42 research outputs found
Characterization of the near-Earth Asteroid 2002NY40
In August 2002, the near-Earth asteroid 2002 NY40, made its closest approach
to the Earth. This provided an opportunity to study a near-Earth asteroid with
a variety of instruments. Several of the telescopes at the Maui Space
Surveillance System were trained at the asteroid and collected adaptive optics
images, photometry and spectroscopy. Analysis of the imagery reveals the
asteroid is triangular shaped with significant self-shadowing. The photometry
reveals a 20-hour period and the spectroscopy shows that the asteroid is a
Q-type
Oxidation of Thiols to Disulfides using an Environmentally âGreenâ Organocatalyst and New Mechanistic Insights
The selective oxidation of thiols to disulfides is an area of great importance in the areas of materials and medicinal chemistry research. The production of polymers, rubber, pharmaceuticals, and the folding of proteins in biological systems all rely on the formation of disulfide bonds. Herein, we introduce a stoichiometric and electrocatalytic method for the oxidation of various pharmaceutically and biologically relevant thiols into their respective disulfides in more environmentally benign solvents such as water and alcohol solvents. The scope of the transformation was evaluated and a detailed mechanistic study involving control experiments, experimental kinetic studies, and computational investigations led to new insights into how the oxidation takes place via an unusual anionic process
Small-molecule inhibitors of ferrochelatase are antiangiogenic agents
Activity of the heme synthesis enzyme ferrochelatase (FECH) is implicated in multiple diseases. In particular, it is a mediator of neovascularization in the eye and thus an appealing therapeutic target for preventing blindness. However, no drug-like direct FECH inhibitors are known. Here, we set out to identify small-molecule inhibitors of FECH as potential therapeutic leads using a high-throughput screening approach to identify potent inhibitors of FECH activity. A structure-activity relationship study of a class of triazolopyrimidinone hits yielded drug-like FECH inhibitors. These compounds inhibit FECH in cells, bind the active site in cocrystal structures, and are antiangiogenic in multiple in vitro assays. One of these promising compounds was antiangiogenic in vivo in a mouse model of choroidal neovascularization. This foundational work may be the basis for new therapeutic agents to combat not only ocular neovascularization but also other diseases characterized by FECH activity
Managerial Power, Stock-Based Compensation, and Firm Performance: Theory and Evidence
We study theoretically and empirically the relation among CEO power, CEO pay and
firm performance. Our theoretical model follows the rent extraction view of CEO compensation
put forward by the managerial power theory. We test our theoretical findings
using the sample of S&P1500 firms. The predicted relation between power and pay is
largely supported. However, the relation between power and firm performance has mixed
support, suggesting that, while the managerial power theory has relevance in explaining
the relation between power and pay, the scope of power needs to be broadened for better
understanding of how managerial power affects firm performance
Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19
IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19.
Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 nonâcritically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022).
INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (nâ=â257), ARB (nâ=â248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; nâ=â10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; nâ=â264) for up to 10 days.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ supportâfree days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes.
RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ supportâfree days among critically ill patients was 10 (â1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (nâ=â231), 8 (â1 to 17) in the ARB group (nâ=â217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (nâ=â231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ supportâfree days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes.
TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570
Decreased Lactobacillus populations after erythromycin treatment hinders the induction of oral tolerance to fed ovalbumin
Oral tolerance is an immunologic hyporesponsiveness to an orally administered
antigen. Probiotics (beneficial intestinal bacteria), T regulatory cells (Tregs), and
dendritic cells (DCs) are all essential for generating tolerance and suppressing immune
responses toward harmless antigens. Antibiotics are commonly prescribed to fight
infections and often necessary for maintaining health, but they can disrupt the normal
intestinal microbial populations. There is increasing epidemiologic evidence that
suggests that antibiotic usage correlates with the development of irritable bowel
disorders, which often result due to a breakdown in immune tolerance. This study
investigated the effect of the antibiotic erythromycin on oral tolerance induction to
ovalbumin (OVA). The results demonstrate that antibiotic treatment prior to exposure to
fed antigen prevents tolerance to that antigen, and this correlated with a reduction in
intestinal Lactobacillus populations. Furthermore, antibiotic treatment resulted in a
significant decrease in the tolerogenic CD11c+/CD11b+/CD8α- MLN DCs independent of
tolerizing treatment.Thesis (M.S.)Department of Biolog
Therapeutic aid to the sexually abused child in the family, a psychological educational perspective
Terapeutiese hulpverlening aan die seksueel gemolesteerde kind binne gesinsverband
vanuit 'n Sielkundige Opvoedkundige perspektief is in hierdie studie
onderneem. 'n Oorsig oor seksuele kindermolestering binne gesinsverband het
getoon dat dit reeds vanaf die vroegste tye voorgekom het en tans kommerwekkende
afmetings aanneem in die Republiek van Suid-Afrika, sonder dat die opvoedkundige
sielkundige as lid van 'n multi-professionele span betrek word by
terapeutiese hulpverlening.
'n Beskrywing van seksuele kindermolestering binne gesinsverband het getoon
dat seksuele kindermolestering verskeie vorme aanneem en dat die oortreders
daarvoor verantwoordelik is dat ouerskap en gesinstrukture ontoereikend verwerklik
word. Dit bied aan die opvoedkundige sielkundige die moontlikheid om
vanwee sy toeganklikheid en professionele deskundigheid as lid van 'n multiprofessionele
span toereikend terapeutiese hulp te verleen aan die seksueel
gemolesteerde kind.
Terapeutiese hulpverlening aan die seksueel gemolesteerde kind binne gesinsverband
is onderneem vanuit 'n Sielkundige Opvoedkundige benadering met relasie
terapie as wyse van hulpverleningThis study investigates therapeutic aid to the child who is sexually abused
by a family member, from the viewpoint of Psychology of Education. An overview
of sexual abuse of children in the family context indicates a long history
of occurence and present statistics show an alarming increase in reported
cases with educational psychologists seldom being included in a multi-discipl
inary thera-peutic team.
A description of sexual abuse of children in the family context suggests that
this may take different forms and the perpetrators are responsible for the
breakdown in parenting and family structures. Educational psychologists are,
because of their professional expertise and accessibility, able to offer
thera-peutic aid to the sexually abused child as a member of a multi-professional
team. Therapeutic aid to the sexually abused child in the family
context is undertaken with Relationship Therapy as a medium of aidPsychology of EducationM.Ed. (Sielkundige Opvoedkunde