How much improvement in mental health can be expected when people stop smoking? Findings from a national survey

Background and aims: There is evidence that mental health improves when smokers stop. This study aimed to assess in a nationally representative sample how far anxiety and depression in long-term ex-smokers can be expected eventually to reach levels found in those who have never smoked. Methods: Data from the Smoking Toolkit Study (STS) were used. The STS involves monthly household surveys of representative samples of the adult population of England. Anxiety and depression were compared using an item from the EQ5-D in respondents aged 40+ years where were either current smokers, never smokers, or had stopped for at least a year, adjusting statistically for age, gender and social grade. Results: The prevalence of anxiety or depression was 10.0% (95% CI 9.1-10.9) in never smokers, 18.3% (95% CI 16.0-20.6) in current smokers, and 11.3% (95% CI 9.6-13.0) in long-term ex-smokers. After adjusting for age, sex and social grade, long-term ex-smokers were similar to never smokers (OR=1.15, 95% CI=0.94-1.41). Current smokers had higher prevalence than never smokers (OR=1.69, 95% CI=1.39-2.04) and ex-smokers (OR=1.47, 95% CI=1.15-1.86). Conclusions: Prevalence of anxiety and depression in long-term ex-smokers appears to be similar to what is found in never smokers

The HI Chronicles of LITTLE THINGS BCDs II: The Origin of IC 10's HI Structure

In this paper we analyze Very Large Array (VLA) telescope and Green Bank Telescope (GBT) atomic hydrogen (HI) data for the LITTLE THINGS(1) blue compact dwarf galaxy IC 10. The VLA data allow us to study the detailed HI kinematics and morphology of IC 10 at high resolution while the GBT data allow us to search the surrounding area at high sensitivity for tenuous HI. IC 10's HI appears highly disturbed in both the VLA and GBT HI maps with a kinematically distinct northern HI extension, a kinematically distinct southern plume, and several spurs in the VLA data that do not follow the general kinematics of the main disk. We discuss three possible origins of its HI structure and kinematics in detail: a current interaction with a nearby companion, an advanced merger, and accretion of intergalactic medium. We find that IC 10 is most likely an advanced merger or a galaxy undergoing accretion. 1:Local Irregulars That Trace Luminosity Extremes, The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey; https://science.nrao.edu/science/surveys/littlethingsComment: 36 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journa

Increased elastase sensitivity and decreased intramolecular interactions in the more transmissible 501Y.V1 and 501Y.V2 SARS-CoV-2 variants' spike protein-an in silico analysis.

Two SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern showing increased transmissibility relative to the Wuhan virus have recently been identified. Although neither variant appears to cause more severe illness nor increased risk of death, the faster spread of the virus is a major threat. Using computational tools, we found that the new SARS-CoV-2 variants may acquire an increased transmissibility by increasing the propensity of its spike protein to expose the receptor binding domain via proteolysis, perhaps by neutrophil elastase and/or via reduced intramolecular interactions that contribute to the stability of the closed conformation of spike protein. This information leads to the identification of potential treatments to avert the imminent threat of these more transmittable SARS-CoV-2 variants

ALMA observations of dust polarization and molecular line emission from the Class 0 protostellar source Serpens SMM1

We present high angular resolution dust polarization and molecular line observations carried out with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) toward the Class 0 protostar Serpens SMM1. By complementing these observations with new polarization observations from the Submillimeter Array (SMA) and archival data from the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy (CARMA) and the James Clerk Maxwell Telescopes (JCMT), we can compare the magnetic field orientations at different spatial scales. We find major changes in the magnetic field orientation between large (~0.1 pc) scales -- where the magnetic field is oriented E-W, perpendicular to the major axis of the dusty filament where SMM1 is embedded -- and the intermediate and small scales probed by CARMA (~1000 AU resolution), the SMA (~350 AU resolution), and ALMA (~140 AU resolution). The ALMA maps reveal that the redshifted lobe of the bipolar outflow is shaping the magnetic field in SMM1 on the southeast side of the source; however, on the northwestern side and elsewhere in the source, low velocity shocks may be causing the observed chaotic magnetic field pattern. High-spatial-resolution continuum and spectral-line observations also reveal a tight (~130 AU) protobinary system in SMM1-b, the eastern component of which is launching an extremely high-velocity, one-sided jet visible in both CO(2-1) and SiO(5-4); however, that jet does not appear to be shaping the magnetic field. These observations show that with the sensitivity and resolution of ALMA, we can now begin to understand the role that feedback (e.g., from protostellar outflows) plays in shaping the magnetic field in very young, star-forming sources like SMM1.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables, 1 appendix. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Materials accessible in the online version of the (open-access) ApJ article include the FITS files used to make the ALMA image in Figure 1(d), and a full, machine-readable version of Table

Conditional loss of IKKα in Osterix + cells has no effect on bone but leads to age-related loss of peripheral fat

NF-κB has been reported to both promote and inhibit bone formation. To explore its role in osteolineage cells, we conditionally deleted IKKα, an upstream kinase required for non-canonical NF-κB activation, using Osterix (Osx)-Cre. Surprisingly, we found no effect on either cancellous or cortical bone, even following mechanical loading. However, we noted that IKKα conditional knockout (cKO) mice began to lose body weight after 6 months of age with severe reductions in fat mass and lower adipocyte size in geriatric animals. qPCR analysis of adipogenic markers in fat pads of cKO mice indicated no difference in early differentiation, but instead markedly lower leptin with age. We challenged young mice with a high fat diet finding that cKO mice gained less weight and showed improved glucose metabolism. Low levels of recombination at the IKKα locus were detected in fat pads isolated from old cKO mice. To determine whether recombination occurs in adipocytes, we examined fat pads in Osx-Cre;TdT reporter mice; these showed increasing Osx-Cre-mediated expression in peripheral adipocytes from 6 weeks to 18 months. Since Osx-Cre drives recombination in peripheral adipocytes with age, we conclude that fat loss in cKO mice is most likely caused by progressive deficits of IKKα in adipocytes

Evidence That the P\u3csub\u3ei\u3c/sub\u3e Release Event Is the Rate-Limiting Step in the Nitrogenase Catalytic Cycle

Nitrogenase reduction of dinitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3) involves a sequence of events that occur upon the transient association of the reduced Fe protein containing two ATP molecules with the MoFe protein that includes electron transfer, ATP hydrolysis, Pi release, and dissociation of the oxidized, ADP-containing Fe protein from the reduced MoFe protein. Numerous kinetic studies using the nonphysiological electron donor dithionite have suggested that the rate-limiting step in this reaction cycle is the dissociation of the Fe protein from the MoFe protein. Here, we have established the rate constants for each of the key steps in the catalytic cycle using the physiological reductant flavodoxin protein in its hydroquinone state. The findings indicate that with this reductant, the rate-limiting step in the reaction cycle is not protein–protein dissociation or reduction of the oxidized Fe protein, but rather events associated with the Pi release step. Further, it is demonstrated that (i) Fe protein transfers only one electron to MoFe protein in each Fe protein cycle coupled with hydrolysis of two ATP molecules, (ii) the oxidized Fe protein is not reduced when bound to MoFe protein, and (iii) the Fe protein interacts with flavodoxin using the same binding interface that is used with the MoFe protein. These findings allow a revision of the rate-limiting step in the nitrogenase Fe protein cycle

Natural and human-induced terrestrial water storage change: A global analysis using hydrological models and GRACE

Hydrological models and the data derived from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite mission have been widely used to study the variations in terrestrial water storage (TWS) over large regions. However, both GRACE products and model results suffer from inherent uncertainties, calling for the need to make a combined use of GRACE and models to examine the variations in total TWS and their individual components, especially in relation to natural and human-induced changes in the terrestrial water cycle. In this study, we use the results from two state-of-the-art hydrological models and different GRACE spherical harmonic products to examine the variations in TWS and its individual components, and to attribute the changes to natural and human-induced factors over large global river basins. Analysis of the spatial patterns of the long-term trend in TWS from the two models and GRACE suggests that both models capture the GRACE-measured direction of change, but differ from GRACE as well as each other in terms of the magnitude over different regions. A detailed analysis of the seasonal cycle of TWS variations over 30 river basins shows notable differences not only between models and GRACE but also among different GRACE products and between the two models. Further, it is found that while one model performs well in highly-managed river basins, it fails to reproduce the GRACE-observed signal in snow-dominated regions, and vice versa. The isolation of natural and human-induced changes in TWS in some of the managed basins reveals a consistently declining TWS trend during 2002-2010, however; significant differences are again obvious both between GRACE and models and among different GRACE products and models. Results from the decomposition of the TWS signal into the general trend and seasonality indicate that both models do not adequately capture both the trend and seasonality in the managed or snow-dominated basins implying that the TWS variations from a single model cannot be reliably used for all global regions. It is also found that the uncertainties arising from climate forcing datasets can introduce significant additional uncertainties, making direct comparison of model results and GRACE products even more difficult. Our results highlight the need to further improve the representation of human land-water management and snow processes in large-scale models to enable a reliable use of models and GRACE to study the changes in freshwater systems in all global regions

EQUIPT: protocol of a comparative effectiveness research study evaluating cross-context transferability of economic evidence on tobacco control

This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial.This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Tobacco smoking claims 700 000 lives every year in Europe and the cost of tobacco smoking in the EU is estimated between €98 and €130 billion annually; direct medical care costs and indirect costs such as workday losses each represent half of this amount. Policymakers all across Europe are in need of bespoke information on the economic and wider returns of investing in evidence-based tobacco control, including smoking cessation agendas. EQUIPT is designed to test the transferability of one such economic evidence base-the English Tobacco Return on Investment (ROI) tool-to other EU member states