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Both objective and, more recently, subjective measures of low social status have been linked to poor health outcomes. It is unclear, however, through which precise physiological mechanisms such standing may influence health, although it has been proposed that those of lower status may have biomarker profiles that are more dysregulated (and hence pose a greater risk for poorer health). The main objective of this study was to investigate whether lower subjective social standing is associated with riskier neuroendocrine biomarker profiles. Data were from the Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study (SEBAS), a nationally representative survey of Taiwanese men and women (ages 54–91) conducted in Taiwan in 2000. Five neuroendocrine markers (cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS), adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine) were analysed both separately and collectively in an index termed neuroendocrine allostatic load (NAL) in relation to status – both self-reported and as measured through objective socioeconomic status (SES) indicators. For the biomarker DHEAS, some connection was found between its levels and the measures of status, but for the other markers and the NAL index almost no connection was found. The overall negative finding of this paper would be further supported with more and different measures of neuroendocrine system function and a reordering of the subjective social status questions in the survey such that the one probing about status in the community (that has no prompt) was asked before the one probing about status in all of Taiwan (which has a SES prompt). [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We present a numerical study of the flow states and reversals of the large-scale circulation (LSC) in a two-dimensional circular Rayleigh–Bénard cell. Long-time direct numerical simulations are carried out in the Rayleigh number (Ra) range 107 ≤ Ra ≤ 108 and Prandtl number (Pr) range 2.0 ≤ Pr ≤ 20.0. We found that a new, long-lived, chaotic flow state exists, in addition to the commonly observed circulation states (the LSC in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions). The circulation states consist of one primary roll in the middle and two secondary rolls near the top and bottom circular walls. The primary roll becomes stronger and larger, while the two secondary rolls diminish, with increasing Ra. Our results suggest that the reversal of the LSC is accompanied by the secondary rolls growing, breaking the primary roll and then connecting to form a new primary roll with reversed direction. We mapped out the phase diagram of the existence of the LSC and the reversal in the Ra−Pr space, which reveals that the flow is in the circulation states when Ra is large and Pr is small. The reversal of the LSC can only occur in a limited Pr range. The phase diagram can be understood in terms of competition between the thermal and viscous diffusions. We also found that the internal flow states manifested themselves into global properties such as Nusselt and Reynolds numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In December 2019, a novel human-infecting coronavirus, named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was recognised to cause a pneumonia epidemic outbreak with different degrees of severity in Wuhan, Hubei Province in China. Since then, this epidemic has spread worldwide; in Europe, Italy has been involved. Effective preventive and therapeutic strategies are absolutely required to block this serious public health concern. Unfortunately, few studies about SARS-CoV-2 concerning its immunopathogenesis and treatment are available. On the basis of the assumption that the SARS-CoV-2 is genetically related to SARS-CoV (about 82 % of genome homology) and that its characteristics, like the modality of transmission or the type of the immune response it may stimulate, are still poorly known, a literature search was performed to identify the reports assessing these elements in patients with SARS-CoV-induced infection. Therefore, we have analysed: (1) the structure of SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV; (2) the clinical signs and symptoms and pathogenic mechanisms observed during the development of acute respiratory syndrome and the cytokine release syndrome; (3) the modification of the cell microRNome and of the immune response in patients with SARS infection; and (4) the possible role of some fat-soluble compounds (such as vitamins A, D and E) in modulating directly or indirectly the replication ability of SARS-CoV-2 and host immune response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five species of lichenicolous fungi are described as new to science: Buelliella ohmurae Zhurb. & Diederich (on Icmadophila), with a non-granulose epihymenium, not or only slightly enlarged, pale brown apical cells of paraphysoids and 1-septate, smooth ascospores; Catillaria japonica Zhurb. & Hafellner (on Dibaeis and Pseudobaeomyces), with a medium to dark reddish brown epihymenium, exciple and hypothecium, rather frequently branched and anastomosed paraphyses with only slightly enlarged apical cells without a dark cap, and Catillaria-type asci; Cryptodiscus ihlenii Zhurb. (on Dibaeis), with persistently immersed ascomata, non-amyloid asci and hymenium, not or only slightly enlarged apical cells of paraphyses and narrowly obovate, 1-septate ascospores; Llimoniella chilensis Zhurb. (on Dibaeis and a sterile microsquamulose lichen), with a K+ green exciple and epihymenium and aseptate, broadly ellipsoid ascospores; and Stigmidium phyllobaeidis Zhurb., Etayo & Flakus (on apothecial discs of Phyllobaeis), with a hemiamyloid interascal gel, not previously reported in that genus, well-developed, 1‒2(‒4)-celled periphysoids, elongate asci and hyaline, 1-septate ascospores. An undescribed species of Arthonia (on Pseudobaeomyces) is briefly characterized. Sphaerellothecium coniodes is newly reported for Asia. A key to the 32 species of lichenicolous fungi and lichens known to occur on baeomycetoid lichens and Icmadophila is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the pattern of local immune cell infiltration in human cystic echinococcosis (CE) by identifying the subtypes of immune cells using immunohistochemistry (IHC). Fifty surgically removed hydatid cyst samples and surrounding tissues were collected from patients referred to Al-Zahra Hospital, Isfahan, Iran. IHC was performed on the surrounding host tissue of hydatid cysts using anti-human CD3, CD19, CD8, CD4, CD68, CD56, Ki-67 and Foxp3 (forkhead box P3) antibodies. The results were then compared to hepatocellular carcinoma and chronic hepatitis. In the host-tissue reaction site of liver hydatid cysts, a distinct pattern of local immune cell response, which outwardly consisted of a pack of the fibrous elements, a layer of palisading macrophages, an eosinophil-containing layer and a layer of accumulated lymphocytes, was observed. However, in some cases there were no positive cells for CD56+ natural killer cells and Foxp3+ regulatory T cells. The CD3+ T cells were the predominant inflammatory cells in all groups, followed by CD19+ B cells. It can be concluded that different immune cells are involved in the local response to human hydatid cysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microfluidic sorting of deformable particles finds many applications, for example, medical devices for cells. Deterministic lateral displacement (DLD) is one of them. Particle sorting via DLD relies only on hydrodynamic forces. For rigid spherical particles, this separation is to a great extent understood and can be attributed to size differences: large particles displace in the lateral direction with respect to the flow while small particles travel in the flow direction with negligible lateral displacement. However, the separation of non-spherical deformable particles such as red blood cells (RBCs) is more complicated than that of rigid particles. For example, is it possible to separate deformable particles that have the same size but different mechanical properties? We study deformability-based sorting of same-size RBCs via DLD using an in-house integral equation solver for vesicle flows in two dimensions. Our goal is to quantitatively characterize the physical mechanisms that enable the cell separation. To this end, we systematically investigate the effects of the interior fluid viscosity and membrane elasticity of a cell on its behaviour. In particular, we consider deep devices in which a cell can show rich dynamics such as taking a particular angular orientation depending on its mechanical properties. We have found out that cells moving with a sufficiently high positive inclination angle with respect to the flow direction displace laterally while those with smaller angles travel with the flow streamlines. Thereby, deformability-based cell sorting is possible. The underlying mechanism here is cell migration due to the cell's positive inclination and the shear gradient. The higher the inclination is, the farther the cell can travel laterally. We also assess the efficiency of the technique for dense suspensions. It turns out that most of the cells in dense suspensions do not displace in the lateral direction no matter what their deformability is. As a result, separating cells using a DLD device becomes harder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the viscous-fingering instability in a radial Hele-Shaw cell in which the top boundary has been replaced by a thin elastic sheet. The introduction of wall elasticity delays the onset of the fingering instability to much larger values of the injection flow rate. Furthermore, when the instability develops, the fingers that form on the expanding air-liquid interface are short and stubby, in contrast with the highly branched patterns observed in rigid-walled cells (Pihler-Puzovi ć et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., vol. 108, 2012, 074502). We report the outcome of a comprehensive experimental study of this problem and compare the experimental observations to the predictions from a theoretical model that is based on the solution of the Reynolds lubrication equations, coupled to the Föppl-von-Kármán equations which describe the deformation of the elastic sheet. We perform a linear stability analysis to study the evolution of small-amplitude non-axisymmetric perturbations to the time-evolving base flow. We then derive a simplified model by exploiting the observations (i) that the non-axisymmetric perturbations to the sheet are very small and (ii) that perturbations to the flow occur predominantly in a small wedge-shaped region ahead of the air-liquid interface. This allows us to identify the various physical mechanisms by which viscous fingering is weakened (or even suppressed) by the presence of wall elasticity. We show that the theoretical predictions for the growth rate of small-amplitude perturbations are in good agreement with experimental observations for injection flow rates that are slightly larger than the critical flow rate required for the onset of the instability. We also characterize the large-amplitude fingering patterns that develop at larger injection flow rates. We show that the wavenumber of these patterns is still well predicted by the linear stability analysis, and that the length of the fingers is set by the local geometry of the compliant cell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is growing evidence to suggest that cells in the maculae flavae are tissue stem cells of the human vocal fold and maculae flavae are a stem cell niche. Methods: Three newborn vocal folds were investigated. Immunoreactivity to antibodies directed to cytokeratin, desmin, glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin, cluster of differentiation 34, cluster of differentiation 45, collagen type I, telomerase reverse transcriptase, SOX17 and stage-specific embryonic antigen 3 was investigated. Results: The cells in the newborn maculae flavae expressed haematopoietic markers (cluster of differentiation 34, cluster of differentiation 45) and collagen type I, which are the major makers of bone marrow derived circulating fibrocytes. The cells expressed epithelium, muscle, neural and mesenchymal cell associated proteins, and endodermal marker, indicating that they are undifferentiated and express proteins of all three germ layers. The cells also expressed stage-specific embryonic antigen 3 and telomerase reverse transcriptase. Conclusion: The cells in the newborn maculae flavae are undifferentiated cells arising from the differentiation of bone marrow cells. The results of this study are consistent with the hypothesis that the cells in maculae flavae are tissue stem cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]