Flow field computations for blunt bodies in planetary environments /equilibrium/ Final report

Radiative and convective heat transfer about two blunt bodies traveling at hypersonic speeds at zero angle of attack in assumed Mars atmosphere of nitrogen and carbon dioxid

Low Baseline Pneumococcal Antibody Titers Predict Specific Antibody Deficiency, Increased Upper Respiratory Infections, and Allergy Sensitization.

Background:Inadequate titers of pneumococcal antibody (PA) are commonly present among patients with recurrent respiratory infections. Objective:We sought to determine the effect of the degree of inadequacy in baseline PA titers on the subsequent polysaccharide vaccine response, the incidence of sinusitis, and allergic conditions. Methods:A total of 313 patients aged 6 to 70 years with symptoms of recurrent respiratory infections were classified by baseline-pPA (percentage of protective [≥1.3 µg/mL] PA serotypes/total tested serotypes) and postvaccination pPA (post-pPA): Group A (adequate baseline-pPA), Group B (inadequate baseline-pPA, adequate post-pPA, responders), and Group C (inadequate baseline-pPA, inadequate postpPA, nonresponders, specific antibody deficiency [SAD]). Immunity against Streptococcus pneumoniae was defined as adequate when the pPA was ≥70%. Each group and combined groups, Group AB (inadequate baseline-pPA), and Group BC (adequate post-pPA) were analyzed for demographics, history of sinusitis, recurrent sinusitis in the following year, allergic conditions, and association with inadequate individual serotype titers. Results:Over 80% of patients with respiratory symptoms had inadequate baseline-pPA. Baseline-pPA and SAD prevalence are inversely related (odds ratio = 2.02, 95% CI: 1.15-3.57, P = .01). Inadequate serotype 3 antibody titer is highly associated with SAD (odds ratio = 2.02, 96% CI: 1.61-5.45, P < .01). The groups with inadequate pPA (Group B and C, or BC) had significantly higher percentage of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (P < .001), allergic sensitization, and allergic rhinitis (P < .05). Group A contained higher percentage of patients with recurrent upper airway infections (P < .001). Conclusion:Low baseline-pPA and low antibody titers to serotype 3 are highly associated with SAD, increased incidence of respiratory infections including CRS and allergic conditions

Flow field prediction and analysis, Project Fire

Flow field prediction and analysis - Fire projec

embCAB Sequence Variation Among Ethambutol-Resistant Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Isolates Without embB306 Mutation

Mechanisms of resistance to ethambutol in Mycobacterium tuberculosis remain inadequately described. Although there is mounting evidence that mutations of codon 306 in embB play a key role, a significant number of phenotypically ethambutol-resistant strains do not carry mutations in this codon. Here, other mutations in the embCAB operon are suggested to be involved in resistance development

The Origin of the Designability of Protein Structures

We examined what determines the designability of 2-letter codes (H and P) lattice proteins from three points of view. First, whether the native structure is searched within all possible structures or within maximally compact structures. Second, whether the structure of the used lattice is bipartite or not. Third, the effect of the length of the chain, namely, the number of monomers on the chain. We found that the bipartiteness of the lattice structure is not a main factor which determines the designability. Our results suggest that highly designable structures will be found when the length of the chain is sufficiently long to make the hydrophobic core consisting of enough number of monomers.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figure

Predicting the long-term impact of antiretroviral therapy scale-up on population incidence of tuberculosis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the impact of antiretroviral therapy (ART) on long-term population-level tuberculosis disease (TB) incidence in sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS: We used a mathematical model to consider the effect of different assumptions about life expectancy and TB risk during long-term ART under alternative scenarios for trends in population HIV incidence and ART coverage. RESULTS: All the scenarios we explored predicted that the widespread introduction of ART would initially reduce population-level TB incidence. However, many modelled scenarios projected a rebound in population-level TB incidence after around 20 years. This rebound was predicted to exceed the TB incidence present before ART scale-up if decreases in HIV incidence during the same period were not sufficiently rapid or if the protective effect of ART on TB was not sustained. Nevertheless, most scenarios predicted a reduction in the cumulative TB incidence when accompanied by a relative decline in HIV incidence of more than 10% each year. CONCLUSIONS: Despite short-term benefits of ART scale-up on population TB incidence in sub-Saharan Africa, longer-term projections raise the possibility of a rebound in TB incidence. This highlights the importance of sustaining good adherence and immunologic response to ART and, crucially, the need for effective HIV preventive interventions, including early widespread implementation of ART

Toxic elements and speciation in seafood samples from different contaminated sites in Europe

The presence of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (THg), methylmercury (MeHg), arsenic (TAs), inorganic arsenic (iAs), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr) and iron (Fe) was investigated in seafood collected from European marine ecosystems subjected to strong anthropogenic pressure, i.e. hotspot areas. Different species (Mytilus galloprovincialis, n=50; Chamelea gallina, n=50; Liza aurata, n=25; Platichthys flesus, n=25; Laminaria digitata, n=15; and Saccharina latissima, n=15) sampled in Tagus estuary, Po delta, Ebro delta, western Scheldt, and in the vicinities of a fish farm area (Solund, Norway), between September and December 2013, were selected to assess metal contamination and potential risks to seafood consumers, as well as to determine the suitability of ecologically distinct organisms as bioindicators in environmental monitoring studies. Species exhibited different elemental profiles, likely as a result of their ecological strategies, metabolism and levels in the environment (i.e. seawater and sediments). Higher levels of Cd (0.15–0.94 mg kg-1), Pb (0.37-0.89 mg kg-1), Co (0.48–1.1 mg kg-1), Cu (4.8–8.4 mg kg-1), Zn (75–153 mg kg-1), Cr (1.0–4.5 mg kg-1) and Fe (283–930 mg kg-1) were detected in bivalve species, particularly in M. galloprovincialis from Ebro and Po deltas, whereas the highest content of Hg was found in P. flesus (0.86 mg kg-1). In fish species, most Hg was organic (MeHg; from 69 to 79%), whereas lower proportions of MeHg were encountered in bivalve species (between 20 and 43%). The highest levels of As were found in macroalgae species L. digitata and S. latissima (41 mg kg-1 and 43 mg kg-1, respectively), with iAs accounting almost 50% of the total As content in L. digitata but not with S. latissima nor in the remaining seafood samples. This work highlights that the selection of the most appropriate bioindicator species is a fundamental step in environmental monitoring of each contaminant, especially in coastal areas. Furthermore, data clearly shows that the current risk assessment and legislation solely based on total As or Hg data is limiting, as elemental speciation greatly varies according to seafood species, thus playing a key role in human exposure assessment via food

A Shock-Induced Pair of Superbubbles in the High-Redshift Powerful Radio Galaxy MRC 0406-244

We present new optical spectroscopy of the high-redshift powerful radio galaxy MRC 0406$-$244 at redshift of 2.429. We find that the two extensions toward NW and SE probed in the rest-frame ultraviolet image are heated mainly by the nonthermal continuum of the active galactic nucleus. However, each extension shows a shell-like morphology, suggesting that they are a pair of superbubbles induced by the superwind activity rather than by the interaction between the radio jet and the ambient gas clouds. If this is the case, the intense starburst responsible for the formation of superbubbles could occur $\sim 1 \times 10^9$ yr ago. On the other hand, the age of the radio jets may be of the order of $\sim 10^6$ yr, being much shorter than the starburst age. Therefore, the two events, i.e., the starburst and the radio-jet activities, are independent phenomena. However, their directions of the expanding motions could be governed by the rotational motion of the gaseous component in the host galaxy. This idea appears to explain the alignment effect of MRC 0406$-$244.Comment: 4 pages (emulateapj.sty), Fig. 1 (jpeg) + Fig.2 (eps). Accepted for publications in ApJ (Letters

Risk of acquired drug resistance during short-course directly observed treatment of tuberculosis in an area with high levels of drug resistance.

BACKGROUND: Data on the performance of standardized short-course directly observed treatment (DOTS) of tuberculosis (TB) in areas with high levels of drug resistance and on the potential impact of DOTS on amplification of resistance are limited. Therefore, we analyzed treatment results from a cross-sectional sample of patients with TB enrolled in a DOTS program in an area with high levels of drug resistance in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in Central Asia. METHODS: Sputum samples for testing for susceptibility to 5 first-line drugs and for molecular typing were obtained from patients starting treatment in 8 districts. Patients with sputum smear results positive for TB at the end of the intensive phase of treatment and/or at 2 months into the continuation phase were tested again. RESULTS. Among 382 patients with diagnoses of TB, 62 did not respond well to treatment and were found to be infected with an identical Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain when tested again; 19 of these patients had strains that developed new or additional drug resistance. Amplification occurred in only 1.2% of patients with initially susceptible or monoresistant TB strains, but it occurred in 17% of those with polyresistant strains (but not multidrug-resistant strains, defined as strains with resistance to at least isoniazid and rifampicin) and in 7% of those with multidrug-resistant strains at diagnosis. Overall, 3.5% of the patients not initially infected with multidrug-resistant TB strains developed such strains during treatment. Amplification of resistance, however, was found only in polyresistant Beijing genotype strains. CONCLUSIONS: High levels of amplification of drug resistance demonstrated under well-established DOTS program conditions reinforce the need for implementation of DOTS-Plus for multidrug-resistant TB in areas with high levels of drug resistance. The strong association of Beijing genotype and amplification in situations of preexisting resistance is striking and may underlie the strong association between this genotype and drug resistance

The impact of antibiotics on growth in children in low and middle income countries: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials

Objectives To determine whether antibiotic treatment leads to improvements in growth in prepubertal children in low and middle income countries, to determine the magnitude of improvements in growth, and to identify moderators of this treatment effect.Design Systematic review and meta-analysis.Data sources Medline, Embase, Scopus, the Cochrane central register of controlled trials, and Web of Science.Study selection Randomised controlled trials conducted in low or middle income countries in which an orally administered antibacterial agent was allocated by randomisation or minimisation and growth was measured as an outcome. Participants aged 1 month to 12 years were included. Control was placebo or non-antimicrobial intervention.Results Data were pooled from 10 randomised controlled trials representing 4316 children, across a variety of antibiotics, indications for treatment, treatment regimens, and countries. in random effects models, antibiotic use increased height by 0.04 cm/month (95% confidence interval 0.00 to 0.07) and weight by 23.8 g/month (95% confidence interval 4.3 to 43.3). After adjusting for age, effects on height were larger in younger populations and effects on weight were larger in African studies compared with other regions.Conclusion Antibiotics have a growth promoting effect in prepubertal children in low and middle income countries. This effect was more pronounced for ponderal than for linear growth. the antibiotic growth promoting effect may be mediated by treatment of clinical or subclinical infections or possibly by modulation of the intestinal microbiota. Better definition of the mechanisms underlying this effect will be important to inform optimal and safe approaches to achieving healthy growth in vulnerable populations.Vanier Canada Graduate ScholarshipMcGill Univ, Dept Epidemiol Biostat & Occupat Hlth, Montreal, PQ, CanadaZvitambo Inst Maternal Child Hlth Res, Harare, ZimbabweQueen Mary Univ London, Blizard Inst, Ctr Paediat, London, EnglandMRC, Clin Trials Unit, London, EnglandJohns Hopkins Bloomberg Sch Publ Hlth, Dept Int Hlth, Baltimore, MD USACornell Univ, Div Nutr Sci, Program Int Nutr, Ithaca, NY 14853 USAWashington Univ, Sch Med, Dept Pediat, St Louis, MO 63110 USAUniv Malawi, Blantyre, MalawiUniv Cambridge, Dept Archaeol & Anthropol, Div Biol Anthropol, Cambridge CB2 1TN, EnglandUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista Med, São Paulo, BrazilUniv British Columbia, Sch Populat & Publ Hlth, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, CanadaUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista Med, São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc