Application of HF Radar in Hazard Management

A review is given of the impact that HF radars are having on the management of coastal hazards. Maps of surface currents can be produced every 10 – 20 minutes which, in real-time, improve navigation safety in restricted areas commonly found near ports and harbours. The time-sequence of surface current maps enables Lagrangian tracking of small parcels of surface water, which enables hazard mitigation in managing suspended sediments in dredging, in emergency situations where flotsam and other drifting items need to be found, and in pollution control. The surface current measurement capability is used to assist tsunami warnings as shown by the phased-array data from Chile following the Great Tohoku Earthquake in 2011. The newly launched Tsunami Warning Center in Oman includes a network of phased-array HF radars to provide real-time tsunami monitoring. Wind direction maps can be used to locate the position of cold fronts in the open ocean and to monitor the timing and strength of sea-breeze fronts in key location

Estudi de les característiques dels tumors vesicals primaris en funció de la simptomatologia i de la demora en el tractament

L'alta incidència dels tumors vesicals primaris no infiltrants de la muscular pròpia (TNIMP) en el nostre medi fa que moltes vegades es dilati el temps entre el moment de la consulta i el de la intervenció. Volem analitzar si el motiu de consulta i la demora en el tractament influeixen en les característiques d'aquests tumor

Хромосомы и видообразование у туко-туко (Ctenomys, Hystricognathi, Rodentia)

Tuco-tucos, South American rodents of the genus Ctenomys represent an interesting model of speciation. Their strict territorial and solitary life under the earth, vast but highly fragmented habitats, low migration activity were the causes of their very fast radiation. About 60 species of this genus have been described. They are found in a variety of habitats, from the mountains of the Andes to the coastal dunes of the Atlantic, from humid steppes of Pampas to dry deserts of Chaco. Tuco-tucos have a very high level of chromosomal polymorphism and polytypism based on Robertsonian and whole-arm reciprocal translocations and inversions, and can therefore be used to test different versions of chromosomal speciation hypothesis. The classic version of this hypothesis emphasizes the sterility of the hybrids, due to incorrect or incomplete chromosome synapsis in heterozygotes for rearrangements, germ cells death, chromosome nondisjunction and the generation of unbalanced gametes. The modern version of chromosomal speciation hypothesis suggests that the reduction of gene flow across chromosomal hybrid zones is due to the suppression of recombination in hybrids around the break points of rearrangements distinguishing the parental species. Field studies have not revealed strong negative effects of chromosomal heterozygosity on the fitness of the carriers. These results cast doubt on the validity of the classic version of the hypothesis. Analysis of chromosome behavior in the meiotic prophase in the chromosomal heterozygotes revealed significant changes in the frequency and distribution of recombination: crossingover suppression around the breakpoint and chiasma distalization. These changes can modulate the flow of genes between chromosomal races and amplify the divergence which has arisen due to spatial isolation. These data confirm the recombinational model of chromosomal speciation.Fil: Torgasheva, Anna A.. Novosibirsk State University; Rusia. Institute of Cytology and Genetics; RusiaFil: Savchenko, Ekaterina. Institute of Cytology and Genetics; RusiaFil: Gomez Fernandez, Maria Jimena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Mirol, Patricia Monica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Borodin, Pavel M.. Novosibirsk State University; Rusia. Institute of Cytology and Genetics; Rusi

Disease-specific mortality burdens in a rural Gambian population using verbal autopsy, 1998-2007.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate and evaluate the cause-of-death structure and disease-specific mortality rates in a rural area of The Gambia as determined using the InterVA-4 model. DESIGN: Deaths and person-years of observation were determined by age group for the population of the Farafenni Health and Demographic Surveillance area from January 1998 to December 2007. Causes of death were determined by verbal autopsy (VA) using the InterVA-4 model and ICD-10 disease classification. Assigned causes of death were classified into six broad groups: infectious and parasitic diseases; cancers; other non-communicable diseases; neonatal; maternal; and external causes. Poisson regression was used to estimate age and disease-specific mortality rates, and likelihood ratio tests were used to determine statistical significance. RESULTS: A total of 3,203 deaths were recorded and VA administered for 2,275 (71%). All-age mortality declined from 15 per 1,000 person-years in 1998-2001 to 8 per 1,000 person-years in 2005-2007. Children aged 1-4 years registered the most marked (74%) decline from 27 to 7 per 1,000 person-years. Communicable diseases accounted for half (49.9%) of the deaths in all age groups, dominated by acute respiratory infections (ARI) (13.7%), malaria (12.9%) and pulmonary tuberculosis (10.2%). The leading causes of death among infants were ARI (5.59 per 1,000 person-years [95% CI: 4.38-7.15]) and malaria (4.11 per 1,000 person-years [95% CI: 3.09-5.47]). Mortality rates in children aged 1-4 years were 3.06 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI: 2.58-3.63) for malaria, and 1.05 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI: 0.79-1.41) for ARI. The HIV-related mortality rate in this age group was 1.17 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI: 0.89-1.54). Pulmonary tuberculosis and communicable diseases other than malaria, HIV/AIDS and ARI were the main killers of adults aged 15 years and over. Stroke-related mortality increased to become the leading cause of death among the elderly aged 60 years or more in 2005-2007. CONCLUSIONS: Mortality in the Farafenni HDSS area was dominated by communicable diseases. Malaria and ARI were the leading causes of death in the general population. In addition to these, diarrhoeal disease was a particularly important cause of death among children under 5 years of age, as was pulmonary tuberculosis among adults aged 15 years and above

Carbohydrate-DNA interactions at G-quadruplexes: Folding and stability changes by attaching sugars at the 5′-End

Quadruplex DNA structures are attracting an enormous interest in many areas of chemistry, ranging from chemical biology, supramolecular chemistry to nanoscience. We have prepared carbohydrate-DNA conjugates containing the oligonucleotide sequences of G-quadruplexes (thrombin binding aptamer (TBA) and human telomere (TEL)), measured their thermal stability and studied their structure in solution by using NMR and molecular dynamics. The solution structure of a fucose-TBA conjugate shows stacking interactions between the carbohydrate and the DNA G-tetrad in addition to hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic contacts. We have also shown that attaching carbohydrates at the 5′-end of a quadruplex telomeric sequence can alter its folding topology. These results suggest the possibility of modulating the folding of the G-quadruplex by linking carbohydrates and have clear implications in molecular recognition and the design of new G-quadruplex ligands. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.We thank the MICINN (grants CTQ2009–13705, CTQ2010–20451, CTQ2010–21567-C02–02), EU COST project MP0802, Generalitat de Catalunya (2009/SGR/208), and Instituto de Salud Carlos III (CIBERBNN, CB06 01 0019) for financial support. IGP and RL thank CSIC for a JAE contract. EVC thanks the Ministry of Education for an FPU doctoral fellowship.Peer reviewe

The Impact and Cost-Effectiveness of a Four-Month Regimen for First-Line Treatment of Active Tuberculosis in South Africa.

BACKGROUND: A 4-month first-line treatment regimen for tuberculosis disease (TB) is expected to have a direct impact on patient outcomes and societal costs, as well as an indirect impact on Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission. We aimed to estimate this combined impact in a high TB-burden country: South Africa. METHOD: An individual based M. tb transmission model was fitted to the TB burden of South Africa using a standard TB natural history framework. We measured the impact on TB burden from 2015-2035 of introduction of a non-inferior 4-month regimen replacing the standard 6-month regimen as first-line therapy. Impact was measured with respect to three separate baselines (Guidelines, Policy and Current), reflecting differences in adherence to TB and HIV treatment guidelines. Further scenario analyses considered the variation in treatment-related parameters and resistance levels. Impact was measured in terms of differences in TB burden and Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) averted. We also examined the highest cost at which the new regimen would be cost-effective for several willingness-to-pay thresholds. RESULTS: It was estimated that a 4-month regimen would avert less than 1% of the predicted 6 million person years with TB disease in South Africa between 2015 and 2035. A similarly small impact was seen on deaths and DALYs averted. Despite this small impact, with the health systems and patient cost savings from regimen shortening, the 4-month regimen could be cost-effective at $436 [NA, 5983] (mean [range]) per month at a willingness-to-pay threshold of one GDP per capita ($6,618). CONCLUSION: The introduction of a non-inferior 4-month first-line TB regimen into South Africa would have little impact on the TB burden. However, under several scenarios, it is likely that the averted societal costs would make such a regimen cost-effective in South Africa

CSF1R blockade slows the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis by reducing microgliosis and invasion of macrophages into peripheral nerves

Inflammation is a common neuropathological feature in several neurological disorders, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We have studied the contribution of CSF1R signalling to inflammation in ALS, as a pathway previously reported to control the expansion and activation of microglial cells. We found that microglial cell proliferation in the spinal cord of SOD1(G93A) transgenic mice correlates with the expression of CSF1R and its ligand CSF1. Administration of GW2580, a selective CSF1R inhibitor, reduced microglial cell proliferation in SOD1(G93A) mice, indicating the importance of CSF1-CSF1R signalling in microgliosis in ALS. Moreover, GW2580 treatment slowed disease progression, attenuated motoneuron cell death and extended survival of SOD1(G93A) mice. Electrophysiological assessment revealed that GW2580 treatment protected skeletal muscle from denervation prior to its effects on microglial cells. We found that macrophages invaded the peripheral nerve of ALS mice before CSF1R-induced microgliosis occurred. Interestingly, treatment with GW2580 attenuated the influx of macrophages into the nerve, which was partly caused by the monocytopenia induced by CSF1R inhibition. Overall, our findings provide evidence that CSF1R signalling regulates inflammation in the central and peripheral nervous system in ALS, supporting therapeutic targeting of CSF1R in this disease

Does abscisic acid affect strigolactone biosynthesis?

Strigolactones are considered a novel class of plant hormones that, in addition to their endogenous signalling function, are exuded into the rhizosphere acting as a signal to stimulate hyphal branching of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and germination of root parasitic plant seeds. Considering the importance of the strigolactones and their biosynthetic origin (from carotenoids), we investigated the relationship with the plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA). Strigolactone production and ABA content in the presence of specific inhibitors of oxidative carotenoid cleavage enzymes and in several tomato ABA-deficient mutants were analysed by LC-MS/MS. In addition, the expression of two genes involved in strigolactone biosynthesis was studied. * • The carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase (CCD) inhibitor D2 reduced strigolactone but not ABA content of roots. However, in abamineSG-treated plants, an inhibitor of 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED), and the ABA mutants notabilis, sitiens and flacca, ABA and strigolactones were greatly reduced. The reduction in strigolactone production correlated with the downregulation of LeCCD7 and LeCCD8 genes in all three mutants. * • The results show a correlation between ABA levels and strigolactone production, and suggest a role for ABA in the regulation of strigolactone biosynthesis