Double Bars, Inner Disks, and Nuclear Rings in Early-Type Disk Galaxies

We present results from an imaging survey of an unbiased sample of thirty-eight early-type (S0--Sa), low-inclination, optically barred galaxies in the field. Our goal was to find and characterize central stellar and gaseous structures: secondary bars, inner disks, and nuclear rings. Bars inside bars are surprisingly common: at least one quarter of the sample galaxies (possibly as many as 40%) are double-barred, with no preference for Hubble type or the strength of the primary bar. A typical secondary bar is ~12% of the size of its primary bar and 240--750 pc in radius. We see no significant effect of secondary bars on nuclear activity. We also find kiloparsec-scale inner disks in at least 20% of our sample, almost exclusively in S0 galaxies. These disks are on average 20% the size of their host bar, and show a wider range of relative sizes than do secondary bars. Nuclear rings are present in about a third of our sample. Most are dusty, sites of current or recent star formation, or both; such rings are preferentially found in Sa galaxies. Three S0 galaxies (15% of the S0's) appear to have purely stellar nuclear rings, with no evidence for dust or recent star formation. The fact that these central stellar structures are so common indicates that the inner regions of early-type barred galaxies typically contain dynamically cool and disklike structures. This is especially true for S0 galaxies, where secondary bars, inner disks, and/or stellar nuclear rings are present at least two thirds of the time. (abridged)Comment: LaTeX, 15 pages, 7 EPS figures; to appear in The Astronomical Journal (July 2002

Race and Sex Differences in QRS Interval and Associated Outcome Among Patients with Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction

BACKGROUND: Prolonged QRS duration is associated with increased mortality among heart failure patients, but race or sex differences in QRS duration and associated effect on outcomes are unknown. METHODS AND RESULTS: We investigated QRS duration and morphology among 2463 black and white patients with heart failure and left ventricular ejection fraction ≤35% who underwent coronary angiography and 12-lead electrocardiography at Duke University Hospital from 1995 through 2011. We used multivariable Cox regression models to assess the relationship between QRS duration and all-cause mortality and investigate race-QRS and sex-QRS duration interaction. Median QRS duration was 105 ms (interquartile range [IQR], 92-132) with variation by race and sex (P<0.001). QRS duration was longest in white men (111 ms; IQR, 98-139) followed by white women (108 ms; IQR, 92-140), black men (100 ms; IQR, 91-120), and black women (94 ms; IQR, 86-118). Left bundle branch block was more common in women than men (24% vs 14%) and in white (21%) versus black individuals (12%). In black patients, there was a 16% increase in risk of mortality for every 10 ms increase in QRS duration up to 112 ms (hazard ratio, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.07, 1.25) that was not present among white patients (interaction, P=0.06). CONCLUSIONS: Black individuals with heart failure had a shorter QRS duration and more often had non-left bundle branch block morphology than white patients. Women had left bundle branch block more commonly than men. Among black patients, modest QRS prolongation was associated with increased mortality

It’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it: An experimental task delineates among passive, reactive and interactive styles of behaviour on social networking sites

Studies have produced vastly disparate findings when exploring relationships between social networking site (SNS) usage and psychosocial well-being. These inconsistencies might reflect a lack of consideration for how people use SNS; specifically, while meaningful interactions are suggested to foster positive feelings, the passive consumption of others’ feeds is proposed to have negative effects on users’ well-being. To facilitate the empirical evaluation of these claims, the present study developed a computerised task to measure styles of usage on a mock SNS platform. Administering this Social Network Site Behaviour Task (SNSBT) online to 526 individuals, we identified three dissociable usage styles that extend the active-passive dichotomy employed frequently in the literature: passive use (consuming content posted by others), reactive use (reacting to others’ content), and interactive use (interacting with others through content sharing). Furthermore, our data reveal that these usage styles differ on several measures of psychosocial variables employed frequently in the disparate literature: more interactive users reported greater feelings of social connectedness and social capital than passive or reactive users. Importantly, however, our results also reveal the multi-dimensional nature of usage styles, with online network size and time spent on SNS platforms serving as potentially confounding influences on some psychosocial measures. These findings not only advance our understanding of SNS behaviour by providing empirical support for theoretic propositions, but also demonstrate the utility of the SNSBT for experimental investigations into the psychosocial outcomes of different SNS usage styles

An Imaging Survey of Early-Type Barred Galaxies

This paper presents the results of a high-resolution imaging survey, using both ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope images, of a complete sample of nearby barred S0--Sa galaxies in the field, with a particular emphasis on identifying and measuring central structures within the bars: secondary bars, inner disks, nuclear rings and spirals, and off-plane dust. A discussion of the frequency and statistical properties of the various types of inner structures has already been published. Here, we present the data for the individual galaxies and measurements of their bars and inner structures. We set out the methods we use to find and measure these structures, and how we discriminate between them. In particular, we discuss some of the deficiencies of ellipse fitting of the isophotes, which by itself cannot always distinguish between bars, rings, spirals, and dust, and which can produce erroneous measurements of bar sizes and orientations.Comment: LaTeX, 66 pages (including 42 figures, 36 in color). To appear in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement. Full-resolution and text-only versions available at http://www.iac.es/galeria/erwin/research

The Role of Stress in Understanding Differences in Sedentary Behavior in Hispanic/Latino Adults: Results from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos Sociocultural Ancillary Study

Chronic stress and/or lifetime traumatic stress can create a self-reinforcing cycle of unhealthy behaviors, such as overeating and sedentary behavior, that can lead to further increases in stress. This study examined the relationship between stress and sedentary behavior in a sample of Hispanic/Latino adults (N = 4244) from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos Sociocultural Ancillary Study

DNA barcoding identifies cryptic animal tool materials

Funding: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) (Grants BB/G023913/1 and BB/G023913/2 to C.R., and studentship to B.C.K.), the School of Biology at the University of St Andrews (studentships to M.P.S. and B.C.K.), and the Leverhulme Trust (Grant RPG-2015-273 to P.M.H.).Some animals fashion tools or constructions out of plant materials to aid foraging, reproduction, self-maintenance, or protection. Their choice of raw materials can affect the structure and properties of the resulting artifacts, with considerable fitness consequences. Documenting animals’ material preferences is challenging, however, as manufacture behavior is often difficult to observe directly, and materials may be processed so heavily that they lack identifying features. Here, we use DNA barcoding to identify, from just a few recovered tool specimens, the plant species New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides) use for crafting elaborate hooked stick tools in one of our long-term study populations. The method succeeded where extensive fieldwork using an array of conventional approaches—including targeted observations, camera traps, radio-tracking, bird-mounted video cameras, and behavioral experiments with wild and temporarily captive subjects—had failed. We believe that DNA barcoding will prove useful for investigating many other tool and construction behaviors, helping to unlock significant research potential across a wide range of study systems.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Increased TLR4 Expression and Downstream Cytokine Production in Immunosuppressed Adults Compared to Non-Immunosuppressed Adults

An increasing number of patients have medical conditions with altered host immunity or that require immunosuppressive medications. While immunosuppression is associated with increased risk of infection, the precise effect of immunosuppression on innate immunity is not well understood. We studied monocyte Toll-like receptor (TLR) expression and cytokine production in 137 patients with autoimmune diseases who were maintained on immunosuppressive medications and 419 non-immunosuppressed individuals.Human peripheral blood monocytes were assessed for surface expression of TLRs 1, 2, and 4. After incubation with TLR agonists, in vitro production of the cytokines IL-8, TNFalpha, and MIF were measured by ELISA as a measure of TLR signaling efficiency and downstream effector responsiveness. Immunosuppressed patients had significantly higher TLR4 surface expression when compared to non-immunosuppressed adults (TLR4 %-positive 70.12+/-2.28 vs. 61.72+/-2.05, p = 0.0008). IL-8 and TNF-alpha baseline levels did not differ, but were significantly higher in the autoimmune disease group following TLR stimulation. By contrast, baseline MIF levels were elevated in monocytes from immunosuppressed individuals. By multivariable analyses, IL-8 and TNFalpha, but not MIF levels, were associated with the diagnosis of an underlying autoimmune disease. However, only MIF levels were significantly associated with the use of immunosuppressive medications.Our results reveal that an enhanced innate immune response is a feature of patients with autoimmune diseases treated with immunosuppressive agents. The increased risk for infection evident in this patient group may reflect a dysregulation rather than a simple suppression of innate immunity

Whole-genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis capture the emergence of a multi-drug resistant Salmonella enterica serovar Infantis clone from diagnostic animal samples in the United States

IntroductionSalmonella enterica is a major cause of foodborne illness in the United States. A multi-drug resistant (MDR) emergent Salmonella Infantis (ESI) with a megaplasmid (pESI) was first identified in Israel and Italy and subsequently reported worldwide. The ESI clone carrying an extended spectrum β-lactamase blaCTX-M-65 on a pESI-like plasmid and a mutation in the gyrA gene has recently been found in the United States in poultry meat.MethodsWe analyzed the phenotypic and genotypic antimicrobial resistance, genomics and phylogeny of 200 S. infantis isolates from animal diagnostic samples.ResultsOf these, 33.5% were resistant to at least one antimicrobial and 19.5% were multi-drug resistant (MDR). Eleven isolates from different animal sources were phenotypically and genetically similar to the ESI clone. These isolates had a D87Y mutation in the gyrA gene conferring reduced susceptibility to ciprofloxacin and harbored a combination of 6–10 resistance genes: blaCTX-M-65, aac(3)-IVa, aadA1, aph(4)-Ia, aph(3′)-Ia, floR, sul1, dfrA14, tetA, and fosA. These 11 isolates carried class I and class II integrons and three virulence genes: sinH, involved in adhesion and invasion, ybtQ and ybtP, associated with iron transport. These isolates were also closely related to each other (separated by 7 to 27 SNPs) and phylogenetically related to the ESI clone recently found in the U.S.DiscussionThis dataset captured the emergence of the MDR ESI clone in multiple animal species and the first report of a pESI-like plasmid in isolates from horses in the U.S

Targeted mitochondrial therapy using MitoQ shows equivalent renoprotection to angiotensin converting enzyme inhibition but no combined synergy in diabetes.

Mitochondrial dysfunction is a pathological mediator of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Our objective was to test the mitochondrially targeted agent, MitoQ, alone and in combination with first line therapy for DKD. Intervention therapies (i) vehicle (D); (ii) MitoQ (DMitoQ;0.6 mg/kg/day); (iii) Ramipril (DRam;3 mg/kg/day) or (iv) combination (DCoAd) were administered to male diabetic db/db mice for 12 weeks (n = 11-13/group). Non-diabetic (C) db/m mice were followed concurrently. No therapy altered glycaemic control or body weight. By the study end, both monotherapies improved renal function, decreasing glomerular hyperfiltration and albuminuria. All therapies prevented tubulointerstitial collagen deposition, but glomerular mesangial expansion was unaffected. Renal cortical concentrations of ATP, ADP, AMP, cAMP, creatinine phosphate and ATP:AMP ratio were increased by diabetes and mostly decreased with therapy. A higher creatine phosphate:ATP ratio in diabetic kidney cortices, suggested a decrease in ATP consumption. Diabetes elevated glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate and oxidised (NAD+ and NADP+) and reduced (NADH) nicotinamide dinucleotides, which therapy decreased generally. Diabetes increased mitochondrial oxygen consumption (OCR) at complex II-IV. MitoQ further increased OCR but decreased ATP, suggesting mitochondrial uncoupling as its mechanism of action. MitoQ showed renoprotection equivalent to ramipril but no synergistic benefits of combining these agents were shown

Bringing together approaches to reporting on within species genetic diversity

1. Genetic diversity is one of the three main levels of biodiversity recognised in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Fundamental for species adaptation to environmental change, genetic diversity is nonetheless under-reported within global and national indicators. When it is reported, the focus is often narrow and confined to domesticated or other commercial species. 2. Several approaches have recently been developed to address this shortfall in reporting on genetic diversity of wild species. While multiplicity of approaches is helpful in any development process, it can also lead to confusion among policy makers and heighten a perception that conservation genetics is too abstract to be of use to organisations and governments. 3. As the developers of five of the different approaches, we have come together to explain how various approaches relate to each other and propose a scorecard, as a unifying reporting mechanism for genetic diversity. 4. Policy implications. We believe the proposed combined approach captures the strengths of its components and is practical for all nations and subnational governments. It is scalable and can be used to evaluate species conservation projects as well as genetic conservation projects.ISSN:0021-8901ISSN:1365-266