GROND - a 7-channel imager

We describe the construction of GROND, a 7-channel imager, primarily designed for rapid observations of gamma-ray burst afterglows. It allows simultaneous imaging in the Sloan g'r'i'z' and near-infrared $JHK$ bands. GROND was commissioned at the MPI/ESO 2.2m telescope at La Silla (Chile) in April 2007, and first results of its performance and calibration are presented.Comment: 25 pages, 21 figs, PASP (subm); version with full-resolution figures at http://www.mpe.mpg.de/~jcg/GROND/grond_pasp.pd

Increased Prevalence of Albuminuria in HIV-Infected Adults with Diabetes

HIV and type 2 diabetes are known risk factors for albuminuria, but no previous reports have characterized albuminuria in HIV-infected patients with diabetes.We performed a cross-sectional study including 73 HIV-infected adults with type 2 diabetes, 82 HIV-infected non-diabetics, and 61 diabetic control subjects without HIV. Serum creatinine >1.5 mg/dL was exclusionary. Albuminuria was defined as urinary albumin/creatinine ratio >30 mg/g.The prevalence of albuminuria was significantly increased among HIV-infected diabetics (34% vs. 13% of HIV non-diabetic vs. 16% diabetic control, p = 0.005). HIV status and diabetes remained significant predictors of albuminuria after adjusting for age, race, BMI, and blood pressure. Albumin/creatinine ratio correlated significantly with HIV viral load (r = 0.28, p = 0.0005) and HIV-infected subjects with albuminuria had significantly greater cumulative exposure to abacavir (p = 0.01). In an adjusted multivariate regression analysis of HIV-infected subjects, the diagnosis of diabetes (p = 0.003), higher HIV viral load (p = 0.03) and cumulative exposure to abacavir (p = 0.0009) were significant independent predictors of albuminuria.HIV and diabetes appear to have additive effects on albuminuria which is also independently associated with increased exposure to abacavir and HIV viral load. Future research on the persistence, progression and management of albuminuria in this unique at-risk population is needed

Multiple Substrate Binding Mode Guided Engineering of a Thermophilic PET Hydrolase

[Image: see text] Thermophilic polyester hydrolases (PES-H) have recently enabled biocatalytic recycling of the mass-produced synthetic polyester polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which has found widespread use in the packaging and textile industries. The growing demand for efficient PET hydrolases prompted us to solve high-resolution crystal structures of two metagenome-derived enzymes (PES-H1 and PES-H2) and notably also in complex with various PET substrate analogues. Structural analyses and computational modeling using molecular dynamics simulations provided an understanding of how product inhibition and multiple substrate binding modes influence key mechanistic steps of enzymatic PET hydrolysis. Key residues involved in substrate-binding and those identified previously as mutational hotspots in homologous enzymes were subjected to mutagenesis. At 72 °C, the L92F/Q94Y variant of PES-H1 exhibited 2.3-fold and 3.4-fold improved hydrolytic activity against amorphous PET films and pretreated real-world PET waste, respectively. The R204C/S250C variant of PES-H1 had a 6.4 °C higher melting temperature than the wild-type enzyme but retained similar hydrolytic activity. Under optimal reaction conditions, the L92F/Q94Y variant of PES-H1 hydrolyzed low-crystallinity PET materials 2.2-fold more efficiently than LCC ICCG, which was previously the most active PET hydrolase reported in the literature. This property makes the L92F/Q94Y variant of PES-H1 a good candidate for future applications in industrial plastic recycling processes

The eROSITA X-ray telescope on SRG

eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) is the primary instrument on the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission, which was successfully launched on July 13, 2019, from the Baikonour cosmodrome. After the commissioning of the instrument and a subsequent calibration and performance verification phase, eROSITA started a survey of the entire sky on December 13, 2019. By the end of 2023, eight complete scans of the celestial sphere will have been performed, each lasting six months. At the end of this program, the eROSITA all-sky survey in the soft X-ray band (0.2-2.3 keV) will be about 25 times more sensitive than the ROSAT All-Sky Survey, while in the hard band (2.3-8 keV) it will provide the first ever true imaging survey of the sky. The eROSITA design driving science is the detection of large samples of galaxy clusters up to redshifts z > 1 in order to study the large-scale structure of the universe and test cosmological models including Dark Energy. In addition, eROSITA is expected to yield a sample of a few million AGNs, including obscured objects, revolutionizing our view of the evolution of supermassive black holes. The survey will also provide new insights into a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, including X-ray binaries, active stars, and diffuse emission within the Galaxy. Results from early observations, some of which are presented here, confirm that the performance of the instrument is able to fulfil its scientific promise. With this paper, we aim to give a concise description of the instrument, its performance as measured on ground, its operation in space, and also the first results from in-orbit measurements

Choice of the initial antiretroviral treatment for HIV-positive individuals in the era of integrase inhibitors

BACKGROUND: We aimed to describe the most frequently prescribed initial antiretroviral therapy (ART) regimens in recent years in HIV-positive persons in the Cohort of the Spanish HIV/AIDS Research Network (CoRIS) and to investigate factors associated with the choice of each regimen. METHODS: We analyzed initial ART regimens prescribed in adults participating in CoRIS from 2014 to 2017. Only regimens prescribed in >5% of patients were considered. We used multivariable multinomial regression to estimate Relative Risk Ratios (RRRs) for the association between sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and the choice of the initial regimen. RESULTS: Among 2874 participants, abacavir(ABC)/lamivudine(3TC)/dolutegavir(DTG) was the most frequently prescribed regimen (32.1%), followed by tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF)/emtricitabine (FTC)/elvitegravir(EVG)/cobicistat(COBI) (14.9%), TDF/FTC/rilpivirine (RPV) (14.0%), tenofovir alafenamide (TAF)/FTC/EVG/COBI (13.7%), TDF/FTC+DTG (10.0%), TDF/FTC+darunavir/ritonavir or darunavir/cobicistat (bDRV) (9.8%) and TDF/FTC+raltegravir (RAL) (5.6%). Compared with ABC/3TC/DTG, starting TDF/FTC/RPV was less likely in patients with CD4100.000 copies/mL. TDF/FTC+DTG was more frequent in those with CD4100.000 copies/mL. TDF/FTC+RAL and TDF/FTC+bDRV were also more frequent among patients with CD4<200 cells//muL and with transmission categories other than men who have sex with men. Compared with ABC/3TC/DTG, the prescription of other initial ART regimens decreased from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017 with the exception of TDF/FTC+DTG. Differences in the choice of the initial ART regimen were observed by hospitals' location. CONCLUSIONS: The choice of initial ART regimens is consistent with Spanish guidelines' recommendations, but is also clearly influenced by physician's perception based on patient's clinical and sociodemographic variables and by the prescribing hospital location