Bilateral National Metrology Institute Comparison of Guarded-Hot-Plate Apparatus

Two national metrology institutes have conducted an international interlaboratory comparison on thermal conductivity for two thermal insulation reference materials. The Laboratoire national de métrologie et d’essais (LNE), France, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), United States, present measurements obtained by the guarded-hot-plate method. The study involved two materials: expanded polystyrene board (EPS) and fibrous glass board (FGB). The EPS was provided by the LNE and is issued as a transfer specimen; the FGB provided by NIST was issued as Standard Reference Material (SRM) 1450c. For each reference material, the study was based on four independent measurements at a mean temperature of 24°C and two additional mean temperatures of 10°C and 35°C

Automatische mastitisdetectie uitkomst voor veel bedrijven

Automatische detectie van mastitis is een goed alternatief voor de observatie van de uiergezondheid tijdens het melken, vooral op bedrijven met een melkrobot of een grote veestapel. Dit is aangetoond bij een praktijkproef van de inzet van een detectiemodel voor mastitis als internettoepassing. Het onderzoek maakt deel uit van het project Precision Livestock Farmin

Touch of chemokines

Chemoattractant cytokines or chemokines constitute a family of structurally related proteins found in vertebrates, bacteria, or viruses. So far, 48 chemokine genes have been identified in humans, which bind to around 20 chemokine receptors These receptors belong to the seven transmembrane G-protein-coupled receptor family. Chemokines and their receptors were originally studied for their role in cellular trafficking of leukocytes during inflammation and immune surveillance. It is now known that they exert different functions under physiological conditions such as homeostasis, development, tissue repair, and angiogenesis but also under pathological disorders including tumorigenesis, cancer metastasis, inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases. Physicochemical properties of chemokines and chernokine receptors confer the ability to homo- and hetero-oligornerize. Many efforts are currently performed in establishing new therapeutically compounds able to target the chemokine/chemokine receptor system. In this review, we are interested in the role of chemokines in inflammatory disease and leukocyte trafficking with a focus on vascular inflammatory diseases, the operating synergism, and the emerging therapeutic approaches of chemokines

Blinking fluorescent probes for tubulin nanoscopy in living and fixed cells

Here we report a small molecule tubulin probe for single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM), stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy and MINFLUX nanoscopy, which can be used in living and fixed cells. We explored a series of taxane derivatives containing spontaneously blinking far-red dye hydroxymethyl silicon–rhodamine (HMSiR) and found that the linker length profoundly affects the probe permeability and off-targeting in living cells. The best performing probe, HMSiR-tubulin, is composed of cabazitaxel and the 6′-regioisomer of HMSiR bridged by a C6 linker. Microtubule diameter of ≤50 nm was routinely measured in SMLM experiments on living and fixed cells. HMSiR-tubulin allows a complementary use of different nanoscopy techniques for investigating microtubule functions and developing imaging methods. For the first time, we resolved the inner microtubule diameter of 16 ± 5 nm by optical nanoscopy and thereby demonstrated the utility of a self-blinking dye for MINFLUX imaging

Associations between lifetime potentially traumatic events and chronic physical conditions in the South African Stress and Health Survey: a cross-sectional study

Background: This study examined the association between the type, and cumulative number of lifetime potentially traumatic events (PTEs), and chronic physical conditions, in a South African sample. PTE exposures have been associated with an increased risk for a wide range of chronic physical conditions, but it is unclear whether psychiatric disorders mediate this association. Given the established differences in trauma occurrence, and the epidemiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in South Africa relative to other countries, examining associations between PTEs and chronic physical conditions, particularly while accounting for psychiatric comorbidity is important. Methods: Data were drawn from the South African Stress and Health Study, a cross-sectional population-representative study of psychological and physical health of South African adults. Twenty-seven PTEs, based on the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview Version 3.0, DSM-IV PTSD module were grouped into seven PTE types (war events, physical violence, sexual violence, accidents, unexpected death of a loved one, network events, and witnessing PTEs). Five clusters of physical conditions (cardiovascular, arthritis, respiratory, chronic pain, and other health conditions) were examined. Logistic regressions assessed the odds of reporting a physical condition in relation to type and cumulative number of PTEs. Cochran-Armitage test for trend was used to examine dose-response effect of cumulative PTEs on physical conditions. Results: After adjusting for sociodemographic variables and psychiatric disorders, respondents with any PTE had increased odds of all assessed physical conditions, ranging between 1.48 (95 % CI: 1.06–2.07) for arthritis and 2.07 (95 % CI: 1.57–2.73) for respiratory conditions, compared to those without PTE exposure. Sexual violence, physical violence, unexpected death of a loved one, and network PTEs significantly increased the odds of all or nearly all the physical conditions assessed. There was a dose-response relationship between number of PTEs and increased odds of all physical conditions. Conclusions: Results from this study, the first in an African general population, are consistent with other population-based studies; PTEs confer a broad-spectrum risk for chronic physical conditions, independent of psychiatric disorders. These risks increase with each cumulative PTE exposure. Clinically, comprehensive evaluations for risk of mental and physical health morbidities should be considered among PTE survivors

Gene expression and methylation signatures of MAN2C1 are associated with PTSD

As potential regulators of DNA accessibility and activity, epigenetic modifications offer a mechanism by which the environment can moderate the effects of genes. To date, however, there have been relatively few studies assessing epigenetic modifications associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Here we investigate PTSD-associated methylation differences in 33 genes previously shown to differ in whole blood-derived gene expression levels between those with vs. without the disorder. Drawing on DNA samples similarly obtained from whole blood in 100 individuals, 23 with and 77 without lifetime PTSD, we used methylation microarray data to assess whether these 33 candidate genes showed epigenetic signatures indicative of increased risk for, or resilience to, PTSD. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the main and interacting effects of candidate genes' methylation values and number of potentially traumatic events (PTEs), adjusting for age and other covariates. Results revealed that only one candidate gene-MAN2C1}-showed a significant methylation x PTE interaction, such that those with both higher MAN2C1 methylation and greater exposure to PTEs showed a marked increase in risk of lifetime PTSD (OR 4.35, 95% CI: 1.07, 17.77, p=0.04). These results indicate that MAN2C1 methylation levels modify cumulative traumatic burden on risk of PTSD, and suggest that both gene expression and epigenetic changes at specific loci are associated with this disorder

RORA and Posttraumatic Stress Trajectories: Main Effects and Interactions with Childhood Physical Abuse History.

BACKGROUND: Longitudinal studies of posttraumatic stress (PTS) have documented environmental factors as predictors of trajectories of higher, versus lower, symptoms, among them experiences of childhood physical abuse. Although it is now well-accepted that genes and environments jointly shape the risk of PTS, no published studies have investigated genes, or gene-by-environment interactions (GxEs), as predictors of PTS trajectories. The purpose of this study was to fill this gap. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We examined associations between variants of the retinoid-related orphan receptor alpha (RORA) gene and trajectory membership among a sample of predominantly non-Hispanic Black urban adults (N = 473). The RORA gene was selected based on its association with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the first PTSD genome wide association study. Additionally, we explored GxEs between RORA variants and childhood physical abuse history. RESULTS: We found that the minor allele of the RORA SNP rs893290 was a significant predictor of membership in a trajectory of consistently high PTS, relatively to a trajectory of consistently low PTS. Additionally, the GxE of rs893290 with childhood physical abuse was significant. Decomposition of the interaction showed that minor allele frequency was more strongly associated with membership in consistently high or decreasing PTS trajectories, relative to a consistently low PTS trajectory, among participants with higher levels of childhood physical abuse. CONCLUSION: The results of the study provide preliminary evidence that variation in the RORA gene is associated with membership in trajectories of higher PTS and that these associations are stronger among persons exposed to childhood physical abuse. Replication and analysis of functional data are needed to further our understanding of how RORA relates to PTS trajectories

Provisional Assessment of Candidate High-Temperature Thermal Conductivity Reference Materials in the EMRP “Thermo” Project

This article describes the provisional assessment of a short list of four candidate high-temperature thermal conductivity reference materials in a European research project, “Thermo.” These four candidate materials are low-density calcium silicate, amorphous silica, high-density calcium silicate, and exfoliated vermiculite. Based on initial tests on material composition and microstructure changes, dimensional stability, mechanical stability, chemical stability and uniformity, the best two candidate materials that would be considered for further detailed characterization in the next stage are low-density calcium silicate and high-density calcium silicate. These two materials are dimensionally, mechanically, and chemically stable, which are more robust and easier to handle than others. However, the specimens need to be selected to meet the requirement for material uniformity in terms of density, i.e., density variation within 2%