Abstract Background Both air pollution and weather impact hospitalization for respiratory diseases. However, few studies have investigated the contribution of weather to hospitalization related to ...the adverse effects of air pollution. This study analyzed the effects of particulate matter (PM) on daily respiratory-related hospital admissions, taking into account meteorological factors. Methods Daily hospital admissions for respiratory diseases (acute bronchitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma) between 2007 and 2010 were extracted from the National Health Insurance Corporation, Korea. Patients were divided into three age-based groups (0–15, 16–64, and ≥65 years). PM levels were obtained from 19 monitoring stations in Busan. Results The mean number of patients admitted for acute bronchitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma was 5.8 ± 11.9, 4.4 ± 6.1, and 3.3 ± 3.3, respectively. During that time, the daily mean PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations were 49.6 ± 20.5 and 24.2 ± 10.9 μg/m3 , respectively. The mean temperature anomaly was 7.0 ± 2.3 °C; the relative humidity was 62.0 ± 18.0%. Hospital admission rates for respiratory diseases increased with increasing PM and temperature, and with decreasing relative humidity. A multivariate analysis including PM, temperature anomaly, relative humidity, and age showed a significant increase in respiratory-related admissions with increasing PM levels and a decreasing relative humidity. Higher PM2.5 levels had a greater effect on respiratory-related hospital admission than did PM10 levels. Children and the elderly were the most susceptible to hospital admission for respiratory disease. Conclusions PM levels and meteorological factors impacted hospitalization for respiratory diseases, especially in children and the elderly. The effect of PM on respiratory diseases increased as the relative humidity decreased.
Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent regulated necrosis mediated by lipid peroxidation. Cancer cells survive under metabolic stress conditions by altering lipid metabolism, which may alter their ...sensitivity to ferroptosis. However, the association between lipid metabolism and ferroptosis is not completely understood. In this study, we found that the expression of elongation of very longchain fatty acid protein 5 (ELOVL5) and fatty acid desaturase 1 (FADS1) is up-regulated in mesenchymal-type gastric cancer cells (GCs), leading to ferroptosis sensitization. In contrast, these enzymes are silenced by DNA methylation in intestinal-type GCs, rendering cells resistant to ferroptosis. Lipid profiling and isotope tracing analyses revealed that intestinal-type GCs are unable to generate arachidonic acid (AA) and adrenic acid (AdA) from linoleic acid. AA supplementation of intestinal-type GCs restores their sensitivity to ferroptosis. Based on these data, the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) biosynthesis pathway plays an essential role in ferroptosis; thus, this pathway potentially represents a marker for predicting the efficacy of ferroptosis-mediated cancer therapy.
TGFam-Finder Kim, Seungill; Cheong, Kyeongchae; Park, Jieun ...
New phytologist,
September 2020, Letnik:
227, Številka:
5
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Whole-genome annotation error that omits essential protein-coding genes hinders further research.
We developed Target Gene Family Finder (TGFam-Finder), an alternative tool for the structural ...annotation of protein-coding genes containing target domain(s) of interest in plant genomes. TGFam-Finder took considerably reduced annotation run-time and improved accuracy compared to conventional annotation tools.
Large-scale re-annotation of 50 plant genomes identified an average of 150, 166 and 86 additional far-red-impaired response 1, nucleotide-binding and leucine-rich-repeat, and cytochrome P450 genes, respectively, that were missed in previous annotations. We detected significantly higher number of translated genes in the new annotations using mass spectrometry data from seven plant species compared to previous annotations.
TGFam-Finder along with the new gene models can provide an optimized platform for comprehensive functional, comparative, and evolutionary studies in plants.
This study conducted a detection and attribution analysis of the observed global and regional changes in extreme temperatures during 1951–2015. HadEX3 observations were compared with multimodel ...simulations from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6) using an optimal fingerprinting technique. Annual maximum daily maximum and minimum temperatures (TXx and TNx; warm extremes) and annual minimum daily maximum and minimum temperatures (TXn and TNn; cold extremes) over land were analyzed considering global, continental, and subcontinental scales. Response patterns (fingerprints) of extreme temperatures to anthropogenic (ANT), greenhouse gases (GHG), aerosols (AA), and natural (NAT) forcings were obtained from CMIP6 forced simulations. The internal variability ranges were estimated from preindustrial control simulations. A two-signal detection analysis where the observations are regressed onto ANT and NAT fingerprints simultaneously reveals that ANT signals are robustly detected in separation from NAT over global and all continental domains (North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania) for most of the extreme indices. ANT signals are also detected over many subcontinental regions, particularly for warm extremes (more than 60% of 33 subregions). A three-signal detection analysis that considers GHG, AA, and NAT fingerprints simultaneously demonstrates that GHG signals are detected in isolation from other external forcings over global, continental, and several subcontinental domains especially for warm extremes, explaining most of the observed warming. Moreover, AA influences are detected for warm extremes over Europe and Asia, indicating significant offsetting cooling contributions. Overall, human influences are detected more frequently, compared to previous studies, particularly for cold extremes, due to the extended period and the improved spatial coverage of observations.
Successive cold winters of severely low temperatures in recent years have had critical social and economic impacts on the mid-latitude continents in the Northern Hemisphere. Although these cold ...winters are thought to be partly driven by dramatic losses of Arctic sea-ice, the mechanism that links sea-ice loss to cold winters remains a subject of debate. Here, by conducting observational analyses and model experiments, we show how Arctic sea-ice loss and cold winters in extra-polar regions are dynamically connected through the polar stratosphere. We find that decreased sea-ice cover during early winter months (November-December), especially over the Barents-Kara seas, enhances the upward propagation of planetary-scale waves with wavenumbers of 1 and 2, subsequently weakening the stratospheric polar vortex in mid-winter (January-February). The weakened polar vortex preferentially induces a negative phase of Arctic Oscillation at the surface, resulting in low temperatures in mid-latitudes.
Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes (MELAS), one of the most common maternally inherited mitochondrial diseases, is caused by mitochondrial DNA mutations that ...lead to mitochondrial dysfunction. Several treatment options exist, including supplementation with CoQ10, vitamins, and nutrients, but no treatment with proven efficacy is currently available. In this study, we investigated the effects of a novel NAD
modulator, KL1333, in human fibroblasts derived from a human patient with MELAS. KL1333 is an orally available, small organic molecule that reacts with NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) as a substrate, resulting in increases in intracellular NAD
levels via NADH oxidation. To elucidate the mechanism of action of KL1333, we used C2C12 myoblasts, L6 myoblasts, and MELAS fibroblasts. Elevated NAD
levels induced by KL1333 triggered the activation of SIRT1 and AMPK, and subsequently activated PGC-1α in these cells. In MELAS fibroblasts, KL1333 increased ATP levels and decreased lactate and ROS levels, which are often dysregulated in this disease. In addition, mitochondrial functional analyses revealed that KL1333 increased mitochondrial mass, membrane potential, and oxidative capacity. These results indicate that KL1333 improves mitochondrial biogenesis and function, and thus represents a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of MELAS.
Accurate and continuous monitoring of eye movements using compact, low‐power‐consuming, and easily‐wearable sensors is necessary in personal and public health and safety, selected medical diagnosis ...techniques (point‐of‐care diagnostics), and personal entertainment systems. In this study, a highly sensitive, noninvasive, and skin‐attachable sensor made of a stable flexible piezoelectric thin film that is also free of hazardous elements to overcome the limitations of current computer‐vision‐based eye‐tracking systems and piezoelectric strain sensors is developed. The sensor fabricated from single‐crystalline III‐N thin film by a layer‐transfer technique is highly sensitive and can detect subtle movements of the eye. The flexible eye movement sensor converts the mechanical deformation (skin deflection by eye blinking and eyeball motion) with various frequencies and levels into electrical outputs. The sensor can detect abnormal eye flickering and conditions caused by fatigue and drowsiness, including overlong closure, hasty eye blinking, and half‐closed eyes. The abnormal eyeball motions, which may be the sign of several brain‐related diseases, can also be measured, as the sensor generates discernable output voltages from the direction of eyeball movements. This study provides a practical solution for continuous sensing of human eye blinking and eyeball motion as a critical part of personal healthcare, safety, and entertainment systems.
Flexible III‐N thin‐films are used as a sensing material for the piezoelectric eye movement sensor. Tests for eye blinking, including overlong closure and half‐closing, and eyeball movement are carried out to verify the excellent sensitivity even for subtle deformation. The aforementioned eye‐related motions can be identified as an indicator of brain‐related disease prediction, and drowsiness and fatigue monitoring.
While the IPCC Fifth Assessment Working Group I report assessed observed changes in extreme precipitation on the basis of both absolute and percentile-based extreme indices, human influence on ...extreme precipitation has rarely been evaluated on the basis of percentile-based extreme indices. Here we conduct a formal detection and attribution analysis on changes in four percentile-based precipitation extreme indices. The indices include annual precipitation totals from days with precipitation exceeding the 99th and 95th percentiles of wet-day precipitation in 1961–90 (R99p and R95p) and their contributions to annual total precipitation (R99pTOT and R95pTOT). We compare these indices from a set of newly compiled observations during 1951–2014 with simulations from models participating in phase 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6). We show that most land areas with observations experienced increases in these extreme indices with global warming during the historical period 1951–2014. The new CMIP6 models are able to reproduce these overall increases, although with considerable over- or underestimations in some regions. An optimal fingerprinting analysis reveals detectable anthropogenic signals in the observations of these indices averaged over the globe and over most continents. Furthermore, signals of greenhouse gases can be separately detected, taking other forcing into account, over the globe and over Asia in these indices except for R95p. In contrast, signals of anthropogenic aerosols and natural forcings cannot be detected in any of these indices at either global or continental scales.
Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have recently shown promising potential as effective energy harvesters using human motion energy. However, the efficiency of polymer-based flexible TENG must be ...enhanced for various applications. In this work, we propose a flexible TENG with a fluorocarbon plasma-etched polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)–carbon nanotube (CNT). The fluorocarbon plasma etching causes not only a chemical modification, but also a physical effect on the morphology of the PDMS–CNT surface to enhance the TENG output performance. The added CNT enhances the mechanical properties, such as durability, of a thin film. The etched PDMS structure and the revealed CNTs increase the charge density on the surface. We confirm the effect of different CNT concentrations doped in PDMS and various etching times. We propose a TENG with 4 wt% CNT, which has been subjected to fluorocarbon etching for 60 s. The TENG exhibits an output voltage of 77.8 V, which is 248.7% and 106.5% higher than that of pure PDMS and un-etched PDMS–CNT, respectively. The 20 mm × 30 mm TENG delivers an output power of 1.98 mW (3.29 W m
−2
) at a matching resistance of 3 MΩ. The TENG exhibits good stability and superior electrical performance, making it capable of driving both the instantaneous operation of 70 LEDs and the charging of a 0.33 μF capacitor to 6.6 V. Furthermore, this TENG can be used as a self-powered physical activity sensor that measures the amount of human activity through the amount of charge in the capacitor.
Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) plays an important role in the regulation of energy homeostasis during starvation and has an excellent therapeutic potential for the treatment of type 2 diabetes ...in rodents and monkeys. Acute exercise affects glucose and lipid metabolism by increasing glucose uptake and lipolysis. However, it is not known whether acute exercise affects FGF21 expression. Here, we showed that serum FGF21 level is increased in mice after a single bout of acute exercise, and that this is accompanied by increased serum levels of free fatty acid, glycerol and ketone body. FGF21 gene expression was induced in the liver but not in skeletal muscle and white adipose tissue of mice after acute exercise, and further, the gene expression levels of hepatic peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) and activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) were also increased. In addition, we observed increased FGF21 level in serum of healthy male volunteers performing a treadmill run at 50 or 80% VO2max. These results suggest that FGF21 may also be associated with exercise-induced lipolysis in addition to increased catecholamines and reduced insulin.
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