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Mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in infancy: an MRI study
Background: It is generally agreed that the human brain is responsive to environmental influences, and that the male brain may be particularly sensitive to early adversity. However, this is largely based on retrospective studies of older children and adolescents exposed to extreme environments in childhood. Less is understood about how normative variations in parent-child interactions are associated with the development of the infant brain in typical settings.
Method: To address this, we used magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the relationship between observational measures of mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in a community sample of 3-6 month old infants (N=39). In addition, we examined whether this relationship differed in male and female infants.
Results: We found that lower maternal sensitivity was correlated with smaller subcortical grey matter volumes in the whole sample, and that this was similar in both sexes. However, male infants who showed greater levels of positive communication and engagement during early interactions had smaller cerebellar volumes.
Conclusion These preliminary findings suggest that variations in mother-infant interaction dimensions are associated with differences in infant brain development. Although the study is cross-sectional and causation cannot be inferred, the findings reveal a dynamic interaction between brain and environment that may be important when considering interventions to optimize infant outcomes
Astrocytes Optimize the Synaptic Transmission of Information
Chemical synapses transmit information via the release of neurotransmitter-filled vesicles from the presynaptic terminal. Using computational modeling, we predict that the limited availability of neurotransmitter resources in combination with the spontaneous release of vesicles limits the maximum degree of enhancement of synaptic transmission. This gives rise to an optimal tuning that depends on the number of active zones. There is strong experimental evidence that astrocytes that enwrap synapses can modulate the probabilities of vesicle release through bidirectional signaling and hence regulate synaptic transmission. For low-fidelity hippocampal synapses, which typically have only one or two active zones, the predicted optimal values lie close to those determined by experimentally measured astrocytic feedback, suggesting that astrocytes optimize synaptic transmission of information
Ambient air pollution exposure and risk of chronic kidney disease: A systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis
Ambient air pollution has been identified as one of the leading causes of global burden of disease. The relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) has stimulated increasing scientific interest in the past few years. However, evidence from human epidemiological studies is still limited and inconsistent. We performed an updated systematic review and meta-analysis to clarify the potential association comprehensively. Selected electronic databases were searched for related English language studies until March 1, 2020 with a final follow-up in December 31, 2020. Risk of bias assessment for individual studies were assessed using the OHAT (Office of Health Assessment and Translation) risk-of-bias rating tool. Confidence rating and level-of-evidence conclusions were developed for bodies of evidence for a given ambient air pollutant. Summary effect estimates were calculated using random-effects meta-analyses when three or more studies are identified for the same air pollutant–CKD combination. A total of 13 studies were finally identified in our study. The meta-analytic estimates (ORs) for risk of CKD were 1.15 (95% CI: 1.07, 1.24) for each 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5, 1.25 (95% CI: 1.11, 1.40) for each 10 μg/m3 increase in PM10, 1.10 (95% CI: 1.03, 1.17) for each 10 ppb increase in NO2, 1.06 (95% CI: 0.98, 1.15) for each 1 ppb increase in SO2 and 1.04 (95% CI: 1.00, 1.08) for each 0.1 ppm increase in CO, respectively. The level of evidence was appraised as moderate for four of the five tested air pollutant–CKD combinations using an adaptation of the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) tool. In conclusion, this study suggests that certain ambient air pollutant exposure was significantly associated with an increased risk of CKD. Given the limitations, the results of this study should be interpreted with caution, and further well-designed epidemiological studies are needed to draw a definite evidence of a causal relationship
Origin and transformation of ambient volatile organic compounds during a dust-to-haze episode in northwest China
202008 bcrcVersion of RecordPublishe
Evaluation and characterization of volatile air toxics indoors in a heavy polluted city of northwestern China in wintertime
202209 bcfcAccepted ManuscriptOthersNational Key Research and Development Program of China; National Science Foundation of China; Key Project of International Cooperation of the Chinese Academy of SciencesPublishe
Development and application of photocatalytic coating for roadside NOx mitigation in Hong Kong
202307 bcwhNot applicableRGCOthersOve Arup & Partners Hong Kong LimitedEarly release24 month
Source apportionment of VOCs and their impacts on surface ozone in an industry city of Baoji, Northwestern China
2017-2018 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journal201805 bcrcVersion of RecordPublishe
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