Ecological characterization of the Florida springs coast: Pithlachascotee to Waccasassa Rivers

This report covers the upper coast of west-central Florida. This region includes the drainage basins and nearshore waters of the west coast of Florida between, but not including, the Anclote River basin and the Suwannee River basin. The name Springs Coast wash chosen because this area contains a multitude of springs, both named and too small or inaccessible to have been names. Much of the area is karstic limestone. Most recognizable among the springs are the famous Crystal river, Weeki Wachee, and Homosassa. This territory includes large expanses of marsh and wetland and, along its shores, the southern end of the largest area of seagrass beds in the state -- the Florida Big Bend Seagrass Beds preserve. It also possesses numerous spring-fed rivers and streams along the coast, whose constant discharges provide unique, relatively stable estuarine environments. This document is a summary of the available information on the Springs Coast area of Florida, for use by planners, developers, regulatory authorities, and other interested parties. An understanding of the factors affecting their plans and the possibly unexpected impacts of their actions on others will, it is hoped, promote intelligent development in areas capable of supporting it. We have tried to provide a clear, coherent picture of what is currently known about how the physical, chemical, and biological factors of the environment interact. (343 pp.

Müller cell activation, proliferation and migration following laser injury.

PurposeMüller cells are well known for their critical role in normal retinal structure and function, but their reaction to retinal injury and subsequent role in retinal remodeling is less well characterized. In this study we used a mouse model of retinal laser photocoagulation to examine injury-induced Müller glial reaction, and determine how this reaction was related to injury-induced retinal regeneration and cellular repopulation.MethodsExperiments were performed on 3-4-week-old C57BL/6 mice. Retinal laser photocoagulation was used to induce small, circumscribed injuries; these were principally confined to the outer nuclear layer, and surrounded by apparently healthy retinal tissue. Western blotting and immunohistochemical analyses were used to determine the level and location of protein expression. Live cell imaging of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-infected Müller cells (AAV-GFAP-GFP) were used to identify the rate and location of retinal Müller cell nuclear migration.ResultsUpon injury, Müller cells directly at the burn site become reactive, as evidenced by increased expression of the intermediate filament proteins glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and nestin. These reactive cells re-enter the cell cycle as shown by expression of the markers Cyclin D1 and D3, and their nuclei begin to migrate toward the injury site at a rate of approximately 12 microm/hr. However, unlike other reports, evidence for Müller cell transdifferentiation was not identified in this model.ConclusionsRetinal laser photocoagulation is capable of stimulating a significant glial reaction, marked by activation of cell cycle progression and retinal reorganization, but is not capable of stimulating cellular transdifferentiation or neurogenesis

Advances in methods to analyse cardiolipin and their clinical applications

Cardiolipin (CL) is a mitochondria-exclusive phospholipid, primarily localised within the inner mitochondrial membrane, that plays an essential role in mitochondrial architecture and function. Aberrant CL content, structure, and localisation have all been linked to impaired mitochondrial activity and are observed in the pathophysiology of cancer and neurological, cardiovascular, and metabolic disorders. The detection, quantification, and localisation of CL species is a valuable tool to investigate mitochondrial dysfunction and the pathophysiological mechanisms underpinning several human disorders. CL is measured using liquid chromatography, usually combined with mass spectrometry, mass spectrometry imaging, shotgun lipidomics, fluorometry, and radiolabelling. This review summarises available methods to analyse CL, with a particular focus on modern mass spectrometry, and evaluates their advantages and limitations. We provide guidance aimed at selecting the most appropriate technique, or combination of techniques, when analysing CL in different model systems, and highlight the clinical contexts in which measuring CL is relevant

Chronic cigarette smoking is linked with structural alterations in brain regions showing acute nicotinic drug-induced functional modulations

Background Whereas acute nicotine administration alters brain function which may, in turn, contribute to enhanced attention and performance, chronic cigarette smoking is linked with regional brain atrophy and poorer cognition. However, results from structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies comparing smokers versus nonsmokers have been inconsistent and measures of gray matter possess limited ability to inform functional relations or behavioral implications. The purpose of this study was to address these interpretational challenges through meta-analytic techniques in the service of clarifying the impact of chronic smoking on gray matter integrity and more fully contextualizing such structural alterations. Methods We first conducted a coordinate-based meta-analysis of structural MRI studies to identify consistent structural alterations associated with chronic smoking. Subsequently, we conducted two additional meta-analytic assessments to enhance insight into potential functional and behavioral relations. Specifically, we performed a multimodal meta-analytic assessment to test the structural?functional hypothesis that smoking-related structural alterations overlapped those same regions showing acute nicotinic drug-induced functional modulations. Finally, we employed database driven tools to identify pairs of structurally impacted regions that were also functionally related via meta-analytic connectivity modeling, and then delineated behavioral phenomena associated with such functional interactions via behavioral decoding. Results Across studies, smoking was associated with convergent structural decreases in the left insula, right cerebellum, parahippocampus, multiple prefrontal cortex (PFC) regions, and the thalamus. Indicating a structural?functional relation, we observed that smoking-related gray matter decreases overlapped with the acute functional effects of nicotinic agonist administration in the left insula, ventromedial PFC, and mediodorsal thalamus. Suggesting structural-behavioral implications, we observed that the left insula?s task-based, functional interactions with multiple other structurally impacted regions were linked with pain perception, the right cerebellum?s interactions with other regions were associated with overt body movements, interactions between the parahippocampus and thalamus were linked with memory processes, and interactions between medial PFC regions were associated with face processing. Conclusions Collectively, these findings emphasize brain regions (e.g., ventromedial PFC, insula, thalamus) critically linked with cigarette smoking, suggest neuroimaging paradigms warranting additional consideration among smokers (e.g., pain processing), and highlight regions in need of further elucidation in addiction (e.g., cerebellum). Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12993-016-0100-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Influenza vaccine effectiveness among outpatients in the US Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Network by study site 2011‐2016

BackgroundInfluenza vaccination is recommended for all US residents aged ≥6 months. Vaccine effectiveness (VE) varies by age, circulating influenza strains, and the presence of high‐risk medical conditions. We examined site‐specific VE in the US Influenza VE Network, which evaluates annual influenza VE at ambulatory clinics in geographically diverse sites.MethodsAnalyses were conducted on 27 180 outpatients ≥6 months old presenting with an acute respiratory infection (ARI) with cough of ≤7‐day duration during the 2011‐2016 influenza seasons. A test‐negative design was used with vaccination status defined as receipt of ≥1 dose of any influenza vaccine according to medical records, registries, and/or self‐report. Influenza infection was determined by reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction. VE estimates were calculated using odds ratios from multivariable logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, race/ethnicity, time from illness onset to enrollment, high‐risk conditions, calendar time, and vaccination status‐site interaction.ResultsFor all sites combined, VE was statistically significant every season against all influenza and against the predominant circulating strains (VE = 19%‐50%) Few differences among four sites in the US Flu VE Network were evident in five seasons. However, in 2015‐16, overall VE in one site was 24% (95% CI = −4%‐44%), while VE in two other sites was significantly higher (61%, 95% CI = 49%‐71%; P = .002, and 53%, 95% CI = 33,67; P = .034).ConclusionWith few exceptions, site‐specific VE estimates aligned with each other and overall VE estimates. Observed VE may reflect inherent differences in community characteristics of the sites and highlights the importance of diverse settings for studying influenza vaccine effectiveness.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155981/1/irv12741_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155981/2/irv12741.pd

Gender Differences in Russian Colour Naming

In the present study we explored Russian colour naming in a web-based psycholinguistic experiment (http://www.colournaming.com). Colour singletons representing the Munsell Color Solid (N=600 in total) were presented on a computer monitor and named using an unconstrained colour-naming method. Respondents were Russian speakers (N=713). For gender-split equal-size samples (NF=333, NM=333) we estimated and compared (i) location of centroids of 12 Russian basic colour terms (BCTs); (ii) the number of words in colour descriptors; (iii) occurrences of BCTs most frequent non-BCTs. We found a close correspondence between females’ and males’ BCT centroids. Among individual BCTs, the highest inter-gender agreement was for seryj ‘grey’ and goluboj ‘light blue’, while the lowest was for sinij ‘dark blue’ and krasnyj ‘red’. Females revealed a significantly richer repertory of distinct colour descriptors, with great variety of monolexemic non-BCTs and “fancy” colour names; in comparison, males offered relatively more BCTs or their compounds. Along with these measures, we gauged denotata of most frequent CTs, reflected by linguistic segmentation of colour space, by employing a synthetic observer trained by gender-specific responses. This psycholinguistic representation revealed females’ more refined linguistic segmentation, compared to males, with higher linguistic density predominantly along the redgreen axis of colour space

Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis to predict influenza in primary care patients

Abstract Background The use of neuraminidase-inhibiting anti-viral medication to treat influenza is relatively infrequent. Rapid, cost-effective methods for diagnosing influenza are needed to enable appropriate prescribing. Multi-viral respiratory panels using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to diagnose influenza are accurate but expensive and more time-consuming than low sensitivity rapid influenza tests. Influenza clinical decision algorithms are both rapid and inexpensive, but most are based on regression analyses that do not account for higher order interactions. This study used classification and regression trees (CART) modeling to estimate probabilities of influenza. Methods Eligible enrollees ≥ 5 years old (n = 4,173) who presented at ambulatory centers for treatment of acute respiratory illness (≤7 days) with cough or fever in 2011–2012, provided nasal and pharyngeal swabs for PCR testing for influenza, information on demographics, symptoms, personal characteristics and self-reported influenza vaccination status. Results Antiviral medication was prescribed for just 15 % of those with PCR-confirmed influenza. An algorithm that included fever, cough, and fatigue had sensitivity of 84 %, specificity of 48 %, positive predictive value (PPV) of 23 % and negative predictive value (NPV) of 94 % for the development sample. Conclusions The CART algorithm has good sensitivity and high NPV, but low PPV for identifying influenza among outpatients ≥5 years. Thus, it is good at identifying a group who do not need testing or antivirals and had fair to good predictive performance for influenza. Further testing of the algorithm in other influenza seasons would help to optimize decisions for lab testing or treatment.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134640/1/12879_2016_Article_1839.pd

Vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 among symptomatic persons aged ≥12 years with reported contact with COVID-19 cases, February-September 2021

BACKGROUND: Individuals in contact with persons with COVID-19 are at high risk of developing COVID-19; protection offered by COVID-19 vaccines in the context of known exposure is poorly understood. METHODS: Symptomatic outpatients aged ≥12 years reporting acute onset of COVID-19-like illness and tested for SARS-CoV-2 between February 1 and September 30, 2021 were enrolled. Participants were stratified by self-report of having known contact with a COVID-19 case in the 14 days prior to illness onset. Vaccine effectiveness was evaluated using the test-negative study design and multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: Among 2229 participants, 283/451 (63%) of those reporting contact and 331/1778 (19%) without known contact tested SARS-CoV-2-positive. Adjusted vaccine effectiveness was 71% (95% confidence interval [CI], 49%-83%) among fully vaccinated participants reporting a known contact versus 80% (95% CI, 72%-86%) among those with no known contact (p-value for interaction = 0.2). CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to growing evidence of the benefits of vaccinations in preventing COVID-19 and support vaccination recommendations and the importance of efforts to increase vaccination coverage

Semaphorin-1a Is Required for Aedes aegypti Embryonic Nerve Cord Development

Although mosquito genome projects have uncovered orthologues of many known developmental regulatory genes, extremely little is known about mosquito development. In this study, the role of semaphorin-1a (sema1a) was investigated during vector mosquito embryonic ventral nerve cord development. Expression of sema1a and the plexin A (plexA) receptor are detected in the embryonic ventral nerve cords of Aedes aegypti (dengue vector) and Anopheles gambiae (malaria vector), suggesting that Sema1a signaling may regulate mosquito nervous system development. Analysis of sema1a function was investigated through siRNA-mediated knockdown in A. aegypti embryos. Knockdown of sema1a during A. aegypti development results in a number of nerve cord phenotypes, including thinning, breakage, and occasional fusion of the longitudinal connectives, thin or absent commissures, and general distortion of the nerve cord. Although analysis of Drosophila melanogaster sema1a loss-of-function mutants uncovered many similar phenotypes, aspects of the longitudinal phenotypes differed between D. melanogaster and A. aegypti. The results of this investigation suggest that Sema1a is required for development of the insect ventral nerve cord, but that the developmental roles of this guidance molecule have diverged in dipteran insects

Reducing Legionella Colonization of Water Systems with Monochloramine

Monochloramine reduced colonization in building hot water systems