Oxygen reduction at the silver/hydroxide-exchange membrane interface

A solid-state cell is used to study the electrocatalysis of oxygen reduction at the silver/hydroxide-exchange membrane interface. The catalyst/membrane interface exhibits improved performance in comparison to a catalyst/aqueous sodium hydroxide interface. Surprisingly, the half-wave potential for oxygen reduction is shown to shift 185 mV higher at the silver/hydroxide-exchange membrane interface than for the silver/aqueous hydroxide solution interface, and the exchange current density is significantly higher at 1.02 × 10−6 A m−2. On a cost per performance basis, silver electrocatalysts in a hydroxide-exchange membrane fuel cell may provide better performance than platinum in a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell. Keywords: Oxygen reduction reaction, Electrocatalyst, Alkaline membrane, Solid-state cell, Silve

Molecular and serological evidence of flea-associated typhus group and spotted fever group rickettsial infections in Madagascar

This research was supported by the Wellcome Trust (RCDF and Senior Fellowship to ST, #081705 and #095171), the Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, and the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System, a Division of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center [847705.82000.25GB.A0074].Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The Impact of Online Communities in Supporting Underrepresented Groups in Animation

There have always been barriers to access to the animation industry. The industry also has a lack of rigorous research, so accurate data about representation and demographics is difficult to obtain. However, there has been increasing action taken to increase awareness, research, and inclusion. Among the broad strategies, online platforms are frequently used in these efforts. Online platforms share resources on a scale that is not bound by geography and can reach a larger audience than traditional methods of sharing information. Online platforms also provide a space for underrepresented communities to form collectives and collaborate more easily. This project was conducted to gather resources and highlight issues of underrepresented communities in the animation industry and institution and how online communities have been used to support inclusion efforts. Research questions: What is the current state of representation in the animation industry? What research has been conducted on this topic? What initiatives and programs are in place to support underrepresented communities? What are further changes and actions that can be taken to improve inclusion through online means? What are large online communities have formed focusing on the animation industry? How have these groups supported their members and each other? How have these groups impacted the animation industry and/or institution?No embargoAcademic Major: Ar

Diesel degradation capability and environmental robustness of strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa WS02

Petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) degrading bacteria have been frequently discovered. However, in practical application, a single species of PHC degrading bacterium with weak competitiveness may face environmental pressure and competitive exclusion due to the interspecific competition between petroleum-degrading bacteria as well as indigenous microbiota in soil, leading to a reduced efficacy or even malfunction. In this study, the diesel degradation ability and environmental robustness of an endophytic strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa WS02, were investigated. The results show that the cell membrane surface of WS02 was highly hydrophobic, and the strain secreted glycolipid surfactants. Genetic analysis results revealed that WS02 contained multiple metabolic systems and PHC degradation-related genes, indicating that this strain theoretically possesses the capability of oxidizing both alkanes and aromatic hydrocarbons. Gene annotation also showed many targets which coded for heavy metal resistant and metal transporter proteins. The gene annotation-based inference was confirmed by the experimental results: GC-MS analysis revealed that short chain PHCs (C10–C14) were completely degraded, and the degradation of PHCs ranging from C15–C22 were above 90% after 14 d in diesel-exposed culture; Heavy metal (Mn2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+) exposure was found to affect the growth of WS02 to some extent, but not its ability to degrade diesel, and the degradation efficiency was still maintained at 39–59%. WS02 also showed a environmental robustness along with PHC-degradation performance in the co-culture system with other bacterial strains as well as in the co-cultured system with the indigenous microbiota in soil fluid extracted from a PHC-contaminated site. It can be concluded that the broad-spectrum diesel degradation efficacy and great environmental robustness give P. aeruginosa WS02 great potential for application in the remediation of PHC-contaminated soil.<br/

Perceptual learning of pitch direction in congenital amusia: evidence from Chinese speakers

Congenital amusia is a lifelong disorder of musical processing for which no effective treatments have been found. The present study aimed to treat amusics’ impairments in pitch direction identification through auditory training. Prior to training, twenty Chinese-speaking amusics and 20 matched controls were tested on the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA) and two psychophysical pitch threshold tasks for identification of pitch direction in speech and music. Subsequently, ten of the twenty amusics undertook 10 sessions of adaptive-tracking pitch direction training, while the remaining 10 received no training. Post training, all amusics were re-tested on the pitch threshold tasks and on the three pitch-based MBEA subtests. Compared with those untrained, trained amusics demonstrated significantly improved thresholds for pitch direction identification in both speech and music, to the level of non-amusic control participants, although no significant difference was observed between trained and untrained amusics in the MBEA subtests. This provides the first clear positive evidence for improvement in pitch direction processing through auditory training in amusia. Further training studies are required to target different deficit areas in congenital amusia, so as to reveal which aspects of improvement will be most beneficial to the normal functioning of musical processing

Recurrent glomerulonephritis following renal transplantation and impact on graft survival

BackgroundRecurrence of primary glomerulonephritis in the post-transplant period has been described in the literature but the risk remains poorly quantified and its impact on allograft outcomes and implications for subsequent transplants remain under-examined. Here we describe the rates and timing of post-transplant glomerulonephritis recurrence for IgA nephropathy, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, mesangiocapillary GN and membranous GN based on 28years of ANZDATA registry transplant data.MethodsWe investigated the rates of GN recurrence and subsequent graft outcomes in 7236 patient from 28 years of ANZDATA transplant registry data. Data were analysed in R, using Kaplan Meier Survival analysis and adjusted analyses performed using Cox Proportional Hazards methods. A competing risk model was also analysed.ResultsGN recurrence occurred in 10.5% of transplants and was most common in mesangiocapillary GN. Median time to recurrence was shorter for FSGS compared to IGAN. GN recurrence was less common in patients over 50years of age and after unrelated kidney donation. We identified a significantly higher risk of recurrence in secondary grafts following recurrence in a primary allograft for FSGS (RR 5.70, 95 CI: 2.41-13.5, p<0.001) but not IGAN, MCGN or MN. At 10years, recurrence occurs in 8.7, 10.8, 13.1, and 13.4% of allografts for FSGS, IGAN, MCGN and MN respectively. In all GN, recurrence significantly reduced death censored graft survival at 5 and 10years.ConclusionsGN recurrence occurs in a minority of patients at a significantly different rate for each GN. After a recurrence, there is no evidence for an increased risk of further recurrence in a subsequent graft except in FSGS

Increased glomerulonephritis recurrence after living related donation

BACKGROUND: Kidney transplantation confers superior outcomes for patients with end stage kidney disease, and live donor kidneys associate with superior outcomes compared to deceased donor kidneys. Modern immunosuppression has improved rejection rates and transplant survival and, as a result, recurrence of glomerulonephritis has emerged as a major cause of allograft loss. However, many glomerulonephritides have significant genetic risk which may manifest through kidney intrinsic or systemic mechanisms. We hypothesise that heritable kidney intrinsic predisposition to glomerulonephritis will result in increased risk of glomerulonephritis recurrence in kidneys transplanted from genetically related donors. METHODS: We investigated the effect of living related donation on rates of recurrence and subsequent graft outcomes in 7236 patient from 28 years of ANZDATA transplant registry data. Data were analysed in R, using Kaplan Meier Survival analysis and adjusted analyses performed using Cox Proportional Hazards methods. A competing risk model was also analysed. RESULTS: Glomerulonephritis recurrence rates were significantly higher in living related donor grafts compared to either living unrelated or deceased donor grafts (p < 0 · 001). In IgA nephropathy, transplantation from living related donor kidneys demonstrated a 10 year recurrence rate of 16 · 7% compared to 7 · 1% in living unrelated donors and 9 · 2% in deceased donors (HR:1 · 7, 95% CI:1 · 26-2 · 26, p = 0 · 0005 for living related vs deceased donors). In focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, risk of recurrence at 10 years was 14 · 6% in living related donors compared to 10 · 8% in living unrelated donors and 6 · 6% in deceased donors (HR:2 · 2, 95% CI 1 · 34-3 · 64, p = 0 · 002) for living related vs deceased donors. Primary glomerulonephritis death censored graft survival was superior for living donor grafts, related or unrelated, compared to deceased donor grafts. CONCLUSIONS: We identified a significant increase in the risk of glomerulonephritis recurrence in IgA Nephropathy and Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis in living related donors compared to a deceased donors

High prevalence of <i>Rickettsia africae</i> variants in <i>Amblyomma variegatum</i> ticks from domestic mammals in rural western Kenya: implications for human health

Tick-borne spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsioses are emerging human diseases caused by obligate intracellular Gram-negative bacteria of the genus Rickettsia. Despite being important causes of systemic febrile illnesses in travelers returning from sub-Saharan Africa, little is known about the reservoir hosts of these pathogens. We conducted surveys for rickettsiae in domestic animals and ticks in a rural setting in western Kenya. Of the 100 serum specimens tested from each species of domestic ruminant 43% of goats, 23% of sheep, and 1% of cattle had immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to the SFG rickettsiae. None of these sera were positive for IgG against typhus group rickettsiae. We detected Rickettsia africae–genotype DNA in 92.6% of adult Amblyomma variegatum ticks collected from domestic ruminants, but found no evidence of the pathogen in blood specimens from cattle, goats, or sheep. Sequencing of a subset of 21 rickettsia-positive ticks revealed R. africae variants in 95.2% (20/21) of ticks tested. Our findings show a high prevalence of R. africae variants in A. variegatum ticks in western Kenya, which may represent a low disease risk for humans. This may provide a possible explanation for the lack of African tick-bite fever cases among febrile patients in Kenya

Evidence of Rickettsia and Orientia Infections Among Abattoir Workers in Djibouti.

Of 49 workers at a Djiboutian abattoir, eight (16%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 9-29) were seropositive against spotted fever group rickettsiae (SFGR), two (4%, 95% CI: 1-14) against typhus group rickettsiae, and three (6%, 95% CI: 2-17) against orientiae. One worker (9%, 95% CI: 2-38) seroconverted against orientiae during the study period. This is the first evidence of orientiae exposure in the Horn of Africa. SFGR were also identified by polymerase chain reaction in 32 of 189 (11%, 95% CI: 8-15) tick pools from 26 of 72 (36%) cattle. Twenty-five (8%, 95% CI: 6-12) tick pools were positive for Rickettsia africae, the causative agent of African tick-bite fever. Health-care providers in Djibouti should be aware of the possibility of rickettsiae infections among patients, although further research is needed to determine the impact of these infections in the country