66 research outputs found
Seasonal and Diurnal Variations of Atmospheric Non-Methane Hydrocarbons in Guangzhou, China
In recent decades, high ambient ozone concentrations have become one of the major regional air quality issues in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region. Non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs), as key precursors of ozone, were found to be the limiting factor in photochemical ozone formation for large areas in the PRD. For source apportioning of NMHCs as well as ozone pollution control strategies, it is necessary to obtain typical seasonal and diurnal patterns of NMHCs with a large pool of field data. To date, few studies have focused on seasonal and diurnal variations of NMHCs in urban areas of Guangzhou. This study explored the seasonal variations of most hydrocarbons concentrations with autumn maximum and spring minimum in Guangzhou. The diurnal variations of most anthropogenic NMHCs typically showed two-peak pattern with one at 8:00 in the morning and another at 20:00 in the evening, both corresponding to traffic rush hours in Guangzhou, whereas isoprene displayed a different bimodal diurnal curve. Propene, ethene, m, p-xylene and toluene were the four largest contributors to ozone formation in Guangzhou, based on the evaluation of individual NMHCs’ photochemical reactivity. Therefore, an effective strategy for controlling ozone pollution may be achieved by the reduction of vehicle emissions in Guangzhou
Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia in a Patient With Recurrent Exertional Syncope
A 16-year-old male with a prior history of recurrent syncope was referred to our hospital after being resuscitated from cardiac arrest developed while playing volleyball. His electrocardiogram (ECG) demonstrated ventricular fibrillation at a local emergency department. After referral, an ECG showed bidirectional ventricular tachycardia (VT) and nonsustained Torsade de Pointes. Two days later, his heart rate became regular, and no additional episodes of VT were observed. His ECG showed sinus rhythm with a corrected QT interval of 423 msec, and two-dimensional echocardiography was unremarkable. We made the diagnosis of a catecholaminergic polymorphic VT. However, only premature ventricular complex bigeminy was induced on exercise ECG and epinephrine infusion tests, and the patient showed no episodes of syncope. His father and mother had different missense mutations in the cardiac ryanodine receptor on genetic testing. The proband had both mutations in different alleles and was symptomatic. It was recommended that the patient avoid competitive physical activities, and a β-blocker was prescribed
The epithelial barrier: The gateway to allergic, autoimmune, and metabolic diseases and chronic neuropsychiatric conditions
Since the 1960 s, our health has been compromised by exposure to over 350,000 newly introduced toxic substances, contributing to the current pandemic in allergic, autoimmune and metabolic diseases. The "Epithelial Barrier Theory" postulates that these diseases are exacerbated by persistent periepithelial inflammation (epithelitis) triggered by exposure to a wide range of epithelial barrier-damaging substances as well as genetic susceptibility. The epithelial barrier serves as the body's primary physical, chemical, and immunological barrier against external stimuli. A leaky epithelial barrier facilitates the translocation of the microbiome from the surface of the afflicted tissues to interepithelial and even deeper subepithelial locations. In turn, opportunistic bacterial colonization, microbiota dysbiosis, local inflammation and impaired tissue regeneration and remodelling follow. Migration of inflammatory cells to susceptible tissues contributes to damage and inflammation, initiating and aggravating many chronic inflammatory diseases. The objective of this review is to highlight and evaluate recent studies on epithelial physiology and its role in the pathogenesis of chronic diseases in light of the epithelial barrier theory
rst Transcriptional Activity Influences kirre mRNA Concentration in the Drosophila Pupal Retina during the Final Steps of Ommatidial Patterning
Background: Drosophila retinal architecture is laid down between 24-48 hours after puparium formation, when some of the still uncommitted interommatidial cells (IOCs) are recruited to become secondary and tertiary pigment cells while the remaining ones undergo apoptosis. This choice between survival and death requires the product of the roughest (rst) gene, an immunoglobulin superfamily transmembrane glycoprotein involved in a wide range of developmental processes. Both temporal misexpression of Rst and truncation of the protein intracytoplasmic domain, lead to severe defects in which IOCs either remain mostly undifferentiated and die late and erratically or, instead, differentiate into extra pigment cells. Intriguingly, mutants not expressing wild type protein often have normal or very mild rough eyes. Methodology/Principal Findings: By using quantitative real time PCR to examine rst transcriptional dynamics in the pupal retina, both in wild type and mutant alleles we showed that tightly regulated temporal changes in rst transcriptional rate underlie its proper function during the final steps of eye patterning. Furthermore we demonstrated that the unexpected wild type eye phenotype of mutants with low or no rst expression correlates with an upregulation in the mRNA levels of the rst paralogue kin-of-irre (kirre), which seems able to substitute for rst function in this process, similarly to their role in myoblast fusion. This compensatory upregulation of kirre mRNA levels could be directly induced in wild type pupa upon RNAi-mediated silencing of rst, indicating that expression of both genes is also coordinately regulated in physiological conditions. Conclusions/Significance: These findings suggest a general mechanism by which rst and kirre expression could be fine tuned to optimize their redundant roles during development and provide a clearer picture of how the specification of survival and apoptotic fates by differential cell adhesion during the final steps of retinal morphogenesis in insects are controlled at the transcriptional level
Cycles of polarization and settlement:Diffusion and transformation in the macroeconomic policy field
Clinical, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic evaluations of metronomic UFT and cyclophosphamide plus celecoxib in patients with advanced refractory gastrointestinal cancers
Air quality study in Hanoi, Vietnam in 2015–2016 based on a one-year observation of NO x , O 3 , CO and a one-week observation of VOCs
Atmospheric levels of BTEX compounds during the 2008 Olympic Games in the urban area of Beijing
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