The Effects of Hypertension on Cognitive Function in Children and Adolescents

Hypertension (HTN) is found in about 3-4% of the pediatric population with long-term risks of end organ damage if untreated or poorly controlled. Although children with HTN are being more frequently screened for end organ damage (i.e., LVH), the cognitive effects of HTN and methods to screen for cognitive dysfunction have not been extensively explored. In recent years, there have been a small number of studies that have provided important insights that can guide future research in this area. These studies show that HTN can be associated with headaches, restlessness, sleep disturbance, anxiety, depression, decreased attention, and also poor executive functioning. By increasing the utilization of cognitive tests in hypertensive children and adolescents, important cognitive defects secondary to HTN may be detected. More research is needed in the area, and the results of future studies could have far reaching implications for long-term outcomes in hypertensive children and adolescents

A Comparison of Potential Mixes in Two Southeastern Lakes: Lake Jocassee, SC and Carters Lake, GA

In the Southeast United States most lakes tend to be warm monomictic lakes, mixing during one season each year. However, under circumstances of great relative depth, lakes may tend towards meromictic conditions. In this case the bottom layer of the lake, or the monimolimnion, never mixes completely. Carter’s Lake in Chatsworth, Georgia was created in 1977 after the creation of Carter’s Dam, and is an example of a meromictic lake. Lake Jocassee is a reservoir located in Salem, South Carolina on the Savannah River Basin. The reservoir was created in 1973 upon the completion of The Jocassee Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Station. Like Carter’s Lake, Lake Jocassee is very deep and large, and has the possibility of behaving as a meromictic lake. Past data suggests that Lake Jocassee behaves more frequently as a warm monomictic lake while occasionally not mixing completely. We wanted to further study Lake Jocassee’s morphometry to dig deeper into the possibility of meromixis within the lake by looking at the level of mixing in the Winter of 2014

Interspecific hybridization explains rapid gorget colour divergence in Heliodoxa hummingbirds (Aves: Trochilidae)

Hybridization is a known source of morphological, functional and communicative signal novelty in many organisms. Although diverse mechanisms of established novel ornamentation have been identified in natural populations, we lack an understanding of hybridization effects across levels of biological scales and upon phylogenies. Hummingbirds display diverse structural colours resulting from coherent light scattering by feather nanostructures. Given the complex relationship between feather nanostructures and the colours they produce, intermediate coloration does not necessarily imply intermediate nanostructures. Here, we characterize nanostructural, ecological and genetic inputs in a distinctive Heliodoxa hummingbird from the foothills of eastern Peru. Genetically, this individual is closely allied with Heliodoxa branickii and Heliodoxa gularis, but it is not identical to either when nuclear data are assessed. Elevated interspecific heterozygosity further suggests it is a hybrid backcross to H. branickii. Electron microscopy and spectrophotometry of this unique individual reveal key nanostructural differences underlying its distinct gorget colour, confirmed by optical modelling. Phylogenetic comparative analysis suggests that the observed gorget coloration divergence from both parentals to this individual would take 6.6–10 My to evolve at the current rate within a single hummingbird lineage. These results emphasize the mosaic nature of hybridization and suggest that hybridization may contribute to the structural colour diversity found across hummingbirds

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in two pediatric patients with kidney disease on chronic immunosuppression: A case series

This article is made available for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is a highly infectious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus (SARS‐CoV‐2). While children appear to experience less severe disease than adults, those with underlying conditions such as kidney disease may be more susceptible to infection. Limited data are present for children with kidney disease, and there are limited prior reports of pediatric hemodialysis patients with COVID‐19. This report describes the mild clinical disease course of COVID‐19 in two pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease, one on hemodialysis and both on chronic immunosuppression. We review treatment in these patients, as well as our measures to reduce transmission among our hemodialysis patients and staff

Human Alpha Defensin 5 Expression in the Human Kidney and Urinary Tract

The mechanisms that maintain sterility in the urinary tract are incompletely understood. Recent studies have implicated the importance of antimicrobial peptides (AMP) in protecting the urinary tract from infection. Here, we characterize the expression and relevance of the AMP human alpha-defensin 5 (HD5) in the human kidney and urinary tract in normal and infected subjects.Using RNA isolated from human kidney, ureter, and bladder tissue, we performed quantitative real-time PCR to show that DEFA5, the gene encoding HD5, is constitutively expressed throughout the urinary tract. With pyelonephritis, DEFA5 expression significantly increased in the kidney. Using immunoblot analysis, HD5 production also increased with pyelonephritis. Immunostaining localized HD5 to the urothelium of the bladder and ureter. In the kidney, HD5 was primarily produced in the distal nephron and collecting tubules. Using immunoblot and ELISA assays, HD5 was not routinely detected in non-infected human urine samples while mean urinary HD5 production increased with E.coli urinary tract infection.DEFA5 is expressed throughout the urinary tract in non-infected subjects. Specifically, HD5 is expressed throughout the urothelium of the lower urinary tract and in the collecting tubules of the kidney. With infection, HD5 expression increases in the kidney and levels become detectable in the urine. To our knowledge, our findings represent the first to quantitate HD5 expression and production in the human kidney. Moreover, this is the first report to detect the presence of HD5 in infected urine samples. Our results suggest that HD5 may have an important role in maintaining urinary tract sterility

Long Noncoding RNA-Directed Epigenetic Regulation of Gene Expression Is Associated With Anxiety-like Behavior in Mice

Background RNA-directed regulation of epigenetic processes has recently emerged as an important feature of mammalian differentiation and development. Perturbation of this regulatory system in the brain may contribute to the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. Methods RNA sequencing was used to identify changes in the experience-dependent expression of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) within the medial prefrontal cortex of adult mice. Transcripts were validated by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and a candidate lncRNA, Gomafu, was selected for further investigation. The functional role of this schizophrenia-related lncRNA was explored in vivo by antisense oligonucleotide-mediated gene knockdown in the medial prefrontal cortex, followed by behavioral training and assessment of fear-related anxiety. Long noncoding RNA-directed epigenetic regulation of gene expression was investigated by chromatin and RNA immunoprecipitation assays. Results RNA sequencing analysis revealed changes in the expression of a significant number of genes related to neural plasticity and stress, as well as the dynamic regulation of lncRNAs. In particular, we detected a significant downregulation of Gomafu lncRNA. Our results revealed that Gomafu plays a role in mediating anxiety-like behavior and suggest that this may occur through an interaction with a key member of the polycomb repressive complex 1, BMI1, which regulates the expression of the schizophrenia-related gene beta crystallin (Crybb1). We also demonstrated a novel role for Crybb1 in mediating fear-induced anxiety-like behavior. Conclusions Experience-dependent expression of lncRNAs plays an important role in the epigenetic regulation of adaptive behavior, and the perturbation of Gomafu may be related to anxiety and the development of neuropsychiatric disorders

A Categorical Model of Array Domains

We apply the theory of generalised concrete data structures (or gCDSs) to construct a cartesian closed category of concrete array structures with explicit data layout. The technical novelty is the array gCDS preserved by exponentiation whose isomorphisms relate higher-order objects to their local parts. This work is part of our search of semantic foundations for data-parallel functional programming