–1·67) at 60–69 years, and 1·39 (1·29–1·51) at 70 years and older. HRs per decade of earlier diagnosis were similar for men and women. Using death rates from the USA, a 50-year-old individual with diabetes died on average 14 years earlier when diagnosed aged 30 years, 10 years earlier when diagnosed aged 40 years, or 6 years earlier when diagnosed aged 50 years than an individual without diabetes. Using EU death rates, the corresponding estimates were 13, 9, or 5 years earlier. Interpretation: Every decade of earlier diagnosis of diabetes was associated with about 3–4 years of lower life expectancy, highlighting the need to develop and implement interventions that prevent or delay the onset of diabetes and to intensify the treatment of risk factors among young adults diagnosed with diabetes.</p

Association of glycated hemoglobin A1c levels with cardiovascular outcomes in the general population: results from the BiomarCaRE (Biomarker for Cardiovascular Risk Assessment in Europe) consortium

Background: Biomarkers may contribute to improved cardiovascular risk estimation. Glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) is used to monitor the quality of diabetes treatment. Its strength of association with cardiovascular outcomes in the general population remains uncertain. This study aims to assess the association of HbA1c with cardiovascular outcomes in the general population. Methods: Data from six prospective population-based cohort studies across Europe comprising 36,180 participants were analyzed. HbA1c was evaluated in conjunction with classical cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) for association with cardiovascular mortality, cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence, and overall mortality in subjects without diabetes (N = 32,496) and with diabetes (N = 3684). Results: Kaplan\u2013Meier curves showed higher event rates with increasing HbA1c levels (log-rank-test: p &lt; 0.001). Cox regression analysis revealed significant associations between HbA1c (in mmol/mol) in the total study population and the examined outcomes. Thus, a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.16 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02\u20131.31, p = 0.02) for cardiovascular mortality, 1.13 (95% CI 1.03\u20131.24, p = 0.01) for CVD incidence, and 1.09 (95% CI 1.02\u20131.17, p = 0.01) for overall mortality was observed per 10&nbsp;mmol/mol increase in HbA1c. The association with CVD incidence and overall mortality was also observed in study participants without diabetes with increased HbA1c levels (HR 1.12; 95% CI 1.01\u20131.25, p = 0.04) and HR 1.10; 95% CI 1.01\u20131.20, p = 0.02) respectively. HbA1c cut-off values of 39.9&nbsp;mmol/mol (5.8%), 36.6&nbsp;mmol/mol (5.5%), and 38.8&nbsp;mmol/mol (5.7%) for cardiovascular mortality, CVD incidence, and overall mortality, showed also an increased risk. Conclusions: HbA1c is independently associated with cardiovascular mortality, overall mortality and cardiovascular disease in the general European population. A mostly monotonically increasing relationship was observed between HbA1c levels and outcomes. Elevated HbA1c levels were associated with cardiovascular disease incidence and overall mortality in participants without diabetes underlining the importance of HbA1c levels in the overall population