Diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease: clinical insights and vascular mechanisms

Hypertension and type 2 diabetes are common comorbidities. Hypertension is twice as frequent in patients with diabetes compared with those who do not have diabetes. Moreover, patients with hypertension often exhibit insulin resistance and are at greater risk of diabetes developing than are normotensive individuals. The major cause of morbidity and mortality in diabetes is cardiovascular disease, which is exacerbated by hypertension. Accordingly, diabetes and hypertension are closely interlinked because of similar risk factors, such as endothelial dysfunction, vascular inflammation, arterial remodelling, atherosclerosis, dyslipidemia, and obesity. There is also substantial overlap in the cardiovascular complications of diabetes and hypertension related primarily to microvascular and macrovascular disease. Common mechanisms, such as upregulation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, oxidative stress, inflammation, and activation of the immune system likely contribute to the close relationship between diabetes and hypertension. In this article we discuss diabetes and hypertension as comorbidities and discuss the pathophysiological features of vascular complications associated with these conditions. We also highlight some vascular mechanisms that predispose to both conditions, focusing on advanced glycation end products, oxidative stress, inflammation, the immune system, and microRNAs. Finally, we provide some insights into current therapies targeting diabetes and cardiovascular complications and introduce some new agents that may have vasoprotective therapeutic potential in diabetes

The “ABC model”: a non-hydrostatic toy model for use in convective-scale data assimilation investigations

In developing methods for convective-scale data assimilation (DA) it is necessary to consider the full range of motions governed by the compressible Navier-Stokes equations (including non-hydrostatic and ageostrophic flow). These equations describe motion on a wide range of time-scales with non-linear coupling. For the purpose of developing new DA techniques that suit the convective-scale problem it is helpful to use so-called ‘toy models’ that are easy to run, and contain the same types of motion as the full equation set. Such a model needs to permit hydrostatic and geostrophic balance at large-scales, but to allow imbalance at small-scales, and in particular, it needs to exhibit intermittent convection-like behaviour. Existing ‘toy models’ are not always sufficient for investigating these issues. A simplified system of intermediate complexity derived from the Euler equations is presented, which supports dispersive gravity and acoustic modes. In this system the separation of time scales can be greatly reduced by changing the physical parameters. Unlike in existing toy models, this allows the acoustic modes to be treated explicitly, and hence inexpensively. In addition, the non-linear coupling induced by the equation of state is simplified. This means that the gravity and acoustic modes are less coupled than in conventional models. A vertical slice formulation is used which contains only dry dynamics. The model is shown to give physically reasonable results, and convective behaviour is generated by localised compressible effects. This model provides an affordable and flexible framework within which some of the complex issues of convective-scale DA can later be investigated. The model is called the “ABC model” after the three tunable parameters introduced: A (the pure gravity wave frequency), B (the modulation of the divergent term in the continuity equation), and C (defining the compressibility)

LANDSAT TM image data quality analysis for energy-related applications

This project represents a no-cost agreement between National Aeronautic Space Administration Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA GSFC) and the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL). PNL is a Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory operted by Battelle Memorial Institute at its Pacific Northwest Laboratories in Richland, Washington. The objective of this investigation is to evaluate LANDSAT's thematic mapper (TM) data quality and utility characteristics from an energy research and technological perspective. Of main interest is the extent to which repetitive TM data might support DOE efforts relating to siting, developing, and monitoring energy-related facilities, and to basic geoscientific research. The investigation utilizes existing staff and facility capabilities, and ongoing programmatic activities at PNL and other DOE national laboratories to cooperatively assess the potential usefulness of the improved experimental TM data. The investigation involves: (1) both LANDSAT 4 and 5 TM data, (2) qualitative and quantitative use consideration, and 3) NASA P (corrected) and A (uncorrected) CCT analysis for a variety of sites of DOE interest. Initial results were presented at the LANDSAT Investigator's Workshops and at specialized LANDSAT TM sessions at various conferences

Ancient Egypt 1915 Part 1

Part 1 of the 1915 Ancient Egypt books. Contents include birds in ancient Egyptian art, excavations at Saqqara, part of a Coptic sermon, and the metals in Egypt.https://knowledge.e.southern.edu/kweeks_coll/1001/thumbnail.jp

Toxicity of cancer therapy: what the cardiologist needs to know about angiogenesis inhibitors

Clinical outcomes for patients with a wide range of malignancies have improved substantially over the last two decades. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are potent signalling cascade inhibitors and have been responsible for significant advances in cancer therapy. By inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-mediated tumour blood vessel growth, VEGFR-TKIs have become a mainstay of treatment for a number of solid malignancies. However, the incidence of VEGFR-TKI-associated cardiovascular toxicity is substantial and previously under-recognised. Almost all patients have an acute rise in blood pressure, and the majority develop hypertension. They are associated with the development of left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD), heart failure and myocardial ischaemia and can have effects on myocardial repolarisation. Attention should be given to rigorous baseline assessment of patients prior to commencing VEGFR-TKIs, with careful consideration of baseline cardiovascular risk factors. Baseline blood pressure measurement, ECG and cardiac imaging should be performed routinely. Hypertension management currently follows national guidelines, but there may be a future role forendothelin-1 antagonism in the prevention or treatment of VEGFR-TKI-associated hypertension. VEGFR-TKI-associated LVSD appears to be independent of dose and is reversible. Patients who develop LVSD and heart failure should be managed with conventional heart failure therapies, but the role of prophylactic therapy is yet to be defined. Serial monitoring of left ventricular function and QT interval require better standardisation and coordinated care. Management of these complex patients requires collaborative, cardio-oncology care to allow the true therapeutic potential from cancer treatment while minimising competing cardiovascular effects

Peripartum cardiomyopathy: diagnosis and management

No abstract available

Magnetohydrostatic solar prominences in near-potential coronal magnetic fields

We present numerical magnetohydrostatic solutions describing the gravitationally stratified, bulk equilibrium of cool, dense prominence plasma embedded in a near-potential coronal field. These solutions are calculated using the FINESSE magnetohydrodynamics equilibrium solver and describe the morphologies of magnetic field distributions in and around prominences and the cool prominence plasma that these fields support. The equilibrium condition for this class of problem is usually different in distinct subdomains, separated by free boundaries, across which solutions are matched by suitable continuity or jump conditions describing force balance. We employ our precise finite element elliptic solver to calculate solutions not accessible by previous analytical techniques with temperature or entropy prescribed as free functions of the magnetic flux function, including a range of values of the polytropic index, temperature variations mainly across magnetic field lines and photospheric field profiles sheared close to the polarity inversion line. Out of the many examples computed here, perhaps the most noteworthy is one which reproduces precisely the three-part structure often encountered in observations: a cool dense prominence within a cavity/flux rope embedded in a hot corona. The stability properties of these new equilibria, which may be relevant to solar eruptions, can be determined in the form of a full resistive MHD spectrum using a companion hyperbolic stability solver.Comment: To appear in ApJ August 200

Effects of spatial variability on the estimation of erosion rates for cohesive riverbanks

River morphodynamics and sediment transportBank erosion and protectio