#Vascular Function

[longhaulerbear]

The study demonstrates that both long COVID and ME/CFS patients exhibit similarly impaired endothelial function, indicating potential vascular involvement in the pathogenesis of these post-viral illnesses. The significant reduction in flow-mediated dilation values suggests an increased cardiovascular risk in these populations, warranting careful monitoring and the development of targeted interventions to improve endothelial function and mitigate long-term health implications.

[xtruss]

Packed with Vitamins and Minerals, Nuts offer a number of Health Benefits, including Lower Blood Pressure, Improved Cognitive Function, and reduced Cholesterol Levels. However, different nuts provide different advantages—from fiber-packed almonds to heart-healthy walnuts. Photograph By Tanja Ivanova, Getty

Nuts Are Surprisingly Great For Your Health. But Which Are The Best?

Experts Say That Certain Nuts Offer Surprising Advantages—Including a Lower Risk of Cancer, Better Cognitive Function, and Even a Longer Life.

— By Daryl Austin | October 16, 2024

While most people know that nuts contain vitamins and minerals, you may not realize just how many health benefits are associated with the salty snack.

Some of the advantages that can come from eating nuts include reduced cancer risk, stronger bones, and, because they keep blood sugar levels in check, a lower risk of getting diabetes. One study shows that eating just an ounce of nuts daily comes with a staggering 21 percent decline in cardiovascular disease risk.

Perhaps most surprising of all, considering their high-calorie content, nuts eaten in moderation don't promote weight gain—a contradiction of common dietary guidelines from the 1990s.

In fact, "diets that include regular intake of nuts are actually related to weight loss," says Deirdre Tobias, an obesity and nutritional epidemiologist at Harvard Medical School. That’s because the fat, fiber, and protein in nuts help with feelings of fullness, curb hunger pangs, and aid in gut health. Additionally, it’s been found that there are at least 20 percent fewer calories than expected in nuts such as almonds and walnuts because some of those calories are excreted in stool.

The list of nut-consumption benefits further extends to lower blood pressure, improved cognitive function, reduced cholesterol levels, and even living longer. "If you are looking to improve the quality of your diet, I highly recommend eating more nuts," says Katherine Zeratsky, a registered dietician nutritionist at Mayo Clinic.

At the same time, not all nuts provide equal benefits—and no nut should be consumed excessively. "Even though the calories may be less than the amount on the package, a small handful of nuts is still loaded with calories," says Jill Weisenberger, a Virginia-based registered dietician and author of “Prediabetes: A Complete Guide.” Here are some of the top nuts to include in your diet—plus a few of the unique benefits that each provides.

Almonds

Almonds are rich in both Fiber and Vitamin E, as well as Minerals such as Magnesium, Calcium, and Phosphorus. Photograph By Miragce, Getty Images

Almonds rank near the top of just about every nutritional scientist's list when it comes to nuts that offer great health advantages. For one, Tobias says they contain more fiber than any other nut—a whopping 17.9 grams in a single cup. Fiber can lower your risk of cancer and type 2 diabetes and aid in weight control.

Almonds are also rich in Vitamin E, "which Promotes Skin Health, a Strong Immune System, and supports Vascular Function," says Amy Goodson, a nutritionist and registered dietitian based in Dallas. And a cup of almonds contains 386 milligrams of magnesium, "which is critical for muscle function," she adds.

Studies show that almonds also help lower LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels because their skins are rich in polyphenol antioxidants—which can help prevent cholesterol oxidation. "Almonds also contain lots of calcium and phosphorus, which have been linked to improved bone health," says Jen Messer, a registered dietitian and president of the New Hampshire Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Pistachios

Pistachios are another excellent tree nut because they contain lots of Potassium—1,250 milligrams in a single cup—which helps with brain function and muscle control. This is especially useful because "Potassium is a nutrient that's low in many people's diets," says Zeratsky.

Pistachios are also rich sources of lutein and zeaxanthin, which "protect our eyes from light damage and our brains from cognitive decline," says Weisenberger. And pistachios are considered a complete protein, "since they have been found to contain all nine essential amino acids," says Messer.

The nut is a great source of Vitamins B6 and B1 (Thiamine) as well, says Kristina Cooke, a registered dietitian with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. These are useful in boosting immune health, preventing the blood disorder anemia, and reducing nausea during pregnancy.

"Pistachios also have one of the lowest calorie counts among nuts, making them great for snacking," says Goodson.

Brazil Nuts

Brazil nuts are unique because they contain the highest amount of Selenium per ounce than any other food source. Selenium is a nutrient that helps with Healthy Thyroid Function and Boosts White Bood Cells—cells that improve the body's ability to fight off illness and infection.

But eating too many can be a problem as the tolerable upper limit for selenium is only about 400 micrograms, and each nut contains about 95 micrograms. "It's probably best to limit consumption of Brazil nuts to no more than three a day," suggests Messer.

Brazil nuts are also associated with Lower LDL Cholesterol Levels and are an especially good source of prebiotic fiber. "This helps them Support Brain Function and promote Gut Health," says Kate Donelan, a registered dietician with Stanford Health Care. And they contain lots of iron—an essential mineral that supports growth and development and is vital in transporting the protein hemoglobin from the lungs to the rest of the body.

Peanuts

Though technically a legume, peanuts are often treated as nuts in culinary terms, “because they have a nutrient profile that’s similar to tree nuts," says Goodson.

Being in the same family as beans offers some advantages over nuts though because, like Beans, Peanuts are especially High in Protein and Folate—higher than any nuts, says Zeratsky. Protein is essential for muscle growth and tissue repair, and folate is critical for healthy fetal development in pregnant mothers.

Tobias says that peanuts also contain more niacin than any nut—a whopping 17 milligrams in a single cup. Niacin is a B vitamin that supports your nervous and digestive systems and has been associated with reduced arthritis pain. Goodson says their higher-fiber content means peanuts can also reduce your risk of developing Gallstones.

What's more, one ounce of peanuts contains 2.2 milligrams of Vitamin E—15 percent of the recommended daily intake. This "Antioxidant Nutrient," Weisenberger notes, can help prevent blood clotting and can protect cells from damage caused by free radicals.

Walnuts

The last nut on this list might be the best one for you. "Because they Boost both Brain Health and Heart Health, walnuts are a nutritional powerhouse," says Messer.

Although most nuts have similar compositions of Healthy Fats and Plenty of Vitamins and Minerals, "walnuts are noteworthy because they also provide a bonus of Omega-3 Fatty Acids," says Walter Willett, a Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.

Omega-3s offer numerous health benefits including Boosting One's Mood, reducing symptoms associated with ADHD, and Improving Eye, Skin, and Joint Health. Omega-3s are also associated with lower triglycerides, reduced inflammation, and improved blood pressure—making them critical for lowering heart disease risk.

"Walnuts also have a Phenolic Compound called Ellagic Acid that could help Protect Against Colon Cancer," adds Weisenberger. And Tobias says they have the highest amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids of any other nut—which can improve cognitive deficits and provide more energy.

Eating these nuts can also support a healthy microbiome "By Promoting Beneficial Gut Bacteria," adds Goodson. And their high levels of the hormone melatonin mean walnuts are also able to "slow the aging process and Promote a Restful Sleep," says Cooke.

As great as each nut is individually, a broader range or collective benefits might come from opting for mixed nut assortments. "Eating a Variety of Nuts,” says Donelan, “Can Be a Simple Uet Powerful Way to Protect Your Heart, Improve Your Brain Function, and Lower Your Risk of Chronic Diseases.”

[nyaagolor]

Good morning I’m thinking about the von Karmas and gunshot wounds. Contrary to popular belief, in most cases you don’t really want to take out a bullet unless you absolutely have to, since digging around in there causes more soft tissue damage and opens more possibilities for infection. One of the few places that bullets are almost always taken out, ironically, is the shoulder. Shoulders have a lot of important junk in them, and over time, the bullet crushes, tears, and destroys what’s around it, leading to nerve damage, loss of function in the arm, chronic pain, etc etc. It's kinda like shoving a rock in a really delicate machine and leaving it rattling around in there. Even if the wound itself was minor, the act of leaving the bullet in just steadily makes things worse If a bullet is removed from a non-complex gunshot wound to the shoulder, it’s not uncommon to get all your function back with minimal pain within months. If you don’t, the bullet just quite literally tears you up inside for the rest of your life And ain’t That a fun metaphor

[mygymdiet]

Can Dehydration Cause High Blood Pressure? The Role of Fluids in Cardiovascular Health

Dehydration is characterized, on the one hand, based on quantities and on the quality of the water lost, as well as on the time involved, and the overall functional and morbid consequences may be, but not necessarily, rises in blood pressure (hypertension). The body uses normal blood circulation for the equilibration of fluids and for the regulation of temperature as well as for the metabolic processes. Exactly at the time that body fluid levels are reduced from brain stem, body homeostasis can be destabilized as a result blood pressure regulation will be lost from body homeostasis. This article will focus on how dehydration is linked to hypertension, the physiological mechanisms involved, as well as the systemic consequences of proper hydration and cardiovascular health.

1. Understanding Blood Pressure

Blood pressure is an important physiologic parameter, and it can characterize the pressure of the arterial wall (tunica media of the vessel). It is composed of two readings:

-Systolic Pressure: The bigger one (when the heart is pumping and creating pressure in the arteries).

-Diastolic Pressure: The integer considered to be smaller, between the beat.

-Normal Blood Pressure: According to the definition the normal blood pressure is termed to be less than 120/80 mmHg. Readings which contain readings beyond this range may be classified as prehypertension or hypertension, and presence of intensity depending upon how many readings there are.

2. The Mechanism of Dehydration

Dehydration is a condition where it is a case that, in comparison to the input, body fluids are lost way more than is brought in and that body water (water remaining) is less than what is needed in order to perform the required work well. Mild hyrdration leads to signs and symptoms of dry mouth tiredness and fever and with severe hyrdration fatality can occur. To offset fluid loss the body takes several steps:

-Thirst Mechanism: Thirst feeling is produced by the body in order that water be supplied.

-Hormonal Regulation: Through a reduction in the amount of fluid, antidiuretic hormone (ADH) is secreted from the pituitary and water is saved by controlling the secretion of urine.

-Kidney Function: Kidneys are capable of filtering wastes from blood and, during dehydration, they constrain water excretion to preserve homeostasis.

[feminist-space]

Cat in the Hat:

"The German Health Minister gave an important update on the Covid situation yesterday.

I’ve written up the section of his speech from the video below for easy reading.

It’s immensely refreshing to see a government minister warning of the harms of Covid in such a transparent way."

https://x.com/_catinthehat/status/1732092683508678954

Prof. Karl Lauterbach

Health Minister, Germany

4 December 2023

"This second (long Covid) round table was very interesting, lasting three and a half hours. It serves as a unique forum for dialogue among scientists, researchers and those affected by long Covid, facilitating the exchange of ideas.

There are many new findings about long Covid. Not all of them are good news. One piece of not-so-good news concerns the fact that long Covid is actually still a problem for those who are newly infected. One estimate that has been put forward is that the risk of contracting long Covid now, even after vaccination, is around 3%. Now you may say, "that's not such a big risk" , but there are tens of thousands of people who are repeatedly affected in a short period of time. And so, the long Covid problem has not yet been solved.

We have also established that there really are many subgroups of long Covid and that we do not yet have a cure. And it was clearly pointed out that we are also dealing with problems here that will challenge society as a whole, because vascular diseases often occur after long Covid. Throughout Europe, we are currently seeing an increased incidence of cardiovascular disease in the middle-age group - from 25 to 50. This is associated with the consequences of Covid infections.

We also very often find cognitive impairment in older people. And one participant pointed out that it may well be like the Spanish flu, where 20 years after the Spanish flu there was a significant increase in Parkinson's disease and probably also dementia.

This is something we must pay attention to, as the past infection afiects how the immune system in the brain functions, as well as the brain's blood vessels, potentially increasing the long-term risk of these major neurodegenerative diseases. This is why we need to conduct very intensive research. This research has played a major role.

What is the overall assessment of the situation now?

We have to be careful. Long Covid is not curable at the moment. We also know that over 40% of those who have several manifestations of long Covid, for example, five or more, still have symptoms after 2 years, so it doesn't seem to heal spontaneously. We also know that those whose symptoms are more pronounced at the beginning are less likely to heal.

So some of what we know from the demographics of long Covid has been confirmed, and we now know more precisely which mechanisms in the brain, but also in the blood vessels and the immune system, are responsible for this. Professor Scheibenbogan will explain this briefly later.

At this point, I can only say the following - this is particularly important to me:

First of all, long Covid is a disease that stays with us and that we cannot yet cure. And we are seeing an increasing number of cases as the waves of infection continue to affect us.

Secondly, Covid is not a cold - with a cold, you don't usually see any long-term effects. You don't see any changes in the blood vessels. You don't usually see an autoimmune disease developing. You also don't usually see neurological inflammation - these are all things that we see with long Covid. Therefore, one should not assume that Covid infection is just a common cold. It can affect brain tissue and the vascular system, and we still lack an effective treatment, making these studies crucial.

Significantly, we know that the risk of long Covid decreases when you're infected but have been vaccinated. That's why it's concerning that only 3 million people have been vaccinated with the new, adapted vaccine. That is a very bad result.

Please protect yourself from severe infections.

Please protect yourself from long Covid.

Currently, the danger posed by Covid is indeed being underestimated. Nothing is worse than infecting someone at Christmas who then becomes seriously ill and may not fully recover."

Alt text is included in all images of this post.

[bethanythebogwitch]

Wet Beast Wednesday: sea urchins

As I continue the slow grind of covering every living group of echinoderms for this series, it was inevitable that I would eventually encounter the only echinoderm I've actually studied. Sea urchins are among the most iconic of marine invertebrates, but many people just think of them as part of the scenery. I'm here to show you that there's more to these creatures than just being spiny lumps on a rock.

(Image: a purple sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) being held in someone's hand. It is a round, globular animal with a dark purple color. Light purple spines emerge from it all over its body, with the longest being around the middle. End ID)

(image: a long-spined sea urchin (Diadema savignyi). It is a black sea urchin with spines longer than its diameter. End ID)

Urchin is an old-fashioned word for hedgehog, and sea hedgehog is a fitting name for these round, spiny animals. Sea urchins tend to be fairly small, with a diameter of 3 - 10 cm (1 - 4 in), though some species have very long spines that make them seem larger. The main body of an urchin is round and enclosed in a (usually) hard shell called a test made of calcium carbonate. The test is covered with a slayer of skin and muscle that controls the spines and small, pincer-like structures called pedicellaria. Within the test are the internal organs. As with other echinoderms, sea urchins are radially symmetrical as adults, with five segments arranged around the center like pizza slices. The two main body holes are found on the top and bottom of the animals where the segments converge. At the bottom is the mouth and at the top is the anus. Each segment also has a hole near the anus used to release gametes and one will have a larger pore called the madreporite, which is used to control the amount of water within the urchin's body. The mouth is a unique structure known as Aristotle's lantern, consisting of five tooth-like structures (one for each body segment) that interlock together and sharpen themselves. Behind the teeth is a rasping tongue.

(image: a close-up of an urchin's mouth, showing the Aristotle's lantern. It is a hole surrounded by a fleshy lip. Five spade-shaped teeth are emerging from the edge of the hole. End ID)

Internally, most of the body is taken up by the digestive tract and water vascular system. The digestive system lacks a stomach, with the esophagus attaching directly to the small intestine. The digestive tract forms a loop as it passes through the body. The water vascular system uses seawater to form hydrostatic pressure that moves the tube feet. All starfish, urchins, and sea cucumbers have tube feet, small, transparent, tentacle-like structures they use for movement. Tube feet are hollow and retracted into pores on the skin normally. To be used, they have to be inflated with water, which makes them stick out of the body, where they can be controlled with muscles. Tube feet end in suction cups that can be used to grab into structures around them. Seawater drawn in through the madreporite serves as the source of pressure needed for the tube feet to function. In urchins, tube feet cover the body and are used for locomotion, moving food to the mouth, and moving objects on or off the body. The main body cavity is filled with circulatory fluid that uses special cells to move oxygen and nutrients around the body. The nervous system is simple, consisting of a central nerve ring around the esophagus that branches into nerves that connect to the rest of the body. Urchins have no eyes (except for the family Diadematidae, which have eyespots), but are sensitive to light. The gonads are usually small, but during mating season they can swell to fill much of the body cavity.

(Image: a drawn diagram showing a cross-section of a sea urchin, with the different organs and body parts labeled. End ID. Source)

Sea urchins are found in oceans worldwide, from intertidal zones to the deep sea and the tropics to the poles. They are bottom-dwellers who feed primarily on algae, which they scrape up with their teeth. However, they will also take a variety of food, including carrion, aquatic plants, and other slow-moving or sessile animals like sponges, polyps, bivalves, worms, and sea cucumbers. Urchins can play a key role in regulating algae populations through their ecosystems, but they also rely on predators to keep from overeating necessary algae. Famously, California's kelp forests were almost destroyed by urchins eating the kelp after their primary predator, sea otters, were driven to near extinction. Urchin's primary defense against predators is their hard tests and spines. As most of the edible portion of the urchin is within the test, predators have to get through both layers of defense first. The spines are hollow and each can be moved independently of each other, allowing them to be positioned toward a threat. Many species contain venom within their spines as an added layer of defense. This venom is rarely dangerous to humans, but can cause swelling and painful reactions. Another layer of defense is the pedicellaria, which are good at removing small animals and parasites from the skin. The flower urchin, Toxopneustes pileolus, has modified its pedicellaria into flower-like structures that extend beyond the spines and can deliver a sting that can be fatal to humans.

(Image: a flower urchin. It is a pinkish urchin covered with flower-like structures that extend to the length of the spines. It has placed some bits of shells on top of it. End ID)

Sea urchins possess distinct males and females, though the differences are internal, making it impossible to tell which is which based on visual examination. During mating seasons, the gonads swell as they generate gametes. Urchins tend to reproduce in groups at synchronized times (possibly correlated with the phases of the moon in shallow-water species) to maximize the possibility of fertilization. When ready to mate, the gametes are squeezed to empty their contents through the genital pores and into the water column. Sperm must find egg in the water to fertilize it. Most sea urchins provide no parental care, but in some species, the female will retain the eggs in her spines to protect them. The eggs hatch into bilaterally symmetrical larvae called plutei that drift with the plankton. As they develop, a section of the larvae will develop into a radially symmetrical adult rudiment. This piece will eventually break off and become the juvenile urchin while the rest of the larva dies. Because echinoderms start out as bilaterally symmetrical larvae, we can infer that they developed from bilaterally symmetrical ancestors and the radial symmetry of adults is a more recent development.

(image: a series of photos showing the embryological development of a sea urchin from a single cell to a cluster of cells, to a bell-like structure, to growing several arms, to the eventual adult developing and breaking off. End ID. Source)

Fossils show that the oldest sea urchins had large, club-like spines that they walked on, with the modern spines being a later development. Most of those urchins died out with the dinosaurs, leaving the pencil urchins of order Cicaroida as the only living members. All other living urchins are Part of the clade Euechinoidea. Amongst them, there are still some oddballs, known as the irregular urchins of clade Irregularia. These urchins have moved away from radial symmetry, with less symmetrical segments and the anus and mouth moving from being on the top and bottom to being on the sides in the heart urchins. Heart urchins have gone from bilateral symmetry to radial symmetry and are now going back to bilateral symmetry. Heart urchin mouths don't have an Aristotle's lantern. Instead, they use strands of mucus to capture food and cilia to pull the strands back inside. Sand dollars, also known as sea cookies or sea biscuits, are also in this clade. These are flattened urchins with short and very fin spines that resemble velvet. They are burrowers who spend much of their time buried under sand and as such are rarely seen alive. The name sand dollar comes from their tests, which are similar to old dollar coins and can often be found washed up on beaches. While still radially symmetrical, sand dollars also have a secondary form of bilateral symmetry, with a distinct front and back end that often look different. Irregular sea urchins also tend to have fewer gonads and associated pores than regular sea urchins.

(image: a red pencil urchin (Heterocentrotus mamillatus) nestled among coral. Instead of spines, it has a series of long, thick, red clubs. End ID)

(image: a purple heart urchin (Spatangus purpureus). It is an urchin elongated on one direction and with a few rows of long spines amongst short ones. On the surface facing the camera is a large hole that could be the mouth or the anus. End ID)

(image: a group of irregular sand dollars (Dendraster excentricus) partially buried in the sand. They are round, flat animals with a velvety covering of tiny spines. The are sticking out of the sand. End ID)

Sea urchins have been known to humans for as long as people have lived near the ocean. Stings can occur when people step on them and can cause pain and irritation, but are rarely medically significant. That being said, some people can have allergies to the venom, which could be a big problem. Spines left in the wound should be removed, as they can continue injecting venom. Urchins are a food source for people around the world, specifically the gonads, which are the only meaty part of the animal. The gonads are often marketed as roe or corals and can be eaten raw or cooked. Urchins are also used as a model organism in embryology due to the interesting and well-studied nature of their larval development. Urchins are vulnerable to pollution, habitat loss, and over-predation. Ocean acidification due to climate change poses a major threat to them, as it reduces the quality of their tests.

(image: tow sea urchins served as food. They are upside-down with the bottoms removed. The gonads are visible within as five orange, spongy structures that take up most of the body cavity. End ID)

[transmutationisms]

tell us about covid research having similar issues please?

covid research has been an extremely illustrative case study in the principle of "if you go looking for something, you will find it" and also the principle of "just because you found something doesn't mean you know what it means" -- short-term glut of research funding that was aimed at getting people back to work and so sought, broadly speaking, to find One Neat Trick to get rid of the virus -- covid has been one of the most intensely studied diseases in human history but far too little of that research is contextualised against other knowledge in immunology / virology / public health.

for example, remember when libs on twitter spent years misinterpreting the research on covid causing immune dysregulation and decided that meant it was 'airborne AIDS'? because they didn't understand that many infectious diseases have immune-dysregulating effects, because they weren't hearing about it for other diseases? go looking for horrible things about measles (notorious immune dysregulator btw) or EBV or HPV or fucking anything else and you will find it. but if you're only doing this level of scrutiny for covid you are going to produce a body of literature that de facto minimises these types of insights because it is only focussed on covid, and because accepting that virtually all infectious disease has serious long-term health risks would be very inconvenient for the same funding powers that so desperately want covid controlled and over.

or like, every low-effort study looking for a biomarker that will find some differentially expressed trait or epithelial dysfunction or something but doesn't have enough background to say whether that's also true of other diseases, whether it's a cause or an effect of illness, etc. so you just get people reposting these abstracts on social media declaring every five seconds that "covid is a vascular disease!" "no, covid is a neurodegenerative disease!" etc and so forth and generally acting extremely blasé toward the risks posed by infectious diseases broadly because this wouldn't fit with their narrative that covid is uniquely bad and warrants a unique exception to the otherwise clearly functional state of public health.

or like, every single time a long covid study comes out and is clearly written, performed, and read by people who do not know 'long' (post-acute) manifestations can happen after virtually any acute infection, some probably at much higher rates than covid, or that long covid research could benefit from and contribute to the research on the post-acute complications of other diseases. because they are only looking at and thinking about covid.

[sayruq]

In January of 2024, Dr. Bara Zuhaili entered Gaza on a two-week medical mission with a U.S.-based organization, Rahma Worldwide. Dr. Zuhaili dedicated most of his time to Shuhada' Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza. While this was not his first experience in a wartime or crisis setting — he had undertaken medical missions in Syria and was in southern Turkey during the earthquake — it proved to be his most horrific. As a vascular surgeon, he was tasked with assisting Gazan doctors in one of the ugliest tasks of this war: amputations. A generation of amputees has emerged, with over 10 children losing one or more limbs per day, on average, since the beginning of the war. Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah called it “the biggest cohort of pediatric amputees in history.” Even this statistic, reported by UNICEF in December of 2023, is now outdated. The true number of men, women, and child amputees remains unknown, with estimates ranging upwards of 10,000 people. It is a number that will continue to rise as new and unknown weapons destroy tissue and bone, crumbling medical infrastructures and scarce supplies force constant life-and-death decisions, while infections and chronic illnesses — largely ignored — silently kill or handicap thousands.

Is this the first time you've worked in a war zone or in a humanitarian crisis? Did any of them prepare you for this? It was not the first time. Unfortunately, I had experience in Syria, working in the underground hospitals in the besieged areas of Aleppo and Idlib. There, the healthcare facilities were also under constant attack by the Syrian regime. But Gaza was unlike anything I had seen before. To start, the supply chain was completely broken. Supplies were extremely limited in Deir Al Balah, where I was based for most of my stay. The hospital functioned at only 5-10% capacity compared to any similar hospital in the Middle East—I'm not even talking about an American hospital. Then, there were the number of patients. Just to give you an idea: Shuhada' Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al Balah is only equipped for 150 patients. Under extreme circumstances, they could maybe stretch to accommodate up to 200 patients. When I arrived, there were 950 patients, in addition to over 20,000 refugees sleeping in the corridors of the hospital and its complex. Every time we experienced a bombardment, we had anywhere from 20 to 60 patients rushing in simultaneously, in addition to the patients already being treated. It was completely overwhelming and overcrowded. The third issue had to do with the type of injuries. I've seen a lot of trauma before — traumatic injuries are not new to me — but the level of trauma I saw was something I've never witnessed in my entire life. When I was in the operating room, I would get a call from the ER saying someone was shot in the leg and they needed me as soon as possible. In my mind, someone shot in the leg with a bullet would have an entry size of about five to six millimeters and an exit wound size of about two centimeters long. That is what I was familiar with. What I saw in Gaza — which I had never seen before — was literally as if an explosion, an RPG, had exploded into the leg. The entry wound would be about five to 10 centimeters wide and the exit wound would be almost 30 centimeters wide. One bullet would destroy a diameter of 10-15 centimeters… all of the muscle, bone, arteries, and nerves were all gone, destroyed.I'm not a military expert, I don't know much about weapons. But I don't know what kind of bullet can cause that much destruction. With a bullet wound in the U.S., I could get away with doing a bypass to salvage the leg. In Gaza, there was nothing anyone could do to salvage the leg. The amount of tissue damage forced me to do amputations almost every single time. 

Can you describe what a single day would look like? As a rule, anytime a bombardment happened, we would wait between four to eight hours before we received any injured people. In Deir Al-Balah, we would see the missile hitting two to three kilometers away and we knew that there were many casualties, but it would take these people — who were only three kilometers away from us — four to eight hours to reach our location. The IOF (Israeli Occupation Forces) prevented any ambulances from entering the scene, and anyone attempting to help or approach would be shot. I had many cases where the ambulance driver would come to me holding two or three kids. They were dead, and he would swear to me they were alive four hours ago. We lost a lot of lives just waiting to reach us in the hospital. Our days typically began around seven in the morning, and even though the night was filled with attacks and bombardments, no casualties would reach us before the morning. By then, we would go to the ER and try to start the triage process: determining who needs to go to the OR first and who could afford to wait. We would then perform surgeries throughout the day, often not finishing until one or two in the morning. Sometimes, if I had time, I would do my rounds to check on the patients, and by late afternoon, we would have more bombardments and injuries coming in until midnight. Usually, by midnight, things slowed down… not because there was no bombardment, but because they couldn't reach us anymore.

[tribbetherium]

'Barely a centimeter long, a pair of dwarf rasping hampreys (Vermicthymys minimus) graze on chemosynthetic bacteria in the Sub-Arcuterran Cavern System, small enough to make a passing feathery tubesnout, feeding on clawfern in the background, look tremendous in comparison.

These unusual creatures, neotenic descendants of a daggoth known as the mossmulch, are a culmination of a trend of increasing simplicity as they became smaller and smaller. Born in a very early stage of development and only gradually developing more as they grew, some of the species merely grew larger and no longer increased in complexity, content with remaining a vaguely-embryonic organism until adulthood.

With its transluscent body, the dwarf rasping hamprey displays the extent of the physiological degeneration of its organ systems. It has no eyes, no skeleton, no backbone, no brain, lungs or heart. It respires entirely through its permeable skin, allowing it to remain its whole life in oxygen-poor water without the need to surface for air. It is so small that blood is pumped solely by a single central vessel with branches extending to the vascularized skin, its body is supported entirely by a flexible rod of cartilage, and its central nervous system is now but a spinal cord with a large nerve knot at the cephalic end: basically just a brain stem that controls its movements, responses and basic bodily functions, relying on vibrations and its sense of taste to navigate in the total darkness. It is, in essence, a miniscule swimming tube of guts and gonads: and the barest minimum of anything else.

In a way, the dwarf rasping hamprey has reverted its complexity to something akin to a proto-chordate, comparable to the lancelet or amphioxus, and representing the second-greatest reversal of structure on HP-02017 next only to the shroomors, which had through cancerous means returned to an undifferentiated unicellular way of life. So diminished are they in overall structure that their offspring, less than a millimeter at birth, literally number only a couple thousand cells each, and even in adulthood look little different from the earliest precursors of backboned animals in Earth's ancient history, save for four grinding plates present in their ossified mouthparts that are derived from constantly-growing incisors-- a last remaining vestige and reminder that these primitive-looking microfauna are, conversely, extremely derived species descended from the most unexpected ancestor: a rodent.'

------

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

From May 2024

The virus that causes COVID-19 can breach the protective blood-retinal barrier, leading to potential long-term consequences in the eye, new research shows.

The blood-retinal barrier is designed to protect our vision from infections by preventing microbial pathogens from reaching the retina where they could trigger an inflammatory response with potential vision loss.

Pawan Kumar Singh, an assistant professor of ophthalmology at the University of Missouri, leads a team researching new ways to prevent and treat ocular infectious diseases.

Using a humanized ACE2 mice model, the team found that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can infect the inside of the eyes even when the virus doesn’t enter the body through the surface of the eyes.

Instead, they found that when viruses enter the body through inhalation, it not only infects organs like lungs, but also reaches highly protected organs like eyes through the blood-retinal barrier by infecting the cells lining this barrier.

“This finding is important as we increase our understanding of the long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection,” says Singh. “Earlier, researchers were primarily focused on the ocular surface exposure of the virus.

“However, our findings reveal that SARS-CoV-2 not only reaches the eye during systemic infection but induces a hyperinflammatory response in the retina and causes cell death in the blood-retinal barrier. The longer viral remnants remain in the eye, the risk of damage to the retina and visual function increases.”

Singh also discovered that extended presence of SARS-CoV-2 spike antigen can cause retinal microaneurysm, retinal artery and vein occlusion, and vascular leakage.

“For those who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, we recommend you ask your ophthalmologist to check for signs of pathological changes to the retina,” Singh says. “Even those who were asymptomatic could suffer from damage in the eyes over time because of COVID-19 associated complications.”

While viruses and bacteria have been found to breach the blood-retinal-barrier in immunocompromised people, this research is the first to suggest that the virus that causes COVID-19 could breach the barrier even in otherwise healthy individuals, leading to an infection that manifests inside the eye itself.

Immunocompromised patients or those with hypertension or diabetes may experience worse outcomes if they remain undiagnosed for COVID-19 associated ocular symptoms.

“Now that we know the risk of COVID-19 to the retina, our goal is to better understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of how this virus breaches the blood-retinal barrier and associated pathological consequences in hopes of informing development of therapies to prevent and treat COVID-19 induced eye complications before a patient’s vision is compromised,” Singh says.

The study appears in the journal PLOS Pathogens.

The National Institutes of Health/National Eye Institute and the University of Missouri funded the work.

Study link: journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1012156

[lotus-tower]

COVID-19's long-term effects on the body: an incomplete list

COVID’s effect on the immune system, specifically on lymphocytes:

NYT article from 2020 (Studies cited: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.18.101717v1, https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.20.106401v1, https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/32405080/Decreased_T_cell_populations_contribute_to_the_increased_severity_of_COVID_19_, https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.08.20125112v1)

 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.10.475725v1

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abc8511 (Published in Science)

 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9057012/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamhaseltine/2022/04/14/sars-cov-2-actively-infects-and-kills-lymphoid-cells/

https://www.cleveland.com/news/2022/10/in-cleveland-and-beyond-researchers-begin-to-unravel-the-mystery-of-long-covid-19.html

SARS-CoV-2 infection weakens immune-cell response to vaccination: NIH-funded study suggests need to boost CD8+ T cell response after infection

https://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/hematology-and-oncology/leukopenias/lymphocytopenia

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2022/11/07/COVID-Reinfections-And-Immunity/

Dendritic cell deficiencies persist seven months after SARS-CoV-2 infection

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2022.1034159/full

https://www.n-tv.de/politik/Lauterbach-warnt-vor-unheilbarer-Immunschwaeche-durch-Corona-article23860527.html (German Minister of Health)

Anecdotal evidence of COVID’s effects on white blood cells:

 https://twitter.com/DrJohnHhess/status/1661837956875956224

 https://x.com/TristanVeness/status/1661565201345564673

https://twitter.com/TristanVeness/status/1689996298408312832

Much more if you speak to Long Covid patients directly!

Related information of interest:

China approves Genuine Biotech's HIV drug for COVID patients

COVID as a “mass disabling event” and impact on the economy:

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/report-says-long-covid-could-impact-economy-and-be-mass-disabling-event-in-canada-1.6306608

https://x.com/inkblue01/status/1742183209809453456?s=20

COVID’s impact on the heart:

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/world-news/deadly-virus-could-lead-heart-31751263 (Research from: Japan's Riken research institute)

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/unlike-flu-covid-19-attacks-dna-in-the-heart-new-research-20220929-p5bm10.html

https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/12/1/186

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-04-mild-covid-effects-cardiovascular-health.html

https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2022/covid-and-the-heart-it-spares-no-one

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/news/coronavirus-and-your-health/is-coronavirus-a-disease-of-the-blood-vessels (British Heart Foundation)

COVID’s effect on the brain and cognitive function:

https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/article/brain-infection-by-sars-cov-2-lifelong-consequences/171391/

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/study-shows-covid-leaves-brain-injury-markers-blood

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/08/warning-of-serious-brain-disorders-in-people-with-mild-covid-symptoms

Cognitive post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC) can occur after mild COVID-19 

Neurologic Effects of SARS-CoV-2 Transmitted among Dogs

https://journals.lww.com/nsan/fulltext/2022/39030/neurological_manifestations_and_mortality_in.4.aspx

https://www.salon.com/2023/06/17/new-evidence-suggests-alters-the-brain--but-the-extent-of-changes-is-unclear/

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/covid-virus-may-tunnel-through-nanotubes-from-nose-to-brain/

https://neurosciencenews.com/post-covid-brain-21904/

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(22)00260-7/fulltext

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-08-covid-infection-crucial-brain-regions.html

https://news.ecu.edu/2022/08/04/covid-parkinsons-link/

Covid as a vascular/blood vessel disease:

https://www.salon.com/2020/06/01/coronavirus-is-a-blood-vessel-disease-study-says-and-its-mysteries-finally-make-sense/

https://www.salon.com/2023/12/27/brain-damage-caused-by-19-may-not-show-up-on-routine-tests-study-finds/

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/sars-cov-2-infects-coronary-arteries-increases-plaque-inflammation

https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/12/6/2123

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211004104134.htm (microclots)

Long Covid:

Post-COVID-19 Condition in Canada: What we know, what we don’t know, and a framework for action

 https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/more-than-two-years-of-long-covid-research-hasn-t-yielded-many-answers-scientific-review-1.6235227

 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/cause-of-long-covid-symptoms-revealed-by-lung-imaging-research-at-western-university-1.6504318

 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/long-covid-study-montreal-1.6521131

https://news.yale.edu/2023/12/19/study-helps-explain-post-covid-exercise-intolerance

Other:

- Viruses and mutation: https://typingmonkeys.substack.com/p/monkeys-on-typewriters

Measures taken by the rich and world leaders

Heightened risk of diabetes

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2805461

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-00912-y

Liver damage:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/46-of-covid-patients-have-liver-damage-study/articleshow/97809200.cms?from=mdr

tl;dr: covid is a vascular disease, not a respiratory illness. it can affect your blood and every organ in your body. every time you're reinfected, your chances of getting long covid increase.

avoid being infected. reduce the amount of viral load you're exposed to.

the gap between what the scientific community knows and ordinary people know is massive. collective action is needed.

[mindblowingscience]

A decline in motor skills is a hallmark of Parkinson's disease, regularly taking the form of slowness, rigidity, and tremors. Yet the condition commonly affects other neurological functions as well, impacting mood and causing a decline in cognition. A drug that blocks a key receptor linked with blood pressure has shown promise recovering memory in models of vascular dementia, inspiring researchers from the University of Arizona to test the treatment on mice with Parkinson's-like symptoms.

Continue Reading.

[leggerefiore]

kind of silly but what about villains showing up to work with a visible hickey from their s/o on their neck without realizing

I did something similar with lipstick previously for other characters but this should be fun

cw: hickies, embarrassment

characters: Cyrus, Archie, Maxie, Guzma

You locked your arms around your boyfriend. Catching him as he was getting ready for the day, you felt a sudden urge to get out a bit of tension with him. Lips soon found his neck as you began to suck at the tender vascular area. A groan left him. He allowed the actions to continue just long enough for a hickey to begin to form. Then, he managed to wring you away and remind you that he had to head out for a meeting today. Your eyes observed the obvious mark on his neck as he finished dressing himself and headed out the door.

🌌Cyrus🛰

☄️ There was little on Cyrus's mind as he slipped off his vest for a moment. He did not even notice how Saturn's expression grew more flustered. His mind was focused on the machine in front of him. He rolled up his sleeves to try loosening a piece that might have been too tight and impeding the function of it. Saturn was supposed to be monitoring a data output on a nearby monitor. Instead, the commander's eyes could not leave the further exposed skin of his boss's neck. A dark bruised sat there. His mind raced to a possible attack first before realising it was just the one. Which meant… Saturn swallowed.

☄️ When Cyrus had finished, he took a step back and wiped his brow. His attention finally went to Saturn, who seemed lost. He blinked. Eventually, the commander cleared his throat and tried to regain his bearings. Though, his eyes kept travelling back to the other man's neck. He worried about how others in Galactic might react to such a thing. “Er, Master Cyrus,” he began, “There is a mark on your neck. You may wish to keep your vest on when possible.” Cyrus's eyes went large in reply as he stepped towards a more reflective piece of metal to get a look. His vest was immediately put back on.

☄️ Cyrus was mortified for the rest of the day. Feelings corrupted his mind any time a grunts eye would linger just below his face. He tried to move his collar up to further obscure the thing, but a small section would always just peek out and leave him tormented. Thankfully, somehow, only Saturn got to see before he went home to find some mental peace. (And demand that you never do that again.)

🌧Archie🌊

💧 The Aqua Leader did not even think to check his neck as a few grunts cleared their throats and averted their eyes. He just assumed something else was going on that he had been unaware of. In a sense, that had been the case, yet he did not assume it had anything to with him. The first person to give him any real signs was Shelly, whose eyes went wide as she attempted to process his boldness for a moment. Then, she reconsidered it. Was it boldness? Archie might love his partner with a very obvious pride, but he was not the type to really show off those kinds of things. Her fingers came to pinch the bridge of her nose. That could only mean one thing. He did not know. The mark was easy to see – What with how he wore his wetsuit.

💧 When Archie turned to her after finishing reviewing a plan to clean up Slateport's Beach from trash, he saw annoyance on her face. She twirled a stand of dyed blue hair around her finger before sighing. He cocked up a brow. Did she know what had everyone in a strange mood today? A chuckle then left her, and she shook her head. How his partner sneaked a fast one on him, and he did not even notice, was beyond her. “Archie,” she said simply, “Did you have a good morning? You might want to check a mirror.” He walked off to do just that. She later heard a loud laugh.

💧 He was a good sport about it. Despite what Shelly might have thought, he did wear it like a badge of honour. A sign that his dear Luvdisc did love him. A certain prideful sense filled him when he caught a few looks from his grunts. He wanted to repay the favour, though. His plans for the evening were going to be busy, at least. Shelly rolled her eyes when he said that he was leaving early. Matt seemed a little lost.

☀️Maxie🌋

🪨 Whatever you had done to him, he felt that he had it covered with his sweater. That should have been the case, yes, he thought, but the temperature simply disagreed with his theory. While he liked the heat, even he had an upper limit, which made his careful defence less useful. He folded down the knitted fabric to make his skin have room to breathe while his coat was dumped off in a corner of his office. He was down to just his shirt and shorts when he was snapped back to reality by Tabitha warping in with some reports.

🪨 Tabitha had been paying little attention to the Magma Leader himself, instead working to summarise the reports about their geothermal energy tests as best he could. But, his eyes drifted to his boss's exposed neck. The pale skin would have otherwise been of little interest, yet he spotted a dark mark against the skin. Like a bruise. Concern entered his mind, yet it passed after seeing only one. Which meant… Tabitha finished his report. Maxie cocked a brow up at him, commenting on how he had trailed off for a moment. “… Sorry, Leader, I was worried about that mark on your neck,” he opted to play ignorant, “I was wanting to make sure that you were alright.” Maxie's face turned a similar shade as his head as he turned away from his admin. Tabitha took that a dismissal and left.

🪨 Maxie did not leave his office for a good hour or two after that incident. When he finally did, he kept his collar on the way up despite how his body protested the excess coverage. He had to be an example for his team, which is what he had insisted to himself. Yet, the truth was more than apparent to himself. The heat was an excuse to go home early, in the end. You had a very upset geologist asking you not to mark him up before work.

💀Guzma🕶

□ He had been a bit out of it when he finally left his room to go meet up with that woman about something. A few of his underlings had cleared their throats or gave him thumbs up or cheer, but that was not an uncommon thing around their group. He had nearly cleared the house and was about to head out to Ula'Ula meadow for a meeting when Plumeria got up from the chair she had been lounging into him. Her eyes narrowed. She unceremoniously tossed back his jacket to scrutinise his neck.

□ Guzma left wordless by this, not used to Plumeria doing anything like this before. Her dark eyes focused intensely on a spot for a second before he pulled away and looked into his eyes. “Hey, dummy,” her voice was somewhere between teasing and firm, “You have a hickey obvious on your neck. You might want to cover that up before you meet that president woman.” She motioned to her room, where she had some make-up. Guzma blinked before throwing back his head and scolding himself. How did he forget to check after you did that?

□ He had let Plumeria cover the darkening patch on his neck before finally heading off to his meeting. Some part of him felt thankful that Plumeria had caught that and prevented any kind of tension between him and the Aether President. She was usually so nice, but he knew well enough that she could snap and get weird in an instant. He would have preferred not to be on the receiving end of that. Though, when that was done, he wiped off the foundation covering the mark and kept a smug smirk on his face. He felt proud to show off a mark left by you and was ready to get you a matching one when he got back to Po Town.

[macgyvermedical]

Hello! Love what you do- I hope this question isn't too complicated. Regarding a shoulder wound and its severity, (Main character gets shot with a high pressure blast around the size of a coin through his inner shoulder, on an angle, and goes out the side of his shoulder). Would it be possible for him to, if he had the necessary skills, fix up his wound on his own, outside of a hospital? Not as first aid, but purposefully foregoing hospital treatment in favor of heading elsewhere on his mission, (self destructive tendencies are no stranger to him). I ask as I would like to do fanwork with this, but I would like to know how this wound could even be managed by himself in the first place. A kind of self-surgery in this aspect. (Additionally, the wound was bleeding when he was injured, but he was still able to move it, so nerve damage seems unlikely.) Thank you very much!

The short answer is your character isn't gonna be able to do this.

Whether it's a bullet, an arrow, or a high pressure blast (because I can only assume that something strong enough to break through tissues is going to act like a projectile), anything that goes through the shoulder is a life-or-limb threatening event without surgery. And there is no path through the shoulder that doesn't cause damage to at least one of the following: bone, blood vessel, or nerve.

Unfortunately, all of the surgeries that might be needed are surgeries one cannot do on oneself. This is considering that the character has but one arm to donate to the cause and that the surgeries, whether orthopedic, vascular, or neuro, are very specialized.

What happens without surgery? Well, if the artery is nicked or severed, the character might be able to stop the bleeding by very quickly packing the wound very tightly with gauze (tourniquets don't work on the shoulder). But the pressure that needs to be exerted on the artery to stop the bleeding is also strong enough to stop bloodflow through the artery. This means the arm doesn't get bloodflow and slowly begins to die. Without surgery to repair the artery, your character would lose his arm.

If the vein is severed, again the person might be able to stop the bleeding, but without surgery to repair the vein, your character would have chronic swelling in the arm.

If the bone (scapula, clavicle, or humerus) is damaged, without surgery, there are a couple of problems. The first is that there would be structural damage to the bone (when projectiles go through bone, they tend to break apart whole chunks of bone that can't just be set and splinted), and therefore functional damage to the arm. At best, this would leave the person with chronic pain and inability to use the arm normally. At worst, they would lose the arm. Also, bone fragments left in the wound may heal in a way to cause even more chronic pain.

I know you said you don't want nerve damage, but just for completeness sake: If the nerve is damaged, this is something surgery may or may not be able to fix anyway. However, it is more likely that the nerve would be able to heal if surgery is performed. A severed nerve causes numbness and/or paralysis of the arm. So without surgery and extensive occupational therapy, the arm wouldn't work the way it used to.

And if you think all this is not great, even just a tad lower and you run into a LOT of breathing problems.

[luonnon-varainen]

I had it in mind for a while already so I here are my thoughts and headcanon about Collie or rather the „bodily functions” of the eldritch god, here the "species" is archivist

There are some extra notes on doodles but oh boi the amount of typos there is unbearable x"d

Starting from the beginning and basic - the core:

The core is a semi-conscious substance of unknown molecular structure, if with any molecular structure, functioning as magic carrier/vector(similar to the ATP). It's a mystery whether it is really an elemental structure, a condensed energy or a form of electromagnetic waves beyond our current knowledge. In general it is said that core is pure celestial magic. It has many physical qualities of a fluid. The closest liquid to the core would be a Non-Newtonian fluid. It is a blackish, very sticky, dense liquid similar to pitch, which is highly sensitive and "reactive" to a electromagnetic field like ferrofluid. The core, most likely due to its structure and origin, is very unstable. Visible light exposure is enough to cause a spontaneous rapid reaction which ends with an explosion. Making existence on its own very unlikely. In case when the core happens to be sealed inside the archive - the semi-conscious body made of mostly gold, iridium, wolfram and glass, which contains all collected life forms - it creates what is known as an god, in this case an Archivist. This amalgamation allows to not only creat a stable form of both elements, but also develop an fully conscious eldritch, who is able to exist actively. Archivists possess almost full control over their core: shaping it, moving around, grabbing different objects with it, shielding themselves

The core is a more "human" side of an archivist. The element capable of adapting, blending, learning mortal structures both anatomical and social and rebuilding it to their own standards, experiencing emotions and many more. It plays the main role in defining what kind of person the archivist will be. Yet, the core is not equal to Archivists. It possess it's own "personality" and "opinions", similarly to the archive. Sometimes the core and the archivist are quite different and are working not very well with eachother. Situations like these are called "speaking" - a small part of core presents, usually visually, it opposing opinions against whole god's will. It's not harmful, just annoying and uncomfortable

The core is like a liquid - almost incompressible. It's quite an issue when you are a planet size entity who needs to shrink whole your body to be able to fill the archive and keep on existing, but also need to protect "guts" from exploding during day. The long, baggy robes come to aid in this case. Dresses, veils, hats, too puffed trousers and sleeves allows to hide quite a lot of the liquid from external conditions, by creating the precious shade, controlling the temperature amplitude and keeping it away from other liquids. Extra protection are given by their characteristic cloaks, which inner lining is a portal to the Grand Archive. The Grand Archive is a pocket dimensions away from intense light, where the core can be a bit safer and longer outside the capillary archive than usually. Also in order to work in an unwelcoming environment such as a planet, archivists developed a pulsating movement of the core. As the whole core cannot be at the same time in the archive, to prevent the destabilisation and consequently explosion, it is constantly flows through the body and around their closest surrounding. It's quite similar to the cytoplasmic movement around vacuoles in a plant cell or blood flow in Mollusca' s vascular system. The free flow of the core is the key reason why archivists avoid intense light and making them rather a "nocturnal" creatures

The core is inside the archive, where it's well secured and stabilised. However, there are many passages for the core to leave its shelter. These channels have no protection besides a thin membrane. They have a crucial role in an archivist's life as they are the doors to the inside of a god. All collected mortals eventually will end up inside the archive, but that requires a special spell that will reduce the mortal to smallest functional elements. Even smaller than the scrolls provide. That is possible thanks to these exact entrances. The mortal, whether in a scroll or not, will be pushed through one of those channels, encapsidated by the core, " dissolved" and placed inside one of bazillion capsules of the archive. It's unknown if the final archivisation is an painless process, but the truth is that it doesn't matter at this point - whoever was placed inside will stay there forever. The main passage are eye sockets-

The eldritch gods and deep sea creatures are extremely similar in terms of their adaptation to the environment, conserving energy idea and their life motto "eat or be eaten". So no wonder that archivists put a lot of effort to become the most efficient and effective as they could. The core shaped the archive to resemble intelligent life forms displaying a beautiful example of aggressive mimicry. As mortals are the most troublesome in terms of catching them without excessive energy loss. Looking like a young and lost in the forest nymph can really boosts chances of putting hand on curious mortals. After all who wouldn't try to figure out who the hell is this and why it's in my forest at 11 pm(at least I would, but I'm the natural selection's target for a while so I'm not the best example xd). Why go and chase when you can make them come to you. There are way more of the adaptations but it's more the archive than the core topic and I'm not writing it down today

A skilled archivist can use the surrounding matter, even quite reactive one like water, to temporarily shield the core or divide it and archive in order to create the "puppet - puppetmaster" form. A terrible thing to encounter on a long voyage or while wandering on the desert, especially if your specie decides to resist god's will-