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The recency and geographical origins of the bat viruses ancestral to SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2
Get PDFSummary The emergence of SARS-CoV in 2002 and SARS-CoV-2 in 2019 led to increased sampling of sarbecoviruses circulating in horseshoe bats. Employing phylogenetic inference while accounting for recombination of bat sarbecoviruses, we find that the closest-inferred bat virus ancestors of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 existed less than a decade prior to their emergence in humans. Phylogeographic analyses show bat sarbecoviruses traveled at rates approximating their horseshoe bat hosts and circulated in Asia for millennia. We find that the direct ancestors of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 are unlikely to have reached their respective sites of emergence via dispersal in the bat reservoir alone, supporting interactions with intermediate hosts through wildlife trade playing a role in zoonotic spillover. These results can guide future sampling efforts and demonstrate that viral genomic regions extremely closely related to SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 were circulating in horseshoe bats, confirming their importance as the reservoir species for SARS viruses
Field redefinition and its impact in relativistic hydrodynamics
Get PDFIn this paper, we explore the impact of field redefinition on the spectrum of linearized perturbations in relativistic hydrodynamics. We observe that the spectrum of hydrodynamics modes is never affected by the local field redefinition, however, the spectrum of the nonhydrodynamic modes is affected. Through an appropriate all-order redefinition, nonhydrodynamic modes can be eliminated, leading to a new frame where the spectrum contains only hydrodynamic modes. We also observe that the resulting stress-energy tensor may have an infinite series in momentum space, with a convergence radius linked to the eliminated nonhydrodynamic mode. In certain special cases, higher-order terms in the stress-energy tensor under field redefinition may cancel, indicating that nonhydrodynamic modes are mere artifacts of the fluid variable choice and hold no physical significance, even if they appear to violate physical constraints. Using a special toy example, we find a criterion to distinguish between physical and unphysical nonhydrodynamic modes
How lesions with axial-transverse cortical involvement in the the femoral shaft affect fracture risk
Get PDFThe spread of primary cancer to distant organs such as bones in advanced disease results in metastatic bone disease (MBD). Areas affected by MBD develop into abnormal tissue called lesions. These bone lesions decrease the overall load-bearing capacity and increases the risk of fractures. Clinically, fracture risk is assessed using the Mirels’ scoring system [1]. Recently, CT-based finite element (FE) analyses have been employed for risk evaluation, suggesting that cortical involvement significantly raises fracture risk [2]. This study uses the loss of femur stiffness as an indicator of the effect of axial cortical involvement (ACI) and transverse cortical involvement (TCI) of lesions in the femoral shaft on fracture risk
Dual single-cell and bulk RNA sequencing reveal transcriptional profiles underlying heterogenous host-parasite interactions in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Get PDFToxoplasma gondii, a zoonotic apicomplexan that infects over a billion people worldwide, can cause early death in immunocompromised individuals and defects in foetal brain development. Toxoplasma is also a major cause of abortion in small ruminants. When Toxoplasma encounters host cells, several outcomes are possible. For example, the parasite can enter the host cell or can inject its effector proteins into the cell without entering. These heterogenous outcomes occur simultaneously in the same host and likely determine disease pathogenesis. Yet, current knowledge of host-Toxoplasma interactions is largely based on averaged responses in bulk cell populations. Here, we employed single cell RNA (scRNA) and bulk RNA sequencing to investigate the transcriptional profiles that underpin heterogenous host-Toxoplasma interaction in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. We observed that Toxoplasma preferentially infects and elicits transcriptional responses in dendritic cells in human blood. Additionally, we observed that monocytes adopt a dendritic cell-like transcriptional profile over the course of infection. Using genes expressed in sorted host cell populations representative of the different heterogenous host-Toxoplasma interaction outcomes as a reference panel, we show that genes expressed in cells infected via phagocytosis are largely expressed in dendritic cells. Thus, by integrating scRNA and bulk RNA sequencing, our study unveils the transcriptional profiles of diverse Toxoplasma-host cell interaction outcomes, providing novel avenues for targeted investigations into host gene functions during Toxoplasma infection
Religion in Scotland’s 2022 Census:The rise of the ‘Nones’
Get PDFThis article examines a key feature of Scotland’s religious landscape as reported through the 2022 Census: the rise of the religiously unaffiliated, or ‘Nones’. Nones are marked out by strong age factors and clear – though diminishing – sex differentials. Considerable regional variation is also explained through the extent of secularisation amongst (formerly) Protestant communities and greater resistance to those forces amongst Roman Catholics. Overall, whilst the rise of Scotland’s Nones is striking it is by no means unique, and reflects wider patterns of secularisation in highly developed societies.</p
Blinding birds, bartered bodies, and bestial betrothals:Exploring interspecies intersectionality in the Damascus Document and Book of Tobit
Get PDFIn Second Temple literature, nonhuman animals are hidden in plain sight—pervading the texts but rarely given attention in scholarship.1 In the Damascus Document and Book of Tobit, for example, we find birds who blind the protagonist; livestock whose bodies are bartered alongside slaves and women; and betrothed couples who are likened to beasts of burden. In each case, animals are implicated alongside marginalised humans in the societal power structures depicted in the texts. In this article, we will analyse these mutually-subordinated beings using a conceptual toolkit drawn from intersectional theory. We will begin by briefly explaining our approach before turning to the texts
Public Willingness to Participate in and Share Three-Dimensional (3D) Image Data from Orofacial Research: Results from a Preliminary Online Survey of Scottish Public Opinion
Get PDFBackground: Orofacial traits are influenced by a large number of loci; requiring large population-based studies for their detection. Public willingness to participate in and share three-dimensional (3D) image data from orofacial genetic research is essential to ensure feasible implementation of these studies. This preliminary study aims to explore the Scottish public’s willingness to participate in and share 3D image data from orofacial genetic research, providing baseline data for future research.Methods: The online survey was administered from the 14th June–14th July 2017. Multinomial logistic regression was used to test for association with willingness to participate in and share image data from orofacial genetic research, with baseline demographics and prior knowledge of orofacial research as covariates.Results: A total of 82 members of the Scottish public were recruited. The majority of respondents (83%) would participate in a research project that involves the collection of facial images. Of those who would participate, most (93%) would share their data outside of the UK. Fewer (3%) would only share their data within the UK. Education level and prior knowledge of the oral-systemic health relationship were associated with respondent’s willing ness to participate. Education level was also associated with respondent’s willingness to share image data.Conclusions: This preliminary study indicates a high level of willingness among the Scottish public to participate in and share data from orofacial genetic research. The findings suggest that education level and prior knowledge of oral-systemic health influence participation, highlighting the need for targeted public engagement in orofacial genetic research. These results lay the groundwork for larger, more diverse studies to further explore these associations
Epithelial memory after respiratory viral infection in mice results in prolonged enhancement of antigen presentation.
Get PDFBackground: Viral lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) can reduce severity of subsequent LRTIs but have also been linked to respiratory allergy development and exacerbation. Here, we show that viral LRTI can imprint lung epithelial cells (LECs), leading to prolonged phenotypic and functional changes. Methods: Mice were infected via intranasal administration of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). After 28 days LECs were isolated using cold dispase digestion followed by magnetic-activated cell sorting. Epigenetic changes were assessed using Cleavage Under Targets and Release Using Nuclease (CUT&RUN), while transcriptional changes were evaluated using NanoString and qPCR. Flow cytometry was employed to measure cell surface major histocompatibility complex (MHC) levels, antigen uptake and processing rates, and OT-I proliferation after antigen presentation. Results: We identified epigenetic and transcriptomic changes in murine LECs 28 days after RSV infection, especially impacting genes associated with MHC. Lasting upregulation of MHC-I and MHC-II was further increased following in vivo LPS stimulation. Importantly, MHC upregulation was associated with increased antigen uptake and processing, as well as increased antigen presentation to T cells. Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that RSV can induce prolonged upregulation of antigen-presentation by LECs, with the potential to facilitate local T cell responses to microbial antigens and allergens and to enhance immunity or in susceptible hosts respiratory allergy.<br/
Use of serum total protein as a proxy for passive transfer status in lambs
Get PDFBackgroundSerum total protein (TP) is commonly used to investigate failure of passive transfer of immunity (FPTI) in cattle. This short communication explores the use of serum TP as a proxy of passive transfer (PT) status in lambs.MethodsBlood samples were obtained from 434 lambs within 8‒24 hours of birth to measure serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) and TP. The relationship between serum IgG and TP was described using a linear regression model. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to select a serum TP cut-off for sub-optimal PT.ResultsThere was a moderate positive relationship between serum IgG and TP (r2 = 0.57). The serum TP cut-off with the optimal sensitivity (86.8%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 80.8‒92.1%) and specificity (80.2%, 95% CI: 75.3‒84.8%) to detect serum IgG concentrations of 24 mg/mL or less was 6.8 g/dL.LimitationsThis work involved lowland lambs sampled from a single well-managed farm. Further work is needed to establish FPTI cut-offs in a variety of sheep populations.ConclusionsSerum TP measurement is an appropriate field diagnostic to estimate the PT status of lambs in lowland flocks
Fluctuating selection among years in a wild insect
Get PDFTemporal or spatial variation in selection has the potential to explain long-standing evolutionary problems such as evolutionary stasis and the maintenance of genetic variation. Long-term field studies of plants and wild vertebrates have provided some insights, but multigenerational measures of selection in wild invertebrates remain scarce. Short-lived ectothermic animals are likely to experience more pronounced environmental variation across generations than longer-lived and endothermic species. As a result, variation in selection may be particularly significant in these groups. Over 10 years, we have monitored an individually tagged population of wild crickets (Gryllus campestris) using a network of up to 133 day–night video cameras. The over a million hours of video that we watched allowed us to capture detailed information about naturally and sexually selected traits and life history parameters. Over 10 discrete generations, the population size ranged from 51 to 546 adults. There were also substantial differences among years in the average values of traits including adult emergence date, body size, lifespan, and several behavioral traits. We combined measurements of these traits with individual fitness, measured as the number of adult offspring inferred from genetic-marker-based parentage assignments. This revealed substantial variation in selection gradients across years in several traits, with evidence that in one trait, adult emergence date, selection switched from positive to negative over the years. Our findings suggest that fluctuations in selection gradients are common but complete reversals in the direction of selection may not be very frequent
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