Correspondence - Extended Library Hours

Correspondence regarding increasing library weekend hours. Includes a reports entitled Cost Estimate in Response to ASG Resolution 89-4-F outlining costs of guards, students, and library staff; Friday & Saturday Evenings Turnstile Count for the period October 27 to November 12; Finals Week Patrons Between 5:00 - 10:00 PM for the 1988-89 school year; Circulation Weekend Statistics for the period October 27 to November 12, 1989; and Reference Weekend Statistics for the period October 27 to November 12, 1989

The relation of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and regulatory t-cells (Tregs) with HPV persistence in HIV-Infected and HIV-Uninfected women

Other than CD4+ count, the immunologic factors that underlie the relationship of HIV/AIDS with persistent oncogenic HPV (oncHPV) and cervical cancer are not well understood. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and regulatory T-cells (Tregs) are of particular interest. pDCs have both effector and antigen presenting activity and, in HIV-positive patients, low pDC levels are associated with opportunistic infections. Tregs downregulate immune responses, and are present at high levels in HIV-positives. The current pilot study shows for the first time that low pDC and high Treg levels may be significantly associated with oncHPV persistence in both HIV-positive and HIV-negative women. Larger studies are now warranted

Relation of statin use with non-melanoma skin cancer: prospective results from the Women\u27s Health Initiative.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between statin use and non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is unclear with conflicting findings in literature. Data from the Women\u27s Health Initiative (WHI) Observational Study and WHI Clinical Trial were used to investigate the prospective relationship between statin use and NMSC in non-Hispanic white (NHW) postmenopausal women. METHODS: The WHI study enrolled women aged 50-79 years at 40 US centres. Among 133 541 NHW participants, 118 357 with no cancer history at baseline and complete medication/covariate data comprised the analytic cohort. The association of statin use (baseline, overall as a time-varying variable, duration, type, potency, lipophilicity) and NMSC incidence was determined using random-effects logistic regression models. RESULTS: Over a mean of 10.5 years of follow-up, we identified 11 555 NMSC cases. Compared with participants with no statin use, use of any statin at baseline was associated with significantly increased NMSC incidence (adjusted odds ratio (ORadj) 1.21; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.07-1.35)). In particular, lovastatin (OR 1.52; 95% CI: 1.08-2.16), simvastatin (OR 1.38; 95% CI: 1.12-1.69), and lipophilic statins (OR 1.39; 95% CI: 1.18-1.64) were associated with higher NMSC risk. Low and high, but not medium, potency statins were associated with higher NMSC risk. No significant effect modification of the statin-NMSC relationship was found for age, BMI, smoking, solar irradiation, vitamin D use, and skin cancer history. CONCLUSIONS: Use of statins, particularly lipophilic statins, was associated with increased NMSC risk in postmenopausal white women in the WHI cohort. The lack of duration-effect relationship points to possible residual confounding. Additional prospective research should further investigate this relationship.British Journal of Cancer advance online publication, 7 January 2016; doi:10.1038/bjc.2015.376 www.bjcancer.com

Thermally Pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch Star Models and Globular Cluster Planetary Nebulae I: The Model

Thermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch models of globular cluster stars are calculated using a synthetic model with the goal of reproducing the chemical composition, core masses and other observational parameters of the four known globular cluster planetary nebulae as well as roughly matching the overall cluster properties. The evolution of stars with an enhanced helium abundance ($Y$) and blue stragglers are modeled. New pre-thermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch mass-losses for red giant branch and early asymptotic giant branch stars are calculated from the Padova stellar evolution models \citep{berta,bertb}. The new mass-losses are calculated to get the relative differences in mass-losses due to enhanced helium abundances. The global properties of the globular cluster planetary nebula are reproduced with these models. The metallicity, mass of the central star, overall metallicities, helium abundance and the nebular mass are matched to the observational values. Globular cluster planetary nebulae JaFu 1 and JaFu 2 are reproduced {\it by assuming progenitor stars} with masses near the typical main sequence turn-offs of globular clusters and with enhanced helium abundances very similar to the enhancements inferred from fitting isochrones to globular cluster colour-magnitude diagrams. The globular cluster PN GJJC-1 can be roughly fit by a progenitor star with very extreme helium enhancement ($Y\approx0.40$) near the turn-off producing a central star with the same mass as inferred by observations and a very low nebular mass. The abundances and core mass of planetary nebula Ps 1 and its central star (K648) are reproduced by a blue straggler model. However, it turned out to be impossible to reproduce its nebular mass and it is concluded some kind of binary scenario may be needed to explain K648.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Insulin-Like Growth Factor Axis and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in Women

IGF-I shares structural homology and in vitro metabolic activity with insulin. Laboratory models suggest that IGF-I and its binding proteins IGFBP-1 and IGFBP-2 have potentially beneficial effects on diabetes risk, whereas IGFBP-3 may have adverse effects. We therefore conducted a prospective nested case-control investigation of incident diabetes (n = 742 case subjects matched 1:1 to control subjects) and its associations with IGF-axis protein levels in the Nurses’ Health Study, a cohort of middle-aged women. The median time to diabetes was 9 years. Statistical analyses were adjusted for multiple risk factors, including insulin and C-reactive protein. Diabetes risk was fivefold lower among women with baseline IGFBP-2 levels in the top versus bottom quintile (odds ratio [OR]q5–q1 = 0.17 [95% CI 0.08–0.35]; P trend < 0.0001) and was also negatively associated with IGFBP-1 levels (ORq5–q1 = 0.37 [0.18–0.73]; P trend = 0.0009). IGFBP-3 was positively associated with diabetes (ORq5–q1 = 2.05 [1.20–3.51]; P trend = 0.002). Diabetes was not associated with total IGF-I levels, but free IGF-I and diabetes had a significant association that varied (P interaction = 0.003) by insulin levels above the median (ORq5–q1 = 0.48 [0.26–0.90]; P trend = 0.0001) versus below the median (ORq5–q1 = 2.52 [1.05–6.06]; P trend < 0.05). Thus, this prospective study found strong associations of incident diabetes with baseline levels of three IGFBPs and free IGF-I, consistent with hypotheses that the IGF axis might influence diabetes risk

The Effects of Opiate Use and Hepatitis C Virus Infection on Risk of Diabetes Mellitus in the Womenʼs Interagency HIV Study

Opiate use is common in HIV- and hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected individuals, however its contribution to the risk of diabetes mellitus is not well understood

The distribution of hepatitis B virus exposure and infection in a population-based sample of U.S. Hispanic adults: HEPATOLOGY, Vol. XX, No. X, 2015

Little is known regarding the prevalence and distribution of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in United States (US) Hispanics/Latinos. We sought to determine the prevalence of HBV exposure (anti-HBc), active HBV infection (HBsAg), and vaccine-induced HBV immunity (anti-HBs) in US Hispanics/Latinos and consider how these data inform clinical screening recommendations. Our analysis included 11,999 women and men of the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), a population-based, cross-sectional household survey in four urban communities (Bronx, NY; Miami, FL; Chicago, IL; and San Diego, CA) of US civilian, non-institutionalized self-identifying Hispanic/Latino adults age 18–74. Vaccine-induced immunity was defined as detection of anti-HBs but not anti-HBc. However, if anti-HBc were present it was considered evidence of exposure to HBV, with detection of HBsAg used to distinguish those with active HBV infection. The mean age was 45.7 years and 7,153 were women. Vaccine-induced immunity was greatest among those aged 18–29 years (60.2% in women, 54% in men) and decreased with increasing age, regardless of country of birth. The prevalence of active HBV infection was 0.29% (95% CI: 0.19–0.43%), but varied by country of birth. Those born in the Dominican Republic had the highest prevalence of HBV exposure (20.3% in women, 29.7% in men) and active HBV infection (0.95%)

Serum IGFBP-2 and Risk of Atypical Hyperplasia of the Breast

Atypical hyperplasia of the breast (AH) is associated with increased risk of subsequent invasive breast cancer, yet little is known about the etiology of AH. Insulin-like growth factor binding protein 2 (IGFBP-2) may contribute to the development of AH due to its proliferative effects on mammary tissue. We conducted a nested case-control study of postmenopausal women enrolled in Women’s Health Initiative-Clinical Trial. Cases were 275 women who developed incident AH during follow-up, individually (1 : 1) matched to controls. Levels of IGFBP-2 were determined from fasting serum collected at baseline. Multivariable conditional logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios for the association of IGFBP-2 with risk of AH. Serum IGFBP-2 was associated with a nonsignificant decrease in risk for AH, when comparing the highest quartile to lowest quartile (OR = 0.65; 95% CI = 0.32–1.31). This decrease in risk was most evident when analyses were restricted to nondiabetic, nonusers of hormone therapy (OR = 0.33, 95% CI = 0.13–0.86, ptrend = 0.06) and nondiabetic women who were overweight or obese (OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.18–1.03, ptrend = 0.05). Results from this study provide some support for an inverse association between serum IGFBP2 levels and risk of AH, particularly in nondiabetic women who are overweight or obese. Further studies are required to confirm these results

Algal Toxins Alter Copepod Feeding Behavior

Using digital holographic cinematography, we quantify and compare the feeding behavior of free-swimming copepods, Acartia tonsa, on nutritional prey (Storeatula major) to that occurring during exposure to toxic and non-toxic strains of Karenia brevis and Karlodinium veneficum. These two harmful algal species produce polyketide toxins with different modes of action and potency. We distinguish between two different beating modes of the copepod’s feeding appendages–a “sampling beating” that has short durations (<100 ms) and involves little fluid entrainment and a longer duration “grazing beating” that persists up to 1200 ms and generates feeding currents. The durations of both beating modes have log-normal distributions. Without prey, A. tonsa only samples the environment at low frequency. Upon introduction of non-toxic food, it increases its sampling time moderately and the grazing period substantially. On mono algal diets for either of the toxic dinoflagellates, sampling time fraction is high but the grazing is very limited. A. tonsa demonstrates aversion to both toxic algal species. In mixtures of S. major and the neurotoxin producing K. brevis, sampling and grazing diminish rapidly, presumably due to neurological effects of consuming brevetoxins while trying to feed on S. major. In contrast, on mixtures of cytotoxin producing K. veneficum, both behavioral modes persist, indicating that intake of karlotoxins does not immediately inhibit the copepod’s grazing behavior. These findings add critical insight into how these algal toxins may influence the copepod’s feeding behavior, and suggest how some harmful algal species may alter top-down control exerted by grazers like copepods