geoBoundaries: A global database of political administrative boundaries.

We present the geoBoundaries Global Administrative Database (geoBoundaries): an online, open license resource of the geographic boundaries of political administrative divisions (i.e., state, county). Contrasted to other resources geoBoundaries (1) provides detailed information on the legal open license for every boundary in the repository, and (2) focuses on provisioning highly precise boundary data to support accurate, replicable scientific inquiry. Further, all data is released in a structured form, allowing for the integration of geoBoundaries with large-scale computational workflows. Our database has records for every country around the world, with up to 5 levels of administrative hierarchy. The database is accessible at http://www.geoboundaries.org, and a static version is archived on the Harvard Dataverse.

Depressive symptoms and chronic kidney disease: results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005-2006.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Depression is common in individuals with end-stage renal disease. However, its relationship with earlier stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is less well known. In this study, we examined the association between depressive symptoms and CKD. METHODS: Cross-sectional analysis of the prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms were measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) among adult participants with CKD in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005-2006. CKD was defined according to estimated glomerular filtration rate by Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study equation of <60 ml/min/1.73 m(2) or the presence of microalbuminuria (≥ 30 mg/g creatinine), using the Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative classification. A PHQ-9 score ≥ 10 was considered to be indicative of depressive symptoms. RESULTS: Among 3653 subjects in our study sample, 683 (15.2%) met laboratory criteria for CKD. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 7% (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.2-10.8%) in subjects with CKD and 6% (95% CI 4.6-7.4%) in subjects without CKD (P = 0.6). In regression analysis, the presence of CKD was not significantly associated with depressive symptoms (adjusted odds ratio = 0.96 [95% CI 0.51, 1.78], P = 0.9). CONCLUSIONS: We found no difference in the prevalence of depressive symptoms among individuals with or without CKD.

Peptidomics analysis of human blood specimens for biomarker discovery.

This review addresses the concepts, limitations and perspectives for the application of peptidomics science and technologies to discover putative biomarkers in blood specimens. Peptidomics can be defined as the comprehensive multiplex analysis of endogenous peptides contained within a biological sample under defined conditions to describe the multitude of native peptides in a biological compartment. In addition to the discovery of disease associated biomarkers, an emerging field in peptidomics is the analysis of peptides to describe in vivo effects of protease inhibitors. The development and application of peptidomics technologies represent an arena of biomarker research that has the potential for adding significant clinical value.

Hazard assessment / damage mitigation

Two multi-level parking structure for an important medical complex proved an excellent example of the problems facing the owners and designers of convetional structures in low or moderate seismic hazard areas. The two structures are to be of precast concrete, but differing uses require different desing philosophies. In addition, varying subsurface conditions altered the foundation designs and resulted in different earthquake design provision. The design earthquake ground motion levels were 4 porcent and 6 porcent of gravity for the design event. A computer - aided, building code type design was selected for both structures. Additional seismic related construction costs of about 2 porcent for the rock site, and 4 porcent to 6 porcent for the soil site are estimated (AU)