Petrological, petrofabric, and oxygen isotopic study of five ungrouped meteorites related to brachinites

Northwest Africa (NWA) 6112, Miller Range (MIL) 090206 (plus its pairs: MIL 090340 and MIL 090405), and Divnoe are olivine-rich ungrouped achondrites. We investigated and compared their petrography, mineralogy, and olivine fabrics. We additionally measured the oxygen isotopic compositions of NWA 6112. They show similar petrography, mineralogy, and oxygen isotopic compositions and we concluded that these five meteorites are brachinite clan meteorites. We found that NWA 6112 and Divnoe had a c axis concentration pattern of olivine fabrics using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD). NWA 6112 and Divnoe are suggested to have been exposed to magmatic meltflows during their crystallization on their parent body. On the other hand, the three MIL meteorites have b axis concentration patterns of olivine fabrics. This indicates that the three MIL meteorites may be cumulates where compaction of olivine grains was dominant. Alternatively, they formed as residues and were exposed to olivine compaction. The presence of two different olivine fabric patterns implies that the parent body(s) of brachinite clan meteorites experienced diverse igneous processes

An eQTL Landscape of Kidney Tissue in Human Nephrotic Syndrome

© 2018 American Society of Human Genetics Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies illuminate the genetics of gene expression and, in disease research, can be particularly illuminating when using the tissues directly impacted by the condition. In nephrology, there is a paucity of eQTL studies of human kidney. Here, we used whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and microdissected glomerular (GLOM) and tubulointerstitial (TI) transcriptomes from 187 individuals with nephrotic syndrome (NS) to describe the eQTL landscape in these functionally distinct kidney structures. Using MatrixEQTL, we performed cis-eQTL analysis on GLOM (n = 136) and TI (n = 166). We used the Bayesian “Deterministic Approximation of Posteriors” (DAP) to fine-map these signals, eQTLBMA to discover GLOM- or TI-specific eQTLs, and single-cell RNA-seq data of control kidney tissue to identify the cell type specificity of significant eQTLs. We integrated eQTL data with an IgA Nephropathy (IgAN) GWAS to perform a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS). We discovered 894 GLOM eQTLs and 1,767 TI eQTLs at FDR \u3c 0.05. 14% and 19% of GLOM and TI eQTLs, respectively, had \u3e1 independent signal associated with its expression. 12% and 26% of eQTLs were GLOM specific and TI specific, respectively. GLOM eQTLs were most significantly enriched in podocyte transcripts and TI eQTLs in proximal tubules. The IgAN TWAS identified significant GLOM and TI genes, primarily at the HLA region. In this study, we discovered GLOM and TI eQTLs, identified those that were tissue specific, deconvoluted them into cell-specific signals, and used them to characterize known GWAS alleles. These data are available for browsing and download via our eQTL browser, “nephQTL.

Hadron-Quark Phase Transitions in Hyperon Stars

We compare the Gibbs and Maxwell constructions for the hadron-quark phase transition in neutron and protoneutron stars, including interacting hyperons in the confined phase. We find that the hyperon populations are suppressed, and that neutrino trapping shifts the onset of the phase transition. The effects on the (proto)neutron star maximum mass are explored.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure

Effects of QCD phase transition on gravitational radiation from two-dimensional collapse and bounce of massive stars

We perform two-dimensional, magnetohydrodynamical core-collapse simulations of massive stars accompanying the QCD phase transition. We study how the phase transition affects the gravitational waveforms near the epoch of core-bounce. As for initial models, we change the strength of rotation and magnetic fields. Particularly, the degree of differential rotation in the iron core (Fe-core) is changed parametrically. As for the microphysics, we adopt a phenomenological equation of state above the nuclear density, including two parameters to change the hardness before the transition. We assume the first order phase transition, where the conversion of bulk nuclear matter to a chirally symmetric quark-gluon phase is described by the MIT bag model. Based on these computations, we find that the phase transition can make the maximum amplitudes larger up to $\sim$ 10 percents than the ones without the phase transition. On the other hand, the maximum amplitudes become smaller up to $\sim$ 10 percents owing to the phase transition, when the degree of the differential rotation becomes larger. We find that even extremely strong magnetic fields $\sim 10^{17}$ G in the protoneutron star do not affect these results.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figures. Resubmitted to Phys.Rev.

The associations between serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor, potential confounders, and cognitive decline: A longitudinal study

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) plays a role in the maintenance and function of neurons. Although persons with Alzheimer's disease have lower cortical levels of BDNF, evidence regarding the association between circulating BDNF and cognitive function is conflicting. We sought to determine the correlates of BDNF level and whether BDNF level was prospectively associated with cognitive decline in healthy older adults. We measured serum BDNF near baseline in 912 individuals. Cognitive status was assessed repeatedly with the modified Mini-Mental Status Examination and the Digit Symbol Substitution test over the next 10 years. We evaluated the association between BDNF and cognitive decline with longitudinal models. We also assessed the association between BDNF level and demographics, comorbidities and health behaviors. We found an association between serum BDNF and several characteristics that are also associated with dementia (race and depression), suggesting that future studies should control for these potential confounders. We did not find evidence of a longitudinal association between serum BDNF and subsequent cognitive test trajectories in older adults, although we did identify a potential trend toward a cross-sectional association. Our results suggest that serum BDNF may have limited utility as a biomarker of prospective cognitive decline

Role of sortase-dependent pili of Bifidobacterium bifidum PRL2010 in modulating bacterium-host interactions

Bifidobacteria represent one of the dominant groups of microorganisms colonizing the human infant intestine. Commensal bacteria that interact with a eukaryotic host are believed to express adhesive molecules on their cell surface that bind to specific host cell receptors or soluble macromolecules. Whole-genome transcription profiling of Bifidobacterium bifidum PRL2010, a strain isolated from infant stool, revealed a small number of commonly expressed extracellular proteins, among which were genes that specify sortase-dependent pili. Expression of the coding sequences of these B. bifidum PRL2010 appendages in nonpiliated Lactococcus lactis enhanced adherence to human enterocytes through extracellular matrix protein and bacterial aggregation. Furthermore, such piliated L. lactis cells evoked a higher TNF-α response during murine colonization compared with their nonpiliated parent, suggesting that bifidobacterial sortase-dependent pili not only contribute to adherence but also display immunomodulatory activity

Serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor: Determinants and relationship with depressive symptoms in a community population of middle-aged and elderly people

OBJECTIVES: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is involved in major depressive disorder and neurodegenerative diseases. Clinical studies, showing decreased serum BDNF levels, are difficult to interpret due to limited knowledge of potential confounders and mixed results for age and sex effects. We explored potential determinants of serum BDNF levels in a community sample of 1230 subjects. METHODS: Multiple linear regression analyses with serum BDNF level as the dependent variable were conducted to explore the effect of four categories of potential BDNF determinants (sampling characteristics, sociodemographic variables, lifestyle factors and somatic diseases) and of self-reported depressive symptoms (Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS: Our results show that BDNF levels decline with age in women, whereas in men levels remain stable. Moreover, after controlling for age and gender, the assays still showed lower serum BDNF levels with higher BDI sum scores. Effects remained significant after correction for two main confounders (time of sampling and smoking), suggesting that they serve as molecular trait factors independent of lifestyle factors. CONCLUSIONS: Given the age-sex interaction on serum BDNF levels and the known association between BDNF and gonadal hormones, research is warranted to delineate the effects of the latter interaction on the risk of psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases

Dietary patterns associated with fall-related fracture in elderly Japanese: a population based prospective study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Diet is considered an important factor for bone health, but is composed of a wide variety of foods containing complex combinations of nutrients. Therefore we investigated the relationship between dietary patterns and fall-related fractures in the elderly.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We designed a population-based prospective survey of 1178 elderly people in Japan in 2002. Dietary intake was assessed with a 75-item food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), from which dietary patterns were created by factor analysis from 27 food groups. The frequency of fall-related fracture was investigated based on insurance claim records from 2002 until 2006. The relationship between the incidence of fall-related fracture and modifiable factors, including dietary patterns, were examined. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to examine the relationships between dietary patterns and incidence of fall-related fracture with adjustment for age, gender, Body Mass Index (BMI) and energy intake.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Among 877 participants who agreed to a 4 year follow-up, 28 suffered from a fall-related fracture. Three dietary patterns were identified: mainly vegetable, mainly meat and mainly traditional Japanese. The moderately confirmed (see statistical methods) groups with a Meat pattern showed a reduced risk of fall-related fracture (Hazard ratio = 0.36, 95% CI = 0.13 - 0.94) after adjustment for age, gender, BMI and energy intake. The Vegetable pattern showed a significant risk increase (Hazard ratio = 2.67, 95% CI = 1.03 - 6.90) after adjustment for age, gender and BMI. The Traditional Japanese pattern had no relationship to the risk of fall-related fracture.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results of this study have the potential to reduce fall-related fracture risk in elderly Japanese. The results should be interpreted in light of the overall low meat intake of the Japanese population.</p