Serum antibodies to Vibrio vulnificus biotype 3 lipopolysaccharide and susceptibility to disease caused by the homologous V. vulnificus biotype

In 1996 an outbreak of severe soft tissue infections caused by Vibrio vulnificus unexpectedly erupted in fish consumers in Israel with relatively little morbidity in fish farmers. To test the hypothesis that recurrent exposure of fishermen to the virulent strain may have provided protection against severe or symptomatic disease, we investigated the association between the immune response to V. vulnificus biotype 3 lipopolysaccharide (BT3 LPS) and disease susceptibility in fish farmers and fish consumers. Serum samples were tested for IgA and IgG of anti-BT3 LPS in fishermen and fish consumers who suffered from V. vulnificus BT3 infections and their matched controls. Pre-existing levels of IgG (IgG0) of anti-BT3 LPS were significantly lower in diseased fishermen who developed disease associated with the homologous biotype, compared to controls. In multivariate analysis, levels of IgG0 anti-BT3 LPS remained the only variable significantly associated with disease occurrence in fishermen. Higher levels of pre-existing IgG anti-BT 3 LPS antibodies may be associated with protection against severe or symptomatic disease with the homologous biotype in fishermen but not in subjects from the general public

A PMT-Block test bench

The front-end electronics of the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter (Tile Cal) is housed in a unit, called {\it PMT-Block}. The PMT-Block is a compact instrument comprising a light mixer, a PMT together with its divider and a {\it 3-in-1} card, which provides shaping, amplification and integration for the signals. This instrument needs to be qualified before being assembled on the detector. A PMT-Block test bench has been developed for this purpose. This test bench is a system which allows fast, albeit accurate enough, measurements of the main properties of a complete PMT-Block. The system, both hardware and software, and the protocol used for the PMT-Blocks characterisation are described in detail in this report. The results obtained in the test of about 10000 PMT-Blocks needed for the instrumentation of the ATLAS (LHC-CERN) hadronic Tile Calorimeter are also reported.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figure

The sub-seasonal to seasonal prediction (S2S) project database

A database containing sub-seasonal to seasonal forecasts from 11 operational centres is available to the research community and will help advance our understanding of the sub-seasonal to seasonal time range. Demands are growing rapidly in the operational prediction and applications communities for forecasts that fill the gap between medium-range weather and long-range or seasonal forecasts. Based on the potential for improved forecast skill at the sub-seasonal to seasonal time range, a sub-seasonal prediction (S2S) research project has been established by the World Weather Research Program/World Climate Research Program. A main deliverable of this project is the establishment of an extensive database, containing sub-seasonal (up to 60 days) forecasts, 3-weeks behind real-time, and reforecasts from 11 operational centers, modelled in part on the THORPEX Interactive Grand Global Ensemble (TIGGE) database for medium range forecasts (up to 15 days). The S2S database, available to the research community since May 2015, represents an important tool to advance our understanding of the sub-seasonal to seasonal time range that has been considered for a long time as a “desert of predictability”. In particular, this database will help identify common successes and shortcomings in the model simulation and prediction of sources of sub-seasonal to seasonal predictability. For instance, a preliminary study suggests that the S2S models underestimate significantly the amplitude of the Madden Julian Oscillation (MJO) teleconnections over the Euro-Atlantic sector. The S2S database represents also an important tool for case studies of extreme events. For instance, a multi-model combination of S2S models displays higher probability of a landfall over Vanuatu islands 2 to 3 weeks before tropical cyclone Pam devastated the islands in March 2015

Epithelial-immune cell interplay in primary Sjogren syndrome salivary gland pathogenesis

In primary Sjogren syndrome (pSS), the function of the salivary glands is often considerably reduced. Multiple innate immune pathways are likely dysregulated in the salivary gland epithelium in pSS, including the nuclear factor-kappa B pathway, the inflammasome and interferon signalling. The ductal cells of the salivary gland in pSS are characteristically surrounded by a CD4(+) T cell-rich and B cell-rich infiltrate, implying a degree of communication between epithelial cells and immune cells. B cell infiltrates within the ducts can initiate the development of lymphoepithelial lesions, including basal ductal cell hyperplasia. Vice versa, the epithelium provides chronic activation signals to the glandular B cell fraction. This continuous stimulation might ultimately drive the development of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. This Review discusses changes in the cells of the salivary gland epithelium in pSS (including acinar, ductal and progenitor cells), and the proposed interplay of these cells with environmental stimuli and the immune system. Current therapeutic options are insufficient to address both lymphocytic infiltration and salivary gland dysfunction. Successful rescue of salivary gland function in pSS will probably demand a multimodal therapeutic approach and an appreciation of the complicity of the salivary gland epithelium in the development of pSS. Salivary gland dysfunction is an important characteristic of primary Sjogren syndrome (pSS). In this Review, the authors discuss various epithelial abnormalities in pSS and the mechanisms by which epithelial cell-immune cell interactions contribute to disease development and progression

TLR3-mediated apoptosis and activation of phosphorylated Akt in the salivary gland epithelial cells of primary Sjögren’s syndrome patients

This study aimed at ascertain whether innate immunity is involved in the apoptosis of primary cultured salivary gland epithelial cells (SGECs) in primary Sjögren\u27s syndrome (pSS). Induction of apoptosis of SGECs was performed using a TLR3 ligand, poly (I:C). Activation of phosphorylated-Akt (pAkt) and cleaved-caspase 3 was determined by Western blotting or immunofluorescence. Expression of TLR2 and TLR3 with pAkt was observed in cultured SGECs after 24-h stimulation with each ligand. Compared with stimulation with the peptidoglycan or lipopolysaccharide, that with poly (I:C) induced significant nuclear fragmentation, as determined by Hoechst staining (p = 0.0098). Apoptosis was confirmed by terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL) staining of SGECs from pSS patients and a normal subject. A significant increase in TUNEL-positive cells was observed by the addition of a PI3K inhibitor, LY294002. Poly (I:C) phosphorylated stress-activated protein kinase/Jun-terminal kinase and p44/42 MAP kinase as well as Akt. Furthermore, poly (I:C)-induced caspase 3 cleavage in SGECs was also inhibited by LY294002. Similar results were obtained using SGECs obtained from a normal subject. The results demonstrated for the first time that TLR3 induces the apoptotic cell death of SGECs via the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway

On the parallel complexity of the alternating Hamiltonian cycle problem

Given a graph with colored edges, a Hamiltonian cycle is called alternating if its successive edges differ in color. The problem of finding such a cycle, even for 2-edge-colored graphs, is trivially NP-complete, while it is known to be polynomial for 2-edge-colored complete graphs. In this paper we study the parallel complexity of finding such a cycle, if any, in 2-edge-colored complete graphs. We give a new characterization for such a graph admitting an alternating Hamiltonian cycle which allows us to derive a parallel algorithm for the problem. Our parallel solution uses a perfect matching algorithm putting the alternating Hamiltonian cycle problem to the RNC class. In addition, a sequential version of our parallel algorithm improves the computation time of the fastest known sequential algorithm for the alternating Hamiltonian cycle problem by a factor of $O(\sqrt {n} )$