Electron-correlation effects in appearance-potential spectra of Ni

Spin-resolved and temperature-dependent appearance-potential spectra of ferromagnetic Nickel are measured and analyzed theoretically. The Lander self-convolution model which relates the line shape to the unoccupied part of the local density of states turns out to be insufficient. Electron correlations and orbitally resolved transition-matrix elements are shown to be essential for a quantitative agreement between experiment and theory.Comment: LaTeX, 6 pages, 2 eps figures included, Phys. Rev. B (in press

French et al Response to Educational Interventions Should Be Carefully Defined and Costed

[West J Emerg Med. 2013;14(5):566.

Theory of Spin-Resolved Auger-Electron Spectroscopy from Ferromagnetic 3d-Transition Metals

CVV Auger electron spectra are calculated for a multi-band Hubbard model including correlations among the valence electrons as well as correlations between core and valence electrons. The interest is focused on the ferromagnetic 3d-transition metals. The Auger line shape is calculated from a three-particle Green function. A realistic one-particle input is taken from tight-binding band-structure calculations. Within a diagrammatic approach we can distinguish between the \textit{direct} correlations among those electrons participating in the Auger process and the \textit{indirect} correlations in the rest system. The indirect correlations are treated within second-order perturbation theory for the self-energy. The direct correlations are treated using the valence-valence ladder approximation and the first-order perturbation theory with respect to valence-valence and core-valence interactions. The theory is evaluated numerically for ferromagnetic Ni. We discuss the spin-resolved quasi-particle band structure and the Auger spectra and investigate the influence of the core hole.Comment: LaTeX, 12 pages, 8 eps figures included, Phys. Rev. B (in press

Oesterbank is wapen tegen zandhonger

De aanleg van kunstmatige oesterbanken helpt wellicht de natuur te ontzien en geld te besparen bij kustbescherming. Oesterbanken voorkomen dat achterliggende zandplaten afkalven door de golven. Ze beschermen niet alleen de plek die ze zelf bedekken, maar ook nog eens een achterliggend gebied. Dat stelt Brenda Walles, promovendus bij de leerstoelgroep Duurzame schelpdiercultuur, in het proefschrift dat ze op 1 juni verdedigde

COVID-19 Return to Sport: Collegiate Baseball Injury Prevalence Analysis

In the spring of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly brought college baseball to a halt. Most college baseball players saw disruption of their training and development due to interruptions of their seasons. With these interruptions, it is necessary to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on collegiate baseball injury epidemiology. Data from a small-school Midwest collegiate conference was tallied for the number of collegiate conference injuries per year, and for the injuries per anatomic region. An unpaired t-test was conducted upon the overall conference mean injuries per year and on each anatomic region for the mean injuries per region per year. Results demonstrated no statistically significant difference between the mean injuries per season, or the mean injuries per anatomic region per year. This study showed that small-school collegiate baseball had no significant difference in injury prevalence after the COVID-19 pandemic, differing from research at the professional level

Response to Therapeutic Sleep Deprivation: A Naturalistic Study of Clinical and Genetic Factors and Post-treatment Depressive Symptom Trajectory

Research has shown that therapeutic sleep deprivation (SD) has rapid antidepressant effects in the majority of depressed patients. Investigation of factors preceding and accompanying these effects may facilitate the identification of the underlying biological mechanisms. This exploratory study aimed to examine clinical and genetic factors predicting response to SD and determine the impact of SD on illness course. Mood during SD was also assessed via visual analogue scale. Depressed inpatients (n = 78) and healthy controls (n = 15) underwent ~36 h of SD. Response to SD was defined as a score of ≤ 2 on the Clinical Global Impression Scale for Global Improvement. Depressive symptom trajectories were evaluated for up to a month using self/expert ratings. Impact of genetic burden was calculated using polygenic risk scores for major depressive disorder. In total, 72% of patients responded to SD. Responders and non-responders did not differ in baseline self/expert depression symptom ratings, but mood differed. Response was associated with lower age (p = 0.007) and later age at life-time disease onset (p = 0.003). Higher genetic burden of depression was observed in non-responders than healthy controls. Up to a month post SD, depressive symptoms decreased in both patients groups, but more in responders, in whom effects were sustained. The present findings suggest that re-examining SD with a greater focus on biological mechanisms will lead to better understanding of mechanisms of depression

COVID-19 Return to Sport: Fall Sports Collegiate Athletics Injury Prevalence Analysis

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly affected the world and way of life due to the initiation of public health regulations and precautionary measures. Many athletes, at various levels of play, experienced disruptions in their competitive seasons and training opportunities to reduce the spread of COVID-19. At the professional level, an increase in the prevalence of sports-related injuries following the COVID-19 pandemic was depicted in a previous study. Research has yet to examine the effects of COVID-19 on injury epidemiology at the collegiate level. Sports-related injuries can be detrimental to the careers of student-athletes who have a short window of opportunity. The objective of this research is to examine the effects of COVID-19 on injury epidemiology in collegiate fall sports. Methods: A Midwest small-college collegiate athletic conference involving the states of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma, was selected for the study. De-identified injury data for the 2018-2019, 2019-2020, and 2020-2021 fall sports seasons was obtained from the collegiate sports medicine staff. All schools and sports were originally included; however, exclusions were taken due to data disruptions or no response. The injury data was tallied for each season, sport, and anatomical region. An unpaired t-test was used to compare the conference mean number of injuries per season for each sport. An unpaired t-test was also used to compare the conference mean number of injuries per anatomical region. Results: There was no statistically significant difference (P\u3e.05) in injuries per season in this college fall sport (Football, Women’s Volleyball, Men’s Soccer, Women’s Soccer) population. There was also no statistically significant difference (P\u3e.05) in injuries to anatomical region for any fall sport. Conclusions: There may be several factors attributing to the results of this study. We conclude that these might include increased time between competition, decreased travel, practice regulations, and decreased injury reporting due to fear of going to medical facilities and acquiring COVID-19 infection. Injury epidemiology and data is limited for small college fall sports and women’s sports. This study provides the first insight into small college fall sports and women’s sports injury epidemiology after COVID19

Occupancy maps of 208 chromatin-associated proteins in one human cell type

Transcription factors are DNA-binding proteins that have key roles in gene regulation. Genome-wide occupancy maps of transcriptional regulators are important for understanding gene regulation and its effects on diverse biological processes. However, only a minority of the more than 1,600 transcription factors encoded in the human genome has been assayed. Here we present, as part of the ENCODE (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) project, data and analyses from chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by high-throughput sequencing (ChIP–seq) experiments using the human HepG2 cell line for 208 chromatin-associated proteins (CAPs). These comprise 171 transcription factors and 37 transcriptional cofactors and chromatin regulator proteins, and represent nearly one-quarter of CAPs expressed in HepG2 cells. The binding profiles of these CAPs form major groups associated predominantly with promoters or enhancers, or with both. We confirm and expand the current catalogue of DNA sequence motifs for transcription factors, and describe motifs that correspond to other transcription factors that are co-enriched with the primary ChIP target. For example, FOX family motifs are enriched in ChIP–seq peaks of 37 other CAPs. We show that motif content and occupancy patterns can distinguish between promoters and enhancers. This catalogue reveals high-occupancy target regions at which many CAPs associate, although each contains motifs for only a minority of the numerous associated transcription factors. These analyses provide a more complete overview of the gene regulatory networks that define this cell type, and demonstrate the usefulness of the large-scale production efforts of the ENCODE Consortium

Calorie restriction improves lipid-related emerging cardiometabolic risk factors in healthy adults without obesity: Distinct influences of BMI and sex from CALERIE™ a multicentre, phase 2, randomised controlled trial

Background: For many cardiovascular risk factors there is no lower limit to which further reduction will result in decreased disease risk; this includes values within ranges considered normal for healthy adults. This seems to be true for new emerging metabolic risk factors identified by innovative technological advances. Further, there seems to be ever evolving evidence of differential responses to lifestyle interventions by sex and body compositions in the normal range. In this secondary analysis, we had the opportunity to test these principles for newly identified molecular biomarkers of cardiometabolic risk in a young (21–50 years), normal weight healthy population undergoing calorie restriction for two years. Methods: The Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy (CALERIE™) was a 24-month, multicenter, randomized controlled trial (May 2007-November 2012) in healthy, adults without obesity to evaluate the potential for calorie restriction (CR) to promote anti-aging adaptations, including those associated with disease risk. 218 participants (age 37.9 ± 7.2 years and body mass index (BMI) 25.1 ± 1.7 kg/m2, mean±SD) were randomized 2:1 to 24 months of CR (prescribed as 25% reduction from baseline calorie intake) versus ad libitum (AL). Fasting plasma from baseline, 12, and 24 months was used for assessments of lipoproteins, metabolites, and inflammatory markers using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Findings: Averaging 11.9% CR, the CR group had reductions at 12 and 24 months in the cardiovascular disease risk markers, apolipoprotein B and GlycA, and risks for insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes—Lipoprotein Insulin Resistance Index and Diabetes Risk Index (all PCRvsAL≤0.0009). Insulin resistance and diabetes risk improvements resulted from CR-induced alterations in lipoproteins, specifically reductions in triglyceride-rich lipoprotein particles and low-density lipoprotein particles, a shift to larger high-density lipoprotein particles (more effective cholesterol transporters), and reductions in branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) (all PCRvsAL≤0.004). These CR responses were more pronounced in overweight than normal weight participants and greater in men than women. Interpretation: In normal to slightly overweight adults without overt risk factors or disease, 12 months of ∼12% CR improved newly identified risk markers for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. These markers suggest that CR improves risks by reducing inflammation and BCAAs and shifting lipoproteins from atherogenic to cholesterol transporting. Additionally, these improvements are greater for men and for those with greater BMIs indicating sex and BMI-influences merit attention in future investigations of lifestyle-mediated improvements in disease risk factors. Funding: The CALERIE™ trial design and implementation were supported by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) U-grant provided to four institutions, the three intervention sites and a coordinating center (U01 AG022132, U01 AG020478, U01 AG020487 U01 AG020480). For this secondary analysis including sample acquisition and processing, data analysis and interpretation, additional funding was provided by the NIH to authors as follows: R01 AG054840 (MO, VBK); R33 AG070455 (KMH, DCP, MB, SBR, CKM, LMR, SKD, CFP, CJR, WEK); P30 DK072476 (CKM, LMR); and U54 GM104940 (CKM, LMR)

Blackfeet innovation pathways to food sovereignty: sustainability through indigenous-led research partnerships

The Blackfeet Nation in northwestern Montana, United States, is implementing its Agriculture Resource Management Plan (ARMP), an Indigenous-led, sustainable agriculture plan prioritizing economic development for Indigenous producers, intergenerational health and well-being of Amskapi Piikani Blackfeet people, and ecological and cultural sensitivities within this sovereign nation and its traditional territories. Since the passage of the American Indian Agricultural Resource Management Act of 1993, only three Tribes have drafted and finalized Agricultural Resource Management Plans (ARMPs). The Blackfeet ARMP is now being held up as a national model of Tribal sovereignty. “Blackfeet Innovation Pathways to Food Sovereignty,” an Indigenous-led research project, emerged from the Blackfeet Nation’s community-based strategic planning process identifying gaps, systemic barriers and impactful solutions for achieving Blackfeet food sovereignty through the implementation of the Blackfeet Nation ARMP, along with research influenced by the ARMP. This paper provides a community case study of the ongoing process and offers a translational model of sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty within Indigenous lands to improve the economic futures of producers and their families, as well as health outcomes for Native communities