Role of macrophages in cardiorenal syndrome development in patients with myocardial infarction

Cardiorenal syndrome (CRS) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) underlies the development and progression of renal and heart failure. Along with the well-known mechanisms of CRS development based on reninangiotensin system activation, kidney-heart macrophage axis may be one of the key cellular components of CRS. Continuous sympathetic stimulation of collecting duct system cells under ischemia activates the macrophage link of the kidneys, which contributes to cardiac macrophages' polarization and leads to the development of adaptive myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis. This review article summarizes current data on interaction of macrophages in the kidney-heart axis, which can be considered as the cellular basis for CRS development in patients with MI. The translation of experimental data on the participation of innate immune system on CRS model in humans will make it possible to find new ways to prevent and suppress acute kidney injury in patients with MI

Soil functions in earth's critical zone: key results and conclusions

Summarization: This chapter summarizes the methods, results, and conclusions of a 5-year research project (SoilTrEC: Soil Transformations in European Catchments) on experimentation, process modeling, and computational simulation of soil functions and soil threats across a network of European, Chinese, and United States Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs). The study focused on the soil functions of biomass production, carbon storage, water storage and transmission, water filtration, transformation of nutrients, and maintaining habitat and genetic diversity. The principal results demonstrate that soil functions can be quantified as biophysical flows and transformations of material and energy. The functions can be simulated with mathematical models of soil processes within the soil profile and at the critical zone interfaces with vegetation and atmosphere, surface waters and the below-ground vadose zone and groundwater. A new dynamic model for soil structure development, together with data sets from the CZOs, demonstrate both seasonal fluctuations in soil structure dynamics related to vegetation dynamics and soil carbon inputs, and long-term trends (decadal) in soil carbon storage and soil structure development. Cross-site comparison for 20 soil profiles at seven field sites with variation in soil type, lithology, land cover, land use, and climate demonstrate that sites can be classified, using model parameter values for soil aggregation processes together with climatic conditions and soil physical properties, along a trajectory of soil structure development from incipient soil formation through productive land use to overly intensive land use with soil degradation. A new modeling code, the Integrated Critical Zone model, was applied with parameter sets developed from the CZO site data to simulate the biophysical flows and transformations that quantify multiple soil functions. Process simulations coupled the new model for soil structure dynamics with existing modeling approaches for soil carbon dynamics, nutrient transformations, vegetation dynamics, hydrological flow and transport, and geochemical equilibria and mineral weathering reactions. Successful calibration, testing, and application of the model with data sets from horticulture plot manipulation experiments demonstrate the potential to apply modeling and simulation to the scoping and design of new practices and policy options to enhance soil functions and reduce soil threats worldwide.Appearing in: Quantifying and Managing Soil Functions in Earth's Critical Zone Combining Experimentation and Mathematical Modellin