Macrophage-derived Lipocalin-2 contributes to ischemic resistance mechanisms by protecting from renal injury

Renal ischemia-reperfusion injury triggers an inflammatory response associated to infiltrating macrophages which determines the further outcome of disease. Brown Norway rats are known to show endogenous resistance to ischemia-induced renal damage. By contrast, Sprague Dawley rats exhibit a higher susceptibility to ischemic injury. In order to ascertain cytoprotective mechanisms, we focused on the implication of lipocalin-2 protein in main resistance mechanisms in renal ischemia/reperfusion injury by using adoptive macrophage administration, genetically modified ex vivo either to overexpress or to knockdown lipocalin-2. In vitro experiments with bone marrow-derived macrophages both from Brown Norway rats and from Sprague Dawley rats under hypoxic conditions showed endogenous differences regarding cytokine and lipocalin-2 expression profile in the two strains. Most interestingly, we observed that macrophages of the resistant strain express significantly more lipocalin-2. In vivo studies showed that tubular epithelial cell apoptosis and renal injury significantly increased and reparative markers decreased in Brown Norway rats after injection of lipocalin-2-knockdown macrophages, while the administration of lipocalin-2-overexpressing cells significantly decreased Sprague Dawley susceptibility. These data point to a crucial role of macrophage-derived lipocalin-2 in endogenous cytoprotective mechanisms. We conclude that expression of lipocalin-2 in tissue-infiltrating macrophages is pivotal for kidney-intrinsic cytoprotective pathways during ischemia reperfusion injury.The authors would like to thank M Ángeles Muñoz for her excellent technical support. This work was supported by grants from FIS PI12/00720 from Instituto de Salud Carlos III cofunded by FEDER funds/European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)-a way to buid Europe- and SENEFRO (awarded to AS) and SAF 2012-39947-02 (awarded to GH). MJ was supported by a grant from Fritz Thyssen Stiftung (Az.10.12.2.156) and a grant from University of Frankfurt (Focus Line B) and AS is supported by Miguel Servet II contracting system (CPII 14/00026).Peer Reviewe

Dynamic Echo Information Guides Flight in the Big Brown Bat

Animals rely on sensory feedback from their environment to guide locomotion. For instance, visually guided animals use patterns of optic flow to control their velocity and to estimate their distance to objects (e.g. Srinivasan et al. 1991, 1996). In this study, we investigated how acoustic information guides locomotion of animals that use hearing as a primary sensory modality to orient and navigate in the dark, where visual information is unavailable. We studied flight and echolocation behaviors of big brown bats as they flew under infrared illumination through a corridor with walls constructed from a series of individual vertical wooden poles. The spacing between poles on opposite walls of the corridor was experimentally manipulated to create dense/sparse and balanced/imbalanced spatial structure. The bats’ flight trajectories and echolocation signals were recorded with high-speed infrared motion-capture cameras and ultrasound microphones, respectively. As bats flew through the corridor, successive biosonar emissions returned cascades of echoes from the walls of the corridor. The bats flew through the center of the corridor when the pole spacing on opposite walls was balanced and closer to the side with wider pole spacing when opposite walls had an imbalanced density. Moreover, bats produced shorter duration echolocation calls when they flew through corridors with smaller spacing between poles, suggesting that clutter density influences features of the bat’s sonar signals. Flight speed and echolocation call rate did not, however, vary with dense and sparse spacing between the poles forming the corridor walls. Overall, these data demonstrate that bats adapt their flight and echolocation behavior dynamically when flying through acoustically complex environments

Health indices for the evaluation and monitoring of health in children and adolescents in prevention and health promotion: a scoping review

BACKGROUND Health indicators are used in different settings to monitor health outcomes. Child and adolescent health is arguably one of the most important areas for the application of indices and indicators in prevention and health promotion. Although single health indicators may be better suited to display the complexity of the health status and its determinants, a selected set of indicators will still offer a complex picture. Therefore, it is argued that a group of indicators combined into an index may offer a pragmatic tool that is easier to use in order to inform stakeholders. METHODS A scoping review was conducted to identify and describe health indices that monitor and evaluate health of children and adolescents and to appraise the quality and value of the identified indices that may guide the further applications of these indices in particular settings. The three bibliographic databases MEDLINE, EMBASE and PsycINFO were searched and a double screening of titles and abstracts as well as double screening of full texts was performed. Indices contained in these studies were analysed in terms of focus and composition and evaluated in terms of quality criteria. RESULTS The scoping review identified 36 eligible studies with 18 health indices in six thematic categories. Of the identified indices, seven indices focus on anthropometrical variables, three indices focus on special aspects of newborns and five indices focus on oral health. One index assesses \textquotedblhealthy lifestyle\textquotedbl and one \textquotedblfunctional ability\textquotedbl whereas one index a combination of different aspects. Most indices are calculated by using primary health data. CONCLUSIONS Alone or in combination with single sets of indicators, indices in six major thematic domains may be used as pragmatic tools for monitoring children's and adolescents´ health and the evaluation of interventions in health promotion and prevention settings

Toward a deeper understanding of the ecological origins of distance construal

International audienc

Macrophage-derived Lipocalin-2 contributes to ischemic resistance mechanisms by protecting from renal injury

Renal ischemia-reperfusion injury triggers an inflammatory response associated to infiltrating macrophages which determines the further outcome of disease. Brown Norway rats are known to show endogenous resistance to ischemia-induced renal damage. By contrast, Sprague Dawley rats exhibit a higher susceptibility to ischemic injury. In order to ascertain cytoprotective mechanisms, we focused on the implication of lipocalin-2 protein in main resistance mechanisms in renal ischemia/reperfusion injury by using adoptive macrophage administration, genetically modified ex vivo either to overexpress or to knockdown lipocalin-2. In vitro experiments with bone marrow-derived macrophages both from Brown Norway rats and from Sprague Dawley rats under hypoxic conditions showed endogenous differences regarding cytokine and lipocalin-2 expression profile in the two strains. Most interestingly, we observed that macrophages of the resistant strain express significantly more lipocalin-2. In vivo studies showed that tubular epithelial cell apoptosis and renal injury significantly increased and reparative markers decreased in Brown Norway rats after injection of lipocalin-2-knockdown macrophages, while the administration of lipocalin-2-overexpressing cells significantly decreased Sprague Dawley susceptibility. These data point to a crucial role of macrophage-derived lipocalin-2 in endogenous cytoprotective mechanisms. We conclude that expression of lipocalin-2 in tissue-infiltrating macrophages is pivotal for kidney-intrinsic cytoprotective pathways during ischemia reperfusion injury

The Well-Being of the German Adult Population Measured with the WHO-5 over Different Phases of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Analysis within the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring Study (COSMO)

The aim of this study is to evaluate factors associated with the subjective well-being (SWB) and suspected depression measured with WHO-5 among German adults during different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Survey data were analyzed from the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring (COSMO) study, which collected data from 972, 1013, and 973 participants in time point 1 (19–20 May 2020), time point 2 (15–16 September 2020), and time point 3 (21–22 December 2020), respectively. Descriptive analyses and logistic regression analyses to identify the factors associated with suspected depression (WHO-5 ≤ 50) were conducted. Data showed that the mean WHO-5 scores in three time points were 56.17, 57.27, and 53.93, respectively. The risk of suspected depression was increased by about 1.5 times for females, 2.5–3 times among 18–24 year-olds compared to ages above 65 years, 1.5 times for singles, 2 times for those with chronic illnesses, and 2–3 times for people living in poverty. The main study findings show that German adult SWB is lower than pre-pandemic reference values. Special focus should be placed on vulnerable groups, such as females, younger persons, and people living in poverty who are most prone to a reduction in SWB and therefore suspected depression

Alcohol Use of German Adults during Different Pandemic Phases: Repeated Cross-Sectional Analyses in the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring Study (COSMO)

There is little evidence on how different COVID-19 pandemic phases influence the alcohol use behaviour of adults. The objective of this study is to investigate alcohol use frequency over different COVID-19 pandemic phases and to identify vulnerable subgroups for risky use behaviour in the German adult population. Survey waves of 14/15 April 2020 (n = 1032), 23/24 June 2020 (n = 993), and 26/27 January 2021 (n = 1001) from the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring (COSMO) were analysed. The mean age was 46 ± 15.3 years in April, 46 ± 15.5 years in June, and 45 ± 15.5 years in January. The gender ratio was mostly equal in each survey wave. Descriptive analyses and univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses for individuals with increased alcohol use frequency (AUF) were performed. 13.2% in April (lockdown), 11.3% in June (easement), and 8.6% in January (lockdown) of participants showed an increased AUF. Individuals with perceived burden, high frustration levels due to protective measures, and young to middle-aged adults were more likely to increase their AUF during different pandemic phases. In conclusion, unfavourable alcohol behaviour might occur as a potentially maladaptive coping strategy in pandemics. Because of potential negative long-term consequences of problematic alcohol use behaviour on health, public health strategies should consider mental health consequences and target addictive behaviour, while also guiding risk groups towards healthy coping strategies such as physical activities during pandemics/crises

Grant Application: Visual Voices, An Arts-Based Assessment Of The Perceived Identity Of Aging Maine Residents

IPEC Mini-grant application for funding of UNE student project Visual Voices: An Arts-Based Assessment Of The Perceived Identity Of Aging Maine Residents. This project was designed to investigate the topics of perception, identity, and aging. Between February and May 2015, over the course of twelve sessions, the UNE team met with six female residents of the Park Danforth senior living community in Portland to have conversations and create art about how the residents perceive themselves in contrast to how they feel perceived by important people in their lives, such as friends, family, and healthcare providers.https://dune.une.edu/minigrant_visvoice/1000/thumbnail.jp

Visual Voices Participant Recruitment Flyer

Participant recruitment flyer for UNE student project Visual Voices: An Arts-Based Assessment Of The Perceived Identity Of Aging Maine Residents. This project was designed to investigate the topics of perception, identity, and aging. Between February and May 2015, over the course of twelve sessions, the UNE team met with six female residents of the Park Danforth senior living community in Portland to have conversations and create art about how the residents perceive themselves in contrast to how they feel perceived by important people in their lives, such as friends, family, and healthcare providers.https://dune.une.edu/minigrant_visvoice/1001/thumbnail.jp