Calcineurin-NFAT signaling is critical for numerous aspects of vertebrate function during and after embryonic development. Initially discovered in T cells, the NFAT gene family, consisting of five ...members, regulates immune system, inflammatory response, angiogenesis, cardiac valve formation, myocardial development, axonal guidance, skeletal muscle development, bone homeostasis, development and metastasis of cancer, and many other biological processes. In this review we will focus on the NFAT literature relevant to the two closely related pathological systems: inflammation and cancer.
Water resources management (WRM) for sustainable development presents many challenges in areas with sparse in situ monitoring networks. The exponential growth of satellite based information over the ...past decade provides unprecedented opportunities to support and improve WRM. Furthermore, traditional barriers to the access and usage of satellite data are lowering as technological innovations provide opportunities to manage and deliver this wealth of information to a wider audience. We review data needs for WRM and the role that satellite remote sensing can play to fill gaps and enhance WRM, focusing on the Latin American and Caribbean as an example of a region with potential to further develop its resources and mitigate the impacts of hydrological hazards. We review the state‐of‐the‐art for relevant variables, current satellite missions, and products, how they are being used currently by national agencies across the Latin American and Caribbean region, and the challenges to improving their utility. We discuss the potential of recently launched, upcoming, and proposed missions that are likely to further enhance and transform assessment and monitoring of water resources. Ongoing challenges of accuracy, sampling, and continuity still need to be addressed, and further challenges related to the massive amounts of new data need to be overcome to best leverage the utility of satellite based information for improving WRM.
Key Points
Satellite remote sensing is being incorporated into water resources management but is generally underutilized
New and proposed missions have the potential to transform water resources management for sustainable development, especially in data‐poor regions
Ongoing challenges of accuracy, sampling, and continuity and capacity development need to be addressed, as well as new challenges of information volume and diversity
We report on the synthesis of a phase-pure, 2-dimensional transition metal carbide Nb4C3, produced by immersing Nb4AlC3 powders in hydrofluoric acid. The structure of this, only second MXene with ...formula M4X3, was investigated with pair distribution function analysis. The resistivity of a cold-pressed disc was 0.0046 Ω m, rendering this MXene one of the most conductive to date.
Recent Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations present mounting evidence for the presence of exocometary gas released within Kuiper Belt analogs around nearby main-sequence stars. ...This represents a unique opportunity to study their ice reservoir at the younger ages when volatile delivery to planets is most likely to occur. We here present the detection of CO J = 2-1 emission colocated with dust emission from the cometary belt in the 440 Myr old Fomalhaut system. Through spectrospatial filtering, we achieve a 5.4 detection and determine that the ring's sky-projected rotation axis matches that of the star. The CO mass derived ( ) is the lowest of any circumstellar disk detected to date and must be of exocometary origin. Using a steady-state model, we estimate the CO+CO2 mass fraction of exocomets around Fomalhaut to be between 4.6% and 76%, consistent with solar system comets and the two other belts known to host exocometary gas. This is the first indication of a similarity in cometary compositions across planetary systems that may be linked to their formation scenario and is consistent with direct interstellar medium inheritance. In addition, we find tentative evidence that % of the detected flux originates from a region near the eccentric belt's pericenter. If confirmed, the latter may be explained through a recent impact event or CO pericenter glow due to exocometary release within a steady-state collisional cascade. In the latter scenario, we show how the azimuthal dependence of the CO release rate leads to asymmetries in gas observations of eccentric exocometary belts.
Objective:A role for aberrant reward processing in the pathogenesis of depression has long been proposed. However, no review has yet examined its role in depression by integrating conceptual and ...quantitative findings across functional MRI (fMRI) and EEG methodologies. The authors quantified these effects, with an emphasis on development.Method:A total of 38 fMRI and 12 EEG studies were entered into fMRI and EEG meta-analyses. fMRI studies primarily examined reward anticipation and reward feedback. These were analyzed using the activation likelihood estimation method. EEG studies involved mainly the feedback-related negativity (FRN) event-related potential, and these studies were analyzed using random-effects meta-analysis of the association between FRN and depression.Results:Analysis of fMRI studies revealed significantly reduced striatal activation in depressed compared with healthy individuals during reward feedback. When region-of-interest analyses were included, reduced activation was also observed in reward anticipation, an effect that was stronger in individuals under age 18. FRN was also significantly reduced in depression, with pronounced effects in individuals under age 18. In longitudinal studies, reduced striatal activation in fMRI and blunted FRN in EEG were found to precede the onset of depression in adolescents.Conclusions:Taken together, the findings show consistent neural aberrations during reward processing in depression, namely, reduced striatal signal during feedback and blunted FRN. These aberrations may underlie the pathogenesis of depression and have important implications for development of new treatments.
The residential sector is one of the primary energy consumers and emitters of greenhouse gases. Given the environmental problem, one of the methods of mitigating electricity consumption and reducing ...the temperature in buildings is green infrastructure: green roofs and walls. This article presents a compilation of the studies carried out in México about green infrastructure; the energy, thermal and environmental benefits obtained were analyzed according to the vegetation, substrate, climate, and systems configuration. In addition, the development of policies, laws, regulations, and incentives in the field of green roofs in Mexico was also analyzed. The results indicate that using green infrastructure can help mitigate greenhouse gases since a green roof can reduce the indoor temperature up to 19.9 °C, save 28 % annually in electricity consumption and remove 80 % of rainwater pollutants. Finally, the results of this research can provide insight for researchers, legislators, and urban planners about the state in which Mexico is located, as well as help in decision-making.
Display omitted
•The importance of green roofs is to reduce energy consumption in buildings and the UHI effect.•Thermal and energy behavior of green roofs and walls in the different climates of Mexico.•Analysis of the development and panorama that Mexico has on green roofs and walls compared to the rest of the world.•Review of the rules, incentives, and regulations of green roofs and walls.
Viruses that affect humans, animals and plants are often dispersed and transmitted through airborne routes of infection. Due to current technological deficiencies, accurate determination of the ...presence of airborne viruses is challenging. This shortcoming limits our ability to evaluate the actual threat arising from inhalation or other relevant contact with aerosolized viruses. To improve our understanding of the mechanisms of airborne transmission of viruses, air sampling technologies that can detect the presence of aerosolized viruses, effectively collect them and maintain their viability, and determine their distribution in aerosol particles, are needed. The latest developments in sampling and detection methodologies for airborne viruses, their limitations, factors that can affect their performance and current research needs, are discussed in this review. Much more work is needed on the establishment of standard air sampling methods and their performance requirements. Sampling devices that can collect a wide size range of virus‐containing aerosols and maintain the viability of the collected viruses are needed. Ideally, the devices would be portable and technology‐enabled for on‐the‐spot detection and rapid identification of the viruses. Broad understanding of the airborne transmission of viruses is of seminal importance for the establishment of better infection control strategies.
Background
Kawasaki disease is a vasculitis most commonly afflicting children <5 years of age. Many autoimmune diseases are associated with up‐regulation of T helper (Th) 17 cells, and ...down‐regulation Treg cells. Few studies have examined the Th17/Treg expression in Kawasaki disease.
Methods
Blood samples were obtained from 186 children with Kawasaki disease at 24 h before IVIG therapy, followed by 3 days and 21 days after IVIG therapy. Thirty children with an acute febrile infectious disease and 30 healthy children were obtained as control. Plasma levels of Th17‐ and Treg‐related cytokines including IL‐6, IL‐17A, IL‐10, TGF‐β, and mRNA expression levels of RORγt and Foxp3 were tested.
Results
Patients with Kawasaki disease had higher levels of plasma IL‐17A (25.35 ± 3.21 vs 7.78 ± 1.78 pg/ml, P < 0.001) and IL‐6 (152.29 ± 21.94 vs 38.63 ± 12.40 pg/ml, P < 0.001) when compared to the febrile control group. IVIG resulted in a reduction in IL‐6 and IL‐17A at both 3 and 21 days after IVIG therapy. FoxP3 levels increased significantly 3 days after IVIG therapy (2.28 ± 0.34 vs 0.88 ± 0.14, P < 0.001). IVIG resistance was associated with higher levels of IL‐10 and IL‐17A.
Conclusion
Kawasaki disease was associated with higher IL‐17A and IL‐6, a cytokine profile similar to other autoimmune diseases. IVIG therapy resulted in increased expression of Treg‐related FoxP3. IVIG resistance was associated with higher levels of IL‐10 and IL‐17A. Our findings provide further evidence that Kawasaki disease is an autoimmune‐like disease.
Nitric oxide is a versatile mediator formed by enzymes called nitric oxide synthases. It has numerous homeostatic functions and important roles in inflammation. Within the inflamed brain, microglia ...and astrocytes produce large amounts of nitric oxide during inflammation. Excessive nitric oxide causes neuronal toxicity and death and mesenchymal stem cells can be used as an approach to limit the neuronal damage caused by neuroinflammation. Mesenchymal stem cell therapy ameliorates inflammation and neuronal damage in disease models of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other neuroinflammatory disorders. Interestingly, we have reported that in vitro, mesenchymal stem cells themselves contribute to a rise in nitric oxide levels through microglial cues. This may be an undesirable effect and highlights a possible need to explore acellular approaches for mesenchymal stem cell therapy in the central nervous system.
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