We describe the genetic analysis of samples from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) patients from southern and southeastern states of Brazil and rodents captured at the presumed site of infection of ...these patients. A total of 65 samples that were antibody-positive for Sin Nombre or Laguna Negra virus by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay were processed by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) by using several primer combinations in the M and S genome segments. PCR products were amplified and sequenced from samples from 11 HPS patient and 7 rodent samples. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequence differences showed the cocirculation of Araraquara and Juquitiba-like viruses, previously characterized from humans. Our genetic data indicate that Araraquara virus is associated with Bolomys lasiurus (hairy-tailed Bolo mouse) and the Juquitiba-like virus is associated with Oligoryzomys nigripes (black-footed pigmy rice rat).
We report a 4.8 measurement of the cross-correlation signal between the cosmic microwave background (CMB) lensing convergence reconstructed from measurements of the CMB polarization made by the ...Polarbear experiment and the infrared-selected galaxies of the Herschel-ATLAS survey. This is the first measurement of its kind. We infer a best-fit galaxy bias of , corresponding to a host halo mass of at an effective redshift of z ∼ 2 from the cross-correlation power spectrum. Residual uncertainties in the redshift distribution of the submillimeter galaxies are subdominant with respect to the statistical precision. We perform a suite of systematic tests, finding that instrumental and astrophysical contaminations are small compared to the statistical error. This cross-correlation measurement only relies on CMB polarization information that, differently from CMB temperature maps, is less contaminated by galactic and extragalactic foregrounds, providing a clearer view of the projected matter distribution. This result demonstrates the feasibility and robustness of this approach for future high-sensitivity CMB polarization experiments.
Soy, Isoflavones, and Breast Cancer Risk in Japan Yamamoto, Seiichiro; Sobue, Tomotaka; Kobayashi, Minatsu ...
JNCI : Journal of the National Cancer Institute,
06/2003, Letnik:
95, Številka:
12
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Background: Although isoflavones, such as those found in soy, have been shown to inhibit breast cancer in laboratory studies, associations between consumption of isoflavone-containing foods and ...breast cancer risk have been inconsistent in epidemiologic studies. We evaluated the relationship between isoflavone consumption and breast cancer risk among women in the Japan Public Health Center-Based Prospective Study on Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases (JPHC Study). Methods: In January 1990, 21 852 Japanese female residents (aged 40–59 years) from four public health center areas completed a self-administered questionnaire, which included items about the frequency of soy consumption. Through December 1999 and 209 354 person-years of follow-up, 179 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate the relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for breast cancer in relation to consumption of miso soup, soyfoods, and estimated isoflavones. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: Consumption of miso soup and isoflavones, but not of soyfoods, was inversely associated with the risk of breast cancer. The associations did not change substantially after adjustment for potential confounders, including reproductive history, family history, smoking, and other dietary factors. Compared with those in the lowest quartile of isoflavone intake, the adjusted RRs for breast cancer for women in the second, third, and highest quartiles were 0.76 (95% CI = 0.47 to 1.2), 0.90 (95% CI = 0.56 to 1.5), and 0.46 (95% CI = 0.25 to 0.84), respectively (Ptrend = .043). The inverse association was stronger in postmenopausal women (Ptrend = .006). Conclusion: In a population-based, prospective cohort study in Japan, frequent miso soup and isoflavone consumption was associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer.
Ferulic acid (FA), a phytochemical constituent, has antihypertensive effects, but a detailed understanding of its effects on vascular function remains unclear. The vasoreactivity of FA was assessed ...using aortic rings isolated from normotensive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).
The effects of FA (10
−5 to 10
−3 mol/L) on vasodilatory responses were evaluated based on contractile responses induced by phenylephrine (10
−6 mol/L) in thoracic aortic rings from male WKY rats and SHR. Basal nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability in the aorta was determined from the contractile response induced by the NO synthase inhibitor
N
G-nitro-
l-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME, 10
−4 mol/L). The effects of FA on the production of NADPH-dependent superoxide anion were examined in SHR aortas. The impact of hydroxyhydroquinone, a generator of superoxide anions, on the FA-induced enhancement in acetylcholine-stimulated vasodilation was also investigated.
The FA (10
−3 mol/L)-induced relaxation was partially blocked by removal of the endothelium or by pretreating SHR aortas with L-NAME. FA increased NO bioavailability, and decreased NADPH-dependent superoxide anion levels in SHR aortas. Ferulic acid improved acetylcholine-induced endothelium-dependent vasodilation in SHR, but not in WKY. Furthermore, the simultaneous addition of hydroxyhydroquinone significantly inhibited the increase in acetylcholine-induced vasodilation by FA.
Ferulic acid restores endothelial function through enhancing the bioavailability of basal and stimulated NO in SHR aortas. The results explain, in part, the mechanisms underlying the effects of FA on blood pressure (BP) in SHR.
POLARBEAR-2b (PB-2b) is the second of three cryogenic receivers of the Simons Array cosmic microwave background polarization experiment. PB-2b contains over 7500 transition-edge sensor (TES) ...bolometers cooled to 250 mK and read out using digital frequency-division multiplexing (DfMux). Stray impedance in the DfMux circuit obscures TES characterization and affects TES dynamic behavior. In order to accurately characterize TESs, it is necessary to account for stray impedance in the bias circuit. We define a stray impedance model, and we describe the technique used to measure model parameters in situ and to remove their effects on TES characterization. We use the same model to predict TES dynamic behavior and show good agreement between data and the model.
Gravitational lensing due to the large-scale distribution of matter in the cosmos distorts the primordial cosmic microwave background (CMB) and thereby induces new, small-scale B-mode polarization. ...This signal carries detailed information about the distribution of all the gravitating matter between the observer and CMB last scattering surface. We report the first direct evidence for polarization lensing based on purely CMB information, from using the four-point correlations of even- and odd-parity E- and B-mode polarization mapped over ∼30 square degrees of the sky measured by the POLARBEAR experiment. These data were analyzed using a blind analysis framework and checked for spurious systematic contamination using null tests and simulations. Evidence for the signal of polarization lensing and lensing B modes is found at 4.2σ (stat+sys) significance. The amplitude of matter fluctuations is measured with a precision of 27%, and is found to be consistent with the Lambda cold dark matter cosmological model. This measurement demonstrates a new technique, capable of mapping all gravitating matter in the Universe, sensitive to the sum of neutrino masses, and essential for cleaning the lensing B-mode signal in searches for primordial gravitational waves.
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