Functionally Fractal Urban Networks: Geospatial Co-location and Homogeneity of Infrastructure

Just as natural river networks are known to be globally self-similar, recent research has shown that human-built urban networks, such as road networks, are also functionally self-similar, and have fractal topology with power-law node-degree distributions (p(k) = a k). Here we show, for the first time, that other urban infrastructure networks (sanitary and storm-water sewers), which sustain flows of critical services for urban citizens, also show scale-free functional topologies. For roads and drainage networks, we compared functional topological metrics, derived from high-resolution data (70,000 nodes) for a large US city providing services to about 900,000 citizens over an area of about 1,000 km2. For the whole city and for different sized subnets, we also examined these networks in terms of geospatial co-location (roads and sewers). Our analyses reveal functional topological homogeneity among all the subnets within the city, in spite of differences in several urban attributes. The functional topologies of all subnets of both infrastructure types resemble power-law distributions, with tails becoming increasingly power-law as the subnet area increases. Our findings hold implications for assessing the vulnerability of these critical infrastructure networks to cascading shocks based on spatial interdependency, and for improved design and maintenance of urban infrastructure networks

The PRECISE-DYAD protocol: linking maternal and infant health trajectories in sub-Saharan Africa

Background: PRECISE-DYAD is an observational cohort study of mother-child dyads running in urban and rural communities in The Gambia and Kenya. The cohort is being followed for two years and includes uncomplicated pregnancies and those that suffered pregnancy hypertension, fetal growth restriction, preterm birth, and/or stillbirth. Methods: The PRECISE-DYAD study will follow up ~4200 women and their children recruited into the original PRECISE study. The study will add to the detailed pregnancy information and samples in PRECISE, collecting additional biological samples and clinical information on both the maternal and child health. Women will be asked about both their and their child’s health, their diets as well as undertaking a basic cardiology assessment. Using a case-control approach, some mothers will be asked about their mental health, their experiences of care during labour in the healthcare facility. In a sub-group, data on financial expenditure during antenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal periods will also be collected. Child development will be assessed using a range of tools, including neurodevelopment assessments, and evaluating their home environment and quality of life. In the event developmental milestones are not met, additional assessments to assess vision and their risk of autism spectrum disorders will be conducted. Finally, a personal environmental exposure model for the full cohort will be created based on air and water quality data, combined with geographical, demographic, and behavioural variables. Conclusions: The PRECISE-DYAD study will provide a greater epidemiological and mechanistic understanding of health and disease pathways in two sub-Saharan African countries, following healthy and complicated pregnancies. We are seeking additional funding to maintain this cohort and to gain an understanding of the effects of pregnancies outcome on longer-term health trajectories in mothers and their children.</ns4:p

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in pregnant women in Kilifi, Kenya from March 2020 to March 2022

BackgroundSeroprevalence studies are an alternative approach to estimating the extent of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and the evolution of the pandemic in different geographical settings. We aimed to determine the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence from March 2020 to March 2022 in a rural and urban setting in Kilifi County, Kenya.MethodsWe obtained representative random samples of stored serum from a pregnancy cohort study for the period March 2020 to March 2022 and tested for antibodies against the spike protein using a qualitative SARS-CoV-2 ELISA kit (Wantai, total antibodies). All positive samples were retested for anti-SARS-CoV-2 anti-nucleocapsid antibodies (Euroimmun, ELISA kits, NCP, qualitative, IgG) and anti-spike protein antibodies (Euroimmun, ELISA kits, QuantiVac; quantitative, IgG).ResultsA total of 2,495 (of 4,703 available) samples were tested. There was an overall trend of increasing seropositivity from a low of 0% [95% CI 0–0.06] in March 2020 to a high of 89.4% [95% CI 83.36–93.82] in Feb 2022. Of the Wantai test-positive samples, 59.7% [95% CI 57.06–62.34] tested positive by the Euroimmun anti-SARS-CoV-2 NCP test and 37.4% [95% CI 34.83–40.04] tested positive by the Euroimmun anti-SARS-CoV-2 QuantiVac test. No differences were observed between the urban and rural hospital but villages adjacent to the major highway traversing the study area had a higher seroprevalence.ConclusionAnti-SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence rose rapidly, with most of the population exposed to SARS-CoV-2 within 23 months of the first cases. The high cumulative seroprevalence suggests greater population exposure to SARS-CoV-2 than that reported from surveillance data

Functional characterization of microRNAs in cerebral cortical development

The cerebral cortex is one of the most complex structures of the organism whose development requires a tight regulation of cellular events. Generation of cortical neurons, i.e. projection neurons and interneurons, relies on the completion of cell proliferation, cell cycle exit, cell migration and neuronal differentiation. Progenitors of projection neuron are born in the germinative zone of the cortex and migrate by successive waves to the cortical plate where they are organized into six neuronal layers. Furthermore, radial migration is divided into successive phases characterized by highly dynamic morphological changes. Cell proliferation or neuronal migration defects happening during cortical development are often associated with neurological disorders characterized by mental retardation, epilepsy or lissencephaly. A better understanding of the mechanisms underlying neuronal generation and neuronal migration could contribute to the elaboration of new strategies for tackling these diseases.In the past few years, the discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) opened new avenues to understand mechanisms that finely control gene expression. miRNAs are small non coding RNAs that repress gene expression through specific mechanisms. In that way, miRNAs regulate more than sixty percent of genes in the genome and are thus important for the development of different tissues, including the brain.The aim of our work was to characterize miRNAs functions during cortical development and more particularly during neuronal migration. We showed that loss of miRNAs in progenitors of the telencephalon impaired proliferation, differentiation, survival and migration. We also showed that some defects observed upon Dicer ablation resulted from an increased cell death. In addition, we showed that Cajal-Retzius cells formation and migration were altered upon Dicer ablation, and we identified three members of the LIM-homeodomain family that were misregulated upon Dicer deletion. Finally, we showed that miR-22 and miR-124 directly controlled neuronal migration by targeting CoREST/Dcx signaling pathway. In conclusion, we demonstrated that miRNAs were crucial for cortical development

MicroRNAs tune cerebral cortical neurogenesis.

peer reviewedMicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs that promote post-transcriptional silencing of genes involved in a wide range of developmental and pathological processes. It is estimated that most protein-coding genes harbor miRNA recognition sequences in their 3' untranslated region and are thus putative targets. While functions of miRNAs have been extensively characterized in various tissues, their multiple contributions to cerebral cortical development are just beginning to be unveiled. This review aims to outline the evidence collected to date demonstrating a role for miRNAs in cerebral corticogenesis with a particular emphasis on pathways that control the birth and maturation of functional excitatory projection neurons

Elongator orchestre la neurogenèse cérébrale

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Vladavina slučajnosti u repertoarnoj politici hrvatskih kazališta

(*, p < 0.05; **, p < 0.01).<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Benfotiamine, a synthetic S-acyl thiamine derivative, has different mechanisms of action and a different pharmacological profile than lipid-soluble thiamine disulfide derivatives"</p><p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2210/8/10</p><p>BMC Pharmacology 2008;8():10-10.</p><p>Published online 12 Jun 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2435522.</p><p></p

Benfotiamine, a synthetic S-acyl thiamine derivative, has different mechanisms of action and a different pharmacological profile than lipid-soluble thiamine disulfide derivatives-2

(*, p < 0.05; **, p < 0.01).<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Benfotiamine, a synthetic S-acyl thiamine derivative, has different mechanisms of action and a different pharmacological profile than lipid-soluble thiamine disulfide derivatives"</p><p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2210/8/10</p><p>BMC Pharmacology 2008;8():10-10.</p><p>Published online 12 Jun 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2435522.</p><p></p