There is increasing evidence showing that inflammation is an important pathogenic mediator of the development of obesity-induced insulin resistance. It is now generally accepted that tissue-resident ...immune cells play a major role in the regulation of this obesity-induced inflammation. The roles that adipose tissue (AT)-resident immune cells play have been particularly extensively studied. AT contains most types of immune cells and obesity increases their numbers and activation levels, particularly in AT macrophages (ATMs). Other pro-inflammatory cells found in AT include neutrophils, Th1 CD4 T cells, CD8 T cells, B cells, DCs, and mast cells. However, AT also contains anti-inflammatory cells that counter the pro-inflammatory immune cells that are responsible for the obesity-induced inflammation in this tissue. These anti-inflammatory cells include regulatory CD4 T cells (Tregs), Th2 CD4 T cells, and eosinophils. Hence, AT inflammation is shaped by the regulation of pro- and anti-inflammatory immune cell homeostasis, and obesity skews this balance towards a more pro-inflammatory status. Recent genetic studies revealed several molecules that participate in the development of obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance. In this review, the cellular and molecular players that participate in the regulation of obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance are discussed, with particular attention being placed on the roles of the cellular players in these pathogeneses. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Modulation of Adipose Tissue in Health and Disease.
•We discuss obesity-induced adipose tissue inflammation.•We discuss the cellular and molecular players of obesity-induced inflammation.•We discuss obesity-induced inflammation in the context of classical immunity.
Recent advances in mass spectrometry have expanded our knowledge of lipids and lipid metabolic pathways involved in many (patho)physiological events. Targeted and non-targeted lipidomics are powerful ...analytical strategies with distinct features, and a combination of these two approaches is often employed to maximize the coverage of lipid species detected and quantified in complex biological matrices. This review briefly summarizes the applications of targeted and non-targeted lipidomics, mainly focusing on electrospray ionization–liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (ESI–LC–MS/MS), along with recent technical advances in the field. Current limitations and challenges in lipidomics and possible solutions are also discussed.
•Advances in mass spectrometry have expanded our knowledge of lipids.•Targeted and non-targeted lipidomics are powerful strategies with distinct features.•We briefly review the applications of these lipidomics strategies in lipid research.•Current limitations and challenges in lipidomics are also discussed.
•A comprehensive review of vision-based and sensor-based human activity recognition.•Summarize and discuss public datasets that are used in vision-based HAR and sensor-based HAR.•Categorize and ...analyze standard data processing, and feature engineering processes used in HAR.•Categorize and analyze machine learning techniques for HAR and focus on current deep learning research in HAR.•Discuss challenges and show future directions for HAR.
Human activity recognition (HAR) technology that analyzes data acquired from various types of sensing devices, including vision sensors and embedded sensors, has motivated the development of various context-aware applications in emerging domains, e.g., the Internet of Things (IoT) and healthcare. Even though a considerable number of HAR surveys and review articles have been conducted previously, the major/overall HAR subject has been ignored, and these studies only focus on particular HAR topics. Therefore, a comprehensive review paper that covers major subjects in HAR is imperative. This survey analyzes the latest state-of-the-art research in HAR in recent years, introduces a classification of HAR methodologies, and shows advantages and weaknesses for methods in each category. Specifically, HAR methods are classified into two main groups, which are sensor-based HAR and vision-based HAR, based on the generated data type. After that, each group is divided into subgroups that perform different procedures, including the data collection, pre-processing methods, feature engineering, and the training process. Moreover, an extensive review regarding the utilization of deep learning in HAR is also conducted. Finally, this paper discusses various challenges in the current HAR topic and offers suggestions for future research.
During viral infection, virus-derived cytosolic nucleic acids are recognized by host intracellular specific sensors. The efficacy of this recognition system is crucial for triggering innate host ...defenses, which then stimulate more specific adaptive immune responses against the virus. Recent studies show that signal transduction pathways activated by sensing proteins are positively or negatively regulated by many modulators to maintain host immune homeostasis. However, viruses have evolved several strategies to counteract/evade host immune reactions. These systems involve viral proteins that interact with host sensor proteins and prevent them from detecting the viral genome or from initiating immune signaling. In this review, we discuss key regulators of cytosolic sensor proteins and viral proteins based on experimental evidence.
Wealthy nations led health preparedness rankings in 2019, yet many poor nations controlled COVID-19 better. We argue that a history of rice farming explains why some societies did better. We outline ...how traditional rice farming led to tight social norms and low-mobility social networks. These social structures helped coordinate societies against COVID-19. Study 1 compares rice- and wheat-farming prefectures within China. Comparing within China allows for controlled comparisons of regions with the same national government, language family, and other potential confounds. Study 2 tests whether the findings generalize to cultures globally. The data show rice-farming nations have tighter social norms and less-mobile relationships, which predict better COVID outcomes. Rice-farming nations suffered just 3% of the COVID deaths of nonrice nations. These findings suggest that long-run cultural differences influence how rice societies—with over 50% of the world’s population—controlled COVID-19. The culture was critical, yet the preparedness rankings mostly ignored it.
The Special Issue "Molecular Mechanisms of Natural Products and Phytochemicals in Immune Cells and Asthma" in the
includes original research and reviews on the molecular mechanisms of active, natural ...products (medicinal plants and animal ones) and phytochemicals in vitro and in vivo ....
The d-band center model of Hammer and Nørskov is widely used in understanding and predicting catalytic activity on transition metal (TM) surfaces. Here, we demonstrate that this model is inadequate ...for capturing the complete catalytic activity of the magnetically polarized TM surfaces and propose its generalization. We validate the generalized model through comparison of adsorption energies of the NH
molecule on the surfaces of 3d TMs (V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn) determined with spin-polarized density functional theory (DFT)-based methods with the predictions of our model. Compared to the conventional d-band model, where the nature of the metal-adsorbate interaction is entirely determined through the energy and the occupation of the d-band center, we emphasize that for the surfaces with high spin polarization, the metal-adsorbate system can be stabilized through a competition of the spin-dependent metal-adsorbate interactions.
This study presents a novel approach to assessing the setting time of concrete using the electro-mechanical impedance (EMI) sensing technique. The proposed method involves the continuous monitoring ...of EMI changes by embedding a piezoelectric (PZT) sensor directly in the concrete. A comparative analysis was conducted with the conventional penetration resistance test, which utilizes mortar samples extracted from the concrete. As a result of the experiment, the time deviation rate of the setting time was more than 10% in the penetration resistance test using the mortar sample extracted from the same concrete, whereas the time deviation rate of the setting time was up to 1.77% in the EMI sensing technique using the same concrete specimen. This highlights the effectiveness and potential of the EMI sensing technique for an improved evaluation of concrete setting time.
Members of the TMEM16/ANO family of membrane proteins are Ca
-activated phospholipid scramblases and/or Cl
channels. A membrane-exposed hydrophilic groove in these proteins serves as a shared ...translocation pathway for ions and lipids. However, the mechanism by which lipids gain access to and permeate through the groove remains poorly understood. Here, we combine quantitative scrambling assays and molecular dynamic simulations to identify the key steps regulating lipid movement through the groove. Lipid scrambling is limited by two constrictions defined by evolutionarily conserved charged and polar residues, one extracellular and the other near the membrane mid-point. The region between these constrictions is inaccessible to lipids and water molecules, suggesting that the groove is in a non-conductive conformation. A sequence of lipid-triggered reorganizations of interactions between these residues and the permeating lipids propagates from the extracellular entryway to the central constriction, allowing the groove to open and coordinate the headgroups of transiting lipids.
Using two nationally representative surveys, we find that people in China's historically rice-farming areas are less happy than people in wheat areas. This is a puzzle because the rice area is more ...interdependent, and relationships are an important predictor of happiness. We explore how the interdependence of historical rice farming may have paradoxically undermined happiness by creating more social comparison than wheat farming. We build a framework in which rice farming leads to social comparison, which makes people unhappy (especially people who are worse off). If people in rice areas socially compare more, then people's happiness in rice areas should be more closely related to markers of social status like income. In two studies, national survey data show that income, self-reported social status, and occupational status predict people's happiness twice as strongly in rice areas than wheat areas. In Study 3, we use a unique natural experiment comparing two nearby state farms that effectively randomly assigned people to farm rice or wheat. The rice farmers socially compare more, and farmers who socially compare more are less happy. If interdependence breeds social comparison and erodes happiness, it could help explain the paradox of why the interdependent cultures of East Asia are less happy than similarly wealthy cultures.
PDF
