Sensitivity to Soil Moisture and Observation Geometry of Spaceborne GNSS-R Delay-Doppler Maps

© 2019 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes,creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.Thanks to the successful operations of the UK TDS-1 and NASA CYGNSS GNSS-R missions, a wealth of Delay-Doppler Maps (DDM) are being measured from the ocean, but also from land reflections. Using the land reflected DDM, several studies are being conducted to retrieve the land geophysical parameters, such as soil moisture, vegetation depth, and biomass. Although they have shown the dependence of the land geophysical parameters on the DDM, it is also shown that many other parameters impact the DDM. This work presents the impacts of some parameters on the DDM. For the systematical and efficient study, an E2E simulator is used. The simulator generates the synthesized DDM reflected over land varying the input parameters, which are the specular point position on the Earth, the elevation angle at the specular points, soil moisture, etc. From the simulation results, the relation between the input parameters and the DDM is individually analyzed, providing the clue to the retrieval algorithm of the geophysical parameters.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Contribution of CSF biomarkers to early-onset Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia neuroimaging signatures

Prior studies have described distinct patterns of brain gray matter and white matter alterations in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), as well as differences in their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers profiles. We aim to investigate the relationship between early‐onset AD (EOAD) and FTLD structural alterations and CSF biomarker levels. We included 138 subjects (64 EOAD, 26 FTLD, and 48 controls), all of them with a 3T MRI brain scan and CSF biomarkers available (the 42 amino acid‐long form of the amyloid‐beta protein [Aβ42], total‐tau protein [T‐tau], neurofilament light chain [NfL], neurogranin [Ng], and 14‐3‐3 levels). We used FreeSurfer and FSL to obtain cortical thickness (CTh) and fraction anisotropy (FA) maps. We studied group differences in CTh and FA and described the "AD signature" and "FTLD signature." We tested multiple regression models to find which CSF‐biomarkers better explained each disease neuroimaging signature. CTh and FA maps corresponding to the AD and FTLD signatures were in accordance with previous literature. Multiple regression analyses showed that the biomarkers that better explained CTh values within the AD signature were Aβ and 14‐3‐3; whereas NfL and 14‐3‐3 levels explained CTh values within the FTLD signature. Similarly, NfL levels explained FA values in the FTLD signature. Ng levels were not predictive in any of the models. Biochemical markers contribute differently to structural (CTh and FA) changes typical of AD and FTLD

Racial differences in systemic sclerosis disease presentation: a European Scleroderma Trials and Research group study

Objectives. Racial factors play a significant role in SSc. We evaluated differences in SSc presentations between white patients (WP), Asian patients (AP) and black patients (BP) and analysed the effects of geographical locations.Methods. SSc characteristics of patients from the EUSTAR cohort were cross-sectionally compared across racial groups using survival and multiple logistic regression analyses.Results. The study included 9162 WP, 341 AP and 181 BP. AP developed the first non-RP feature faster than WP but slower than BP. AP were less frequently anti-centromere (ACA; odds ratio (OR) = 0.4, P < 0.001) and more frequently anti-topoisomerase-I autoantibodies (ATA) positive (OR = 1.2, P = 0.068), while BP were less likely to be ACA and ATA positive than were WP [OR(ACA) = 0.3, P < 0.001; OR(ATA) = 0.5, P = 0.020]. AP had less often (OR = 0.7, P = 0.06) and BP more often (OR = 2.7, P < 0.001) diffuse skin involvement than had WP.AP and BP were more likely to have pulmonary hypertension [OR(AP) = 2.6, P < 0.001; OR(BP) = 2.7, P = 0.03 vs WP] and a reduced forced vital capacity [OR(AP) = 2.5, P < 0.001; OR(BP) = 2.4, P < 0.004] than were WP. AP more often had an impaired diffusing capacity of the lung than had BP and WP [OR(AP vs BP) = 1.9, P = 0.038; OR(AP vs WP) = 2.4, P < 0.001]. After RP onset, AP and BP had a higher hazard to die than had WP [hazard ratio (HR) (AP) = 1.6, P = 0.011; HR(BP) = 2.1, P < 0.001].Conclusion. Compared with WP, and mostly independent of geographical location, AP have a faster and earlier disease onset with high prevalences of ATA, pulmonary hypertension and forced vital capacity impairment and higher mortality. BP had the fastest disease onset, a high prevalence of diffuse skin involvement and nominally the highest mortality

Consumption of peanut products improves memory and stress response in healthy adults from the ARISTOTLE study: A 6-month randomized controlled trial

Background: Peanuts are rich in bioactive compounds that may have a positive impact on memory and stress response. Objective: To evaluate the effect of regular consumption of peanut products on cognitive functions and stress response in healthy young adults. Design: A three-arm parallel-group randomized controlled trial was conducted in 63 healthy young adults that consumed 25 g/day of skin roasted peanuts (SRP, n = 21), 32 g/d of peanut butter (PB, n = 23) or 32 g/d of a control butter made from peanut oil (free of phenolic compounds and fiber) (CB, n = 19) for six months. Polyphenol intake, cognitive functions, and anxiety and depression scores were evaluated using validated tests. Fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and plasma and fecal fatty acids were assessed by chromatographic methods. Urinary cortisol was quantified by an enzymatic method. Results: Comparing the two interventions with the control, a significant reduction in anxiety scores was observed in the SRP compared to the CB group. After the intervention, consumers of SRP and PB had an improved immediate memory (p = 0.046 and p = 0.011). Lower anxiety scores were associated with SRP and PB (p < 0.001 and p = 0.002, respectively) and lower depression scores with SRP, PB and CB (p = 0.007, p = 0.003 and p = 0.032, respectively). Memory functions and stress response were significantly correlated with polyphenol intake, fecal SCFAs, plasma and fecal very long chain saturated fatty acids (VLCSFAs). Conclusions: Regular peanut and peanut butter consumption may enhance memory function and stress response in a healthy young population. These effects seem to be associated with the intake of peanut polyphenols, increased levels of fecal SCFAs, and unexpectedly, VLCSFAs, which were also present in the control product. Keywords: Cognition; Gut-brain axis; Polyphenols; Resveratrol; Short-chain fatty acids; Very long-chain saturated fatty acids

Early‐onset Alzheimer's disease shows a distinct neuropsychological profile and more aggressive trajectories of cognitive decline than late‐onset

Abstract Objectives Early‐ and late‐onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD and LOAD) share the same neuropathological traits but show distinct cognitive features. We aimed to explore baseline and longitudinal outcomes of global and domain‐specific cognitive function in a well characterized cohort of patients with a biomarker‐based diagnosis. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, 195 participants were included and classified according to their age, clinical status, and CSF AD biomarker profile: 89 EOAD, 37 LOAD, 46 young healthy controls (age ≤ 65 years), and 23 old healthy controls (>65 years). All subjects underwent clinical and neuropsychological assessment, neuroimaging, APOE genotyping and lumbar puncture. Results We found distinct neuropsychological profiles between EOAD and LOAD at the time of diagnosis. Both groups showed similar performances on memory and language domains, but the EOAD patients displayed worsened deficits in visual perception, praxis, and executive tasks (p < 0.05). Longitudinally, cognitive decline in EOAD was more pronounced than LOAD in the global outcomes at the expense of these non‐amnestic domains. We found that years of education significantly influenced the decline in most of the neuropsychological tests. Besides, the APOE ε4 status showed a significant effect on the decline of memory‐related tasks within the EOAD cohort (p < 0.05). Interpretation Age of onset is a main factor shaping the cognitive trajectories in AD patients, with younger age driving to a steeper decline of the non‐memory domains. Years of education are related to a transversal decline in all cognitive domains and APOE ε4 status to a specific decline in memory performance in EOAD

Novel MLH1 duplication identified in Colombian families with Lynch syndrome.

PURPOSE: Lynch syndrome accounts for 2-4% of all colorectal cancer, and is mainly caused by germline mutations in the DNA mismatch repair genes. Our aim was to characterize the genetic mutation responsible for Lynch syndrome in an extensive Colombian family and to study its prevalence in Antioquia. METHODS: A Lynch syndrome family fulfilling Amsterdam criteria II was studied by immunohistochemistry and by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). Results were confirmed by additional independent MLPA, Southern blotting, and sequencing. RESULTS: Index case tumor immunohistochemistry results were MLH1-, MSH2+, MSH6+, and PMS2-. MLPA analysis detected a duplication of exons 12 and 13 of MLH1. This mutation was confirmed and characterized precisely to span 4219 base pairs. Duplication screening in this family led to the identification of six additional carriers and 13 noncarriers. We also screened 123 early-onset independent colorectal cancer cases from the same area and identified an additional unrelated carrier. CONCLUSION: A novel duplication of exons 12 and 13 of the MLH1 gene was detected in two independent Lynch syndrome families from Colombia. A putative founder effect and prescreening Lynch syndrome Antioquia families for this specific mutation before thorough mismatch repair mutational screening could be suggested

Reduced expansion of CD94/NKG2C + NK cells in chronic lymphocytic leukemia and CLL-like monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis is not related to increased human cytomegalovirus seronegativity or NKG2C deletions

Data de publicació electrònica: 22-02-2021Introduction: Dysregulated NK cell-mediated immune responses contribute to tumor evasion in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), although the NK cell compartment in CLL-like monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (MBL) is poorly understood. In healthy individuals, human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces the expansion of NK cells expressing high levels of CD94/NKG2C NK cell receptor (NKR) specific for HLA-E. Methods: We analyzed the expression of NKG2A, NKG2C, ILT2, KIR, CD161, and CD57 in 24 MBL and 37 CLL. NKG2C was genotyped in these patients and in 81 additional MBL/CLL, while NKG2C gene expression was assessed in 26 cases. In 8 CLL patients with increased lymphocytosis (≥20 × 109 /L), tumor HLA-E and HLA-G expression was evaluated. Results: NKR distribution did not significantly differ between MBL and CLL patients, although they exhibited reduced NKG2C+ NK cells compared with a non-CLL group (4.6% vs 12.2%, P = .012). HCMV+ patients showed increased percentages of NKG2C+ NK cells compared with HCMV- (7.3% vs 2.9%, P = .176). Frequencies of NKG2C deletions in MBL/CLL were similar to those of the general population. Low/undetectable NKG2C expression was found among NKG2C+/- (45%) and NKG2C+/+ (12%) patients. CLL cases with increased lymphocytosis displayed especially reduced NKG2C expression (1.8% vs 8.1%, P = .029) and tumor cells with high HLA-E (>98%) and variable HLA-G expression (12.4%, range: 0.5-56.4). CLL patients with low NKG2C expression (<7%) showed shorter time to first treatment (P = .037). Conclusion: Reduced percentages of CD94/NKG2C+ NK cells were observed in CLL and MBL patients independently of HCMV serostatus and NKG2C zygosity, particularly in CLL patients with increased lymphocytosis, which could potentially be related to the exposure to tumor cells

Update on the profile of the EUSTAR cohort: an analysis of the EULAR Scleroderma Trials and Research group database

Objectives Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare disease requiring multicentre collaboration to reveal comprehensive details of disease-related causes for morbidity and mortality.Methods The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) Scleroderma Trials and Research (EUSTAR) group initiated a database to prospectively gather key data of patients with SSc using a minimal essential dataset that was reorganised in 2008 introducing new items. Baseline visit data of patients who were registered between 2004 and 2011 were analysed using descriptive statistics.Results In June 2011, 7655 patients (2838 with diffuse cutaneous (dc) and 4481 with limited cutaneous (lc) SSc who fulfilled the American College of Rheumatology diagnostic criteria had been registered in 174 centres, mainly European. The most prominent hallmarks of disease were Raynaud's phenomenon (96.3%), antinuclear antibodies (93.4%) and a typical capillaroscopic pattern (90.9%). Scleroderma was more common on fingers and hands than on any other part of the skin. Proton pump inhibitors (65.2%), calcium channel blockers (52.7%), and corticosteroids (45.3%) were most often prescribed. Among the immunosuppressant agents, cyclophosphamide was used more often in dcSSc than in lcSSc.Conclusions The EUSTAR database provides an abundance of information on the true clinical face of SSc that will be helpful in improving the classification of SSc and its subsets and for developing more specific therapeutic recommendations