Chandra and XMM-Newton Observations of the Abell 3391/Abell 3395 Intercluster Filament

We present Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations of the Abell 3391/Abell 3395 intercluster filament. It has been suggested that the galaxy clusters Abell 3395, Abell 3391, and the galaxy group ESO-161 located between the two clusters, are in alignment along a large-scale intercluster filament. We find that the filament is aligned close to the plane of the sky, in contrast to previous results. We find a global projected filament temperature kT = $4.45_{-0.55}^{+0.89}$~keV, electron density $n_e=1.08^{+0.06}_{-0.05} \times 10^{-4}$~cm$^{-3}$, and $M_{\rm gas} = 2.7^{+0.2}_{-0.1} \times 10^{13}$~M$_\odot$. The thermodynamic properties of the filament are consistent with that of intracluster medium (ICM) of Abell 3395 and Abell 3391, suggesting that the filament emission is dominated by ICM gas that has been tidally disrupted during an early stage merger between these two clusters. We present temperature, density, entropy, and abundance profiles across the filament. We find that the galaxy group ESO-161 may be undergoing ram pressure stripping in the low density environment at or near the virial radius of both clusters due to its rapid motion through the filament.Comment: 13 Pages, 12 Figures, 5 Tables. Submitted to ApJ, comments are welcom

Preparation for meaningful work and life: urban high school youth's reflections on work-based learning 1 year post-graduation

The challenges confronted by low-income high school students throughout school and across the transition to higher education and employment are well-documented in the US and many other nations. Adopting a positive youth development perspective (Lerner et al., 2005), this study reports findings from interviews with 18 low-income, racially and ethnically diverse graduates of an urban Catholic high school in the US. The interviews were designed to shed light on the post-high school experiences of urban high school graduates and to understand how students construct meaning about the value of school and work-based learning (WBL) in their preparation for meaningful work and life. The interviews highlight the perceived value of the academic and non-cognitive preparation students experienced through high school and WBL in relation to the challenges they encountered along the pathway to post-high school success and decent work. Overall, the findings suggest the potential of WBL for low-income youth in facilitating access to resources that build academic and psychological/non-cognitive assets, while also illustrating the role of structural and contextual factors in shaping post-high school transitions and access to meaningful work and life opportunities.Published versio

A Conserved Chromatin Architecture Marks and Maintains the Restricted Germ Cell Lineage in Worms and Flies

AbstractIn C. elegans, mRNA production is initially repressed in the embryonic germline by a protein unique to C. elegans germ cells, PIE-1. PIE-1 is degraded upon the birth of the germ cell precursors, Z2 and Z3. We have identified a chromatin-based mechanism that succeeds PIE-1 repression in these cells. A subset of nucleosomal histone modifications, methylated lysine 4 on histone H3 (H3meK4) and acetylated lysine 8 on histone H4 (H4acetylK8), are globally lost and the DNA appears more condensed. This coincides with PIE-1 degradation and requires that germline identity is not disrupted. Drosophila pole cell chromatin also lacks H3meK4, indicating that a unique chromatin architecture is a conserved feature of embryonic germ cells. Regulation of the germline-specific chromatin architecture requires functional nanos activity in both organisms. These results indicate that genome-wide repression via a nanos-regulated, germ cell-specific chromatin organization is a conserved feature of germline maintenance during embryogenesis

Bezlotoxumab for prevention of recurrent Clostridium difficile infection in patients at increased risk for recurrence

Background: Bezlotoxumab is a human monoclonal antibody against Clostridium difficile toxin B indicated to prevent C. difficile infection (CDI) recurrence (rCDI) in adults at high risk for rCDI. This post hoc analysis of pooled monocolonal antibodies for C.difficile therapy (MODIFY) I/II data assessed bezlotoxumab efficacy in participants with characteristics associated with increased risk for rCDI. Methods: The analysis population was the modified intent-to-treat population who received bezlotoxumab or placebo (n = 1554) by risk factors for rCDI that were prespecified in the statistical analysis plan: age ≥65 years, history of CDI, compromised immunity, severe CDI, and ribotype 027/078/244. The proportion of participants with rCDI in 12 weeks, fecal microbiota transplant procedures, 30-day all cause and CDI-associated hospital readmissions, and mortality at 30 and 90 days after randomization were presented. Results: The majority of enrolled participants (75.6%) had ≥1 risk factor; these participants were older and a higher proportion had comorbidities compared with participants with no risk factors. The proportion of placebo participants who experienced rCDI exceeded 30% for each risk factor compared with 20.9% among those without a risk factor, and the rCDI rate increased with the number of risk factors (1 risk factor: 31.3%; ≥3 risk factors: 46.1%). Bezlotoxumab reduced rCDI, fecal microbiota transplants, and CDI-associated 30-day readmissions in participants with risk factors for rCDI. Conclusions: The risk factors prespecified in the MODIFY statistical analysis plan are appropriate to identify patients at high risk for rCDI. While participants with ≥3 risk factors had the greatest reduction of rCDI with bezlotoxumab, those with 1 or 2 risk factors may also benefit. Clinical Trials Registration: NCT01241552 (MODIFY I) and NCT01513239 (MODIFY II)

See the Triumph Survivor Advocacy Training Program: Equipping survivors of abuse to engage in social justice advocacy

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) continues to represent a critical public health issue that affects individuals across the globe, irrespective of race, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, or sexual orientation. As a result, individual and community-based advocacy efforts are desperately needed to combat the negative repercussions of IPV. This article outlines the development of the See the Triumph Survivor Advocacy Training Program, a community-based advocacy intervention program for survivors of IPV

Insights into the molecular triggers of parosmia based on gas chromatography olfactometry

Background Parosmia is a debilitating condition in which familiar smells become distorted and disgusting, with consequences for diet and mental health. It is a feature of post-infectious olfactory loss, particularly resulting from COVID-19. There is currently little understanding of its pathophysiology, and the prevailing hypothesis for the underlying mechanism is aberrant growth of regenerating olfactory sensory neurons after damage. Methods We use gas-chromatograph olfactometry to individually present components of a complex olfactory mixture as a rapid screening tool for assessment of both quantitative and qualitative olfactory dysfunction in those with and without parosmia. This allows them to report the associated sensory effects and to identify those molecules which are altered or parosmic in nature. Results Here we show 15 different molecular triggers of this symptom. These trigger molecules are common to many in the parosmic volunteer group and share certain characteristics such as extremely low olfactory threshold and common molecular structure Conclusions We posit that specific highly odour-active molecules are the cause of the parosmic symptom in most cases and initiate the sense of disgust, suggesting that parosmia is, at least in part, a receptor-level phenomenon

Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness against Hospitalisation with Confirmed Influenza in the 2010-11 Seasons: A Test-negative Observational Study

Immunisation programs are designed to reduce serious morbidity and mortality from influenza, but most evidence supporting the effectiveness of this intervention has focused on disease in the community or in primary care settings. We aimed to examine the effectiveness of influenza vaccination against hospitalisation with confirmed influenza. We compared influenza vaccination status in patients hospitalised with PCR-confirmed influenza with patients hospitalised with influenza-negative respiratory infections in an Australian sentinel surveillance system. Vaccine effectiveness was estimated from the odds ratio of vaccination in cases and controls. We performed both simple multivariate regression and a stratified analysis based on propensity score of vaccination. Vaccination status was ascertained in 333 of 598 patients with confirmed influenza and 785 of 1384 test-negative patients. Overall estimated crude vaccine effectiveness was 57% (41%, 68%). After adjusting for age, chronic comorbidities and pregnancy status, the estimated vaccine effectiveness was 37% (95% CI: 12%, 55%). In an analysis accounting for a propensity score for vaccination, the estimated vaccine effectiveness was 48.3% (95% CI: 30.0, 61.8%). Influenza vaccination was moderately protective against hospitalisation with influenza in the 2010 and 2011 seasons

Early propranolol treatment induces lung heme-oxygenase-1, attenuates metabolic dysfunction, and improves survival following experimental sepsis

INTRODUCTION: Pharmacological agents that block beta-adrenergic receptors have been associated with improved outcome in burn injury. It has been hypothesized that injuries leading to a hypermetabolic state, such as septic shock, may also benefit from beta-blockade; however, outcome data in experimental models have been contradictory. Thus, we investigated the effect of beta-blockade with propranolol on survival, hemodynamics, lung heat shock protein (HSP) expression, metabolism and inflammatory markers in a rat cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) model of sepsis. METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rats receiving either repeated doses (30 minutes pre-CLP and every 8 hours for 24 hours postoperatively) of propranolol or control (normal saline), underwent CLP and were monitored for survival. Additionally, lung and blood samples were collected at 6 and 24 hours for analysis. Animals also underwent monitoring to evaluate global hemodynamics. RESULTS: Seven days following CLP, propranolol improved survival versus control (P < 0.01). Heart rates in the propranolol-treated rats were approximately 23% lower than control rats (P < 0.05) over the first 24 hours, but the mean arterial blood pressure was not different between groups. Metabolic analysis of lung tissue demonstrated an increase in lung ATP/ADP ratio and NAD+ content and a decreased ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids to monounsaturated fatty acids (PUFA/MUFA). Cytokine analysis of the inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) demonstrated decreased expression of TNF-alpha in both lung and plasma at 24 hours post CLP induced sepsis. Finally, propranolol led to a significant increase in lung hemeoxygenase-1 expression, a key cellular protective heat shock protein (HSP) in the lung. Other lung HSP expression was unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that propranolol treatment may decrease mortality during sepsis potentially via a combination of improving metabolism, suppressing aspects of the inflammatory response and enhancing tissue protection

Direct observation by time-resolved infrared spectroscopy of the bright and the dark excited states of the [Ru(phen)2(dppz)]2+ light-switch compound in solution and when bound to DNA

The [Ru(phen)2(dppz)]2+ complex (1) is non-emissive in water but is highly luminescent in organic solvents or when bound to DNA, making it a useful probe for DNA binding. To date, a complete mechanistic explanation for this “light-switch” effect is still lacking. With this in mind we have undertaken an ultrafast time resolved infrared (TRIR) study of 1 and directly observe marker bands between 1280–1450 cm-1, which characterise both the emissive “bright” and the non-emissive “dark” excited states of the complex, in CD3CN and D2O respectively. These characteristic spectral features are present in the [Ru(dppz)3]2+ solvent light-switch complex but absent in [Ru(phen)3]2+, which is luminescent in both solvents. DFT calculations show that the vibrational modes responsible for these characteristic bands are predominantly localised on the dppz ligand. Moreover, they reveal that certain vibrational modes of the “dark” excited state couple with vibrational modes of two coordinating water molecules, and through these to the bulk solvent, thus providing a new insight into the mechanism of the light-switch effect. We also demonstrate that the marker bands for the “bright” state are observed for both L- and D enantiomers of 1 when bound to DNA and that photo-excitation of the complex induces perturbation of the guanine and cytosine carbonyl bands. This perturbation is shown to be stronger for the L enantiomer, demonstrating the different binding site properties of the two enantiomers and the ability of this technique to determine the identity and nature of the binding site of such intercalators