Letters from Sichuan

On May 13th, I filed a web report on the New Yorker’s site, based on what I heard from former students in the early days of the disaster. Since then, I’ve continued to receive notes, and I’ve copied a few below. When I lived in Sichuan, I was most impressed by the sense of place. The landscape was rugged and beautiful, and the people had a distinct character. They seemed more emotional than in other parts of China; they laughed more freely and their street arguments were more vicious. It wasn’t any surprise that in 1999, after NATO bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, the most violent protests occurred in Chengdu. People sometimes blame it on the spicy food, which seems a shallow explanation. I sensed it had something to with the land itself—so many mountains and rivers, so many people. Emotions have always moved fast in Sichuan, and over the past week they’ve moved even faster

Behind the Wheel, About to Snap

. . . A photo, that is. Below, Peter Hessler shares some of the photographs he took while traveling across China doing research for his latest book, Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory. Read our review of Country Drivinghere; for other takes on the book, check out Jonathan Yardley’s review at theWashington Post, and Adam Daniel Mezei’s write-up at his blog

Hadal community structure: Implications from the Aleutian Trench

A 0.25-m2 box core from the Aleutian Trench (50°58.0\u27N, 171°37.5\u27W) was used to generate hypotheses concerning the regulation of benthic community structure in oceanic trenches. High food supply and the concentrating effects of trench topography are suggested by the unexpectedly high standing crop (1272 individuals of macrofaunal taxa m2) and by the feeding modes of the captured polychaetes...

Relationship of Homocysteine level and Comorbidities in VA Patients: A Retrospective Chart Review

Introduction: Elevated serum homocysteine is known to be associated with endothelial dysfunction, which is seen in multiple chronic diseases which include, but is not limited to Alzheimer’s, Dementia, and cardiovascular disease. This necessitated our investigation into serum homocysteine levels in VA patients and their associated comorbid disorders. Our study aimed to investigate comorbidities associated with elevated homocysteine levels, defined by being greater than 15 micromole/liter. Methods: Informatics at the VA was used to obtain a list of 654 patients with homocysteine drawn during the period of the study (7/21/2009 through 12/31/2013) at the John D. Dingell VAMC. Subjects were adults over 18 years of age. Patient gender, BMI, vitals, vitamin supplementation, and associated comorbidities were retrospectively analyzed and documented in an Excel file. The data from the excel file were statistically analyzed using SPSS 25. For each comorbidity and patient characteristic, homocysteine levels were compared using Independent Samples Mann-Whitney U test. Results: After completing statistical analysis of comorbidities commonly found in our Veteran population, those with statistically significant elevated levels (P-value \u3c0.05) of homocysteine were found to be Hypertension (P-value 0.001), Chronic Kidney Disease (P-value \u3c0.001), Dementia (P-value 0.004), Alzheimer’s (P-value 0.018), Peripheral Vascular Disease (P-value 0.046), and male gender (P-value 0.037). Of note, psoriasis was not statistically significant (P-value 0.855). Conclusion: Elevated homocysteine levels are known to be pro-inflammatory, which likely plays a role in their elevation in hypertension, chronic kidney disease, dementia, Alzheimer’s, and Peripheral Vascular Disease, necessitating a need to reduce homocysteine levels to improve patient outcomes

Microwave plasma-assisted reactive HiPIMS of InN films: Plasma environment and material characterisation

This work focuses on the low temperature fabrication process of InN thin films via microwave plasma-assisted reactive high power impulse magnetron sputtering (MAR-HiPIMS). The influence of microwave plasma on the HiPIMS discharge process at various nitrogen flows and microwave powers was monitored and characterised through in situ diagnostics, including following HiPIMS I(V,t) curves, optical emission spectroscopy (OES), as well as performing time-resolved Langmuir probe and time-of-flight mass spectroscopy (ToF-MS) measurements. This was followed by the deposition of InN films via standard reactive HiPIMS (reference sample) and MAR-HiPIMS and their characterisation via X-ray diffraction (XRD), reflectometry (XRR), as well as scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM, TEM). It was found that the microwave plasma facilitates the dissociation/activation of nitrogen species and supplies seed electrons to the magnetron discharge plasma. Furthermore, the energy of the incoming ions was determined via ToF-MS, and it was possible to identify their plasma origin and temporal behaviour. The produced R-HiPIMS sample was highly metallic, with no nitride phase detected. The MAR-HiPMS film, however, was stoichiometric and exhibited (0002) direction texturing, with an optical bandgap of approx. 1.5 eV, electron concentration of 2.72 × 1020 cm−3 and electron mobility of 7.16 cm2V−1 s−1 (in the range for polycrystalline InN)

Amplified Cold Transduction in Native Nociceptors by M-Channel Inhibition

Topically applied camphor elicits a sensation of cool, but nothing is known about how it affects cold temperature sensing. We found that camphor sensitizes a subpopulation of menthol-sensitive native cutaneous nociceptors in the mouse to cold, but desensitizes and partially blocks heterologously expressed TRPM8(transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily M member 8). In contrast, camphor reduces potassium outward currents in cultured sensory neurons and, in cold nociceptors, the cold-sensitizing effects of camphor and menthol are additive. Using a membrane potential dye-based screening assay and heterologously expressed potassium channels, we found that the effects of camphor are mediated by inhibition of K(v)7.2/3 channels subtypes that generate the M-current in neurons. In line with this finding, the specific M-current blocker XE991 reproduced the cold-sensitizing effect of camphor in nociceptors. However, the M-channel blocking effects of XE991 and camphor are not sufficient to initiate cold transduction but require a cold-activated inward current generated by TRPM8. The cold-sensitizing effects of XE991 and camphor are largest in high-threshold cold nociceptors. Low-threshold corneal cold thermoreceptors that express high levels of TRPM8 and lack potassium channels are not affected by camphor. We also found that menthol-like camphor-potently inhibits K(v)7.2/3 channels. The apparent functional synergism arising from TRPM8 activation and M-current block can improve the effectiveness of topical coolants and cooling lotions, and may also enhance TRPM8-mediated analgesia