Nutritional Calcium Supply Dependent Calcium Balance,Bone Calcification and Calcium Isotope Ratios in Rats

Serum calcium isotopes (δ^44/42Ca) have been suggested as a non-invasive and sensitive Ca balance marker. Quantitative δ^44/42Ca changes associated with Ca flux across body compartment barriers relative to the dietary Ca and the correlation of δ^44/42Ca_Serum with bone histology are unknown. We analyzed Ca and δ^44/42Ca by mass-spectrometry in rats after two weeks of standard-Ca-diet (0.5%) and after four subsequent weeks of standard- and of low-Ca-diet (0.25%). In animals on a low-Ca-diet net Ca gain was 61 ± 3% and femur Ca content 68 ± 41% of standard-Ca-diet, bone mineralized area per section area was 68 ± 15% compared to standard-Ca-diet. δ^44/42Ca was similar in the diets, and decreased in feces and urine and increased in serum in animals on low-Ca-diet. δ^44/42Ca_Bone was higher in animals on low-Ca-diet, lower in the diaphysis than the metaphysis and epiphysis, and unaffected by gender. Independent of diet, δ^44/42Ca_Bone was similar in the femora and ribs. At the time of sacrifice, δ^44/42Ca_Serum inversely correlated with intestinal Ca uptake and histological bone mineralization markers, but not with Ca content and bone mineral density by µCT. In conclusion, δ^44/42Ca_Bone was bone site specific, but mechanical stress and gender independent. Low-Ca-diet induced marked changes in feces, serum and urine δ^44/42Ca in growing rats. δ^44/42Ca_Serum inversely correlated with markers of bone mineralization.     

The Endolysosomal System: The Acid Test for SARS-CoV-2

This review aims to describe and discuss the different functions of the endolysosomal system, from homeostasis to its vital role during viral infections. We will initially describe endolysosomal system’s main functions, presenting recent data on how its compartments are essential for host defense to explore later how SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) and other coronaviruses subvert these organelles for their benefit. It is clear that to succeed, pathogens’ evolution favored the establishment of ways to avoid, escape, or manipulate lysosomal function. The unavoidable coexistence with such an unfriendly milieu imposed on viruses the establishment of a vast array of strategies to make the most out of the invaded cell’s machinery to produce new viruses and maneuvers to escape the host’s defense system.     

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Mass Spectrometry Proteomics Applied to Human Peripheral Fluids to Assess Potential Biomarkers of Schizophrenia

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques can be a powerful tool to identify neuropsychiatric disorder biomarkers, improving prediction and diagnosis ability. Here, we evaluate the efficacy of MS proteomics applied to human peripheral fluids of schizophrenia (SCZ) patients to identify disease biomarkers and relevant networks of biological pathways. Following PRISMA guidelines, a search was performed for studies that used MS proteomics approaches to identify proteomic differences between SCZ patients and healthy control groups (PROSPERO database: CRD42021274183). Nineteen articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria, allowing the identification of 217 differentially expressed proteins. Gene ontology analysis identified lipid metabolism, complement and coagulation cascades, and immune response as the main enriched biological pathways. Meta-analysis results suggest the upregulation of FCN3 and downregulation of APO1, APOA2, APOC1, and APOC3 in SCZ patients. Despite the proven ability of MS proteomics to characterize SCZ, several confounding factors contribute to the heterogeneity of the findings. In the future, we encourage the scientific community to perform studies with more extensive sampling and validation cohorts, integrating omics with bioinformatics tools to provide additional comprehension of differentially expressed proteins. The produced information could harbor potential proteomic biomarkers of SCZ, contributing to individualized prognosis and stratification strategies, besides aiding in the differential diagnosis.     

Skin Inflammation Modulation via TNF-α, IL-17, and IL-12 Family Inhibitors Therapy and Cancer Control in Patients with Psoriasis

The systemic inflammatory syndrome concept is one of the foundations that stand at the basis of revolutionary modern and future therapies, based on the in-depth understanding of the delicate mechanisms that govern the collaboration between the systems and organs of the human body and, at the same time, the fine balance that ensures a reproach-free operation. An interesting concept that we propose is that of the environment-inadequacy status, a concept that non-specifically incorporates all the situations of the organism’s response disorders in the face of imprecisely defined situations of the environment. The correlation between these two concepts will define the future of modern medicine, along with the gene-adjustment mechanisms. Psoriasis is a clear example of an inadequate body response as a result of exposure to as of yet undefined triggers with an excessive systemic inflammatory reaction and hitherto insufficiently controllable. Modern biological therapies, such as TNF-α, IL-12 family, and IL-17 inhibitors, are intended to profoundly reshape the cytokine configuration of patients with inflammatory diseases such as psoriasis, with tremendous success in disease control. Yet, because of the important roles of cytokines in cancer promotion and control, concern was raised about the fact that the use of biologicals may alter immune surveillance and promote cancer progression. Both theoretical and practical data nevertheless showed that the treatment-induced control of cytokines may be beneficial for reducing the inflammatory milieu that promotes cancer and such have a beneficial role in maintaining health. We briefly present the intricate roles of those cytokine families on cancer control, with some debates on if their inhibition might or might not promote additional tumoral development.     

Enhanced duckweed detection using bootstrapped SVM classification on medium resolution RGB MODIS imagery

From early 2004, Lake Maracaibo (northwest Venezuela) experienced an unprecedented invasion of duckweed Lemna obscura. Recurrent blooms of the plant in the past 2 years illustrate the need for an automatic monitoring method to follow the plant cover with time and to plan contingency measures. We present an approach that allows the cover of the duckweed to be quantified through the classification of MODIS 250 m RGB composite images available from the internet. The method improves the accuracy of the results of the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm for classification by including a bootstrap step during the training phase. Using only 200 pixels for training (<0.05% of the total), the bootstrapped SVM method allows a better identification of the duckweed class, reducing the number of false negatives by half and improving the KHAT statistic by almost 40% in comparison to the standard SVM method. This method has proved to be a reliable solution in cases where rapid responses are needed and only medium‐resolution, free satellite imagery is available.     

Forms of reasoning used by prospective physical sciences teachers when explaining and predicting natural phenomena: The case of air pressure

Abstract

The co‐ordination between theory and evidence is an outstanding characteristic of scientific thinking. Research indicates that students often have difficulty in explaining natural phenomena because they use their own theories to explain phenomena or they are unable to build a bridge between theory and evidence. Science teachers must teach students to collect and select evidence and to use theory to explain it. The objective of this study was to investigate the forms of reasoning used by prospective physical sciences teachers when they build up explanations and make predictions about natural phenomena. Thirty‐eight prospective teachers answered a questionnaire structured around three problems focusing on phenomena that can be explained through air‐pressure variation. The results seem to indicate a variation in the forms of reasoning used, depending on the problem and the type of request. The number of prospective teachers who consistently use a certain form of reasoning is higher within problems than across problems.     

Design principles for preschool children’s interactive TV

Preschool children have increased access to media via a number of platforms, including digital interactive television. However, the viewing and interaction needs of this user group have not been extensively researched. The project reported in this paper investigates preschoolers’ interactions with a simulated interactive television set-up. The study involved the development of an electronic programme guide prototype and its empirical evaluation. This research was carried out with children in Brazil and in the United Kingdom, aged between three and four. The main issues that arose during the interaction with the prototype application are documented, and a list of design principles is presented to assist in the design of accessible preschool interactive television applications for this age group.     

A percentile system optimization approach with and without path enumeration

In this paper we deal with the travel time reliability PUE (probabilistic user equilibrium) problem studied by Lo et al. (2006) [12] and Nie (2011) [15] and we propose an alternative model that assumes a location-scale family for the path travel times, whose means and variances are evaluated in terms of link travel times. This avoids the use of the central limit theorem and convolutions providing a flexible and simple alternative. Contrary to the most existing models that require path enumeration or an iterative method to add paths sequentially, we present a percentile system optimization in its two versions: with and without path enumeration. Two examples of applications, one of them real, are used to illustrate the power of the proposed method. The cpu times required to solve the problem seem reasonable. In addition, we answer an open question raised by Nie (2011) [15] about the permutability of percentiles and partial derivatives of route travel times with respect to route flows. A family of counterexamples is given to demonstrate that the two operations: (a) obtain percentiles and (b) partial derivation of route travel times do not commute. Finally, to reproduce the trial-and-error sequence followed by users when selecting paths, we also present an algorithm that simulates this iterative process and shows that the final long-term user behavior coincides with PUE (probabilistic user equilibrium) problem resulting from some existing models.