Early respiratory viral infections in infants with cystic fibrosis

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.Background Viral infections contribute to morbidity in cystic fibrosis (CF), but the impact of respiratory viruses on the development of airway disease is poorly understood. Methods Infants with CF identified by newborn screening were enrolled prior to 4 months of age to participate in a prospective observational study at 4 centers. Clinical data were collected at clinic visits and weekly phone calls. Multiplex PCR assays were performed on nasopharyngeal swabs to detect respiratory viruses during routine visits and when symptomatic. Participants underwent bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and a subset underwent pulmonary function testing. We present findings through 8.5 months of life. Results Seventy infants were enrolled, mean age 3.1 ± 0.8 months. Rhinovirus was the most prevalent virus (66%), followed by parainfluenza (19%), and coronavirus (16%). Participants had a median of 1.5 viral positive swabs (range 0–10). Past viral infection was associated with elevated neutrophil concentrations and bacterial isolates in BAL fluid, including recovery of classic CF bacterial pathogens. When antibiotics were prescribed for respiratory-related indications, viruses were identified in 52% of those instances. Conclusions Early viral infections were associated with greater neutrophilic inflammation and bacterial pathogens. Early viral infections appear to contribute to initiation of lower airway inflammation in infants with CF. Antibiotics were commonly prescribed in the setting of a viral infection. Future investigations examining longitudinal relationships between viral infections, airway microbiome, and antibiotic use will allow us to elucidate the interplay between these factors in young children with CF

Genomic repeat abundances contain phylogenetic signal

A large proportion of genomic information, particularly repetitive elements, is usually ignored when researchers are using next-generation sequencing. Here we demonstrate the usefulness of this repetitive fraction in phylogenetic analyses, utilizing comparative graph-based clustering of next-generation sequence reads, which results in abundance estimates of different classes of genomic repeats. Phylogenetic trees are then inferred based on the genome-wide abundance of different repeat types treated as continuously varying characters; such repeats are scattered across chromosomes and in angiosperms can constitute a majority of nuclear genomic DNA. In six diverse examples, five angiosperms and one insect, this method provides generally well-supported relationships at interspecific and intergeneric levels that agree with results from more standard phylogenetic analyses of commonly used markers. We propose that this methodology may prove especially useful in groups where there is little genetic differentiation in standard phylogenetic markers. At the same time as providing data for phylogenetic inference, this method additionally yields a wealth of data for comparative studies of genome evolution

A life cycle stakeholder management framework for enhanced collaboration between stakeholders with competing interests

This is a postprint version of the Book Chapter. Information regarding the official publication is available from the link below - Copyright @ 2011 SpringerImplementation of a Life Cycle Sustainability Management (LCSM) strategy can involve significant challenges because of competing or conflicting objectives between stakeholders. These differences may, if not identified and managed, hinder successful adoption of sustainability initiatives. This article proposes a conceptual framework for stakeholder management in a LCSM context. The framework identifies the key sustainability stakeholder groups and suggests strategic ambiguity as a management tool to harness dysfunctional conflict into constructive collaboration. The framework is of practical value as it can be used as a guideline by managers who wish to improve collaboration with stakeholders along the supply chain. The article also fills a gap in the academic literature where there is only limited research on sustainability stakeholder management through strategic ambiguity

Rapidity Distributions of Dileptons from a Hadronizing Quark-Gluon Plasma

It has been predicted that dilepton production may be used as a quark-gluon plasma probe. We calculate the rapidity distributions of thermal dileptons produced by an evolving quark-gluon plasma assuming a longitudinal scaling expansion with initial conditions locally determined from the hadronic rapidity density. These distributions are compared with Drell-Yan production and semileptonic charm decays at invariant mass $M = 2$, 4, and 6 GeV.Comment: 17 pages (standard LaTeX), 6 figures (available as topdraw files or printed versions upon request), GSI-93-6

Patient-maintained sedation for oral surgery using a target-controlled infusion of propofol - a pilot study

OBJECTIVE: To assess the safety and efficacy of a new patient-maintained propofol system for conscious sedation in dentistry. DESIGN: Prospective clinical trial SETTING: Department of Sedation, Glasgow Dental Hospital and School, 2001 SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Patients scheduled for oral surgery with conscious sedation. Exclusions included ASA IV -V, inability to use the handset, opioid use and severe respiratory disease. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were given intravenous propofol to a level of 1.0 microg/ml (reducing from 1.5 microg/ml) using a target controlled infusion system, they then controlled their sedation level by double-clicking a handset which on each activation increased the propofol concentration by 0.2 microg/ml. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Oxygen saturation, patient satisfaction, and surgeon satisfaction. RESULTS: Twenty patients were recruited, 16 female and four male. Nineteen patients completed sedation and treatment successfully. Mean lowest oxygen saturation was 94%. No patients were over-sedated. All patients successfully used the system to maintain a level of sedation adequate for their comfort. Patient and surgeon satisfaction were consistently high. CONCLUSIONS: Initial experience with this novel system has confirmed safety, patient satisfaction and surgeon satisfaction

NDM-504: MULTI-PLATFORM TORNADO DAMAGE SCENE PRESERVATION

A severe tornado system produced damage to engineered metal buildings at an industrial facility outside Pampa, TX and toppled several nearby center-pivot irrigation structures. Rapid remote-sensing preservation of this overall damage scene was of particular necessity: access to the industrial facility was prohibited, and the overall size of the center-pivot irrigation system disallowed rapid direct measurement of member displacements. Engineers and architects from West Texas A&M University, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and Texas Tech University collaborated to acquire and preserve the damage scene for future study, using a suite of existing and emerging platforms: including 3D point clouds derived from aerial FoDAR, aerial drone imaging, terrestrial laser scanning, and terrestrial digital photogrammetry as well as two-dimensional, four-band satellite imaging. Data collection using these various platforms offers guidance for the future remote-sensing preservation of damage scenes, the validation of estimated wind speeds currently employed in the Enhanced Fujita Scale of tornado intensity, and the further development of techniques for automated remote-sensing-based wind damage assessments

Evidence for the naphthalene cation in a region of the interstellar medium with anomalous microwave emission

We report high resolution spectroscopy of the moderately reddened (A$_V$=3) early type star Cernis 52 located in a region of the Perseus molecular cloud complex with anomalous microwave emission. In addition to the presence of the most common diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) we detect two new interstellar or circumstellar bands coincident to within 0.01% in wavelength with the two strongest bands of the naphthalene cation (C$_{10}$H$_{8}^+$) as measured in gas-phase laboratory spectroscopy at low temperatures and find marginal evidence for the third strongest band. Assuming these features are caused by the naphthalene cation, from the measured intensity and available oscillator strengths we find that 0.008 % of the carbon in the cloud could be in the form of this molecule. We expect hydrogen additions to cause hydronaphthalene cations to be abundant in the cloud and to contribute via electric dipole radiation to the anomalous microwave emission. The identification of new interstellar features consistent with transitions of the simplest polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon adds support to the hypothesis that this type of molecules are the carriers of both diffuse interstellar bands and anomalous microwave emission.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

Cosmic Concordance and Quintessence

We present a comprehensive study of the observational constraints on spatially flat cosmological models containing a mixture of matter and quintessence --- a time varying, spatially inhomogeneous component of the energy density of the universe with negative pressure. Our study also includes the limiting case of a cosmological constant. Low red shift constraints include the Hubble parameter, baryon fraction, cluster abundance, age of the universe, bulk velocity and shape of the mass power spectrum; intermediate red shift constraints are due to type 1a supernovae, gravitational lensing, the Ly-a forest, and the evolution of large scale structure; high red shift constraints are based on cosmic microwave background temperature anisotropy. Mindful of systematic errors, we adopt a conservative approach in applying these constraints. We determine that quintessence models in which the matter density parameter is 0.2 \ls \Omega_m \ls 0.5 and the effective, density-averaged equation of state is -1 \le w \ls -0.2, are consistent with the most reliable, current low red shift and CMB observations at the $2\sigma$ level. Factoring in the constraint due to type 1a SNe, the range for the equation of state is reduced to -1 \le w \ls -0.4, where this range represents models consistent with each observational constraint at the 2$\sigma$ level or better (concordance analysis). A combined maximum likelihood analysis suggests a smaller range, -1 \le w \ls -0.6. We find that the best-fit and best-motivated quintessence models lie near $\Omega_m \approx 0.33$, $h \approx 0.65$, and spectral index $n_s=1$, with an effective equation of state $w \approx -0.65$ for ``tracker'' quintessence and $w=-1$ for ``creeper'' quintessence. (abstract shortened)Comment: revised to match ApJ version; 33 pages; 20 figures, 4 in color; uses emulateapj.st

Primordial germ cell DNA demethylation and development require DNA translesion synthesis

Mutations in DNA damage response (DDR) factors are associated with human infertility, which affects up to 15% of the population. The DDR is required during germ cell development and meiosis. One pathway implicated in human fertility is DNA translesion synthesis (TLS), which allows replication impediments to be bypassed. We find that TLS is essential for premeiotic germ cell development in the embryo. Loss of the central TLS component, REV1,significantly inhibits the induction of human PGC-like cells (hPGCLCs). This is recapitulated in mice, where deficiencies in TLS initiation (Rev1-/- or PcnaK164R/K164R) or extension (Rev7-/-) result in a &gt;150-fold reduction in the number of primordial germ cells (PGCs) and complete sterility. In contrast, the absence of TLS does not impact the growth, function, or homeostasis of somatic tissues. Surprisingly, we find a complete failure in both activation of the germ cell transcriptional program and in DNA demethylation, a critical step in germline epigenetic reprogramming. Our findings show that for normal fertility, DNA repair is required not only for meiotic recombination but for progression through the earliest stages of germ cell development in mammals.<br/