On the ubiquity of molecular anions in the dense interstellar medium

Results are presented from a survey for molecular anions in seven nearby Galactic star-forming cores and molecular clouds. The hydrocarbon anion C6H- is detected in all seven target sources, including four sources where no anions have been previously detected: L1172, L1389, L1495B and TMC-1C. The C6H-/C6H column density ratio is greater than about 1.0% in every source, with a mean value of 3.0% (and standard deviation 0.92%). Combined with previous detections, our results show that anions are ubiquitous in dense clouds wherever C6H is present. The C6H-/C6H ratio is found to show a positive correlation with molecular hydrogen number density, and with the apparent age of the cloud. We also report the first detection of C4H- in TMC-1 (at 4.8-sigma confidence), and derive an anion-to-neutral ratio C4H-/C4H = (1.2 +- 0.4) x 10^-5 (= 0.0012 +- 0.0004%). Such a low value compared with C6H- highlights the need for a revised radiative electron attachment rate for C4H. Chemical model calculations show that the observed C4H- could be produced as a result of reactions of oxygen atoms with C5H- and C6H-

About the first experiment at JINR nuclotron deuteron beam with energy 2.52 gev on investigation of transmutation of I-129, NP-237, PU-238 and PU-239 in the field of neutrons generated in pbtarget with U-blanket

The experiment described in this communication is a part of the scientific program „Investigations of physical aspects of electronuclear method of energy production and transmutation of radioactive waste of atomic energetic using relativistic beams from the JINR Synchrophasotron/Nuclotron“ - the project „Energy plus Transmutation“. The performing of the first experiment at deuteron beam with energy 2.52 GeV at the electronuclear setup which consists of Pb-target with U-blanket (206.4 kg of natural uranium) and transmutation samples and its preliminary results are described. The hermetic samples of isotopes of I-129, Np-237, Pu-238 and Pu-239 which are produced in atomic reactors and industry setups which use nuclear materials and nuclear technologies were irradiated in the field of electronuclear neutrons produced in the Pbtarget surrounded with the U-blanket setup “Energy plus transmutation”. The estimations of its transmutations (radioecological aspect) were obtained in result of measurements of gamma activities of these samples. The information about space-energy distribution of neutrons in the volume of the Pb-target and the U-blanket was obtained with help of sets of activation threshold detectors (Al, V, Cu, Co, Y, In, I, Ta, Au, W, Bi and other), solid state nuclear track detectors, He-3 neutron detectors and nuclear emulsions

LMS-Verify: abstraction without regret for verified systems programming

Performance critical software is almost always developed in C, as programmers do not trust high-level languages to deliver the same reliable performance. This is bad because low-level code in unsafe languages attracts security vulnerabilities and because development is far less productive, with PL advances mostly lost on programmers operating under tight performance constraints. High-level languages provide memory safety out of the box, but they are deemed too slow and unpredictable for serious system software. Recent years have seen a surge in staging and generative programming: the key idea is to use high-level languages and their abstraction power as glorified macro systems to compose code fragments in first-order, potentially domain-specific, intermediate languages, from which fast C can be emitted. But what about security? Since the end result is still C code, the safety guarantees of the high-level host language are lost. In this paper, we extend this generative approach to emit ACSL specifications along with C code. We demonstrate that staging achieves ``abstraction without regret'' for verification: we show how high-level programming models, in particular higher-order composable contracts from dynamic languages, can be used at generation time to compose and generate first-order specifications that can be statically checked by existing tools. We also show how type classes can automatically attach invariants to data types, reducing the need for repetitive manual annotations. We evaluate our system on several case studies that varyingly exercise verification of memory safety, overflow safety, and functional correctness. We feature an HTTP parser that is (1) fast (2) high-level: implemented using staged parser combinators (3) secure: with verified memory safety. This result is significant, as input parsing is a key attack vector, and vulnerabilities related to HTTP parsing have been documented in all widely-used web servers.</jats:p

Mental Health of Parents and Life Satisfaction of Children: A Within-Family Analysis of Intergenerational Transmission of Well-Being

This paper addresses the extent to which there is an intergenerational transmission of mental health and subjective well-being within families. Specifically it asks whether parents’ own mental distress influences their child’s life satisfaction, and vice versa. Whilst the evidence on daily contagion of stress and strain between members of the same family is substantial, the evidence on the transmission between parental distress and children’s well-being over a longer period of time is sparse. We tested this idea by examining the within-family transmission of mental distress from parent to child’s life satisfaction, and vice versa, using rich longitudinal data on 1,175 British youths. Results show that parental distress at year t-1 is an important determinant of child’s life satisfaction in the current year. This is true for boys and girls, although boys do not appear to be affected by maternal distress levels. The results also indicated that the child’s own life satisfaction is related with their father’s distress levels in the following year, regardless of the gender of the child. Finally, we examined whether the underlying transmission correlation is due to shared social environment, empathic reactions, or transmission via parent-child interaction

Design of a RESTful middleware to enable a web of medical things

In this paper, we consider the design methodology of a mobile patient hub for the remote self-management of COPD patients. The patient hub design forms a part of the WELCOME system. WELCOME is a current EU project that aims to design and develop a new mobile health system to provide integrated care for COPD patients with comorbidities. The approach adopted for this research is based on the Web of Things architecture with RESTful principles as the enabler of communications. The proposed patient hub architecture design is based on three layers: an application layer, a middleware layer and the sensors layer. This paper presents the detail of the initial design of the middleware and an analysis of the architecture in the context of the system's requirements

Noncoding RNA Mediated Traffic of Foreign mRNA into Chloroplasts Reveals a Novel Signaling Mechanism in Plants

Communication between chloroplasts and the nucleus is one of the milestones of the evolution of plants on earth. Proteins encoded by ancestral chloroplast-endogenous genes were transferred to the nucleus during the endosymbiotic evolution and originated this communication, which is mainly dependent on specific transit-peptides. However, the identification of nuclear-encoded proteins targeted to the chloroplast lacking these canonical signals suggests the existence of an alternative cellular pathway tuning this metabolic crosstalk. Non-coding RNAS (NcRNAs) are increasingly recognized as regulators of gene expression as they play roles previously believed to correspond to proteins. Avsunviroidae family viroids are the only noncoding functional RNAs that have been reported to traffic inside the chloroplasts. Elucidating mechanisms used by these pathogens to enter this organelle will unearth novel transport pathways in plant cells. Here we show that a viroid-derived NcRNA acting as a 5′UTR-end mediates the functional import of Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) mRNA into chloroplast. This claim is supported by the observation at confocal microscopy of a selective accumulation of GFP in the chloroplast of the leaves expressing the chimeric vd-5′UTR/GFP and by the detection of the GFP mRNA in chloroplasts isolated from cells expressing this construct. These results support the existence of an alternative signaling mechanism in plants between the host cell and chloroplasts, where an ncRNA functions as a key regulatory molecule to control the accumulation of nuclear-encoded proteins in this organelle. In addition, our findings provide a conceptual framework to develop new biotechnological tools in systems using plant chloroplast as bioreactors. Finally, viroids of the family Avsunviroidae have probably evolved to subvert this signaling mechanism to regulate their differential traffic into the chloroplast of infected cells

The Calcitonin Receptor Gene Is a Candidate for Regulation of Susceptibility to Herpes simplex Type 1 Neuronal Infection Leading to Encephalitis in Rat

Herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) is a fatal infection of the central nervous system (CNS) predominantly caused by Herpes simplex virus type 1. Factors regulating the susceptibility to HSE are still largely unknown. To identify host gene(s) regulating HSE susceptibility we performed a genome-wide linkage scan in an intercross between the susceptible DA and the resistant PVG rat. We found one major quantitative trait locus (QTL), Hse1, on rat chromosome 4 (confidence interval 24.3–31 Mb; LOD score 29.5) governing disease susceptibility. Fine mapping of Hse1 using recombinants, haplotype mapping and sequencing, as well as expression analysis of all genes in the interval identified the calcitonin receptor gene (Calcr) as the main candidate, which also is supported by functional studies. Thus, using unbiased genetic approach variability in Calcr was identified as potentially critical for infection and viral spread to the CNS and subsequent HSE development

A robust binary supramolecular organic framework (SOF) with high CO2 adsorption and selectivity

A robust binary hydrogen-bonded supramolecular organic framework (SOF-7) has been synthesized by solvothermal reaction of 1,4-bis-(4-(3,5-dicyano-2,6 dipyridyl)dihydropyridyl)benzene (1) and 5,5’-bis-(azanediyl)-oxalyl-diisophthalic acid (2). Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis shows that SOF-7 comprises 2 and 1,4-bis-(4-(3,5-dicyano-2,6-dipyridyl)pyridyl)benzene (3), the latter formed in situ from the oxidative dehydrogenation of 1. SOF-7 shows a three-dimensional four-fold interpenetrat-ed structure with complementary O−H···N hydrogen bonds to form channels that are decorated with cyano- and amide-groups. SOF-7 exhibits excellent thermal stability and sol-vent and moisture durability, as well as permanent porosity. The activated desolvated material SOF-7a shows high CO2 sorption capacity and selectivity compared with other po-rous organic materials assembled solely through hydrogen bonding

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Identification of a Vitamin-D Receptor Antagonist, MeTC7, which Inhibits the Growth of Xenograft and Transgenic Tumors In Vivo

Vitamin-D receptor (VDR) mRNA is overexpressed in neuroblastoma and carcinomas of lung, pancreas, and ovaries and predicts poor prognoses. VDR antagonists may be able to inhibit tumors that overexpress VDR. However, the current antagonists are arduous to synthesize and are only partial antagonists, limiting their use. Here, we show that the VDR antagonist MeTC7 (5), which can be synthesized from 7-dehydrocholesterol (6) in two steps, inhibits VDR selectively, suppresses the viability of cancer cell-lines, and reduces the growth of the spontaneous transgenic TH-MYCN neuroblastoma and xenografts in vivo. The VDR selectivity of 5 against RXRα and PPAR-γ was confirmed, and docking studies using VDR-LBD indicated that 5 induces major changes in the binding motifs, which potentially result in VDR antagonistic effects. These data highlight the therapeutic benefits of targeting VDR for the treatment of malignancies and demonstrate the creation of selective VDR antagonists that are easy to synthesize