The association between serum phosphorus and common carotid artery intima–media thickness in ischemic stroke patients

PurposeAn elevated concentration of phosphorus is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Common carotid artery intima–media thickness (cIMT) is an imaging marker of atherosclerosis. However, data on the relationship between phosphorus and cIMT in ischemic stroke are scarce. We aimed to evaluate the association between serum phosphorus levels and cIMT in patients who had experienced ischemic stroke.Patients and methodsA total of 1,450 ischemic stroke patients were enrolled. Participants were divided into four groups (quartiles) according to baseline serum phosphorus level. Carotid atherosclerosis was identified by measurement of cIMT; abnormal cIMT was defined as a maximum cIMT or mean cIMT ≥ 1 mm. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to assess the association between serum phosphorus level and the presence of abnormal cIMT.ResultsIn the multivariable adjusted analysis, falling into the highest quartile for serum phosphorus (Q4) was associated with a 2.00-fold increased risk of having abnormal maximum cIMT [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.00; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.44–2.79] and a 1.76-fold increased risk of having abnormal mean cIMT (adjusted OR 1.76; 95% CI 1.22–2.53) in comparison to Q1. Furthermore, the association between serum phosphorus and abnormal cIMT was confirmed in analyses treating serum phosphorus as a continuous variable and in subgroup analyses.ConclusionIn acute ischemic stroke patients, baseline elevated serum phosphorus level was found to be independently associated with carotid atherosclerosis, as measured by cIMT

上海都市文化研究 = Shanghai urban cultural studies

上海正在成為一個全球城市，都市空間的巨大變化不僅改 變 了城市的外貌，同時也影響了人們的日常生活。上海都市空間的急速擴展，是以超乎通常現代化的發展觀念和手段驅動的，這一過程混雜了合理的功能性考慮和極富幻想的想象。 在演講中，講者涉及當代上海都市文化中的全球化與本地化關係中的複雜因素，以及租界的半殖民地經驗與本地知識重建的關係。值得一提的是，上海本地知識的重建是在消費主義的語境中片面展開的。專業管理階層對空間的需求很少被質疑或拒絕，國際商務人士的“訴求”在上海形成全球化都市的過程中進一步被合理化、自然化為上海發展成為全球性的大都市的先決條件。 Shanghai is gradually becoming a global city. The great transformation of the urban space not only changes the outlook of the city, but also influences the daily life of the ordinary people. The rapid expansion of urban space in Shanghai is driven by the over-modernized concept and means, and the process of the expansion mingles with the rationally functional consideration and dreamlike imagination. In my talk, I try to deal with the complicated factors of globalization and localization appearing in the contemporary Shanghai urban culture, and to relate the semi-colonial experience to the reconstruction process of the local knowledge. It is note-worthy that this reconstruction of the local knowledge is likely to succeed only in the context of consumerism. The demand of urban space from the professional management class is rarely questioned or refused, and the requirements of international businessmen are probably rationalized or naturalized as the prerequisites of Shanghai ?s becoming a global city in the process of turning Shanghai into a globalized metropolitan

The potential role of 'Candidatus Microthrix parvicella' in phosphorus removal during sludge bulking in two full-scale enhanced biological phosphorus removal plants

We investigated the bacterial community compositions and phosphorus removal performance under sludge bulking and non-bulking conditions in two biological wastewater treatment systems (conventional A(2)/O (anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic) and inverted A(2)/O (anoxic/anaerobic/aerobic) processes) receiving the same raw wastewater. Sludge bulking resulted in significant shift in bacterial compositions from Proteobacteria dominance to Actinobacteria dominance, characterized by the significant presence of filamentous 'Candidatus Microthrix parvicella'. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis revealed that the relative abundance of 'Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis', a key polyphosphate-accumulating organism responsible for phosphorus removal, with respect to 16s rRNA genes of total bacteria was 0.8 and 0.7%, respectively, for the conventional and inverted A(2)/O systems when sludge bulking occurred, which increased to 8.2 and 12.3% during the non-bulking period. However, the total phosphorus removal performance during the bulking period (2-week average: 97 +/- 1 and 96 +/- 1%, respectively) was not adversely affected comparable to that during the non-bulking period (2-week average: 96 +/- 1 and 96 +/- 1%, respectively). Neisser staining revealed the presence of large polyphosphate granules in 'Candidatus Microthrix parvicella', suggesting that this microbial group might have been responsible for phosphorus removal during the sludge bulking period when 'Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis' was excluded from the systems

Recent Seasonal Spatiotemporal Variations in Alpine Glacier Surface Elevation in the Pamir

Climate change can lead to seasonal surface elevation variations in alpine glaciers. This study first uses DEM (Digital Elevation Model) of Pamir glaciers to develop a denoising model for laser altimetry of ICESat-2 footprints, which reduces the standard deviation of the differences between ICESat-2 footprints and corresponding datum DEM from 13.9 to 3.6 m. Second, the study constructs a calibration processing model for solving the problem that laser footprints obtained at different times have inconsistent plane positions. We calculates plane position and elevation differences between the two laser footprints in the local area of 0.05 × 0.05° from 2018 to 2021. The elevations constructed by laser footprints shows a strong correlation with the datum elevation over the different periods, and effectively preserve the time-series variation information of glacier surface elevation (GSE). Based on these two models, the spatiotemporal variations of the surface elevation of the Pamir glaciers is established as a function of seasons. There are three main conclusions: (1) The GSE in the Pamir increased slightly from 2018 to 2021 at an average rate of +0.02 ± 0.01 m/year. The time series with elevation increase was located exactly on the glacial ablation zone, and the time series with elevation decrease occurred on the glacial accumulation zone. Both observations demonstrate the surge state of the glacier. (2) The Pamir eastern (Zone I) and northwestern (Zone III) regions had large glacier accumulation areas. GSE in these two regions has increased in recent years at yearly rates of +0.25 ± 0.13 and +0.06 ± 0.04 m/year, respectively. In contrast, the GSE of small glaciers in Zones II and IV has decreased at a yearly rate of −0.96 ± 0.37 and −0.24 ± 0.18 m/year, respectively. Climate was the primary factor influencing the increase in GSE in Zones I and III. The westerly circulation had been reinforced in recent years, and precipitation had increased dramatically at a rate of +0.99 mm/year in the northwestern section of the Pamir; this was the primary cause of the increase in GSE. (3) The increased precipitation and decreased temperature were both important factors causing an overall +0.02 ± 0.01 m/year variation of GSE in this region. The GSE in the four sub-regions showed different variation trends because of variations in temperature and precipitation. The external causes that affected the increase in GSE in the region included an average yearly temperature decrease at the rate of 0.54 ± 0.36 °C/year and a total yearly precipitation increase of 0.46 ± 0.29 mm/year in the study area from 2018 to 2021

Recent Seasonal Spatiotemporal Variations in Alpine Glacier Surface Elevation in the Pamir

Climate change can lead to seasonal surface elevation variations in alpine glaciers. This study first uses DEM (Digital Elevation Model) of Pamir glaciers to develop a denoising model for laser altimetry of ICESat-2 footprints, which reduces the standard deviation of the differences between ICESat-2 footprints and corresponding datum DEM from 13.9 to 3.6 m. Second, the study constructs a calibration processing model for solving the problem that laser footprints obtained at different times have inconsistent plane positions. We calculates plane position and elevation differences between the two laser footprints in the local area of 0.05 × 0.05° from 2018 to 2021. The elevations constructed by laser footprints shows a strong correlation with the datum elevation over the different periods, and effectively preserve the time-series variation information of glacier surface elevation (GSE). Based on these two models, the spatiotemporal variations of the surface elevation of the Pamir glaciers is established as a function of seasons. There are three main conclusions: (1) The GSE in the Pamir increased slightly from 2018 to 2021 at an average rate of +0.02 ± 0.01 m/year. The time series with elevation increase was located exactly on the glacial ablation zone, and the time series with elevation decrease occurred on the glacial accumulation zone. Both observations demonstrate the surge state of the glacier. (2) The Pamir eastern (Zone I) and northwestern (Zone III) regions had large glacier accumulation areas. GSE in these two regions has increased in recent years at yearly rates of +0.25 ± 0.13 and +0.06 ± 0.04 m/year, respectively. In contrast, the GSE of small glaciers in Zones II and IV has decreased at a yearly rate of −0.96 ± 0.37 and −0.24 ± 0.18 m/year, respectively. Climate was the primary factor influencing the increase in GSE in Zones I and III. The westerly circulation had been reinforced in recent years, and precipitation had increased dramatically at a rate of +0.99 mm/year in the northwestern section of the Pamir; this was the primary cause of the increase in GSE. (3) The increased precipitation and decreased temperature were both important factors causing an overall +0.02 ± 0.01 m/year variation of GSE in this region. The GSE in the four sub-regions showed different variation trends because of variations in temperature and precipitation. The external causes that affected the increase in GSE in the region included an average yearly temperature decrease at the rate of 0.54 ± 0.36 °C/year and a total yearly precipitation increase of 0.46 ± 0.29 mm/year in the study area from 2018 to 2021

Mimotopes selected by biopanning with high-titer HIV-neutralizing antibodies in plasma from Chinese slow progressors

OBJECTIVE: One approach to identifying HIV-1 vaccine candidates is to dissect the natural antiviral immune response in treatment-naïve individuals infected for over ten years, considered slow progressor patients (SPs). It is suspected that SP plasma has strongly neutralizing antibodies (NAb) targeting specific HIV viral epitopes. METHODS: NAbs levels of 11 HIV-1-infected SPs were detected by PBMC-based neutralization assays. To investigate SP NAb epitope, this study used a biopanning approach to obtain mimotopes of HIV-1 that were recognized by SP plasma NAbs. IgG was purified from hightiter NAb SP plasma, and used as the ligand for three rounds of biopanning to select HIV-specific mimotopes from a phage-displayed random peptide library. Double-antibody sandwich ELISA, competitive inhibition assays, and peptide sequence analysis were used to evaluate the characteristics of phage-borne mimotopes. RESULTS: SPs had significantly more plasma neutralizing activity than typical progressors (TPs) (p = 0.04). P2 and P9 plasma, which have highest-titer HIV-NAb, were selected as ligands for biopanning. After three rounds of biopanning, 48 phage clones were obtained, of which 22 clones were consistent with requirement, binding with HIV-1 positive plasma and unbinding with HIV-1 negative plasma. Compared with linear HIV-1 protein sequence and HIV-1 protein structure files, only 12 clones were possible linear mimotopes of NAbs. In addition, the C40 clone located in gp41 CHR was found to be a neutralizing epitope, which could inhibit pooled HIV-1 positive plasma reaction. CONCLUSION: Biopanning of serum IgG can yield mimotopes of HIV-1-related antigen epitopes. This methodology provides a basis for exploration into HIV-1-related antigen-antibody interactions and furthers NAb immunotherapy and vaccine design

Lamin A/C and Vimentin as a Coordinated Regulator during Amoeboid Migration in Microscale Confined Microenvironments

Cell migration occurs in confined microenvironments, which plays a vital role in the process of tumor metastasis. However, it is challenging to study their behaviors in vivo. Here we developed a cell squeeze system that can be scaled down to micrometers to mimic native physical confined microenvironments, wherein degrees of surface adhesion and mechanical constraints could be manipulated in order to investigate cell-migrating behaviors. Based on the microscale cell squeeze system, we found the synergistic role of lamin A/C and vimentin in cell transition and migration under strong confinement. The dynamic variations in lamin A/C and vimentin expression establish a positive feedback loop in response to confinement, effectively promoting amoeboid migration by modulating nuclear deformability while ensuring cell viability. This work shed light on modulating cell response to microenvironments by altering the expression of lamin A/C and/or vimentin, which may be a more efficient way of inhibiting cancer metastasis