School racial segregation and long-term cardiovascular health among Black adults in the US: A quasi-experimental study

BackgroundCardiovascular disease (CVD) disproportionately affects Black adults in the United States. This is increasingly acknowledged to be due to inequitable distribution of health-promoting resources. One potential contributor is inequities in educational opportunities, although it is unclear what aspects of education are most salient. School racial segregation may affect cardiovascular health by increasing stress, constraining socioeconomic opportunities, and altering health behaviors. We investigated the association between school segregation and Black adults’ CVD risk.Methods and findingsWe leveraged a natural experiment created by quasi-random (i.e., arbitrary) timing of local court decisions since 1991 that released school districts from court-ordered desegregation. We used the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) (1991 to 2017), linked with district-level school segregation measures and desegregation court order status. The sample included 1,053 Black participants who ever resided in school districts that were under a court desegregation order in 1991. The exposure was mean school segregation during observed schooling years. Outcomes included several adult CVD risk factors and outcomes. We fitted standard ordinary least squares (OLS) multivariable linear regression models, then conducted instrumental variables (IV) analysis, using the proportion of schooling years spent in districts that had been released from court-ordered desegregation as an instrument. We adjusted for individual- and district-level preexposure confounders, birth year, and state fixed effects. In standard linear models, school segregation was associated with a lower probability of good self-rated health (−0.05 percentage points per SD of the segregation index; 95% CI: −0.08, −0.03; p < 0.001) and a higher probability of binge drinking (0.04 percentage points; 95% CI: 0.002, 0.07; p = 0.04) and heart disease (0.01 percentage points; 95% CI: 0.002, 0.15; p = 0.007). IV analyses also found that school segregation was associated with a lower probability of good self-rated health (−0.09 percentage points; 95% CI: −0.17, −0.02, p = 0.02) and a higher probability of binge drinking (0.17 percentage points; 95% CI: 0.04, 0.30, p = 0.008). For IV estimates, only binge drinking was robust to adjustments for multiple hypothesis testing. Limitations included self-reported outcomes and potential residual confounding and exposure misclassification.ConclusionsSchool segregation exposure in childhood may have longstanding impacts on Black adults’ cardiovascular health. Future research should replicate these analyses in larger samples and explore potential mechanisms. Given the recent rise in school segregation, this study has implications for policies and programs to address racial inequities in CVD.

Min Hee Kim and colleagues investigate the association between exposure to school racial segregation in childhood and long-term cardiovascular health among Black adults in the United States.     

Regulation of murine airway surface liquid volume by CFTR and Ca2+-activated Cl- conductances

Two Cl(-) conductances have been described in the apical membrane of both human and murine proximal airway epithelia that are thought to play predominant roles in airway hydration: (1) CFTR, which is cAMP regulated and (2) the Ca(2+)-activated Cl(-) conductance (CaCC) whose molecular identity is uncertain. In addition to second messenger regulation, cross talk between these two channels may also exist and, whereas CFTR is absent or defective in cystic fibrosis (CF) airways, CaCC is preserved, and may even be up-regulated. Increased CaCC activity in CF airways is controversial. Hence, we have investigated the effects of CFTR on CaCC activity and have also assessed the relative contributions of these two conductances to airway surface liquid (ASL) height (volume) in murine tracheal epithelia. We find that CaCC is up-regulated in intact murine CF tracheal epithelia, which leads to an increase in UTP-mediated Cl(-)/volume secretion. This up-regulation is dependent on cell polarity and is lost in nonpolarized epithelia. We find no role for an increased electrical driving force in CaCC up-regulation but do find an increased Ca(2+) signal in response to mucosal nucleotides that may contribute to the increased Cl(-)/volume secretion seen in intact epithelia. CFTR plays a critical role in maintaining ASL height under basal conditions and accordingly, ASL height is reduced in CF epithelia. In contrast, CaCC does not appear to significantly affect basal ASL height, but does appear to be important in regulating ASL height in response to released agonists (e.g., mucosal nucleotides). We conclude that both CaCC and the Ca(2+) signal are increased in CF airway epithelia, and that they contribute to acute but not basal regulation of ASL height.     

Impact of unilateral spatial neglect on chronic patient's post-stroke quality of life

Abstract

Background: Unilateral spatial neglect (USN) is the prevalent feature in patients with right-sided stroke. It is diagnosed through the behavior inattention test (BIT) and has a negative impact on patients affecting both their functional capacity and quality of life.

Objective: Here, we aimed to evaluate the impact of USN on the quality of life of patients in the chronic phase of stroke.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with stroke patients with USN. After confirming the presence of stroke through neuroimaging examinations and of USN through the BIT, patients’ quality of life was evaluated by using the EUROQOL scale. Spearman’s correlation was used to validate the correlation between patients’ USN and quality of life, with a p?<?.05 representing significant results.

Results: Eighteen individuals were included. When correlating the value of each domain of the EUROQOL scale with the results of the BIT, we observed a negative correlation between mobility (r?=?–0.97; p?=?.000), self-care (r?=?–0.82; p?=?.013), usual activities (r?=?–0.87; p?=?.005); pain or discomfort (r?=?–0.88; p?=?.004), anxiety or depression (r?=?–0.97; p?=?.000), and EUROQOL total score (r?=?–0.97, p?=?.000).

Conclusion: After a correlation between the overall EUROQOL and BIT scores, we suggest that the higher the USN degree is in stroke patients, the worse their perceived quality of life tends to be.     

Southern blot analysis of HLA-DP gene polymorphisms in Caucasoid rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and controls

Despite extensive analysis of the incidence ofHLA-DR andHLA-DQ allele frequencies in defined autoimmune disease groups, there is very little information available onHLA-DP allele frequencies. This is largely becauseHLA-DP typing has until recently been restricted to primed lymphocyte typing (PLT). However, allelic polymorphism of theHLA-DP subregion can now be studied by Southern blot analysis or genotyping withDPA1 andDPB1 probes. By direct counting of allele-specific DNA fragments, we have analyzed the frequencies of five majorDP genotypes (DPw1, DPw2, DPw3/6, DPw4, andDPw5), in a large number of Caucasoid rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients (n=74), and controls (n=91). The predicted frequency ofDP alleles in both patient and control groups was comparable to PLT-determinedDP allele frequencies in normal Caucasoids. However, the gene frequency ofDPw4 was increased in the RA patients, with 51% of the patients studied scoring asDPw4, 4 homozygotes. With the exception of one possible combination (DPw5 andDRw6) in the controls, no significant linkage disequilibrium was detected betweenDP andDR alleles in either patient or control groups. Thus the prevalence ofDPw4 in the RA patients is independent of any disease association with theDR loci, and may represent a new class II association with RA.     

High-Resolution Underwater Mapping Using Side-Scan Sonar

The goal of this study is to generate high-resolution sea floor maps using a Side-Scan Sonar(SSS). This is achieved by explicitly taking into account the SSS operation as follows. First, the raw sensor data is corrected by means of a physics-based SSS model. Second, the data is projected to the sea-floor. The errors involved in this projection are thoroughfully analysed. Third, a probabilistic SSS model is defined and used to estimate the probability of each sea-floor region to be observed. This probabilistic information is then used to weight the contribution of each SSS measurement to the map. Because of these models, arbitrary map resolutions can be achieved, even beyond the sensor resolution. Finally, a geometric map building method is presented and combined with the probabilistic approach. The resulting map is composed of two layers. The echo intensity layer holds the most likely echo intensities at each point in the sea-floor. The probabilistic layer contains information about how confident can the user or the higher control layers be about the echo intensity layer data. Experimental results have been conducted in a large subsea region.