Hyperimmune colostrum alleviates rheumatoid arthritis in a collagen-induced arthritis murine model

Our aging population and the accompanying decline in immune function is a growing concern that may be addressed by finding natural methods to enhance the immunocompetence of our elderly. Bovine milk and colostrum from cows that have been immunized have been shown to provide additional immunoglobulins and other bioactive molecules that enhance immune function. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of hyperimmune bovine colostrum to alleviate the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis in a murine model. The collagen-induced arthritis DBA/1J murine model was used for this study. Mice were fed colostrum from immunized cows at either 5 or 10 mg/mouse per day or controls for 49 d. The data showed that the colostrum-fed groups had significantly lower total swelling scores and significantly lower collagen-specific antibody (IgG_2a), inflammation-associated antibody (total IgG), and the inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor α, IL-2, IL-6, and IFN-γ. The results strongly suggest that colostrum from immunized cows may have anti-inflammatory activity in a mouse model of rheumatoid arthritis.     

Potable water recovery from As, U, and F contaminated ground waters by direct contact membrane distillation process

In this study, the feasibility of the direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) process to recover arsenic, uranium and fluoride contaminated saline ground waters was investigated. Two types of membranes (polypropylene, PP; and polytetrafluoroethylene, PTFE) were tested to compare the permeate production rates and contaminant removal efficiencies. Several experiments were conducted to study the effect of salts, arsenic, fluoride and uranium concentrations (synthetic brackish water with salts: 1000-10,000 ppm; arsenic and uranium: 10-400 ppb; fluoride: 1-30 ppm) on the desalination efficiency. The effect of process variables such as feed flow rate, feed temperature and pore size was studied. The experimental results proved that the DCMD process is able to achieve over 99% rejection of the salts, arsenic, fluoride and uranium contaminants and produced a high quality permeate suitable for many beneficial uses. The ability to utilize the low grade heat sources makes the DCMD process a viable option to recover potable water from a variety of impaired ground waters.     

“二奢”更香

真金换旧爱,二手奢侈品为啥这么火?近期,部分奢侈品品牌开启新一轮涨价热潮,奢侈品门店外的队伍越排越长,门店内配货的盒子越垒越高,与此相映成趣的是疫情下"叫卖声"火热的二手奢侈直播间。包括寺库、只二、胖虎、红布林及妃鱼在内的国内二手奢侈品平台均入局直播电商,实体门店顾客群更是在线下人流受阻的情况下积极拥抱线上直播.     

Short communication: Simultaneous measurements of estrus behavior and plasma concentrations of estradiol during estrus in lactating and nonlactating dairy cows

Estrus is an important behavior that can potentially be subjected to genomic selection. Circulating estradiol concentrations at estrus may be a useful phenotype if the absolute concentrations of estradiol are associated with overt phenotypes for estrus (activity, rump touches, or both; e.g., mounts, chinrests) that can be easily observed. The objective was to measure plasma estradiol concentrations at estrus and associate these measurements with the increase in activity (steps per hour) and rump touches received at estrus. We also tested the effect of lactation on the estrus traits that we measured. Cows (n = 11 lactating and n = 9 nonlactating) were treated with PGF_2α to synchronize estrus. A jugular vein was cannulated to collect blood every 2 h for plasma estradiol measurement. Plasma LH was measured during the periestrual period to determine the time of the LH surge. Cows were fitted with an accelerometer to measure activity (steps per hour) and a capacitive touch sensing device to measure the number of rump touches and total touch time. Plasma estradiol concentrations were poorly correlated with overt signs of estrus during the period leading up to maximum estrus activity. After peak estrus activity (when cows were going out of estrus and plasma estradiol concentrations were decreasing), a stronger correlation was detected between overt signs of estrus and plasma estradiol concentrations. Effective selection for improved estrus expression based on plasma estradiol concentrations will depend on whether the cow is coming into or going out of estrus at the time of blood sampling. An association existed between lactation and fewer number of hours in estrus when estrus was defined by an increase in activity (steps per hour). Lactating cows had a shorter interval from the onset of estrus to the LH surge, and the shorter interval to the LH surge may have reduced the period of elevated estradiol during estrus in the lactating cows. Understanding mechanisms that control the sensitivity of the cow to estradiol and making appropriate selection decisions based on these mechanisms will likely increase overt signs of estrus in dairy cows.     

Human Endometrial Carcinogenesis Is Associated with Significant Reduction in Long Non-Coding RNA,TERRA

Telomeres are transcribed as long non-coding RNAs called TERRAs (Telomeric repeat containing RNA) that participate in a variety of cellular regulatory functions. High telomerase activity (TA) is associated with endometrial cancer (EC). This study aimed to examine the levels of three TERRAs, transcribed at chromosomes 1q-2q-4q-10q-13q-22q, 16p and 20q in healthy (n = 23) and pathological (n = 24) human endometrium and to examine their association with cellular proliferation, TA and telomere lengths. EC samples demonstrated significantly reduced levels of TERRAs for Chromosome 16p (Ch-16p) (p < 0.002) and Chromosome 20q (Ch-20q) (p = 0.0006), when compared with the postmenopausal samples. No significant correlation was found between TERRA levels and TA but both Ch-16p and Ch-20q TERRA levels negatively correlated with the proliferative marker Ki67 (r = −0.35, p = 0.03 and r = −0.42, p = 0.01 respectively). Evaluation of single telomere length analysis (STELA) at XpYp telomeres demonstrated a significant shortening in EC samples when compared with healthy tissues (p = 0.002). We detected TERRAs in healthy human endometrium and observed altered individual TERRA-specific levels in malignant endometrium. The negative correlation of TERRAs with cellular proliferation along with their significant reduction in EC may suggest a role for TERRAs in carcinogenesis and thus future research should explore TERRAs as potential therapeutic targets in EC.     

Functional role of vacuolization of the T-system of skeletal muscle fibers

T-tubules of skeletal muscle fibres easily transform into large vacuoles under the influence of various factors. These include osmotic shock produced by the efflux of small molecular weight molecules (e.g. glycerol), hypertonic shock, muscle fatigue and muscle damage. In most cases, vacuolation is reversible but the molecular mechanisms involved are not clear. Also, the functional role of reversible vacuolation has not been established. However, three possibilities may be considered. (1) Redistribution of ions and water between the cytoplasm and the extracellular space comprised by the T-system. Thus, the formation of large vacuoles may be a mechanisms for rapid osmoregulation that corresponds to regulated volume decrease in other types of cell. However, in our hands, inhibitors of various pathways that participate in volume regulation had no effect on reversible vacuolation. (2) Resealing of mechanical damage of the plasma membrane. This is usually accompanied by the development near the damaged membrane of numerous vacuoles which we have observed by confocal microscopy and use of a hydrophobic dye (RH414), to arise in part from T-tubules. (3) By confocal microscopy, it has also been shown that extracellular fluorescein dextran (Mr = 10,000), and both plasmid DNA (pUC18) and sonicated high molecular weight DNA stained with YOYO, enter vacuoles derived from T-tubules. This finding may indicate that reversible vacuolation, in the absence of membrane damage, could provide a pathway from the extracellular environment to the cytoplasm that is additional or complimentary to endocytosis; it may also be particularly relevant to the ability of muscle to be transfected by the direct injection of DNA. These several observations strongly indicate that the function of the T-system in skeletal muscle fibers is not restricted to excitation-contraction coupling.     

The application of metaphor, analogy, and conceptual models in computer systems

People using computer systems naturally relate what they are experiencing to what they already know. This general cognitive process can be classified into metaphoric, analogical, and modelling processes. Metaphor, a term applied often to today's computer systems, is the process of representing the computer system with objects and events from a noncomputer domain, such as the popular desktop metaphor. Analogy is a comparison between objects or events that serve the same purpose but have different representations. Models are representations of the abstract conceptual structure of a computer system. This paper outlines the differences between these three processes and applies them to the computer domain. Implications for computer systems design are also discussed.     

Gender in medical encounters: An analysis of physician and patient communication in a primary care setting.

The relation of physician and patient gender to verbal and nonverbal communication was examined in 100 routine medical visits. Female physicians conducted longer visits, made more positive statements, made more partnership statements, asked more questions, made more back-channel responses, and smiled and nodded more. Patients made more partnership statements and gave more medical information to female physicians. The combinations of female physician–female patient and female physician–male patient received special attention in planned contrasts. These combinations showed distinctive patterns of physician and patient behavior, especially in nonverbal communication. The relation of the results to gender differences in nonclinical settings, role strains in medical visits, and current trends in medical education are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Active damping of piezo-composite beams

The aim of the present study is to investigate the effects of piezoceramic materials on the active damping of vibrating piezo-composite beams. The active damping is obtained by using an actuator and a sensor piezoceramic layer acting in ‘closed-loop’. By transferring the accumulated voltage on the sensor layer to the piezoelectric actuator layer, the beam can actively damp-out its vibrations. An exact mathematical model, based on a first order shear deformation theory (FSDT) is developed and described. This model allows the investigation of piezo-composite beams with two actuation/sensing type mechanisms, extension and shear. The present study is confined to symmetric lay-up beams using continuous piezoelectric layers. Using the present model, both natural and damped vibrations are calculated. The effects of the feedback gain, G, and the beam length on the damped vibrations are investigated and presented.     

Children experiencing social difficulties: Sociometric neglect reconsidered.

Evaluates an oft-used sociometric procedure, the peer nomination technique. Examination of the data reveals support for the assumption that some rejected children are aggressive; however, the data concerning the behavioral characteristics of neglected children are equivocal. Data revealed that neglected children could not be distinguished from their average counterparts on any dependent measure. Rejected children were found to be more unpopular, aggressive, as well as withdrawn than the other sociometric groups. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for the use of sociometry to identify children "at risk" for social and emotional difficulties. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)