Phosphorus lability across diverse agricultural contexts with legacy sources.

The buffering of phosphorus (P) in the landscape delays management outcomes for water quality. If stored in labile form (readily exchangeable and bioavailable), P may readily pollute waters. We studied labile P and its intensity for >600 soils and sediments across seven study locations in the United States.

MicroRNA-29b Suppresses Inflammation and Protects Blood-Brain Barrier Integrity in Ischemic Stroke.

Objectives: Following cerebral ischemia, microRNA- (miR-) 29b in circulating blood is downregulated. This study investigates the underlying mechanism and implications of miR-29b in leukocyte induction.

Methods: miR-29b from stroke patients and rats with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) were assessed using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Building comprehensive glucosinolate profiles for brassica varieties.

Brassica plants play an important role in common agricultural practices, such as livestock feed or biofumigation, due to the bioactivity of the natural degradation products of glucosinolate metabolites. Therefore, the ability to survey comprehensive glucosinolate profiles for individual brassicas is essential for informing proper species selection for the intended application. Current methods for glucosinolate identification and quantification involve complex or unconventional procedures, and proper reference materials are not readily available.

Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on pharmaceuticals in wastewater treated for beneficial reuse: Two case studies in central Pennsylvania.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater surveillance was leveraged as a powerful tool for monitoring community-scale health. Further, the well-known persistence of some pharmaceuticals through wastewater treatment plants spurred concerns that increased usage of pharmaceuticals during the pandemic would increase the concentrations in wastewater treatment plant effluent. We collected weekly influent and effluent samples from May 2020 through May 2021 from two wastewater treatment plants in central Pennsylvania, the Penn State Water Reclamation Facility and the University Area Joint Authority, that provide effluent for beneficial reuse, including for irrigation.

Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Multiple Sclerosis and Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder With Brainstem Lesions as Heralding Prodrome.

Objective: The present study sought to differentiate multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder patients at their first attack by describing and distinguishing their clinical features, radiographic characteristics, and immunologic characteristics of serum and cerebrospinal fluid.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 58 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and 52 patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) by referencing brainstem lesions as the prodromal events. Their demographics and presentation at the time of the first attack was evaluated including their gender, age, clinical features of the first attack, the expanded disability status scale (EDSS), brainstem lesion(s) by head MRI, and immunological indices of serum and cerebrospinal fluid.

Immunosuppression and Neuroinflammation in Stroke Pathobiology.

Over the preceding decades, there have been substantial advances in our knowledge of the pathophysiology of stroke. One such advance has been an increased understanding of the multifarious crosstalk in which the nervous and immune systems engage in order to maintain homeostasis. By interrupting the immune-nervous nexus, it is thought that stroke induces change in both systems.

Targets identified from exercised heart: killing multiple birds with one stone.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a major cause of mortality worldwide, which are mainly driven by factors such as aging, sedentary lifestyle, and excess alcohol use. Exercise targets several molecules and protects hearts against many of these physiological and pathological stimuli. Accordingly, it is widely recognized as an effective therapeutic strategy for CVD.

Small-Grain Cover Crops Have Limited Effect on Neonicotinoid Contamination from Seed Coatings.

Neonicotinoids from insecticidal seed coatings can contaminate soil in treated fields and adjacent areas, posing a potential risk to nontarget organisms and ecological function. To determine if cover crops can mitigate neonicotinoid contamination in treated and adjacent areas, we measured neonicotinoid concentrations for three years in no-till corn-soybean rotations, planted with or without neonicotinoid seed coatings, and with or without small grain cover crops. Although neonicotinoids were detected in cover crops, high early season dissipation provided little opportunity for winter-planted cover crops to absorb significant neonicotinoid residues; small grain cover crops failed to mitigated neonicotinoid contamination in either treated or untreated plots.

Incorporating patient safety into early undergraduate medical education: teaching medical students to perform surgical time outs during anatomy.

Objectives: To introduce surgical safety checklists and time outs to future physicians through early incorporation of time outs in the first year gross anatomy course.

Setting: The Wayne State University School of Medicine Anatomy Lab.

Participants: Approximately 300 first year medical students per year participated in the intervention.

Remote Ischemic Postconditioning vs. Physical Exercise After Stroke: an Alternative Rehabilitation Strategy?

There remain debates on neuroprotection and rehabilitation techniques for acute ischemic stroke patients. Therapeutic physical exercise following stroke has shown promise but is challenging to apply clinically. Ischemic conditioning, which has several clinical advantages, is a potential neuroprotective method for stroke rehabilitation that is less understood.

Assessing surface and subsurface transport of neonicotinoid insecticides from no-till crop fields.

Increased use of neonicotinoid-coated crop seeds introduces greater amounts of insecticides into the environment, where they are vulnerable to transport. To understand the transport of neonicotinoids from agricultural fields, we planted maize (Zea mays L.) seeds coated with thiamethoxam in lysimeter plots in central Pennsylvania.

Melanoma Biomarkers and Their Potential Application for In Vivo Diagnostic Imaging Modalities.

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and remains a diagnostic challenge in the dermatology clinic. Several non-invasive imaging techniques have been developed to identify melanoma. The signal source in each of these modalities is based on the alteration of physical characteristics of the tissue from healthy/benign to melanoma.

Schisandrin B improves cerebral ischemia and reduces reperfusion injury in rats through TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway inhibition.

Unlabelled: It has been established that poor outcomes in ischemic stroke patients are associated with the post-reperfusion inflammatory response and up-regulation of TLR4. Therefore, suppression of the TLR4 signaling pathway constitutes a potential neuroprotective therapeutic strategy. Schisandrin B, a compound extracted from , has been shown to possess anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties.

Apolipoprotein E polymorphism carriers exhibit objective cognitive deficits: a single center trial.

Objective: To assess the correlation between objectively measured cognitive function and apolipoprotein E polymorphism within one geographic region.

Methods: 61 patients, aged 55-90 years old, were enrolled in a memory clinic at the Beijing Luhe Hospital affiliated with Capital Medical University from September 2016 to September 2018. At this center, they were evaluated with neuropsychological scales to assess their memory and other aspects of cognitive function.

Lifetimes of the Aglycone Substrates of Specifier Proteins, the Autonomous Iron Enzymes That Dictate the Products of the Glucosinolate-Myrosinase Defense System in Brassica Plants.

Specifier proteins (SPs) are components of the glucosinolate-myrosinase defense system found in plants of the order Brassicales (brassicas). Glucosinolates (GLSs) comprise at least 150 known -(β-d-glucopyranosyl)thiohydroximate--sulfonate compounds, each with a distinguishing side chain linked to the central carbon. Following tissue injury, the enzyme myrosinase (MYR) promiscuously hydrolyzes the common thioglycosidic linkage of GLSs to produce unstable aglycone intermediates, which can readily undergo a Lossen-like rearrangement to the corresponding organoisothiocyanates.

Novel Cell-Based and Tissue Engineering Approaches for Induction of Angiogenesis as an Alternative Therapy for Diabetic Retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the most frequent microvascular complication of long-term diabetes and the most common cause of blindness, increasing morbidity in the working-age population. The most effective therapies for these complications include laser photocoagulation and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) intravitreal injections. However, laser and anti-VEGF drugs are untenable as a final solution as they fail to address the underlying neurovascular degeneration and ischemia.

Influence of hydrologic and anthropogenic drivers on emerging organic contaminants in drinking water sources in the Susquehanna River Basin.

Occurrence of emerging organic contaminants (EOCs) in surface water bodies can cause adverse effects on non-target organisms. When surface waters are used as drinking water sources, temporal variability in EOC concentrations can potentially impact drinking water quality and human health. To better understand spatiotemporal variability of EOCs in drinking water sources in Central Pennsylvania, EOCs were evaluated in six drinking water sources during a two-year study period (April 2016-June 2018) in the Susquehanna River Basin (SRB).

Reduced Apoptotic Injury by Phenothiazine in Ischemic Stroke through the NOX-Akt/PKC Pathway.

Phenothiazine treatment has been shown to reduce post-stroke ischemic injury, though the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study sought to confirm the neuroprotective effects of phenothiazines and to explore the role of the NOX (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase)/Akt/PKC (protein kinase C) pathway in cerebral apoptosis. Sprague-Dawley rats underwent middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 2 h and were randomly divided into 3 different cohorts: (1) saline, (2) 8 mg/kg chlorpromazine and promethazine (C+P), and (3) 8 mg/kg C+P as well as apocynin (NOX inhibitor).

From circadian clocks to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

: The circadian rhythm is an integral regulator of various endocrine processes in the body, including sleep-wake cycles, hormonal regulation, and metabolism. In addition to metabolic, genetic, and environmental factors, a dysregulated circadian rhythm resulting from lifestyle changes has been implicated in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). An accumulating body of evidence also supports strong association between NAFLD and metabolic disorder, the pathogenesis of which is related to periodic fluctuations in hormonal homeostasis.

Review of imaging technologies used in Hidradenitis Suppurativa.

Background: Until recently, clinical assessment with manual palpation of the HS lesions was the primary means to detect HS lesions and their borders. In the past decade, there has been increased application of imaging technologies to HS patients, and it is reported that manual palpation consistently underestimates HS. Of the technologies, ultrasound (US) imaging has been the most efficacious and well-studied.