Genetic/Protein Association of Atopic Dermatitis and Tooth Agenesis.

Atopic dermatitis and abnormalities in tooth development (including hypomineralization, hypodontia and microdontia) have been observed to co-occur in some patients. A common pathogenesis pathway that involves genes and protein interactions has been hypothesized. This review aims to first provide a description of the key gene mutations and signaling pathways associated with atopic dermatitis and tooth agenesis (i.e., the absence of teeth due to developmental failure) and identify the possible association between the two diseases. Second, utilizing a list of genes most commonly associated with the two diseases, we conducted a protein-protein network interaction analysis using the STRING database and identified a novel association between the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway (major pathway responsible for TA) and desmosomal proteins (component of skin barrier that affect the pathogenesis of AD). Further investigation into the mechanisms that may drive their co-occurrence and underlie the development of the two diseases is warranted.

Thermal-irradiant performance of green infrastructure typologies: Field measurement study in a subtropical climate city.

Greenery infrastructure (GI) is an important design strategy for sustainable cities and communities' development, as it brings multiple benefits including mitigating urban heat island. Based on the implementation locations, three typical GI typologies, namely green roof, green wall, and ground tree, are widely adopted in urban communities. As previous studies focused on one single GI and mainly studied their thermal features, this study aims to fill the gap by investigating three GI typologies within one site; their thermal-irradiant performance was compared for four typical summer days in a subtropical city. Firstly, stationary and transect measurements were taken for six points (three greenery and three bare points); two typical measuring methods, i.e., the globe thermometer and the six-directional methods, were employed to collect irradiant variables. Secondly, the thermal-irradiant differences were revealed among GI typologies and temporal periods; two measuring methods were compared for their capabilities in detecting the irradiant variations near three GI typologies. Results showed that: 1) the ground tree experienced the smallest thermal-irradiant average and variation among three GI typologies; 2) the morning session (09:00-12:00) had the largest thermal-irradiant reduction and variations for three GI typologies; and 3) the six-directional method showed higher sensitivity towards the irradiant variations near three GI typologies; the globe thermometer method is not suitable for tree-shaded areas. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of proper selection of MRT measuring methods and GI implementation for thermal comfort, especially for the subtropical cities. Practically, this study shows designers and policymakers on how to implement GI typologies for climate-resilient design.

Right tree, right place (urban canyon): Tree species selection approach for optimum urban heat mitigation - development and evaluation.

The re-integration of trees into the urban landscape is a veritable strategy for urban climate mitigation and adaptation. However, dysfunctional trees in terms of urban heat mitigation are dominant in many sub-tropical cities' landscapes due to the lack of scientific basis of tree selection. Therefore, this study proposes and evaluates a methodological framework as an approach for "right tree, right place" for urban heat mitigation through parametric ENVI-met simulations that involve the combination of 54 generic tree forms and 10 characteristic urban morphology - Sky-View Factor (SVF). Results show variable temperature regulation by tree forms (species) with varying magnitude in different urban morphology. Daytime and nighttime temperature regulation effects were between 0.3 °C - 1.0 °C and 0.0 °C - 2.0 °C, respectively depending on tree forms and SVF value. Furthermore, the Heat Reduction Potential (HRP) of trees forms were determined in terms of their human thermal comfort improvement. In general, we found a range of +5% and - 20% depending on SVF, negative and positive values imply heat reduction and increment, respectively. With the competing shading effect of buildings, the HRP of trees reduces from high to low SVF area with variable magnitude among tree forms (species). Hence, the proposed morphology-based tree selection approach was evaluated by comparison with two uninformed selection approaches in a realistic urban neighborhood in Hong Kong. Results clearly indicate the proposed approach's capability in improving human thermal comfort by up two times more than either of the other approaches. Finally, evidence-based recommendations were given for the reference of policy-makers when they make urban green development plan.

How to quantify the relationship between spatial distribution of urban waterbodies and land surface temperature?

Urban waterbodies can effectively mitigate the increasing UHI effects and thus enhance climate resilience of urban areas. To contribute to our limited understanding in cooling effect of waterbodies on surrounding thermal environments, we examine the quantitative relationship between the spatial distribution of urban waterbodies and the land surface temperature (LST) in Wuhan, China. This paper 1) applies two indicators, the fractional water cover and the gravity water index, for measuring the spatial distribution of urban waterbodies; 2) conducts simple linear regression and spatial regression analyses to explore the LST-water relationship at multiple scales; and 3) compares the individual regression results from different land use types. The results show that the spatial distribution of urban waterbodies affects the LST significantly, and the gravity water index sufficiently explains the LST variation at various scales. Furthermore, the impact of urban waterbody distribution on the LST does vary across different land use types. Conclusions from this study provide insights of the cooling effect of urban waterbodies, which can further assist city planners and decision makers in utilizing cooling effects of waterbodies to improve the thermal environment of urban areas.

Attenuating the surface Urban Heat Island within the Local Thermal Zones through land surface modification.

Inefficient mitigation of excessive heat is attributed to the discrepancy between the scope of climate research and conventional planning practice. This study approaches this problem at both domains. Generally, the study, on one hand, claims that the climate research of the temperature phenomenon should be at local scale, where implementation of planning and design strategies can be more feasible. On the other hand, the study suggests that the land surface factors should be organized into zones or patches, which conforms to the urban planning and design manner. Thus in each zone, the land surface composition of those excessively hot places can be compared to the zonal standard. The comparison gives guidance to the modification of the land surface factors at the target places. Specifically, this study concerns the Land Surface Temperature (LST) in Wuhan, China. The land surface is classified into Local Thermal Zones (LTZ). The specifications of temperature sensitive land surface factors are relative homogeneous in each zone and so is the variation of the LST. By extending the city scale analysis of Urban Heat Island into local scale, the Local Surface Urban Heat Islands (LSUHIs) are extracted. Those places in each zone that constantly maintain as LSUHI and exceed the homogenous LST variation are considered as target places or hotspots with higher mitigation or adaptation priority. The operation is equivalent to attenuate the abnormal LST variation in each zone. The framework is practical in the form of prioritization and zoning, and mitigation strategies are essentially operated locally.