Author Correction:Vitamin D status and severity of COVID-19 (Scientific Reports, (2022), 12, 1, (19823), 10.1038/s41598-022-21513-9)

Sanne Grundvald Boelt was omitted from the author list in the original version of this Article. The Author Contributions section now reads: “A.A. contributed to the conception and idea of the work. N.M.N., A.S.C., L.B. and A.A. contributed to the design of the study. N.M.N., A.S.C., L.B. S.G.B contributed to the acquisition of data. N.M.N., A.H., L.B., S.G.B and T.G.J. contributed to the analyses of the data. All authors contributed to the interpretation of the data and the results in the manuscript. N.M.N. drafted the manuscript, made Fig. 1, T.G.J. made Fig. 2. All the authors revised the manuscript critically and has approved the final version.” The original Article has been corrected.</p

Vitamin D status and severity of COVID-19

We explored the association between COVID-19 severity and vitamin D status using information from Danish nation-wide health registers, the COVID-19 surveillance database and stored blood samples from the national biobank. 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) was measured using tandem mass spectroscopy. The association between 25(OH)D levels and COVID-19 severity, classified hierarchical as non-hospitalized, hospitalized but not admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU), admitted to ICU, and death, was evaluated by proportional odds ratios (POR) assuming proportionality between the four degrees of severity. Among 447 adults tested SARS-CoV-2 positive in the spring of 2020, low levels of 25(OH)D were associated with a higher risk of severe COVID-19. Thus, odds of experiencing more severe COVID-19 among individuals with insufficient (25 to &lt; 50 nmol/L) and sufficient (≥ 50 nmol/L) 25(OH)D levels were approximately 50% of that among individuals with deficient levels (&lt; 25 nmol/L) (POR = 0.49 (95% CI 0.25–0.94), POR = 0.51 (95% CI 0.27–0.96), respectively). Dividing sufficient vitamin D levels into 50 to &lt; 75 nmol/L and ≥ 75 nmol/L revealed no additional beneficial effect of higher 25(OH)D levels. In this observational study, low levels of 25(OH)D were associated with a higher risk of severe COVID-19. A possible therapeutic role of vitamin D should be evaluated in well-designed interventional studies.</p

The CD3-Zeta Chimeric Antigen Receptor Overcomes TCR Hypo-Responsiveness of Human Terminal Late-Stage T Cells

Adoptive therapy of malignant diseases with tumor-specific cytotoxic T cells showed remarkable efficacy in recent trials. Repetitive T cell receptor (TCR) engagement of target antigen, however, inevitably ends up in hypo-responsive cells with terminally differentiated KLRG-1+ CD57+ CD7− phenotype limiting their therapeutic efficacy. We here revealed that hypo-responsiveness of CMV-specific late-stage CD8+ T cells is due to reduced TCR synapse formation compared to younger cells. Membrane anchoring of TCR components contributes to T cell hypo-responsiveness since dislocation of galectin-3 from the synapse by swainsonine restored both TCR synapse formation and T cell response. Transgenic expression of a CD3-zeta signaling chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) recovered hypo-responsive T cells to full effector functions indicating that the defect is restricted to TCR membrane components while synapse formation of the transgenic CAR was not blocked. CAR engineered late-stage T cells released cytokines and mediated redirected cytotoxicity as efficiently as younger effector T cells. Our data provide a rationale for TCR independent, CAR mediated activation in the adoptive cell therapy to avoid hypo-responsiveness of late-stage T cells upon repetitive antigen encounter

Implementation of the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings Equation: Predicting the Far Field Noise From Airfoils While Using Boundary Layer Tripping Mechanisms

A study was done to investigate how boundary layer tripping mechanisms can affect the ability of a permeable surface FW-H solver to predict the far field noise emanating from an airfoil trailing edge. The far field noise in a baseline airfoil as well as the baseline airfoil fitted with fin let fences was analyzed. Two numerical boundary layer tripping mechanisms were implemented. The results illustrated the importance of choosing a permeable integration surface that is outside any high frequency waves emanating from the trip region. The results also illustrated the importance of choosing a boundary layer tripping mechanism that minimizes any extraneous noise so that an integration surface can be taken close to the airfoil.This proceedings paper is published as Bodling, Andrew L., and Anupam Sharma. "Implementation of the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings equation: predicting the far field noise from airfoils while using boundary layer tripping mechanisms." In Fluids Engineering Division Summer Meeting, vol. 51555, p. V001T08A006. American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2018. DOI: 10.1115/FEDSM2018-83385. Copyright 2018 ASME. Posted with permission

'Sometimes I can't look in the mirror': Recognising the importance of the sociocultural context in patient experiences of sexuality, relationships and body image after ovarian cancer

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cancer (OC) can significantly change the way women feel about their body. However, personal accounts regarding these changes are lacking in the literature. Therefore, the aim of this study was to gain an understanding of the ways in which OC can affect relationships, sexuality, womanhood and body image. METHODS: Ninety-eight Australian women aged 18 and over diagnosed with OC completed an online survey that invited narrative responses to open-ended questions about relationships, sexuality, body image and womanhood following OC treatment. Responses were analysed thematically while applying a sociocultural lens. RESULTS: Three themes and two subthemes were identified: Failure and Loss of Femininity and Womanhood, Internalising Public Perception of Body and Illness and Altered Relationships which comprised two subthemes, Loss of the Sexual Self and Relationship Burden. These themes suggest women view themselves and their relationships in comparison with sociocultural understandings of body normalcy. Women often questioned their self-worth, their relationships and place within society due to changes in fertility, sexuality and bodily functioning. CONCLUSION: These results highlight a need for health care professionals to open dialogue with women about sexuality and ensure information and support is given to reduce stigma and positively influence self-perception and increase body acceptance

Severity of COVID-19 at elevated exposure to perfluorinated alkylates

AbstractBackgroundThe course of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) seems to be aggravated by air pollution, and some industrial chemicals, such as the perfluorinated alkylate substances (PFASs), are immunotoxic and may contribute as well.MethodsFrom Danish biobanks, we obtained plasma samples from 323 subjects aged 30-70 years with known SARS-CoV-2 infection. The PFAS concentrations measured at the background exposures included five PFASs known to be immunotoxic. Register data was obtained to classify disease status, other health information, and demographic variables. We used ordinal and ordered logistic regression analyses to determine associations between PFAS concentrations and disease outcome.ResultsPlasma-PFAS concentrations were higher in males, in subjects with Western European background, and tended to increase with age, but were not associated with the presence of chronic disease. Of the study population, 108 (33%) had not been hospitalized, and of those hospitalized, 53 (16%) had been in intensive care or were deceased. Among the five PFASs considered, perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) showed an odds ratio (OR) of 2.19 (95% confidence interval, CI, 1.39-3.46) for increasing severities of the disease, although the OR decreased to 1.77 (95% CI, 1.09, 2.87) after adjustment for age, sex, sampling site and interval between blood sampling and diagnosis.ConclusionsMeasures of individual exposures to immunotoxic PFASs included PFBA that accumulates in the lungs. Elevated plasma-PFBA concentrations were associated with an increased risk of more severe course of CIVID-19. Given the low background exposure levels in this study, the role of PFAS exposure in COVID-19 needs to be ascertained in populations with elevated exposures.</jats:sec