Training the Fetal Immune System Through Maternal Inflammation-A Layered Hygiene Hypothesis.

Over the last century, the alarming surge in allergy and autoimmune disease has led to the hypothesis that decreasing exposure to microbes, which has accompanied industrialization and modern life in the Western world, has fundamentally altered the immune response. In its current iteration, the "hygiene hypothesis" suggests that reduced microbial exposures during early life restricts the production and differentiation of immune cells suited for immune regulation. Although it is now well-appreciated that the increase in hypersensitivity disorders represents a "perfect storm" of many contributing factors, we argue here that two important considerations have rarely been explored. First, the window of microbial exposure that impacts immune development is not limited to early childhood, but likely extends into the womb. Second, restricted microbial interactions by an expectant mother will bias the fetal immune system toward hypersensitivity. Here, we extend this discussion to hypothesize that the cell types sensing microbial exposures include fetal hematopoietic stem cells, which drive long-lasting changes to immunity

Between norms, politics contests and social upheavals: justice in the JSRP’s research sites

In this blog, Tom Kirk and Anna Macdonald explore the JSRP’s research on local justice mechanisms in conflict-affected states. They argue that the accessibility and legitimacy of justice institutions cannot be assumed, and that those wishing to engage them must understand them as embedded in wider social norms, political contests and upheavals

Are antibiotics effective for otitis media with effusion?

Antibiotics provide little or no long-term benefit for children with otitis media with effusion (OME), defined as fluid in the middle ear without signs or symptoms of infection. Most meta-analyses show a modest, short-term reduction in effusion rates. However, the most rigorous meta-analysis shows no benefit (strength of recommendation [SOR]: D, based on conflicting meta- analyses). No significant effect was noted on longer-term (>1 month) outcomes after treatment (SOR: A, based on a meta-analysis of 8 trials). In addition, there is no reliable evidence regarding patient-oriented outcomes (hearing loss, speech delay)

Control of the gyration dynamics of magnetic vortices by the magnetoelastic effect

The influence of a strain-induced uniaxial magnetoelastic anisotropy on the magnetic vortex core dynamics in microstructured magnetostrictive Co$_{40}$Fe$_{40}$B$_{20}$ elements was investigated with time-resolved scanning transmission x-ray microscopy. The measurements revealed a monotonically decreasing eigenfrequency of the vortex core gyration with the increasing magnetoelastic anisotropy, which follows closely the predictions from micromagnetic modeling

Social Work Practitioners and Technology Transfer

The application of new skills and interventions into the practice community is often slow and haphazard. A coaching intervention is proposed to augment traditional social work education techniques and maximize the integration of new knowledge into social work practice. This coaching model includes assessment of a practitioner\u27s readiness for change, stage-wise coaching interventions, assessment of organizational barriers to the transfer of new information, and development of strategies to address these barriers. Implications for social work professionals development and future research are discussed

Efficient light coupling for optically excited high-density metallic nanotip arrays

Ultrafast electron pulses can be produced from sharp metallic tips illuminated by femtosecond near infrared laser pulses. Use of an array of metallic nanotips for high charge bunch generation and accelerator applications is also feasible but the small fraction of the emitter tip area limits the quantum efficiency. We therefore propose a submicron-pitch, high-density nanotip array device with a gate electrode, that can support surface-plasmon polaritons. From a theoretical analysis for a device with an asymmetric emitter position, a factor ~30 increased array quantum efficiency is demonstrated

The human Papillomavirus late life cycle and links to keratinocyte differentiation

Regulation of human papillomavirus (HPV) gene expression is tightly linked to differentiation of the keratinocytes the virus infects. HPV late gene expression is confined to the cells in the upper layers of the epithelium where the virus capsid proteins are synthesized. As these proteins are highly immunogenic, and the upper epithelium is an immune-privileged site, this spatial restriction aids immune evasion. Many decades of work have contributed to the current understanding of how this restriction occurs at a molecular level. This review will examine what is known about late gene expression in HPV-infected lesions and will dissect the intricacies of late gene regulation. Future directions for novel antiviral approaches will be highlighted

The implicit derivative matching technique for Maxwell's equations in complex heterogeneous media

We construct an implicit derivative matching (IDM) technique for restoring the accuracy of the Yee scheme for Maxwell's equations in dispersive media with material interfaces in one dimension. We consider media exhibiting orientational polarization, which are represented using a Debye dispersive model, examples of which are water and living tissue. The problems considered here have applications to noninvasive interrogation of complex materials, and microwave imaging of biological media, among others. The IDM technique employs fictitious points to locally modify the stencil of the Yee scheme to maintain the second order accuracy that the scheme exhibits in homogeneous media. Using numerical simulations we test the convergence of the IDM-Yee scheme and demonstrate its second order accuracy. We also discuss extensions of the IDM for modifying higher order staggered finite difference schemes for Maxwell's equations in heterogeneous dispersive media

Evolutionary Game Theory Perspective on Dynamic Spectrum Access Etiquette

In this paper, we describe the long-term evolution of societies of secondary users in dynamic spectrum access networks. Such an understanding is important to help us anticipate future trends in the organization of large-scale distributed networked deployments. Such deployments are expected to arise in support of a wide variety of applications, including vehicular networks and the Internet of Things. Two new biologically-inspired spectrum access strategies are presented here, and compared with a random access baseline strategy. The proposed strategies embody a range of plausible assumptions concerning the sensing capabilities and social characteristics of individual secondary users. Considering these strategies as the basis of a game against the field, we use replicator dynamics within an evolutionary game-theoretic analysis to derive insights into the physical conditions necessary for each of the strategies to be evolutionarily stable. Somewhat surprisingly, we find that the physical channel conditions almost always uniquely determine which one of the three (pure) strategies is selected, and that no mixed strategy ever survives. We show that social tendencies naturally become advantageous for secondary users as they find themselves situated in network environments with heterogeneous channel resources. Hardware test-bed experiments confirm the validity of the analytic conclusions. Taken together, these results predict the emergence of social behavior in the spectrum access etiquette of secondary users as cognitive radio technology continues to advance and improve. The experimental results show an increase in the throughput of up to 90%, when strategy evolution is continuously operational, compared with any static strategy. We present use cases to envision the potential application of the proposed evolutionary framework in real-world scenarios

A Life-Course Study of Cognitive Reserve in Dementia--From Childhood to Old Age.

OBJECTIVE: To test a life-course model of cognitive reserve in dementia and examine if school grades around age 10 years, formal educational attainment, and lifetime occupational complexity affect the risk of dementia in old age. METHODS: 7,574 men and women from the Uppsala Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study were followed for 21 years. Information on school performance, formal education, and occupational attainment was collected prospectively from elementary school archives and population censuses. Dementia diagnosis was extracted from the two Swedish registers. Discrete-time Cox proportional hazard models were estimated. RESULTS: Dementia was diagnosed in 950 individuals (12.5%). Dementia risk was lower among individuals with higher childhood school grades (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.79; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.68 to 0.93) and was lower among individuals in data-complex occupations (HR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.64 to 0.92). Professional/university education predicted lower risk of dementia in minimally adjusted models (HR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.60 to 0.91), although the effect faded with adjustment for occupational complexity. Lowest risk was found in the group with both higher childhood school performance and high occupational complexity with data (HR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.50 to 0.75). Importantly, high occupational complexity could not compensate for the effect of low childhood grades. In contrast, dementia risk was reduced in those with higher school grades, irrespective of occupational complexity. CONCLUSION: Higher childhood school performance is protective of dementia risk, particularly when preserved through complex work environments in adulthood, although it will remain protective even in the absence of later-life educational or occupational stimulation