1,567 research outputs found
Mitochondrial DNA suggests at least 11 origins of parasitism in angiosperms and reveals genomic chimerism in parasitic plants
Identifying precursors and aqueous organic aerosol formation pathways during the SOAS campaign
Aqueous multiphase chemistry in the atmosphere can lead to rapid transformation of organic compounds, forming highly oxidized, low-volatility organic aerosol and, in some cases, light-absorbing (brown) carbon. Because liquid water is globally abundant, this chemistry could substantially impact climate, air quality, and health. Gas-phase precursors released from biogenic and anthropogenic sources are oxidized and fragmented, forming water-soluble gases that can undergo reactions in the aqueous phase (in clouds, fogs, and wet aerosols), leading to the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Recent studies have highlighted the role of certain precursors like glyoxal, methylglyoxal, glycolaldehyde, acetic acid, acetone, and epoxides in the formation of SOA. The goal of this work is to identify additional precursors and products that may be atmospherically important. In this study, ambient mixtures of watersoluble gases were scrubbed from the atmosphere into water at Brent, Alabama, during the 2013 Southern Oxidant and Aerosol Study (SOAS). Hydroxyl (OH Β·) radical oxidation experiments were conducted with the aqueous mixtures collected from SOAS to better understand the formation of SOA through gas-phase followed by aqueous-phase chemistry. Total aqueous-phase organic carbon concentrations for these mixtures ranged from 92 to 179 ΞΌM-C, relevant for cloud and fog waters. Aqueous OH-reactive compounds were primarily observed as odd ions in the positive ion mode by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Ultra highresolution Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS) spectra and tandem MS (MSβ MS) fragmentation of these ions were consistent with the presence of carbonyls and tetrols. Products were observed in the negative ion mode and included pyruvate and oxalate, which were confirmed by ion chromatography. Pyruvate and oxalate have been found in the particle phase in many locations (as salts and complexes). Thus, formation of pyruvate/oxalate suggests the potential for aqueous processing of these ambient mixtures to form SOA
Cysteinyl Leukotriene Levels in Esophageal Mucosal Biopsies of Children with Eosinophilic Inflammation: Are They All the Same?
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75498/1/j.1572-0241.2006.00557.x.pd
Exascale Deep Learning to Accelerate Cancer Research
Deep learning, through the use of neural networks, has demonstrated
remarkable ability to automate many routine tasks when presented with
sufficient data for training. The neural network architecture (e.g. number of
layers, types of layers, connections between layers, etc.) plays a critical
role in determining what, if anything, the neural network is able to learn from
the training data. The trend for neural network architectures, especially those
trained on ImageNet, has been to grow ever deeper and more complex. The result
has been ever increasing accuracy on benchmark datasets with the cost of
increased computational demands. In this paper we demonstrate that neural
network architectures can be automatically generated, tailored for a specific
application, with dual objectives: accuracy of prediction and speed of
prediction. Using MENNDL--an HPC-enabled software stack for neural architecture
search--we generate a neural network with comparable accuracy to
state-of-the-art networks on a cancer pathology dataset that is also
faster at inference. The speedup in inference is necessary because of the
volume and velocity of cancer pathology data; specifically, the previous
state-of-the-art networks are too slow for individual researchers without
access to HPC systems to keep pace with the rate of data generation. Our new
model enables researchers with modest computational resources to analyze newly
generated data faster than it is collected.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Big Dat
ASAS-SN Sky Patrol V2.0
The All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN) began observing in
late-2011 and has been imaging the entire sky with nightly cadence since late
2017. A core goal of ASAS-SN is to release as much useful data as possible to
the community. Working towards this goal, in 2017 the first ASAS-SN Sky Patrol
was established as a tool for the community to obtain light curves from our
data with no preselection of targets. Then, in 2020 we released static V-band
photometry from 2013--2018 for 61 million sources. Here we describe the next
generation ASAS-SN Sky Patrol, Version 2.0, which represents a major
progression of this effort. Sky Patrol 2.0 provides continuously updated light
curves for 111 million targets derived from numerous external catalogs of
stars, galaxies, and solar system objects. We are generally able to serve
photometry data within an hour of observation. Moreover, with a novel database
architecture, the catalogs and light curves can be queried at unparalleled
speed, returning thousands of light curves within seconds. Light curves can be
accessed through a web interface (http://asas-sn.ifa.hawaii.edu/skypatrol/) or
a Python client (https://asas-sn.ifa.hawaii.edu/documentation). The Python
client can be used to retrieve up to 1 million light curves, generally limited
only by bandwidth. This paper gives an updated overview of our survey,
introduces the new Sky Patrol, and describes its system architecture. These
results provide significant new capabilities to the community for pursuing
multi-messenger and time-domain astronomy.Comment: Light curves can be accessed through a web interface
http://asas-sn.ifa.hawaii.edu/skypatrol, or a Python client at
http://asas-sn.ifa.hawaii.edu/documentatio
Therapeutic DNA vaccine induces broad T cell responses in the gut and sustained protection from viral rebound and AIDS in SIV-infected rhesus macaques.
Immunotherapies that induce durable immune control of chronic HIV infection may eliminate the need for life-long dependence on drugs. We investigated a DNA vaccine formulated with a novel genetic adjuvant that stimulates immune responses in the blood and gut for the ability to improve therapy in rhesus macaques chronically infected with SIV. Using the SIV-macaque model for AIDS, we show that epidermal co-delivery of plasmids expressing SIV Gag, RT, Nef and Env, and the mucosal adjuvant, heat-labile E. coli enterotoxin (LT), during antiretroviral therapy (ART) induced a substantial 2-4-log fold reduction in mean virus burden in both the gut and blood when compared to unvaccinated controls and provided durable protection from viral rebound and disease progression after the drug was discontinued. This effect was associated with significant increases in IFN-Ξ³ T cell responses in both the blood and gut and SIV-specific CD8+ T cells with dual TNF-Ξ± and cytolytic effector functions in the blood. Importantly, a broader specificity in the T cell response seen in the gut, but not the blood, significantly correlated with a reduction in virus production in mucosal tissues and a lower virus burden in plasma. We conclude that immunizing with vaccines that induce immune responses in mucosal gut tissue could reduce residual viral reservoirs during drug therapy and improve long-term treatment of HIV infection in humans
Outcomes from a 12-Week, Open-Label, Multicenter Clinical Trial of Teduglutide in Pediatric Short Bowel Syndrome
Objective
To determine safety and pharmacodynamics/efficacy of teduglutide in children with intestinal failure associated with short bowel syndrome (SBS-IF).
Study design
This 12-week, open-label study enrolled patients aged 1-17 years with SBS-IF who required parenteral nutrition (PN) and showed minimal or no advance in enteral nutrition (EN) feeds. Patients enrolled sequentially into 3 teduglutide cohorts (0.0125βmg/kg/d [nβ=β8], 0.025βmg/kg/d [nβ=β14], 0.05βmg/kg/d [nβ=β15]) or received standard of care (SOC, nβ=β5). Descriptive summary statistics were used.
Results
All patients experienced β₯1 treatment-emergent adverse event; most were mild or moderate. No serious teduglutide-related treatment-emergent adverse events occurred. Between baseline and week 12, prescribed PN volume and calories (kcal/kg/d) changed by a median of β41% and β45%, respectively, with 0.025βmg/kg/d teduglutide and by β25% and β52% with 0.05βmg/kg/d teduglutide. In contrast, PN volume and calories changed by 0% and β6%, respectively, with 0.0125βmg/kg/d teduglutide and by 0% and β1% with SOC. Per patient diary data, EN volume increased by a median of 22%, 32%, and 40% in the 0.0125, 0.025, and 0.05 mg/kg/d cohorts, respectively, and by 11% with SOC. Four patients achieved independence from PN, 3 in the 0.05 mg/kg/d cohort and 1 in the 0.025 mg/kg/d cohort. Study limitations included its short-term, open-label design, and small sample size.
Conclusions
Teduglutide was well tolerated in pediatric patients with SBS-IF. Teduglutide 0.025 or 0.05βmg/kg/d was associated with trends toward reductions in PN requirements and advancements in EN feeding in children with SBS-IF
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