Degradation of adhesion molecules of G361 melanoma cells by a non-thermal atmospheric pressure microplasma

Increased expression of integrins and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is important for the survival, growth and metastasis of melanoma cells. Based on this well-established observation in oncology, we propose to use degradation of integrin and FAK proteins as a potential strategy for melanoma cancer therapy. A low-temperature radio-frequency atmospheric microplasma jet is used to study their effects on the adhesion molecules of G361 melanoma cells. Microplasma treatment is shown to (1) cause significant cell detachment from the bottom of microtiter plates coated with collagen, (2) induce the death of human melanoma cells, (3) inhibit the expression of integrin 2, integrin 4 and FAK on the cell surface and finally (4) change well-stretched actin filaments to a diffuse pattern. These results suggest that cold atmospheric pressure plasmas can strongly inhibit the adhesion of melanoma cells by reducing the activities of adhesion proteins such as integrins and FAK, key biomolecules that are known to be important in malignant transformation and acquisition of metastatic phenotypes

Effectiveness of online simulation training: Measuring faculty knowledge, perceptions, and intention to adopt

Background: Best practice standards of simulation recommend standardized simulation training for nursing faculty. Online training may offer an effective and more widely available alternative to in-person training. Objectives: Using the Theory of Planned Behavior, this study evaluated the effectiveness of an online simulation training program, examining faculty's foundational knowledge of simulation as well as perceptions and intention to adopt. Design: One-group pretest-posttest design. Setting: A large school of nursing with a main campus and five regional campuses in the Midwestern United States. Participants: Convenience sample of 52 faculty participants. Methods: Knowledge of foundational simulation principles was measured by pre/post-training module quizzes. Perceptions and the intention to adopt simulation were measured using the Faculty Attitudes and Intent to Use Related to the Human Patient Simulator questionnaire. Results: There was a significant improvement in faculty knowledge after training and observable improvements in attitudes. Attitudes significantly influenced the intention to adopt simulation (B. =2.54, . p . <. 0.001). Conclusions: Online simulation training provides an effective alternative for training large numbers of nursing faculty who seek to implement best practice of standards within their institutions

An emerging palaeoceanographic ‘missing link’: multidisciplinary study of rarely recovered parts of deep-sea Santonian–Campanian transition from Shatsky Rise

<p>The Cretaceous deep-sea record of the Santonian–Campanian transition is commonly interrupted by an extensive unconformity (representing <10 Myr of hiatus). The resultant palaeoceanographic gap can now be partly bridged by a recent short core of pelagic ooze from Shatsky Rise (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site U1348), with precise multidisciplinary age constraints developed herein. New oxygen isotope data from very well-preserved benthic foraminifera, together with accurately compiled comparable benthic data from previous Pacific deep-sea sections, exhibit a large (<em>c</em>. +1‰) early Campanian shift. We propose the Santonian–Campanian climatic transition was not gradual but was the first major cooling step after sustained mid-Cretaceous hothouse conditions. </p

Instrument intercomparison of glyoxal, methyl glyoxal and NO2 under simulated atmospheric conditions

The α-dicarbonyl compounds glyoxal (CHOCHO) and methyl glyoxal (CH[Subscript: 3]C(O)CHO) are produced in the atmosphere by the oxidation of hydrocarbons and emitted directly from pyrogenic sources. Measurements of ambient concentrations inform about the rate of hydrocarbon oxidation, oxidative capacity, and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. We present results from a comprehensive instrument comparison effort at two simulation chamber facilities in the US and Europe that included nine instruments, and seven different measurement techniques: broadband cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy (BBCEAS), cavity-enhanced differential optical absorption spectroscopy (CE-DOAS), white-cell DOAS, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR, two separate instruments), laser-induced phosphorescence (LIP), solid-phase micro extraction (SPME), and proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-ToF-MS, two separate instruments; for methyl glyoxal only because no significant response was observed for glyoxal). Experiments at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) compare three independent sources of calibration as a function of temperature (293–330 K). Calibrations from absorption cross-section spectra at UV-visible and IR wavelengths are found to agree within 2% for glyoxal, and 4% for methyl glyoxal at all temperatures; further calibrations based on ion–molecule rate constant calculations agreed within 5% for methyl glyoxal at all temperatures. At the European Photoreactor (EUPHORE) all measurements are calibrated from the same UV-visible spectra (either directly or indirectly), thus minimizing potential systematic bias. We find excellent linearity under idealized conditions (pure glyoxal or methyl glyoxal, R[Superscript: 2] > 0.96), and in complex gas mixtures characteristic of dry photochemical smog systems (o-xylene/NO[Subscript: x] and isoprene/NOx, R[Superscript: 2] > 0.95; R2 ∼ 0.65 for offline SPME measurements of methyl glyoxal). The correlations are more variable in humid ambient air mixtures (RH > 45%) for methyl glyoxal (0.58 < R[Superscript: 2] < 0.68) than for glyoxal (0.79 < R[Superscript: 2] < 0.99). The intercepts of correlations were insignificant for the most part (below the instruments' experimentally determined detection limits); slopes further varied by less than 5% for instruments that could also simultaneously measure NO[Subscript: 2]. For glyoxal and methyl glyoxal the slopes varied by less than 12 and 17% (both 3-σ) between direct absorption techniques (i.e., calibration from knowledge of the absorption cross section). We find a larger variability among in situ techniques that employ external calibration sources (75–90%, 3-σ), and/or techniques that employ offline analysis. Our intercomparison reveals existing differences in reports about precision and detection limits in the literature, and enables comparison on a common basis by observing a common air mass. Finally, we evaluate the influence of interfering species (e.g., NO[Subscript: 2], O[Subscript: 3] and H[Subscript: 2]O) of relevance in field and laboratory applications. Techniques now exist to conduct fast and accurate measurements of glyoxal at ambient concentrations, and methyl glyoxal under simulated conditions. However, techniques to measure methyl glyoxal at ambient concentrations remain a challenge, and would be desirable

ALMA and GMRT Constraints on the Off-axis Gamma-Ray Burst 170817A from the Binary Neutron Star Merger GW170817

Binary neutron-star mergers (BNSMs) are among the most readily detectable gravitational-wave (GW) sources with the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO). They are also thought to produce short γ-ray bursts (SGRBs) and kilonovae that are powered by r-process nuclei. Detecting these phenomena simultaneously would provide an unprecedented view of the physics during and after the merger of two compact objects. Such a Rosetta Stone event was detected by LIGO/Virgo on 2017 August 17 at a distance of ∼44 Mpc. We monitored the position of the BNSM with Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) at 338.5 GHz and the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) at 1.4 GHz, from 1.4 to 44 days after the merger. Our observations rule out any afterglow more luminous than ´ - - 3 10 erg s Hz 26 1 1 in these bands, probing >2–4 dex fainter than previous SGRB limits. We match these limits, in conjunction with public data announcing the appearance of X-ray and radio emission in the weeks after the GW event, to templates of off-axis afterglows. Our broadband modeling suggests that GW170817 was accompanied by an SGRB and that the γ-ray burst (GRB) jet, powered by EAG,iso ~ 1050 erg, had a half-opening angle of ~20, and was misaligned by ~41 from our line of sight. The data are also consistent with a more collimated jet: EAG,iso ~ 1051 erg, q1 2,jet obs ~ ~ 5 , 17 q . This is the most conclusive detection of an off-axis GRB afterglow and the first associated with a BNSM-GW event to date. We use the viewing angle estimates to infer the initial bulk Lorentz factor and true energy release of the burst

Global, regional, and national under-5 mortality, adult mortality, age-specific mortality, and life expectancy, 1970–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

Background: Detailed assessments of mortality patterns, particularly age-specific mortality, represent a crucial input that enables health systems to target interventions to specific populations. Understanding how all-cause mortality has changed with respect to development status can identify exemplars for best practice. To accomplish this, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016 (GBD 2016) estimated age-specific and sex-specific all-cause mortality between 1970 and 2016 for 195 countries and territories and at the subnational level for the five countries with a population greater than 200 million in 2016

Measuring the health-related Sustainable Development Goals in 188 countries: a baseline analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Background In September, 2015, the UN General Assembly established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs specify 17 universal goals, 169 targets, and 230 indicators leading up to 2030. We provide an analysis of 33 health-related SDG indicators based on the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 (GBD 2015). Methods We applied statistical methods to systematically compiled data to estimate the performance of 33 health-related SDG indicators for 188 countries from 1990 to 2015. We rescaled each indicator on a scale from 0 (worst observed value between 1990 and 2015) to 100 (best observed). Indices representing all 33 health-related SDG indicators (health-related SDG index), health-related SDG indicators included in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG index), and health-related indicators not included in the MDGs (non-MDG index) were computed as the geometric mean of the rescaled indicators by SDG target. We used spline regressions to examine the relations between the Socio-demographic Index (SDI, a summary measure based on average income per person, educational attainment, and total fertility rate) and each of the health-related SDG indicators and indices. Findings In 2015, the median health-related SDG index was 59·3 (95% uncertainty interval 56·8–61·8) and varied widely by country, ranging from 85·5 (84·2–86·5) in Iceland to 20·4 (15·4–24·9) in Central African Republic. SDI was a good predictor of the health-related SDG index (r2=0·88) and the MDG index (r2=0·92), whereas the non-MDG index had a weaker relation with SDI (r2=0·79). Between 2000 and 2015, the health-related SDG index improved by a median of 7·9 (IQR 5·0–10·4), and gains on the MDG index (a median change of 10·0 [6·7–13·1]) exceeded that of the non-MDG index (a median change of 5·5 [2·1–8·9]). Since 2000, pronounced progress occurred for indicators such as met need with modern contraception, under-5 mortality, and neonatal mortality, as well as the indicator for universal health coverage tracer interventions. Moderate improvements were found for indicators such as HIV and tuberculosis incidence, minimal changes for hepatitis B incidence took place, and childhood overweight considerably worsened. Interpretation GBD provides an independent, comparable avenue for monitoring progress towards the health-related SDGs. Our analysis not only highlights the importance of income, education, and fertility as drivers of health improvement but also emphasises that investments in these areas alone will not be sufficient. Although considerable progress on the health-related MDG indicators has been made, these gains will need to be sustained and, in many cases, accelerated to achieve the ambitious SDG targets. The minimal improvement in or worsening of health-related indicators beyond the MDGs highlight the need for additional resources to effectively address the expanded scope of the health-related SDGs