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The pre-Bötzinger complex (preBötC), a key primary generator of the inspiratory breathing rhythm, contains neurons that project directly to facial nucleus (7n) motoneurons to coordinate orofacial and nasofacial activity. To further understand the identity of 7n-projecting preBötC neurons, we used a combination of optogenetic viral transgenic approaches to demonstrate that selective photoinhibition of these neurons affects mystacial pad activity, with minimal effects on breathing. These effects are altered by the type of anesthetic employed and also between anesthetized and conscious states. The population of 7n-projecting preBötC neurons we transduced consisted of both excitatory and inhibitory neurons that also send collaterals to multiple brainstem nuclei involved with the regulation of autonomic activity. We show that modulation of subgroups of preBötC neurons, based on their axonal projections, is a useful strategy to improve our understanding of the mechanisms that coordinate and integrate breathing with different motor and physiological behaviors. This is of fundamental importance, given that abnormal respiratory modulation of autonomic activity and orofacial behaviors have been associated with the development and progression of diseases.

INSL3 is a hormone and/or paracrine factor which is a member of the relaxin peptide family. It has key roles as a fertility regulator in both males and females. The receptor for INSL3 is the leucine rich repeat (LRR) containing G-protein coupled receptor 8 (LGR8) which is now known as relaxin family peptide receptor 2 (RXFP2). Receptor activation by INSL3 involves binding to the LRRs in the large ectodomain of RXFP2 by residues within the B-chain of INSL3 as well as an interaction with the transmembrane exoloops of the receptor. Although the binding to the LRRs is well characterized the features of the peptide and receptor involved in the exoloop interaction are currently unknown. This study was designed to determine the key INSL3 determinants for RXFP2 activation. A chimeric peptide approach was first utilized to demonstrate that the A-chain is critical for receptor activation. Replacement of the INSL3 A-chain with that from the related peptides INSL5 and INSL6 resulted in complete loss of activity despite only minor changes in binding affinity. Subsequent replacement of specific A-chain residues with those from the INSL5 peptide highlighted that the N-terminus of the A-chain of INSL3 is critical for its activity. Remarkably, replacement of the entire N-terminus with four or five alanine residues resulted in peptides with near native activity suggesting that specific residues are not necessary for activity. Additionally removal of two amino acids at the C-terminus of the A-chain and mutation of Lys-8 in the B-chain also resulted in minor decreases in peptide activity. Therefore we have demonstrated that the activity of the INSL3 peptide is driven predominantly by residues 5-9 in the A-chain, with minor additional contributions from the two C-terminal A-chain residues and Lys-8 in the B-chain. Using this new knowledge, we were able to produce a truncated INSL3 peptide structure which retained native activity, despite having 14 fewer residues than the parent peptide.

A harmonic continuum extending up to 375 eV is generated from 750 μJ, 9 fs mid-IR pulses centered at 1300 nm. The development of this source and its use for attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy experiments at the carbon K-edge are discussed.

Extreme ultraviolet (XUV) transient reflectivity around the germanium M4,5 edge (3d core-level to valence transition) at 30 eV is advanced to obtain the transient dielectric function of crystalline germanium [100] on femtosecond to picosecond time scales following photoexcitation by broadband visible-to-infrared (VIS/NIR) pulses. By fitting the transient dielectric function, carrier-phonon induced relaxations are extracted for the excited carrier distribution. The measurements reveal a hot electron relaxation rate of 3.2±0.2ps attributed to the X-L intervalley scattering and a hot hole relaxation rate of 600±300fs ascribed to intravalley scattering within the heavy hole (HH) band, both in good agreement with previous work. An overall energy shift of the XUV dielectric function is assigned to a thermally induced band gap shrinkage by formation of acoustic phonons, which is observed to be on a timescale of 4-5 ps, in agreement with previously measured optical phonon lifetimes. The results reveal that the transient reflectivity signal at an angle of 66 with respect to the surface normal is dominated by changes to the real part of the dielectric function, due to the near critical angle of incidence of the experiment (66-70 for the range of XUV energies used. This work provides a methodology for interpreting XUV transient reflectivity near core-level transitions, and it demonstrates the power of the XUV spectral region for measuring ultrafast excitation dynamics in solids.

Abstract The use of infrasound for the early detection of volcanic events has been shown to be effective over large distances, and unlike visual methods, is not weather dependent. Signals recorded via an infrasound array often have a poor signal to noise ratio, as other sources of infrasound are detected and recorded along with the volcano infrasound. Array processing software does not always detect known volcanic events, in part because of the amount of noise in the infrasound signal (Taisne et al., in: Pichon, Blanc, Hauchecorne (eds) Infrasound monitoring for atmospheric studies: challenges in middle atmosphere dynamics and societal benefits. Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2019). Resampling the infrasound into the audible range and then applying the acoustic noise reduction techniques of spectral subtraction prior to array processing is shown to improve signal detection of volcanic events. The discussed technique is applicable to any infrasound signal such as infrasound from anthropogenic sources like nuclear testing.

Background: The relaxin-like peptide family belongs in the insulin superfamily and consists of 7 peptides of high structural but low sequence similarity; relaxin-1, 2 and 3, and the insulin-like (INSL) peptides, INSL3, INSL4, INSL5 and INSL6. The functions of relaxin-3, INSL4, INSL5, INSL6 remain uncharacterised. The evolution of this family has been contentious; high sequence variability is seen between closely related species, while distantly related species show high similarity; an invertebrate relaxin sequence has been reported, while a relaxin gene has not been found in the avian and ruminant lineages. Results: Sequence similarity searches of genomic and EST data identified homologs of relaxin-like peptides in mammals, and non-mammalian vertebrates such as fish. Phylogenetic analysis was used to resolve the evolution of the family. Searches were unable to identify an invertebrate relaxin-like peptide. The published relaxin cDNA sequence in the tunicate, Ciona intestinalis was not present in the completed C. intestinalis genome. The newly discovered relaxin-3 is likely to be the ancestral relaxin. Multiple relaxin-3-like sequences are present in fugu fish (Takifugu rubripes) and zebrafish (Danio rerio), but these appear to be specific to the fish lineage. Possible relaxin-1 and INSL5 homologs were also identified in fish and frog species, placing their emergence prior to mammalia, earlier than previously believed. Furthermore, estimates of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitution rates (dN/dS) suggest that the emergence of relaxin-1, INSL4 and INSL6 during mammalia was driven by positive Darwinian selection, hence these peptides are likely to have novel and in the case of relaxin-1, which is still under positive selection in humans and the great apes, possibly still evolving functions. In contrast, relaxin-3 is constrained by strong purifying selection, demonstrating it must have a highly conserved function, supporting its hypothesized important neuropeptide role. Conclusions: We present a phylogeny describing the evolutionary history of the relaxin-like peptide family and show that positive selection has driven the evolution of the most recent members of the family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The relaxin-like peptide family belongs in the insulin superfamily and consists of 7 peptides of high structural but low sequence similarity; relaxin-1, 2 and 3, and the insulin-like (INSL) peptides, INSL3, INSL4, INSL5 and INSL6. The functions of relaxin-3, INSL4, INSL5, INSL6 remain uncharacterised. The evolution of this family has been contentious; high sequence variability is seen between closely related species, while distantly related species show high similarity; an invertebrate relaxin sequence has been reported, while a relaxin gene has not been found in the avian and ruminant lineages. Results Sequence similarity searches of genomic and EST data identified homologs of relaxin-like peptides in mammals, and non-mammalian vertebrates such as fish. Phylogenetic analysis was used to resolve the evolution of the family. Searches were unable to identify an invertebrate relaxin-like peptide. The published relaxin cDNA sequence in the tunicate, Ciona intestinalis was not present in the completed C. intestinalis genome. The newly discovered relaxin-3 is likely to be the ancestral relaxin. Multiple relaxin-3-like sequences are present in fugu fish (Takifugu rubripes) and zebrafish (Danio rerio), but these appear to be specific to the fish lineage. Possible relaxin-1 and INSL5 homologs were also identified in fish and frog species, placing their emergence prior to mammalia, earlier than previously believed. Furthermore, estimates of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitution rates (dN/dS) suggest that the emergence of relaxin-1, INSL4 and INSL6 during mammalia was driven by positive Darwinian selection, hence these peptides are likely to have novel and in the case of relaxin-1, which is still under positive selection in humans and the great apes, possibly still evolving functions. In contrast, relaxin-3 is constrained by strong purifying selection, demonstrating it must have a highly conserved function, supporting its hypothesized important neuropeptide role. Conclusions We present a phylogeny describing the evolutionary history of the relaxin-like peptide family and show that positive selection has driven the evolution of the most recent members of the family.

Introduction: Despite the success of immunotherapies for melanoma in recent years, there remains a significant proportion of patients who do not yet derive benefit from available treatments. Immunotherapies currently licensed for clinical use target the adaptive immune system, focussing on Tcell interactions and functions. However, the most prevalent immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME) of melanoma are macrophages, a diverse immune cell subset displaying high plasticity, to which no current therapies are yet directly targeted. Macrophages have been shown not only to activate the adaptive immune response, and enhance cancer cell killing, but, when influenced by factors within the TME of melanoma, these cells also promote melanoma tumorigenesis and metastasis., Areas Covered: We present a review of the most up-to-date literatureavailable on PubMed, focussing on studies from within the last 10 years. We also include data from ongoing and recent clinical trials targeting macrophages in melanoma listed on clinicaltrials.gov., Expert Opinion: Understanding the multifaceted role of macrophages in melanoma, including their interactions with immune and cancer cells, the influence of current therapies on macrophage phenotype and functions and how macrophages could be targeted with novel treatment approaches, are all critical for improving outcomes for patients with melanoma.

X-ray Transient Absorption Spectroscopy (XTAS) is a powerful probe for ultrafast molecular dynamics. The evolution of XTAS signal is controlled by the shapes of potential energy surfaces of the associated core-excited states, which are difficult to directly measure. Here, we study the vibrational dynamics of Raman activated CCl 4 with XTAS targeting the C 1s and Cl 2p electrons. The totally symmetric stretching mode leads to concerted elongation or contraction in bond lengths, which in turn induce an experimentally measurable red or blue shift in the X-ray absorption energies associated with inner-shell electron excitations to the valence antibonding levels. The ratios between slopes of different core-excited potential energy surfaces (CEPESs) thereby extracted agree very well with Restricted Open-Shell Kohn-Sham calculations. The other, asymmetric, modes do not measurably contribute to the XTAS signal. The results highlight the ability of XTAS to reveal coherent nuclear dynamics involving  < 0.01 Å atomic displacements and also provide direct measurement of forces on CEPESs., Competing Interests: Competing interestsThe authors declare the following competing interest: M.H.G. is a part-owner of Q.-Chem, which is the software platform in which the quantum chemical calculations were carried out. All other authors declare no competing interests., (© The Author(s) 2024.)

The number of studies investigating the human gastrointestinal tract using various single-cell profiling methods has increased substantially in the past few years. Although this increase provides a unique opportunity for the generation of the first comprehensive Human Gut Cell Atlas (HGCA), there remains a range of major challenges ahead. Above all, the ultimate success will largely depend on a structured and coordinated approach that aligns global efforts undertaken by a large number of research groups. In this Roadmap, we discuss a comprehensive forward-thinking direction for the generation of the HGCA on behalf of the Gut Biological Network of the Human Cell Atlas. Based on the consensus opinion of experts from across the globe, we outline the main requirements for the first complete HGCA by summarizing existing data sets and highlighting anatomical regions and/or tissues with limited coverage. We provide recommendations for future studies and discuss key methodologies and the importance of integrating the healthy gut atlas with related diseases and gut organoids. Importantly, we critically overview the computational tools available and provide recommendations to overcome key challenges., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

B cells are known to contribute to the anti-tumor immune response, especially in immunogenic tumors such as melanoma, yet humoral immunity has not been characterized in these cancers to detail. Here we show comprehensive phenotyping in samples of circulating and tumor-resident B cells as well as serum antibodies in melanoma patients. Memory B cells are enriched in tumors compared to blood in paired samples and feature distinct antibody repertoires, linked to specific isotypes. Tumor-associated B cells undergo clonal expansion, class switch recombination, somatic hypermutation and receptor revision. Compared with blood, tumor-associated B cells produce antibodies with proportionally higher levels of unproductive sequences and distinct complementarity determining region 3 properties. The observed features are signs of affinity maturation and polyreactivity and suggest an active and aberrant autoimmune-like reaction in the tumor microenvironment. Consistent with this, tumor-derived antibodies are polyreactive and characterized by autoantigen recognition. Serum antibodies show reactivity to antigens attributed to autoimmune diseases and cancer, and their levels are higher in patients with active disease compared to post-resection state. Our findings thus reveal B cell lineage dysregulation with distinct antibody repertoire and specificity, alongside clonally-expanded tumor-infiltrating B cells with autoimmune-like features, shaping the humoral immune response in melanoma., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Understanding the relaxation pathways of photoexcited molecules is essential to gain atomistic-level insight into photochemistry. We performed a time-resolved study of ultrafast molecular symmetry breaking through geometric relaxation (Jahn-Teller distortion) on the methane cation. Attosecond transient absorption spectroscopy with soft x-rays at the carbon K-edge revealed that the distortion occurred within 10 ± 2 femtoseconds after few-femtosecond strong-field ionization of methane. The distortion activated coherent oscillations in the asymmetric scissoring vibrational mode of the symmetry-broken cation, which were detected in the x-ray signal. These oscillations were damped within 58 ± 13 femtoseconds because vibrational coherence was lost with the energy redistributing into lower-frequency vibrational modes. This study completely reconstructs the molecular relaxation dynamics of this prototypical example and opens avenues for exploring complex systems.

Outcomes for half of patients with melanoma remain poor despite standard-of-care checkpoint inhibitor therapies. The prevalence of the melanoma-associated antigen chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan 4 (CSPG4) expression is ~70%, therefore effective immunotherapies directed at CSPG4 could benefit many patients. Since IgE exerts potent immune-activating functions in tissues, we engineer a monoclonal IgE antibody with human constant domains recognizing CSPG4 to target melanoma. CSPG4 IgE binds to human melanomas including metastases, mediates tumoricidal antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and stimulates human IgE Fc-receptor-expressing monocytes towards pro-inflammatory phenotypes. IgE demonstrates anti-tumor activity in human melanoma xenograft models engrafted with human effector cells and is associated with enhanced macrophage infiltration, enriched monocyte and macrophage gene signatures and pro-inflammatory signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment. IgE prolongs the survival of patient-derived xenograft-bearing mice reconstituted with autologous immune cells. No ex vivo activation of basophils in patient blood is measured in the presence of CSPG4 IgE. Our findings support a promising IgE-based immunotherapy for melanoma., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The application of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for the treatment of melanoma has significantly improved the clinical management of this malignancy over the last decade. Currently approved mAbs for melanoma enhance T cell effector immune responses by blocking immune checkpoint molecules PD-L1/PD-1 and CTLA-4. However, more than half of patients do not benefit from treatment. Targeting the prominent myeloid compartment within the tumor microenvironment, and in particular the ever-abundant tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), may be a promising strategy to complement existing therapies and enhance treatment success. TAMs are a highly diverse and plastic subset of cells whose pro-tumor properties can support melanoma growth, angiogenesis and invasion. Understanding of their diversity, plasticity and multifaceted roles in cancer forms the basis for new promising TAM-centered treatment strategies. There are multiple mechanisms by which macrophages can be targeted with antibodies in a therapeutic setting, including by depletion, inhibition of specific pro-tumor properties, differential polarization to pro-inflammatory states and enhancement of antitumor immune functions. Here, we discuss TAMs in melanoma, their interactions with checkpoint inhibitor antibodies and emerging mAbs targeting different aspects of TAM biology and their potential to be translated to the clinic., Competing Interests: S.N.K. is the founder and shareholder of Epsilogen Ltd. and declares patents on antibody technologies., (© 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.)

B cells are emerging as key players of anti-tumor adaptive immune responses. We investigated regulatory and pro-inflammatory cytokine-expressing B cells in patients with melanoma by flow cytometric intracellular cytokine, CyTOF, transcriptomic, immunofluorescence, single-cell RNA-seq, and B:T cell co-culture analyses. We found enhanced circulating regulatory (TGF-β + and PD-L1 + ) and reduced pro-inflammatory TNF-α + B cell populations in patients compared with healthy volunteers (HVs), including lower IFN-γ + :IL-4 +  and higher TGF-β + :TNF-α + B cell ratios in patients. TGF-β-expressing B cells in the melanoma tumor microenvironment assembled in clusters and interacted with T cells via lymphoid recruitment (SELL, CXCL13, CCL4, CD74) signals and with Tregs via CD47:SIRP-γ, and FOXP3-promoting Galectin-9:CD44. While reduced in tumors compared to blood, TNF-α-expressing B cells engaged in crosstalk with Tregs via TNF-α signaling and the ICOS/ICOSL axis. Patient-derived B cells promoted FOXP3 + Treg differentiation in a TGF-β-dependent manner, while sustaining expression of IFN-γ and TNF-α by autologous T-helper cells and promoting T-helper cell proliferation ex vivo , an effect further enhanced with anti-PD-1 checkpoint blockade. Our findings reveal cytokine-expressing B cell compartments skewed toward regulatory phenotypes in patient circulation and melanoma lesions, intratumor spatial localization, and bidirectional crosstalk between B and T cell subsets with immunosuppressive attributes., Competing Interests: S. N. Karagiannis and J. Spicer are founders and shareholders of Epsilogen Ltd. All other authors have declared that no conflict of interest exists., (© 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.)

X-ray Transient Absorption Spectroscopy (XTAS) and theoretical calculations are used to study CCl 4 + prepared by 800 nm strong-field ionization. XTAS simultaneously probes atoms at the carbon K-edge (280-300 eV) and chlorine L-edge (195-220 eV). Comparison of experiment to X-ray spectra computed by orbital-optimized density functional theory (OO-DFT) indicates that after ionization, CCl 4 + undergoes symmetry breaking driven by Jahn-Teller distortion away from the initial tetrahedral structure (T d ) in 6 ± 2 fs. The resultant symmetry-broken covalently bonded form subsequently separates to a noncovalently bound complex between CCl 3 + and Cl over 90 ± 10 fs, which is again predicted by theory. Finally, after more than 800 fs, L-edge signals for atomic Cl are observed, indicating dissociation to free CCl 3 + and Cl. The results for Jahn-Teller distortion to the symmetry-broken form of CCl 4 + and formation of the Cl-CCl + 3 complex characterize previously unobserved new species along the route to dissociation., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following competing interest: M. H.-G. is a part-owner of Q-Chem, which is the software platform in which the quantum chemical calculations were carried out., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

While much research investigates how social capital relates to mental health after disasters, less work employs a multi-scalar, multi-dimensional social capital framework. This study applies such a construct to an analysis of novel survey data of approximately 1,000 rural and urban Texans after Hurricane Harvey struck the United States in August 2017. On the individual level, it finds that greater social support is linked to fewer mental health impacts, but that greater civic and organisational engagement is connected to greater mental health impacts. At the community level, it finds that neither a density of bridging social capital organisations nor of bonding social capital organisations is associated with poorer mental health, although a greater number of bonding organisations is related to negative mental health impacts on rural residents. The paper concludes by focusing on how individual and community social capital relationships with mental health are contingent on measurement, scale, and rural or urban location., (© 2021 The Authors Disasters © 2021 ODI.)

Introduction: The treatment of cutaneous melanoma has been revolutionized by the development of small-molecule inhibitors targeting the MAPK pathway, including inhibitors of BRAF (BRAFi) and MEK (MEKi), and immune checkpoint blockade antibodies, occurring in tandem. Despite these advances, the 5-year survival rate for patients with advanced melanoma remains only around 50%. Although not designed to alter immune responses within the tumor microenvironment (TME), MAPK pathway inhibitors (MAPKi) exert a range of effects on the host immune compartment that may offer opportunities for therapeutic interventions., Areas Covered: We review the effects of MAPKi, especially BRAFi, on the TME, focusing on alterations in inflammatory cytokine secretion, recruitment of immune cells and their functions, both during response to BRAFi treatment and as resistance develops. We outline potential combinations of MAPKi with established and experimental treatments., Expert Opinion: MAPKi in combination or in sequence with established treatments such as checkpoint inhibitors, anti-angiogenic agents, or new therapies such as adoptive cell therapies, may augment their immunological effects, reverse tumor-associated immune suppression, and offer the prospect of longer-lived clinical responses. Refining therapeutic tools at our disposal and embracing 'old friends' in the melanoma treatment arsenal, alongside new target identification, may improve the chances of therapeutic success.

The use of aqueous film forming foams (AFFFs) as fire retardants is an critical point-source for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) pollution into the aquatic environment. This study investigated PFASs pollution in the surface waters and biota (shellfish and fish) of Galveston Bay, following AFFFs use to extinguish a petrochemical fire (March 17th to 20th, 2019) of oil storage tanks at the International Terminals Company (ITC) in Deer Park (Houston, TX). The levels of up to twelve EPA priority PFASs were measured in surface waters and biota from March-November 2019. PFASs levels in surface waters showed mean total levels in March and April 2019 to be from 4× to ~300× higher than those measured in the following months. PFOS (perfluorooctanesulfonic acid) was the most abundant homolog measured at ≥66% of total PFASs. Maximal PFOS levels exceeded the State of Texas' water regulatory limit of 0.6 μg L -1 in 3% of the samples analyzed in March and April 2019. PFOS was also the most prominent homolog (≥66% of total PFASs) measured in eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica), red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus), gafftopsail catfish (Bagre marinus), and spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus). A statistically significant elevation of PFOS body-burdens was measured in oysters and spotted seatrout in April and May 2019, respectively. A Hazard Ratio calculation for seafood safety suggests an advisory of 1-2 meals per week for gafftopsail catfish and red drum, and 2 meals per week for spotted seatrout to be protective for human exposure to PFOS. The levels in oysters indicated no immediate concerns for the dietary exposure of humans. Our results highlight a need for continual monitoring to assess the long-term fate and seafood advisories for PFASs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Electrochemotherapy (ECT) is a treatment for both primary and secondary cutaneous tumours. The international Network for sharing practices on ECT group investigates treatment outcomes after ECT using a common database with defined parameters., Methods: Twenty-eight centres across Europe prospectively uploaded data over an 11-year period. Response rates were investigated in relation to primary diagnosis, tumour size, choice of electrode type, route of bleomycin administration, electrical parameters recorded and previous irradiation in the treated field., Results: Nine hundred eighty-seven patients, with 2482 tumour lesions were included in analysis. The overall response (OR) rate was 85% (complete response [CR]: 70%, partial response rate: 15%, stable disease: 11%, and progressive disease: 2%). For different histologies, OR and CR rates for metastases of malignant melanoma were 82% and 64%, basal cell carcinoma were 96% and 85%, breast cancer metastases were 77% and 62%, squamous cell carcinoma were 80% and 63% as well as Kaposi's sarcoma were 98% and 91%, respectively. Variance was demonstrated across histotypes (p < 0.0001) and in accordance with size of lesion treated (dichotomised at diameter of 3 cm (p < 0.0001). Hexagonal electrodes were generally used for larger tumours, but for tumours up to 3 cm, linear array electrodes provided better tumour control than hexagonal electrodes (80%:74%, p < 0.003). For tumours more than 2 cm, intravenous administration was superior to intratumoural (IT) administration (p < 0.05). Current recorded varied across tumour histologies and size but did not influence response rate. In previously irradiated areas, responses were selectively lower for IT administration., Conclusions: These cumulative data endorse efficiency of ECT across a broad range of histotypes. Analysis of 2482 lesions details subgroup analysis on treatment response informing future treatment choices., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement The following authors have conflict of interest: A.J.P.C. reports receiving travel fees for a meeting related to manuscript preparation by IGEA. F.d.T. is an employee of IGEA. J.O. reports receiving travel fees and accommodation fees from IGEA. L.G.C. reports receiving travel support for the International Network for Sharing Practice in Electrochemotherapy (InspECT) meeting from IGEA. D.M. reports receiving travel fees and accommodation fees for InspECT meeting from IGEA. A.D.M.R. reports receiving flight and accommodation fees for electrochemotherapy meeting and has aso received an honorarium. J.G. reports receiving travel fees and accommodation for a meeting related to manuscript preparation from IGEA. The other authors report no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Repeated exposure to hurricanes and tropical storms likely impacts the mental and physical health of populations living along the U.S. Gulf Coast. In this study, the self-rated physical and mental health of residents in the U.S. Gulf Coast was estimated and factors associated with differences in self-rated health were identified. The 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) was administered online to a sample of 3030 residents of the U.S. Gulf Coast in December 2017. Responses were scored to calculate mental component summary scores and physical component summary scores. Multiple linear regression models were fitted to identify predictors of self-rated health among the residents. Residents of U.S. Gulf Coast States have poorer self-rated physical and mental health compared to the U.S. population. Women and respondents reporting higher perception of flood risk had worse self-rated mental health, while hurricane evacuees, adults of at least 25 years of age, those with self-reported hurricane damage, and respondents reporting higher perception of surge risk had worse self-rated physical health. Residents of U.S. Gulf Coast States have poorer self-rated health compared to national standards. These findings may have practical implications for hurricane-associated physical and mental health services planning and delivery.

Excitation of ionic solids with extreme ultraviolet pulses creates localized core-level excitons, which in some cases couple strongly to the lattice. Here, core-level-exciton states of magnesium oxide are studied in the time domain at the Mg L&#95;{2,3} edge with attosecond transient reflectivity spectroscopy. Attosecond pulses trigger the excitation of these short-lived quasiparticles, whose decay is perturbed by time-delayed near-infrared pulses. Combined with a few-state theoretical model, this reveals that the infrared pulse shifts the energy of bright (dipole-allowed) core-level-exciton states as well as induces features arising from dark core-level excitons. We report coherence lifetimes for the two lowest core-level excitons of 2.3±0.2 and 1.6±0.5  fs and show that these are primarily a consequence of strong exciton-phonon coupling, disclosing the drastic influence of structural effects in this ultrafast relaxation process.