Stellar and Gaseous Nuclear Disks Observed in Nearby (U)LIRGs

We present near-infrared integral field spectroscopy of the central kiloparsec of 17 nearby luminous and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies undergoing major mergers. These observations were taken with OSIRIS assisted by the Keck I and II Adaptive Optics systems, providing spatial resolutions of a few tens of parsecs. The resulting kinematic maps reveal gas disks in at least 16 out of 19 nuclei and stellar disks in 11 out of 11 nuclei observed in these galaxy merger systems. In our late-stages mergers, these disks are young (stellar ages $<30$ Myr) and likely formed as gas disks which became unstable to star formation during the merger. On average, these disks have effective radii of a few hundred parsecs, masses between $10^{8}$ and $10^{10} M_{Sun}$, and $v/\sigma$ between 1 and 5. These disks are similar to those created in high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations of gas-rich galaxy mergers, and favor short coalescence times for binary black holes. The few galaxies in our sample in earlier stages of mergers have disks which are larger ($r_{eff}\sim200-1800$ pc) and likely are remnants of the galactic disks that have not yet been completely disrupted by the merger.Comment: accepted for publication in Ap

Shocked Gas in IRAS F17207-0014: ISM Collisions and Outflows

We combine optical and near-infrared AO-assisted integral field observations of the merging ULIRG IRAS F17207-0014 from the Wide-Field Spectrograph (WiFeS) and Keck/OSIRIS. The optical emission line ratios [N II]/H$\alpha$, [S II]/H$\alpha$, and [O I]/H$\alpha$ reveal a mixing sequence of shocks present throughout the galaxy, with the strongest contributions coming from large radii (up to 100% at $\sim$5 kpc in some directions), suggesting galactic-scale winds. The near-infrared observations, which have approximately 30 times higher spatial resolution, show that two sorts of shocks are present in the vicinity of the merging nuclei: low-level shocks distributed throughout our field-of-view evidenced by an H$_{2}$/Br$\gamma$ line ratio of $\sim$0.6-4, and strong collimated shocks with a high H$_{2}$/Br$\gamma$ line ratio of $\sim$4-8, extending south from the two nuclear disks approximately 400 pc ($\sim$0.5 arcsec). Our data suggest that the diffuse shocks are caused by the collision of the interstellar media associated with the two progenitor galaxies and the strong shocks trace the base of a collimated outflow coming from the nucleus of one of the two disks.Comment: accepted to MNRA

Following Black Hole Scaling Relations Through Gas-Rich Mergers

We present black hole mass measurements from kinematic modeling of high-spatial resolution integral field spectroscopy of the inner regions of 9 nearby (ultra-)luminous infrared galaxies in a variety of merger stages. These observations were taken with OSIRIS and laser guide star adaptive optics on the Keck I and Keck II telescopes, and reveal gas and stellar kinematics inside the spheres of influence of these supermassive black holes. We find that this sample of black holes are overmassive ($\sim10^{7-9}$ M$_{Sun}$) compared to the expected values based on black hole scaling relations, and suggest that the major epoch of black hole growth occurs in early stages of a merger, as opposed to during a final episode of quasar-mode feedback. The black hole masses presented are the dynamical masses enclosed in $\sim$25pc, and could include gas which is gravitationally bound to the black hole but has not yet lost sufficient angular momentum to be accreted. If present, this gas could in principle eventually fuel AGN feedback or be itself blown out from the system.Comment: accepted to Ap

Use of Gastric Bypass Surgery for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Over the past decade, the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has increased significantly. Evidence has shown that a clear association exists between obesity and diabetes development. This association has inspired researchers to explore bariatric surgery as an option for diabetes management and possible disease reversal. Improvement of T2DM using Roux-En-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) is thought to result from from a combination of weight loss, decreased caloric intake, hormonal changes and rearrangement of the gastrointestinal anatomy. Positive outcomes resulting from the procedure include decreased mortality rates, normalization of HbA1c levels, decreased dependence on diabetic medications, and increased insulin sensitivity. Gastric bypass, specifically RYGB, appears to be a promising treatment for T2DM. Due to possible complications and limited research in some populations, treatment should be restricted to patients with a BMI \u3e 35 with concurrent diabetes. Patients with diabetes who qualify should be counseled on the potential benefits of gastric bypass as a viable option for diabetes management

Nebraska Mentoring Programs 2015 to 2018

Prior research has demonstrated that mentoring may have promising outcomes for youth engaged in, or thought to be at risk for, delinquent behavior. The Community-based Juvenile Services Aid Program specifically outlines funding activities designed to reduce delinquent behavior. Mentoring specifically falls under “services that will positively impact juveniles and families in the juvenile justice system.” There are four different mentoring models funded, at least partially, by the Nebraska Community-based Aid fund: community-based, school-based, justice-based and Youth Initiated Mentoring™. This report is a first glance at the use of mentoring programs funded through Community-based Aid (CBA) in Nebraska and how these programs impact future law violations. From July 1, 2015 through March 2018, a total of eleven mentoring programs were funded through CBA funds. A total of 866 cases were referred to a mentoring program, with roughly 714 participating. Approximately 430 (60.2%) were matched to a mentor during this time. Roughly 75% of the time, youth are identified and referred to a CBA mentoring program by their school or through the county diversion program. Different patterns emerged for the different mentoring models. Community-based and school-based programs had more referrals for females than males, whereas justice-based and YIM™ had a higher percentage of referrals for males than females. Youth mentored through community-based mentoring programs were significantly younger than justice-involved youth. Referrals for Black/African Americans and Native Americans were over-represented as compared to the population of African American youth and Native American in Nebraska; whereas referrals for White youth were under-represented as compared to the population of White youth in Nebraska. Overall, mentoring appears to be operating as the Nebraska legislature intended, at this first examination – as a means to slow entry into the juvenile justice system. Less than 10% of youth (27 youth) committed a law violation following discharge from the program, while 16 youth (5.7%) had a law violation during the time they were participating in a mentoring program. While initial results are promising, a comparison group would be a more definitive way to determine whether it is the impact of the mentoring program or some other attribute. The length of time that a youth is matched to a mentor is critical for a successful mentoring program. Our results demonstrate that match length significantly predicted whether a youth had a law violation following discharge from the program. As a result, programs must pay attention to factors that lead to longer matches. Gender matching did not appear to impact match length, however there were relatively few cross-gender cases to compare. While the age of the mentor does not impact the length of the match, the age of the mentee does. Our results also indicate that matches where mentee and mentor race/ethnicity match have statistically longer match lengths than cross-race/ethnicity matches

Outpatient antibiotic use in Dutch infants after 10-valent pneumococcal vaccine introduction: a time-series analysis.

This population-based cohort study assesses the impact of switching from a 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) to a 10-valent PCV on outpatient antibiotic use in Dutch infants, and whether geographical vaccination coverage modifies this association

The spectrum of resistance in SR/CR mice: the critical role of chemoattraction in the cancer/leukocyte interaction

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Spontaneous regression/complete resistance (SR/CR) mice are a unique colony of mice that possess an inheritable, natural cancer resistance mediated primarily by innate cellular immunity. This resistance is effective against sarcoma 180 (S180) at exceptionally high doses and these mice remain healthy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this study, we challenged SR/CR mice with additional lethal transplantable mouse cancer cell lines to determine their resistance spectrum. The ability of these transplantable cancer cell lines to induce leukocyte infiltration was quantified and the percentage of different populations of responding immune cells was determined using flow cytometry.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In comparison to wild type (WT) mice, SR/CR mice showed significantly higher resistance to all cancer cell lines tested. However, SR/CR mice were more sensitive to MethA sarcoma (MethA), B16 melanoma (B16), LL/2 lung carcinoma (LL/2) and J774 lymphoma (J774) than to sarcoma 180 (S180) and EL-4 lymphoma (EL-4). Further mechanistic studies revealed that this lower resistance to MethA and LL/2 was due to the inability of these cancer cells to attract SR/CR leukocytes, leading to tumor cell escape from resistance mechanism. This escape mechanism was overcome by co-injection with S180, which could attract SR/CR leukocytes allowing the mice to resist higher doses of MethA and LL/2. S180-induced cell-free ascites fluid (CFAF) co-injection recapitulated the results obtained with live S180 cells, suggesting that this chemoattraction by cancer cells is mediated by diffusible molecules. We also tested for the first time whether SR/CR mice were able to resist additional cancer cell lines prior to S180 exposure. We found that SR/CR mice had an innate resistance against EL-4 and J774.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results suggest that the cancer resistance in SR/CR mice is based on at least two separate processes: leukocyte migration/infiltration to the site of cancer cells and recognition of common surface properties on cancer cells. The infiltration of SR/CR leukocytes was based on both the innate ability of leukocytes to respond to chemotactic signals produced by cancer cells and on whether cancer cells produced these chemotactic signals. We found that some cancer cells could escape from SR/CR resistance because they did not induce infiltration of SR/CR leukocytes. However, if infiltration of leukocytes was induced by co-injection with chemotactic factors, these same cancer cells could be effectively recognized and killed by SR/CR leukocytes.</p

Robust Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses to Pertussis in Adults After a First Acellular Booster Vaccination

IntroductionTo reduce the pertussis disease burden, nowadays several countries recommend acellular pertussis (aP) booster vaccinations for adults. We aimed to evaluate the immunogenicity of a first adult aP booster vaccination at childbearing age.MethodsIn 2014, healthy adults aged 25–29 years (n = 105), vaccinated during infancy with four doses of whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccine, received a Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and aP) booster vaccination. Blood samples were collected longitudinally pre-booster, 2 and 4 weeks, and 1 year and 2 years post-booster. Tdap vaccine antigen-specific antibody levels and memory B- and T-cell responses were determined at all time points. Antibody persistence was calculated using a bi-exponential decay model.ResultsUpon booster vaccination, the IgG levels specific to all Tdap vaccine antigens were significantly increased. After an initial rapid decline in the first year, PT-IgG antibody decay was limited (15%) in the second year post-booster. The duration of a median level of PT-IgG ≥20 IU/mL was estimated to be approximately 9 years. Vaccine antigen-specific memory B- and T-cell numbers increased and remained at high levels although a significant decline was observed after 4 weeks post-booster. However, Th1, Th2, and Th17 cytokine production remained above pre-booster levels for 2 years.ConclusionThe Tdap booster vaccination in wP-primed Dutch adults induced robust long-term humoral and cellular immune responses to pertussis antigens. Furthermore, PT-IgG levels are predicted to remain above the presumed protective cut-off for at least 9 years which might deserves further attention in evaluating the current recommendation to revaccinate women during every new pregnancy