Category Archives: Physiology

Physiology

L-Cysteine Provides Neuroprotection of Hypoxia-Ischemia Injury in Neon | DDDT – Dove Medical Press

Tingting Li,1,* Jiangbing Li,1,2,* Tong Li,3,* Yijing Zhao,1 Hongfei Ke,1 Shuanglian Wang,1 Dexiang Liu,4 Zhen Wang1

1Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, Peoples Republic of China; 2Department of Cardiology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, Peoples Republic of China; 3Department of Neurosurgery Surgery, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Shandong Province, Peoples Republic of China; 4Department of Medical Psychology and Ethics, School of Basic Medicine Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, Peoples Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence: Dexiang LiuDepartment of Medical Psychology and Ethics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, Peoples Republic of ChinaEmail liudexiang@sdu.edu.cnZhen WangDepartment of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, 44 Wenhua Xi Road, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, Peoples Republic of ChinaEmail wangzhen@sdu.edu.cn

Background: Previous work within our laboratory has revealed that hydrogen sulfide (H2S) can serve as neuroprotectant against brain damage caused by hypoxia-ischemia (HI) exposure in neonatal mice. After HI insult, activation of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) signaling pathway has been shown to be implicated in neuro-restoration processes. The goal of the current study was to determine whether the neuroprotective effects of H2S were mediated by the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.Methods: The mouse HI model was built at postnatal day 7 (P7), and the effects of L-Cysteine treatment on acute brain damage (72 h post-HI) and long-term neurological responses (28 days post-HI) were evaluated. Nissl staining and Transmission electron microscopy were used to evaluate the neuronal loss and apoptosis. Immunofluorescence imaging and dihydroethidium staining were utilized to determine glial cell activation and ROS content, respectively.Results: Quantitative results revealed that L-Cysteine treatment significantly prevented the acute effects of HI on apoptosis, glial cell activation and oxidative injury as well as the long-term effects upon memory impairment in neonatal mice. This protective effect of L-Cysteine was found to be associated with the phosphorylation of Akt and phosphatase and a tensin homolog deletion on chromosome 10 (PTEN). Following treatment with the PI3K inhibitor, LY294002, the neuroprotective effects of L-Cysteine were attenuated.Conclusion: PTEN/PI3K/Akt signaling was involved in mediating the neuroprotective effects of exogenous H2S against HI exposure in neonatal mice.

Keywords: Akt, H2S, hypoxia-ischemia, neuroinflammation

This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License.By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms.

Read more:
L-Cysteine Provides Neuroprotection of Hypoxia-Ischemia Injury in Neon | DDDT - Dove Medical Press

Physiology

Chocolate-flavored e-cigarettes are ‘particularly harmful’ to the lungs, study shows – News-Medical.Net

New research shows chocolate-flavored e-cigarettes are "particularly harmful" to the lungs. In fact, scientists found all 10 flavors tested caused some level of toxicity in the cells lining the lungs, resulting in cell death in some instances. The toxins also significantly reduced the ability of immune system cells to remove bacteria and regulate inflammation. The research article was published in the America Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology and has been chosen as an APSselect article for February.

The data show that the chemical profiles of the e-liquid flavors studied (apple, banana, bubblegum, cappuccino, cherry, chocolate, cinnamon, mango, peppermint and tobacco) contained as many as 15 chemicals. The most harmful flavors, such as chocolate and banana, included high levels of a chemical component called a benzene ring. Flavors with a lower concentration of benzene ring were less harmful. The researchers also found different brands of chocolate and banana flavored e-liquids with lower amounts of benzene ring chemicals were also less harmful.

The purpose of the study, according to researchers, was to determine whether immune dysfunction and toxicity in the lungs previously observed in earlier studies were dependent on the flavor used, independent of the presence of nicotine. To find out, they exposed lung cells of healthy, non-smoking subjects to the e-cigarette vapor produced from different flavors.

We believe that this study provides evidence that the potential harm from using flavors does not come from the name on the bottle, but rather the flavoring chemical composition, the flavoring chemicals present and their concentration. This suggests that any limits on permitted flavors should be based on this sort of data specifically to ensure that allowed products truly represent the lowest level of harm possible."

Miranda Ween, PhD, Researcher, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Australia

View original post here:
Chocolate-flavored e-cigarettes are 'particularly harmful' to the lungs, study shows - News-Medical.Net

Physiology

Dr. Maria Delivoria-Papadopoulos, Saved Thousands of Infants, 90 – The National Herald

PHILADELPHIA Dr. Maria Delivoria-Papadopoulos, 90, of Lansdowne, PA, an internationally renowned scientist in the field of neonatal medicine who helped save thousands of infants through her groundbreaking research, died on September 11, 2020 of endometrial cancer at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

A professor emeritus of pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine, former director of newborn services at HUP, and a pioneer in neonatal and pediatric medicine, she joined the faculty at Penn in 1967 as an instructor in pediatrics, according to the Penn Alumni magazine, the Pennsylvania Gazette. She became an assistant professor in physiology and pediatrics a few years later, moving up to associate professor and then, in 1976, full professor of pediatrics, physiology, and obstetrics-gynecology. She also served as the director of newborn services and the intensive care nursery at HUP from 1974 to 1996. She was associate dean for International Medical Programs, and she was also an associate physician at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia. She retired in 1996.

Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos is perhaps best known for performing the worlds first successful ventilation treatment for premature infants in North America. She received continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health for decades for her research, as well as numerous awards, including the American Academy of Pediatrics Lifetime Achievement Award, Penns Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching, and the Leonard Berwick Memorial Teaching Award from the Perelman School of Medicine.

During a 50-year career, Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos was a professor of pediatrics, physiology, and obstetrics/gynecology at Drexel University College of Medicine, and director of neonatal intensive care at St. Christophers Hospital for Children.

She was regarded as the mother of neonatology and a legend in the field," Greeces Neonatal Society said in an online tribute, the Inquirer reported.

She remains alive in the hearts and memories of the hundreds of doctors she trained and inspired to have a love for sick children, of the hundreds of Greek doctors she opened the way for, and of the thousands of Greek patients who found treatment at specialized centers with her help, the Society said on Sept. 14.

Born in Athens, she was the daughter of Constantine and Kalliopi Delivoria and earned a medical degree from Athens University. Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos came to the United States in 1957 to pursue postdoctoral study in physiology at the University of Pennsylvania. She joined the faculty and created the neonatal unit at Penn, which she ran before leaving as professor emeritus in 2000.

She was on the Drexel faculty from 2000 to 2006, where she held the Ralph Brenner Endowed Chair in Pediatrics at St. Christophers Hospital.

Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos was honored globally for her achievements and continued research in neonatal medicine throughout her life, the Inquirer reported, noting that her most important contribution was taking the iron lung used to treat polio victims in the 1950s and adapting it to support the breathing of premature babies. Another was the use of magnetic resonance imaging to assess the infants' brains.

She was the first doctor to place an infant on a respirator to help with respiratory distress syndrome, her family said in a statement, adding that she was also the first woman and doctor to demonstrate the effective use of mechanical ventilation to treat lung disease in premature infants, the Inquirer reported.

Her nearly 60-year medical career was dedicated to at-risk newborns, and she touched the lives of countless children, St. Christophers Hospital said in an online post, the Inquirer reported.

Among the cases on which she consulted was in 1963 for Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, the infant son of President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, the Inquirer reported, noting that Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos was working at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto at the time and was called when the baby developed breathing problems.

She did not treat the child, because it was considered unseemly for a Canadian physician to treat the child of a U.S president, the Inquirer reported, adding that a Boston specialist placed the infant in a hyperbaric chamber filled with 100% oxygen, similar to the ones used by divers and despite frantic efforts by doctors, the child lived for only 39 hours, dying at 4:04 AM Aug. 9.

Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos served as an adviser to the National Institutes of Health and was the author of 400 scientific publications and had an extensive network of scientific protgs as well as thousands of surviving patients, including many for whom she was the only hope, the Inquirer reported.

They kept in touch with her always, said her son, James C. Patterson, the Inquirer reported.

Joseph McGowan, a family friend for 40 years, told the Inquirer that she spent a month in Greece every summer, providing free medical care to Greek children.

Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos worked from a tent and gave each child a toy so they wouldnt fear doctors, the Inquirer reported.

After her mother passed away in 1985, Dr. Delivoria-Papadopoulos wore black, sometimes punctuated with a signature white blouse, for the rest of her life, the Inquirer reported.

She was predeceased by her husband, Christos Papadopoulos, who died in 2002. Besides her son James, she is survived by another son, Constantine C. Patterson, and a grandson.

Services were private. Memorial donations may be made to any veterans organization.

Read the rest here:
Dr. Maria Delivoria-Papadopoulos, Saved Thousands of Infants, 90 - The National Herald

Physiology

Florida mothers of color, seeking better care, turn to midwives and doulas – Tampa Bay Times

ST. PETERSBURG Courtney West stepped into the house and ran with her arms wide open to greet Samara Jackson.

Moments later, Jacksons 8-year-old son, Orion, strolled down the hall, past the family wedding portraits and toward the pair who were laughing and hugging like lifelong friends.

How are you baby boy? West asked Orion as she turned and wrapped her arms around him, too. Well, I cant call you baby boy anymore, can I?

Orion is a big brother now. Two weeks earlier, Peace Jackson just over 6 pounds the last time his mother checked was born on the bathroom floor, a few feet from where they stood. West had arrived just in time, followed by a midwife.

Whens the last time you ate? West asked Jackson during her visit that Friday afternoon. Then she checked on how mother and baby were sleeping.

The day before, West had assisted with another delivery. Shes booked until June, she said. When she makes plans, they come with the disclaimer, unless Im at a birth.

West sees doulas as the mothers of mothers. In her own practice, she serves as caretaker, chef, masseuse and often times advocate for families in hospitals and doctors offices. She assists with home births and hospital deliveries, offering additional comfort and expertise for families. The vast majority of the mothers she cares for are women of color.

Pregnant with her second child in the midst of the pandemic and the intensity of last summers Black Lives Matter protests, Jackson, 30, shied away from the hospital where Orion was born. They had induced her, and she felt forced into using formula instead of breastfeeding.

This time, she sought the care of a Black midwife and a Black doula. This time, she wanted more support.

Zulgeil Ruiz Gins, who heads the only Hispanic-owned midwife practice in Hillsborough County, is booked until August. She receives a handful of calls every week from women of color who are scared, determined to avoid traditional health systems that have discriminated against them.

But with limited capacity, Im turning people away, said Gins, whose own childbirth was rife with mistreatment.

Its no way to come into the world with trauma, she said.

Black women once dominated the field of midwifery in southern states. Their enslaved forbears had passed down West African childbirth techniques through generations.

From the 1930s to the 1960s, the Florida Department of Health recruited midwives for women who had no access to medical care due to poverty and segregation, according to Sharon Hamilton, former president of the Midwives Association of Florida. Back then, Black people were often not allowed in hospitals.

Since then, the number of Black maternal health care providers has dwindled.

And the rates of maternal mortality and preterm births have increased in the U.S., even as medicine and technology have advanced, according to an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation, which noted trends since the 1980s.

Black women face death rates related to pregnancy that are over three times those for white women. For American Indian and Alaska Native women, pregnancy-related death rates are more than twice as high as white counterparts. The rate for Hispanic women was similar to white women, the Kaiser analysis found.

The outlook is somewhat brighter in Florida, which has seen a significant drop in the rate of maternal mortality over the last 10 years, particularly among Black and Hispanic women, said Dr. William Sappenfield, a University of South Florida professor and the director of the Florida Perinatal Quality Collaborative.

Still, disparities persist, Sappenfield said.

For so long, researchers studied race as a physiological cause for the disparities, said Jessica Brumley, director of the division of midwifery in USF Healths department of obstetrics & gynecology. But its really racism and the social and systematic effects of that over generations that are affecting health outcomes.

Patients who are cared for by a provider who looks like them have better outcomes, said Brumley, and if youre Black or brown, youre less likely to have a provider who looks like you.

Throughout her pregnancy, Delaine Williams mastered the art of dropping hints in conversations with nurses and doctors.

Shed mention her college degree and say her husbands name in passing. Shed bring up the clients she worked with as a group insurance consultant. Shed let them know about her journey with in vitro fertilization.

I felt like I needed to wear that privilege on my sleeve in order to be treated with kindness, Williams said.

Still, it didnt protect her.

After the birth of her daughter, an awful headache took hold, a side effect of her C-section. Williams could hardly walk, her vision blurred, she could barely hold her baby, she said. She returned to the hospital and, after hours of begging for medication, the pain management team refused, saying her pain wasnt as severe as she let on.

Everyone was working really hard to convince me that what I was experiencing was not what I was experiencing, said Williams, a Tampa native and Florida A&M University graduate. I had a lot of trouble advocating for myself.

With the pandemic raging, her husband couldnt stand by her side at the hospital. And as a Black woman, not having a partner with you changes the way youre perceived, said Williams, 35. At the hospital, attendants assumed she was on welfare.

After her mother called demanding to speak with the administrator on duty, the head of the emergency team came to her room. Deeply apologetic, the doctor explained his wife had experienced the same issue and offered medication to ease the pain.

Since then, Williams has steered clear of the hospital and used a doula for postpartum care.

Black emergency room patients were 40 percent less likely to receive pain medication than white patients, and Hispanic patients were 25 percent less likely, according to a study published in 2019 by a researcher at George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences.

Dismissing Black and Hispanic womens pain is one of many ways implicit bias affects their quality of care, experts say.

West, the doula, says she cares for many second-time moms afraid of hospitals after their first experiences: women stitched up wrong after surgery, or consistently talked down to. Shes heard from Black and brown fathers who said they were removed from the delivery room for asking why their partners were being mistreated. A mother of 10 who said she sought her help after bad experiences during every pregnancy, finally hoping to have a good birth.

The traditional medical structure traumatized West, much as it does her clients.

When her blood pressure increased throughout her pregnancy, doctors threw medication at her, she said. And when her baby was delivered, no one checked on her. I could be bleeding out right now, she recalled thinking. Wheres the care?

Then came severe postpartum depression and sleep deprivation. Again, they threw me on some meds and that was it, said West. During that period, West was offered a copper intrauterine device for birth control and an allergic reaction left her sterilized.

In response, nurses made remarks suggesting she didnt need to have more children anyway.

I trusted them, West said. How dare you take something so precious from me?

When Ciara Tucker of St. Petersburg started having chest pain, she went to a community health clinic. After four visits, a multitude of tests and repeated radiation, doctors took a urine specimen. Tucker, 38, was pregnant. A complication with her twins was causing her heart problems.

At 17 weeks, she lost one of the babies due to causes she says were unrelated to the radiation. Still, Tucker describes her care at the clinic as total chaos and is angry her babies were put at risk.

Another St. Petersburg resident, registered nurse Briana Hickman, was aware of the disparities facing mothers of color when she got pregnant with her son. So she recruited West as her doula for additional support.

Being a nurse kind of works in your favor, said Hickman, 27, who noticed the gaps in care firsthand as a Black patient. Having West as her advocate allowed Hickman to ask doctors more questions and push back when she felt pressured into taking certain medications.

A week before NiChelle Lawson gave birth, harsh contractions forced her to check into the hospital. With no rooms available when she arrived, Lawson, 27, said she sat in the lobby with West as nurses walked by almost like they were smirking and making fun of what Im going through.

In the Black community, were pushed to get an epidural, to get a C-section. Were pushed to feel like there is no other option than the option that is given by the doctor, Lawson said. But throughout the pregnancy, West helped her speak up when she didnt want to go with what the doctor was pushing on her, she said.

I had more of a voice than I thought that I had.

As doctors become more aware of the discrimination and communication barriers permeating maternal health care, some hospital systems are looking to bridge the gap by incorporating midwives and doulas into their operations.

There are certainly differences in philosophy between the practice of obstetrics gynecology and midwifery, said Brumley, the USF professor. While obstetrics and gynecology specialists are experts in the management of medical complications and surgery, midwives are experts on the physiology of pregnancy and birth. They complement one another, she said.

Hospital midwives traditionally treat high-risk patients who may have multiple conditions, she said. The personalized care families may find with licensed midwives who work outside hospitals is difficult to recreate in a facility because of the sheer volume of patients.

Licensed midwives dont see high-risk patients. So, to ease the concerns of women who are high-risk but do not feel safe in hospitals, some hospitals offer team-based care that includes nurse midwives.

In Hillsborough County, ReachUp Inc., an organization working toward equality in health care, has been incorporating the use of doulas to chip away at maternal health disparities for the past two decades.

We need to listen to women, said Estrellita Lo Berry, ReachUps president and CEO, and really, truly be able to have dialogues about implicit bias.

As the disparities persist, advocates are pushing for structural change and in some cases starting to make them on the grassroots level.

The numbers dont lie, said Yamel Belen, owner of One Love Doula Services, which serves women across the region. Every provider should be very well-versed in diversity and inclusion.

Belens practice offers free planning sessions to families of color in hopes of combatting the disparities. While she doesnt have the funding to offer all of her services at no cost, a single session can help families feel empowered, Belen said.

It gives us an opportunity to educate you, she said.

Back inside Samara Jacksons kitchen, West, the doula, gazed at baby Peace in her arms. Hes the most precious thing, she said. Im so proud of you.

Jackson said she was going to miss her.

You dont have to miss us, West said. Were here. Were not going anywhere.

I want to be at all the birthdays.

The Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg provides partial funding for Times stories on equity. It does not select story topics and is not involved in the reporting or editing.

Read the original here:
Florida mothers of color, seeking better care, turn to midwives and doulas - Tampa Bay Times

Physiology

Pueblo Community College names its 2020 employees of the year – Pueblo Chieftain

Joe McQueen|The Pueblo Chieftain

Pueblo Community College has named four of itsstaff the school's 2020 employees of the year.

The faculty were given the award during PCC's virtual spring semester kickoff event. According to a news release, they were selected based on their professional excellence.

"I'm very appreciative and honored. My colleagues are the ones who nominated me for the award. It's really just an amazing group of people I work with," PCC academic excellence administrator Bonnie Housh, one of the award recipients, said. "Everybody helps everyone, it's been a good run."

MORE: Pueblo Pro Bono Mental Wellness program celebrates its 10th anniversary

Housh has worked at PCC for30 years, 22 of them as a part-time instructor in the science department. She said she enjoyed teaching during her time as a part-time instructor since her schedule worked out with raising a family.

"When you see the lightbulb go on for students when you're explaining anatomy and physiology and when they understand what you're talking about, that's just a great feeling," she said.

Health information technology program coordinator and faculty memberMarianne Horvath also was named an employee of the year. She has been with PCC for four years and received the award for her dedication to student success.

MORE: State hospital staff in Pueblo fear for safety with new policing plan

"It's a really amazing honor and certainly something I did not expect. Getting this award is kind of unbelievable," Horvath said.

She said she enjoys everything about the school andhow everyone rallies around the students to provide them the best education.

"Providing top-notch current content that they need to know to be successful in the workforce. PCC has assembled an arsenal of tools to help students with just about any need that comes up," she said.

The other award recipients included administrative assistant for Pueblo Corporate College Debbie Clement and mathematics instructor Nancy Hunt.

Chieftain Education Reporter Joe McQueen can be reached at jmcqueen@gannett.com or on Twitter @jmcqueennews

Continued here:
Pueblo Community College names its 2020 employees of the year - Pueblo Chieftain

Physiology

Novel hybrid device to boost research on metastatic process of breast cancer cells – News-Medical.Net

European researchers are working on a novel hybrid device to better understand the metastatic process of cancer cells traveling from breast to bone and fast screen new drugs against it.

The spread of cancer cells to other parts of the body, known as metastasis, is the main cause of cancer-related deaths. According to the US National Cancer Institute, in 2018 there were 9.5 million deaths caused by cancer worldwide, and a high percentage of those involved tumors that had spread across the body.

However the metastatic process remains one of the most enigmatic aspects of the disease. To understand it, we have to take a step back and look at the biology of the primary tumor.

Roger Gomis, head of the group growth control and cancer metastasis at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine, in Barcelona, explains: "Essentially what you have in a tumor is an original cell or a small group of cells that receive oncogenic signals, such as tobacco or UV light. Those inputs induce alterations known as mutations, which make the cells start proliferating in a dysregulated manner. The tumor mass starts growing and expanding and, in order not to run out of supplies and collapse, some cancer cells spread to other organs. Cancer cells spread not because they are encoded to the metastasis but just because it's crowded."

What we observe in cancer is an accelerated process of evolutionary species, trying to leave one site to grow on foreign soil. The site where tumor cells metastasize is not random, it rather follows a specific tissue pattern based on the Darwinian theory of evolution.

Gomis uses the Galapagos Islands as an example to explain. "You have a population of birds that have flown from Ecuador. They reach the islands and they adapt to the conditions of each island, forming new bird species. Why did birds colonize the Galapagos Islands and not dogs or reptiles? Because they could fly! So the genetics made them the candidates. But then, there is a process of adaptation that is imposed by the characteristics of the destination; for example the latitudes and where the food is," he says.

In terms of metastasis, it is the same. The fact that metastatic cells metastasize on a particular site depends on the genetics of the cells, the characteristics of the metastatic tissue and the ability of the tumour cells to adapt to and grow in the new environment. A great example of this is breast cancer.

The bones are the most common place where metastatic breast cancer cells tend to go. Although the research on tumors has exponentially grown in the past years, the major hurdle to decreasing mortality is to find out where the cancer cells will spread. To understand the process, scientists need relevant cancer models, which are lacking.

The main reason why it has been so difficult to translate the findings into the clinical settings is that the models of the laboratory sometimes do not factor in everything we have in the clinics. The laboratory mice, in terms of metastasis, do not always recapitulate what we see in the patients. For example, the breast cancer that we generate in the mouse tends to metastasize to the lung but it's rare to see it in the bones."

Roger Gomis, Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Barcelona

Providing better models to shed light on the bone metastatic process is the aim of the B2B project, supported by the EU Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) programme. Its interdisciplinary consortium are creating a cutting-edge device that mimics the spontaneous metastasis process from the breast to the bone.

Their innovative technology includes a patient-derived breast cancer lesion connected to a reconstructed bone via a complex vascular network. "The fluidic system mimics the features of human blood vessels feeding and connecting living tumour cells from breast cancer to the target metastatic tissue, which is the bone," explains Silvia Scaglione, group leader of the CNR-IEIIT Bioengineering laboratory of Genoa, and coordinator of the project.

The level of physiological complexity of the project is really high but this is necessary if we are to capture all the key elements of the metastatic process. "Usually cancer is studied either using in vitro static models or in vivo animal models. However, both approaches fail to recapitulate the metastatic process for different reasons. The static model can't mimic the fluidic connections between the breast cancer and the metastatic side, while the animal model doesn't resemble the spontaneous breast metastatic onset," she says.

If successful, the B2B device will be an in vitro alternative that features three new complementary technologies. The first is clinically relevant-sized organoids that are able to resemble what is happening in vivo. "If you miniaturize too much the cancer tissue, as in some other in vitro approaches, you lose some biochemical and molecular features such a hypoxic core within the tumor tissue," Scaglione explains.

The second is the generation of the ossicle, the bone tissue containing the target of metastasis, in vitro. "We started using mice models to make the ossicle, since it is impossible with our knowledge in the world to create the bone marrow, which is the target of the metastatic cancer cells. In parallel, the partner involved in this task is working on a novel in vitro approach using patient-derived stem cells to create bone tissue and thus by passing completely the animal step," says Scaglione.

The third is the fluidic system that connects the breast and bone tissues, which is entirely based on human physiology. The system consists of a micro-vascular capillary network, which is formed spontaneously around the tumour tissue, connected to a functional bioprinted macro-vascular tree.

Scaglione sees a future whereby any crosstalk between organs can be studied using the B2B platform, reducing the need for animal models and supporting scientists in advancing knowledge on tumors. "We have selected the breast metastasis as a case study but, of course, our platform will be adapted for many other diseases," she says, "Not necessary for cancer, but, for instance, fibrosis or other cases where you have an interaction between different tissues that are vascularised and fluidically connected. Also, the platform will be useful for studying the pharmacokinetics of any type of drugs."

Scaglione also believes that this technology will accelerate the identification of metastasis-suppressing therapies for breast cancer patients and will help pre-screen novel personalized cancer therapies, which will ultimately have a high impact for oncological patients.

The rest is here:
Novel hybrid device to boost research on metastatic process of breast cancer cells - News-Medical.Net

Physiology

Ga. Parents Of Transgender Athletes React To New ‘Female-Only Sports’ Bill | 90.1 FM WABE – WABE 90.1 FM

Georgia LGBTQ advocacy groups are criticizing new legislation that they say discriminates against transgender youth.

Republican state Rep. Philip Singleton announced House Bill 276 on Thursday, along with 36 other House members who have already co-signed the legislation.

Singleton announced the bill would stop state public schools and universities from allowing biological males to participate in girl-only sports. If passed, HB 276 would also allow students to sue schools that deprive them of athletic opportunities, as a result of violating the law.

No one here is concerned with how any person chooses to identify their gender, Singleton said during a press conference in the Georgia Capitol building, alongside his family and other young, female athletes lined up behind him.

We believe every single athlete should have the opportunity to compete, and there is no place for identity politics, or discrimination of any type, in sports.

Singleton then introduced his 10-year-old daughter Emma and put her in front of the mic, saying the bill is about biology and physiology, not psychology or sociology.

I dont think it is fair for girls who are playing in girls-only sports to have to play against boys, she said.

The boys are naturally born stronger and can usually beat girls.

But one former Georgia politician is joining in with critics of the bill who say its a discriminatory, shameful attack on Georgias transgender youth and young adults.

Jen Slipakoff ran to represent Georgias State House District 36 in 2018. She said her daughter a young, transgender athlete in a conservative Georgia district would be devastated if the bill passes.

I havent told her. I havent told her because I dont know what to tell her, Slipakoff said in response to a question about her daughters reaction to HB 276.

What do you say to that? Theres some lawmaker who has never met a transgender person, probably, who thinks that you should not play? Who has never met you, and thinks you shouldnt play lacrosse with your friends? What a heartbreaking conversation.

The bill would force state universities to disregard NCAA guidance on transgender athlete inclusion.

Continued here:
Ga. Parents Of Transgender Athletes React To New 'Female-Only Sports' Bill | 90.1 FM WABE - WABE 90.1 FM

Physiology

Kevin Kregel named permanent provost and executive vice president at University of Iowa – UI The Daily Iowan

Pending Board of Regents approval, current interim provost Kevin Kregel will fill the role permanently beginning Feb. 15.

The University of Iowa removed another interim title this week.

Kevin Kregel, the UIs interim provost and executive vice president, was named a permanent provost and executive vice president on Thursday. Kregel, has served in the interim since July 2020, when former provost Montse Fuentes stepped down from the position for a role as special assistant to the president. Kregel will start Feb. 15 with an annual salary of $439,000.

Its the second role the UI has upgraded to permanent since the start of the semester two weeks ago. The UI named Liz Tovar as the executive officer of diversity, equity, and inclusion after serving in the interim role since August.

Kregel graduated from the UI with a bachelors degree in biology and a doctorate in physiology and biophysics. In 1993, he joined the UI faculty and has since served as department executive officer in the Department of Health and Human Physiology before being appointed associate provost in September 2014 and to the executive vice provost and senior associate provost for faculty role in July 2019. Hes also participated in steering committees for two cluster-hire initiatives and in the role of acting associate provost for undergraduate education and dean of University College in 2018.

While serving as interim executive vice president and provost, Kevin has demonstrated strong leadership and collaboration that has helped carry the university through the challenging pandemic, said UI President Bruce Harreld, according to a UI media release. His long career at Iowa has provided him with unmatched knowledge and insight that position the university for continued excellence.

UI spokesperson Anne Bassett pointed the DI to Harrelds quote in the news release in an email asking for details on why the UI decided to appoint two current interims without searches in the last few weeks. The UI has used searches in the past to fill open administrative positions, including one in fall 2020 that led to the appointment of Amy Kristof-Brown as Tippie College of Business dean after serving as the interim since March.

The previous provost, Fuentes, was reassigned to a new position created within the presidents office in July, maintaining her $439,000 provosts salary. Per the universitys contract, she would hold that position until June 30, 2021.

Fuentes will take the helm of St. Edwards University, a private Catholic liberal arts university in Austin, Texas on July 1, 2021 as its president.

I am honored to serve as provost at Iowa, which has been such a meaningful part of my life since I was an undergraduate student, Kregel said, according to a UI press release. I look forward to building upon the relationships I have established during my time as interim and continuing to deliver an excellent educational experience to our students and improving the workplace experience for our faculty.

View post:
Kevin Kregel named permanent provost and executive vice president at University of Iowa - UI The Daily Iowan

Physiology

As climate change cranks up the heat in the Mojave Desert, not all species are equally affected – Iowa State University News Service

AMES, Iowa Climate change doesnt affect every species equally.

Even among species that share the same habitat, some organisms adapt more readily than others to environmental fluctuations wrought by climate change. This realization has led biologists to try to predict which species are most vulnerable to climate change.

A new study published this week in the peer-reviewed journal Science shows how climate change is having a much greater impact on birds than small mammals in the Mojave Desert in the southwestern United States. The study, led by an Iowa State University scientist, utilized computer simulations to explore differences in how birds and mammals experience the direct effects of climate warming on their ability to maintain a stable body temperature.

The study could inform conservation practices and shed new light on how animals respond to changes in their environment, said Eric Riddell, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology.

We wanted to answer how physiology influences where animals can live and their vulnerability to climate change, Riddell said. We built these simulations that mimic how animals interact with their environment so we can identify which combinations of traits make species vulnerable to climate change and which ones dont.

Riddell contributed to the project as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Berkeley. A UC Berkeley biologist named Joseph Grinnell collected copious amounts of data on wildlife in the Mojave region in the early 1900s. Biologists conducted surveys in recent years at the same sites visited by Grinnell, comparing todays wildlife populations to those of 100 years ago. The new study drew on data for 34 small mammal species at 90 sites and 135 bird species at 61 sites located primarily on protected lands in southeastern California. Previous analyses showed that, as the Mojave Desert grew hotter and drier as a result of climate change, bird populations collapsed while mammals held steady.

Steven Beissinger, a UC Berkeley professor of environmental science, policy and management and a researcher at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, said the extreme environment of the desert highlights the biological differences noted in the study.

Scientists tend to assume that most species in a region experience the same exposure to temperature or precipitation changes, and that they all respond in the same way, Beissinger said. But, we're finding now that animals have diverse strategies for reducing their exposure to hot and dry conditions that could kill them. You should see these differences most strongly in a harsh environment like the desert, where life is really on the edge.

Computer simulations conducted by Riddell for the study explain those changes by examining the biology and behaviors of the species in question. Riddell compared the way animals control their body temperature, similar to how houses control temperature. We devote energy to warm our houses in the winter or cool our homes in the hot summer months, all to maintain a comfortable temperature range. Similarly, animals must devote energy to regulating their temperature as well, Riddell said. The amount of energy animals have to devote to cooling themselves in hot conditions is called the animals cooling cost. Riddells computer simulations showed how birds in the Mojave region, such as the prairie falcon and the mountain chickadee, have higher cooling costs than the small mammals that live in the same region. The small mammals analyzed in the study include rodents such as the cactus mouse or the kangaroo rat.

Riddells models account for how the animals bodies absorb or reflect sunlight, how insulated their bodies are and a range of other factors. The differences in cooling costs observed in the study accounts for the discrepancy in bird and mammal populations. Hotter conditions have a greater impact on birds because their cooling costs are higher, according to the study.

Riddell said studies like his can guide conservation policies. He said the study shows that basing climate change responses solely on the degree of warming in a region is unlikely to benefit all species in an area.

Rather, we may need to focus on predicting the unique experience of climate change for species to identify regions with the greatest potential to harbor the most species under climate change, Riddell said.

And monitoring species within affected areas might help scientists gauge the pace of climate change and how quickly mitigation strategies should be enacted, he said.

More:
As climate change cranks up the heat in the Mojave Desert, not all species are equally affected - Iowa State University News Service

Physiology

The soundscape of the Anthropocene ocean – Science Magazine

An anthropogenic cacophony

Sound travels faster and farther in water than in air. Over evolutionary time, many marine organisms have come to rely on sound production, transmission, and reception for key aspects of their lives. These important behaviors are threatened by an increasing cacophony in the marine environment as human-produced sounds have become louder and more prevalent. Duarte et al. review the importance of biologically produced sounds and the ways in which anthropogenically produced sounds are affecting the marine soundscape.

Science, this issue p. eaba4658

Sound is the sensory cue that travels farthest through the ocean and is used by marine animals, ranging from invertebrates to great whales, to interpret and explore the marine environment and to interact within and among species. Ocean soundscapes are rapidly changing because of massive declines in the abundance of sound-producing animals, increases in anthropogenic noise, and altered contributions of geophysical sources, such as sea ice and storms, owing to climate change. As a result, the soundscape of the Anthropocene ocean is fundamentally different from that of preindustrial times, with anthropogenic noise negatively impacting marine life.

We find evidence that anthropogenic noise negatively affects marine animals. Strong evidence for such impacts is available for marine mammals, and some studies also find impacts for fishes and invertebrates, marine birds, and reptiles. Noise from vessels, active sonar, synthetic sounds (artificial tones and white noise), and acoustic deterrent devices are all found to affect marine animals, as are noise from energy and construction infrastructure and seismic surveys. Although there is clear evidence that noise compromises hearing ability and induces physiological and behavioral changes in marine animals, there is lower confidence that anthropogenic noise increases the mortality of marine animals and the settlement of their larvae.

Anthropogenic noise is a stressor for marine animals. Thus, we call for it to be included in assessments of cumulative pressures on marine ecosystems. Compared with other stressors that are persistent in the environment, such as carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere or persistent organic pollutants delivered to marine ecosystems, anthropogenic noise is typically a point-source pollutant, the effects of which decline swiftly once sources are removed. The evidence summarized here encourages national and international policies to become more ambitious in regulating and deploying existing technological solutions to mitigate marine noise and improve the human stewardship of ocean soundscapes to maintain a healthy ocean. We provide a range of solutions that may help, supported by appropriate managerial and policy frameworks that may help to mitigate impacts on marine animals derived from anthropogenic noise and perturbations of soundscapes.

The illustrations from top to bottom show ocean soundscapes from before the industrial revolution that were largely composed of sounds from geological (geophony) and biological sources (biophony), with minor contributions from human sources (anthrophony), to the present Anthropocene oceans, where anthropogenic noise and reduced biophony owing to the depleted abundance of marine animals and healthy habitats have led to impacts on marine animals. These impacts range from behavioral and physiological to, in extreme cases, death. As human activities in the ocean continue to increase, management options need be deployed to prevent these impacts from growing under a business-as-usual scenario and instead lead to well-managed soundscapes in a future, healthy ocean. AUV, autonomous underwater vehicle.

Oceans have become substantially noisier since the Industrial Revolution. Shipping, resource exploration, and infrastructure development have increased the anthrophony (sounds generated by human activities), whereas the biophony (sounds of biological origin) has been reduced by hunting, fishing, and habitat degradation. Climate change is affecting geophony (abiotic, natural sounds). Existing evidence shows that anthrophony affects marine animals at multiple levels, including their behavior, physiology, and, in extreme cases, survival. This should prompt management actions to deploy existing solutions to reduce noise levels in the ocean, thereby allowing marine animals to reestablish their use of ocean sound as a central ecological trait in a healthy ocean.

Link:
The soundscape of the Anthropocene ocean - Science Magazine