RIPK3 Regulates Microvascular Endothelial Cell Necroptosis and Cardiac Allograft Rejection

Cell death results in tissue damage and ultimately donor graft rejection and can occur as an active molecular process through apoptotic, necrotic and newly identified Receptor Interacting Protein 1 and 3 kinase (RIPK1/3) mediated necroptotic pathways. Necroptosis leads to the release of inflammatory molecules and activation of immune cells which can potentially threaten the graft and has yet to be studied in cardiac transplantation. We have found that necroptosis was induced in murine cardiac microvascular endothelial cells (MVEC) under anti-apoptotic conditions following TNFa treatment and results in the release of the danger molecule high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1). Necroptosis was inhibited by the RIPK1 inhibiting molecule necrostatin-1 and by genetic deletion of RIPK3. In addition, tissue necrosis, release of HMGB1 and graft cell infiltrate were attenuated in RIPK3 null heart allografts following transplantation. Finally, a brief sirolimus treatment markedly prolonged RIPK3 null cardiac allograft survival in allogeneic BALB/c recipients as compared to wildtype C57BL/6 donor grafts (95+5.8 vs. 24+2.6 days,

Effects of Cyclical Changes in Environmental Salinity on Osmoregulatory Parameters in the Mozambique Tilapia

M.S. University of Hawaii at Manoa 2016.Includes bibliographical references.Many euryhaline teleost fish, including the Mozambique tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus, are native to waters in which salinity varies tidally between that of freshwater (FW) and seawater (SW). Acclimation to changes in environmental salinity is regulated largely by the neuroendocrine system, which directs ion extrusion or ion uptake response via the gill and other osmoregulatory tissues. In teleosts, prolactin (PRL) is critical to FW acclimation, stimulating ion uptake mechanisms. Osmoregulation in euryhaline teleosts has been studied extensively in steady state FW and SW, and after one-way transfers between FW and SW. It is unclear, however, how euryhaline fish respond to cyclical salinity changes. Mozambique tilapia were reared in FW, SW, and under a tidal regimen (TR), characterized by salinity changes between FW (TF) and SW (TS) every 6 hours (h), and transferred from FW or SW to TR to investigate adaptive ability to TR. TR fish were also sampled every 3 h in a 24-hour period to observe osmoregulatory parameters throughout the TR cycle. Regardless of the rearing regimen, plasma osmolality changed in direct relation to salinity, rising in SW and falling in FW, while plasma PRL was inversely related to salinity. In fish reared in TR, branchial gene expression of effectors of ion transport and PRL receptors was more similar to those of fish reared in SW than to those in FW. When fish were transferred from either FW or SW to TR, all measured osmoregulatory parameters were identical to those of fish reared in TR by 7 days. In TR fish sampled multiple times over a 24-hour period the greater resolution in sampling revealed several nuances within the overall patterns of salinity and regimen-dependent changes in osmoregulatory parameters. These findings indicate that life-long acclimation to SW and FW does not preclude adaptation to TR at the adult stage. The results also show that throughout a 24-hour period, TR fish are able to compensate for broad and frequent changes in external salinity while maintaining osmoregulatory parameters within a narrow range. These are the first known studies to investigate environmental adaptation of adult Mozambique tilapia to TR, and to characterize osmoregulatory parameters in TR fish over multiple iterations of TF & TS during a full diurnal cycle. As such, these studies have further characterized the effects of TR-acclimation at a more advanced life stage than addressed by previous reports, and have yielded greater insights to rearing in an environment that approximates the native habitat of the Mozambique tilapia

Investigation of red-cockaded woodpeckers in Virginia: 2017 report

The Virginia population of red-cockaded woodpeckers is the northernmost throughout the species range and has been in eminent danger of extinction for more than 30 years. The Piney Grove Preserve represents a nucleus for recovery in the state and the focus of a multi-organizational partnership designed to increase the population to a sustainable level. The partnership has executed a program of aggressive habitat management, cavity-tree management and woodpecker population monitoring and management that has resulted in a quadrupling of the breeding population since the early 2000s. During the 2017 breeding season, Piney Grove Preserve supported 13 potential breeding groups that produced 25 fledglings. All groups made breeding attempts except for cluster 17. Only one of the remaining 12 clusters failed to produce fledglings. A viable pair was not present and no breeding attempt was made in cluster 18 for the first time since 2013. The population as a whole had a reproductive rate of 2.1±0.29 (mean±SE). The 12 groups that made breeding attempts had a success rate of 92% (11 of 12). Fledging rate for the11 productive pairs was 2.3±0.24. Of the 39 eggs followed in 2017, 21 (53.8%) hatched, 21 (53.8%) survived to banding age, and 21 (53.8%) fledged. Birds that fledged included 16 females and 9 males. Fourteen of these birds were retained and detected during the winter count and two (male and female, hatching-year birds) were translocated to Great Dismal Swamp, NWR on 20 October. During the calendar year of 2017, 84 individual red-cockaded woodpeckers were identified within Piney Grove preserve. This included 59 birds that were hatched at Piney Grove during previous years and 25 nestlings that fledged during the 2017 breeding season. Forty birds (47%) were in their fourth year or more and seven birds (8.3%) were at least in their tenth year. Two birds were thirteen years old. Moving into the breeding season there were 53 birds identified within Piney Grove Preserve distributed among 14 clusters. This was the lowest number of adults that Piney Grove has carried into the breeding season since 2013. The number of birds per cluster varied from one to eight with a mean of 3.8+0.46 (mean+SE). Sixty-nine birds were detected during the 2017 winter survey. This represents a 26% increase (69 vs 54) from the winter of 2016. Birds present include 14 of the 25 birds fledged in 2017 and 55 adult birds hatched in previous years. Group size in winter ranged from three to nine birds and averaged 4.9+0.47 (mean±SE) birds per group

Feasibility of simultaneous whole-brain imaging on an integrated PET-MRI system using an enhanced 2-point Dixon attenuation correction method.

PURPOSE: To evaluate a potential approach for improved attenuation correction (AC) of PET in simultaneous PET and MRI brain imaging, a straightforward approach that adds bone information missing on Dixon AC was explored. METHODS: Bone information derived from individual T1-weighted MRI data using segmentation tools in SPM8, were added to the standard Dixon AC map. Percent relative difference between PET reconstructed with Dixon+bone and with Dixon AC maps were compared across brain regions of 13 oncology patients. The clinical potential of the improved Dixon AC was investigated by comparing relative perfusion (rCBF) measured with arterial spin labeling to relative glucose uptake (rPETdxbone) measured simultaneously with (18)F-flurodexoyglucose in several regions across the brain. RESULTS: A gradual increase in PET signal from center to the edge of the brain was observed in PET reconstructed with Dixon+bone. A 5-20% reduction in regional PET signals were observed in data corrected with standard Dixon AC maps. These regional underestimations of PET were either reduced or removed when Dixon+bone AC was applied. The mean relative correlation coefficient between rCBF and rPETdxbone was r = 0.53 (p \u3c 0.001). Marked regional variations in rCBF-to-rPET correlation were observed, with the highest associations in the caudate and cingulate and the lowest in limbic structures. All findings were well matched to observations from previous studies conducted with PET data reconstructed with computed tomography derived AC maps. CONCLUSION: Adding bone information derived from T1-weighted MRI to Dixon AC maps can improve underestimation of PET activity in hybrid PET-MRI neuroimaging

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Life Cycle Cost Assessment, Final Technical Report, 30 May 2012

The Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) Life Cycle Cost Assessment (OLCCA) is a study performed by members of the Lockheed Martin (LM) OTEC Team under funding from the Department of Energy (DOE), Award No. DE-EE0002663, dated 01/01/2010. OLCCA objectives are to estimate procurement, operations and maintenance, and overhaul costs for two types of OTEC plants: -Plants moored to the sea floor where the electricity produced by the OTEC plant is directly connected to the grid ashore via a marine power cable (Grid Connected OTEC plants) -Open-ocean grazing OTEC plant-ships producing an energy carrier that is transported to designated ports (Energy Carrier OTEC plants) Costs are developed using the concept of levelized cost of energy established by DOE for use in comparing electricity costs from various generating systems. One area of system costs that had not been developed in detail prior to this analysis was the operations and sustainment (O&S) cost for both types of OTEC plants. Procurement costs, generally referred to as capital expense and O&S costs (operations and maintenance (O&M) costs plus overhaul and replacement costs), are assessed over the 30 year operational life of the plants and an annual annuity calculated to achieve a levelized cost (constant across entire plant life). Dividing this levelized cost by the average annual energy production results in a levelized cost of electricity, or LCOE, for the OTEC plants. Technical and production efficiency enhancements that could result in a lower value of the OTEC LCOE were also explored. The thermal OTEC resource for Oahu, HawaiâÃÂÃÂi and projected build out plan were developed. The estimate of the OTEC resource and LCOE values for the planned OTEC systems enable this information to be displayed as energy supplied versus levelized cost of the supplied energy; this curve is referred to as an Energy Supply Curve. The Oahu Energy Supply Curve represents initial OTEC deployment starting in 2018 and demonstrates the predicted economies of scale as technology and efficiency improvements are realized and larger more economical plants deployed. Utilizing global high resolution OTEC resource assessment from the Ocean Thermal Extractable Energy Visualization (OTEEV) project (an independent DOE project), Global Energy Supply Curves were generated for Grid Connected and Energy Carrier OTEC plants deployed in 2045 when the predicted technology and efficiencies improvements are fully realized. The Global Energy Supply Curves present the LCOE versus capacity in ascending order with the richest, lowest cost resource locations being harvested first. These curves demonstrate the vast ocean thermal resource and potential OTEC capacity that can be harvested with little change in LCOE

Quantification of cerebral blood flow in adults by contrast-enhanced near-infrared spectroscopy: Validation against MRI

The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of absolute cerebral blood flow (CBF) measurements obtained by dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) using indocyanine green as a perfusion contrast agent. For validation, CBF was measured independently using the MRI perfusion method arterial spin labeling (ASL). Data were acquired at two sites and under two flow conditions (normocapnia and hypercapnia). Depth sensitivity was enhanced using time-resolved detection, which was demonstrated in a separate set of experiments using a tourniquet to temporally impede scalp blood flow. A strong correlation between CBF measurements from ASL and DCE-NIRS was observed (slope = 0.99 ± 0.08, y-intercept = −1.7 ± 7.4 mL/100 g/min, and R2 = 0.88). Mean difference between the two techniques was 1.9 mL/100 g/min (95% confidence interval ranged from −15 to 19 mL/100g/min and the mean ASL CBF was 75.4 mL/100 g/min). Error analysis showed that structural information and baseline absorption coefficient were needed for optimal CBF reconstruction with DCE-NIRS. This study demonstrated that DCE-NIRS is sensitive to blood flow in the adult brain and can provide accurate CBF measurements with the appropriate modeling techniques

An evidenced based evaluation on the outcome of osteopathic manipulative treatment on postoperative coronary artery bypass and sternotomy patients

The recent COVID-19 pandemic caused a widespread strain on healthcare systems around the world, including the United States. With limited resources, such as healthcare staff and available beds in intensive care units (ICU), consideration must be placed on effective solutions. The goal of our study is to find evidence supporting the effectiveness of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) on ICU length of stay for post-operative patients that have undergone coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery via sternotomy. We believe our findings will increase awareness of application of the beneficial effects of OMT in critical care patients

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Isolation and characterization of a highly repeated satellite DNA sequence from the cyprinid fish Notropis lutrensis

Due to the character of the original source materials and the nature of batch digitization, quality control issues may be present in this document. Please report any quality issues you encounter to [email protected], referencing the URI of the item.Bibliography: leaves 75-77.Not availabl