Evaluating Remotely Sensed Images for Use in Inventorying Roadway Infrastructure Features

The main objective of this research was to evaluate the use of remotely sensed images as a method to facilitate accurate and rapid collection of large quantities of inventory data. Images collected from either an airplane or satellite can be collected fairly rapidly for large areas without locating on-road or interfering with traffic. With the launching of the IKONOS satellite, resolutions of 1 meter can be practically obtained from space. Image resolution of as high as 1-inch are possible with aerial photography. Aircraft can be flown at higher altitudes for lower resolutions. Since cost typically decreases as resolution decreases, one of the goals of the research was to test images at different levels of resolution to make recommendations on the minimum necessary to collect specific inventory features. This is especially important since many agencies already have access to low resolution images such as the USGS orthophoto quarter quads. Besides the advantage of more rapid data collection, use of remote sensing may allow collection of data which was previously difficult to obtain from conventional methods

Metabolic effects of breaking prolonged sitting with standing or light walking in older South Asians and White Europeans: a randomized acute study

Background: Prolonged sitting is common in older adults and associated with insulin resistance and poor cardiometabolic health. We investigate whether breaking prolonged sitting with regular short bouts of standing or light walking improves postprandial metabolism in older white European and South Asian adults and whether effects are modified by ethnic group. Methods: Thirty South Asian (15 women) and 30 white European (14 women) older adults (65-79 years) undertook three experimental conditions in random order. 1) Prolonged sitting: continuous sitting during a 7.5 h observation period consuming two standardised mixed meals. 2) Standing breaks: sitting interrupted with 5 mins of standing every 30 mins (accumulating 60 mins of standing over the observation period). 3) Walking Breaks: sitting interrupted with 5 mins of self-paced light walking every 30 mins (accumulating 60 mins of walking). Blood samples (glucose, insulin, triglycerides) and blood pressure were sampled regularly throughout each condition. Results: Compared with prolonged sitting, walking breaks lowered postprandial insulin by 16.3 mU/l, (95% CI 19.7, 22.0) with greater reductions (p = 0.029) seen in South Asians (22.4 mU/l; 12.4, 32.4) than White Europeans (10.3 mU/l; 5.9, 14.7). Glucose (0.3 mmol/l; 0.1, 0.5) and blood pressure (4 mmHg; 2, 6), but not triglycerides, were lower with walking breaks, with no ethnic differences. Standing breaks did not improve any outcome. Conclusions: Breaking prolonged sitting with short bouts of light walking, but not standing, resulted in clinically meaningful improvements in markers of metabolic health in older adults, with South Asians gaining a greater reduction in postprandial insulin

The Origin of GPCRs: Identification of Mammalian like Rhodopsin, Adhesion, Glutamate and Frizzled GPCRs in Fungi

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) in humans are classified into the five main families named Glutamate, Rhodopsin, Adhesion, Frizzled and Secretin according to the GRAFS classification. Previous results show that these mammalian GRAFS families are well represented in the Metazoan lineages, but they have not been shown to be present in Fungi. Here, we systematically mined 79 fungal genomes and provide the first evidence that four of the five main mammalian families of GPCRs, namely Rhodopsin, Adhesion, Glutamate and Frizzled, are present in Fungi and found 142 novel sequences between them. Significantly, we provide strong evidence that the Rhodopsin family emerged from the cAMP receptor family in an event close to the split of Opisthokonts and not in Placozoa, as earlier assumed. The Rhodopsin family then expanded greatly in Metazoans while the cAMP receptor family is found in 3 invertebrate species and lost in the vertebrates. We estimate that the Adhesion and Frizzled families evolved before the split of Unikonts from a common ancestor of all major eukaryotic lineages. Also, the study highlights that the fungal Adhesion receptors do not have N-terminal domains whereas the fungal Glutamate receptors have a broad repertoire of mammalian-like N-terminal domains. Further, mining of the close unicellular relatives of the Metazoan lineage, Salpingoeca rosetta and Capsaspora owczarzaki, obtained a rich group of both the Adhesion and Glutamate families, which in particular provided insight to the early emergence of the N-terminal domains of the Adhesion family. We identified 619 Fungi specific GPCRs across 79 genomes and revealed that Blastocladiomycota and Chytridiomycota phylum have Metazoan-like GPCRs rather than the GPCRs specific for Fungi. Overall, this study provides the first evidence of the presence of four of the five main GRAFS families in Fungi and clarifies the early evolutionary history of the GPCR superfamily

The Repertoire of Heterotrimeric G Proteins and RGS Proteins in Ciona intestinalis

BACKGROUND:Heterotrimeric G proteins and regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) proteins are key downstream interacting partners in the G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling pathway. The highly versatile GPCR transmembrane signaling system is a consequence of the coupling of a diverse set of receptors to downstream partners that include multiple subforms of G proteins and regulatory proteins including RGS proteins, among others. While the GPCR repertoire of Ciona intestinalis, representing the basal chordate is known, the repertoire of the heterotrimeric G proteins and RGS proteins is unknown. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:In the present study, we performed an in-silico genome-wide search of C. intestinalis for its complement of G proteins and RGS proteins. The identification of several one-to-one orthologs of human G proteins at the levels of families, subfamilies and types and of homologs of the human RGS proteins suggests an evolutionarily conserved structure function relationship of the GPCR signaling mechanism in the chordates. CONCLUSIONS:The C. intestinalis genome encodes a highly conserved, albeit, limited repertoire of the heterotrimeric G protein complexes with the size of subunit types comparable with that in lower eukaryotes

Effects of rare kidney diseases on kidney failure: a longitudinal analysis of the UK National Registry of Rare Kidney Diseases (RaDaR) cohort

\ua9 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 licenseBackground: Individuals with rare kidney diseases account for 5–10% of people with chronic kidney disease, but constitute more than 25% of patients receiving kidney replacement therapy. The National Registry of Rare Kidney Diseases (RaDaR) gathers longitudinal data from patients with these conditions, which we used to study disease progression and outcomes of death and kidney failure. Methods: People aged 0–96 years living with 28 types of rare kidney diseases were recruited from 108 UK renal care facilities. The primary outcomes were cumulative incidence of mortality and kidney failure in individuals with rare kidney diseases, which were calculated and compared with that of unselected patients with chronic kidney disease. Cumulative incidence and Kaplan–Meier survival estimates were calculated for the following outcomes: median age at kidney failure; median age at death; time from start of dialysis to death; and time from diagnosis to estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) thresholds, allowing calculation of time from last eGFR of 75 mL/min per 1\ub773 m2 or more to first eGFR of less than 30 mL/min per 1\ub773 m2 (the therapeutic trial window). Findings: Between Jan 18, 2010, and July 25, 2022, 27 285 participants were recruited to RaDaR. Median follow-up time from diagnosis was 9\ub76 years (IQR 5\ub79–16\ub77). RaDaR participants had significantly higher 5-year cumulative incidence of kidney failure than 2\ub781 million UK patients with all-cause chronic kidney disease (28% vs 1%; p<0\ub70001), but better survival rates (standardised mortality ratio 0\ub742 [95% CI 0\ub732–0\ub752]; p<0\ub70001). Median age at kidney failure, median age at death, time from start of dialysis to death, time from diagnosis to eGFR thresholds, and therapeutic trial window all varied substantially between rare diseases. Interpretation: Patients with rare kidney diseases differ from the general population of individuals with chronic kidney disease: they have higher 5-year rates of kidney failure but higher survival than other patients with chronic kidney disease stages 3–5, and so are over-represented in the cohort of patients requiring kidney replacement therapy. Addressing unmet therapeutic need for patients with rare kidney diseases could have a large beneficial effect on long-term kidney replacement therapy demand. Funding: RaDaR is funded by the Medical Research Council, Kidney Research UK, Kidney Care UK, and the Polycystic Kidney Disease Charity

Effects of rare kidney diseases on kidney failure: a longitudinal analysis of the UK National Registry of Rare Kidney Diseases (RaDaR) cohort

Background Individuals with rare kidney diseases account for 5–10% of people with chronic kidney disease, but constitute more than 25% of patients receiving kidney replacement therapy. The National Registry of Rare Kidney Diseases (RaDaR) gathers longitudinal data from patients with these conditions, which we used to study disease progression and outcomes of death and kidney failure. Methods People aged 0–96 years living with 28 types of rare kidney diseases were recruited from 108 UK renal care facilities. The primary outcomes were cumulative incidence of mortality and kidney failure in individuals with rare kidney diseases, which were calculated and compared with that of unselected patients with chronic kidney disease. Cumulative incidence and Kaplan–Meier survival estimates were calculated for the following outcomes: median age at kidney failure; median age at death; time from start of dialysis to death; and time from diagnosis to estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) thresholds, allowing calculation of time from last eGFR of 75 mL/min per 1·73 m2 or more to first eGFR of less than 30 mL/min per 1·73 m2 (the therapeutic trial window). Findings Between Jan 18, 2010, and July 25, 2022, 27 285 participants were recruited to RaDaR. Median follow-up time from diagnosis was 9·6 years (IQR 5·9–16·7). RaDaR participants had significantly higher 5-year cumulative incidence of kidney failure than 2·81 million UK patients with all-cause chronic kidney disease (28% vs 1%; p<0·0001), but better survival rates (standardised mortality ratio 0·42 [95% CI 0·32–0·52]; p<0·0001). Median age at kidney failure, median age at death, time from start of dialysis to death, time from diagnosis to eGFR thresholds, and therapeutic trial window all varied substantially between rare diseases. Interpretation Patients with rare kidney diseases differ from the general population of individuals with chronic kidney disease: they have higher 5-year rates of kidney failure but higher survival than other patients with chronic kidney disease stages 3–5, and so are over-represented in the cohort of patients requiring kidney replacement therapy. Addressing unmet therapeutic need for patients with rare kidney diseases could have a large beneficial effect on long-term kidney replacement therapy demand. Funding RaDaR is funded by the Medical Research Council, Kidney Research UK, Kidney Care UK, and the Polycystic Kidney Disease Charity