Analysis of COVID-19 cases' spatial dependence in US counties reveals health inequalities

On March 13, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 a pandemic. Since then the virus has infected over 9.1 million individuals and resulted in over 470,000 deaths worldwide (as of June 24, 2020). Here, we discuss the spatial correlation between county population health rankings and the incidence of COVID-19 cases and COVID-19 related deaths in the United States. We analyzed the spread of the disease based on multiple variables at the county level, using publicly available data on the numbers of confirmed cases and deaths, intensive care unit beds and socio-demographic, and healthcare resources in the U.S. Our results indicate substantial geographical variations in the distribution of COVID-19 cases and deaths across the US counties. There was significant positive global spatial correlation between the percentage of Black Americans and cases of COVID-19 (Moran I = 0.174 and 0.264, p < 0.0001). A similar result was found for the global spatial correlation between the percentage of Black American and deaths due to COVID-19 at the county level in the U.S. (Moran I = 0.264, p < 0.0001). There was no significant spatial correlation between the Hispanic population and COVID-19 cases and deaths; however, a higher percentage of non-Hispanic white was significantly negatively spatially correlated with cases (Moran I = –0.203, p < 0.0001) and deaths (Moran I = –0.137, p < 0.0001) from the disease. This study showed significant but weak spatial autocorrelation between the number of intensive care unit beds and COVID-19 cases (Moran I = 0.08, p < 0.0001) and deaths (Moran I = 0.15, p < 0.0001), respectively. These findings provide more detail into the interplay between the infectious disease and healthcare-related characteristics of the population. Only by understanding these relationships will it be possible to mitigate the rate of spread and severity of the disease

The responses of an anaerobic microorganism, Yersinia intermedia MASE-LG-1 to individual and combined simulated Martian stresses

The limits of life of aerobic microorganisms are well understood, but the responses of anaerobic microorganisms to individual and combined extreme stressors are less well known. Motivated by an interest in understanding the survivability of anaerobic microorganisms under Martian conditions, we investigated the responses of a new isolate, Yersinia intermedia MASE-LG-1 to individual and combined stresses associated with the Martian surface. This organism belongs to an adaptable and persistent genus of anaerobic microorganisms found in many environments worldwide. The effects of desiccation, low pressure, ionizing radiation, varying temperature, osmotic pressure, and oxidizing chemical compounds were investigated. The strain showed a high tolerance to desiccation, with a decline of survivability by four orders of magnitude during a storage time of 85 days. Exposure to X-rays resulted in dose-dependent inactivation for exposure up to 600 Gy while applied doses above 750 Gy led to complete inactivation. The effects of the combination of desiccation and irradiation were additive and the survivability was influenced by the order in which they were imposed. Ionizing irradiation and subsequent desiccation was more deleterious than vice versa. By contrast, the presence of perchlorates was not found to significantly affect the survival of the Yersinia strain after ionizing radiation. These data show that the organism has the capacity to survive and grow in physical and chemical stresses, imposed individually or in combination that are associated with Martian environment. Eventually it lost its viability showing that many of the most adaptable anaerobic organisms on Earth would be killed on Mars today

POLYMORPHISM IN THE ANGIOTENSIN-CONVERTING ENZYME (ACE) GENE AND ACE ACTIVITY IN TYPE 2 DIABETIC PATIENTS

&quot;nDiabetes mellitus is a multifactorial disease. It has recently been shown that an insertion (I)/deletion (D) polymorphism exists in the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene that can affect the serum ACE level. There are three genotypes: DD, DI, and II, with the ACE level being highest in DD, intermediate in DI, and lowest in II. In the present investigation, 170 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and 144 control subjects were studied. The ACE I/D polymorphism was determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) utilizing specific primers. ACE activity was determined spectrophotometrically. Distribution of ACE gene (I/D) polymorphism and allele frequencies in patients with T2DM were significantly different from those in control (P &amp;lt; 0.001); D allele frequency was 51% in T2DM vs. 48% in controls. The level of ACE activity was significantly higher in the DD genotype (91.1 &amp;plusmn; 23.18) than those in ID (60.6 &amp;plusmn; 22.8) and in II genotypes (36.8 &amp;plusmn; 6.9). There was a significant difference in genotype distribution between the two groups (P &amp;lt; 0.001). New normal ranges of serum ACE level were determined for each genotype. Moreover, we found test sensitivity to be 62.3%. Serum ACE activity was significantly associated with ACE (I/D) gene polymorphism

Inclusion body formation and neurodegeneration are parkin independent in a mouse model of ?-synucleinopathy

10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0414-06.2006Journal of Neuroscience26143685-3696JNRS

Trajectories of Early Brain Volume Development in Fragile X Syndrome and Autism

OBJECTIVE: To examine patterns of early brain growth in young children with fragile X syndrome (FXS) compared to a comparison group (controls) and a group with idiopathic autism. METHOD: The study included 53 boys between 18–42 months of age with FXS, 68 boys with idiopathic autism (ASD), and a comparison group of 50 typically-developing and developmentally-delayed controls. We examined structural brain volumes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) across two timepoints between ages 2–3 and 4–5 years and examined total brain volumes and regional (lobar) tissue volumes. Additionally, we studied a selected group of subcortical structures implicated in the behavioral features of FXS (e.g., basal ganglia, hippocampus, amygdala). RESULTS: Children with FXS had greater global brain volumes compared to controls, but were not different than children with idiopathic autism, and the rate of brain growth between ages 2 and 5 paralleled that seen in controls. In contrast to the children with idiopathic autism who had generalized cortical lobe enlargement, the children with FXS showed a specific enlargement in temporal lobe white matter, cerebellar gray matter, and caudate nucleus, but significantly smaller amygdala. CONCLUSIONS: This structural longitudinal MRI study of preschoolers with FXS observed generalized brain overgrowth in FXS compared to controls, evident at age 2 and maintained across ages 4–5. We also find different patterns of brain growth that distinguishes boys with FXS from children with idiopathic autism