Structural evolution in the neutron-rich nuclei 106Zr and 108Zr

The low-lying states in 106Zr and 108Zr have been investigated by means of {\beta}-{\gamma} and isomer spectroscopy at the RI beam factory, respectively. A new isomer with a half-life of 620\pm150 ns has been identified in 108Zr. For the sequence of even-even Zr isotopes, the excitation energies of the first 2+ states reach a minimum at N = 64 and gradually increase as the neutron number increases up to N = 68, suggesting a deformed sub-shell closure at N = 64. The deformed ground state of 108Zr indicates that a spherical sub-shell gap predicted at N = 70 is not large enough to change the ground state of 108Zr to the spherical shape. The possibility of a tetrahedral shape isomer in 108Zr is also discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let

Prevalence of chronic kidney disease in Thai adults: a national health survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The prevalence of patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) who need dialysis and/or transplantation has more than doubled in Thailand during the past two decades. It has been suggested that therapeutic strategies to reduce the risk of ESRD and other complications in CKD are now available, thus the early recognition and the institution of proven therapeutic strategies are important and beneficial. We, therefore, aimed to determine the prevalence of CKD in Thai adults from the National Health Examination Survey of 2004.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data from a nationally representative sample of 3,117 individuals aged 15 years and older was collected using questionnaires, physical examination and blood samples. Serum creatinine was measured by Jaffé method. GFR was estimated using the Chinese modified Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study equation. Chronic kidney Disease (CKD) stages were classified based on Kidney Disease Outcome Quality Initiative (K/DOQI).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The prevalence of CKD in Thai adults weighted to the 2004 Thai population by stage was 8.1% for stage 3, 0.2% and 0.15% for stage 4 and 5 respectively. Compared to non-CKD, individuals with CKD were older, had a higher level of cholesterol, and higher blood pressure. Those with cardiovascular risk factors were more likely to have CKD (stage 3-5) than those without, including hypertension (OR 1.6, 95%CI 1.1, 3.4), diabetes (OR 1.87, 95%CI 1.0, 3.4). CKD was more common in northeast (OR 2.1, 95%CI 1.3, 3.3) compared to central region. Urinalysis was not performed, therefore, we could not have data on CKD stage 1 and 2. We have no specific GFR formula for Thai population.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The identification of CKD patients should be evaluated and monitored for appropriate intervention for progression to kidney disease from this screening.</p

Biological, clinical and population relevance of 95 loci for blood lipids.

Plasma concentrations of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides are among the most important risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD) and are targets for therapeutic intervention. We screened the genome for common variants associated with plasma lipids in &gt;100,000 individuals of European ancestry. Here we report 95 significantly associated loci (P &lt; 5 x 10(-8)), with 59 showing genome-wide significant association with lipid traits for the first time. The newly reported associations include single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) near known lipid regulators (for example, CYP7A1, NPC1L1 and SCARB1) as well as in scores of loci not previously implicated in lipoprotein metabolism. The 95 loci contribute not only to normal variation in lipid traits but also to extreme lipid phenotypes and have an impact on lipid traits in three non-European populations (East Asians, South Asians and African Americans). Our results identify several novel loci associated with plasma lipids that are also associated with CAD. Finally, we validated three of the novel genes-GALNT2, PPP1R3B and TTC39B-with experiments in mouse models. Taken together, our findings provide the foundation to develop a broader biological understanding of lipoprotein metabolism and to identify new therapeutic opportunities for the prevention of CAD

Long-Term Neurodevelopmental Outcome of Monochorionic and Matched Dichorionic Twins

Contains fulltext : 79941.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Monochorionic (MC) twins are at increased risk for perinatal mortality and serious morbidity due to the presence of placental vascular anastomoses. Cerebral injury can be secondary to haemodynamic and hematological disorders during pregnancy (especially twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) or intrauterine co-twin death) or from postnatal injury associated with prematurity and low birth weight, common complications in twin pregnancies. We investigated neurodevelopmental outcome in MC and dichorionic (DC) twins at the age of two years. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study. Cerebral palsy (CP) was studied in 182 MC infants and 189 DC infants matched for weight and age at delivery, gender, ethnicity of the mother and study center. After losses to follow-up, 282 of the 366 infants without CP were available to be tested with the Griffiths Mental Developmental Scales at 22 months corrected age, all born between January 2005 and January 2006 in nine perinatal centers in The Netherlands. Due to phenotypic (un)alikeness in mono-or dizygosity, the principal investigator was not blinded to chorionic status; perinatal outcome, with exception of co-twin death, was not known to the examiner. FINDINGS: Four out of 182 MC infants had CP (2.2%) - two of the four CP-cases were due to complications specific to MC twin pregnancies (TTTS and co-twin death) and the other two cases of CP were the result of cystic PVL after preterm birth - compared to one sibling of a DC twin (0.5%; OR 4.2, 95% CI 0.5-38.2) of unknown origin. Follow-up rate of neurodevelopmental outcome by Griffith's test was 76%. The majority of 2-year-old twins had normal developmental status. There were no significant differences between MC and DC twins. One MC infant (0.7%) had a developmental delay compared to 6 DC infants (4.2%; OR 0.2, 95% 0.0-1.4). Birth weight discordancy did not influence long-term outcome, though the smaller twin had slightly lower developmental scores than its larger co-twin. CONCLUSIONS: There were no significant differences in occurrence of cerebral palsy as well as neurodevelopmental outcome between MC and DC twins. Outcome of MC twins seems favourable in the absence of TTTS or co-twin death

The Precision nEDM Measurement with UltraCold Neutrons at TRIUMF

The TRIUMF Ultra-Cold Advanced Neutron (TUCAN) collaboration aims at a precision neutron electric dipole moment (nEDM) measurement with an uncertainty of $10^{-27}\,e\cdot\mathrm{cm}$, which is an order-of-magnitude better than the current nEDM upper limit and enables us to test Supersymmetry. To achieve this precision, we are developing a new high-intensity ultracold neutron (UCN) source using super-thermal UCN production in superfluid helium (He-II) and a nEDM spectrometer. The current development status of them is reported in this article.Comment: Proceedings of the 24th International Spin Symposium (SPIN 2021), 18-22 October 2021, Matsue, Japa

Ecological–Health Risk of Antimony and Arsenic in Centella asiatica, Topsoils, and Mangrove Sediments: A Case Study of Peninsular Malaysia

The current study assessed the ecological–health risks of potentially toxic arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in the vegetable Centella asiatica, topsoils, and mangrove sediments sampled from Peninsular Malaysia. The As concentrations ranged from 0.21 to 4.33, 0.18 to 1.83, and 1.32 to 20.8 mg/kg dry weight, for the leaves, stems, and roots of the vegetable, respectively. The ranges of Sb concentrations were 0.31–0.62, 0.12–0.35, and 0.64–1.61 mg/kg dry weight, for leaves, stems, and roots of the vegetable, respectively. The children’s target hazard quotient (THQ) values indicated no non-carcinogenic risks of As and Sb in both leaves and stems, although children’s THQ values were higher than those in adults. The calculated values of estimated weekly intake were lower than established provisional tolerable weekly intake of As and Sb for both children and adult consumers. The carcinogenic risk (CR) values of As for children’s intake of leaves and stems of vegetables showed more public concern than those of adults. The levels of Sb and As in the topsoils were generally higher (although not significantly) than those in the mangrove sediments, resulting in a higher geoaccumulation index, contamination factor and ecological risk, hazard index, THQ, and CR values. This indicated that the anthropogenic sources of Sb and As originated from the land-based activities before reaching the mangrove near the coast. The CR of As signifies a dire need for comprehensive ecological–health risks exposure studies, as dietary intake involves more than just vegetable consumption. Therefore, risk management for As and Sb in Malaysia is highly recommended. The present findings of the ecological–health risks of As and Sb based on 2010–2012 samples can be used as an important baseline for future reference and comparison. Copyright © 2022 Yap, Tan, Cheng, Syazwan, Azrizal-Wahid, Krishnan, Go, Nulit, Ibrahim, Mustafa, Omar, Chew, Edward, Okamura, Al-Mutairi, Al-Shami, Sharifinia, Keshavarzifard, You, Bakhtiari, Bintal, Zakaly, Arai, Naji, Saleem, Abd Rahman, Ong, Subramaniam and Wong.Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia, MOHEThe present study was supported financially by the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS), (Vote No.: 5524953) and by the Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia

Cause of Death and Predictors of All-Cause Mortality in Anticoagulated Patients With Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation : Data From ROCKET AF

M. Kaste on työryhmän ROCKET AF Steering Comm jäsen.Background-Atrial fibrillation is associated with higher mortality. Identification of causes of death and contemporary risk factors for all-cause mortality may guide interventions. Methods and Results-In the Rivaroxaban Once Daily Oral Direct Factor Xa Inhibition Compared with Vitamin K Antagonism for Prevention of Stroke and Embolism Trial in Atrial Fibrillation (ROCKET AF) study, patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation were randomized to rivaroxaban or dose-adjusted warfarin. Cox proportional hazards regression with backward elimination identified factors at randomization that were independently associated with all-cause mortality in the 14 171 participants in the intention-to-treat population. The median age was 73 years, and the mean CHADS(2) score was 3.5. Over 1.9 years of median follow-up, 1214 (8.6%) patients died. Kaplan-Meier mortality rates were 4.2% at 1 year and 8.9% at 2 years. The majority of classified deaths (1081) were cardiovascular (72%), whereas only 6% were nonhemorrhagic stroke or systemic embolism. No significant difference in all-cause mortality was observed between the rivaroxaban and warfarin arms (P=0.15). Heart failure (hazard ratio 1.51, 95% CI 1.33-1.70, P= 75 years (hazard ratio 1.69, 95% CI 1.51-1.90, P Conclusions-In a large population of patients anticoagulated for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, approximate to 7 in 10 deaths were cardiovascular, whereasPeer reviewe

Engineering of cyclodextrin glucanotransferases and the impact for biotechnological applications

Cyclodextrin glucanotransferases (CGTases) are industrially important enzymes that produce cyclic α-(1,4)-linked oligosaccharides (cyclodextrins) from starch. Cyclodextrin glucanotransferases are also applied as catalysts in the synthesis of glycosylated molecules and can act as antistaling agents in the baking industry. To improve the performance of CGTases in these various applications, protein engineers are screening for CGTase variants with higher product yields, improved CD size specificity, etc. In this review, we focus on the strategies employed in obtaining CGTases with new or enhanced enzymatic capabilities by searching for new enzymes and improving existing enzymatic activities via protein engineering

Impact of common genetic determinants of Hemoglobin A1c on type 2 diabetes risk and diagnosis in ancestrally diverse populations : A transethnic genome-wide meta-analysis

Background Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is used to diagnose type 2 diabetes (T2D) and assess glycemic control in patients with diabetes. Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 18 HbA1c-associated genetic variants. These variants proved to be classifiable by their likely biological action as erythrocytic (also associated with erythrocyte traits) or glycemic (associated with other glucose-related traits). In this study, we tested the hypotheses that, in a very large scale GWAS, we would identify more genetic variants associated with HbA1c and that HbA1c variants implicated in erythrocytic biology would affect the diagnostic accuracy of HbA1c. We therefore expanded the number of HbA1c-associated loci and tested the effect of genetic risk-scores comprised of erythrocytic or glycemic variants on incident diabetes prediction and on prevalent diabetes screening performance. Throughout this multiancestry study, we kept a focus on interancestry differences in HbA1c genetics performance that might influence race-ancestry differences in health outcomes. Methods & findings Using genome-wide association meta-analyses in up to 159,940 individuals from 82 cohorts of European, African, East Asian, and South Asian ancestry, we identified 60 common genetic variants associated with HbA1c. We classified variants as implicated in glycemic, erythrocytic, or unclassified biology and tested whether additive genetic scores of erythrocytic variants (GS-E) or glycemic variants (GS-G) were associated with higher T2D incidence in multiethnic longitudinal cohorts (N = 33,241). Nineteen glycemic and 22 erythrocytic variants were associated with HbA1c at genome-wide significance. GS-G was associated with higher T2D risk (incidence OR = 1.05, 95% CI 1.04-1.06, per HbA1c-raising allele, p = 3 x 10-29); whereas GS-E was not (OR = 1.00, 95% CI 0.99-1.01, p = 0.60). In Europeans and Asians, erythrocytic variants in aggregate had only modest effects on the diagnostic accuracy of HbA1c. Yet, in African Americans, the X-linked G6PD G202A variant (T-allele frequency 11%) was associated with an absolute decrease in HbA1c of 0.81%-units (95% CI 0.66-0.96) per allele in hemizygous men, and 0.68%-units (95% CI 0.38-0.97) in homozygous women. The G6PD variant may cause approximately 2% (N = 0.65 million, 95% CI0.55-0.74) of African American adults with T2Dto remain undiagnosed when screened with HbA1c. Limitations include the smaller sample sizes for non-European ancestries and the inability to classify approximately one-third of the variants. Further studies in large multiethnic cohorts with HbA1c, glycemic, and erythrocytic traits are required to better determine the biological action of the unclassified variants. Conclusions As G6PD deficiency can be clinically silent until illness strikes, we recommend investigation of the possible benefits of screening for the G6PD genotype along with using HbA1c to diagnose T2D in populations of African ancestry or groups where G6PD deficiency is common. Screening with direct glucose measurements, or genetically-informed HbA1c diagnostic thresholds in people with G6PD deficiency, may be required to avoid missed or delayed diagnoses.Peer reviewe