Simulation studies of a phenomenological model for elongated virus capsid formation

We study a phenomenological model in which the simulated packing of hard, attractive spheres on a prolate spheroid surface with convexity constraints produces structures identical to those of prolate virus capsid structures. Our simulation approach combines the traditional Monte Carlo method with a modified method of random sampling on an ellipsoidal surface and a convex hull searching algorithm. Using this approach we identify the minimum physical requirements for non-icosahedral, elongated virus capsids, such as two aberrant flock house virus (FHV) particles and the prolate prohead of bacteriophage $\phi_{29}$, and discuss the implication of our simulation results in the context of recent experimental findings. Our predicted structures may also be experimentally realized by evaporation-driven assembly of colloidal spheres

Cough-generated aerosols of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other Gram-negative bacteria from patients with cystic fibrosis

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the most common bacterial pathogen in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. Current infection control guidelines aim to prevent transmission via contact and respiratory droplet routes and do not consider the possibility of airborne transmission. We hypothesized that with coughing, CF subjects produce viable, respirable bacterial aerosols. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 15 children and 13 adults with CF, 26 chronically infected with P. aeruginosa. A cough aerosol sampling system enabled fractioning of respiratory particles of different size, and culture of viable Gram negative non-fermentative bacteria. We collected cough aerosols during 5 minutes voluntary coughing and during a sputum induction procedure when tolerated. Standardized quantitative culture and genotyping techniques were used. Results: P. aeruginosa was isolated in cough aerosols of 25 (89%) subjects of whom 22 produced sputum samples. P. aeruginosa from sputum and paired cough aerosols were indistinguishable by molecular typing. In 4 cases the same genotype was isolated from ambient room air. Approximately 70% of viable aerosols collected during voluntary coughing were of particles ≤ 3.3 microns aerodynamic diameter. P. aeruginosa, Burkholderia cenocepacia Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and Achromobacter xylosoxidans were cultivated from respiratory particles in this size range. Positive room air samples were associated with high total counts in cough aerosols (P=0.003). The magnitude of cough aerosols were associated with higher FEV1 (r=0.45, P=0.02) and higher quantitative sputum culture results (r=0.58, P=0.008). Conclusion: During coughing, CF patients produce viable aerosols of P. aeruginosa and other Gram negative bacteria of respirable size range, suggesting the potential for airborne transmission

Origin and trends in NH4+ observed in the coma of 67P

The European Space Agency/Rosetta mission escorted comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko and witnessed the evolution of its coma from low activity (∼2.5–3.8 au) to rich ion-neutral chemistry (∼1.2–2.0 au). We present an analysis of the ion composition in the coma, focusing on the presence of protonated high proton affinity (HPA) species, in particular NH4+ ⁠. This ion is produced through the protonation of NH3 and is an indicator of the level of ion-neutral chemistry in the coma. We aim to assess the importance of this process compared with other NH4+ sources, such as the dissociation of ammonium salts embedded in dust grains. The analysis of NH4+ has been possible thanks to the high mass resolution of the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis/Double Focusing Mass Spectrometer (ROSINA/DFMS). In this work, we examine the NH4+ data set alongside data from the Rosetta Plasma Consortium instruments, and against outputs from our in-house ionospheric model. We show that increased comet outgassing around perihelion yields more detections of NH4+ and other protonated HPA species, which results from more complex ion-neutral chemistry occurring in the coma. We also reveal a link between the low magnetic field strength associated with the diamagnetic cavity and higher NH4+ counts. This suggests that transport inside and outside the diamagnetic cavity is very different, which is consistent with 3D hybrid simulations of the coma: non-radial plasma dynamics outside the diamagnetic cavity is an important factor affecting the ion composition

Reduced functional measure of cardiovascular reserve predicts admission to critical care unit following kidney transplantation

Background: There is currently no effective preoperative assessment for patients undergoing kidney transplantation that is able to identify those at high perioperative risk requiring admission to critical care unit (CCU). We sought to determine if functional measures of cardiovascular reserve, in particular the anaerobic threshold (VO2AT) could identify these patients. Methods: Adult patients were assessed within 4 weeks prior to kidney transplantation in a University hospital with a 37-bed CCU, between April 2010 and June 2012. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET), echocardiography and arterial applanation tonometry were performed. Results: There were 70 participants (age 41.7614.5 years, 60% male, 91.4% living donor kidney recipients, 23.4% were desensitized). 14 patients (20%) required escalation of care from the ward to CCU following transplantation. Reduced anaerobic threshold (VO2AT) was the most significant predictor, independently (OR = 0.43; 95% CI 0.27–0.68; p,0.001) and in the multivariate logistic regression analysis (adjusted OR = 0.26; 95% CI 0.12–0.59; p = 0.001). The area under the receiveroperating- characteristic curve was 0.93, based on a risk prediction model that incorporated VO2AT, body mass index and desensitization status. Neither echocardiographic nor measures of aortic compliance were significantly associated with CCU admission. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first prospective observational study to demonstrate the usefulness of CPET as a preoperative risk stratification tool for patients undergoing kidney transplantation. The study suggests that VO2AT has the potential to predict perioperative morbidity in kidney transplant recipients

The Third wave in globalization theory

This essay examines a proposition made in the literature that there are three waves in globalization theory—the globalist, skeptical, and postskeptical or transformational waves—and argues that this division requires a new look. The essay is a critique of the third of these waves and its relationship with the second wave. Contributors to the third wave not only defend the idea of globalization from criticism by the skeptics but also try to construct a more complex and qualified theory of globalization than provided by first-wave accounts. The argument made here is that third-wave authors come to conclusions that try to defend globalization yet include qualifications that in practice reaffirm skeptical claims. This feature of the literature has been overlooked in debates and the aim of this essay is to revisit the literature and identify as well as discuss this problem. Such a presentation has political implications. Third wavers propose globalist cosmopolitan democracy when the substance of their arguments does more in practice to bolster the skeptical view of politics based on inequality and conflict, nation-states and regional blocs, and alliances of common interest or ideology rather than cosmopolitan global structures

Semantic Enrichment for Building Information Modeling: Procedure for Compiling Inference Rules and Operators for Complex Geometry

Semantic enrichment of building models adds meaningful domain-specific or application-specific information to a digital building model. It is applicable to solving interoperability problems and to compilation of models from point cloud data. The SeeBIM (Semantic Enrichment Engine for BIM) prototype software encapsulates domain expert knowledge in computer readable rules for inference of object types, identity and aggregation of systems. However, it is limited to axis-aligned bounding box geometry and the adequacy of its rule-sets cannot be guaranteed. This paper solves these drawbacks by (1) devising a new procedure for compiling inference rule sets that are known a priori to be adequate for complete and thorough classification of model objects, and (2) enhancing the operators to compute complex geometry and enable precise topological rule processing. The procedure for compiling adequate rule sets is illustrated using a synthetic concrete highway bridge model. A real-world highway bridge model, with 333 components of 13 different types and compiled from a laser scanned point cloud, is used to validate the approach and test the enhanced SeeBIM system. All of the elements are classified correctly, demonstrating the efficacy of the approach to semantic enrichment

5-HTR3 and 5-HTR4 located on the mitochondrial membrane and functionally regulated mitochondrial functions

5-HT has been reported to possess significant effects on cardiac activities, but activation of 5-HTR on the cell membrane failed to illustrate the controversial cardiac reaction. Because 5-HT constantly comes across the cell membrane via 5-HT transporter (5-HTT) into the cytoplasm, whether 5-HTR is functional present on the cellular organelles is unknown. Here we show 5-HTR3 and 5-HTR4 were located in cardiac mitochondria, and regulated mitochondrial activities and cellular functions. Knock down 5-HTR3 and 5-HTR4 in neonatal cardiomyocytes resulted in significant increase of cell damage in response to hypoxia, and also led to alternation in heart beating. Activation of 5-HTR4 attenuated mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake under the both normoxic and hypoxic conditions, whereas 5-HTR3 augmented Ca2+ uptake only under hypoxia. 5-HTR3 and 5-HTR4 exerted the opposite effects on the mitochondrial respiration: 5-HTR3 increased RCR (respiration control ratio), but 5-HTR4 reduced RCR. Moreover, activation of 5-HTR3 and 5-HTR4 both significantly inhibited the opening of mPTP. Our results provided the first evidence that 5-HTR as a GPCR and an ion channel, functionally expressed in mitochondria and participated in the mitochondria function and regulation to maintain homeostasis of mitochondrial [Ca2+], ROS, and ATP generation efficiency in cardiomyocytes in response to stress and O2 tension