Over a dozen flights cancelled or delayed between Bali and Australia

Molly McGregor, 29, was fined £450 for not showing her railcard during a rail journey in May.

Australian airlines say it is unsafe to fly after Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki spewed ash.

Chiara Pavanello
Dec 1, 2020; 61:1784-1788
Patient-Oriented and Epidemiological Research

Tommaso Laurenzi
Dec 2, 2020; 0:jlr.RA120000843v1-jlr.RA120000843
Research Articles

Lecithin:cholesterol-acyl-transferase (LCAT) plays a major role in cholesterol metabolism as it is the only extracellular enzyme able to esterify cholesterol. LCAT activity is required for lipoprotein remodelling and, most specifically, for the growth and maturation of HDLs. In fact, genetic alterations affecting LCAT func- tionality may cause a severe reduction in plasma levels of HDL-cholesterol with important clinical consequences. Although several hypotheses were formulated, the exact molecular recognition mechanism between LCAT and HDLs is still unknown. We employed a combination of structural bioinformatics procedures to deepen the insights into the HDL-LCAT interplay that promotes LCAT activation and cholesterol esterification. We have generated a data-driven model of reconstituted HDL (rHDL) and studied the dynamics of an assembled rHDL::LCAT supramolecular complex, pinpointing the conformational changes originating from the interaction between LCAT and apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) that are necessary for LCAT activation. Specifically, we propose a mechanism in which the anchoring of LCAT lid to apoA-I helices allows the formation of a hydrophobic hood that expands LCAT active site and shields it from the solvent, allowing the enzyme to process large hydrophobic substrates.

The acyltransferase LCAT mediates FA esterification of plasma cholesterol. In vitro studies have shown that LCAT also FA-esterifies several oxysterols, but in vivo evidence is lacking. Here, we measured both free and FA-esterified forms of sterols in 206 healthy volunteers and 8 individuals with genetic LCAT deficiency, including familial LCAT deficiency (FLD) and fish-eye disease (FED). In the healthy volunteers, the mean values of the ester-to-total molar ratios of the following sterols varied: 4β-hydroxycholesterol (4βHC), 0.38; 5,6α-epoxycholesterol (5,6αEC), 0.46; 5,6β-epoxycholesterol (5,6βEC), 0.51; cholesterol, 0.70; cholestane-3β,5α,6β-triol (CT), 0.70; 7-ketocholesterol (7KC), 0.75; 24S-hydroxycholesterol (24SHC), 0.80; 25-hydroxycholesterol (25HC), 0.81; 27-hydroxycholesterol (27HC), 0.86; and 7α-hydroxycholesterol (7αHC), 0.89. In the individuals with LCAT deficiency, the plasma levels of the FA-esterified forms of cholesterol, 5,6αEC, 5,6βEC, CT, 7αHC, 7KC, 24SHC, 25HC, and 27HC, were significantly lower than those in the healthy volunteers. The individuals with FLD had significantly lower FA-esterified forms of 7αHC, 24SHC, and 27HC than those with FED. It is of note that, even in the three FLD individuals with negligible plasma cholesteryl ester, substantial amounts of the FA-esterified forms of 4βHC, 5,6αEC, 7αHC, 7KC, and 27HC were present. We conclude that LCAT has a major role in the FA esterification of many plasma oxysterols but contributes little to the FA esterification of 4βHC. Substantial FA esterification of 4βHC, 5,6αEC, 7αHC, 7KC, and 27HC is independent of LCAT.

Familial LCAT deficiency (FLD) is a rare genetic disorder of HDL metabolism, caused by loss-of-function mutations in the LCAT gene and characterized by a variety of symptoms including corneal opacities and kidney failure. Renal disease represents the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in FLD cases. However, the prognosis is not known and the rate of deterioration of kidney function is variable and unpredictable from patient to patient. In this article, we present data from a follow-up of the large Italian cohort of FLD patients, who have been followed for an average of 12 years. We show that renal failure occurs at the median age of 46 years, with a median time to a second recurrence of 10 years. Additionally, we identify high plasma unesterified cholesterol level as a predicting factor for rapid deterioration of kidney function. In conclusion, this study highlights the severe consequences of FLD, underlines the need of correct early diagnosis and referral of patients to specialized centers, and highlights the urgency for effective treatments to prevent or slow renal disease in patients with LCAT deficiency.

A remote camera captures the first-ever video of an erupting underwater volcano

A massive lava stream from Kilauea Volcano flows into the ocean from a lava tube at the Kamokuna ocean entry on the southeast side of the Big Island at sunrise. Credit Elyse Butler

Have you ever wondered why Yellowstone is full of hot springs, bubbling mudpots and geysers like Old Faithful? In this one-minute video, Ask Smithsonian host Eric Schulze explains the supervolcano that lies beneath this national park and answers the life-or-death question: Will it erupt in a fiery inferno anytime soon?

Unexplored iron-rich magma could help power current and future technologies

"Fascinating, Captain"

Buenos Aires, Argentina :: Miembros de la comunidad japonesa encuentran amigos en un barco de visita y escuchan el evangelio en su lengua materna.

OM Chile's Intensive Training participants travel around the south of Chile for two weeks sharing the gospel, encouraging local churches and doing adventure activities.

At least three airlines cancelled flights between Australia and Bali this week after a volcano eruption in eastern Indonesia spewed a vast plume of volcanic ash into the air.

At least three airlines cancelled flights between Australia and Bali this week after a volcano eruption in eastern Indonesia spewed a vast plume of volcanic ash into the air.

Read the in depth Review of Skullcandy Indy Evo Audio Video. Know detailed info about Skullcandy Indy Evo configuration, design and performance quality along with pros & cons, Digit rating, verdict based on user opinions/feedback.

Read the in depth Review of Skullcandy Hesh ANC Audio Video. Know detailed info about Skullcandy Hesh ANC configuration, design and performance quality along with pros & cons, Digit rating, verdict based on user opinions/feedback.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology raised on June 3 the status of Kanlaon Volcano on Negros Island to Alert Level 2 due to "increasing unrest."

LUCENA CITY — Classes were suspended on Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 13, in Calaca City, Batangas province, due to the harmful presence of volcanic smog or “vog” from Taal Volcano. The Calaca public information office announced the suspension around 11:30 a.m. in a post on its Facebook page. “In accordance with the directive of the DepEd Calaca City Sub-Office and Calaca City DRRMO, the suspension of classes this afternoon is recommended for all public and private schools at all levels in Calaca City due to volcanic smog or “vog” from Taal Volcano,” the post said in Filipino. Local authorities advised the […]...

Keep on reading: Calaca City suspends classes due to 'vog' from Taal Volcano

DENPASAR — Several international airlines cancelled flights to and from Indonesia's resort island of Bali on Wednesday, after further eruptions of a volcano that has spewed ash clouds as high as 10 kilometres (32,808 feet) and forced thousands to evacuate.

Never underestimate what a single gopher can achieve in a day: one of the burrowing mammals helped boost soil fungi in an area blanketed by ash from the explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in Washington state

Olivier Grunewald took this image of the Icelandic volcano's central crater filled with lava, forming a fiery lake of liquid rock

The eruption of the Shiveluch volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia on 11 April sent plumes of volcanic ash many kilometres into the air and could affect flights

A link between volcanic activity and rising bubbles of low pressure in the ionosphere has now been proven, which may be why the colossal Tonga volcano eruption in 2022 disrupted satellite communications

The Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii has begun erupting, spewing volcanic gas and ash across the island

This photo of Tungurahua, a volcano exploding in the Ecuadorian night, comes from an illustrated book to accompany a TV series about Earth’s deep history

The destruction of telecommunications cables during the eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai volcano in 2022 shows that underwater debris currents can travel at 122 kilometres per hour

A 15-kilometre-long mass of lava has formed underneath the Reykjanes peninsula in Iceland and could erupt at any time

Iceland is bracing for a volcanic eruption, as thousands of small earthquakes have shaken the southern part of the Reykjanes peninsula since October

Few volcanos come with more risk than Mexico's Popocatépetl, situated near Mexico City.  To mitigate danger, volcanologist Chiara Maria Petrone is trying to predict its next eruption

Iceland’s Fagradalsfjall volcano, located on the country’s south-west Reykjanes peninsula, has erupted after weeks of earthquake activity

Lightning strikes during volcanic eruptions could have provided nitrogen in a form that was needed by early life forms

The Kikai-Akahoya eruption of an underwater volcano off the coast of Japan ejected enough material to fill Lake Tahoe twice, three times as much as the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815

A huge plume of sulphur dioxide from the latest eruption in Iceland is drifting across Europe, but it isn't expected to cause any significant harm

Strange volcanoes called kimberlites bring diamonds up from Earth's depths. Scientists have always struggled to understand why they switched off millions of years ago – but perhaps they didn't

A small world in the outer solar system appears to have volcanic activity possibly spurred by liquid water

Never underestimate what a single gopher can achieve in a day: one of the burrowing mammals helped boost soil fungi in an area blanketed by ash from the explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in Washington state

Evidence from an archaeological site in Ethiopia suggests ancient humans adapted their diet during a dry spell after the Toba volcano eruption 74,000 years ago

Title: Before Volcano Buried Pompeii, Toxic Water May Have Plagued Residents
Category: Health News
Created: 8/29/2017 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/30/2017 12:00:00 AM

Early reactions to Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 multiplayer range from frothing dislike through omnimovement hype to our own Ed Thorn's dead-eyed appraisal that it's "a good one, I think. Not a bad one. If you like Call Of Duty, you will like this. If you don't like Call Of Duty, you will not like this." I feel like we need to emergency-deploy a supply crate of smelling salts, because the sheer OK-ness of Black Ops 6 appears to have tumbled Ed into a stupor.

Perhaps it would be a different story if he'd encountered some of the spawning issues and glitches people are talking about, with players joining games and materialising right into a hail of fire. The players in question include Black Ops 6's developers, who comically note in the latest Black Ops 6 patch notes that "Yes, we saw ourselves in a Killcam before selecting a Loadout too." The latest patch seeks to address this, naturally. As regards the campaign side of things, it also resets your safehouse currency to 5000, if you've had your single player funds stolen (or multiplied) by technical gremlins.

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In between two spacecraft visiting Jupiter’s moon Io, a volcano spreading material over hundreds of kilometres has appeared

A small world in the outer solar system appears to have volcanic activity possibly spurred by liquid water

A spike in earthquakes at Mount Adams, a volcano in Washington state, prompted scientists to install additional monitoring instruments to assess the seismic activity.

Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency said Monday that at least 10 people have died as a series of volcanic eruptions widens on the remote island of Flores.

A small world in the outer solar system appears to have volcanic activity possibly spurred by liquid water

Never underestimate what a single gopher can achieve in a day: one of the burrowing mammals helped boost soil fungi in an area blanketed by ash from the explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in Washington state

In Iceland scientists plan to drill down to magma to understand it and use it for energy production.

Satellite images show parts of the Pacific nation of Tonga before and after a tsunami triggered by an underwater volcanic eruption damaged the archipelago’s coastline. Vast areas were blanketed in ash. Photos: Maxar Technologies/Reuters