Applications of Universal Grammar (UG) in the ESL/EFL Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Kirkwold, Lorne O.

2007-01-01

The article proposes Stern's (1983) framework for classifying issues related to instruction in order to ascertain the relevance of Universal Grammar (UG) in the ESL/EFL classroom. Discussed in this article, particularly as UG pertains to them, are issues related to: (a) L1 transfer; (b) teaching rules and giving error correction versus presenting…

Predictive value and clinical utility of centrally assessed ER, PgR, and Ki-67 to select adjuvant endocrine therapy for premenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative early breast cancer: TEXT and SOFT trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Regan, Meredith M; Pagani, Olivia; Francis, Prudence A; Fleming, Gini F; Walley, Barbara A; Kammler, Roswitha; Dell'Orto, Patrizia; Russo, Leila; Szőke, János; Doimi, Franco; Villani, Laura; Pizzolitto, Stefano; Öhlschlegel, Christian; Sessa, Fausto; Peg Cámara, Vicente; Rodríguez Peralto, José Luis; MacGrogan, Gaëtan; Colleoni, Marco; Goldhirsch, Aron; Price, Karen N; Coates, Alan S; Gelber, Richard D; Viale, Giuseppe

2015-11-01

The SOFT and TEXT randomized phase III trials investigated adjuvant endocrine therapies for premenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive (HR+) early breast cancer. We investigated the prognostic and predictive value of centrally assessed levels of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PgR), and Ki-67 expression in women with HER2-negative disease. Of 5707 women enrolled, 4115 with HER2-negative (HR+/HER2-) disease had ER, PgR, and Ki-67 centrally assessed by immunohistochemistry. Breast cancer-free interval (BCFI) was defined from randomization to first invasive local, regional, or distant recurrence or contralateral breast cancer. The prognostic and predictive values of ER, PgR and Ki-67 expression levels were assessed using Cox modeling and STEPP methodology. In this HR+/HER2- population, the median ER, PgR, and Ki-67 expressions were 95, 90, and 18 % immunostained cells. As most patients had strongly ER-positive tumors, the predictive value of ER levels could not be investigated. Lower PgR and higher Ki-67 expression were associated with reduced BCFI. There was no consistent evidence of heterogeneity of the relative treatment effects according to PgR or Ki-67 expression levels, though there was a greater 5-year absolute benefit of exemestane + ovarian function suppression (OFS) versus tamoxifen with or without OFS at lower levels of PgR and higher levels of Ki-67. Women with poor prognostic features of low PgR and/or high Ki-67 have greater absolute benefit from exemestane + OFS versus tamoxifen + OFS or tamoxifen alone, but individually PgR and Ki-67 are of limited predictive value for selecting adjuvant endocrine therapy for premenopausal women with HR+/HER2- early breast cancer.

46 CFR 54.10-10 - Standard hydrostatic test (modifies UG-99).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Standard hydrostatic test (modifies UG-99). 54.10-10... PRESSURE VESSELS Inspection, Reports, and Stamping § 54.10-10 Standard hydrostatic test (modifies UG-99). (a) All pressure vessels shall satisfactorily pass the hydrostatic test prescribed by this section...

Evaluating The Effect of Melatonin on HAS2, and PGR expression, as well as Cumulus Expansion, and Fertility Potential in Mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Ezzati, Maryam; Roshangar, Leila; Soleimani Rad, Jafar; Karimian, Nahid

2018-04-01

Infertility is a worldwide health problem which affects approximately 15% of sexually active couples. One of the factors influencing the fertility is melatonin. Also, protection of oocytes and embryos from oxidative stress inducing chemicals in the culture medium is important. The aim of the present study was to investigate if melatonin could regulate hyaluronan synthase-2 (HAS2) and Progesterone receptor (PGR) expressions in the cumulus cells of mice oocytes and provide an in vitro fertilization (IVF) approach. In this experimental study, for this purpose, 30 adult female mice and 15 adult male mice were used. The female mice were superovulated using 10 U of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin (PMSG) and 24 hours later, 10 U of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) were injected. Next, cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs) were collected from the oviducts of the female mice by using a matrix-flushing method. The cumulus cells were cultured with melatonin 10 μM for 6 hours and for real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for evaluation of HAS2 and PGR expression levels. The fertilization rate was evaluated through IVF. All the data were analyzed using a t test. The results of this study showed that HAS2 and PGR expressions in the cumulus cells of the mice receiving melatonin increased in comparison to the control groups. Also, IVF results revealed an enhancement in fertilization rate in the experimental groups compared to the control groups. To improve the oocyte quality and provide new approaches for infertility treatment, administration of melatonin as an antioxidant, showed promising results. Thus, it is concluded that fertility outcomes can be improved by melatonin it enhances PGR. Copyright© by Royan Institute. All rights reserved.

Partially dissecting the steady-state electron fluxes in Photosystem I in wild-type and pgr5 and ndh mutants of Arabidopsis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiancun eKou

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Cyclic electron flux (CEF around Photosystem I (PS I is difficult to quantify. We obtained the linear electron flux (LEFO2 through both photosystems and the total electron flux through PS I (ETR1 in Arabidopsis in CO2-enriched air. DeltaFlux = ETR1 – LEFO2 is an upper estimate of CEF, which consists of two components, an antimycin A-sensitive, PGR5 (proton gradient regulation 5 protein-dependent component and an insensitive component facilitated by a chloroplastic nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide dehydrogenase-like complex (NDH. Using wild type as well as pgr5 and ndh mutants, we observed that (1 40% of the absorbed light was partitioned to PS I; (2 at high irradiance a substantial antimycin A-sensitive CEF occurred in the wild type and the ndh mutant; (3 at low irradiance a sizable antimycin A-sensitive CEF occurred in the wild type but not in the ndh mutant, suggesting an enhancing effect of NDH in low light; and (4 in the pgr5 mutant, and the wild type and ndh mutant treated with antimycin A, a residual DeltaFlux existed at high irradiance, attributable to charge recombination and/or pseudo-cyclic electron flow. Therefore, in low-light-acclimated plants exposed to high light, DeltaFlux has contributions from various paths of electron flow through PS I.

Analytical Review of Universal Grammar (UG) Approach on Second Language Acquisition (SLA)

Science.gov (United States)

Irwandy

2015-01-01

The aim of this paper is to explore the analysis of Universal Grammar (UG) approach on Second Language Acquisition (SLA). This paper is significant as the sources for teacher or researcher of the second language since this elaboration is deeply focusing on the use of UG on SLA. The method used in this academic writing is inductive method of…

Prevalence of ERα-397 PvuII C/T, ERα-351 XbaI A/G and PGR PROGINS polymorphisms in Brazilian breast cancer-unaffected women

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Giacomazzi, J.; Aguiar, E. [Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina: Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Laboratório de Medicina Genômica, Centro de Pesquisa Experimental, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA), Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Núcleo Mama Porto Alegre, Associação Hospitalar Moinhos de Vento, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Palmero, E.I. [International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Lyon (France); Schmidt, A.V. [Departamento de Estatística, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Skonieski, G.; Filho, D.D. [Núcleo Mama Porto Alegre, Associação Hospitalar Moinhos de Vento, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Bock, H. [Laboratório de Identificação Genética, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Saraiva-Pereira, M.L. [Laboratório de Identificação Genética, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Departamento de Bioquímica, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Serviço de Genética Médica, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Ewald, I.P. [Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina: Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Laboratório de Medicina Genômica, Centro de Pesquisa Experimental, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA), Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Schuler-Faccini, L. [Serviço de Genética Médica, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Departamento de Genética, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Camey, S.A. [Departamento de Estatística, Instituto de Matemática, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Caleffi, M. [Núcleo Mama Porto Alegre, Associação Hospitalar Moinhos de Vento, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Giugliani, R. [Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina: Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Laboratório de Identificação Genética, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Serviço de Genética Médica, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Departamento de Genética, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Ashton-Prolla, P. [Programa de Pós-Graduação em Medicina: Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS (BR); Laboratório de Medicina Genômica, Centro de Pesquisa Experimental, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA), Porto Alegre, RS (BR); Núcleo Mama Porto Alegre, Associação Hospitalar Moinhos de Vento, Porto Alegre, RS (BR); Serviço de Genética Médica, HCPA, Porto Alegre, RS (BR); Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (BR); Departamento de Genética, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS (BR)

2012-05-18

Polymorphisms of hormone receptor genes have been linked to modifications in reproductive factors and to an increased risk of breast cancer (BC). In the present study, we have determined the allelic and genotypic frequencies of the ERα-397 PvuII C/T, ERα-351 XbaI A/G and PGR PROGINS polymorphisms and investigated their relationship with mammographic density, body mass index (BMI) and other risk factors for BC. A consecutive and unselected sample of 750 Brazilian BC-unaffected women enrolled in a mammography screening program was recruited. The distribution of PGR PROGINS genotypic frequencies was 72.5, 25.5 and 2.0% for A1A1, A1A2 and A2A2, respectively, which was equivalent to that encountered in other studies with healthy women. The distribution of ERα genotypes was: ERα-397 PvuII C/T: 32.3% TT, 47.5% TC, and 20.2% CC; ERα-351 XbaI A/G: 46.3% AA, 41.7% AG and 12.0% GG. ERα haplotypes were 53.5% PX, 14.3% Px, 0.3% pX, and 32.0% px. These were significantly different from most previously published reports worldwide (P < 0.05). Overall, the PGR PROGINS genotypes A2A2 and A1A2 were associated with fatty and moderately fatty breast tissue. The same genotypes were also associated with a high BMI in postmenopausal women. In addition, the ERα-351 XbaI GG genotype was associated with menarche ≥12 years (P = 0.02). ERα and PGR polymorphisms have a phenotypic effect and may play an important role in BC risk determination. Finally, if confirmed in BC patients, these associations could have important implications for mammographic screening and strategies and may be helpful to identify women at higher risk for the disease.

ASDEX-UG. ASDEX upgrade project proposal. Phase 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-05-01

The objective of ASDEX UG is to investigate the problems relating to tokamak divertor physics and the boundary layer of hot plasmas which cannot be covered otherwise by either ASDEX or other EUROPEAN tokamaks, including JET, but whose investigation is indispensable for NET and INTOR. The configuration of ASDEX UG is changed as compared with ASDEX due to the requirement that all poloidal field coils are located outside the toroidal field magnet. This leads to a highly elongated D-shaped plasma with an ''open'' divertor, which does not allow to close the divertor chamber by such simple means as in ASDEX. In section 2, the aims of ASDEX UG are repeated briefly and the essential features and parameters of the tokamak system are summarized. The summary includes an overview of the tokamak design, the time schedule of design and construction concluding with the estimated investment cost and manpower required. In section 3 the tokamak system components are treated. The circuits and energy supply for the different electrical components are described in section 4. Auxiliary heating requirements and methods are discussed in section 5. Section 6 presents a survey over the periphery of the tokamak system including preparation of the building and radiation shielding. Section 7 outlines the physical programme. Section 8 is devoted to diagnostics. Finally, the principal concepts for control, data acquisition and handling are outlined in section 9. (orig./AH)

Creation of second order magnetic barrier inside chaos created by NTMs in the ASDEX UG

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Halima; Punjabi, Alkesh

2012-10-01

Understanding and stabilization of neoclassical tearing modes (NTM) in tokamaks is an important problem. For low temperature plasmas, tearing modes are believed to be mainly driven by current density gradient. For collisionless plasmas, even when plasma is stable to classical tearing modes, helical reduction in bootstrap current in O-point of an island can destabilize NTMs when an initial island is seeded by other global MHD instabilities or when microturbulence triggers the transition from a linear to nonlinear instability. The onset of NTMs leads to the most serious beta limit in ASDEX UG tokamak [O. Gubner et al 2005 NF 39 1321]. The important NTMs in the ASDDEX UG are (m,n)=(3,2)+(4,3)+(1,1). Realistic parameterization of these NTMs and the safety factor in ASDEX UG are given in [O. Dumbrajs et al 2005 POP 12 1107004]. We use a symplectic map in magnetic coordinates for the ASDEX UG to integrate field lines in presence of the NTMs. We add a second order control term [H. Ali and A. Punjabi 2007 PPCF 49 1565] to this ASDEX UG field line Hamiltonian to create an invariant magnetic surface inside the chaos generated by the NTMs. The relative strength, robustness, and resilience of this barrier are studied to ascertain the most desirable noble barrier in the ASDEX UG with NTMs. We present preliminary results of this work, and discuss its implications with regard to magnetic transport barriers for increasing strength of magnetic perturbations. This work is supported by the grants DE-FG02-01ER54624 and DE-FG02-04ER54793.

Putting Ug99 on the map: An update on current and future monitoring

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hodson, D P; Nazari, K; Park, R F

2011-01-01

Detection of stem rust race TTKSK (Ug99) from Uganda in 1998/99 highlighted not only the extremely high vulnerability of the global wheat crop to stem rust but also a lack of adequate global systems to monitor such a threat. Progress in the development and expansion of the Global Cereal Rust...... Monitoring System (GCRMS) is described. The current situation regarding the Ug99 lineage of races is outlined and the potential for expansion into important wheat areas is considered. The GCRMS has successfully tracked the spread and changes that are occurring within the Ug99 lineage and is now well...... capacity for race analysis is seen to be critical and integration of the Global Rust Reference Centre into the stem rust monitoring network is seen as a positive development. The current acute situation with severe epidemics of stripe rust in many countries indicates a clear need for more effective global...

Rachunek kosztów działańjako podstawa wyceny usług

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gertruda Krystyna Świderska

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Artykuł prezentuje wykorzystanie rachunku kosztów działań do wyceny usług na trzech rynkach podlegających centralnym regulacjom – rynku usług pocztowych, telekomunikacyjnych oraz świadczeń zdrowotnych. Doświadczenia krajów Unii Europejskiej (w tym Polski pokazują nowe obszary wykorzystania rachunku kosztów działań. Potwierdzają, że zastosowanie tego narzędzia pozwala na kontrolę kosztów ponoszonych przy świadczeniu usług oraz wycenę na podstawie rzeczywistego rachunku ekonomicznego. Takie podejście gwarantuje przejrzystość procesu wyceny na rynkach, na których odgrywa to szczególnie istotną rolę. W części pierwszej przedstawiono zarys koncepcji rachunku kosztów działań wykorzystanej w PPUP Poczta Polska. Scharakteryzowano zastosowane rozwiązanie dostosowane do specyfiki działań poczty, zawierające elementy obiektowego rachunku kosztów działań oraz rachunku kosztów działań sterowanego czasem. W części drugiej zaprezentowano zastosowanie koncepcji rachunku kosztów działań do wyceny świadczonych usług w British Telecom. Wykorzystanie właściwych nośników kosztów pozwala na prawidłowe przypisanie kosztów obiektom je generującym. W części trzeciej opisano doświadczenia krajów Unii Europejskiej w zakresie stosowania rachunku kosztów działań do wyceny świadczeń medycznych. Stanowią one przesłankę dla wdrożenia tej koncepcji do wyceny usług zdrowotnych na rynku polskim.

Triple-negative (ER, PgR, HER-2/neu breast cancer in Indian women

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vinayak W Patil

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Vinayak W Patil1, Rajeev Singhai1, Amit V Patil2, Prakash D Gurav21Department of Biochemistry, Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai, India; 2Department of Surgery, Government Medical College, Miraj, IndiaAbstract: The aim of our study was to analyze triple-negative (TN breast cancer, which is defined as being negative for the estrogen receptor (ER, the progesterone receptor (PgR, and the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2/neu and which represents a subset of breast cancer with different biologic behavior. We investigated the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic indicators of lymph node-negative TN breast cancer. Medical records were reviewed from patients with node-negative breast cancer who underwent curative surgery at Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai, India, from May 2007 to October 2010. Clinicopathological variables and clinical outcomes were evaluated. Among 683 patients included, 136 had TN breast cancer and 529 had non-TN breast cancer. TN breast cancer correlated with younger age (<35 years, P = 0.003 and a higher histopathologic and nuclear grade (P < 0.001. It also correlated with a molecular profile associated with biological aggressiveness: negative for Bcl-2 expression (P < 0.001, positive for the epidermal growth factor receptor (P = 0.003, and a high level of p53 (P < 0.001 and Ki-67 expression (P < 0.00. The relapse rates during the follow-up period (median 56.8 months were 14.7% for TN breast cancer and 6.6% for non-TN breast cancer (P = 0.004. Relapse-free survival (RFS was significantly shorter among patients with TN breast cancer compared with those with non-TN breast cancer: 3.5-year RFS rate 85.5% versus 94.2%, respectively; P = 0.001. On multivariate analysis, young age, close resection margin, and triple negativity were independent predictors of shorter RFS. TN breast cancer had a higher relapse rate and more aggressive clinicopathological

Expression of PGR, HBEGF, ITGAV, ITGB3 and SPP1 genes in eutopic endometrium of infertile women with endometriosis during the implantation window: a pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Broi, Michele G Da; Rocha, Carlos V; Meola, Juliana; Martins, Wellington P; Carvalho, Filomena M; Ferriani, Rui A; Navarro, Paula A

2017-09-01

Alterations in endometrial receptivity may be involved in the etiopathogenesis of endometriosis-related infertility. The literature has suggested that patients with endometriosis present progestin resistance, which could affect embryo implantation. We question the presence of alterations in the expression of the progesterone receptor gene (PGR) and the genes related to endometrium-embryo interaction regulated by progesterone. This pilot study compared the expression of PGR, HBEGF, ITGAV, ITGB3, and SPP1 genes in eutopic endometrium during the implantation window (IW) in infertile women with endometriosis with that observed in the endometrium of fertile and infertile controls. In this prospective case-control study, endometrial biopsies were performed during the IW in patients aged between 18 and 45 years old, with regular cycles and without endocrine/systemic dysfunctions, divided into endometriosis (END), infertile control (IC) and fertile control (FC) groups. Total RNA extraction, cDNA synthesis, and gene expression analysis by Real-Time PCR were performed. We assessed the size of the difference that our series was powered to detect. From the 687 patients who underwent diagnostic videolaparoscopy or tubal ligation at the University Hospital, 130 were eligible. Of these, 32 had endometrial samples collected, with 17 confirmed in the IW. Fifteen samples (5 END, 5 IC and 5 FC) were analyzed. There was no significant difference in the expression of any studied gene. Our sample size allowed us to identify or discard large differences (two standard deviations) among the groups. Endometriosis doesn't cause large changes in the endometrial expression of PGR, HBEGF, ITGAV, ITGB3 and SPP1 during the IW.

The Development of “Eldo Ngano 1”: The World’s World’s First Ug99 Resistant Mutant Wheat Variety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Forster, Brian P.

2014-01-01

The wheat black stem rust disease is a virulent race of fungus, Puccinia graminis, which affects wheat plants and is caused by a strain of fungus known as Ug99. Named for its place and year of origin, Ug99 was first discovered on wheat in Uganda in 1999. The spores of this plant disease are airborne and can be easily spread by wind. If not prevented, the disease can destroy 70 to 100 per cent of the yield of wheat crops. Annually on average 8.3 million tonnes of wheat grain is lost to this disease, costing US $1.23 billion per year. Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda are hot spots for this disease. In 2009, growing international concern regarding the horrific impact of Ug99 on wheat led to the establishment of IAEA project INT/5/150, Responding to the Transboundary Threat of Wheat Black Stem Rust (Ug99). This project has involved over 18 countries and 5 national and international institutions, and examined possible mutation induction treatments to deal with the challenges posed by Ug99. Meetings and workshops to facilitate the project efforts have been held in Kenya and Turkey. Ug99 continues to spread globally and has now reached the Islamic Republic of Iran. There are also reports of suspected disease occurrences in Europe. It is essential that work continues on developing mutant lines for further crop protection that can be utilized worldwide to safeguard the wheat crop from this devastating disease

Commentary: "An Evaluation of Universal Grammar and the Phonological Mind"-UG Is Still a Viable Hypothesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Berent, Iris

2016-01-01

Everett (2016b) criticizes The Phonological Mind thesis (Berent, 2013a,b) on logical, methodological and empirical grounds. Most of Everett's concerns are directed toward the hypothesis that the phonological grammar is constrained by universal grammatical (UG) principles. Contrary to Everett's logical challenges, here I show that the UG hypothesis is readily falsifiable, that universality is not inconsistent with innateness (Everett's arguments to the contrary are rooted in a basic confusion of the UG phenotype and the genotype), and that its empirical evaluation does not require a full evolutionary account of language. A detailed analysis of one case study, the syllable hierarchy, presents a specific demonstration that people have knowledge of putatively universal principles that are unattested in their language and these principles are most likely linguistic in nature. Whether Universal Grammar exists remains unknown, but Everett's arguments hardly undermine the viability of this hypothesis.

Noble magnetic barriers in the ASDEX UG tokamak

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Halima; Punjabi, Alkesh; Vazquez, Justin

2010-02-01

The second-order perturbation method of creating invariant tori inside chaos in Hamiltonian systems (Ali, H.; Punjabi, A. Plasma Phys. Contr. F. 2007, 49, 1565-1582) is applied to the axially symmetric divertor experiment upgrade (ASDEX UG) tokamak to build noble irrational magnetic barriers inside chaos created by resonant magnetic perturbations (m, n)=(3, 2)+(4, 3), with m and n the poloidal and toroidal mode numbers of the Fourier expansion of the magnetic perturbation. The radial dependence of the Fourier modes is ignored. The modes are considered to be locked and have the same amplitude δ. A symplectic mathematical mapping in magnetic coordinates is used to integrate magnetic field line trajectories in the ASDEX UG. Tori with noble irrational rotational transform are the last ones to be destroyed by perturbation in Hamiltonian systems. For this reason, noble irrational magnetic barriers are built inside chaos, and the strongest noble irrational barrier is identified. Three candidate locations for the strongest noble barrier in ASDEX UG are selected. All three candidate locations are chosen to be roughly midway between the resonant rational surfaces ψ32 and ψ43. ψ is the magnetic coordinate of the flux surface. The three candidate surfaces are the noble irrational surfaces close to the surface with q value that is a mediant of q=3/2 and 4/3, q value of the physical midpoint of the two resonant surfaces, and the q value of the surface where the islands of the two perturbing modes just overlap. These q values of the candidate surfaces are denoted by q MED, q MID, and q OVERLAP. The strongest noble barrier close to q MED has the continued fraction representation (CFR) [1;2,2,1∞] and exists for δ≤2.6599×10-4; the strongest noble barrier close to q MID has CFR [1;2,2,2,1∞] and exists for δ≤4.6311×10-4; and the strongest noble barrier close to q OVERLAP has CFR [1;2,2,6,2,1∞] and exists for δ≤1.367770×10-4. From these results, the strongest

An investigation into breast imaging as part of the undergraduate (UG) education of diagnostic radiography students in the UK

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strudwick, R.M.; Taylor, K.

2017-01-01

Introduction: How mammography is incorporated into undergraduate (UG) radiography training may influence student perception of the speciality and its potential as a future career option. An overview is provided of the academic and clinical content of UG radiography courses relating to mammography across the UK. Methods: Using mixed methods and an iterative, inductive approach supplying quantitative and qualitative data, we identify any variations and discuss possible causes which may help influence future training strategies. A self-designed questionnaire containing open and closed questions was sent online using SurveyMonkey™ to course leaders of all Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) offering BSc (Hons) Diagnostic Radiography courses in the UK. Responses were analysed for trends which were further explored by semi structured telephone interviews. These were transcribed and evaluated using a thematic analysis, the themes being categorised and coded. Results: 19 of 24 (79%) HEIs responded to the questionnaire. Follow up telephone interviews were conducted with five course leaders to further explore themes. Academic teaching ranged from 3 to 25 h over the 3 year course. Compared to other specialities 10 (53%) HEIs spent less time on mammography with 12 (63%) citing HCPC standards as the reason. 11 (65%) HEIs sent students on mammography placements, 2 (12%) sent females only. Placement times ranged between 2 days and 2 weeks. Influences included availability of expert teaching and relationship with clinical departments. Conclusion: There is variation in undergraduate exposure to mammography. Students views should be sought to add validity to these findings - Highlights: • A summary of undergraduate (UG) breast imaging in the UK. • Themes around the delivery of UG breast imaging education in university and practice. • Opinions of UG course leaders and other stakeholders about UG breast imaging education. • There is a variation across UK universities in

Commentary: “An Evaluation of Universal Grammar and the Phonological Mind”—UG Is Still a Viable Hypothesis

Science.gov (United States)

Berent, Iris

2016-01-01

Everett (2016b) criticizes The Phonological Mind thesis (Berent, 2013a,b) on logical, methodological and empirical grounds. Most of Everett’s concerns are directed toward the hypothesis that the phonological grammar is constrained by universal grammatical (UG) principles. Contrary to Everett’s logical challenges, here I show that the UG hypothesis is readily falsifiable, that universality is not inconsistent with innateness (Everett’s arguments to the contrary are rooted in a basic confusion of the UG phenotype and the genotype), and that its empirical evaluation does not require a full evolutionary account of language. A detailed analysis of one case study, the syllable hierarchy, presents a specific demonstration that people have knowledge of putatively universal principles that are unattested in their language and these principles are most likely linguistic in nature. Whether Universal Grammar exists remains unknown, but Everett’s arguments hardly undermine the viability of this hypothesis. PMID:27471480

Mapping and characterization of wheat stem rust resistance genes SrTm5 and Sr60 from Triticum monococcum.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Shisheng; Guo, Yan; Briggs, Jordan; Dubach, Felix; Chao, Shiaoman; Zhang, Wenjun; Rouse, Matthew N; Dubcovsky, Jorge

2018-03-01

The new stem rust resistance gene Sr60 was fine-mapped to the distal region of chromosome arm 5A m S, and the TTKSK-effective gene SrTm5 could be a new allele of Sr22. The emergence and spread of new virulent races of the wheat stem rust pathogen (Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici; Pgt), including the Ug99 race group, is a serious threat to global wheat production. In this study, we mapped and characterized two stem rust resistance genes from diploid wheat Triticum monococcum accession PI 306540. We mapped SrTm5, a previously postulated gene effective to Ug99, on chromosome arm 7A m L, completely linked to Sr22. SrTm5 displayed a different race specificity compared to Sr22 indicating that they are distinct. Sequencing of the Sr22 homolog in PI 306540 revealed a novel haplotype. Characterization of the segregating populations with Pgt race QFCSC revealed an additional resistance gene on chromosome arm 5A m S that was assigned the official name Sr60. This gene was also effective against races QTHJC and SCCSC but not against TTKSK (a Ug99 group race). Using two large mapping populations (4046 gametes), we mapped Sr60 within a 0.44 cM interval flanked by sequenced-based markers GH724575 and CJ942731. These two markers delimit a 54.6-kb region in Brachypodium distachyon chromosome 4 and a 430-kb region in the Chinese Spring reference genome. Both regions include a leucine-rich repeat protein kinase (LRRK123.1) that represents a potential candidate gene. Three CC-NBS-LRR genes were found in the colinear Brachypodium region but not in the wheat genome. We are currently developing a Bacterial Artificial Chromosome library of PI 306540 to determine which of these candidate genes are present in the T. monococcum genome and to complete the cloning of Sr60.

Quantification of African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV) and East African cassava mosaic virus (EACMV-UG) in single and mixed infected Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) using quantitative PCR.

Science.gov (United States)

Naseem, Saadia; Winter, Stephan

2016-01-01

The quantity of genomic DNA-A and DNA-B of African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV) and East African cassava mosaic virus Uganda (Uganda variant, EACMV-UG) was analysed using quantitative PCR to assess virus concentrations in plants from susceptible and tolerant cultivars. The concentrations of genome components in absolute and relative quantification experiments in single and mixed viral infections were determined. Virus concentration was much higher in symptomatic leaf tissues compared to non-symptomatic leaves and corresponded with the severity of disease symptoms. In general, higher titres were recorded for EACMV-UG Ca055 compared to ACMV DRC6. The quantitative assessment also showed that the distribution of both viruses in the moderately resistant cassava cv. TMS 30572 was not different from the highly susceptible cv. TME 117. Natural mixed infections with both viruses gave severe disease symptoms. Relative quantification of virus genomes in mixed infections showed higher concentrations of EACMV-UG DNA-A compared to ACMV DNA-A, but a marked reduction of EACMV-UG DNA-B. The higher concentrations of EACMV-UG DNA-B compared to EACMV DNA-A accumulation in single infections were consistent. Since DNA-B is implicated in virus cell-to-cell spread and systemic movement, the abundance of the EACMV-UG DNA-B may be an important factor driving cassava mosaic disease epidemic. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Targeted introgression of stem rust Ug99 resistance from wheatgrasses into pasta and bread wheat

Science.gov (United States)

In the past 50 years, a number of stem rust resistance (Sr) genes have been transferred from several wheat-related grasses into durum (i.e. pasta) and bread wheat through chromosome translocations and additions. To utilize these genes for controlling the Ug99 races of the stem rust pathogen, we ini...

Resistance to stem rust Ug99 in six bread wheat cultivars maps to chromosome 6DS.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez-Vera, Eric E; Nelson, Sarah; Singh, Ravi P; Basnet, Bhoja R; Haley, Scott D; Bhavani, Sridhar; Huerta-Espino, Julio; Xoconostle-Cazares, Beatriz G; Ruiz-Medrano, Roberto; Rouse, Matthew N; Singh, Sukhwinder

2014-01-01

Identified SSR markers ( Xcfd49 and Xbarc183 ) linked with stem rust resistance for efficient use in marker-assisted selection and stacking of resistance genes in wheat breeding programs. More than 80 % of the worldwide wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) area is currently sown with varieties susceptible to the Ug99 race group of stem rust fungus. However, wheat lines Niini, Tinkio, Coni, Pfunye, Blouk, and Ripper have demonstrated Ug99 resistance at the seedling and adult plant stages. We mapped stem rust resistance in populations derived from crosses of a susceptible parent with each of the resistant lines. The segregation of resistance in each population indicated the presence of a single gene. The resistance gene in Niini mapped to short arm of chromosome 6D and was flanked by SSR markers Xcfd49 at distances of 3.9 cM proximal and Xbarc183 8.4 cM distal, respectively. The chromosome location of this resistance was validated in three other populations: PBW343/Coni, PBW343/Tinkio, and Cacuke/Pfunye. Resistance initially postulated to be conferred by the SrTmp gene in Blouk and Ripper was also linked to Xcfd49 and Xbarc183 on 6DS, but it was mapped proximal to Xbarc183 at a similar position to previously mapped genes Sr42 and SrCad. Based on the variation in diagnostic marker alleles, it is possible that Niini and Pfunye may carry different resistance genes/alleles. Further studies are needed to determine the allelic relationships between various genes located on chromosome arm 6DS. Our results provide valuable molecular marker and genetic information for developing Ug99 resistant wheat varieties in diverse germplasm and using these markers to tag the resistance genes in wheat breeding.

Identification and validation of single nucleotide polymorphic markers linked to Ug99 stem rust resistance in spring wheat

Science.gov (United States)

Wheat stem rust (Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici Eriks. and E. Henn.) is one of the most destructive diseases world-wide. Races belonging to Ug99 (or TTKSK) continue to cause crop losses in East Africa and threaten global wheat production. Developing and deploying wheat varieties with multiple race...

Corrosion Test Results for Inconel 600 vs Inconel-Stainless UG Bellows

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osborne, P.E.

2002-01-01

The Conversion Project (CP) of the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) involves converting slightly less than 40 kg of 233 U to a stable form for safe storage. The operation is performed within a few vessels interconnected by valves and 1/2-in. metal tubing. During this conversion, a particularly toxic and corrosive by-product is formed, namely aqueous hydrofluoric acid (HF). The production of HF is a result of the hydrolysis of UF 6 and subsequent steam treatments of UO 2 F 2 . For each mole of UF 6 converted, 6 mol of HF are produced. The HF that forms during conversion combines with water to produce approximately 1.5 L of 33 wt % HF. As this mixture is transferred within the process system, the tubing and valves are exposed to high concentrations of HF in liquid and vapor form. Of particular concern in the system are the almost 30 valves that have the potential for exposure to HF. For these valves, a vendor-supplied UG valve was installed. UG valves consist of an Alloy 400 (Monel) body and stem tip and Alloy 600 (Inconel) bellows. These valves have been used under experimental conditions that simulate the CP. It has been established that they have a finite life when exposed to a HF and air environment. Most failures were seen around the flange at the bottom of the bellows, and it was suspected that this flange and the weld material were not Inconel. In December 2001, the vendor confirmed that this flange was not Inconel but instead was stainless steel 316. After discussions between the vendor and ORNL staff involved with the CP effort, it was decided that the entire wetted area of the bellows would be fabricated from Alloy 600. In March 2002, four newly fabricated bellows assemblies were received from the vendor for the purposes of corrosion testing in HF. This report presents results from the corrosion tests conducted to determine if the new design of the bellows would enhance their corrosion resistance

Underground gas storage Uelsen: Findings from planning, building and commissioning the surface buildings and structures; Untertagegasspeicher (UGS) Uelsen: Erkenntnisse aus Planung, Bau und Inbetriebnahme der obertaegigen Anlagen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Focke, H.; Brueggmann, R.; Mende, F.; Steinkraus, D.; Wauer, R. [BEB Erdgas und Erdoel GmbH, Hannover (Germany)

1998-12-31

The article describes the concepts of the plants and equipment and the specific features of the underground storage at Uelsen. The underground storage will be purpose-built as an H-gas storage in a nearly depleted sandstone deposit. At a nominal deliverability of 250.000 cubic m/h (Vn) the storage at Uelsen has more potential for expansion. This potential was taken into account by designing appropriate pressure stages, capacities, performance characteristics and space. (orig.). [Deutsch] Die nachfolgende Veroeffentlichung stellt das anlagentechnische Grundkonzept und die spezifischen Besonderheiten des UGS Uelsen dar. Der im suedwestlichen Niedersachsen als H-Gasspeicher in einer nahezu ausgefoerderten Buntsandsteinlagerstaette eingerichtete UGS Uelsen wird in mehreren Ausbaustufen bedarfsgerecht fertiggestellt. Bei einer Nennentnahmekapazitaet von 450.000 m{sup 3}/h (Vn) und einer Nenninjektionsleistung von 250.000 m{sup 3}/h (Vn) weist der UGS Uelsen noch weiteres Potential fuer Erweiterungen auf. Dieses Ausbaupotential wurde bei der Planung und dem Bau der bestehenden Anlagen durch Festlegung entsprechender Druckstufen, Kapazitaeten, Leistungsgroessen und Platzanordnungen beruecksichtigt. (orig.)

Creation of a magnetic barrier at a noble q close to physical midpoint between two resonant surfaces in the ASDEX UG tokamak

Science.gov (United States)

Vazquez, Justin; Ali, Halima; Punjabi, Alkesh

2009-11-01

Ciraolo, Vittot and Chandre method of building invariant manifolds inside chaos in Hamiltonian systems [Ali H. and Punjabi A, Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion, 49, 1565--1582 (2007)] is used in the ASDEX UG tokamak. In this method, a second order perturbation is added to the perturbed Hamiltonian [op cit]. It creates an invariant torus inside the chaos, and reduces the plasma transport. The perturbation that is added to the equilibrium Hamiltonian is at least an order of magnitude smaller than the perturbation that causes chaos. This additional term has a finite, limited number of Fourier modes. Resonant magnetic perturbations (m,n) = (3,2)+(4,3) are added to the field line Hamiltonian for the ASDEX UG. An area-preserving map for the field line trajectories in the ASDEX UG is used. The common amplitude δ of these modes that gives complete chaos between the resonant surfaces ψ43 and ψ32 is determined. A magnetic barrier is built at a surface with noble q that is very nearly equals to the q at the physical midpoint between the two resonant surfaces. The maximum amplitude of magnetic perturbation for which this barrier can be sustained is determined. This work is supported by US Department of Energy grants DE-FG02-07ER54937, DE-FG02-01ER54624 and DE-FG02-04ER54793.

Root cause analysis of the fatigue failures of the pulsation dampers of a large underground gas storage (UGS) system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eijk, A.; Lange, D. de; Maljaars, J.; Tenbrock-Ingenhorst, A.; Gottmer, A.

2014-01-01

Two large identical 6-cylinder Ariel JGB/6 reciprocating compressors each of 7.5 MW, are used for an underground gas storage system (UGS) plant of RWE Gasspeicher GmbH located in Epe, Germany. The system is in operation since 2005. In 2011 several internals parts (baffle plates and baffle choke

Hypermethylation pattern of ESR and PgR genes and lacking estrogen and progesterone receptors in human breast cancer tumors: ER/PR subtypes.

Science.gov (United States)

Pirouzpanah, Saeed; Taleban, Forough-Azam; Mehdipour, Parvin; Sabour, Siamak; Atri, Morteza

2018-02-14

The option of endocrine therapy in breast cancer remains conventionally promising. We aimed to investigate how accurately the pattern of hypermethylation at estrogen receptor (ESR) and progesterone receptor (PgR) genes may associate with relative expression and protein status of ER, PR and the combinative phenotype of ER/PR. In this consecutive case-series, we enrolled 139 primary diagnosed breast cancer. Methylation specific PCR was used to assess the methylation status (individual test). Tumor mRNA expression levels were evaluated using real-time RT-PCR. Immunohistochemistry data was used to present hormonal receptor status of a tumor (as test reference). Methylation at ESR1 was comparably frequent in ER-breast tumors (83.0%, PPR- conditions (Cramer's V= 0.44, PPR (77.1%, PPR expressions (55.6%, PPR- (64.4%, PPR-, the hypermethylation of PgRb seem another epigenetic signalling variable actively associate with methylated ESR1 to show lack of ER+/PR+ tumors in breast cancer.

Problems of Gas Pressure Build-up in Casing String of UGS and Gas Wells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Sovius

2006-10-01

Full Text Available This paper consists of three basic parts. The opening part is a brief description of problems associated with the secondary untightness of UGS wells (Underground Gas Storages and gas wells generally.The main part of the paper is composed of some cases that we have met in our company. Solution proposals of various cases are also supplied in this part. Separate problem situations are described in terms of finding out an untight point and also a testing result and consequential removing of untightness.The conclusion includes knowledge summary that were taken by solution of complicatedsituations connected with well non-hermeticity.

Discovery of a Novel Stem Rust Resistance Allele in Durum Wheat that Exhibits Differential Reactions to Ug99 Isolates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jayaveeramuthu Nirmala

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Wheat stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn, can incur yield losses in susceptible cultivars of durum wheat, Triticum turgidum ssp. durum (Desf. Husnot. Although several durum cultivars possess the stem rust resistance gene Sr13, additional genes in durum wheat effective against emerging virulent races have not been described. Durum line 8155-B1 confers resistance against the P. graminis f. sp. tritici race TTKST, the variant race of the Ug99 race group with additional virulence to wheat stem rust resistance gene Sr24. However, 8155-B1 does not confer resistance to the first-described race in the Ug99 race group: TTKSK. We mapped a single gene conferring resistance in 8155-B1 against race TTKST, Sr8155B1, to chromosome arm 6AS by utilizing Rusty/8155-B1 and Rusty*2/8155-B1 populations and the 90K Infinium iSelect Custom bead chip supplemented by KASP assays. One marker, KASP_6AS_IWB10558, cosegregated with Sr8155B1 in both populations and correctly predicted Sr8155B1 presence or absence in 11 durum cultivars tested. We confirmed the presence of Sr8155B1 in cultivar Mountrail by mapping in the population Choteau/Mountrail. The marker developed in this study could be used to predict the presence of resistance to race TTKST in uncharacterized durum breeding lines, and also to combine Sr8155B1 with resistance genes effective to Ug99 such as Sr13. The map location of Sr8155B1 cannot rule out the possibility that this gene is an allele at the Sr8 locus. However, race specificity indicates that Sr8155B1 is different from the known alleles Sr8a and Sr8b.

Corrosion Test Results for Inconel 600 vs Inconel-Stainless UG Bellows

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Osborne, P.E.

2002-09-11

The Conversion Project (CP) of the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) involves converting slightly less than 40 kg of {sup 233}U to a stable form for safe storage. The operation is performed within a few vessels interconnected by valves and 1/2-in. metal tubing. During this conversion, a particularly toxic and corrosive by-product is formed, namely aqueous hydrofluoric acid (HF). The production of HF is a result of the hydrolysis of UF{sub 6} and subsequent steam treatments of UO{sub 2}F{sub 2}. For each mole of UF{sub 6} converted, 6 mol of HF are produced. The HF that forms during conversion combines with water to produce approximately 1.5 L of 33 wt % HF. As this mixture is transferred within the process system, the tubing and valves are exposed to high concentrations of HF in liquid and vapor form. Of particular concern in the system are the almost 30 valves that have the potential for exposure to HF. For these valves, a vendor-supplied UG valve was installed. UG valves consist of an Alloy 400 (Monel) body and stem tip and Alloy 600 (Inconel) bellows. These valves have been used under experimental conditions that simulate the CP. It has been established that they have a finite life when exposed to a HF and air environment. Most failures were seen around the flange at the bottom of the bellows, and it was suspected that this flange and the weld material were not Inconel. In December 2001, the vendor confirmed that this flange was not Inconel but instead was stainless steel 316. After discussions between the vendor and ORNL staff involved with the CP effort, it was decided that the entire wetted area of the bellows would be fabricated from Alloy 600. In March 2002, four newly fabricated bellows assemblies were received from the vendor for the purposes of corrosion testing in HF. This report presents results from the corrosion tests conducted to determine if the new design of the bellows would enhance their corrosion resistance.

Failure of post-natal ductus arteriosus closure in prostaglandin transporter-deficient mice

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Hee-Yoon; Locker, Joseph; Lu, Run; Schuster, Victor L.

2010-01-01

Background Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) plays a major role both in maintaining patency of the fetal ductus arteriosus (DA) and in closure of the DA after birth. The rate- limiting step in PGE2 signal termination is PGE2 uptake by the transporter PGT. Methods and results To determine the role of PGT in DA closure, we used a gene-targeting strategy to produce mice in which PGT exon 1 was flanked by loxP sites. Successful targeting was obtained since neither mice hypomorphic at the PGT allele (PGT Neo/Neo) nor global PGT knockout mice (PGT −/−) exhibited PGT protein expression; moreover, embryonic fibroblasts isolated from targeted mice failed to exhibit carrier-mediated PGE2 uptake. Although born in a normal Mendelian ratio, no PGT −/− mice survived past post-natal day 1, and no PGT Neo/Neo mice survived past post-natal day 2. Necropsy revealed patent DA with normal intimal thickening but with dilated cardiac chambers. Both PGT Neo/Neo and PGT −/− mice could be rescued through the post-natal period by giving the mother indomethacin before birth. Rescued mice grew normally and had no abnormalities by gross and microscopic post-mortem analysis. In accord with PGT’s known role in metabolizing PGE2, rescued adult PGT −/− mice had lower plasma PGE2 metabolite levels, and higher urinary PGE2 excretion rates, than wild type mice. Conclusions PGT plays a critical role in closure of the DA after birth by ensuring a reduction in local and/or circulating PGE2 concentrations. PMID:20083684

Repair of U/G and U/A in DNA by UNG2-associated repair complexes takes place predominantly by short-patch repair both in proliferating and growth-arrested cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Akbari, Mansour; Otterlei, Marit; Pena Diaz, Javier

2004-01-01

Nuclear uracil-DNA glycosylase UNG2 has an established role in repair of U/A pairs resulting from misincorporation of dUMP during replication. In antigen-stimulated B-lymphocytes UNG2 removes uracil from U/G mispairs as part of somatic hypermutation and class switch recombination processes. Using......, PCNA and DNA ligase, the latter detected as activity. Short-patch repair was the predominant mechanism both in extracts and UNG2-ARC from proliferating and less BER-proficient growth-arrested cells. Repair of U/G mispairs and U/A pairs was completely inhibited by neutralizing UNG...

The strongest magnetic barrier in the DIII-D tokamak and comparison with the ASDEX UG

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Halima; Punjabi, Alkesh

2013-05-01

Magnetic perturbations in tokamaks lead to the formation of magnetic islands, chaotic field lines, and the destruction of flux surfaces. Controlling or reducing transport along chaotic field lines is a key challenge in magnetically confined fusion plasmas. A local control method was proposed by Chandre et al. [Nucl. Fusion 46, 33-45 (2006)] to build barriers to magnetic field line diffusion by addition of a small second-order control term localized in the phase space to the field line Hamiltonian. Formation and existence of such magnetic barriers in Ohmically heated tokamaks (OHT), ASDEX UG and piecewise analytic DIII-D [Luxon, J.L.; Davis, L.E., Fusion Technol. 8, 441 (1985)] plasma equilibria was predicted by the authors [Ali, H.; Punjabi, A., Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion 49, 1565-1582 (2007)]. Very recently, this prediction for the DIII-D has been corroborated [Volpe, F.A., et al., Nucl. Fusion 52, 054017 (2012)] by field-line tracing calculations, using experimentally constrained Equilibrium Fit (EFIT) [Lao, et al., Nucl. Fusion 25, 1611 (1985)] DIII-D equilibria perturbed to include the vacuum field from the internal coils utilized in the experiments. This second-order approach is applied to the DIII-D tokamak to build noble irrational magnetic barriers inside the chaos created by the locked resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) (m, n)=(3, 1)+(4, 1), with m and n the poloidal and toroidal mode numbers of the Fourier expansion of the magnetic perturbation with amplitude δ. A piecewise, analytic, accurate, axisymmetric generating function for the trajectories of magnetic field lines in the DIII-D is constructed in magnetic coordinates from the experimental EFIT Grad-Shafranov solver [Lao, L, et al., Fusion Sci. Technol. 48, 968 (2005)] for the shot 115,467 at 3000 ms in the DIII-D. A symplectic mathematical map is used to integrate field lines in the DIII-D. A numerical algorithm [Ali, H., et al., Radiat. Eff. Def. Solids Inc. Plasma Sc. Plasma Tech. 165, 83

Wpływ informatyzacji Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Poznaniu na zmiany organizacyjne i rozwój usług bibliotecznych

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Piotr Karwasiński

2015-12-01

Full Text Available W artykule omówiono zagadnienia związane z procesami informatyzacji Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Poznaniu. W celu dokładnego scharakteryzowania przemian, prócz rysu historycznego, przedstawiono obszary, które wyraźnie poprawiły jakość pracy personelu i obsługę czytelników oraz przyczyniły się do poznania, upowszechniania i wdrażania nowoczesnych rozwiązań technologicznych. Zaprezentowano proces zmian w zakresie funkcjonowania systemu biblioteczno-informacyjnego Horizon i współpracy z narodowym katalogiem centralnym NUKAT. Opisano etapy rozwoju elektronicznej przestrzeni informacyjnej, w tym budowania elektronicznych zasobów wiedzy i tworzenia narzędzi do ich obsługi i wykorzystania w procesach wyszukiwania źródeł informacji. Zaprezentowano Bibliotekę Uniwersytecką jako partnera w aranżowaniu instytucjonalnych platform cyfrowych do deponowania i udostępniania dorobku intelektualnego społeczności naukowej Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu. Wskazano także funkcjonalność zaprojektowanych i wdrożonych innowacyjnych usług wirtualnych pakietu Libsmart, optymalizujących funkcjonowanie Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej.

Emergence of virulence to SrTmp in the Ug99 race group of wheat stem rust, Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici, in Africa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Patpour, M.; Hovmøller, M. S.; Justesen, A. F.

2016-01-01

of wheat fields in Africa (Kenya, 9; Uganda, 28; Rwanda, 41; and Egypt, 6) were sent to the Global Rust Reference Center (GRRC, Denmark) for race analysis. Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt) samples were recovered on cv. Morocco, and resulting urediniospores of 53 single-pustule isolates were......Tmp) to confirm their virulence/avirulence combinations to Sr24, Sr31, Sr36, and SrTmp. Race TTKTK was also detected at two locations in Uganda (Rubaya and Muko in Kabale region) and at five locations in Rwanda (Kinigi, Rwerere, Rufungo, Gatebe, and Kamenyo). Three isolates derived from stem rust samples...

Lr67/Yr46 confers adult plant resistance to stem rust and powdery mildew in wheat.

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera-Foessel, Sybil A; Singh, Ravi P; Lillemo, Morten; Huerta-Espino, Julio; Bhavani, Sridhar; Singh, Sukhwinder; Lan, Caixia; Calvo-Salazar, Violeta; Lagudah, Evans S

2014-04-01

We demonstrate that Lr67/Yr46 has pleiotropic effect on stem rust and powdery mildew resistance and is associated with leaf tip necrosis. Genes are designated as Sr55, Pm46 and Ltn3 , respectively. Wheat (Triticum aestivum) accession RL6077, known to carry the pleiotropic slow rusting leaf and yellow rust resistance genes Lr67/Yr46 in Thatcher background, displayed significantly lower stem rust (P. graminis tritici; Pgt) and powdery mildew (Blumeria graminis tritici; Bgt) severities in Kenya and in Norway, respectively, compared to its recurrent parent Thatcher. We investigated the resistance of RL6077 to stem rust and powdery mildew using Avocet × RL6077 F6 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from two photoperiod-insensitive F3 families segregating for Lr67/Yr46. Greenhouse seedling tests were conducted with Mexican Pgt race RTR. Field evaluations were conducted under artificially initiated stem rust epidemics with Pgt races RTR and TTKST (Ug99 + Sr24) at Ciudad Obregon (Mexico) and Njoro (Kenya) during 2010-2011; and under natural powdery mildew epiphytotic in Norway at Ås and Hamar during 2011 and 2012. In Mexico, a mean reduction of 41 % on stem rust severity was obtained for RILs carrying Lr67/Yr46, compared to RILs that lacked the gene, whereas in Kenya the difference was smaller (16 %) but significant. In Norway, leaf tip necrosis was associated with Lr67/Yr46 and RILs carrying Lr67/Yr46 showed a 20 % reduction in mean powdery mildew severity at both sites across the 2 years of evaluation. Our study demonstrates that Lr67/Yr46 confers partial resistance to stem rust and powdery mildew and is associated with leaf tip necrosis. The corresponding pleiotropic, or tightly linked, genes, designated as Sr55, Pm46, and Ltn3, can be utilized to provide broad-spectrum durable disease resistance in wheat.

New Seeds are Resistant to Wheat Stem Rust (Ug99) Multinational Programme Supported by FAO and IAEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2013-01-01

Full text: A multinational effort supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization marked a key milestone this week when a Kenyan university debuted two new varieties of disease-resistant wheat to the nation's farmers. Over the past two days, thousands of Kenyan farmers have visited Eldoret University in western Kenya for a two-day agriculture fair highlighting the latest farming technologies. Supporting the development of the new varieties were the IAEA's Technical Cooperation Department and the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture. They manage an interregional Technical Cooperation project to develop varieties of wheat that are resistant to a devastating type of fungus, causing a disease known as wheat stem rust. Wheat stem rust under control for over 30 years, but a resurgence of the disease was discovered in 1999 in Uganda that swiftly spread to neighbouring Kenya. The wheat stem rust, caused by the strain of the fungus known as Ug99, named after its place and year of origin, has since spread to Iran, Yemen and South Africa and threatens crops as far away as India as spores are carried by wind. Parasitic rusts threaten global wheat production, reducing plant growth and crop yields. The disease can destroy up to 70-100 percent of the yield of wheat crop if not prevented. 'Improving food security in developing countries through the use of nuclear techniques is an important priority of the IAEA', said IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano. 'I am pleased that we have been able to make an important contribution to fighting wheat rust'. 'Wheat rusts, particularly the Ug99 strain, are a major threat to food security because rust epidemics can result in devastating yield losses. This international project involving affected countries, plant scientists and breeders and international organizations is a major breakthrough. It clearly shows the benefits of FAO/IAEA collaboration and that

The Past, Present, and Future of Preimplantation Genetic Testing.

Science.gov (United States)

Imudia, Anthony N; Plosker, Shayne

2016-06-01

Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) of oocytes and embryos is the earliest form of prenatal testing. PGT requires in vitro fertilization for embryo creation. In the past 25 years, the use of PGT has increased dramatically. The indications of PGT include identification of embryos harboring single-gene disorders, chromosomal structural abnormalities, chromosomal numeric abnormalities, and mitochondrial disorders; gender selection; and identifying unaffected, HLA-matched embryos to permit the creation of a savior sibling. PGT is not without risks, limitations, or ethical controversies. This review discusses the techniques and clinical applications of different forms of PGT and the debate surrounding its associated uncertainty and expanded use. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Geology of the U12n.07 UG-3 drill hole, area 12, Nevada Test Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Terry, S.S.; Cunningham, M.J.

1975-11-01

The U12n.07 UG-3 horizontal drill hole, located near the eastern edge of the center of Rainier Mesa, Nevada Test Site, was drilled to a total depth of 809 m (2,653 ft). This hole was drilled to further evaluate the tunnel-level stratigraph, and structure southwest of the U12n tunnel complex. The drill hole is collared in the middle of Tertiary tunnel bed 3A and penetrates upsection through tunnel beds 3 and 4 and terminates in subunit 4K, all of Tertiary age. Stratigraphy, structure, engineering geology, and physical properties and their relation to tunnel engineering are discussed

Perswazyjność komunikatów reklamowych w Internecie na podstawie analizy usług finansowych SKOK-ów

OpenAIRE

Idzik, Beata

2014-01-01

Praca jest wynikiem kilkuletnich obserwacji praktycznej strony funkcjonowania reklamy w zakresie usług finansowych. Autorka starała się oddać wyraz swojemu zainteresowaniu psychologią konsumenta, marketingiem w sektorze finansowym a także fascynacji możliwościom, jakie stwarzają w tym zakresie nowe technologie oparte na Internecie. Praca ma charakter teoretyczno - badawczy. W założeniach metodologicznych sformułowano problem badawczy, cele oraz cztery hipotezy badawcze, które poddano wery...

Use of preimplantation genetic diagnosis and preimplantation genetic screening in the United States: a Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Writing Group paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Ginsburg, Elizabeth S; Baker, Valerie L; Racowsky, Catherine; Wantman, Ethan; Goldfarb, James; Stern, Judy E

2011-10-01

To comprehensively report Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) member program usage of preimplantation genetic testing (PGT), preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for diagnosis of specific conditions, and preimplantation genetic screening for aneuploidy (PGS). Retrospective study. United States SART cohort data. Women undergoing a PGT cycle in which at least one embryo underwent biopsy. PGT. PGT use, indications, and delivery rates. Of 190,260 fresh, nondonor assisted reproductive technology (ART) cycles reported to SART CORS in 2007-2008, 8,337 included PGT. Of 6,971 cycles with a defined indication, 1,382 cycles were for genetic diagnosis, 3,645 for aneuploidy screening (PGS), 527 for translocation, and 1,417 for elective sex election. Although the total number of fresh, autologous cycles increased by 3.6% from 2007 to 2008, the percentage of cycles with PGT decreased by 5.8% (4,293 in 2007 and 4,044 in 2008). As a percentage of fresh, nondonor ART cycles, use dropped from 4.6% (4,293/93,433) in 2007 to 4.2% (4,044/96,827) in 2008. The primary indication for PGT was PGS: cycles performed for this indication decreased (-8.0%). PGD use for single-gene defects (+3.2%), elective sex selection (+5.3%), and translocation analysis (+0.5%) increased. PGT usage varied significantly by geographical region. PGT usage in the United States decreased between 2007 and 2008 owing to a decrease in PGS. Use of elective sex selection increased. High transfer cancellation rates correlated with reduced live-birth rates for some PGT indications. Copyright © 2011 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adopting genetics: motivations and outcomes of personal genomic testing in adult adoptees.

Science.gov (United States)

Baptista, Natalie M; Christensen, Kurt D; Carere, Deanna Alexis; Broadley, Simon A; Roberts, J Scott; Green, Robert C

2016-09-01

American adult adoptees may possess limited information about their biological families and turn to direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing (PGT) for genealogical and medical information. We investigated the motivations and outcomes of adoptees undergoing PGT using data from the Impact of Personal Genomics (PGen) Study. The PGen Study surveyed new 23andMe and Pathway Genomics customers before and 6 months after receiving PGT results. Exploratory analyses compared adoptees' and nonadoptees' PGT attitudes, expectations, and experiences. We evaluated the association of adoption status with motivations for testing and postdisclosure actions using logistic regression models. Of 1,607 participants, 80 (5%) were adopted. As compared with nonadoptees, adoptees were more likely to cite limited knowledge of family health history (OR = 10.1; 95% CI = 5.7-19.5) and the opportunity to learn genetic disease risks (OR = 2.7; 95% CI = 1.6-4.8) as strong motivations for PGT. Of 922 participants who completed 6-month follow-up, there was no significant association between adoption status and PGT-motivated health-care utilization or health-behavior change. PGT allows adoptees to gain otherwise inaccessible information about their genetic disease risks and ancestry, helping them to fill the void of an incomplete family health history.Genet Med 18 9, 924-932.

The role of unattended ground sensors (UGS) in regional confidence building and arms control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vannoni, M.; Duggan, R.

1997-03-01

Although the Cold War has ended, the world has not become more peaceful. Without the stability provided by an international system dominated by two super-powers, local conflicts are more likely to escalate. Agreements to counter destabilizing pressures in regional conflicts can benefit from the use of cooperative monitoring. Cooperative monitoring is the collecting, analyzing, and sharing of information among parties to an agreement. Ground sensor technologies can contribute to the collection of relevant information. If implemented with consideration for local conditions, cooperative monitoring can build confidence, strengthen existing agreements, and set the stage for continued progress. This presentation describes two examples: the Israeli-Egyptian Sinai agreements of the 1970s and a conceptual example for the contemporary Korean Peninsula. The Sinai was a precedent for the successful use of UGS within the context of cooperative monitoring. The Korean Peninsula is the world`s largest military confrontation. Future confidence building measures that address the security needs of both countries could decrease the danger of conflict and help create an environment for a peace agreement.

Diuron treatment reveals the different roles of two cyclic electron transfer pathways in photosystem II in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Yujian; Chen, Si; Fan, Xiaoji; Song, Hao; Li, Xingxing; Xu, Jiahui; Qian, Haifeng

2017-04-01

Three ecotypes of Arabidopsis thaliana, ecotype Columbia (Wild type, Wt) and two mutants (pgr5 and ndf4), were used to evaluate the effects of diuron on photosynthetic activity of A. thaliana. It was found that diuron adversely affected the fresh weight and chlorophyll content of the plants. Chlorophyll fluorescence studies determined that the pgr5 mutant was more sensitive to diuron than Wt and the ndf4 mutant. Gene expression analysis revealed different roles for the two cyclic electron transfer (CET) pathways, NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (NDH) and proton gradient regulation (PGR5) pathways, in the plant after diuron treatment. For example, a gene in the NDH pathway, lhca5, was activated in the low dose (LD) group in the pgr5 mutant, but was down-regulated in the moderate dose (MD) group, along with two other NDH-related genes (ppl2 and ndhH). In the PGR5 pathway, the pgr5 gene was functional under conditions of increased stress (MD group), and was up-regulated to a greater extent in the ndf4 mutant than that in the Wt and pgr5 mutant. Our results suggest that the PGR5 pathway in plants is more important than the NDH pathway during resistance to environmental stress. Deficiencies in the PGR5 pathway could not be counteracted by the NDH pathway, but deficiencies in the NDH pathway could be overcome by stimulating PGR5. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Conserved loci of leaf and stem rust fungi of wheat share synteny interrupted by lineage-specific influx of repeat elements

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Fellers John P

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Wheat leaf rust (Puccinia triticina Eriks; Pt and stem rust fungi (P. graminis f.sp. tritici; Pgt are significant economic pathogens having similar host ranges and life cycles, but different alternate hosts. The Pt genome, currently estimated at 135 Mb, is significantly larger than Pgt, at 88 Mb, but the reason for the expansion is unknown. Three genomic loci of Pt conserved proteins were characterized to gain insight into gene content, genome complexity and expansion. Results A bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC library was made from P. triticina race 1, BBBD and probed with Pt homologs of genes encoding two predicted Pgt secreted effectors and a DNA marker mapping to a region of avirulence. Three BACs, 103 Kb, 112 Kb, and 166 Kb, were sequenced, assembled, and open reading frames were identified. Orthologous genes were identified in Pgt and local conservation of gene order (microsynteny was observed. Pairwise protein identities ranged from 26 to 99%. One Pt BAC, containing a RAD18 ortholog, shares syntenic regions with two Pgt scaffolds, which could represent both haplotypes of Pgt. Gene sequence is diverged between the species as well as within the two haplotypes. In all three BAC clones, gene order is locally conserved, however, gene shuffling has occurred relative to Pgt. These regions are further diverged by differing insertion loci of LTR-retrotransposon, Gypsy, Copia, Mutator, and Harbinger mobile elements. Uncharacterized Pt open reading frames were also found; these proteins are high in lysine and similar to multiple proteins in Pgt. Conclusions The three Pt loci are conserved in gene order, with a range of gene sequence divergence. Conservation of predicted haustoria expressed secreted protein genes between Pt and Pgt is extended to the more distant poplar rust, Melampsora larici-populina. The loci also reveal that genome expansion in Pt is in part due to higher occurrence of repeat-elements in this species.

Deep ancestry of programmed genome rearrangement in lampreys.

Science.gov (United States)

Timoshevskiy, Vladimir A; Lampman, Ralph T; Hess, Jon E; Porter, Laurie L; Smith, Jeramiah J

2017-09-01

In most multicellular organisms, the structure and content of the genome is rigorously maintained over the course of development. However some species have evolved genome biologies that permit, or require, developmentally regulated changes in the physical structure and content of the genome (programmed genome rearrangement: PGR). Relatively few vertebrates are known to undergo PGR, although all agnathans surveyed to date (several hagfish and one lamprey: Petromyzon marinus) show evidence of large scale PGR. To further resolve the ancestry of PGR within vertebrates, we developed probes that allow simultaneous tracking of nearly all sequences eliminated by PGR in P. marinus and a second lamprey species (Entosphenus tridentatus). These comparative analyses reveal conserved subcellular structures (lagging chromatin and micronuclei) associated with PGR and provide the first comparative embryological evidence in support of the idea that PGR represents an ancient and evolutionarily stable strategy for regulating inherent developmental/genetic conflicts between germline and soma. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A novel Robertsonian translocation event leads to transfer of a stem rust resistance gene (Sr52) effective against race Ug99 from Dasypyrum villosum into bread wheat.

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Qi, L L; Pumphrey, M O; Friebe, Bernd; Zhang, P; Qian, C; Bowden, R L; Rouse, M N; Jin, Y; Gill, B S

2011-06-01

Stem rust (Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn.) (the causal agent of wheat stem rust) race Ug99 (also designated TTKSK) and its derivatives have defeated several important stem rust resistance genes widely used in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production, rendering much of the worldwide wheat acreage susceptible. In order to identify new resistance sources, a large collection of wheat relatives and genetic stocks maintained at the Wheat Genetic and Genomic Resources Center was screened. The results revealed that most accessions of the diploid relative Dasypyrum villosum (L.) Candargy were highly resistant. The screening of a set of wheat-D. villosum chromosome addition lines revealed that the wheat-D. villosum disomic addition line DA6V#3 was moderately resistant to race Ug99. The objective of the present study was to produce and characterize compensating wheat-D. villosum whole arm Robertsonian translocations (RobTs) involving chromosomes 6D of wheat and 6V#3 of D. villosum through the mechanism of centric breakage-fusion. Seven 6V#3-specific EST-STS markers were developed for screening F(2) progeny derived from plants double-monosomic for chromosomes 6D and 6V#3. Surprisingly, although 6D was the target chromosome, all recovered RobTs involved chromosome 6A implying a novel mechanism for the origin of RobTs. Homozygous translocations (T6AS·6V#3L and T6AL·6V#3S) with good plant vigor and full fertility were selected from F(3) families. A stem rust resistance gene was mapped to the long arm 6V#3L in T6AS·6V#3L and was designated as Sr52. Sr52 is temperature-sensitive and is most effective at 16°C, partially effective at 24°C, and ineffective at 28°C. The T6AS·6V#3L stock is a new source of resistance to Ug99, is cytogenetically stable, and may be useful in wheat improvement.

Role of plant growth regulators and a saprobic fungus in enhancement of metal phytoextraction potential and stress alleviation in pearl millet.

Science.gov (United States)

Firdaus-e-Bareen; Shafiq, Muhammad; Jamil, Sidra

2012-10-30

"Assisted phytoextraction" involving application of chemical additives such as plant growth regulators (PGRs) has become a trend in phytoremediation technology. This study identifies a cost-effective, naturally available crude PGR (PGR1) that produces the same effects as the commercial PGR (PGR2), increasing metal uptake by plants and the reduction of metal stress. Assisted phytoextraction by pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) from a multi-metal (Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Na and Zn) contaminated soil medium with tannery solid waste (TSW) soil amendments of 5 and 10%, was evaluated in a full-factorial pot trial with PGR1, PGR2 and Trichoderma pseudokoningii as factors. The effects of these phytoextraction assistants were measured through dry biomass production, heavy metal uptake, stress tolerance enzymes catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD), soluble protein content of plant, and phytoextraction efficiency. Dry biomass and multi-metal accumulation were the highest in the soil treatments with a combined application of PGR1, PGR2 and T. pseudokoningii and the lowest in the control. The soluble protein contents and the SOD and CAT values were the highest in the 10% TSW treatment provided with PGR2+T. pseudokoningii, while the lowest were in the control. Thus, application of crude PGR in combination with other phytoextraction assistants can increase biomass production as well as multi-metal accumulation in plants. However, the biochemical properties of the plant depend on the level of TSW stress in the soil treatment as well as the type of phytoextraction assistants. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Structural delineation of a quaternary, cleavage-dependent epitope at the gp41-gp120 interface on intact HIV-1 Env trimers.

Science.gov (United States)

Blattner, Claudia; Lee, Jeong Hyun; Sliepen, Kwinten; Derking, Ronald; Falkowska, Emilia; de la Peña, Alba Torrents; Cupo, Albert; Julien, Jean-Philippe; van Gils, Marit; Lee, Peter S; Peng, Wenjie; Paulson, James C; Poignard, Pascal; Burton, Dennis R; Moore, John P; Sanders, Rogier W; Wilson, Ian A; Ward, Andrew B

2014-05-15

All previously characterized broadly neutralizing antibodies to the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein (Env) target one of four major sites of vulnerability. Here, we define and structurally characterize a unique epitope on Env that is recognized by a recently discovered family of human monoclonal antibodies (PGT151-PGT158). The PGT151 epitope is comprised of residues and glycans at the interface of gp41 and gp120 within a single protomer and glycans from both subunits of a second protomer and represents a neutralizing epitope that is dependent on both gp120 and gp41. Because PGT151 binds only to properly formed, cleaved trimers, this distinctive property, and its ability to stabilize Env trimers, has enabled the successful purification of mature, cleaved Env trimers from the cell surface as a complex with PGT151. Here we compare the structural and functional properties of membrane-extracted Env trimers from several clades with those of the soluble, cleaved SOSIP gp140 trimer. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Zasady ujawniania aktywów biologicznychw sprawozdaniach finansowych jednostek rolniczychwedług Międzynarodowych StandardówSprawozdawczości Finansowej

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teresa Kiziukiewicz

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Charakterystycznym dla przedsiębiorstw rolniczych składnikiem aktywów są aktywa biologiczne. Wyróżnia je fakt podlegania przemianie biologicznej, wskutek której przekształcają się one w produkty rolnicze lub inne aktywa biologiczne. W związku z tą specyfiką powstaje problem odpowiedniej prezentacji informacji o nich. W artykule są przedstawione zasady i zakres ujawnień o aktywach biologicznych w sprawozdaniu finansowym i dołączanych do niego raportach szczegółowych, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem problemów wyceny według wartości godziwej.

Remodeling of the Cervix and Parturition in Mice Lacking the Progesterone Receptor B Isoform1

Science.gov (United States)

Yellon, Steven M.; Oshiro, Bryan T.; Chhaya, Tejas Y.; Lechuga, Thomas J.; Dias, Rejane M.; Burns, Alexandra E.; Force, Lindsey; Apostolakis, Ede M.

2011-01-01

Withdrawal of progestational support for pregnancy is part of the final common pathways for parturition, but the role of nuclear progesterone receptor (PGR) isoforms in this process is not known. To determine if the PGR-B isoform participates in cervical remodeling at term, cervices were obtained from mice lacking PGR-B (PGR-BKO) and from wild-type (WT) controls before or after birth. PGR-BKO mice gave birth to viable pups at the same time as WT controls during the early morning of Day 19 postbreeding. Morphological analyses indicated that by the day before birth, cervices from PGR-BKO and WT mice had increased in size, with fewer cell nuclei/area as well as diminished collagen content and structure, as evidenced by optical density of picrosirius red-stained sections, compared to cervices from nonpregnant mice. Moreover, increased numbers of resident macrophages, but not neutrophils, were found in the prepartum cervix of PGR-BKO compared to nonpregnant mice, parallel to findings in WT mice. These results suggest that PGR-B does not contribute to the growth or degradation of the extracellular matrix or proinflammatory processes associated with recruitment of macrophages in the cervix leading up to birth. Rather, other receptors may contribute to the progesterone-dependent mechanism that promotes remodeling of the cervix during pregnancy and in the proinflammatory process associated with ripening before parturition. PMID:21613631

Coordinated Regulation Among Progesterone, Prostaglandins, and EGF-Like Factors in Human Ovulatory Follicles.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Yohan; Wilson, Kalin; Hannon, Patrick R; Rosewell, Katherine L; Brännström, Mats; Akin, James W; Curry, Thomas E; Jo, Misung

2017-06-01

In animal models, the luteinizing hormone surge increases progesterone (P4) and progesterone receptor (PGR), prostaglandins (PTGs), and epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like factors that play essential roles in ovulation. However, little is known about the expression, regulation, and function of these key ovulatory mediators in humans. To determine when and how these key ovulatory mediators are induced after the luteinizing hormone surge in human ovaries. Timed periovulatory follicles were obtained from cycling women. Granulosa/lutein cells were collected from in vitro fertilization patients. The in vivo and in vitro expression of PGR, PTG synthases and transporters, and EGF-like factors were examined at the level of messenger RNA and protein. PGR binding to specific genes was assessed. P4 and PTGs in conditioned media were measured. PGR, PTGS2, and AREG expressions dramatically increased in ovulatory follicles at 12 to 18 hours after human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). In human granulosa/lutein cell cultures, hCG increased P4 and PTG production and the expression of PGR, specific PTG synthases and transporters, and EGF-like factors, mimicking in vivo expression patterns. Inhibitors for P4/PGR and EGF-signaling pathways reduced hCG-induced increases in PTG production and the expression of EGF-like factors. PGR bound to the PTGS2, PTGES, and SLCO2A1 genes. This report demonstrated the time-dependent induction of PGR, AREG, and PTGS2 in human periovulatory follicles. In vitro studies indicated that collaborative actions of P4/PGR and EGF signaling are required for hCG-induced increases in PTG production and potentiation of EGF signaling in human periovulatory granulosa cells. Copyright © 2017 Endocrine Society

Personal Genomic Testing for Cancer Risk: Results From the Impact of Personal Genomics Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gray, Stacy W; Gollust, Sarah E; Carere, Deanna Alexis; Chen, Clara A; Cronin, Angel; Kalia, Sarah S; Rana, Huma Q; Ruffin, Mack T; Wang, Catharine; Roberts, J Scott; Green, Robert C

2017-02-20

Purpose Significant concerns exist regarding the potential for unwarranted behavior changes and the overuse of health care resources in response to direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing (PGT). However, little is known about customers' behaviors after PGT. Methods Longitudinal surveys were given to new customers of 23andMe (Mountain View, CA) and Pathway Genomics (San Diego, CA). Survey data were linked to individual-level PGT results through a secure data transfer process. Results Of the 1,042 customers who completed baseline and 6-month surveys (response rate, 71.2%), 762 had complete cancer-related data and were analyzed. Most customers reported that learning about their genetic risk of cancers was a motivation for testing (colorectal, 88%; prostate, 95%; breast, 94%). No customers tested positive for pathogenic mutations in highly penetrant cancer susceptibility genes. A minority of individuals received elevated single nucleotide polymorphism-based PGT cancer risk estimates (colorectal, 24%; prostate, 24%; breast, 12%). At 6 months, customers who received elevated PGT cancer risk estimates were not significantly more likely to change their diet, exercise, or advanced planning behaviors or engage in cancer screening, compared with individuals at average or reduced risk. Men who received elevated PGT prostate cancer risk estimates changed their vitamin and supplement use more than those at average or reduced risk (22% v 7.6%, respectively; adjusted odds ratio, 3.41; 95% CI, 1.44 to 8.18). Predictors of 6-month behavior include baseline behavior (exercise, vitamin or supplement use, and screening), worse health status (diet and vitamin or supplement use), and older age (advanced planning, screening). Conclusion Most adults receiving elevated direct-to-consumer PGT single nucleotide polymorphism-based cancer risk estimates did not significantly change their diet, exercise, advanced care planning, or cancer screening behaviors.

The discourse around usefulness, morality, risk and trust: a focus group study on prenatal genetic testing.

Science.gov (United States)

Pivetti, Monica; Montali, Lorenzo; Simonetti, Giorgia

2012-12-01

This study explores the underlying values and beliefs that guide women's reasoning on prenatal genetic test (PGT) uptake, as framed by their own words, during a group discussion, in a Catholic country such as Italy. Women's reasoning was explored by means of five focus group consisting of seven pregnant women and 13 new mothers. The focus group material content was analysed using the Nudist software. The discourse around PGT was rooted into four frames of reference: The usefulness dimension was used to express the positions in favour of PGT, whereas morality, risk and trust were used to express negative evaluations on such a technology. Participants advocated for themselves the choice of being tested, besides giving some credit to the partner's opinion. Moreover, participants reported little knowledge on PGT. The research shed some light on the frames of reference used by participants to build their positions on PGT uptake, confirming the public's ability to translate scientific accounts into personally meaningful information. A more complete understanding of the reasons for decisions to test would help counsellors to better communicate with women and couples, and to better assist them to make a better informed testing decision. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Uterine progesterone signaling is a target for metformin therapy in PCOS-like rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Min; Zhang, Yuehui; Feng, Jiaxing; Xu, Xue; Zhang, Jiao; Zhao, Wei; Guo, Xiaozhu; Li, Juan; Vestin, Edvin; Cui, Peng; Li, Xin; Wu, Xiao-Ke; Brännström, Mats; Shao, Linus R; Billig, Håkan

2018-05-01

Impaired progesterone (P4) signaling is linked to endometrial dysfunction and infertility in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Here, we report for the first time that elevated expression of progesterone receptor (PGR) isoforms A and B parallels increased estrogen receptor (ER) expression in PCOS-like rat uteri. The aberrant PGR-targeted gene expression in PCOS-like rats before and after implantation overlaps with dysregulated expression of Fkbp52 and Ncoa2 , two genes that contribute to the development of uterine P4 resistance. In vivo and in vitro studies of the effects of metformin on the regulation of the uterine P4 signaling pathway under PCOS conditions showed that metformin directly inhibits the expression of PGR and ER along with the regulation of several genes that are targeted dependently or independently of PGR-mediated uterine implantation. Functionally, metformin treatment corrected the abnormal expression of cell-specific PGR and ER and some PGR-target genes in PCOS-like rats with implantation. Additionally, we documented how metformin contributes to the regulation of the PGR-associated MAPK/ERK/p38 signaling pathway in the PCOS-like rat uterus. Our data provide novel insights into how metformin therapy regulates uterine P4 signaling molecules under PCOS conditions. © 2018 Society for Endocrinology.

High rabbit abundance proves detrimental to the population growth rate in European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus L. extensive breeding enclosures

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L. Ruiz-Aizpurua

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus L. is a key prey species in Mediterranean ecosystems that has declined in its natural ranges as a result of diseases and loss of habitat. This situation has led to the production of wild rabbits in enclosures in which they can acclimate and breed. The efficiency of these enclosures as extensive breeding systems is defined by their population growth rate (PGR. The aim of this study is to analyse the effect of rabbit abundance on the PGR. This has been done by creating general linear models to explain autumn and spring PGR with the use of rabbit abundance estimates, enclosure size, aerial predation and previous PGR as possible explanatory variables. Rabbit abundance and enclosure size negatively affected the autumn PGR, while only rabbit abundance affected the spring PGR in the best-fit models. It is suggested that maintaining rabbit densities at fewer than 30 rabbits per hectare might help to optimise the efficiency inside enclosures.

Molecular Cytogenetic Characterization of two Triticum–Secale–Thinopyrum Trigeneric Hybrids Exhibiting Superior Resistance to Fusarium Head Blight, Leaf Rust, and Stem Rust Race Ug99

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Yi Dai

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Fusarium head blight (FHB, leaf rust, and stem rust are the most destructive fungal diseases in current world wheat production. The diploid wheatgrass, Thinopyrum elongatum (Host Dewey (2n = 2x = 14, EE is an excellent source of disease resistance genes. Two new Triticum–Secale–Thinopyrum trigeneric hybrids were derived from a cross between a hexaploid triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack, 2n = 6x = 42, AABBRR and a hexaploid Triticum trititrigia (2n = 6x = 42, AABBEE, were produced and analyzed using genomic in situ hybridization and molecular markers. The results indicated that line RE21 contained 14 A-chromosomes, 14 B-chromosomes, three pairs of R-chromosomes (4R, 6R, and 7R, and four pairs of E-chromosomes (1E, 2E, 3E, and 5E for a total chromosome number of 2n = 42. Line RE62 contained 14 A-chromosomes, 14 B-chromosomes, six pairs of R-chromosomes, and one pair of translocation chromosomes between chromosome 5R and 5E, for a total chromosome number of 2n = 42. At the seedling and adult growth stages under greenhouse conditions, line RE21 showed high levels of resistance to FHB, leaf rust, and stem rust race Ug99, and line RE62 was highly resistant to leaf rust and stem rust race Ug99. These two lines (RE21 and RE62 display superior disease resistance characteristics and have the potential to be utilized as valuable germplasm sources for future wheat improvement.

Molecular Cytogenetic Characterization of two Triticum-Secale-Thinopyrum Trigeneric Hybrids Exhibiting Superior Resistance to Fusarium Head Blight, Leaf Rust, and Stem Rust Race Ug99.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Yi; Duan, Yamei; Liu, Huiping; Chi, Dawn; Cao, Wenguang; Xue, Allen; Gao, Yong; Fedak, George; Chen, Jianmin

2017-01-01

Fusarium head blight (FHB), leaf rust, and stem rust are the most destructive fungal diseases in current world wheat production. The diploid wheatgrass, Thinopyrum elongatum (Host) Dewey (2 n = 2 x = 14, EE) is an excellent source of disease resistance genes. Two new Triticum-Secale-Thinopyrum trigeneric hybrids were derived from a cross between a hexaploid triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack, 2 n = 6 x = 42, AABBRR) and a hexaploid Triticum trititrigia (2 n = 6 x = 42, AABBEE), were produced and analyzed using genomic in situ hybridization and molecular markers. The results indicated that line RE21 contained 14 A-chromosomes, 14 B-chromosomes, three pairs of R-chromosomes (4R, 6R, and 7R), and four pairs of E-chromosomes (1E, 2E, 3E, and 5E) for a total chromosome number of 2 n = 42. Line RE62 contained 14 A-chromosomes, 14 B-chromosomes, six pairs of R-chromosomes, and one pair of translocation chromosomes between chromosome 5R and 5E, for a total chromosome number of 2 n = 42. At the seedling and adult growth stages under greenhouse conditions, line RE21 showed high levels of resistance to FHB, leaf rust, and stem rust race Ug99, and line RE62 was highly resistant to leaf rust and stem rust race Ug99. These two lines (RE21 and RE62) display superior disease resistance characteristics and have the potential to be utilized as valuable germplasm sources for future wheat improvement.

Molecular Characterization of wheat stem rust races in Kenya

Science.gov (United States)

Stem or black rust caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt) Erikss. & Henning causes severe losses to wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), historically threatening global wheat production. Characterizing prevalent isolates of Pgt would enhance the knowledge of population dynamics and evolution of t...

Pharmacokinetics of pioglitazone, a thiazolidinedione derivative, in male Naeini (Iranian fat-tailed) sheep

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ghoreishi, Sayed Mehdi; Rajaian, H.; Sheykhzade, Majid

2012-01-01

/kg) was administered to five male sheep. Blood samples were collected at various time intervals, and PGT concentration was measured by a validated high-performance liquid chromatography method. The data obtained were best fitted into a two-compartment model for the IV route, and non-compartmental approach for oral...... on blood parameters but there is no published study with respect to the feeding of TZDs in ruminants till now. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the bioavailability and several other pharmacokinetic parameters of PGT in sheep. A single intravenous (IV) or oral dose of PGT (10 mg...

Influence of Plant Growth Retardants on Quality of Codonopsis Radix

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Yinyin Liao

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Plant growth retardant (PGR refers to organics that can inhibit the cell division of plant stem tip sub-apical meristem cells or primordial meristem cell. They are widely used in the cultivation of rhizomatous functional plants; such as Codonopsis Radix, that is a famous Chinese traditional herb. However, it is still unclear whether PGR affects the medicinal quality of C. Radix. In the present study, amino acid analyses, targeted and non-targeted analyses by ultra-performance liquid chromatography combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-TOF-MS and gas chromatography-MS were used to analyze and compare the composition of untreated C. Radix and C. Radix treated with PGR. The contents of two key bioactive compounds, lobetyolin and atractylenolide III, were not affected by PGR treatment. The amounts of polysaccharides and some internal volatiles were significantly decreased by PGR treatment; while the free amino acids content was generally increased. Fifteen metabolites whose abundance were affected by PGR treatment were identified by UPLC-TOF-MS. Five of the up-regulated compounds have been reported to show immune activity, which might contribute to the healing efficacy (“buqi” of C. Radix. The results of this study showed that treatment of C. Radix with PGR during cultivation has economic benefits and affected some main bioactive compounds in C. Radix.

Mechanism of pyrogallol red oxidation induced by free radicals and reactive oxidant species. A kinetic and spectroelectrochemistry study.

Science.gov (United States)

Atala, E; Velásquez, G; Vergara, C; Mardones, C; Reyes, J; Tapia, R A; Quina, F; Mendes, M A; Speisky, H; Lissi, E; Ureta-Zañartu, M S; Aspée, A; López-Alarcón, C

2013-05-02

Pyrogallol red (PGR) presents high reactivity toward reactive (radical and nonradical) species (RS). This property of PGR, together with its characteristic spectroscopic absorption in the visible region, has allowed developing methodologies aimed at evaluating the antioxidant capacity of foods, beverages, and human fluids. These methods are based on the evaluation of the consumption of PGR induced by RS and its inhibition by antioxidants. However, at present, there are no reports regarding the degradation mechanism of PGR, limiting the extrapolation to how antioxidants behave in different systems comprising different RS. In the present study, we evaluate the kinetics of PGR consumption promoted by different RS (peroxyl radicals, peroxynitrite, nitrogen dioxide, and hypochlorite) using spectroscopic techniques and detection of product by HPLC mass spectrometry. The same pattern of oxidation and spectroscopic properties of the products is observed, independently of the RS employed. Mass analysis indicates the formation of only one product identified as a quinone derivative, excluding the formation of peroxides or hydroperoxides and/or chlorinated compounds, in agreement with FOX's assays and oxygen consumption experiments. Cyclic voltammetry, carried out at different pH's, shows an irreversible oxidation of PGR, indicating the initial formation of a phenoxy radical and a second charge transfer reaction generating an ortho-quinone derivative. Spectroelectrochemical oxidation of PGR shows oxidation products with identical UV-visible absorption properties to those observed in RS-induced oxidation.

Novel technologies emerging for preimplantation genetic diagnosis and preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy.

Science.gov (United States)

Sermon, Karen

2017-01-01

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) was introduced as an alternative to prenatal diagnosis: embryos cultured in vitro were analysed for a monogenic disease and only disease-free embryos were transferred to the mother, to avoid the termination of pregnancy with an affected foetus. It soon transpired that human embryos show a great deal of acquired chromosomal abnormalities, thought to explain the low success rate of IVF - hence preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A) was developed to select euploid embryos for transfer. Areas covered: PGD has followed the tremendous evolution in genetic analysis, with only a slight delay due to adaptations for diagnosis on small samples. Currently, next generation sequencing combining chromosome with single-base pair analysis is on the verge of becoming the golden standard in PGD and PGT-A. Papers highlighting the different steps in the evolution of PGD/PGT-A were selected. Expert commentary: Different methodologies used in PGD/PGT-A with their pros and cons are discussed.

Diet and exercise changes following direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Daiva Elena; Carere, Deanna Alexis; Wang, Catharine; Roberts, J Scott; Green, Robert C

2017-05-02

The impacts of direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing (PGT) on health behaviors such as diet and exercise are poorly understood. Our investigation aimed to evaluate diet and exercise changes following PGT and to determine if changes were associated with genetic test results obtained from PGT. Customers of 23andMe and Pathway Genomics completed a web-based survey prior to receiving PGT results (baseline) and 6 months post-results. Fruit and vegetable intake (servings/day), and light, vigorous and strength exercise frequency (days/week) were assessed. Changes in diet and exercise were examined using paired t-tests and linear regressions. Additional analyses examined whether outcomes differed by baseline self-reported health (SRH) or content of PGT results. Longitudinal data were available for 1,002 participants. Significant increases were observed for vegetable intake (mean Δ = 0.11 (95% CI = 0.05, 0.17), p = 0.0003) and strength exercise (Δ = 0.14 (0.03, 0.25), p = 0.0153). When stratified by SRH, significant increases were observed for all outcomes among lower SRH participants: fruit intake, Δ = 0.11 (0.02, 0.21), p = 0.0148; vegetable intake, Δ = 0.16 (0.07, 0.25), p = 0.0005; light exercise, Δ = 0.25 (0.03, 0.47), p = 0.0263; vigorous exercise, Δ = 0.23 (0.06, 0.41), p = 0.0097; strength exercise, Δ = 0.19 (0.01, 0.37), p = 0.0369. A significant change among higher SRH participants was only observed for light exercise, and in the opposite direction: Δ = -0.2468 (-0.06, -0.44), p = 0.0111. Genetic results were not consistently associated with any diet or exercise changes. The experience of PGT was associated with modest, mostly positive changes in diet and exercise. Associations were independent of genetic results from PGT.

An Improved Path-Generating Regulator for Two-Wheeled Robots to Track the Circle/Arc Passage

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Jun Dai

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The improved path-generating regulator (PGR is proposed to path track the circle/arc passage for two-wheeled robots. The PGR, which is a control method for robots so as to orient its heading toward the tangential direction of one of the curves belonging to the family of path functions, is applied to navigation problem originally. Driving environments for robots are usually roads, streets, paths, passages, and ridges. These tracks can be seen as they consist of straight lines and arcs. In the case of small interval, arc can be regarded as straight line approximately; therefore we extended the PGR to drive the robot move along circle/arc passage based on the theory that PGR to track the straight passage. In addition, the adjustable look-ahead method is proposed to improve the robot trajectory convergence property to the target circle/arc. The effectiveness is proved through MATLAB simulations on both the comparisons with the PGR and the improved PGR with adjustable look-ahead method. The results of numerical simulations show that the adjustable look-ahead method has better convergence property and stronger capacity of resisting disturbance.

Genetic mapping of stem rust resistance to Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici race TRTTF in the Canadian wheat cultivar 'Harvest'

Science.gov (United States)

Stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis Pers.:Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn.(Pgt), is a destructive disease of wheat that can be controlled by deploying effective stem rust resistance (Sr) genes. Highly virulent races of Pgt in Africa have been detected and characterized. These include race T...

ER, PgR, Ki67, p27Kip1, and histological grade as predictors of pathological complete response in patients with HER2-positive breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy using taxanes followed by fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide concomitant with trastuzumab

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurozumi, Sasagu; Inoue, Kenichi; Takei, Hiroyuki; Matsumoto, Hiroshi; Kurosumi, Masafumi; Horiguchi, Jun; Takeyoshi, Izumi; Oyama, Tetsunari

2015-01-01

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) with taxanes followed by fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FEC), and concurrent trastuzumab is a potent regimen for HER2 over-expressing breast cancer. A high pathological complete response (pCR) rate has been achieved using this regimen; however, the predictive factors and prognostic effects of pCR currently remain unclear. In the present study, we determined whether pCR was related to histological grade (HG) and several biological factors including p27 Kip1 . We also assessed the prognosis of the pCR and non-pCR groups, and expected differences between those positive and negative for lymph node metastasis after chemotherapy. A total of 129 Japanese women with HER2-positive invasive breast cancer received either paclitaxel or docetaxel followed by FEC, with the concomitant administration of trastuzumab. The statuses of HG, ER, PgR, Ki67, and p27 Kip1 were evaluated to determine their relationship with pCR. Relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were also analyzed for their relationship with pCR and pathological nodal involvement. pCR was obtained in 84 out of 129 patients and the pCR rate was 65.1 %. The pCR rates related to 5 factors were as follows: HG (grade 3, 70.0 % vs. grades 1–2, 36.8 %), ER (negative, 78.6 % vs. positive, 40.0 %), PgR (negative, 75.3 % vs. positive, 38.9 %), Ki67 (high, 72.0 % vs. low, 47.2 %), and p27 Kip1 (low, 71.0 % vs. high, 50.0 %). RFS was significantly better in the pCR group than in the non-pCR group (p = 0.018). Patients with remaining nodal disease in the pCR group had worse OS (p = 0.0002). High-HG, low-ER, low-PgR, high-Ki67, and low-p27 Kip1 were identified as predictive factors of pCR in NAC with trastuzumab, while pCR and negative nodes were predictive of better survivals. The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12885-015-1641-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Introducing Pharmacogenetics and Personalized Medicine via a Weblog

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Kaitlin Bova

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: To evaluate a weblog (blog-based course introducing pharmacogenetics (PGt and personalized medicine (PM relative to freshmen pharmacy students' knowledge base. Methods: Incoming freshmen pharmacy students were invited by email to enroll in a one semester-hour, elective, on-line blog-based course entitled "Personal Genome Evaluation". The course was offered during the students' first semester in college. A topic list related to PGt and PM was developed by a group of faculty with topics being presented via the blog once or twice weekly through week 14 of the 15 week semester. A pre-course and post-course survey was sent to the students to compare their knowledge base relative to general information, drug response related to PGt, and PM. Results: Fifty-one freshmen pharmacy students enrolled in the course and completed the pre-course survey and 49 of the 51 students completed the post-course survey. There was an increase in the students' general, PGt and PM knowledge base as evidenced by a statistically significant higher number of correct responses for 17 of 21 questions on the post-course survey as compared to the pre-course survey. Notably, following the course, students had an increased knowledge base relative to "genetic privacy", drug dosing based on metabolizer phenotype, and the breadth of PM, among other specific points. Conclusions: The study indicated that introducing PGt and PM via a blog format was feasible, increasing the students' knowledge of these emerging areas. The blog format is easily transferable and can be adopted by colleges/schools to introduce PGt and PM.   Type: Case Study

Knowledge and attitude of general pratictioners towards direct-to-consumer genomic tests: a survey conducted in Italy

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Anna Baroncini

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Personal genomic tests (PGT offered directly-to-consumers (DTC for complex disease risk assessment have raised several concerns regarding their potential adverse impact. To mitigate worries continuing professional education has been advocated and the central gatekeeper role of family physicians has been highlighted. Nevertheless, to date, only few studies have been published on awareness, involvement and attitudes of  primary healthcare providers on DTC marketing of PGT and, to the best of our knowledge, none in Italy.Methods: An exploratory survey to achieve information about knowledge and attitudes towards DTC-PGT of a selected group of family physicians participating to courses on predictive medicine and public health genomics was conducted. Results: A total amount of 114 partially or fully filled questionnaires was obtained. The majority of the primary care providers (68,4%  expressed that they are unaware that companies are selling genomic tests directly to consumers, while 31,6% was aware.  In terms of attitudes toward testing 61,1% of the aware respondents deemed the DTC-PGT for chronic complex diseases to be ‘‘not clinically useful.’’  The overwhelming majority of our respondents (95,6% felt unprepared to answer patients’ questions on DTC-PGT. If only aware respondents are considered this percentage results obviously  lower (86,1%, though still very high. Conclusion: The low percentage of aware respondents suggests that DTC advertising in the realm of genomic testing is still limited in Italy. Should DTC-PGT become more widely used, a comprehensive education program may be necessary to increase family physicians’ awareness and help them discuss testing with their patients. 

Identification and mapping of Sr46 from Aegilops tauschii accession CIae 25 conferring resistance to race TTKSK (Ug99) of wheat stem rust pathogen.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Guotai; Zhang, Qijun; Friesen, Timothy L; Rouse, Matthew N; Jin, Yue; Zhong, Shaobin; Rasmussen, Jack B; Lagudah, Evans S; Xu, Steven S

2015-03-01

Mapping studies confirm that resistance to Ug99 race of stem rust pathogen in Aegilops tauschii accession Clae 25 is conditioned by Sr46 and markers linked to the gene were developed for marker-assisted selection. The race TTKSK (Ug99) of Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici, the causal pathogen for wheat stem rust, is considered as a major threat to global wheat production. To address this threat, researchers across the world have been devoted to identifying TTKSK-resistant genes. Here, we report the identification and mapping of a stem rust resistance gene in Aegilops tauschii accession CIae 25 that confers resistance to TTKSK and the development of molecular markers for the gene. An F2 population of 710 plants from an Ae. tauschii cross CIae 25 × AL8/78 were first evaluated against race TPMKC. A set of 14 resistant and 116 susceptible F2:3 families from the F2 plants were then evaluated for their reactions to TTKSK. Based on the tests, 179 homozygous susceptible F2 plants were selected as the mapping population to identify the simple sequence repeat (SSR) and sequence tagged site (STS) markers linked to the gene by bulk segregant analysis. A dominant stem rust resistance gene was identified and mapped with 16 SSR and five new STS markers to the deletion bin 2DS5-0.47-1.00 of chromosome arm 2DS in which Sr46 was located. Molecular marker and stem rust tests on CIae 25 and two Ae. tauschii accessions carrying Sr46 confirmed that the gene in CIae 25 is Sr46. This study also demonstrated that Sr46 is temperature-sensitive being less effective at low temperatures. The marker validation indicated that two closely linked markers Xgwm210 and Xwmc111 can be used for marker-assisted selection of Sr46 in wheat breeding programs.

Sources of stem rust resistance in Ethiopian tetraploid wheat ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Stem or black rust of wheat caused by the fungus Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici Ericks and Henn (Pgt) is an important disease on wheat worldwide. Pgt is an obligate biotroph, heteroceous in its life cycle and heterothallic in mating type. Seedlings of 41 emmer (Triticum dicoccum), 56 durum (T. durum) wheat accessions were ...

Clinicopathologic Characteristics of Oestrogen Receptor-Positive/Progesterone Receptor-Negative/Her2-Negative Breast Cancer According to a Novel Definition of Negative Progesterone Receptor Status: A Large Population-Based Study from China.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

An-qi Li

Full Text Available A lack of progesterone receptor (PgR expression in oestrogen receptor-positive (ER+ tumours is associated with worse survival. PgR status is usually defined as positive or negative using 1% positive nuclei as a cut-off point. In this study, we aimed to assess the clinicopathologic characteristics of ER+/PgR-/HER2- tumours by comparing them with ER+/PgR+/HER2- tumours using a PgR cut-off point of 20% as a divisive criterion.We analysed 1,522 patients with primary breast cancer who had undergone surgery at the Cancer Center of Fudan University between 2012 and 2014. Age, grade, tumour size, lymph node status and lymphovascular invasion were assessed. Multinomial logistic regression, linear regression and chi-square test models were applied to assess associations between ER, PR and clinical features.ER+/PgR-/HER2- tumours showed poorer clinicopathologic characteristics relative to ER+/PgR+/HER2- tumours using a PgR threshold of 20% instead of 1%. The clinicopathologic characteristics did not differ between tumours with purely negative PgR expression and tumours with a PgR percentage ranging from 1% to 19%. The prognostic significance of PR expression appeared more pronounced in patients under a high Ki-67 status than those under a low Ki-67 status.Based on these findings, we propose the use of a novel threshold of 20% to define PgR status. Nevertheless, the impact of this new criterion on patient management and clinical treatment requires additional study.

Data on glycerol/tartaric acid-based copolymer containing ciprofloxacin for wound healing applications

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E. De Giglio

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This data article is related to our recently published research paper “Exploiting a new glycerol-based copolymer as a route to wound healing: synthesis, characterization and biocompatibility assessment", De Giglio et al. (Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces 136 (2015 600–611 [1]. The latter described a new copolymer derived from glycerol and tartaric acid (PGT. Herein, an investigation about the PGT-ciprofloxacin (CIP interactions by means of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR acquired in Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR mode and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC was reported. Moreover, CIP release experiments on CIP-PGT patches were performed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC at different pH values.

A Comparative Study of a Few Tests for Isomorphism in Planetary Gear Trains

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Rajasri Reddy

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Graph theory and Matrix methods are widely used by various kinematicians for synthesis and analysis of PGTs. Characteristic polynomial coefficients are used to detect isomorphism in Planetary Gear Trains (PGT. With the Eigen values and Eigen vectors method multiple matrix calculations are required. In case of Hamming number method a single Hamming matrix is enough to detect isomorphism in two PGTs and also determine structural aspects like symmetry easily [1]. Further using the Hamming matrix for a PGT, the number of possible combinations of levels that can be assigned to a given PGT [2] is identified. A review and comparison of Characteristic polynomial, Eigen vectors and Eigen value and Hamming number methods is presented.

Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing: User Motivations, Decision Making, and Perceived Utility of Results.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, J Scott; Gornick, Michele C; Carere, Deanna Alexis; Uhlmann, Wendy R; Ruffin, Mack T; Green, Robert C

2017-01-01

To describe the interests, decision making, and responses of consumers of direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing (DTC-PGT) services. Prior to 2013 regulatory restrictions on DTC-PGT services, 1,648 consumers from 2 leading companies completed Web surveys before and after receiving test results. Prior to testing, DTC-PGT consumers were as interested in ancestry (74% very interested) and trait information (72%) as they were in disease risks (72%). Among disease risks, heart disease (68% very interested), breast cancer (67%), and Alzheimer disease (66%) were of greatest interest prior to testing. Interest in disease risks was associated with female gender and poorer self-reported health (p decisions. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Hidden Lineage Complexity of Glycan-Dependent HIV-1 Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Uncovered by Digital Panning and Native-Like gp140 Trimer

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Linling He

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Germline precursors and intermediates of broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs are essential to the understanding of humoral response to HIV-1 infection and B-cell lineage vaccine design. Using a native-like gp140 trimer probe, we examined antibody libraries constructed from donor-17, the source of glycan-dependent PGT121-class bNAbs recognizing the N332 supersite on the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein. To facilitate this analysis, a digital panning method was devised that combines biopanning of phage-displayed antibody libraries, 900 bp long-read next-generation sequencing, and heavy/light (H/L-paired antibodyomics. In addition to single-chain variable fragments resembling the wild-type bNAbs, digital panning identified variants of PGT124 (a member of the PGT121 class with a unique insertion in the heavy chain complementarity-determining region 1, as well as intermediates of PGT124 exhibiting notable affinity for the native-like trimer and broad HIV-1 neutralization. In a competition assay, these bNAb intermediates could effectively compete with mouse sera induced by a scaffolded BG505 gp140.681 trimer for the N332 supersite. Our study thus reveals previously unrecognized lineage complexity of the PGT121-class bNAbs and provides an array of library-derived bNAb intermediates for evaluation of immunogens containing the N332 supersite. Digital panning may prove to be a valuable tool in future studies of bNAb diversity and lineage development.

Hidden Lineage Complexity of Glycan-Dependent HIV-1 Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Uncovered by Digital Panning and Native-Like gp140 Trimer.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Linling; Lin, Xiaohe; de Val, Natalia; Saye-Francisco, Karen L; Mann, Colin J; Augst, Ryan; Morris, Charles D; Azadnia, Parisa; Zhou, Bin; Sok, Devin; Ozorowski, Gabriel; Ward, Andrew B; Burton, Dennis R; Zhu, Jiang

2017-01-01

Germline precursors and intermediates of broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) are essential to the understanding of humoral response to HIV-1 infection and B-cell lineage vaccine design. Using a native-like gp140 trimer probe, we examined antibody libraries constructed from donor-17, the source of glycan-dependent PGT121-class bNAbs recognizing the N332 supersite on the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein. To facilitate this analysis, a digital panning method was devised that combines biopanning of phage-displayed antibody libraries, 900 bp long-read next-generation sequencing, and heavy/light (H/L)-paired antibodyomics. In addition to single-chain variable fragments resembling the wild-type bNAbs, digital panning identified variants of PGT124 (a member of the PGT121 class) with a unique insertion in the heavy chain complementarity-determining region 1, as well as intermediates of PGT124 exhibiting notable affinity for the native-like trimer and broad HIV-1 neutralization. In a competition assay, these bNAb intermediates could effectively compete with mouse sera induced by a scaffolded BG505 gp140.681 trimer for the N332 supersite. Our study thus reveals previously unrecognized lineage complexity of the PGT121-class bNAbs and provides an array of library-derived bNAb intermediates for evaluation of immunogens containing the N332 supersite. Digital panning may prove to be a valuable tool in future studies of bNAb diversity and lineage development.

Thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor is degraded by Salmonella enterica and Yersinia pestis.

Science.gov (United States)

Valls Serón, M; Haiko, J; DE Groot, P G; Korhonen, T K; Meijers, J C M

2010-10-01

 Pathogenic bacteria modulate the host coagulation system to evade immune responses or to facilitate dissemination through extravascular tissues. In particular, the important bacterial pathogens Salmonella enterica and Yersinia pestis intervene with the plasminogen/fibrinolytic system. Thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) has anti-fibrinolytic properties as the active enzyme (TAFIa) removes C-terminal lysine residues from fibrin, thereby attenuating accelerated plasmin formation.  Here, we demonstrate inactivation and cleavage of TAFI by homologous surface proteases, the omptins Pla of Y. pestis and PgtE of S. enterica. We show that omptin-expressing bacteria decrease TAFI activatability by thrombin-thrombomodulin and that the anti-fibrinolytic potential of TAFIa was reduced by recombinant Escherichia coli expressing Pla or PgtE. The functional impairment resulted from C-terminal cleavage of TAFI by the omptins.  Our results indicate that TAFI is degraded directly by the omptins PgtE of S. enterica and Pla of Y. pestis. This may contribute to the ability of PgtE and Pla to damage tissue barriers, such as fibrin, and thereby to enhance spread of S. enterica and Y. pestis during infection. © 2010 International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis.

Antioxidant activity characterization, phytochemical screening, and proximate analysis of Cermela Hutan (Phyllanthus gomphocarpus Hook. F) roots and leaves.

Science.gov (United States)

Bahari, Ebby-Anuar; Zaaba, Nur Eleza; Haron, Norhisham; Dasiman, Razif; Amom, Zulkhairi

2014-11-07

Roots and leaves of the Cermela Hutan (Phyllanthus gomphocarpus Hook. F) plant were studied to determine antioxidant activity, phytochemical compounds, proportion of carbohydrate, crude protein, moisture, ash, fat, total phenolic content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC). Ten percent (10%) aqueous extract from both Phyllanthus gomphocarpus roots (PGR) and leaves (PGL) were used in this study. Antioxidant activity characterization by TPC, TFC, Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP), 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activity, and phytochemical screening, as well as proximate analysis from both extracts were analyzed in this study. Phyllanthus gomphocarpus roots (PGR) and leaves (PGL) tested positive for flavonoid, saponin, tannins, and terpenoids, but PGR showed negative result for anthraquinones. In average weight of 100.0 g dry sample, the carbohydrates, protein, moisture, ash, fat, and energy content in PGR and PGL were 80.9%, 5.5%, 7.8%, 3.4%, 2.4%, and 367 Kcal/100g, and 66.5%, 14.8%, 10.7%, 6.5%, 1.5%, and 399 Kcal/100 g, respectively. Antioxidant assessments using FRAP and DPPH assay showed that PGL extracts possessed higher antioxidant capacity by reducing the ferric ion-TPTZ complex by 0.14 mg/ml ±0.0018 and higher scavenging activity, 83.83% ±0.54 as compared to PGR, 0.07 mg/ml ±0.0035 for FRAP and 62.87% ±1.33 for DPPH, respectively. The total phenolics content was significantly higher in PGL (208.77 mg GAE/g ±3.79) as compared to PGR (27.53 mg GAE/g ±0.42). However, there was no significant different in the total flavonoid contents for PGR (34.8 mg QE/g ±3.12) and PGL (32.43 mg QE/g ±3.92). Further investigations are suggested to isolate and characterize the other active constituents from this plant in combatting diseases.

One World, One Standard for Burn Care: Nursing's Role in Global Health

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Sheryl A Ramstad

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In 1978, a landmark United Nations conference in Alma-Ata declared the goal of health for all by the year 2000 (WHO, 1978. Yet, today significant disparities exist between the health care afforded individuals in resource-limited countries and those in the industrialized world. Nursing, as a global profession, can become a powerful force for change so that better health is universally achieved. Problem/Background: This project started with a partnership between a burn center in the United States and a pediatric burn center (Burn Center in Peru, a country in which it is estimated that 15,000 children endure burn injuries each year (Huby-Vidaurre, 2016. Most are under the age of five, and suffer scald burns from pots with hot liquids left to cool on the floors of their homes. Pressure garment therapy (PGT is a major treatment to reduce scarring for pediatric burn survivors in the United States since the early 1970s, but is unavailable in Peru. Strategy: The Doctor of Nursing Practice project leader worked with the Burn Center team to develop a plan to use PGT as an intervention to address disfiguring scarring among pediatric burn survivors, utilizing the twinning approach. Methods: This quality improvement project involved interdisciplinary collaboration and international partnerships between resource-rich and resource-challenged nations. Obtaining supplies needed to promote PGT in Peru required cultivating relationships with many people in the United States, including translators and interpreters to assist in overcoming language barriers among the participants, manufacturers and distributors of pressure garments to donate fabrics, and people regularly traveling to Peru who transported the donated PGT materials. It also involved working closely with the Burn Center team on developing a culture conducive to conforming to an international standard of practice. Results: Resources were successfully leveraged to build a sustainable PGT program for all

Outcomes important to burns patients during scar management and how they compare to the concepts captured in burn-specific patient reported outcome measures.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Laura L; Calvert, Melanie; Moiemen, Naiem; Deeks, Jonathan J; Bishop, Jonathan; Kinghorn, Philip; Mathers, Jonathan

2017-12-01

Pressure garment therapy (PGT) is an established treatment for the prevention and treatment of hypertrophic scarring; however, there is limited evidence for its effectiveness. Burn survivors often experience multiple issues many of which are not adequately captured in current PGT trial measures. To assess the effectiveness of PGT it is important to understand what outcomes matter to patients and to consider whether patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) can be used to ascertain the effect of treatments on patients' health-related quality of life. This study aimed to (a) understand the priorities and perspectives of adult burns patients and the parents of burns patients who have experienced PGT via in-depth qualitative data, and (b) compare these with the concepts captured within burn-specific PROMs. We undertook 40 semi-structured interviews with adults and parents of paediatric and adolescent burns patients who had experienced PGT to explore their priorities and perspectives on scar management. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. The outcomes interpreted within the interview data were then mapped against the concepts captured within burn-specific PROMs currently in the literature. Eight core outcome domains were identified as important to adult patients and parents: (1) scar characteristics and appearance, (2) movement and function, (3) scar sensation, (4) psychological distress, adjustments and a sense of normality, (5) body image and confidence, (6) engagement in activities, (7) impact on relationships, and (8) treatment burden. The outcome domains presented reflect a complex holistic patient experience of scar management and treatments such as PGT. Some currently available PROMs do capture the concepts described here, although none assess psychological adjustments and attainment of a sense of normality following burn injury. The routine use of PROMs that represent patient experience and their relative contribution to trial

Op-Ug TD Optimizer Tool Based on Matlab Code to Find Transition Depth From Open Pit to Block Caving / Narzędzie Optymalizacyjne Oparte O Kod Matlab Wykorzystane Do Określania Głębokości Przejściowej Od Wydobycia Odkrywkowego Do Wybierania Komorami

Science.gov (United States)

Bakhtavar, E.

2015-09-01

In this study, transition from open pit to block caving has been considered as a challenging problem. For this purpose, the linear integer programing code of Matlab was initially developed on the basis of the binary integer model proposed by Bakhtavar et al (2012). Then a program based on graphical user interface (GUI) was set up and named "Op-Ug TD Optimizer". It is a beneficial tool for simple application of the model in all situations where open pit is considered together with block caving method for mining an ore deposit. Finally, Op-Ug TD Optimizer has been explained step by step through solving the transition from open pit to block caving problem of a case ore deposit. W pracy tej rozważano skomplikowane zagadnienie przejścia od wybierania odkrywkowego do komorowego. W tym celu opracowano kod programowania liniowego w środowisku MATLAB w oparciu o model liczb binarnych zaproponowany przez Bakhtavara (2012). Następnie opracowano program z wykorzystujący graficzny interfejs użytkownika o nazwie Optymalizator Op-Ug TD. Jest to niezwykle cenne narzędzie umożliwiające stosowanie modelu dla wszystkich warunków w sytuacjach gdy rozważamy prowadzenie wydobycia metodą odkrywkową oraz wydobycie komorowe przy eksploatacji złóż rud żelaza. W końcowej części pracy podano szczegółową instrukcję stosowanie programu Optymalizator na przedstawionym przykładzie przejścia od wydobycia rud żelaza metodami odkrywkowymi poprzez wydobycie komorami.

Estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, HER-2, and response to postmastectomy radiotherapy in high-risk breast cancer: The Danish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kyndi, M.; Sorensen, F.B.; Overgaard, M.

2008-01-01

. End points were locoregional recurrence as isolated first event, distant metastases, and overall survival. For statistical analyses four subgroups were constructed from hormonal receptors (Rec). Rec+ was defined as ER+ and/or PgR+. Rec- as both ER- and PgR-. The four subgroups were Rec+/HER-2-, Rec......+/HER-2+, Rec-/HER-2- (triple negative), and Rec-/HER-2+. Results A significantly improved overall survival after PMRT was seen only among patients characterized by good prognostic markers such as hormonal receptor-positive and HER-2- patients (including the two Rec+ subtypes). No significant overall...... after PMRT were found for ER- and PgR- tumors compared with the ER+ and PgR+ tumors (P = .003 and 04, respectively), and for the triple-negative (P = .02), and the Rec-/HER-2+ subtypes (P = .003) compared with the Rec-/HER-2- subtype. Conclusion Hormonal receptor status, HER-2, and the constructed...

Consumers report lower confidence in their genetics knowledge following direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing.

Science.gov (United States)

Carere, Deanna Alexis; Kraft, Peter; Kaphingst, Kimberly A; Roberts, J Scott; Green, Robert C

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to measure changes to genetics knowledge and self-efficacy following personal genomic testing (PGT). New customers of 23andMe and Pathway Genomics completed a series of online surveys. We measured genetics knowledge (nine true/false items) and genetics self-efficacy (five Likert-scale items) before receipt of results and 6 months after results and used paired methods to evaluate change over time. Correlates of change (e.g., decision regret) were identified using linear regression. 998 PGT customers (59.9% female; 85.8% White; mean age 46.9 ± 15.5 years) were included in our analyses. Mean genetics knowledge score was 8.15 ± 0.95 (out of 9) at baseline and 8.25 ± 0.92 at 6 months (P = 0.0024). Mean self-efficacy score was 29.06 ± 5.59 (out of 35) at baseline and 27.7 ± 5.46 at 6 months (P reported lower self-efficacy following PGT. Change in self-efficacy was positively associated with health-care provider consultation (P = 0.0042), impact of PGT on perceived control over one's health (P consumers in response to receiving complex genetic information.Genet Med 18 1, 65-72.

The GRIN-Global Information Management System – Public Interface Demonstration and Input Opportunity

Science.gov (United States)

The GRIN-Global (GG) Information Management System, under development for the past three years, provides the world's crop genebanks and plant genetic resource (PGR) users with a powerful, flexible, easy-to-use PGR information management system. Developed jointly by the USDA Agricultural Research Ser...

The GRIN-Global Information Management System – A Preview and Opportunity for Public User Input

Science.gov (United States)

The GRIN-Global Information Management System, under development for the past two years, will provide the world's crop genebanks and plant genetic resource (PGR) users with a powerful, flexible, easy-to-use PGR information management system. Developed jointly by the USDA Agricultural Research Servi...

GRIN-Global: An International Project to Develop a Global Plant Genebank Information Management System

Science.gov (United States)

The mission of the GRIN-Global Project is to create a new, scalable version of the Germplasm Resource Information System (GRIN) to provide the world’s crop genebanks with a powerful, flexible, easy-to-use plant genetic resource (PGR) information management system. The system will help safeguard PGR ...

Glycaemic Response to some Commonly Eaten Fruits in Type 2 ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: It is not known which of the commonly consumed fruits in Nigeria are suitable for persons with diabetes mellitus especially with regards to the attendant plasma glucose response (PGR) to consumption of such fruits. Objectives: To determine and compare the PGR to commonly eaten fruits in patients with ...

Plant Genetic Resources: Selected Issues from Genetic Erosion to Genetic Engineering

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Karl Hammer

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Plant Genetic Resources (PGR continue to play an important role in the development of agriculture. The following aspects receive a special consideration:1. Definition. The term was coined in 1970. The genepool concept served as an important tool in the further development. Different approaches are discussed.2. Values of Genetic Resources. A short introduction is highlighting this problem and stressing the economic usfulness of PGR.3. Genetic Erosion. Already observed by E. Baur in 1914, this is now a key issue within PGR. The case studies cited include Ethiopia, Italy, China, S Korea, Greece and S. Africa. Modern approaches concentrate on allelic changes in varieties over time but neglect the landraces. The causes and consequences of genetic erosion are discussed.4. Genetic Resources Conservation. Because of genetic erosion there is a need for conservation. PGR should be consigned to the appropriate method of conservation (ex situ, in situ, on-farm according to the scientific basis of biodiversity (genetic diversity, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and the evolutionary status of plants (cultivated plants, weeds, related wild plants (crop wild relatives.5. GMO. The impact of genetically engineered plants on genetic diversity is discussed.6. The Conclusions and Recommendations stress the importance of PGR. Their conservation and use are urgent necessities for the present development and future survival of mankind.

How Well Do Customers of Direct-to-Consumer Personal Genomic Testing Services Comprehend Genetic Test Results? Findings from the Impact of Personal Genomics Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ostergren, Jenny E; Gornick, Michele C; Carere, Deanna Alexis; Kalia, Sarah S; Uhlmann, Wendy R; Ruffin, Mack T; Mountain, Joanna L; Green, Robert C; Roberts, J Scott

2015-01-01

To assess customer comprehension of health-related personal genomic testing (PGT) results. We presented sample reports of genetic results and examined responses to comprehension questions in 1,030 PGT customers (mean age: 46.7 years; 59.9% female; 79.0% college graduates; 14.9% non-White; 4.7% of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity). Sample reports presented a genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease and type 2 diabetes, carrier screening summary results for >30 conditions, results for phenylketonuria and cystic fibrosis, and drug response results for a statin drug. Logistic regression was used to identify correlates of participant comprehension. Participants exhibited high overall comprehension (mean score: 79.1% correct). The highest comprehension (range: 81.1-97.4% correct) was observed in the statin drug response and carrier screening summary results, and lower comprehension (range: 63.6-74.8% correct) on specific carrier screening results. Higher levels of numeracy, genetic knowledge, and education were significantly associated with greater comprehension. Older age (≥ 60 years) was associated with lower comprehension scores. Most customers accurately interpreted the health implications of PGT results; however, comprehension varied by demographic characteristics, numeracy and genetic knowledge, and types and format of the genetic information presented. Results suggest a need to tailor the presentation of PGT results by test type and customer characteristics. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Reactive Energetic Plasticizers Utilizing Cu-Free Azide-Alkyne 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition for In-Situ Preparation of Poly(THF-co-GAP-Based Polyurethane Energetic Binders

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Mingyang Ma

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Reactive energetic plasticizers (REPs coupled with hydroxy-telechelic poly(glycidyl azide-co-tetrahydrofuran (PGT-based energetic polyurethane (PU binders for use in solid propellants and plastic-bonded explosives (PBXs were investigated. The generation of gem-dinitro REPs along with a terminal alkyne stemmed from a series of finely designed approaches to not only satisfy common demands as conventional energetic plasticizers, but also to prevent the migration of plasticizers. The miscibility and rheological behavior of a binary mixture of PGT/REP with various REP fractions were quantitatively determined by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC and rheometer, respectively, highlighting the promising performance of REPs in the formulation process. The kinetics on the distinct reactivity of propargyl vs. 3-butynyl species of REPs towards the azide group of the PGT prepolymer in terms of Cu-free azide-alkyne 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (1,3-DPCA was studied by monitoring 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and analyzing the activation energies (Ea obtained using DSC. The thermal stability of the finally cured energetic binders with the incorporation of REPs indicated that the thermal stability of the REP/PGT-based PUs was maintained independently of the REP content. The tensile strength and modulus of the PUs increased with an increase in the REP content. In addition, the energetic performance and sensitivity of REP and REP triazole species was predicted.

Regional tectonic framework of the Pranhita Godavari basin, India

Science.gov (United States)

Biswas, S. K.

2003-03-01

The Pranhita-Godavari Gondwana rift (PGR) has a co-genetic relationship with Permo-Triassic reactivation of the Narmada-Son Geofracture (NSG). The Satpura Gondwana basin represents the terminal depocentre against the NSG, which restricted the northwestward propagation of the PGR. The NE-SW tensional stress responsible for the NW-SE trending PGR could not propagate beyond the ramp formed by uplift along the NSG and transformed kinetically into an ENE directed horizontal shear along the NSG, inducing large scale strike-slip movements. The latter dynamics were responsible for ENE extension of the Satpura rift as a pull-apart basin. The PGR extends up to the present east coast of India, where it is apparently terminated by the NE-SW trending Bapatla ridge along the Eastern Ghat Rift (EGR). The subsurface data, however, shows that the PGR extends across the Bapatla ridge and continues beneath the Cretaceous-Tertiary sediments of the Krishna-Godavari basin (KG) in the EGR. Thus, the Permo-Triassic PGR appears to have continued in the Indo-Antarctic plate before the Cretaceous break up. The EGR, during break up of the continents, cuts across the PGR and the KG basin was superimposed on it. The PGR site is located on a paleo-suture between the Dharwar and Bastar proto-cratons. The master faults developed bordering the rift, and the intra-rift higher order faults followed the pre-existing fabric. The transverse transfer zones manifested as basement ridges, divide the rift into segments of tectono-sedimentary domains. The major domains are the Chintalapudi, Godavari, and Chandrapur sub-basins, each of which subsided differentially. The central Godavari sub-basin subsided most and shows maximum structural complexity and sediment accommodation. The rifting started with initial half-graben faulting along the northeastern master fault and expanded by successive half graben faulting. This gave rise to intra-basinal horsts and grabens, which exercised control on the syn

Effect of two different plant growth regulators on production traits of sunflower

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Dávid ERNST

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The plant growth regulators (PGR are an organic compounds that modify plant physiological processes. PGR applied to the field crops promotes photosynthesis, stimulates plant growth, improves flowering and protects plants against unfavourable year weather conditions. Listed is an assumption to the yield of high quality. The effects of year weather conditions, biological material (hybrids and foliar application of two different PGR (Terra-Sorb® Foliar – containing free amino acids and Unicum® – containing Abiestins® on the yield-forming parameters, seed yield and the oil content in seeds of three selected hybrids of sunflower (NK Brio, NK Neoma, NK Ferti were studied in this paper. The field poly-factorial experiments were realized during two growing seasons of 2012 and 2013. The experimental area is situated in the maize-growing region (climatic region: warm; climatic sub-region: mild dry or dry; climatic zone: warm and dry, with mild winter and long sunshine and soil is silt loam Haplic Luvisol. The climatic conditions in chosen experimental years were different in quantities and distribution of precipitation at main growth period of sunflower plants (June to August and allows evaluating the yield stability between used hybrids and foliar treatments. The results showed that the application of selected PGR has contributed to an increase of sunflower seed yield, mainly through increase the weight of thousand seeds (rp = 0.761; P < 0.001. Similarly, oil content in seeds was significantly higher in treatments with PGR, especially with preparation Terra-Sorb® Foliar containing free amino acids. The study describes the relationship between quality (oil content in seeds and quantity (seed yield of sunflower production (rp = ‒0.41; P < 0.01. Results showed that PGR can be an important rationalization tool of the sunflower cultivation technology.

Effect of high-dose ginsenoside complex (UG0712 supplementation on physical performance of healthy adults during a 12-week supervised exercise program: A randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial

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Eon Sook Lee

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Ginseng has been used as an ergogenic agent, although evidence for its effectiveness is weak. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of a ginsenoside complex (UG0712 on changes in exercise performance. Methods: Sedentary individuals (n=117 were randomly assigned into one of three groups: low-dose ginsenoside supplementation (100 mg/d, n=39, high-dose ginsenoside supplementation (500 mg/d, n=39, or a placebo group (500 mg/d, n=39. All participants underwent a supervised 12-wk aerobic and resistance exercise training course. To assess the effects of supplementation on physical performance, maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max, anaerobic threshold (AT, lactic acid, and muscle strength of the dominant knee were measured at baseline, every visit, and after the training program. Results: Both ginsenoside groups showed significant increases in VO2max and muscular strength during exercise training. There were no definite changes in AT and lactic acid levels over time. After exercise training, there were definite differences in the VO2max (28.64.9 to 33.7±4.9 ml/kg/min in high-dose group vs. 30.4±6.7 to 32.8±6.6 ml/kg/min in placebo, p=0.029 and AT (19.3±4.2 to 20.9±3.5 ml/kg/min in high-dose group vs. 20.0±5.1 to 20.0±4.9 ml/kg/min in placebo, p=0.038 between the high-dose ginsenoside and placebo groups. However, there was no difference in VO2max between the low-dose ginsenoside and placebo groups (p=0.254. There were no differences in muscular strength during exercise training among the three groups. Conclusion: High-dose ginsenoside supplementation (UG0712 augmented the improvement of aerobic capacity by exercise training. Keywords: cardiopulmonary exercise test, ginsenoside, Panax ginseng, randomized controlled trial

A Gata2-Dependent Transcription Network Regulates Uterine Progesterone Responsiveness and Endometrial Function

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Cory A. Rubel

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Altered progesterone responsiveness leads to female infertility and cancer, but underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Mice with uterine-specific ablation of GATA binding protein 2 (Gata2 are infertile, showing failures in embryo implantation, endometrial decidualization, and uninhibited estrogen signaling. Gata2 deficiency results in reduced progesterone receptor (PGR expression and attenuated progesterone signaling, as evidenced by genome-wide expression profiling and chromatin immunoprecipitation. GATA2 not only occupies at and promotes expression of the Pgr gene but also regulates downstream progesterone responsive genes in conjunction with the PGR. Additionally, Gata2 knockout uteri exhibit abnormal luminal epithelia with ectopic TRP63 expressing squamous cells and a cancer-related molecular profile in a progesterone-independent manner. Lastly, we found a conserved GATA2-PGR regulatory network in both human and mice based on gene signature and path analyses using gene expression profiles of human endometrial tissues. In conclusion, uterine Gata2 regulates a key regulatory network of gene expression for progesterone signaling at the early pregnancy stage.

Fibrinolytic and procoagulant activities of Yersinia pestis and Salmonella enterica.

Science.gov (United States)

Korhonen, T K

2015-06-01

Pla of the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis and PgtE of the enteropathogen Salmonella enterica are surface-exposed, transmembrane β-barrel proteases of the omptin family that exhibit a complex array of interactions with the hemostatic systems in vitro, and both proteases are established virulence factors. Pla favors fibrinolysis by direct activation of plasminogen, inactivation of the serpins plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and α2-antiplasmin, inactivation of the thrombin-activable fibrinolysis inhibitor, and activation of single-chain urokinase. PgtE is structurally very similar but exhibits partially different functions and differ in expression control. PgtE proteolysis targets control aspects of fibrinolysis, and mimicry of matrix metalloproteinases enhances cell migration that should favor the intracellular spread of the bacterium. Enzymatic activity of both proteases is strongly influenced by the environment-induced variations in lipopolysaccharide that binds to the β-barrel. Both proteases cleave the tissue factor pathway inhibitor and thus also express procoagulant activity. © 2015 International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis.

An Epidemiologic Study of Genetic Variation in Hormonal Pathways in Relation to the Effect of Hormone Replacement Therapy on Breast Cancer Risk

Science.gov (United States)

2008-10-01

PGR gene to be associated with breast cancer. Using long-range PCR techniques to sequence exons 1 and 2 of PGR, and a Solexa chip from Illumina...specific histologic types associated with single SNPs in PGR, AKR1C1, AKR1C2, AKR1C3, SRD5A1, SRD5A2 and CYP3A4 Breast caner overall Ductal Lobular...1.3 0.96 T/T 92 (9.1) 120 (9.6) 1.1 0.8 1.4 72 (9.5) 1.1 0.8 1.5 27 (9.7) 1.0 0.6 1.7 0.93 CYP3A4 rs12333983 T/T 791 (77.8) 985

Sonography and CT findings in perigraft reactions after surgical implantation of vascular prostheses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scherer, G.; Roeren, T.; Paetz, B.; Hupp, T.; Kauffmann, G.W.

1995-01-01

Between January 1988 and January 1994, 24 patients with heterologeous vascular bypasses were examined with suspected diagnosis of a perigraft reaction (PGR). All patients were subjected to ultrasound and CT. PGR ist defined as a sterile inflammation along the course of a vascular prosthesis. The typical clinical presentation is a fluctuating tumour with a localised painless swelling. In all cases liquid formations could be confirmed by diagnostic imaging procedures; signs of infection could be excluded. The synopsis of the clinical presentation, the time interval after implantation of the prosthetic material and the signs of sonography and CT can reliably exclude infection of the prosthesis and confirm the diagnosis of a PGR. (orig.) [de

Distinct functions and regulation of epithelial progesterone receptor in the mouse cervix, vagina, and uterus.

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Fabiola F; Son, Jieun; Hewitt, Sylvia C; Jang, Eunjung; Lydon, John P; Korach, Kenneth S; Chung, Sang-Hyuk

2016-04-05

While the function of progesterone receptor (PR) has been studied in the mouse vagina and uterus, its regulation and function in the cervix has not been described. We selectively deleted epithelial PR in the female reproductive tracts using the Cre/LoxP recombination system. We found that epithelial PR was required for induction of apoptosis and suppression of cell proliferation by progesterone (P4) in the cervical and vaginal epithelium. We also found that epithelial PR was dispensable for P4 to suppress apoptosis and proliferation in the uterine epithelium. PR is encoded by the Pgr gene, which is regulated by estrogen receptor α (ERα) in the female reproductive tracts. Using knock-in mouse models expressing ERα mutants, we determined that the DNA-binding domain (DBD) and AF2 domain of ERα were required for upregulation of Pgr in the cervix and vagina as well as the uterine stroma. The ERα AF1 domain was required for upregulation of Pgr in the vaginal stroma and epithelium and cervical epithelium, but not in the uterine and cervical stroma. ERα DBD, AF1, and AF2 were required for suppression of Pgr in the uterine epithelium, which was mediated by stromal ERα. Epithelial ERα was responsible for upregulation of epithelial Pgr in the cervix and vagina. Our results indicate that regulation and functions of epithelial PR are different in the cervix, vagina, and uterus.

Expression of progesterone receptor protein in the ovine uterus during the estrous cycle: Effects of nutrition, arginine and FSH.

Science.gov (United States)

Grazul-Bilska, Anna T; Thammasiri, Jiratti; Kraisoon, Aree; Reyaz, Arshi; Bass, Casie S; Kaminski, Samantha L; Navanukraw, Chainarong; Redmer, Dale A

2018-03-01

To evaluate expression of progesterone receptor (PGR) AB in follicle stimulating hormone (FSH)-treated or non-treated sheep administered with arginine (Arg) or saline (Sal) fed a control (C), excess (O) or restricted (U) diet, uterine tissues were collected at the early, mid and/or late luteal phases. In exp. 1, ewes from each diet were randomly assigned to one of two treatments, Arg or Sal administration three times daily from day 0 of the first estrous cycle until uterine tissue collection. In exp. 2, ewes were injected twice daily with FSH on days 13-15 of the first estrous cycle. Uterine tissues were immunostained to detect PGR followed by image analysis. PGR were detected in luminal epithelium (LE), endometrial glands (EG), endometrial stroma (ES), myometrium (Myo), and endometrial and myometrial blood vessels. The percentage of PR-positive cells and/or intensity of staining were affected by phase of the estrous cycle, plane of nutrition, and/or FSH but not by Arg. In exp. 1, percentage of PGR-positive cells in LE and EG but not in ES and Myo was greater at the early and mid than late luteal phase, was not affected by plane of nutrition, and was similar in LE and EG. Intensity of staining was affected by phase of the estrous cycle and plane of nutrition in LE, EG and Myo, and was the greatest in LE, less in EG, and least in ES and Myo. In exp. 2, percentage of PGR-positive cells in LE, EG, ES and Myo was affected by phase of the estrous cycle, but not by plane of nutrition; was greater at the early than mid luteal phase; and was greatest in LE and EG, less in luminal (superficial) ES and Myo and least in deep ES. Intensity of staining was affected by phase of the estrous cycle and plane of nutrition in all compartments but ES, and was the greatest in LE and luminal EG, less in deep EG, and least in ES and Myo. Comparison of data for FSH (superovulated) and Sal-treated (non-superovulated) ewes demonstrated that FSH affected PR expression in all evaluated

Oil use of the effluent plant ETEO (Effluent Station of Oil Treatment) as combustible for generation of energy in the power plant UG-50Hz; Utulizacao de oleo da ETEO (Estacao de Tratamento de Efluentes Oleosos) para geracao de energia na UG-50Hz

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Souza, Jose Francisco de; Nascimento, Jose Maria do; Silva, Luiz Antonio da; Salazar, Marcos Vinicios; Baptista, Reinaldo Lopes; Barros, Sueli Aguiar [Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (CSN), Volta Redonda, RJ (Brazil)

2009-11-01

The areas of finishing products of CSN Steel Plant generate contaminated effluents with oil and grease , that are treated in ETEO (Effluent Station of Oil Treatment). In this plant, the oil is processed to be sold for the consuming market. However, some seasons of the year, the market does not absorb the oil, and CSN is obliged to defray the burning of this oil, to not interrupt the productive process and cause an environmental impact. Because of this situation, we search alternatives for the viable use of this oil inside CSN steel plant, taking care for the security of the processes and the impact to the environment. This paper describes the details of the work and the implantation of the burning of this oil of the ETEO with BPF oil (type of petrochemical oil) as combustible in the boiler 7 of the power plant UG 50 Hz. For the implantation of this project, operational contingencies of security for equipment was prepared . Moreover, the work included chemical analyses of the oil and the conditions of the boiler using this mixing of oils. The reached results demonstrate the total viability of this project and it was proved another alternative of the use of this residue, with reduction of the fuel costs , steam costs and the electric energy generated in the power plant of CSN. (author)

Pengaruh Demihipo dan ZPT (Decamon® terhadap Mortalitas Telur dan Serangan Lalat Pengorok Daun, Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard pada Tanaman Kentang

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I Wayan Supartha

2002-12-01

Full Text Available Field experiment to determine the effectiveness of demihipo and Decamon® to induce the egg extrusion and reduce L. huidobrensis population larvae on potato was conducted in Pancasari, Buleleng (Bali from February to August 1999. The results indicated that application of Decamon to the plant was significantly able to increase egg-extrusion of L. huidobrensis from the leaf compared with the other treatments. While, weekly application of insecticide (demihipo was also significantly able to reduce the Larvae population on the plant. The application of the combination of both control measure (plant growth regulator or PGR and insecticide (demihipo was the most effective control to reduce the feeding or ovipositional-punctures of adult on the leaves. Therefore, the application of PGR and insecticide was the best to prevent and reduce the population development of L. huidobrensis in the field. In general, all control measures were able to increase the yield and advantage-added of the farmer. However, the highest increased of the yield and advantage-added in wet season were given by the plant treated with PGR (Decamon®, while in dry season given by the plant treated with the combination of PGR and demihipo.

Blockage of progestin physiology disrupts ovarian differentiation in XX Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Linyan; Luo, Feng; Fang, Xuelian; Charkraborty, Tapas; Wu, Limin; Wei, Jing; Wang, Deshou

2016-01-01

Previous studies indicated that maturation inducing hormone, 17α, 20β-Dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (DHP), probably through nuclear progestin receptor (Pgr), might be involved in spermatogenesis and oogenesis in fish. To further elucidate DHP actions in teleostean ovarian differentiation, we analyzed the expression of pgr in the ovary of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), and performed RU486 (a synthetic Pgr antagonist) treatment in XX fish from 5 days after hatching (dah) to 120dah. Tilapia Pgr was abundantly expressed in the follicular cells surrounding oocytes at 30 and 90dah. Continuous RU486 treatment led to the blockage of oogenesis and masculinization of somatic cells in XX fish. Termination of RU486 treatment and maintenance in normal condition resulted in testicular differentiation, and estrogen compensation in RU486-treated XX fish successfully restored oogenesis. In RU486-treated XX fish, transcript levels of female dominant genes were significantly reduced, while male-biased genes were evidently augmented. Meanwhile, both germ cell mitotic and meiotic markers were substantially reduced. Consistently, estrogen production levels were significantly declined in RU486-treated XX fish. Taken together, our data further proved that DHP, possibly through Pgr, might be essential in the ovarian differentiation and estrogen production in fish. - Highlights: • DHP plays a critical role in early stage oogenesis of XX tilapia. • Blockage of DHP actions by RU486 treatment led to masculinization and/or sex reversal in XX tilapia. • Both DHP and estrogen are indispensable for ovarian differentiation.

Blockage of progestin physiology disrupts ovarian differentiation in XX Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Linyan; Luo, Feng; Fang, Xuelian [Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715 (China); Charkraborty, Tapas [South Ehime Fisheries Research Center, Ehime University, Ainan, 798-4206 (Japan); Wu, Limin; Wei, Jing [Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715 (China); Wang, Deshou, E-mail: wdeshou@swu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Freshwater Fish Reproduction and Development (Ministry of Education), Key Laboratory of Aquatic Science of Chongqing, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715 (China)

2016-04-22

Previous studies indicated that maturation inducing hormone, 17α, 20β-Dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (DHP), probably through nuclear progestin receptor (Pgr), might be involved in spermatogenesis and oogenesis in fish. To further elucidate DHP actions in teleostean ovarian differentiation, we analyzed the expression of pgr in the ovary of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), and performed RU486 (a synthetic Pgr antagonist) treatment in XX fish from 5 days after hatching (dah) to 120dah. Tilapia Pgr was abundantly expressed in the follicular cells surrounding oocytes at 30 and 90dah. Continuous RU486 treatment led to the blockage of oogenesis and masculinization of somatic cells in XX fish. Termination of RU486 treatment and maintenance in normal condition resulted in testicular differentiation, and estrogen compensation in RU486-treated XX fish successfully restored oogenesis. In RU486-treated XX fish, transcript levels of female dominant genes were significantly reduced, while male-biased genes were evidently augmented. Meanwhile, both germ cell mitotic and meiotic markers were substantially reduced. Consistently, estrogen production levels were significantly declined in RU486-treated XX fish. Taken together, our data further proved that DHP, possibly through Pgr, might be essential in the ovarian differentiation and estrogen production in fish. - Highlights: • DHP plays a critical role in early stage oogenesis of XX tilapia. • Blockage of DHP actions by RU486 treatment led to masculinization and/or sex reversal in XX tilapia. • Both DHP and estrogen are indispensable for ovarian differentiation.

''Push-pull'' gastrostomy: a new technique for percutaneous gastrostomy tube insertion in the neonate and young infant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cahill, A.M.; Kaye, R.D.; Fitz, C.R.; Towbin, R.B.

2001-01-01

Objective. To evaluate a newly developed method combining antegrade and retrograde techniques for percutaneous gastrostomy tube (PGT) insertion in the neonate and young infant. Materials and methods. From January 1994 to December 2000, 85 children (47 male, 38 female), mean age 4.5 months (range 0.44-9.13 months) underwent PGT insertion using the ''push-pull'' technique. With the addition, 57 children had a jejunostomy tube placed as well at or within 24 h of the PGT procedure. The mean weight was 3.74 kg, range 1.5-7.0 kg. The indications for the procedure included failure to thrive in 40 patients (25 %), static encephalopathy in 21 (25 %), neurological/congenital abnormalities in 12 (14 %), aspiration in 7 (8 %), and cardiac problems in 5 (6 %). Results. Eighty-five PGTs were successfully inserted in 85 children. One procedure was initially unsuccessful due to failed conscious sedation and was completed under general anesthesia. Four of 85 patients initially had attempted antegrade placement that failed, and the procedure was successfully completed using the ''push-pull'' method. One major complication occurred: a gastrocolic fistula at day 5 post-procedure, which was surgically repaired without sequelae. Tube-related problems included; tube dislodgement (n = 1) and procedure-related stomal infection (n = 3). Conclusion. The ''push-pull'' gastrostomy technique is a safe, effective method of percutaneous gastrostomy tube placement in neonates. It facilitates successful placement of the PGT in patients in whom the classic antegrade method is not possible. It has become the procedure of choice in this group. (orig.)

The polygenic risk for bipolar disorder influences brain regional function relating to visual and default state processing of emotional information.

Science.gov (United States)

Dima, Danai; de Jong, Simone; Breen, Gerome; Frangou, Sophia

2016-01-01

Genome-wise association studies have identified a number of common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), each of small effect, associated with risk to bipolar disorder (BD). Several risk-conferring SNPs have been individually shown to influence regional brain activation thus linking genetic risk for BD to altered brain function. The current study examined whether the polygenic risk score method, which models the cumulative load of all known risk-conferring SNPs, may be useful in the identification of brain regions whose function may be related to the polygenic architecture of BD. We calculated the individual polygenic risk score for BD (PGR-BD) in forty-one patients with the disorder, twenty-five unaffected first-degree relatives and forty-six unrelated healthy controls using the most recent Psychiatric Genomics Consortium data. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to define task-related brain activation patterns in response to facial affect and working memory processing. We found significant effects of the PGR-BD score on task-related activation irrespective of diagnostic group. There was a negative association between the PGR-BD score and activation in the visual association cortex during facial affect processing. In contrast, the PGR-BD score was associated with failure to deactivate the ventromedial prefrontal region of the default mode network during working memory processing. These results are consistent with the threshold-liability model of BD, and demonstrate the usefulness of the PGR-BD score in identifying brain functional alternations associated with vulnerability to BD. Additionally, our findings suggest that the polygenic architecture of BD is not regionally confined but impacts on the task-dependent recruitment of multiple brain regions.

The utility of pharmacogenetic testing to support the treatment of bipolar disorder

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Ielmini M

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Marta Ielmini,1 Nicola Poloni,1 Ivano Caselli,1 Jordi Espadaler,2 Miquel Tuson,2 Alessandro Grecchi,3 Camilla Callegari1 1Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy; 2AB-BIOTICS S.A, R&D Unit, Sant Cugat del Valles, Barcelona, Spain; 3ASST Santi Paolo e Carlo Borromeo, Division of Psychiatry, Milan, Italy Background: Bipolar disorder (BD is a frequent cause of disability, health care costs, and risk of suicide. Pharmacogenetic tests (PGTs could help clinicians to identify those patients predisposed to the occurrence of adverse events (AEs improving the understanding of the correlation between genetic variants and drug response.Materials and methods: The study evaluated 30 patients affected by BD type I or II (according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, version 5 who underwent the PGT Neurofarmagen® (AB-BIOTICS SA, Barcelona, Spain between March 2016 and March 2017. The primary aim of this study was to identify if the treatment prescribed by the psychiatrists was consistent with the treatment suggested by the PGT at T0 (corresponding to the test report communication. As a secondary aim, we wanted to assess if clinicians had changed the treatment (in case of discordance at T1 (3-month follow-up visit according to the results of the PGT.Results: At T0, only 4 patients (13% had an optimal therapy in line with the PGT suggestions. At 3-month follow-up, 13 patients (40% had received a change of therapy consistent to the test, showing a significant statistical improvement in the Clinical Global Impression item Severity (CGI-S score over time compared to those not having changes consistent with the test. Regarding AEs, at baseline 9 out of 10 (90% of the patients who received a therapy modification according to the test presented AEs, and a significant within-group reduction was observed after 3 months (p = 0.031.Conclusion: Despite the small sample size, the study shows

Characterization of the microbunch time structure of proton pencil beams at a clinical treatment facility.

Science.gov (United States)

Petzoldt, J; Roemer, K E; Enghardt, W; Fiedler, F; Golnik, C; Hueso-González, F; Helmbrecht, S; Kormoll, T; Rohling, H; Smeets, J; Werner, T; Pausch, G

2016-03-21

Proton therapy is an advantageous treatment modality compared to conventional radiotherapy. In contrast to photons, charged particles have a finite range and can thus spare organs at risk. Additionally, the increased ionization density in the so-called Bragg peak close to the particle range can be utilized for maximum dose deposition in the tumour volume. Unfortunately, the accuracy of the therapy can be affected by range uncertainties, which have to be covered by additional safety margins around the treatment volume. A real-time range and dose verification is therefore highly desired and would be key to exploit the major advantages of proton therapy. Prompt gamma rays, produced in nuclear reactions between projectile and target nuclei, can be used to measure the proton's range. The prompt gamma-ray timing (PGT) method aims at obtaining this information by determining the gamma-ray emission time along the proton path using a conventional time-of-flight detector setup. First tests at a clinical accelerator have shown the feasibility to observe range shifts of about 5 mm at clinically relevant doses. However, PGT spectra are smeared out by the bunch time spread. Additionally, accelerator related proton bunch drifts against the radio frequency have been detected, preventing a potential range verification. At OncoRay, first experiments using a proton bunch monitor (PBM) at a clinical pencil beam have been conducted. Elastic proton scattering at a hydrogen-containing foil could be utilized to create a coincident proton-proton signal in two identical PBMs. The selection of coincident events helped to suppress uncorrelated background. The PBM setup was used as time reference for a PGT detector to correct for potential bunch drifts. Furthermore, the corrected PGT data were used to image an inhomogeneous phantom. In a further systematic measurement campaign, the bunch time spread and the proton transmission rate were measured for several beam energies between 69 and 225 Me

Changing the game: using integrative genomics to probe virulence mechanisms of the stem rust pathogen Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici

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Melania eFigueroa

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The recent resurgence of wheat stem rust caused by new virulent races of Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt poses a threat to food security. These concerns have catalyzed an extensive global effort towards controlling this disease. Substantial research and breeding programs target the identification and introduction of new stem rust resistance (Sr genes in cultivars for genetic protection against the disease. Such resistance genes typically encode immune receptor proteins that recognize specific components of the pathogen, known as avirulence (Avr proteins. A significant drawback to deploying cultivars with single Sr genes is that they are often overcome by evolution of the pathogen to escape recognition through alterations in Avr genes. Thus, a key element in achieving durable rust control is the deployment of multiple effective Sr genes in combination, either through conventional breeding or transgenic approaches, to minimize the risk of resistance breakdown. In this situation, evolution of pathogen virulence would require simultaneous changes in multiple Avr genes in order to bypass recognition. However, choosing the optimal Sr gene combinations to deploy is a challenge that requires detailed knowledge of the pathogen Avr genes with which they interact and the virulence phenotypes of Pgt existing in nature. Identifying specific Avr genes from Pgt will provide screening tools to enhance pathogen virulence monitoring, assess heterozygosity and propensity for mutation in pathogen populations, and confirm individual Sr gene functions in crop varieties carrying multiple effective resistance genes. Towards this goal, much progress has been made in assembling a high quality reference genome sequence for Pgt, as well as a Pan-genome encompassing variation between multiple field isolates with diverse virulence spectra. In turn this has allowed prediction of Pgt effector gene candidates based on known features of Avr genes in other plant pathogens

Changing the Game: Using Integrative Genomics to Probe Virulence Mechanisms of the Stem Rust Pathogen Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici.

Science.gov (United States)

Figueroa, Melania; Upadhyaya, Narayana M; Sperschneider, Jana; Park, Robert F; Szabo, Les J; Steffenson, Brian; Ellis, Jeff G; Dodds, Peter N

2016-01-01

The recent resurgence of wheat stem rust caused by new virulent races of Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt) poses a threat to food security. These concerns have catalyzed an extensive global effort toward controlling this disease. Substantial research and breeding programs target the identification and introduction of new stem rust resistance (Sr) genes in cultivars for genetic protection against the disease. Such resistance genes typically encode immune receptor proteins that recognize specific components of the pathogen, known as avirulence (Avr) proteins. A significant drawback to deploying cultivars with single Sr genes is that they are often overcome by evolution of the pathogen to escape recognition through alterations in Avr genes. Thus, a key element in achieving durable rust control is the deployment of multiple effective Sr genes in combination, either through conventional breeding or transgenic approaches, to minimize the risk of resistance breakdown. In this situation, evolution of pathogen virulence would require changes in multiple Avr genes in order to bypass recognition. However, choosing the optimal Sr gene combinations to deploy is a challenge that requires detailed knowledge of the pathogen Avr genes with which they interact and the virulence phenotypes of Pgt existing in nature. Identifying specific Avr genes from Pgt will provide screening tools to enhance pathogen virulence monitoring, assess heterozygosity and propensity for mutation in pathogen populations, and confirm individual Sr gene functions in crop varieties carrying multiple effective resistance genes. Toward this goal, much progress has been made in assembling a high quality reference genome sequence for Pgt, as well as a Pan-genome encompassing variation between multiple field isolates with diverse virulence spectra. In turn this has allowed prediction of Pgt effector gene candidates based on known features of Avr genes in other plant pathogens, including the related flax rust

Comparative Analysis Highlights Variable Genome Content of Wheat Rusts and Divergence of the Mating Loci

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Christina A. Cuomo

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Three members of the Puccinia genus, Puccinia triticina (Pt, P. striiformis f.sp. tritici (Pst, and P. graminis f.sp. tritici (Pgt, cause the most common and often most significant foliar diseases of wheat. While similar in biology and life cycle, each species is uniquely adapted and specialized. The genomes of Pt and Pst were sequenced and compared to that of Pgt to identify common and distinguishing gene content, to determine gene variation among wheat rust pathogens, other rust fungi, and basidiomycetes, and to identify genes of significance for infection. Pt had the largest genome of the three, estimated at 135 Mb with expansion due to mobile elements and repeats encompassing 50.9% of contig bases; in comparison, repeats occupy 31.5% for Pst and 36.5% for Pgt. We find all three genomes are highly heterozygous, with Pst [5.97 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs/kb] nearly twice the level detected in Pt (2.57 SNPs/kb and that previously reported for Pgt. Of 1358 predicted effectors in Pt, 784 were found expressed across diverse life cycle stages including the sexual stage. Comparison to related fungi highlighted the expansion of gene families involved in transcriptional regulation and nucleotide binding, protein modification, and carbohydrate degradation enzymes. Two allelic homeodomain pairs, HD1 and HD2, were identified in each dikaryotic Puccinia species along with three pheromone receptor (STE3 mating-type genes, two of which are likely representing allelic specificities. The HD proteins were active in a heterologous Ustilago maydis mating assay and host-induced gene silencing (HIGS of the HD and STE3 alleles reduced wheat host infection.

Estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, HER-2, and response to postmastectomy radiotherapy in high-risk breast cancer: the Danish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kyndi, Marianne; Sørensen, Flemming Brandt; Knudsen, Helle

2008-01-01

. End points were locoregional recurrence as isolated first event, distant metastases, and overall survival. For statistical analyses four subgroups were constructed from hormonal receptors (Rec). Rec+ was defined as ER+ and/or PgR+. Rec-as both ER-and PgR-. The four subgroups were Rec+/HER-2-, Rec......+/HER-2+, Rec-/HER-2-(triple negative), and Rec-/HER-2+. RESULTS: A significantly improved overall survival after PMRT was seen only among patients characterized by good prognostic markers such as hormonal receptor-positive and HER-2- patients (including the two Rec+ subtypes). No significant overall...... after PMRT were found for ER-and PgR-tumors compared with the ER+ and PgR+ tumors (P = .003 and .04, respectively), and for the triple-negative (P = .02), and the Rec-/HER-2+ subtypes (P = .003) compared with the Rec+/HER-2-subtype. CONCLUSION: Hormonal receptor status, HER-2, and the constructed...

Five polymorphisms and breast cancer risk: results from the Breast Cancer Association Consortium

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gaudet, Mia M; Milne, Roger L; Cox, Angela

2009-01-01

-study heterogeneity for associations with risk for single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in CASP10, PGR, and BID. Estimates were imprecise for women of Asian and African descent due to small numbers and lower minor allele frequencies (with the exception of BID SNP). The ORs for each copy of the minor allele were...... to invasive breast cancer risk overall in women of European descent: ECCR4 per-allele OR (95% CI) = 0.99 (0.97-1.02), minor allele frequency = 27.5%; TNF 1.00 (0.95-1.06), 5.0%; CASP10 1.02 (0.98-1.07), 6.5%; PGR 1.02 (0.99-1.06), 15.3%; and BID 0.98 (0.86-1.12), 1.7%. However, we observed significant between...... rs744154, TNF rs361525, CASP10 rs13010627, PGR rs1042838, and BID rs8190315 genotypes among women of European descent....

Application of instrumental neutron activation analysis to assess dietary intake of selenium in Korean adults from meat and eggs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moon, Jong-Hwa; Kim, Sun-Ha; Chung, Yong-Sam; Lee, Ok-Hee

2013-01-01

Selenium is a key constituent of enzyme in glutathione peroxidase, which is effective in decreasing various types of oxidative stress, Thus, the adequacy of selenium intake is very important in decreasing the risks of various degenerating diseases such as cardiovascular disease, or certain cancers. Lately, the intake of animal foods is increasing among Koreans owing to a dietary transition toward a western style. This study was conducted to measure the selenium content in meat and eggs, and then assessed the selenium intake from these foods. Forty frequently eaten items among meat and eggs were analyzed using an Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis. The selenium content in 100g of raw meat and eggs ranged from 8.1ug to 50.9ug. In particular, 100g of beef contained 12.4ug to 50.9ug of selenium; pork, 11.2ug to 22.6ug chicken, 10.2ug to 13.7ug and eggs, 28.6ug to 43.0ug. Thus, beef viscera and chicken eggs contain the highest amounts of selenium among these groups. 100g of Pork belly, the most frequently eaten meat type among Koreans, contains 14.6ug of selenium. An evaluation of dietary selenium intake shows that the total selenium supply from meats and eggs was 28.4ug/day and 27.5 ug/day in adult men and women, respectively. These are over one-half of the Korean RNI (Recommended Daily Intake) of 55ug/day. (author)

Postgraduate education for Chinese medicine practitioners: a Hong Kong perspective

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Mercer Stewart W

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite Hong Kong government's official commitment to the development of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM over the last ten years, there appears to have been limited progress in public sector initiated career development and postgraduate training (PGT for public university trained TCM practitioners. Instead, the private TCM sector is expected to play a major role in nurturing the next generation of TCM practitioners. In the present study we evaluated TCM graduates' perspectives on their career prospects and their views regarding PGT. Method Three focus group discussions with 19 local TCM graduates who had worked full time in a clinical setting for fewer than 5 years. Results Graduates were generally uncertain about how to develop their career pathways in Hong Kong with few postgraduate development opportunities; because of this some were planning to leave the profession altogether. Despite their expressed needs, they were dissatisfied with the current quality of local PGT and suggested various ways for improvement including supervised practice-based learning, competency-based training, and accreditation of training with trainee involvement in design and evaluation. In addition they identified educational needs beyond TCM, in particular a better understanding of western medicine and team working so that primary care provision might be more integrated in the future. Conclusion TCM graduates in Hong Kong feel let down by the lack of public PGT opportunities which is hindering career development. To develop a new generation of TCM practitioners with the capacity to provide quality and comprehensive care, a stronger role for the government, including sufficient public funding, in promoting TCM graduates' careers and training development is suggested. Recent British and Australian experiences in prevocational western medicine training reform may serve as a source of references when relevant program for TCM graduates is planned in

Configuration Synthesis of Novel Series-Parallel Hybrid Transmission Systems with Eight-Bar Mechanisms

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Ngoc-Tan Hoang

2017-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a design approach for the configuration synthesis of series-parallel hybrid transmissions with eight-bar mechanisms. The final design consists of 54 mechanisms with eight members and twelve joints including a simple planetary gear train (PGT and a double planet PGT. Then, by using the techniques of power and clutch arrangements, new series-parallel hybrid transmissions are synthesized. The power arrangement process generates 97 clutchless hybrid systems. The clutch arrangement process generates 100 corresponding series-parallel transmissions. To demonstrate the feasibility of the synthesized configurations, a new hybrid transmission is selected as an example to analyze the working principle with operation modes and power flow paths.

Structure Prediction of Outer Membrane Protease Protein of Salmonella typhimurium Using Computational Techniques

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Rozina Tabassum

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Salmonella typhimurium, a facultative gram-negative intracellular pathogen belonging to family Enterobacteriaceae, is the most frequent cause of human gastroenteritis worldwide. PgtE gene product, outer membrane protease emerges important in the intracellular phases of salmonellosis. The pgtE gene product of S. typhimurium was predicted to be capable of proteolyzing T7 RNA polymerase and localize in the outer membrane of these gram negative bacteria. PgtE product of S. enterica and OmpT of E. coli, having high sequence similarity have been revealed to degrade macrophages, causing salmonellosis and other diseases. The three-dimensional structure of the protein was not available through Protein Data Bank (PDB creating lack of structural information about E protein. In our study, by performing Comparative model building, the three dimensional structure of outer membrane protease protein was generated using the backbone of the crystal structure of Pla of Yersinia pestis, retrieved from PDB, with MODELLER (9v8. Quality of the model was assessed by validation tool PROCHECK, web servers like ERRAT and ProSA are used to certify the reliability of the predicted model. This information might offer clues for better understanding of E protein and consequently for developmet of better therapeutic treatment against pathogenic role of this protein in salmonellosis and other diseases.

PHASE BEHAVIOR OF LIGHT GASES IN HYDROCARBON AND AQUEOUS SOLVENTS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

KHALED A.M. GASEM; ROBERT L. ROBINSON, JR.

1998-08-31

Under previous support from the Department of Energy, an experimental facility has been established and operated to measure valuable vapor-liquid equilibrium data for systems of interest in the production and processing of coal fluids. To facilitate the development and testing of models for prediction of the phase behavior for such systems, we have acquired substantial amounts of data on the equilibrium phase compositions for binary mixtures of heavy hydrocarbon solvents with a variety of supercritical solutes, including hydrogen, methane, ethane, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. The present project focuses on measuring the phase behavior of light gases and water in Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) type solvents at conditions encountered in indirect liquefaction processes and evaluating and developing theoretically-based correlating frameworks to predict the phase behavior of such systems. Specific goals of the proposed work include (a) developing a state-of-the-art experimental facility to permit highly accurate measurements of equilibrium phase compositions (solubilities) of challenging F-T systems, (b) measuring these properties for systematically-selected binary, ternary and molten F-T wax mixtures to provide critically needed input data for correlation development, (c) developing and testing models suitable for describing the phase behavior of such mixtures, and (d) presenting the modeling results in generalized, practical formats suitable for use in process engineering calculations. During the present period, the Park-Gasem-Robinson (PGR) equation of state (EOS) has been modified to improve its volumetric and equilibrium predictions. Specifically, the attractive term of the PGR equation was modified to enhance the flexibility of the model, and a new expression was developed for the temperature dependence of the attractive term in this segment-segment interaction model. The predictive capability of the modified PGR EOS for vapor pressure, and saturated liquid and

A mechanistic analysis of density dependence in algal population dynamics

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Adrian eBorlestean

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Population density regulation is a fundamental principle in ecology, but the specific process underlying functional expression of density dependence remains to be fully elucidated. One view contends that patterns of density dependence are largely fixed across a species irrespective of environmental conditions, whereas another is that the strength and expression of density dependence are fundamentally variable depending on the nature of exogenous or endogenous constraints acting on the population. We conducted a study investigating the expression of density dependence in Chlamydomonas spp. grown under a gradient from low to high nutrient density. We predicted that the relationship between per capita growth rate (pgr and population density would vary from concave up to concave down as nutrient density became less limiting and populations experienced weaker density regulation. Contrary to prediction, we found that the relationship between pgr and density became increasingly concave-up as nutrient levels increased. We also found that variation in pgr increased, and pgr levels reached higher maxima in nutrient-limited environments. Most likely, these results are attributable to population growth suppression in environments with high intraspecific competition due to limited nutrient resources. Our results suggest that density regulation is strongly variable depending on exogenous and endogenous processes acting on the population, implying that expression of density dependence depends extensively on local conditions. Additional experimental work should reveal the mechanisms influencing how the expression of density dependence varies across populations through space and time.

Effects of OK-432 (picibanil) on the estrogen receptors of MCF-7 cells and potentiation of antiproliferative effects of tamoxifen in combination with OK-432.

Science.gov (United States)

Aoyagi, H; Iino, Y; Takeo, T; Horii, Y; Morishita, Y; Horiuchi, R

1997-01-01

OK-432 (picibanil), a streptococcal preparation, has a strong biological response modifier (BRM) function and is expected to produce clinical improvement and prolongation of survival in treated cancer patients in Japan. We were interested in whether OK-432 augments estrogen receptor (ER) levels in breast cancer. To investigate the effect of the BRMs on cellular growth and the characteristics of ER and progesterone receptors (PgR) in the human breast cancer cell line MCF-7, we used OK-432, Krestin (PSK), a protein-bound polysaccharide extracted from Coriolus versicolor, and lentinan, a fungal branched (1...3)-beta-D-glycan. OK432 and PSK dose dependently inhibited DNA synthesis of MCF-7 cells, and the 50% inhibitory concentrations of OK-432 and PSK were 1.2 KE (klinische Einheit, clinical unit)/ml and 200 micrograms/ml, respectively. Lentinan showed no direct anticancer effect in vitro. We found that OK-432 induced a 2-fold increase in ER levels in MCF-7 cells at 0.005 KE/ml, but not in PgR. Lentinan and low-dose PSK did not change ER or PgR levels, but high-dose PSK decreased ER and PgR. We also studied the combined effect of OK-432 and antiestrogens, tamoxifen (TAM) and DP-TAT-59. The combined treatment with OK-432 and TAM showed an additive inhibitory effect on MCF-7 cells. These results suggest that OK-432 may augment the therapeutic effect of TAM in breast cancer.

Influence of Estradiol-17beta on Progesterone and Estrogen Receptor mRNA Expression in Porcine Follicular Granulosa Cells during Short-Term, In Vitro Real-Time Cell Proliferation

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Sylwia Ciesiółka

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Progesterone (P4 and estradiol (E2 play a significant role in mammalian reproduction. Our study demonstrated that separated porcine cumulus cells (CCs and/or granulosa cells (GCs might proliferate in vitro during short-term, real-time primary culture. The GCs were analyzed according to gene expression of the progesterone receptor (nuclear form (pgr, progesterone receptor membrane component 1 (pgrmc1, and estrogen-related receptor beta 3 (esrrb3 in relation to two housekeeping genes: actb and pbgd. GCs were cultivated in medium with the E2. Both pgr/actb and pgr/pbgd revealed higher expression between 24 and 168 h of IVC of prolonged E2 treatment and at 48 h of IVC after acute E2 administration. The pgrmc1/actb and pgrmc1/pbgd displayed increased expression after prolonged E2 treatment between 24 and 120 h of IVC. The highest level of esrrb3/actb at 120 and 144 h, as well as esrrb3/pbgd at 120 h, in untreated controls as compared to the hormone-stimulated group, was observed. We suggest that E2 significantly influences the upregulation of pgr, pgrmc1, and esrrb3 expression in porcine GCs during real-time cell proliferation. Since esrrb3 expression is stimulated by E2 in both an acute and prolonged manner, estradiol may be recognized as a potential estrogen receptor agonist in GCs.

Bedrock displacements in Greenland manifest ice mass variations, climate cycles and climate change

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bevis, Michael; Wahr, John; Khan, Shfaqat Abbas

2012-01-01

for by an annual oscillation superimposed on a sustained trend. The oscillation is driven by earth’s elastic response to seasonal variations in ice mass and air mass (i.e., atmospheric pressure). Observed vertical velocities are higher and often much higher than predicted rates of postglacial rebound (PGR......), implying that uplift is usually dominated by the solid earth’s instantaneous elastic response to contemporary losses in ice mass rather than PGR. Superimposed on longer-term trends, an anomalous ‘pulse’ of uplift accumulated at many GNET stations during an approximate six-month period in 2010...

Ku-mediated coupling of DNA cleavage and repair during programmed genome rearrangements in the ciliate Paramecium tetraurelia.

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Antoine Marmignon

2014-08-01

Full Text Available During somatic differentiation, physiological DNA double-strand breaks (DSB can drive programmed genome rearrangements (PGR, during which DSB repair pathways are mobilized to safeguard genome integrity. Because of their unique nuclear dimorphism, ciliates are powerful unicellular eukaryotic models to study the mechanisms involved in PGR. At each sexual cycle, the germline nucleus is transmitted to the progeny, but the somatic nucleus, essential for gene expression, is destroyed and a new somatic nucleus differentiates from a copy of the germline nucleus. In Paramecium tetraurelia, the development of the somatic nucleus involves massive PGR, including the precise elimination of at least 45,000 germline sequences (Internal Eliminated Sequences, IES. IES excision proceeds through a cut-and-close mechanism: a domesticated transposase, PiggyMac, is essential for DNA cleavage, and DSB repair at excision sites involves the Ligase IV, a specific component of the non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ pathway. At the genome-wide level, a huge number of programmed DSBs must be repaired during this process to allow the assembly of functional somatic chromosomes. To understand how DNA cleavage and DSB repair are coordinated during PGR, we have focused on Ku, the earliest actor of NHEJ-mediated repair. Two Ku70 and three Ku80 paralogs are encoded in the genome of P. tetraurelia: Ku70a and Ku80c are produced during sexual processes and localize specifically in the developing new somatic nucleus. Using RNA interference, we show that the development-specific Ku70/Ku80c heterodimer is essential for the recovery of a functional somatic nucleus. Strikingly, at the molecular level, PiggyMac-dependent DNA cleavage is abolished at IES boundaries in cells depleted for Ku80c, resulting in IES retention in the somatic genome. PiggyMac and Ku70a/Ku80c co-purify as a complex when overproduced in a heterologous system. We conclude that Ku has been integrated in the Paramecium

Evaluación de la susceptibilidad antimicrobiana de cepas de Salmonella spp. aisladas del beneficio porcino en Colombia / Evaluation of antimicrobial susceptibility of Salmonella spp. strains isolated from pork carcasses on Colombia

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Paula M. Bermúdez D

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Objetivo: el estudio buscó establecer patrones de resistencia antimicrobiana de 155 cepas de Salmonella spp., aisladas de la superficie de canales de cerdo, procedentes de plantas de beneficio en Colombia. Metodología: mediante el método de difusión en disco (Bauer et. Kirby, 1966 se evaluaron nueve antimicrobianos: Amoxicilina y ácido clavulánico (30 ug, Ampicilina (10 ug, Ceftiofur (30 ug, Ciprofloxacina (5 ug, Cloranfenicol (30 ug, Florfenicol (30 ug, Gentamicina (10 ug, Sulfadiazina y Trimetoprim (25 ug y Tetraciclina (30 ug. Resultados: los resultados confirmaron la presencia de cepas multiresistentes de Salmonella spp. de origen porcino, mostrando 30 patrones diferentes de multiresistencia; el más común fue Ampicilina, Amoxicilina, Cloranfenicol, Florfenicol y Tetraciclina en el 16,77% (n=26 de las cepas. Tetraciclina y Florfenicol fueron los antimicrobianos menos efectivos en el 94,84% (n=147 y 47,74% (n=74 de cepas resistentes, respectivamente. Discusión: se deben consolidar los sistemas de monitoreo, y de vigilancia y control de las resistencias antimicrobianas para prevenir, con un enfoque de cadena productiva, la diseminación de cepas multiresistentes en alimentos de origen animal, como parte integral del sistema de gestión de inocuidad de los alimentos en Colombia. - Objetivo: el estudio buscó establecer patrones de resistencia antimicrobiana de 155 cepas de Salmonella spp., aisladas de la superficie de canales de cerdo, procedentes de plantas de beneficio en Colombia. Metodología: mediante el método de difusión en disco (Bauer et. Kirby, 1966 se evaluaron nueve antimicrobianos: Amoxicilina y ácido clavulánico (30 ug, Ampicilina (10 ug, Ceftiofur (30 ug, Ciprofloxacina (5 ug, Cloranfenicol (30 ug, Florfenicol (30 ug, Gentamicina (10 ug, Sulfadiazina y Trimetoprim (25 ug y Tetraciclina (30 ug. Resultados: los resultados confirmaron la presencia de cepas multiresistentes de Salmonella spp. de origen porcino, mostrando

Peroxidase activity as a marker for estrogenicity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levy, J.; Liel, Y.; Glick, S.M.

1981-01-01

We examined the possibility that peroxidase activity might be a marker for estrogen activity in established estrogen-dependent tissues: dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced rat mammary tumours and human breast cancer. In DMBA-induced tumours undergoing regression after ovariectomy or tamoxifen treatment, tumour size decreased by 50%, estradiol receptors (ER) and progesterone receptors (PgR) decreased by 25 and 20%, respectively, but peroxidase activity paradoxically increased six- to sevenfold. In DMBA tumours stimulated by estradiol treatment or by the cessation of tamoxifen administration in intact rats, tumour size increased threefold. ER and PgR increased two- and threefold, respectively, while peroxidase activity decreased 50%. These data indicate an inverse relation between tumour growth, ER and PgR on the one hand, and peroxidase activity on the other. In the human breast cancers there was a singificant negative relation between the presence of ER and peroxidase activity. By using a calibrated Sephadex G-100 column it was shown that uterine peroxidase differs in molecular weight from the peroxidase of rat mammary tumours and that of human breast cancer. (author)

U-Pb ages for two tonalitic gneisses, pegmatitic granites, and K-feldspar porphyries, Olkiluoto study site, Eurajoki, SW Finland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maenttaeri, I.; Lindberg, A.; Aaltonen, I.

2007-08-01

Secondary ion microprobe zircon U-Pb ages have been determined for two tonalitic gneisses, two pegmatitic granites, and two potassium feldspar porphyry samples from the Olkiluoto study site, Eurajoki, S-W Finland. Moreover, monazites from the Kfeldspar porphyries were dated using TIMS U-Pb method. The tonalitic gneiss A1879 TTG 1 reveals bimodal zircon population and for A1880 TTG it is homogeneous. The samples yield similar overlapping concordia ages of 1851 ± 5 Ma and 1856 ± 5 Ma, respectively. The pegmatitic granite samples A1881 PGR 1 and A1883 PGR 2 have mostly zircons resembling those of the TTG's. The supposed pegmatitic zircons with high U and low Th are strongly altered. The zircon U-Pb data of A1881 PGR 1 plot roughly in two separate lines on a concordia diagram. The apparently younger ∼1.79 Ga data are all from the high U and low Th/U zircons and therefore certainly set the minimum age for the A1881 PGR 1. It is suggested, that the ∼1.85 Ga data comprise analyses from inherited zircons as it include both lower and higher Th/U zircons and 1.85 Ga coevals with age of the tonalitic gneisses. Thus, the apparent age for the A1881 PGR 1 is ∼1.79 Ga. The U-Pb data of sample A1883 PGR 2 also divide into two groups. The higher Th/U, inherited zircons determine an age of 1852 ± 9 Ma which is the same as that of the TTG's. The low Th/U zircon data scatter and the age of 1.83 Ga for A1883 PGR 2 is only poorly determined. The both potassium feldspar porphyry samples A1882 KFP 1 and A1884 KFP 2 reveal heterogeneous zircon populations. The A1882 KFP 1 zircons showing magmatic zoning in BSE images conceivably determine a concordia age of 1842± 6 Ma for the rock. In addition to that a few ∼1.9 Ga inherited zircon and metamorphic low Th/U rims with ages between 1.88 Ga and 1.83 Ga were detected. The age for the youngest metamorphic zircon rims overlaps with that of the magmatic zircons. The zircons in the other KFP sample A1884 show a wide range of ages

Porównywalność w czasie informacji o wynikach działalności społecznie odpowiedzialnej firm raportujących według zasad GRI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Halina Waniak-Michalak

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Porównywalność w czasie informacji o wynikach działalności społecznie odpowiedzialnej firm raportujących według zasad GRI The involvement of corporations in corporate social responsibility (CSR activities with respect for work- ers' rights and ethical principles brings tangible benefits to the enterprise. CSR activities can therefore be considered as an investment, the effects of which should be measured. CSR benefits derive from im- proved assessment of the corporation by the stakeholders and increased social trust. However, in order to achieve the desired results of CSR activities, it is necessary to provide adequate information to customers, employees and owners. Moreover, the measurement of CSR results is necessary to determine the effec- tiveness of the actions taken. The aim of the article was to answer the question if companies present the same measures in successive CSR reports and whether it is possible to compare the CSR activity results for successive years. Examination of 31 CSR reports for two consecutive editions of the reporting showed that companies change the number and type of disclosed measures.

Technical validation of an RT-qPCR in vitro diagnostic test system for the determination of breast cancer molecular subtypes by quantification of ERBB2, ESR1, PGR and MKI67 mRNA levels from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded breast tumor specimens.

Science.gov (United States)

Laible, Mark; Schlombs, Kornelia; Kaiser, Katharina; Veltrup, Elke; Herlein, Stefanie; Lakis, Sotiris; Stöhr, Robert; Eidt, Sebastian; Hartmann, Arndt; Wirtz, Ralph M; Sahin, Ugur

2016-07-07

MammaTyper is a novel CE-marked in vitro diagnostic RT-qPCR assay which assigns routinely processed breast cancer specimens into the molecular subtypes Luminal A-like, Luminal B-like (HER2 positive or negative), HER2 positive (non-luminal) and Triple negative (ductal) according to the mRNA expression of ERBB2, ESR1, PGR and MKI67 and the St Gallen consensus surrogate clinical definition. Until now and regarding formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded material (FFPE), this has been a task mostly accomplished by immunohistochemistry (IHC). However the discrepancy rates of IHC for the four breast cancer biomarkers are frequently under debate, especially for Ki-67 which carries the highest degree of inter- and even intra-observer variability. Herein we describe a series of studies in FFPE specimens which aim to fully validate the analytical performance of the MammaTyper assay, including the site to site reproducibility of the individual marker measurements. Tumor RNA was extracted with the novel RNXtract RNA extraction kit. Synthetic RNA was used to assess the sensitivity of the RNXtract kit. DNA and RNA specific qPCR assays were used so as to determine analyte specificity of RNXtract. For the assessment of limit of blank, limit of detection, analytical measurement range and PCR efficiency of the MammaTyper kit serial dilutions of samples were used. Analytical precision studies of MammaTyper were built around two different real time PCR platforms and involved breast tumor samples belonging to different subtypes analyzed across multiple sites and under various stipulated conditions. The MammaTyper assay robustness was tested against RNA input variations, alternative extraction methods and tumor cell content. Individual assays were linear up to at least 32.33 and 33.56 Cqs (quantification cycles) for the two qPCR platforms tested. PCR efficiency ranged from 99 to 109 %. In qPCR platform 1, estimates for assay specific inter-site standard deviations (SD) were between 0.14 and

Technical validation of an RT-qPCR in vitro diagnostic test system for the determination of breast cancer molecular subtypes by quantification of ERBB2, ESR1, PGR and MKI67 mRNA levels from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded breast tumor specimens

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laible, Mark; Schlombs, Kornelia; Kaiser, Katharina; Veltrup, Elke; Herlein, Stefanie; Lakis, Sotiris; Stöhr, Robert; Eidt, Sebastian; Hartmann, Arndt; Wirtz, Ralph M.; Sahin, Ugur

2016-01-01

MammaTyper is a novel CE-marked in vitro diagnostic RT-qPCR assay which assigns routinely processed breast cancer specimens into the molecular subtypes Luminal A-like, Luminal B-like (HER2 positive or negative), HER2 positive (non-luminal) and Triple negative (ductal) according to the mRNA expression of ERBB2, ESR1, PGR and MKI67 and the St Gallen consensus surrogate clinical definition. Until now and regarding formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded material (FFPE), this has been a task mostly accomplished by immunohistochemistry (IHC). However the discrepancy rates of IHC for the four breast cancer biomarkers are frequently under debate, especially for Ki-67 which carries the highest degree of inter- and even intra-observer variability. Herein we describe a series of studies in FFPE specimens which aim to fully validate the analytical performance of the MammaTyper assay, including the site to site reproducibility of the individual marker measurements. Tumor RNA was extracted with the novel RNXtract RNA extraction kit. Synthetic RNA was used to assess the sensitivity of the RNXtract kit. DNA and RNA specific qPCR assays were used so as to determine analyte specificity of RNXtract. For the assessment of limit of blank, limit of detection, analytical measurement range and PCR efficiency of the MammaTyper kit serial dilutions of samples were used. Analytical precision studies of MammaTyper were built around two different real time PCR platforms and involved breast tumor samples belonging to different subtypes analyzed across multiple sites and under various stipulated conditions. The MammaTyper assay robustness was tested against RNA input variations, alternative extraction methods and tumor cell content. Individual assays were linear up to at least 32.33 and 33.56 Cqs (quantification cycles) for the two qPCR platforms tested. PCR efficiency ranged from 99 to 109 %. In qPCR platform 1, estimates for assay specific inter-site standard deviations (SD) were between 0.14 and 0

Green justice in the city

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rutt, Rebecca Leigh; Gulsrud, Natalie Marie

2016-01-01

tIn this short communication, we discuss European urban green space (UGS) research from an environ-mental justice perspective. We show that European UGS scholarship primarily focuses on functionalvalues and managerial aspects of UGS, while paying less attention to equity in the enjoyment of andde...... of anddecision-making around UGS. On this basis we discuss potentials for European urban green space researchto take up a more explicit environmental justice framing to shed much-needed light on injustices inEuropean cities and inspire change in policy and practice.......tIn this short communication, we discuss European urban green space (UGS) research from an environ-mental justice perspective. We show that European UGS scholarship primarily focuses on functionalvalues and managerial aspects of UGS, while paying less attention to equity in the enjoyment...

Resistance within hemodialysis shunts predicts patency.

Science.gov (United States)

Bui, Trung D; Gordon, Ian L; Parashar, Amish; Vo, David; Wilson, Samuel E

2006-01-01

The authors examined the relationship between patency after thrombectomy of clotted dialysis grafts and intraoperative measurements of flow (Q), pressure gradient (PGR), and longitudinal resistance (RL). Eighteen thrombosed arteriovenous (AV) grafts underwent 21 thrombectomies. Pressures at arterial (P1) and venous (P2) ends of the AV grafts were determined with 22-gauge catheters and standard transducers; flow was measured with transit-time probes; arithmetic averaging of waveforms was used to compute mean Q, PGR, and RL. Kaplan-Meier patency curves were analyzed by using log rank methods. Mean patency for all grafts was 164 +/-152 days. For each variable, the 21 measurements were split and the patency curve for the grafts with the 11 lowest value grafts was compared to the curve representing the 10 highest value grafts. The difference between high RL versus low RL patency curves was significant with high-resistance grafts having a median patency of 55 days and low-resistance grafts having a median patency greater than 151 days (p = 0.0089). In contrast, the high Q group median patency was 151 days versus 174 days for the low Q group (p = 0.86). Median patency for the low PGR group was 115 days compared to 62 days for the high PGR group (p = 0.162). Longitudinal resistance within AV grafts, but not flow or pressure gradient, showed a significant correlation with patency after thrombectomy. Increased resistance to flow within AV grafts appears to be an important factor affecting the propensity of dialysis grafts to thrombose.

Responses of yield and N use of spring sown crops to N fertilization, with special reference to the use of plant growth regulators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. PIETOLA

2008-12-01

Full Text Available The role of plant growth regulators (PGR in nitrogen (N fertilization of spring wheat and oats (CCC, fodder barley (etephon/mepiquat and oilseed rape (etephone in crop rotation was studied in 1993–1996 on loamy clay soil. Carry over effect of the N fertilization rates (0–180 kg ha-1 was evaluated in 1997. N fertilization rate for the best grain/seed yield (120–150 kg ha-1 was not affected by PGRs. The seed and N yields of oilseed rape were improved most frequently by recommended use of PGR. The yields of oats were increased in 1995–96. Even though PGR effectively shortened the plant height of spring wheat, the grain yield increased only in 1995. N yield of wheat grains was not increased. Response of fodder barley to PGR was insignificant or even negative in 1995. The data suggest that PGRs may decrease some N leaching at high N rates by improving N uptake by grain/seeds, if the yield is improved. The carryover study showed that in soils with no N fertilization, as well as in soils of high N rates, N uptake was higher than in soils with moderate N fertilization (60–90 kg ha-1 , independent of PGRs. According to soil mineral N contents, N leaching risk is significant (15–35 kg ha-1 only after dry and warm late seasons. After a favourable season of high yields, the N rates did not significantly affect soil mineral N contents. ;

List of Participants

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-01

Abigail Alvarez OlarteCINVESTAV Alba Leticia Carrillo MonteverdeDCI-UG Alberto CarramiñanaINAOE Aldo MorselliFERMI Alejandro CastillaDCI-UG Alejandro IbarraTechnical University of Munich Alma D Rojas PachecoFCFM-BUAP Alma Xochitl Gonzalez MoralesInstituto de Ciencias Nucleares, UNAM Andrew Walcott BeckwithAmerican Institute of Beam Energy Physics Ariadna Montiel ArenasDepartamento de Física, CINVESTAV Arnulfo ZepedaCinvestav Arturo Alvarez CruzInstituto de Fisica, UNAM Axel de la MacorraUNAM, IAC Azar MustafayevUniversity of Minnesota Benjamin JaramilloDCI-UG Vincent BertinCPPM-Marseille Carlos Alberto Vaquera-AraujoDCI-UG Carlos MuñozMadrid Autonoma U. & Madrid, IFT Carmine PagliaroneINFN, FNAL Carolina Lujan PeschardDCI-UG Christiane Frigerio MartinsUniversidade Federal do ABC-São Paulo Csaba BalazsMonash University David DelepineDCI-UG David G CerdenoUniversidad Autonoma de Madrid & Instituto de Fisica Teorica Debasish MajumdarSaha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata, India Dibyendu PanigrahiKandi Raj College, Kandi, Murshidabad, INDIA-742137 Dupret Alberto Santana BejaranoUniversidad de Sonora Departamento de Investigacion en Fisica Ernest MaRiverside U.C. Esteban Alejandro Reyes Pírez MontañezInstituto de Física, UNAM Federico Ortiz TrejoINSTITUTO DE ASTRONOMÍA - UNAM Francisco José de Anda NavarroUniversidad de Guadalajara González Alvarez Francisco JavierCINVESTAV-Depto. Física Gustavo Medina TancoICN-UNAM Hernando Efrain Caicedo OrtizInstituto Politecnico Nacional - IPN J D VergadosCERN & Ioannina U. James R BoyceJefferson Lab Jason SteffenFERMILAB Javier Montaño DomínguezDCI-UG Jeevan SolankiMandsaur Institue of Technology MP India Joe SatoSaitama University Jorge Luis Navarro EstradaUNAM-ICN and Universidad del Atlantico (B/quilla-Col.) Jose A R CembranosUniversity of Minnesota José DíazIFIC Jose Didino Garcia AguilarDepto. de Fisica. Cinvestav Keith OliveUniversity of Minnesota Konstantia BalasiUniversity of Ioannina, Greece Lilian Prado

The anger-infused Ultimatum Game: A reliable and valid paradigm to induce and assess anger.

Science.gov (United States)

Gilam, Gadi; Abend, Rany; Shani, Hagai; Ben-Zion, Ziv; Hendler, Talma

2018-03-22

The Ultimatum Game (UG) is a canonical social decision-making task whereby a proposer divides a sum of money between himself and a responder who accepts or rejects the offer. Studies consistently demonstrate that unfair offers induce anger, and that rejecting such offers relates to aggression. Nevertheless, the UG is limited in interpersonal provocations common to real-life experiences of anger. Moreover, the psychometric properties of the UG as an anger-induction paradigm have yet to be evaluated. Here, to induce a more intense and genuine anger experience, we implemented a modified UG whereby short written provocations congruent with unfairness levels accompanied each offer. We aimed to test whether this anger-infused UG led to more anger and aggressive responses relative to the standard UG and to establish the reliability and validity of both versions. Participants performed either the anger-infused UG or a standard version, repeated twice, a week apart. They also performed the Taylor Aggression Paradigm, a reactive aggression paradigm, and completed emotion ratings and a trait anger inventory. Results indicate similar decreases in acceptance rates with increase in offer unfairness, and increases in reported anger, across both UG versions. Both versions demonstrated strong test-retest reliability. However, the anger-infused UG led to significantly stronger relations with reactive aggression and trait anger compared to the standard UG, providing evidence for better validity. The development of the anger-infused UG as a reliable and valid paradigm is pivotal for the induction and assessment of interpersonal anger and its aggressive expression in basic and clinical research settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

In Situ Bioremediation of Chlorinated Solvent Source Areas with Enhanced Mass Transfer

Science.gov (United States)

2008-09-01

three-dimensional view with iso -surface of LIF counts • GMS support files needed to operate GMS (for example, bor, .map, .mat, .img, .mat, and .sol...DCE (ug/L) trans-DCE (ug/L) VC (ug/L) Ethane (ug/L) Ethene (ug/L) Chloride (ug/L) 5C2C43 11/9/2005 440 J,B,D 27000 D 0 540 D 4.0 J 8.6 J...0.43 J 0.64 J 2C2D21 7/18/2005 29000 D 2C2D22 7/19/2005 530 J, D 30000 B, D, E 0 0 0 0 2C2D22 7/19/2005 27000 D 2C2D23 7/20/2005 180 J

Thermoelectric properties of unoxidized graphene/Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 2.7}Se{sub 0.3} composites synthesized by exfoliation/re-assembly method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jin Il; Lee, Eun Sil; Kim, Jong-Young [Icheon Branch, Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering and Technology, Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Soon-Mok [School of Energy, Materials and Chemical Engineering, Korea University of Technology and Education, Cheonan (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Kyu Hyoung [Materials R and D Center, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Seo, Won-Seon [Energy and Environmental Division, Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering and Technology, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-04-15

Nanocomposites of n-type thermoelectric Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 2.7}Se{sub 0.3} (BTS) and unoxidized graphene (UG) were prepared from the exfoliated BTS and UG nanoplatelets. Polycrystalline BTS ingots were exfoliated into nanoscroll-type crystals by chemical exfoliation, and were re-assembled with UG nanoplatelets. The composites were chemically reduced by hydrazine hydrate and sintered by a spark-plasma-sintering method. The thermoelectric properties of the sintered composites were evaluated and exhibited decreased carrier concentration and increased thermal conductivity due to the embedded graphene. The peak ZT values for the UG/BTS-US and UG/BTS-EX composites were ∝0.8 at the UG concentration of 0.05 wt%. (copyright 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Sorption of cesium in intact rock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Puukko, E.

2014-04-01

The mass distribution coefficient K d is used in performance assessment (PA) to describe sorption of a radionuclide on rock. The R d is determined using crushed rock which causes uncertainty in converting the R d values to K d values for intact rock. This work describes a method to determine the equilibrium of sorption on intact rock. The rock types of the planned Olkiluoto waste disposal site were T-series mica gneiss (T-MGN), T-series tonalite granodiorite granite gneiss (T-TGG), P-series tonalite granodiorite granite gneiss (P-TGG) and pegmatitic granite (PGR). These rocks contain different amount of biotite which is the main sorbing mineral. The sorption of cesium on intact rock slices was studied by applying an electrical field to speed up migration of cesium into the rock. Cesium is in the solution as a noncomplex cation Cs + and it is sorbed by ion exchange. The tracer used in the experiments was 134 Cs. The experimental sorption on the intact rock is compared with values calculated using the in house cation exchange sorption model (HYRL model) in PHREEQC program. The observed sorption on T-MGN and T-TGG rocks was close to the calculated values. Two PGR samples were from a depth of 70 m and three samples were from a depth of 150 m. Cesium sorbed more than predicted on the two 70 m PGR samples. The sorption of Cs on the three 150 m PGR samples was small which was consistent with the calculations. The pegmatitic granite PGR has the smallest content of biotite of the four rock types. In the case of P-TGG rock the observed values of sorption were only half of the calculated values. Two kind of slices were cut from P-TGG drill core. The slices were against and to the direction of the foliation of the biotite rims. The sorption of cesium on P-TGG rock was same in both cases. The results indicated that there was no effect of the directions of the electric field and the foliation of biotite in the P-TGG rock. (orig.)

Determinants of import demand for non-renewable energy (petroleum) products: Empirical evidence from Nigeria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adewuyi, Adeolu O.

2016-01-01

This study estimated determinants of import demand for refined petroleum products in Nigeria for the period 1984–2013. It employed the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test cointegration method and analysed both long-run and short-run determinants of import demand for total and specific petroleum products. In the long-run, aggregate and sectoral incomes are significant determinants of import of refined kerosene. Further, real effective exchange rate (REER), aggregate income (GDP), manufacturing sector's income, domestic energy production (DEP) and population growth rate (PGR) are drivers of import of refined motor spirit Moreover, REER, DEP and manufacturing sector's income are propellers of import of refined distillate fuel. Also, REER and total output of petroleum products are major drivers of total import of refined petroleum products. Short-run results show that previous period GDP, PGR and manufacturing and service sectors' incomes are determinants of import demand for refined kerosene. Moreover, REER, GDP, previous PGR and manufacturing sector's income exert significant effects on the import of refined motor spirit. Further, significant effects of REER, DEP, previous PGR, domestic output of the product and manufacturing and service sectors' incomes on the import demand for distillate fuel were found. Policy implications of the foregoing are articulated in the paper. - Highlights: •Long-run and short-run drivers of import demand for petroleum products were estimated. •kerosene import is income elastic, gasoline import is income and relative price inelastic. •Exchange rate policies may have diverse effects on import of various petroleum product. •Expanding market size has implication for import demand for petroleum product varieties. •Import demand for petroleum products responds differently to various sectoral incomes.

Ultrasound-Guided Miniscalpel-Needle Release versus Dry Needling for Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yongjun Zheng

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To compare ultrasound-guided miniscalpel-needle (UG-MSN release versus ultrasound-guided dry needling (UG-DN for chronic neck pain. Methods. A total of 169 patients with chronic neck pain were randomized to receive either UG-MSN release or UG-DN. Before treatment and at 3 and 6 months posttreatment, pain was measured using a 10-point visual analogue scale (VAS. Neck function was examined using the neck disability index. Health-related quality of life was examined using the physical component score (PCS and mental component score (MCS of the SF-36 health status scale. Results. Patients in the UG-MSN release had greater improvement on the VAS (by 2 points at 3 months and 0.9 points at 6 months versus in the UG-DN arm; (both P<0.0001. Patients receiving UG-MSN release also showed significantly lower scores on the adjusted neck disability index, as well as significantly lower PCS. No severe complications were observed. Conclusion. UG-MSN release was superior to UG-DN in reducing pain intensity and neck disability in patients with chronic neck pain and was not associated with severe complications. The procedural aspects in the two arms were identical; however, we did not verify the blinding success. As such, the results need to be interpreted with caution.

Effect of anti-inflamentation extracts from Korean traditional medicinal herb

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhang Xiaowan

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Five Mix Plant Extracts according to different extraction solvents were assessed for its cell viability and anti-inflammatory activity by in vitro methods. The single plant extract was extracted with 70% ethanol(EtOH and the mix plants(C.kousa, R.multiflora, T.nucifera, M.basjoo and S.glabra were extracted with EtOH 30%, 70%; Butylene Glycol(BG 30%, 70%; Propylene Glycol(PG 30%, 70%; Distilled Water(D.W. Cell viability was measured using the Micro culture tetrazolium (MTT assay method and Human fibroblast cells, CCD 1102 KERTr were used. The plant extracts with the maximum concentration that none toxic to the cells were evaluated for anti-inflammatory activity. Anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated using lipoxygenase inhibition assay method. A dose response curve was plotted to determine the IC50 values. Results showed that, at the 5 kinds of single plant extracts by 70% EtOH extraction solvent, it showed the IC50 was 280ug/ml of S1, 370ug/ml of S2, 380ug/ml of S3, 170ug/ml of S4 and 190ug/ml of S5. At the mix plant extracts by 7 kinds of extraction solvents (70%, 30% EtOH; 70%, 30% BG; 70%, 30% PG; D.W, it showed the IC50 was 140ug/ml of M E70, 140ug/ml of M E30, 120ug/ml of M BG70, 110ug/ml of M BG30, 120ug/ml of M PG70, 136ug/ml of M PG30 and 120ug/ml of M D.W. From the results, it is concluded that when these five plants mixed before extraction, it will extract more active ingredients with anti-inflammatory effects. Further study we will analyzing plants effective single compound using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC profiling and progressing the experiments in vivo.

Association between HIV-1 coreceptor usage and resistance to broadly neutralizing antibodies.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfeifer, Nico; Walter, Hauke; Lengauer, Thomas

2014-10-01

Recently discovered broadly neutralizing antibodies have revitalized hopes of developing a universal vaccine against HIV-1. Mainly responsible for new infections are variants only using CCR5 for cell entry, whereas CXCR4-using variants can become dominant in later infection stages. We performed a statistical analysis on two different previously published data sets. The first data set was a panel of 199 diverse HIV-1 isolates for which IC50 neutralization titers were determined for the broadly neutralizing antibodies VRC01, VRC-PG04, PG9, and PG16. The second data set contained env sequences of viral variants extracted from HIV-1-infected humanized mice treated with the antibody PGT128 and from untreated control mice. For the panel of 199 diverse HIV-1 isolates, we found a statistically significant association between viral resistance to PG9 and PG16 and CXCR4 coreceptor usage (P = 0.0011 and P = 0.0010, respectively). Our analysis of viral variants from HIV-1-infected humanized mice under treatment with the broadly neutralizing antibody PGT128 indicated that certain antibodies might drive a viral population toward developing CXCR4 coreceptor usage capability (P = 0.0011 for the comparison between PGT128 and control measurement). These analyses highlight the importance of accounting for a possible coreceptor usage bias pertaining to the effectiveness of an HIV vaccine and to passive antibody transfer as therapeutic approach.

Ugonin U stimulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation and enhances inflammasome-mediated pathogen clearance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chun-Yu Chen

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The NOD-like receptor pyrin domain 3 (NLRP3 inflammasome contains Nod-like receptors, a subclass of pattern recognition receptors, suggesting that this complex has a prominent role in host defenses. Various structurally diverse stimulators activate the NLRP3 inflammasome through different signaling pathways. We previously reported that ugonin U (UgU, a natural flavonoid isolated from Helminthostachys zeylanica (L Hook, directly stimulates phospholipase C (PLC and triggers superoxide release in human neutrophils. In the present study, we showed that UgU induced NLRP3 inflammasome assembly and subsequent caspase-1 and interleukin (IL-1β processing in lipopolysaccharide-primed human monocytes. Moreover, UgU elicited mitochondrial superoxide generation in a dose-dependent manner, and a specific scavenger of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS diminished UgU-induced IL-1β and caspase-1 activation. UgU induced Ca2+ mobilization, which was inhibited by treatment with inhibitors of PLC or inositol triphosphate receptor (IP3R. Blocking Ca2+ mobilization, PLC, or IP3R diminished UgU-induced IL-1β release, caspase-1 activation, and mitochondrial ROS generation. These data demonstrated that UgU activated the NLPR3 inflammasome activation through Ca2+ mobilization and the production of mitochondrial ROS. We also demonstrated that UgU-dependent NLRP3 inflammasome activation enhanced the bactericidal function of human monocytes. The ability of UgU to stimulate human neutrophils and monocytes, both of which are professional phagocytes, and its capacity to activate the NLRP3 inflammasome, which is a promising molecular target for developing anti-infective medicine, indicate that UgU treatment should be considered as a possible novel therapy for treating infectious diseases.

Geomechanical Assessments of Simultaneous Operation in the Case of Transition from Open Pit to Underground Mine in Vietnam

Science.gov (United States)

Niedbalski, Zbigniew; Nguyen, Phu Minh Vuong; Widzyk-Capehart, Eleonora

2018-03-01

Nowadays, for a number of reasons, many open pit mines are considering a transition from Open Pit (OP) to Underground (UG) to remain competitive. In OP-UG transition, UG operation is operated simultaneously with the OP operation for a certain period of time. Guidelines for the simultaneous operation of OP and UG are very difficult to establish, as there are very few case studies available. Yet, because of the OP-UG interactions; the operation has a higher safety, technical and management requirements than the OP or UG methods when considered separately. In Vietnam, Cao Son is one of many OP mines, which decided to change the operational system from OP to UG. Simultaneous operation started in 2015 and will be conducted until 2030 when the OP mine Cao Son ends its mining activities. In this paper, selected geomechanical considerations of the simultaneous operation are presented. A number of numerical modelling calculations using finitedifference software with code FLAC were carried out for calibration process, slope stability analysis and the OP-UG interaction analysis for the Cao Son - Khe Cham II-IV mine. Based on the results obtained from numerical modelling, the geomechanical assessments of simultaneous operation Cao Son - Khe Cham II-IV are discussed in this paper.

Decision Making on Allocating Urban Green Spaces Based upon Spatially-Varying Relationships between Urban Green Spaces and Urban Compaction Degree

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hsueh-Sheng Chang

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The compact city is becoming a prevailing paradigm in the world to control urban sprawl and achieve a pattern of sustainable urban development. However, discussions of the area's overcrowded neighborhoods, its health problems, and the destruction of its green areas have inspired self-examination with respect to the compact city paradigm. High population density attracts even more residents and frequently renders the existing urban green space (UGS insufficient for use as part of a living environment. Due to the unique benefits that these qualities confer, UGS allocation is now considered a significant contributing factor to urban livability. In addition, the UGS allocation may be different due to the presence of many spatial non-stationarity processes. Therefore, this study employs geographically-weighted regression (GWR to explore the unique and spatially-explicit relationships between the degree of urban compaction and UGS within the Taipei metropolitan area. Maps summarizing the GWR results demonstrate that there is significantly insufficient UGS allocation in the central area, which consists mainly of Taipei City. Townships with higher parameters contain UGS levels that better meet the needs of their residents. Overall, the exploration of conceptualizing spatial heterogeneity of relationships between the degree of urban compaction and UGS can provide insightful analyses for decision-making on allocating UGS.

Characterization of oils from Duranta repens leaf and seed

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agomuo Emmanuel

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The knowledge of the chemical composition of unpopular sources of edible oils has become paramount to supplement the usage of widely known vegetable oils. In this study, the gas chromatographic quantification of fatty acids and phytochemicals was carried out, and the physicochemical and micronutrient composition of Duranta repens leaf and seed oil were evaluated using standard methods. The leaf oils contained significantly higher (p  oleic > myristic > stearic > capric > linoleic > lauric > palmitoleic for the seed oil, while for the leaf oil linoleic > palmitoleic > oleic > stearic > palmitic > myristic > capric > lauric > myristoleic. The major phytochemical constituents of the seed oils were catechin (68.12 ug/ml, saponin (44.03 ug/ml, rutin (32.89 ug/ml, linamarin (22.66 ug/ml and tannins (19.62 ug/ml, while kaempherol (84.05 ug/ml, rutin (62.26 ug/ml and saponins (45.63 ug/ml were mostly predominant in the leaf oil. Spartein, anthocyanins and phytates were among the least phytochemicals in composition, for both samples. These chemical properties evaluated, suggest that Duranta repens seed oil is more suitable for industrial and therapeutic purposes.

Advanced MicroObserver UGS integration with and cueing of the BattleHawk squad level loitering munition and UAV

Science.gov (United States)

Steadman, Bob; Finklea, John; Kershaw, James; Loughman, Cathy; Shaffner, Patti; Frost, Dean; Deller, Sean

2014-06-01

Textron's Advanced MicroObserver(R) is a next generation remote unattended ground sensor system (UGS) for border security, infrastructure protection, and small combat unit security. The original MicroObserver(R) is a sophisticated seismic sensor system with multi-node fusion that supports target tracking. This system has been deployed in combat theaters. The system's seismic sensor nodes are uniquely able to be completely buried (including antennas) for optimal covertness. The advanced version adds a wireless day/night Electro-Optic Infrared (EOIR) system, cued by seismic tracking, with sophisticated target discrimination and automatic frame capture features. Also new is a field deployable Gateway configurable with a variety of radio systems and flexible networking, an important upgrade that enabled the research described herein. BattleHawkTM is a small tube launched Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) with a warhead. Using transmitted video from its EOIR subsystem an operator can search for and acquire a target day or night, select a target for attack, and execute terminal dive to destroy the target. It is designed as a lightweight squad level asset carried by an individual infantryman. Although BattleHawk has the best loiter time in its class, it's still relatively short compared to large UAVs. Also it's a one-shot asset in its munition configuration. Therefore Textron Defense Systems conducted research, funded internally, to determine if there was military utility in having the highly persistent MicroObserver(R) system cue BattleHawk's launch and vector it to beyond visual range targets for engagement. This paper describes that research; the system configuration implemented, and the results of field testing that was performed on a government range early in 2013. On the integrated system that was implemented, MicroObserver(R) seismic detections activated that system's camera which then automatically captured images of the target. The geo-referenced and time-tagged Micro

Feasibility of an Assessment Tool for Children's Competence to Consent to Predictive Genetic Testing: a Pilot Study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hein, Irma M.; Troost, Pieter W.; Lindeboom, Robert; Christiaans, Imke; Grisso, Thomas; van Goudoever, Johannes B.; Lindauer, Ramón J. L.

2015-01-01

Knowledge on children's capacities to consent to medical treatment is limited. Also, age limits for asking children's consent vary considerably between countries. Decision-making on predictive genetic testing (PGT) is especially complicated, considering the ongoing ethical debate. In order to

Convergence of glycogen synthase kinase 3β and GR signaling in response to fluoxetine treatment in chronically stressed female and male rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitic, Milos; Brkic, Zeljka; Lukic, Iva; Adzic, Miroslav

2017-08-30

Accumulating evidence strongly suggest that impaired glucocorticoid receptor (GR) signaling is involved in stress-related mood disorders, and nominate GR as a potential target for antidepressants (ADs). It is known that different classes of ADs affects the GR action via modifying its phosphorylation, while the mechanism through which ADs alter GR phosphorylation targeted by GSK3β, a kinase modulated via serotonin neurotransmission, are unclear. On this basis, we investigated whether GSK3β-GR signaling could be a convergence point of fluoxetine action on brain function and behavior, by examining its effect on GSK3β targeted-GR phosphorylation on threonine 171 (pGR171), and expression of GR-regulated genes in the hippocampus of female and male rats exposed to chronic isolation stress. Stress induced sex-specific GSK3β-targeted phosphorylation of pGR171 in the nucleus of the hippocampus of stressed animals. Namely, while in females stress triggered coupled action of GSK3β-pGR171 signaling, in males changes in pGR171 levels did not correspond to GSK3β activity. On the other hand, fluoxetine managed to up-regulate this pathway in sex-unbiased manner. Furthermore, fluoxetine reverted stress-induced changes in most of the analyzed genes in males, CRH, 5-HT1a and p11, while in females its effect was limited to CRH. These data further suggest that pGR171 signaling affects cellular localization of GR in response to chronic stress and fluoxetine in both sexes. Collectively, our results describe a novel convergence point between GR signaling and GSK3β pathway in rat hippocampus in response to stress and fluoxetine in both sexes and its involvement in fluoxetine-regulated brain function in males. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Five Polymorphisms and Breast Cancer Risk: Results from the Breast Cancer Association Consortium

Science.gov (United States)

Gaudet, Mia M.; Milne, Roger L.; Cox, Angela; Camp, Nicola J.; Goode, Ellen L.; Humphreys, Manjeet K.; Dunning, Alison M.; Morrison, Jonathan; Giles, Graham G.; Severi, Gianluca; Baglietto, Laura; English, Dallas R.; Couch, Fergus J.; Olson, Janet E.; Wang, Xianshu; Chang-Claude, Jenny; Flesch-Janys, Dieter; Abbas, Sascha; Salazar, Ramona; Mannermaa, Arto; Kataja, Vesa; Kosma, Veli-Matti; Lindblom, Annika; Margolin, Sara; Heikkinen, Tuomas; Kämpjärvi, Kati; Aaltonen, Kirsimari; Nevanlinna, Heli; Bogdanova, Natalia; Coinac, Irina; Schürmann, Peter; Dörk, Thilo; Bartram, Claus R.; Schmutzler, Rita K.; Tchatchou, Sandrine; Burwinkel, Barbara; Brauch, Hiltrud; Torres, Diana; Hamann, Ute; Justenhoven, Christina; Ribas, Gloria; Arias, José I.; Benitez, Javier; Bojesen, Stig E.; Nordestgaard, Børge G.; Flyger, Henrik L.; Peto, Julian; Fletcher, Olivia; Johnson, Nichola; Silva, Isabel dos Santos; Fasching, Peter A.; Beckmann, Matthias W.; Strick, Reiner; Ekici, Arif B.; Broeks, Annegien; Schmidt, Marjanka K.; van Leeuwen, Flora E.; Van’t Veer, Laura J.; Southey, Melissa C.; Hopper, John L.; Apicella, Carmel; Haiman, Christopher A.; Henderson, Brian E.; Le Marchand, Loic; Kolonel, Laurence N.; Kristensen, Vessela; Alnæs, Grethe Grenaker; Hunter, David J.; Kraft, Peter; Cox, David G.; Hankinson, Susan E.; Seynaeve, Caroline; Vreeswijk, Maaike P.G.; Tollenaar, Rob A.E.M.; Devilee, Peter; Chanock, Stephen; Lissowska, Jolanta; Brinton, Louise; Peplonska, Beata; Czene, Kamila; Hall, Per; Li, Yuqing; Liu, Jianjun; Balasubramanian, Sabapathy; Rafii, Saeed; Reed, Malcolm W.R.; Pooley, Karen A.; Conroy, Don; Baynes, Caroline; Kang, Daehee; Yoo, Keun-Young; Noh, Dong-Young; Ahn, Sei-Hyun; Shen, Chen-Yang; Wang, Hui-Chun; Yu, Jyh-Cherng; Wu, Pei-Ei; Anton-Culver, Hoda; Ziogoas, Argyrios; Egan, Kathleen; Newcomb, Polly; Titus-Ernstoff, Linda; Dietz, Amy Trentham; Sigurdson, Alice J.; Alexander, Bruce H.; Bhatti, Parveen; Allen-Brady, Kristina; Cannon-Albright, Lisa A.; Wong, Jathine; Chenevix-Trench, Georgia; Spurdle, Amanda B.; Beesley, Jonathan; Pharoah, Paul D.P.; Easton, Doug F.; Garcia-Closas, Montserrat

2009-01-01

Previous studies have suggested that minor alleles for ERCC4 rs744154, TNF rs361525, CASP10 rs13010627, PGR rs1042838, and BID rs8190315 may influence breast cancer risk, but the evidence is inconclusive due to their small sample size. These polymorphisms were genotyped in more than 30,000 breast cancer cases and 30,000 controls, primarily of European descent, from 30 studies in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium. We calculated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) as a measure of association. We found that the minor alleles for these polymorphisms were not related to invasive breast cancer risk overall in women of European descent: ECCR4 per-allele OR (95% CI) = 0.99 (0.97–1.02), minor allele frequency = 27.5%; TNF 1.00 (0.95–1.06), 5.0%; CASP10 1.02 (0.98–1.07), 6.5%; PGR 1.02 (0.99–1.06), 15.3%; and BID 0.98 (0.86–1.12), 1.7%. However, we observed significant between-study heterogeneity for associations with risk for single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in CASP10, PGR, and BID. Estimates were imprecise for women of Asian and African descent due to small numbers and lower minor allele frequencies (with the exception of BID SNP). The ORs for each copy of the minor allele were not significantly different by estrogen or progesterone receptor status, nor were any significant interactions found between the polymorphisms and age or family history of breast cancer. In conclusion, our data provide persuasive evidence against an overall association between invasive breast cancer risk and ERCC4 rs744154, TNF rs361525, CASP10 rs13010627, PGR rs1042838, and BID rs8190315 genotypes among women of European descent. PMID:19423537

Preoperative core needle biopsy is accurate in determining molecular subtypes in invasive breast cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Xiaosong; Yuan, Ying; Fei, Xiaochun; Jin, Xiaolong; Shen, Kunwei; Sun, Long; Mao, Yan; Zhu, Siji; Wu, Jiayi; Huang, Ou; Li, Yafen; Chen, Weiguo; Wang, Jianhua

2013-01-01

Estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PgR), HER2, and Ki67 have been increasingly evaluated by core needle biopsy (CNB) and are recommended for classifying breast cancer into molecular subtypes. However, the concordance rate between CNB and open excision biopsy (OEB) has not been well documented. Patients with paired CNB and OEB samples from Oct. 2009 to Feb. 2012 in Ruijin Hospital were included. ER, PgR, HER2, and Ki67 were determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Patients with HER2 IHC 2+ were further examined by FISH. Cutoff value for Ki67 high expression was 14%. Molecular subtypes were constructed as follows: Luminal A, Luminal B, Triple Negative, and HER2 positive. There were 298 invasive breast cancer patients analyzed. Concordance rates for ER, PgR, and HER2 were 93.6%, 85.9%, and 96.3%, respectively. Ki67 expression was slightly higher in OEB than in CNB samples (29.3% vs. 26.8%, P = 0.046). Good agreement (κ = 0.658) was demonstrated in evaluating molecular subtypes between CNB and OEB, with a concordance rate of 77.2%. We also used a different Ki67 cutoff value (20%) for determining Luminal A and B subtypes in HR (hormone receptor) +/HER2- diseases and the overall concordance rate was 79.2%. However, using a cut-point of Ki67 either 14% or 20% for both specimens, there will be about 14% of HR+/HER2- specimens that are called Luminal A on CNB and Luminal B on OEB. CNB was accurate in determining ER, PgR, and HER2 status as well as non-Luminal molecular subtypes in invasive breast cancer. Ki67 should be retested on OEB samples in HR+/HER2- patients to accurately distinguish Luminal A from B tumors

Aryl hydrocarbon receptors in urogenital sinus mesenchyme mediate the inhibition of prostatic epithelial bud formation by 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ko, Kinarm; Moore, Robert W.; Peterson, Richard E.

2004-01-01

In utero exposure of male C57BL/6 mice to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) prevents prostatic epithelial buds from forming in the ventral region of the urogenital sinus (UGS) and reduces the number of buds that form in the dorsolateral region. This inhibition of budding is aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) dependent and appears to be the primary cause of lobe-specific prostate abnormalities in TCDD-exposed mice. TCDD can inhibit prostatic epithelial bud formation by acting directly on the UGS in vitro, but whether it does so via AHR in UGS mesenchyme, epithelium, or both was unknown. To address this issue, UGS mesenchyme and epithelium from gestation day (GD) 15 wild-type C57BL/6J male mice were isolated, recombined, and cultured in vitro for 5 days with 10 -8 M 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and either 10 -9 M TCDD or vehicle. Prostatic epithelial buds were viewed by light microscopy after removal of mesenchyme. Effects depended greatly on which portions of the mesenchyme were used: TCDD had little if any effect when whole UGS epithelium (UGE) was recombined with ventral plus dorsolateral mesenchyme, tended to reduce bud numbers in recombinants made with UGE and dorsolateral mesenchyme, and severely reduced bud numbers in recombinants made with UGE and ventral mesenchyme (VM). [VM + UGE] recombinants prepared from wild-type and AHR knockout (Ahr -/- ) mice were then cultured with DHT to determine the site of action of TCDD. AHR null mutation alone had no effect on budding. TCDD severely inhibited prostatic epithelial bud formation in recombinants that contained mesenchymal AHR, whereas bud formation was not inhibited by TCDD in recombinants lacking mesenchymal AHR, regardless of epithelial AHR status. These results demonstrate that UGS mesenchyme and not UGS epithelium is the site of action of TCDD. Therefore, the initial events responsible for abnormal UGS (and ultimately prostate) development occur within the UGS mesenchyme, and changes in gene expression

Concentraciones de yodo en orina y en sal de consumo en mujeres entre 12 a 49 años del Perú

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina Tarqui-Mamani

Full Text Available Objetivos. Determinar las concentraciones de yodo en orina y sal de consumo en mujeres entre 12 a 49 años en Perú. Materiales y métodos. Se realizó un estudio observacional y transversal. Durante el 2012 y 2013, se incluyó mujeres entre 12 a 49 años residentes en los hogares peruanos seleccionadas mediante un muestreo probabilístico, estratificado y multietápico. La determinación de yodo en orina se realizó por espectrofotometría basada en la reacción de Sandell-Kolthoff. La evaluación cualitativa de yodo en sal se realizó por yoditest y la cuantitativa por volumetría. El procesamiento se realizó mediante muestras complejas con ponderaciones. Se obtuvo medianas, rango intercuartílico y percentiles. Resultados. La mediana de yoduria en las participantes fue 250,4 ug/L; los departamentos con medianas de yoduria elevadas fueron: Moquegua (389,3 ug/L; Tacna (320,5 ug/L; Madre de Dios (319,8 ug/L, y Ucayali (306,0 ug/L; mientras que Puno (192,9 ug/L; Piura (188,1 ug/L y Tumbes (180,5 ug/L tuvieron medianas dentro de lo recomendado por la OMS. La mediana de yoduria en gestantes fue 274,6 ug/L (RIQ: 283 ug/L. El 82,5% de las muestras de sal tuvieron yodo ≥30 ppm y 1,9% tuvo valores de 0 ppm. Conclusiones. La mediana de yoduria en las mujeres peruanas está por encima de lo recomendado por la OMS y la mayoría de las muestras de sal tuvieron concentraciones adecuadas de yodo según la OMS

SUSCEPTIBILIDAD ANTIMICROBIANA DE AISLAMIENTOS DE Salmonella enterica PROVENIENTES DE PISOS, EQUIPOS, UTENSILIOS Y PRODUCTO TERMINADO EN PLANTAS DE BENEFICIO PORCINO EN COLOMBIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. M. Bermúdez

2016-01-01

Full Text Available La diseminación de Salmonella spp. resistente a antimicrobianos en las cadenas productivas de alimentos de origen animal es una preocupación de salud pública de carácter mundial. Este estudio describe los patrones de resistencia antimicrobiana de 283 aislamientos de Salmonella enterica procedentes de plantas de beneficio porcino en Colombia. Se evaluó la susceptibilidad antimicrobiana frente a diez antimicrobianos mediante el método de difusión en disco: amoxacilina-ácido clavulánico (30 ug, ampicilina (10 ug, ceftiofur (30 ug, ciprofloxacina (5 ug, cloranfenicol (30 ug, florfenicol (30 ug, gentamicina (10 ug, sulfadiazina/trimetroprim (25 ug, tetraciclina (30 ug y tilmicosina (15 ug. Los resultados evidenciaron la presencia de 279 aislamientos multirresistentes de Salmonella enterica de origen porcino provenientes del ambiente y del producto terminado en las plantas de beneficio evaluadas (46,64% n: 132. Se detectaron 52 patrones de multiresistencia: el más común fue ceftiofur-tetraciclina-tilmicosina en el 9,89% (n: 28 de los aislamientos. Con referencia a estos antimicrobianos, 96,82% (n: 274 de los aislamientos fueron resistentes a tetraciclina, 73,14% (n: 207 a tilmicosina y 28,27% (n: 80 a ceftiofur. De especial interés fue la alta proporción de aislamientos resistentes a ceftiofur, debido a una posible resistencia cruzada con ceftriaxona. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran la necesidad de promover el diseño e implementación de un Programa oficial Integrado de Vigilancia de la Resistencia Antimicrobiana, además de sistemas de monitoreo voluntario en cada eslabón de la cadena productiva porcina, para contribuir a la prevención y control de la transmisión de microorganismos resistentes de origen alimentario en el marco del sistema de gestión de inocuidad alimentaria en Colombia.

Factors Associated with Redundant Sigmoid Colon at Mulago ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

jen

economic factors between 68 patients .... 50,000 Uganda shillings (Ug. Shs) compared to only 19.9% of the controls (1 US $ = Ug shs 1500). ... the majority of the affected patients in this study had a family income of below 50,000 Ug. shs per month.

Environmental and occupational exposures to mercury among indigenous people in Dunkwa-On-Offin, a small scale gold mining area in the South-West of Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Kwaansa-Ansah, E E; Basu, N; Nriagu, J O

2010-11-01

Total mercury concentrations in human hair and urine samples were determined to ascertain the extent of environmental and occupational mercury exposure in Dunkwa-On-Offin, a small scale gold mining area of the central-west region of Ghana. In all ninety-four (94) hair and urine samples comprising of forty (40) small scale miners and fifty-four (54) farmers were collected and analyzed for their total mercury levels using the cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry. The hair total mercury concentrations ranged from 0.63 to 7.19 ug/g with a mean of 2.35 ± 1.58 ug/g for the farmers and 0.57-6.07 ug/g with a mean of 2.14 ± 1.53 ug/g for the small scale gold miners. There was no significant correlation between the total mercury concentration and the average weekly fish diet. The total mercury concentrations in urine of the miners were higher than those of the farmers and ranged from 0.32 to 3.62 ug/L with a mean of 1.23 ± 0.86 ug/L. The urine concentrations of farmers ranged from 0.075 to 2.31 ug/L with a mean of 0.69 ± 0.39 ug/L. Although the results indicate elevated internal dose of mercury the current levels of exposures do not appear to pose a significant health threat to the people.

SU-F-I-38: Patient Organ Specific Dose Assessment in Coronary CT Angiograph Using Voxellaized Volume Dose Index in Monte Carlo Simulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fallal, Mohammadi Gh.; Riyahi, Alam N.; Graily, Gh. [Tehran University of Medical Scienced(TUMS), School of Medicine, Department of Nedical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Paydar, R. [Iran University of Medical Sciences(IUMS), Allied Medicine Faculty, Department of radiation Sciences, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Clinical use of multi detector computed tomography(MDCT) in diagnosis of diseases due to high speed in data acquisition and high spatial resolution is significantly increased. Regarding to the high radiation dose in CT and necessity of patient specific radiation risk assessment, the adoption of new method in the calculation of organ dose is completely required and necessary. In this study by introducing a conversion factor, patient organ dose in thorax region based on CT image data using MC system was calculated. Methods: The geometry of x-ray tube, inherent filter, bow tie filter and collimator were designed using EGSnrc/BEAMnrc MC-system component modules according to GE-Light-speed 64-slices CT-scanner geometry. CT-scan image of patient thorax as a specific phantom was voxellised with 6.25mm3 in voxel and 64×64×20 matrix size. Dose to thorax organ include esophagus, lung, heart, breast, ribs, muscle, spine, spinal cord with imaging technical condition of prospectively-gated-coronary CT-Angiography(PGT) as a step and shoot method, were calculated. Irradiation of patient specific phantom was performed using a dedicated MC-code as DOSXYZnrc with PGT-irradiation model. The ratio of organ dose value calculated in MC-method to the volume CT dose index(CTDIvol) reported by CT-scanner machine according to PGT radiation technique has been introduced as conversion factor. Results: In PGT method, CTDIvol was 10.6mGy and Organ Dose/CTDIvol conversion factor for esophagus, lung, heart, breast, ribs, muscle, spine and spinal cord were obtained as; 0.96, 1.46, 1.2, 3.28. 6.68. 1.35, 3.41 and 0.93 respectively. Conclusion: The results showed while, underestimation of patient dose was found in dose calculation based on CTDIvol, also dose to breast is higher than the other studies. Therefore, the method in this study can be used to provide the actual patient organ dose in CT imaging based on CTDIvol in order to calculation of real effective dose(ED) based on organ dose

Simultaneous determination of sulphaquinoxaline and amprolium in veterinary mixture by HPLC and first derivative ultraviolet spectrophotometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

El-Sattar, Osama Abd

2002-01-01

Two simple and reliable methods are described for the determination of sulphaquinoxaline (SQX) and amprolium (AMP) combined in veterinary powder. The first method depends on high performance liquid chromatography on a reversed phase column (Bondapak-C18) using mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile-methanol-water-phosphoric acid (30: 5: 55: 0.7, by volumes) at a flow rate of 1 ml min with UV detection at 254 nm. The detection limits were 0.2 ug ml and 0.35 ug ml and linearity ranges were 2-20 ug ml and 4-40ug ml for SQX and AMP, respectively. The second one deals with the first derivative (D) spectrophotometry with zero-crossing measurement at 253 nm and 226 nm for SQX and AMP respectively. The detection limits were 0.3 ug ml and linearity ranges were 1-18 ug ml and 4-32 ug-ml for SQX and AMP respectively. The proposed procedures were successfully applied to the determination of these drugs in laboratory prepared mixtures with mean percentage recovery ranged from 98.50 to 99.75 and in commercial preparation ranged from 103.85 to 104.85. (author)

Major Gravitational Phenomena Explained by the Micro-Quanta Paradigm

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Michelini M.

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Some major problems of physics, which remained unsolved within classical and relativistic gravitation theories, are explained adopting the quantum gravity interaction descending from the micro-quanta paradigm. The energy source of the gravitational power $P_{gr}$, which heats and contracts the Bok's gas globules harbouring the future stars, is identified and defined as well as the gravitational power generated on the solid/fluid planets. Calculations are carried out to make the comparison between $P_{gr}$ predicted for the solar giant planets and the measured infrared radiation power $P_{int}$ coming from the interior. The case of planets with solid crust (Earth, etc. requires a particular attention due to the threat to stability produced by the thermal dilatation. An analysis is done of the Earth's planetary equilibrium which may be attained eliminating the temperature rise through the migration of hot internal magma across the crust fractured by earthquakes. The temperatures observed up to 420,000 years ago in Antartica through Vostok and Epica ice cores suggest the possibility that the Earth gravitational power $P_{gr}$ may be radiated in space through these temperature cycles (Glacial Eras. In this general frame the Earth's high seismicity and the dynamics of Plate tectonics may find their origin.

Breast Tissue Composition and Immunophenotype and Its Relationship with Mammographic Density in Women at High Risk of Breast Cancer.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jia-Min B Pang

Full Text Available To investigate the cellular and immunophenotypic basis of mammographic density in women at high risk of breast cancer.Mammograms and targeted breast biopsies were accrued from 24 women at high risk of breast cancer. Mammographic density was classified into Wolfe categories and ranked by increasing density. The histological composition and immunophenotypic profile were quantified from digitized haematoxylin and eosin-stained and immunohistochemically-stained (ERα, ERβ, PgR, HER2, Ki-67, and CD31 slides and correlated to mammographic density.Increasing mammographic density was significantly correlated with increased fibrous stroma proportion (rs (22 = 0.5226, p = 0.0088 and significantly inversely associated with adipose tissue proportion (rs (22 = -0.5409, p = 0.0064. Contrary to previous reports, stromal expression of ERα was common (19/20 cases, 95%. There was significantly higher stromal PgR expression in mammographically-dense breasts (p=0.026.The proportion of stroma and fat underlies mammographic density in women at high risk of breast cancer. Increased expression of PgR in the stroma of mammographically dense breasts and frequent and unexpected presence of stromal ERα expression raises the possibility that hormone receptor expression in breast stroma may have a role in mediating the effects of exogenous hormonal therapy on mammographic density.

A cognitively plausible model for grammar induction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roni Katzir

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to bring theoretical linguistics and cognition-general theories of learning into closer contact. I argue that linguists' notions of rich UGs are well-founded, but that cognition-general learning approaches are viable as well and that the two can and should co-exist and support each other. Specifically, I use the observation that any theory of UG provides a learning criterion -- the total memory space used to store a grammar and its encoding of the input -- that supports learning according to the principle of Minimum Description-Length. This mapping from UGs to learners maintains a minimal ontological commitment: the learner for a particular UG uses only what is already required to account for linguistic competence in adults. I suggest that such learners should be our null hypothesis regarding the child's learning mechanism, and that furthermore, the mapping from theories of UG to learners provides a framework for comparing theories of UG.

Transition from blastomere to trophectoderm biopsy: comparing two preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidies strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Coll, Lluc; Parriego, Mònica; Boada, Montserrat; Devesa, Marta; Arroyo, Gemma; Rodríguez, Ignacio; Coroleu, Bonaventura; Vidal, Francesca; Veiga, Anna

2018-05-25

SummaryShortly after the implementation of comprehensive chromosome screening (CCS) techniques for preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidies (PGT-A), the discussion about the transition from day 3 to blastocyst stage biopsy was initiated. Trophectoderm biopsy with CCS is meant to overcome the limitations of cleavage-stage biopsy and single-cell analysis. The aim of this study was to assess the results obtained in our PGT-A programme after the implementation of this new strategy. Comparisons between the results obtained in 179 PGT-A cycles with day 3 biopsy (D+3) and fresh embryo transfer, and 204 cycles with trophectoderm biopsy and deferred (frozen-thawed) embryo transfer were established. Fewer embryos were biopsied and a higher euploidy rate was observed in the trophectoderm biopsy group. No differences in implantation (50.3% vs. 61.4%) and clinical pregnancy rate per transfer (56.1% vs. 65.3%) were found. Although the mean number of euploid embryos per cycle did not differ between groups (1.5 ± 1.7 vs. 1.7 ± 1.8), the final number of euploid blastocysts available for transfer per cycle was significantly higher in the trophectoderm biopsy group (1.1 ± 1.3 vs. 1.7 ± 1.8). This factor led to an increased cumulative live birth rate in this last group (34.1% vs. 44.6%). Although both strategies can offer good results, trophectoderm biopsy offers a more robust diagnosis and the intervention is less harmful for the embryos so more euploid blastocysts are finally available for transfer and/or vitrification.

Optimization of extraction parameters for recovery of a-amylase from the fermented bran of Bacillus circulans GRS313

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Palit Soumen

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The extraction of alpha-amylase in the solid state fermentation of wheat bran by Bacillus circulans GRS313 was optimized. Among various solvents tested, maximum extraction was achieved when 2.5% (v/v glycerol was added. The optimum conditions for extraction were 2.5 hrs soaking time at 30° C under recirculation and agitated condition, which yielded 590 U/g bran of enzyme activity. Whereas under stationary soaking condition the activity of the enzyme was 439.58U/g bran. With repeated wash under the above optimum conditions showed that 600 U/g and 184.2 U/g of enzyme extracted in the 1st and 2nd washes respectively and only 36.84 U/g was recovered in the 3rd wash

Effect of gamma-irradiation on the natural occurence of Fusarium mycotoxins in wheat, flour and bread

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aziz, N.H.; Attia, E.-S.A.; Farag, S.A.

1997-01-01

A survey was carried out to obtain data on the occurence of Fusarium mycotoxin in wheat and flour samples collected from local markets in Egypt and to study the influence of gamma-irradiation on controlling the occurrence of thesemycotoxins in wheat, flour and bread. Deoxynivalenol (DON) was detected in five samples of wheat at levels ranging from 103 to 287 ug/kg and one sample each of flour and bread concentrations 188 and 170 ug/kg. Zearaleone (ZEN) was detected in ten samples of wheat at levels from 28 to 42 ug/kg and four samples each of flour and bread at concentrations of 95 and 34 ug/kg, respectively. T-2 toxin was detected only in one sample each of wheat, flour and bread at concentrations of 2.9, 2.2, and 2.3 ug/kg, respectively. Gamma-irradiation at dose level of 6 kGy completely eliminated fungal flora in flour and wheat. DON, ZEN and T-2 toxin concentrations are reduced to 85, 20 and 2.0 ug/kg for wheat and to 125, 45, and 1.0 ug/kg for flour after 4 kGy exposure and a sharp drop in Fusarium toxin levels occured at 6 kGy and was eliminated at 8 kGy. Bread prepared from 6 kGy was contaminate4d with Fusarium toxin at levels below 5 ug/kg. It was noticed that gamme-irradiation reduce greatly the natural occurrence of Fusarium mycotoxins in bread

Heavy Metal Contents of Municipal and Rural Dumpsite Soils and Rate of Accumulation by Carica papaya and Talinum triangulare in Uyo, Nigeria

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G. A. Ebong

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Dumpsites in Uyo and most cities in Nigeria are used nutrients rich soils for cultivating fruits and vegetables without regards to the risk of toxic metal pollution by the wastes. This development necessitated the research on the assessment of the impact of municipal and rural dumpsites on the metal levels of the underlying soils, the relationship between the dumpsite- soil metal content and the rate of bio-accumulation by plants, the effect of plant specie and plant part on the rate of metal uptake. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer was employed for the analysis of the samples and results obtained from municipal dumpsite soil indicated the following mean concentrations: Fe, 1711.20 μg/g; Pb, 43.28 ug/g; Zn, 88.34 ug/g; Ni, 12.18 ug/g; Cd, 14.10 ug/g and Cu, 56.33 ug/g. These concentrations were relatively higher than the following concentrations: Fe, 1016.98 ug/g; Pb, 18.57 ug/g; Zn, 57.90 ug/g; Ni, 7.98 ug/g; Cd, 9.25 ug/g and Cu, 33.70 ug/g recorded for the rural dumpsite soil. Consequently, plants grown on municipal dumpsites soil accumulated higher concentrations of the metals than those on rural dumpsites. Results obtained from this study also revealed that plants grown on dumpsite soils bio-accumulated higher metal concentrations than their counterparts obtained from normal agricultural soils. The ability of plants to bioaccumulate these metals were also observed as being different from one plant to the other and from one plant parts to the other. And apart from Fe and Zn which recorded higher concentrations in the leaves of the plants studied, other metals recorded higher concentrations in the roots. The general results obtained revealed that the levels of Cd in dumpsite-soil were above the standard while the levels of Cd and Pb in plants were also above the recommended levels in plants. The implications of these high concentrations of these metals in soil and plants have been discussed. Some useful recommendations on the proper

Power to punish norm violations affects the neural processes of fairness-related decision making

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Xuemei eCheng

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Punishing norm violations is considered an important motive during rejection of unfair offers in the Ultimatum Game (UG. The present study investigates the impact of the power to punish norm violations on people’s responses to unfairness and associated neural correlates. In the UG condition participants had the power to punish norm violations, while an alternate condition, the Impunity Game (IG, was presented where participants had no power to punish norm violations since rejection only reduced the responder’s income to zero. Results showed that unfair offers were rejected more often in UG compared to IG. At the neural level, anterior insula and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex were more active when participants received and rejected unfair offers in both UG and IG. Moreover, greater dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activity was observed when participants rejected than accepted unfair offers in UG but not in IG. Ventromedial prefrontal cortex activation was higher in UG than IG when unfair offers were accepted as well as when rejecting unfair offers in IG as opposed to UG. Taken together, our results demonstrate that the power to punish norm violations affects not only people’s behavioral responses to unfairness but also the neural correlates of the fairness-related social decision-making process.

Genome-Wide Association Mapping of Stem Rust Resistance in Hordeum vulgare subsp. spontaneum.

Science.gov (United States)

Sallam, Ahmad H; Tyagi, Priyanka; Brown-Guedira, Gina; Muehlbauer, Gary J; Hulse, Alex; Steffenson, Brian J

2017-10-05

Stem rust was one of the most devastating diseases of barley in North America. Through the deployment of cultivars with the resistance gene Rpg1 , losses to stem rust have been minimal over the past 70 yr. However, there exist both domestic (QCCJB) and foreign (TTKSK aka isolate Ug99) pathotypes with virulence for this important gene. To identify new sources of stem rust resistance for barley, we evaluated the Wild Barley Diversity Collection (WBDC) (314 ecogeographically diverse accessions of Hordeum vulgare subsp. spontaneum ) for seedling resistance to four pathotypes (TTKSK, QCCJB, MCCFC, and HKHJC) of the wheat stem rust pathogen ( Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici , Pgt ) and one isolate (92-MN-90) of the rye stem rust pathogen ( P. graminis f. sp. secalis , Pgs ). Based on a coefficient of infection, the frequency of resistance in the WBDC was low ranging from 0.6% with HKHJC to 19.4% with 92-MN-90. None of the accessions was resistant to all five cultures of P. graminis A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted to map stem rust resistance loci using 50,842 single-nucleotide polymorphic markers generated by genotype-by-sequencing and ordered using the new barley reference genome assembly. After proper accounting for genetic relatedness and structure among accessions, 45 quantitative trait loci were identified for resistance to P. graminis across all seven barley chromosomes. Three novel loci associated with resistance to TTKSK, QCCJB, MCCFC, and 92-MN-90 were identified on chromosomes 5H and 7H, and two novel loci associated with resistance to HKHJC were identified on chromosomes 1H and 3H. These novel alleles will enhance the diversity of resistance available for cultivated barley. Copyright © 2017 Sallam et al.

Urinary continence following repair of intermediate and high urogenital sinus in CAH. Experience with 55 cases.

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Maria Marcela Bailez

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Aim :Evaluate postoperative urinary continence in patients withcongenital adrenal hyperplasia(CAHwith intermediate (ITand high urogenital sinus (UGS who underwent a UGS mobilization maneuver .Methods: We called IT to those that although needing an aggressive dissection to get to the vagina, still have enough urethra proximal to the vaginal confluence. Very low variants are excluded from this analysis. Dissection always started in the posterior wall of the UGS with an aggressive separation from the anterior rectal wall. If the wide portion of the vagina was reached dissection stopped and the UGS opened ventrally widening to the introitus. Nineteen patients were treated using this maneuver (Group1. When more dissection was required the anterior wall of the UGS was dissected and carefully freed from the low retropubic space. Then the UGS was opened either ventrally or dorsally. Thirty three patients required this approach (Group 2 .Combined procedures were used in 3 patients with high UGS (Group 3. Results : Mean age at the time of the repair and length of the UGS were 12.2 years (4 months to 18 years and 3.75 cm (3 -8 cmfor G 1; 8 years (5 months to 17 years and 6.34 cm ( 4-12 cm in G2 and 8,3 years (2 -14 y and 11.5cm (11-12cm in G3. All patients had been regularly followed. Mean age at last follow up of 14.3y, 17y and 9.9y for groups 1, 2 and 3 respectively. All patients continue to void normally and are continent. All patients have 2 separate visible orifices in the vulva. Only 3 are sexually active.Conclusion: UGS mobilization for vaginoplasty in girls with CAH does not compromise voiding function or urinary continence,

Promotion of hepatic preneoplastic lesions in male B6C3F1 mice by unleaded gasoline.

Science.gov (United States)

Standeven, A M; Wolf, D C; Goldsworthy, T L

1995-01-01

In previous studies, unleaded gasoline (UG) vapor was found to be a liver tumor promoter and hepatocarcinogen in female mice, but UG was not a hepatocarcinogen in male mice. However, UG vapor had similar transient mitogenic effects in nonlesioned liver of both male and female mice under the conditions of the cancer bioassay. We used an initiation-promotion protocol to determine whether UG vapor acts as a liver tumor promoter in male mice and to examine proliferative effects that may be critical to tumor development. Twelve-day-old male B6C3F1 mice were injected with N-nitrosodiethylamine (DEN; 5 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) or vehicle. Starting at 5-7 weeks of age, mice were exposed by inhalation 6 hr/day, 5 days/week for 16 weeks to 0 or 2046 ppm of PS-6 blend UG. UG treatment caused a significant 2.3-fold increase in the number of macroscopic hepatic masses in DEN-initiated mice, whereas no macroscopic masses were observed in non-initiated mice. Altered hepatic foci (AHF), which were predominantly basophilic in phenotype, were found almost exclusively in DEN-initiated mice. UG treatment significantly increased both the mean volume (threefold) and the volume fraction (twofold) of the AHF without increasing the number of AHF per unit area. UG also induced hepatic pentoxyresorufin-O-dealkylase (PROD) activity, a marker of CYP2B, by more than 12-fold over control with or without DEN cotreatment. To study hepatocyte proliferative effects of UG, we treated mice with 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) via osmotic pump for 3 days before necropsy and measured hepatocyte BrdU labeling index (LI) in AHF and nonlesioned liver.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) Images Figure 1. PMID:7588481

Addition of Aegilops U and M Chromosomes Affects Protein and Dietary Fiber Content of Wholemeal Wheat Flour

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Marianna Rakszegi

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Cereal grain fiber is an important health-promoting component in the human diet. One option to improve dietary fiber content and composition in wheat is to introduce genes from its wild relatives Aegilops biuncialis and Aegilops geniculata. This study showed that the addition of chromosomes 2Ug, 4Ug, 5Ug, 7Ug, 2Mg, 5Mg, and 7Mg of Ae. geniculata and 3Ub, 2Mb, 3Mb, and 7Mb of Ae. biuncialis into bread wheat increased the seed protein content. Chromosomes 1Ug and 1Mg increased the proportion of polymeric glutenin proteins, while the addition of chromosomes 1Ub and 6Ub led to its decrease. Both Aegilops species had higher proportions of β-glucan compared to arabinoxylan (AX than wheat lines, and elevated β-glucan content was also observed in wheat chromosome addition lines 5U, 7U, and 7M. The AX content in wheat was increased by the addition of chromosomes 5Ug, 7Ug, and 1Ub while water-soluble AX was increased by the addition of chromosomes 5U, 5M, and 7M, and to a lesser extent by chromosomes 3, 4, 6Ug, and 2Mb. Chromosomes 5Ug and 7Mb also affected the structure of wheat AX, as shown by the pattern of oligosaccharides released by digestion with endoxylanase. These results will help to map genomic regions responsible for edible fiber content in Aegilops and will contribute to the efficient transfer of wild alleles in introgression breeding programs to obtain wheat varieties with improved health benefits.Key Message: Addition of Aegilops U- and M-genome chromosomes 5 and 7 improves seed protein and fiber content and composition in wheat.

A Comparison of Intention and Pantomime Gesture Treatment for Noun Retrieval in People with Aphasia

Science.gov (United States)

Ferguson, Neina F.; Evans, Kelli; Raymer, Anastasia M.

2012-01-01

Purpose: The effects of intention gesture treatment (IGT) and pantomime gesture treatment (PGT) on word retrieval were compared in people with aphasia. Method: Four individuals with aphasia and word retrieval impairments subsequent to left-hemisphere stroke participated in a single-participant crossover treatment design. Each participant viewed…

Wheat stem rust in South Africa: Current status and future research ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

. In South Africa, stem rust caused by Puccinia graminis Pers. f. sp. tritici. Eriks. & E. Henn. (Pgt) is an important disease of wheat. Records of stem rust occurrence in South Africa date back to the late 1720's, when it was first discovered in the ...

Connection dynamics of a gauge theory of gravity coupled with matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Jian; Banerjee, Kinjal; Ma, Yongge

2013-01-01

We study the coupling of the gravitational action, which is a linear combination of the Hilbert–Palatini term and the quadratic torsion term, to the action of Dirac fermions. The system possesses local Poincare invariance and hence belongs to Poincare gauge theory (PGT) with matter. The complete Hamiltonian analysis of the theory is carried out without gauge fixing but under certain ansatz on the coupling parameters, which leads to a consistent connection dynamics with second-class constraints and torsion. After performing a partial gauge fixing, all second-class constraints can be solved, and a SU(2)-connection dynamical formalism of the theory can be obtained. Hence, the techniques of loop quantum gravity (LQG) can be employed to quantize this PGT with non-zero torsion. Moreover, the Barbero–Immirzi parameter in LQG acquires its physical meaning as the coupling parameter between the Hilbert–Palatini term and the quadratic torsion term in this gauge theory of gravity. (paper)

Geophysical Data (Gravity and Magnetic) from the Area Between Adana, Kahramanmaras and Hatay in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: Tectonic Implications

Science.gov (United States)

Over, Semir; Akin, Ugur; Sen, Rahime

2018-01-01

The gravity and magnetic maps of the area between Adana-Kahramanmaras-Hatay provinces were produced from a compilation of data gathered during the period between 1973 and 1989. Reduced to the pole (RTP) and pseudo-gravity transformation (PGT) methods were applied to the magnetic data, while derivative ratio (DR) processing was applied to both gravity and magnetic data, respectively. Bouguer, RTP and PGT maps show the image of a buried structure corresponding to ophiolites under undifferentiated Quaternary deposits in the Adana depression and Iskenderun Gulf. DR maps show two important faults which reflect the tectonic framework in the study area: (1) the Karatas-Osmaniye Fault extending from Osmaniye to Karatas in the south between Adana and Iskenderun depressions and (2) Amanos Fault (southern part of East Anatolian Fault) in the Hatay region running southward from Turkoglu to Amik Basin along Amanos Mountain forming the actual plate boundary between the Anatolian block (part of Eurasian plate) and Arabian plate.

Metabolomic effects in HepG2 cells exposed to CeO2, SiO2 and CuO nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

To better assess potential hepatotoxicity of nanomaterials, human liver HepG2 cells were exposed for three days to 5 different CeO2 (either 30 or 100 ug/ml), 3 SiO2 based (30 ug/ml) or 1 CuO (3 ug/ml) nanomaterials with dry primary particle sizes ranging from 15 to 213 nm. Metab...

Psicoterapia psicodinâmica em grupo para fobia social generalizada Psychodynamic group treatment for generalized social phobia

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Daniela Zippin Knijnik

2004-06-01

Full Text Available OBJETIVOS: O objetivo deste estudo é verificar a efetividade do tratamento psicodinâmico em grupo de pacientes com fobia social generalizada. MÉTODOS: 30 pacientes foram incluídos em um estudo randomizado, simples-cego, comparando Terapia Psicodinâmica de Grupo (TPG com um Grupo de Controle Placebo com Credibilidade (CPC. A TPG foi conduzida em 12 sessões de terapia de orientação psicodinâmica em grupo. Os pacientes do grupo controle receberam um pacote de aulas-discussões e tratamento de apoio por 12 semanas, que foi comparado à TPG. Todos os participantes preencheram a Escala de Liebowitz para Ansiedade Social (LSAS, a Escala Hamilton de Ansiedade (HAM-A e a Escala de Impressão Clínica Global (CGI, na entrevista inicial e na 12ª semana de tratamento. Os dados foram analisados com uma ANOVA de medidas repetidas. Pacientes em vigência de tratamento farmacológico ou psicoterápico foram excluídos. RESULTADOS: Ambos os grupos apresentaram melhora na maioria das medidas. Na LSAS, os pacientes da TPG obtiveram melhora superior aos do grupo controle, ao cabo de 12 semanas (F1,28=4.84, p=0.036. Nas medidas basais dos sujeitos que completaram o estudo, não houve diferença entre os grupos em variáveis demográficas e de desfecho. CONCLUSÃO: Neste estudo, a TPG foi superior ao tratamento placebo com credibilidade no tratamento da fobia social generalizada, em um ensaio clínico randomizado, simples-cego, de 12 semanas.OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of psychodynamic group therapy in patients with generalized social phobia. METHODS: Thirty patients were included in a randomized single-blind clinical trial comparing psychodynamic group treatment (PGT with a credible placebo control group (CPC. PGT was carried out within a 12-session psychodynamically-oriented group psychotherapy. Control patients received a treatment package of lecture-discussion and support group for 12 weeks which was compared to PGT

Radiation sensitivity of two Ginger varieties (Zingiber officinale Rosc.) to gamma irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nwachukwu, E.C.; Ene, L.S.O.; Mbanaso, E.N.A.

1994-01-01

The mutability and radiosensitivity of two local ginger varieties in Nigeria ''Tafin Giwa'' (UG 1) and ''Yatsun Biri'' (UG 2) were studied using gamma rays from a 60Co gamma source. There was a high frequency of chlorophyll mutations indicating a high mutability in ginger. GR 50 was obtained at 5.0 and 6.0 Gy in UG1, and UG2, respectively, while LD50 was obtained at 8.75 Gy in both varieties. The dose limitation range for ginger was estimated to be 5.0-9.0 Gy [es

Small battery operated unattended radar sensor for security systems

Science.gov (United States)

Plummer, Thomas J.; Brady, Stephen; Raines, Robert

2013-06-01

McQ has developed, tested, and is supplying to Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) customers a new radar sensor. This radar sensor is designed for short range target detection and classification. The design emphasis was to have low power consumption, totally automated operation, a very high probability of detection coupled with a very low false alarm rate, be able to locate and track targets, and have a price compatible with the UGS market. The radar sensor complements traditional UGS sensors by providing solutions for scenarios that are difficult for UGS. The design of this radar sensor and the testing are presented in this paper.

Associations between physical activity and characteristics of urban green space

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schipperijn, Jasper; Bentsen, Peter; Troelsen, Jens

2013-01-01

of the nearest UGS, and the presence of certain features. However, the evidence to date is somewhat inconclusive, and dominated by studies from North America and Australia. There is a large variation in city structures, and recommendations for North American or Australian cities are not automatically valid...... was found. The amount and number of UGS within one kilometre revealed no association either. For PA in the nearest UGS positive associations with size, walking/cycling routes, wooded areas, water features, lights, pleasant views, bike rack, and parking lot were found. This indicates that PA in an UGS might...

The Development of Theory of Mind and Positive and Negative Reciprocity in Preschool Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Schug, Joanna; Takagishi, Haruto; Benech, Catalina; Okada, Hiroyuki

2016-01-01

This study examined the relation between the acquisition of false-beliefs theory of mind (ToM) and reciprocity in preschoolers. Preschool-aged children completed a task assessing the understanding of false beliefs, and played an Ultimatum Game (UG) with another child in a face-to-face setting. Negative reciprocity was assessed by examining the rejection of unfair offers made by another child in the UG, while positive reciprocity was assessed by examining allocations made by participants in a Dictator Game (DG) following the UG. The results indicated that children who had passed a task assessing first-order false beliefs were more likely to make generous offers in a DG following a fair offer made by their partner in a proceeding UG, but that false beliefs ToM was unrelated to the rejection of unfair offers in the UG.

Nuclear progesterone receptors are up-regulated by estrogens in neurons and radial glial progenitors in the brain of zebrafish.

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Nicolas Diotel

Full Text Available In rodents, there is increasing evidence that nuclear progesterone receptors are transiently expressed in many regions of the developing brain, notably outside the hypothalamus. This suggests that progesterone and/or its metabolites could be involved in functions not related to reproduction, particularly in neurodevelopment. In this context, the adult fish brain is of particular interest, as it exhibits constant growth and high neurogenic activity that is supported by radial glia progenitors. However, although synthesis of neuroprogestagens has been documented recently in the brain of zebrafish, information on the presence of progesterone receptors is very limited. In zebrafish, a single nuclear progesterone receptor (pgr has been cloned and characterized. Here, we demonstrate that this pgr is widely distributed in all regions of the zebrafish brain. Interestingly, we show that Pgr is strongly expressed in radial glial cells and more weakly in neurons. Finally, we present evidence, based on quantitative PCR and immunohistochemistry, that nuclear progesterone receptor mRNA and proteins are upregulated by estrogens in the brain of adult zebrafish. These data document for the first time the finding that radial glial cells are preferential targets for peripheral progestagens and/or neuroprogestagens. Given the crucial roles of radial glial cells in adult neurogenesis, the potential effects of progestagens on their activity and the fate of daughter cells require thorough investigation.

[Identification of candidate genes and expression profiles, as doping biomarkers].

Science.gov (United States)

Paparini, A; Impagnatiello, F; Pistilli, A; Rinaldi, M; Gianfranceschi, G; Signori, E; Stabile, A M; Fazio, V; Rende, M; Romano Spica, V

2007-01-01

Administration of prohibited substances to enhance athletic performance represents an emerging medical, social, ethical and legal issue. Traditional controls are based on direct detection of substances or their catabolites. However out-of-competition doping may not be easily revealed by standard analytical methods. Alternative indirect control strategies are based on the evaluation of mid- and long-term effects of doping in tissues. Drug-induced long-lasting changes of gene expression may be taken as effective indicators of doping exposure. To validate this approach, we used real-time PCR to monitor the expression pattern of selected genes in human haematopoietic cells exposed to nandrolone, insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) or growth hormone (GH). Some candidate genes were found significantly and consistently modulated by treatments. Nandrolone up-regulated AR, ESR2 and PGR in K562 cells, and SRD5A1, PPARA and JAK2 in Jurkat cells; IGF-I up-regulated EPOR and PGR in HL60 cells, and SRD5A1 in Jurkat; GH up-regulated SRD5A1 and GHR in K562. GATA1 expression was down-regulated in IGF-1-treated HL60, ESR2 was down-regulated in nandrolone-treated Jurkat, and AR and PGR were down-regulated in GH-treated Jurkat. This pilot study shows the potential of molecular biology-based strategies in anti-doping controls.

Assessment of exchange of crop in view of change climate and International Treaties.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Anil Kumar; Pedapati, Annitaa; Manibhushan

2015-01-01

To meet the UN millennium development goal of reducing the number of hungry people to half by 2015, there is utmost need to breed potentially high yielding varieties to match up the requirement along with corrective measures to bridge the gap between the potential yield and yield harvested by farmers. The scenario has changed from free access to limited access of plant genetic resources (PGR) and therefore, it is important to understand the issues in view of national and international agreements, intellectual property rights (IPR'S), climate change conditions and expanded scope of breeders and farmers rights for developed genotypes. For efficient management of PGR, developing countries need to understand the implications of PGR related IPR'S as stronger IPR'S in developed countries could have harmful effects by reduced exchange of genetic resources from developed countries. Keeping in view the existing realities every possible effort should be taken for enrichment of crop gene pool by introducing them from each and every corner of the globe. Keeping these facts in view this paper describes the priorities for introduction and exchange of important crop groups/crops along with some of their potential wild and weedy relatives and thrust has been given to generate awareness among the workers engaged in the breeders/crop improvement works. Information provided in this presentation can be utilized by prospective crop improvement works to plan to meet out the nationalfood security.

P.G.R. de Villiers Dedication – A tribute

African Journals Online (AJOL)

has been the Executive Director of the Centre for Christian Spirituality and Ethics since 1990 and has ... with Greek and Hebrew as majors, Philosophy, Psychology, Latin and .... Supervised master's and doctoral theses at the Universities of.

Amplified fragment length polymorphism of Puccinia graminis f. sp ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The developed AFLP fingerprints for the Ethiopian Pgt isolates reported herein could support the breeding program to develop strategies for the deployment of resistance genes in its continued effort to minimize the impact of stem rust on wheat in Ethiopia. Keywords: AFLP, wheat, stem rust, genetic diversity, population ...

Genomic dissection of nonhost resistance to wheat stem rust in Brachypodium distachyon

Science.gov (United States)

Wheat stem rust caused by the fungus Puccinia graminis f.sp. tritici (Pgt) is a devastating disease that has largely been controlled for decades by the deployment of resistance genes. However, new races of this pathogen have emerged that overcome many important wheat stem rust resistance genes used ...

ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES OF PHARMACEUTICAL COMPOSITION OF HEPATOPROTECTORS

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Aslanian MA

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Pathology problemof hepatobiliary system (HBS of contagious origin becomes relevant with the increase of disturbance and complications of lipid metabolism and bile pigments among young people. Leading role in prophylaxis and treatment in the context of this pathology belongs to antibacterialc hemotherapeutic agents. However, along with antimicrobial activity, numerous side effects can be observed during treatment with antibacterial agents. According to the recent study on hepatobiliary system (HBS, therapeutic effect can be seen only while using herbal medicine with choleretic action as well as their various compositions.Amountof medicine with the appropriate effect is insufficient, that is why the study was conducted towards finding effective combinations of plant substances of different groups for the purpose of creatingan effective medicine for treatment of hepatobiliary system (HBS of contagious origin. Aim of the work The purpose of study was to examine antibacterial properties of different combinations with flamin and lavender oil in combined medicine during the course of treatment of cholecystitis and cholangitis. Materials and methods. It the result of study 61 microbial strains were distinguished and identified from the pathological material taken from 53 patients with cholecystitis and cholangitis. All distinguished clinical microbial strains taken from the patients were tested for sensitivity to combined medicine in the form of tablets with flamin and lavender oil. Minimal inhibitory concentration for S. aureus АТСС 25923 amounted to 250-350 ug/ml, for E. coli АТСС 25922 - 350±50,0 ug/ml, for P. aeruginosa АТСС 27853 750±100,0 ug/ml, for Р. vulgaris АТСС 4636 - 850±100,0 ug/ml, minimal inhibitory concentration to the tablets № 2 та № 3 amounted to > 1000 мкг/мл. Minimal inhibitory concentration for B. subtilis АТСС 6633 amounted to 250±50,0 ug/ml, for C. albicans ATCC 885/653 300±50,0 ug

Molecular risk assessment of BIG 1-98 participants by expression profiling using RNA from archival tissue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Antonov, Janine; Altermatt, Hans Jörg; Aebi, Stefan; Jaggi, Rolf; Popovici, Vlad; Delorenzi, Mauro; Wirapati, Pratyaksha; Baltzer, Anna; Oberli, Andrea; Thürlimann, Beat; Giobbie-Hurder, Anita; Viale, Giuseppe

2010-01-01

The purpose of the work reported here is to test reliable molecular profiles using routinely processed formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues from participants of the clinical trial BIG 1-98 with a median follow-up of 60 months. RNA from fresh frozen (FF) and FFPE tumor samples of 82 patients were used for quality control, and independent FFPE tissues of 342 postmenopausal participants of BIG 1-98 with ER-positive cancer were analyzed by measuring prospectively selected genes and computing scores representing the functions of the estrogen receptor (eight genes, ER-8), the progesterone receptor (five genes, PGR-5), Her2 (two genes, HER2-2), and proliferation (ten genes, PRO-10) by quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) on TaqMan Low Density Arrays. Molecular scores were computed for each category and ER-8, PGR-5, HER2-2, and PRO-10 scores were combined into a RISK-25 score. Pearson correlation coefficients between FF- and FFPE-derived scores were at least 0.94 and high concordance was observed between molecular scores and immunohistochemical data. The HER2-2, PGR-5, PRO-10 and RISK-25 scores were significant predictors of disease free-survival (DFS) in univariate Cox proportional hazard regression. PRO-10 and RISK-25 scores predicted DFS in patients with histological grade II breast cancer and in lymph node positive disease. The PRO-10 and PGR-5 scores were independent predictors of DFS in multivariate Cox regression models incorporating clinical risk indicators; PRO-10 outperformed Ki-67 labeling index in multivariate Cox proportional hazard analyses. Scores representing the endocrine responsiveness and proliferation status of breast cancers were developed from gene expression analyses based on RNA derived from FFPE tissues. The validation of the molecular scores with tumor samples of participants of the BIG 1-98 trial demonstrates that such scores can serve as independent prognostic factors to estimate disease free survival (DFS) in

A double-labeling assay for simultaneous estimation and characterization of estrogen and progesterone receptors using radioiodinated estradiol and tritiaded Org 2058

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ronchi, E.; Granata, G.; Brivio, M.

1986-01-01

Estrogen (ER) and progesterone receptors (PgR) appear to be a perequisite to elicit a biologic response by a hormone-target organ. Current methodologies for analysis of these proteins (e.g:dextran-coated charcoal, DCC) in single-label assay (SLA) require relatively large amounts of tissue material, time and laboriousness. Therefore, the authors have developed for breast cancer tissue an improved dual-label assay (DLA) for simultaneous titration (by DCC) and/or characterization (by sedimentation properties) of ER and PgR on the same sample, using *H1*H2*H5I-E*L2 and *H3H-Org 2058 as tracers. The interaction of *H1*H2*H5I-E*L2 with ER and plasma proteins in comparison to *H3H-E*L2 was studied in terms of specificity, time course, affinity binding and sedimentation pattern. *H1*H2*H5I-E*L2 bound the same molecular forms displayed by *H3H-E*L2 (9 and 3S) but with lower titers (about 1.3-fold), irrespective of the technique used, and did not bind to sex hormone-binding globulin. Simultaneous detection of *H1*H2*H5I and *H3H was achieved by use of a gamma counter plus a beta counter sequentially. ER and PgR titrations with DCC in DLA were in good agreement with those obtained with SLA, in terms of titers and Ka values. An analogous results was obtained with sucrose density gradient (SDG) analysis. Both the DLA methods were highly reproducible (CV<8.0%). Between the rotors available for SDG, the vertical one was preferable because of the larger number of samples processed and of less purturbation of sedimenting receptor molecules. Furthermore, a biochemical applications of the method is described. In conclusion, the DLA procedure, by simplifying ER and PgR estimation, makes it possible to study, even on small tumor biopsies, the molecular properties of these proteins in relation to the clinical response of the disease

Establishment of Uropygial Gland Growth Curves for White, Three-Way Crossed Mule Ducklings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

YH Chen

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Growth curves for the uropygial gland (UG of white, 3-way crossed mule ducklings were established using the Gompertz function. In total, 144 ducklings were fed in 12 floor pens with 12 birds in each pen. Each pen contained an equal number of animals of each sex. Feed and water were supplied ad libitumthroughout the entire experimental period. The weekly change in UG weight was recorded in males and females from hatch to 8 weeks of age. The weight and length of the UG, the width of the lobus glandulae uropygialis, the length and width of the pluma of the circulus uropygialis, and the index of the papilla uropygialis were measured once a week in individual ducklings in one pen. The average UG weight gain observed in white, 3-way crossed drakes was significantly higher than that of ducks of 21-56 days of age (P< 0.05. The UG length was 1.64-2.23 times the width of the left or right lobe, and the development of the UG was delayed from 3-4 weeks of age. The morphology of the UG changed from elliptical to elongated-elliptical with age. The right and left lobus glandulae uropygialis were symmetrical. The Gompertz growth functions of the UG in drakes and ducks were W=5.49e-e-0.675(t-1.955 and W=4.76e-e-0.685(t-1.936, respectively, where t represents age in weeks. These equations indicated that the maximum growth rate for drakes occurred at 14.1 days of age and for ducks at 13.6 days of age.

Textural properties of low-fat set-type yoghurt depending on mTG addition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lívia Darnay

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Our aim was to determine how 0.5-2 U/g non-inactivated mTG affects the pH development and apparent viscosity during fermentation. Furthermore we wished to examine how the enzyme addition could change protein structure, gel strength and sensory characteristics by healthy low-fat set-type yoghurt product. Therefore commercial mTG enzyme preparation was added in different concentrations (0.5-2.0 U/g, in 0.5 U/g steps to 1.5 % bovine milk simultaneously with DVS starter culture. Our study revealed that enzyme dosage (0.5-2 U/g protein had no impact on pH development and apparent viscosity during fermentation when manufacturing low-fat (1.5 % set-type yoghurt. The addition of mTG contributed to 38 % more whey retention with incorporation of β-casein, and caused 44 % higher gel strength up to a level of 1 U/g protein.

Identifying online user reputation in terms of user preference

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Lu; Guo, Qiang; Liu, Xiao-Lu; Liu, Jian-Guo; Zhang, Yi-Cheng

2018-03-01

Identifying online user reputation is significant for online social systems. In this paper, taking into account the preference physics of online user collective behaviors, we present an improved group-based rating method for ranking online user reputation based on the user preference (PGR). All the ratings given by each specific user are mapped to the same rating criteria. By grouping users according to their mapped ratings, the online user reputation is calculated based on the corresponding group sizes. Results for MovieLens and Netflix data sets show that the AUC values of the PGR method can reach 0.9842 (0.9493) and 0.9995 (0.9987) for malicious (random) spammers, respectively, outperforming the results generated by the traditional group-based method, which indicates that the online preference plays an important role for measuring user reputation.

Inheritance and bulked segregant analysis of leaf rust and stem rust resistance genes in eight durum wheat genotypes

Science.gov (United States)

Leaf rust, caused by Puccinia triticina (Pt) and stem rust caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt) are important diseases of durum wheat. This study determined the inheritance and genomic locations of leaf rust resistance (Lr) genes to Pt-race BBBQJ and stem rust resistance (Sr) genes to Pg...

Stem rust seedling resistance genes in Ethiopian wheat cultivars ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Thirty durum wheat (19 commercial cultivars and 11 breeding lines) and 30 bread wheat (20 commercial cultivars and 10 breeding lines) were tested for gene postulation. Stem rust infection types produced on wheat cultivars and breeding lines by ten Pgt races was compared with infection types produced on 40 near ...

Ultrasonic destruction of albumin microbubbles enhances gene transfection and expression in cardiac myocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Guo-zhong; Liu, Jing-hua; Lü, Shu-zheng; Lü, Yun; Guo, Cheng-jun; Zhao, Dong-hui; Fang, Dong-ping; He, Dong-fang; Zhou, Yuan; Ge, Chang-jiang

2011-05-01

It has been proven that ultrasonic destruction of microbubbles can enhance gene transfection efficiency into the noncardiac cells, but there are few reports about cardiac myocytes. Moreover, the exact mechanisms are not yet clear; whether the characteristic of microbubbles can affect the gene transfection efficiency or not is still controversial. This study was designed to investigate whether the ultrasound destruction of gene-loaded microbubbles could enhance the plasmids carried reporter gene transfection in primary cultured myocardial cell, and evaluate the effects of microbubbles characteristics on the transgene expression in cardiac myocytes. The β-galactosidase plasmids attached to the two types of microbubbles, air-contained sonicated dextrose albumin (ASDA) and perfluoropropane-exposed sonicated dextrose albumin (PESDA) were prepared. The gene transfection into cardiac myocytes was performed in vitro by naked plasmids, ultrasound exposure, ultrasonic destruction of gene-loaded microbubbles and calcium phosphate precipitation, and then the gene expression and cell viability were analyzed. The ultrasonic destruction of gene-loaded microbubbles enhanced gene expression in cardiac myocytes compared with naked plasmid transfection ((51.95 ± 2.41) U/g or (29.28 ± 3.65) U/g vs. (0.84 ± 0.21) U/g, P ASDA ((51.95 ± 2.41) U/g vs. (29.28 ± 3.65) U/g, P < 0.05). Ultrasonic destruction of microbubbles during calcium phosphate precipitation gene transfection enhanced β-galactosidase activity nearly 8-fold compared with calcium phosphate precipitation gene transfection alone ((111.35 ± 11.21) U/g protein vs. (14.13 ± 2.58) U/g protein, P < 0.01). Even 6 hours after calcium phosphate precipitation gene transfection, ultrasound-mediated microbubbles destruction resulted in more intense gene expression ((35.63 ± 7.65) U/g vs. (14.13 ± 2.58) U/g, P < 0.05). Ultrasonic destruction of microbubbles might be a promising method for the delivery of non-viral DNA into

Effect of benzylaminopurine (BAP) pulsing on in vitro shoot ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

user

2011-03-28

Mar 28, 2011 ... Research Cluster, Faculty of Science, University Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Accepted 12 ... number of bud formation in shoot cultures of Musa acuminata cv. ... In tissue culture, plant growth regulators (PGR) are.

Mineralogic sources of metals in leachates from the weathering of sedex, massive sulfide, and vein deposit mining wastes

Science.gov (United States)

Diehl, S.F.; Hageman, P.L.; Seal, R.R.; Piatak, N.M.; Lowers, H.

2011-01-01

Weathered mine waste consists of oxidized primary minerals and chemically unstable secondary phases that can be sources of readily soluble metals and acid rock drainage. Elevated concentrations of metals such as Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn are observed in deionized water-based leachate solutions derived from complex sedex and Cu-Pb-Zn mine wastes. Leachate (USGS FLT) from the Elizabeth mine, a massive sulfide deposit, has a pH of 3.4 and high concentrations of Al (16700 ug/L), Cu (440 ug/L), and Zn (8620 ug/L). Leachate from the sedex Faro mine has a pH of 3.5 and high concentrations of Al (2040 ug/L), Cu (1930 ug/L), Pb (2080 ug/L), and Zn (52900 ug/L). In contrast, higher-pH leachates produced from tailings of polymetallic vein deposits have order of magnitude lower metal concentrations. These data indicate that highly soluble secondary mineral phases exist at the surface of waste material where the samples were collected. Sulfide minerals from all sites exhibit differential degrees of weathering, from dissolution etched grain rims, to rinds of secondary minerals, to skeletal remnants. These microscale mineral-dissolution textures enhance weathering and metal teachability of waste material. Besides the formation of secondary minerals, sulfide grains from dried tailings samples may be coated by amorphous Fe-Al-Si minerals that also adsorb metals such as Cu, Ni, and Zn.

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-BTAU-01-2489 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-BTAU-01-2489 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-RNOR-08-0112 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-RNOR-08-0112 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-RMAC-03-0034 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-RMAC-03-0034 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-07-0022 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-07-0022 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-PABE-08-0027 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-PABE-08-0027 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-PTRO-08-0021 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-PTRO-08-0021 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-OGAR-01-0527 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-OGAR-01-0527 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

NCBI nr-aa BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-14-0061 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-14-0061 ref|NP_997055.1| G protein-coupled receptor for asthma susceptibi... (G-protein coupled receptor for asthma susceptibility) (G-protein coupled receptor PGR14) gb|AAQ76966.1| GP

Email: pattuquayefio@ug.edu.gh

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Apusigah

making. ... study, the article hints at possible implications of the co-optation of human ... shortage, health challenges such as the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), and the causes ... appropriate framework for considering such challenges.

Asian Dust Observed During the KORUS Air Quality Mission Creates Significant Super-Micron NO3-, NH4+, and SO42- Aerosols.

Science.gov (United States)

Heim, E. W.; Dibb, J. E.; Scheuer, E. M.

2017-12-01

The KORUS mission was a collaborative effort between the Korean Institute of Environmental Research and NASA. KORUS provided a comprehensive assessment of air quality in Korea during early 2016. The intensive sampling campaign was timed to assess local photochemistry during increasing solar insolation and biogenic emissions; after the April peak in outflow of pollution and dust from central China. Chinese outflow is well characterized by Silica-Calcium rich dust. Despite the effort to avoid the period with strongest dust outflow, Ca2+ was well represented in all bulk (particle diameters up to 4.5 micron) aerosol filter samples filter measurements and submicron measurements of NH4+, SO42, and NO3- made by AMS indicates substantial super-micron fractions of these anthropogenic ions at times during KORUS-AQ. During the dustiest samples (Ca2+ > 1.5ug/m3) we see marked increases in super-micron concentration of NH4+, SO42-, and NO3-, m = 1.113 ug/m3 , 2.621 ug/m3 , 4.413 ug/m3, with the super-micron contribution to total concentration averaging 47%, 45%, and 81% respectively. In contrast, low dust days (Ca2+ < 0.2ug/m3) the super-micron concentrations averaged 0.262 ug/m3, 0.510 ug/m3, -0.029 ug/m3, respectively and accounted for just 20%, 14%, and 8% of total mass. During the dust events, samples that have trajectories passing over industrial centers in eastern China approached equivalence balance between Ca2++ NH4+ and SO42-+NO3-. In contrast dusty samples that did not pass over these industrial centers during transport to the West Sea and Korea maintained excess cations, dominantly Ca2+. This suggests that dust can act as an important carrier of Chinese pollution to Korea when this saturated dust reaches the peninsula.

Uropygial gland volatiles may code for olfactory information about sex, individual, and species in Bengalese finches Lonchura striata

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian-Xu ZHANG et al.

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Over-shadowed by eye-catching vocal and visual signals, chemical communication has long been overlooked in birds. This study aimed at exploring whether volatile composition of the uropygial gland secretion (UGS of birds was associated with the information about sex, individual and species. By using dichloromethane extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS, we analyzed the UGS volatiles of domesticated Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata, Estrildiea which is also known as white-rumped munias. We characterized 16 volatile molecules from the UGS, including eight n-alkanols, five diesters, an ester, an aldehyde and a fatty acid, and quantified them in terms of GC peak area percentages (relative abundances. Among these compounds, hexadecanol and octadecanol were major components in both sexes. The former was richer in males than females and the latter richer in females than males, suggesting that they might be male and female pheromone candidates, respectively. The high inter-individual variations, in relative abundance, of the UGS volatiles implied that they might carry information about individuality. The similarity between GC profiles of the UGS and wing feather from same individuals indicates that the birds might preen the secretion to their feathers to transmit chemical cues. Additionally, by comparing with three sympatric passerine species,i.e., zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata, yellow-bowed buntings Emberiza chrysophrys and rooks Corvus frugilegus, we found that the composition of C13-C18 alkanols in the UGS might contain information about species. Our study also show that quantitative differences (degree of same UGS volatiles might be the key for the Bengalese finch to code for information about sex and individuality whereas both the kind and degree of UGS constituents could be utilized to code for information about species [Current Zoology 55 (5:–2009].

Enhanced technologies for unattended ground sensor systems

Science.gov (United States)

Hartup, David C.

2010-04-01

Progress in several technical areas is being leveraged to advantage in Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) systems. This paper discusses advanced technologies that are appropriate for use in UGS systems. While some technologies provide evolutionary improvements, other technologies result in revolutionary performance advancements for UGS systems. Some specific technologies discussed include wireless cameras and viewers, commercial PDA-based system programmers and monitors, new materials and techniques for packaging improvements, low power cueing sensor radios, advanced long-haul terrestrial and SATCOM radios, and networked communications. Other technologies covered include advanced target detection algorithms, high pixel count cameras for license plate and facial recognition, small cameras that provide large stand-off distances, video transmissions of target activity instead of still images, sensor fusion algorithms, and control center hardware. The impact of each technology on the overall UGS system architecture is discussed, along with the advantages provided to UGS system users. Areas of analysis include required camera parameters as a function of stand-off distance for license plate and facial recognition applications, power consumption for wireless cameras and viewers, sensor fusion communication requirements, and requirements to practically implement video transmission through UGS systems. Examples of devices that have already been fielded using technology from several of these areas are given.

Azobenzene dye-coupled quadruply hydrogen-bonding modules as colorimetric indicators for supramolecular interactions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yagang Zhang

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The facile coupling of azobenzene dyes to the quadruply hydrogen-bonding modules 2,7-diamido-1,8-naphthyridine (DAN and 7-deazaguanine urea (DeUG is described. The coupling of azobenzene dye 2 to mono-amido DAN units 4, 7, and 9 was effected by classic 4-(dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP-catalyzed peptide synthesis with N-(3-dimethylaminopropyl-N’-ethyl carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC as activating agent, affording the respective amide products 5, 8, and 10 in 60–71% yield. The amide linkage was formed through either the aliphatic or aromatic ester group of 2, allowing both the flexibility and absorption maximum to be tuned. Azobenzene dye 1 was coupled to the DeUG unit 11 by Steglich esterification to afford the product amide 12 in 35% yield. Alternatively, azobenzene dye 16 underwent a room-temperature copper-catalyzed azide–alkyne Huisgen cycloaddition with DeUG alkyne 17 to give triazole 18 in 71% yield. Azobenzene coupled DAN modules 5, 8, and 10 are bright orange–red in color, and azobenzene coupled DeUG modules 12 and 18 are orange–yellow in color. Azobenzene coupled DAN and DeUG modules were successfully used as colorimetric indicators for specific DAN–DeUG and DAN–UPy (2-ureido-4(1H-pyrimidone quadruply hydrogen-bonding interactions.

Homocysteine-lowering effect of 500 ug folic acid every other day versus 250 ug/day

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwer, I.A.; Rooij, van I.A.L.M.; Dusseldorp, van M.; Thomas, C.M.G.; Blom, H.J.; Hautvast, J.G.A.J.; Eskes, T.K.A.B.

2000-01-01

Elevated plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations are a risk factor for neural tube defects and vascular diseases. Supplementation with folic acid decreases tHcy. We investigated whether supplementation with 500 ?g folic acid every other day is as effective in lowering tHcy as 250 ?g folic

Potential of plant growth regulator and chlormequat chloride on alfalfa seed components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, J. S.; Lin, H.; Han, W.

2016-01-01

The use of plant growth regulators (PGRs) has opened new prospects for increased seed production in grasses and legumes, but little information is available on the effects of PGRs combination with chlormequat chloride (CCC) on alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) seed yield components. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of applying chlormequat chloride in combination with three PGRs (Naphthylacetic acid (NAA), gibberellic acid 3 (GA), and brassinolide (BR)) on seed yield, aboveground biomass, plant height, lodging, yield components. CCC was applied annually at the stooling stage while three PGRs were applied twice each year at the stages of flower bud formation and peak flowering. Results provides evidence that: (i) each PGR consistently increased seed yields, and the numbers of seeds per stem compared to untreated plants; (ii) CCC treatment reduced plant height and lodging, but also significantly decreased seed yield and did not affect aboveground biomass. (iii) effectiveness of CCC application depends on climatic conditions, especially in North-east China. (iiii) the optimum combination of CCC with a PGR to increase alfalfa seed production was failed to identify. (iiiii) no interactions between PGRs and CCC on seed yield were observed and neither the PGRs nor the CCC. But alfalfa seed yield could be improved by combining a PGR such as NAA. Our Results suggest that these PGRs could be used in alfalfa breeding to increase seed yield while maintaining high seed quality. (author)

Expression of p40 (∆Np63) protein in meningiomas, an unexpected finding: immunohistochemical study and evaluation of its possible prognostic role.

Science.gov (United States)

Guadagno, Elia; Del Basso De Caro, Marialaura; Pignatiello, Sara; Sciammarella, Concetta; Solari, Domenico; Cappabianca, Paolo; Maiuri, Francesco; Dones, Flavia

2016-09-01

According to the 2007 WHO (World Health Organization) Classification, meningiomas are divided into three grades of malignancy, with different recurrence rate, based exclusively on histopathological parameters. Loss/reduction of PgR (Progesterone Receptor) expression and increased Ki67 L.I. (Labeling Index) have been proven as possible prognostic factors able to predict the relapse of the disease. However, they sometimes result unreliable, especially when discordant. p40 is the short form of the p53 homologue gene p63, also named ∆Np63, and its antibody has recently been introduced as a highly specific diagnostic marker of the squamous cell carcinoma of the lung. Nevertheless its expression has been found in many other unconventional sites (e.g. placenta, urotheluim, etc). Herein we assessed the immuno-expression of p40 protein in a series of 72 meningiomas (35 grade I and 37 grade II) and analyzed its correlation with clinicopathological parameters, overall survival and recurrence free interval. We found that a high p40 score correlated with high histological grade, presence of recurrence, increased Ki67 L.I. and loss/reduction of PgR signal. Moreover, a higher expression of p40 was shown to be a significant prognostic factor for the development of recurrences and resulted a prognostic independent variable in multivariate analysis. Overall, for the first time, we investigated the expression of p40 protein in meningiomas and explored its usefulness as prognostic marker in addition to PgR and Ki67 L.I.

Undernutrition and laterality of the corpus luteum affects gene expression in oviduct and uterus of pregnant ewes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. de Brun

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The effect of undernutrition on gene expression of progesterone and oestrogen receptors (PGR and ESR1, and insulin-like growth factors 1 and 2 (IGF1 and IGF2 in the uterus and oviducts of ewes on day 5 after oestrus was investigated. The effect of the side of the uterus/oviduct regarding the ovary bearing a corpus luteum (CL (ipsi vs. contralateral was also analyzed. Fourteen oestrous synchronized ewes were fed either 1.5 (C, n=7 or 0.5 (L, n=7 times their maintenance requirements from the onset of the hormonal treatment (day -14, till slaughter on day 5 post-oestrus. Oviducts and samples of uterus were collected and their gene expression studied by real time RT-PCR. Undernourished ewes had greater PGR expression in the oviduct than control ewes, but lower expression of IGF1 in uterus and of IGF2 in oviducts. The ipsilateral oviduct presented lower expression of PGR, ESR1 and IGF2 mRNA than the contralateral one, but this did not occur in the uterus. In conclusion, there is an effect of undernutrition on gene expression that is transcript and organ dependent (uterus/oviduct. This work reports for the first time that growth factors and sex steroid receptor expression on day 5 after oestrus vary depending on the side of the CL-bearing ovary and the region of the reproductive tract.

Next-generation Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) Substrates for Hazard Detection

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-01

substrates at differing concentrations ranging from 0.05 ug/cm2 to 50 ug/cm2. These concentrations were independently validated by UV -Vis...standard Klarite substrates at a concentration of 5.0 ug/cm2. The concentration jetted was validated using a secondary UV -Vis technique.(20, 81) After... Spectros ., 994 (1997). [58] Alexander, T.A., Le, D.M., "Characterization of a commercialized SERS-active substrate and its application to the

Enhancement Nisin Activity By Some Natural Additives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hussien, H.A.; El-Fouly, M.E.; Zayed, M.N.; Harroun, M.B.

2010-01-01

Nisin showed great inhibition of gram positive bacteria while it had no effect on gram negative bacteria or yeast.It is clear from the present study that 250ug/ml of nisin was lethal for S .aureus but this dose decreased to 25 ug/ml when combined with 0.05% of citric acid or 0.1% of lactic acid or 0.4% of cinnamon. Although nisin had no effect on P. aeruginosa but when 200ug/ml of nisin combined with 0.2% of citric acid or 0.1% of lactic acid or 2% of cinnamon P. aeruginosa completely inhibited.In the same manner 200ug/ml of nisin was sufficient to inhibit Debaryomyces sp. growth when combined by 3% of citric or 3.5% of lactic or 2% of cinnamon. On the other hand, 25 μg/ml of nisin reduced the following lethal concentrations of S .aureus from0.2% to 0.05%, 0.15% to 0.1% and from 1.2% to 0.4% for citric acid, lactic acid and cinnamon, respectively. While. 200 ug/ml of nisin decreased the following lethal concentrations of P. aeruginosa from 0.3% to 0.2%, 0.3% to 0.1% and from 4% to 2% for citric acid, lactic acid and cinnamon, respectively. Two hundred ug/ml of nisin decreased lethal concentrations of Debaryomyces sp. from4% to 3%, 4.5% to 3.5% for citric acid and lactic acid, respectively. Two hundred ug/ml of nisin did not reduce cinnamon lethal dose.

Intracrine prostaglandin E2 pro-tumoral actions in prostate epithelial cells originate from non-canonical pathways.

Science.gov (United States)

Madrigal-Martínez, Antonio; Fernández-Martínez, Ana B; Lucio Cazaña, Francisco J

2018-04-01

Prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 ) increases cell proliferation and stimulates migratory and angiogenic abilities in prostate cancer cells. However, the effects of PGE 2 on non-transformed prostate epithelial cells are unknown, despite the fact that PGE 2 overproduction has been found in benign hyperplastic prostates. In the present work we studied the effects of PGE 2 in immortalized, non-malignant prostate epithelial RWPE-1 cells and found that PGE 2 increased cell proliferation, cell migration, and production of vascular endothelial growth factor-A, and activated in vitro angiogenesis. These actions involved a non-canonic intracrine mechanism in which the actual effector was intracellular PGE 2 (iPGE 2 ) instead of extracellular PGE 2 : inhibition of the prostaglandin uptake transporter (PGT) or antagonism of EP receptors prevented the effects of PGE 2 , which indicated that PGE 2 activity depended on its carrier-mediated translocation from the outside to the inside of cells and that EP receptors located intracellularly (iEP) mediated the effects of PGE 2 . iPGE 2 acted through transactivation of epidermal growth factor-receptor (EGFR) by iEP, leading to increased expression and activity of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α). Interestingly, iPGE 2 also mediates the effects of PGE 2 on prostate cancer PC3 cells through the axis iPGE 2 -iEP receptors-EGFR-HIF-1α. Thus, this axis might be responsible for the growth-stimulating effects of PGE 2 on prostate epithelial cells, thereby contributing to prostate proliferative diseases associated with chronic inflammation. Since this PGT-dependent non-canonic intracrine mechanism of PGE 2 action operates in both benign and malignant prostate epithelial cells, PGT inhibitors should be tested as a novel therapeutic modality to treat prostate proliferative disease. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Brachypodium-Puccinia graminis system: Solving a puzzle to uncover the underlying mechanisms of non-host resistance and plant immunity

Science.gov (United States)

Brachypodium distachyon is regarded as non-host to the causal agent of stem rust in wheat and barley, P. graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt), and a near-host to the pathogens of forage grasses, P. graminis f. sp. lolii (Pgl) and P. graminis f. sp. phlei-pratensis (Pgp). Given the devastating effect of ste...

Progesterone receptor variation and risk of ovarian cancer is limited to the invasive endometrioid subtype: results from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium pooled analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pearce, C.L.; Wu, A.H.; Gayther, S.A.

2008-01-01

There is evidence that progesterone plays a role in the aetiology of invasive epithelial ovarian cancer. Therefore, genes involved in pathways that regulate progesterone may be candidates for susceptibility to this disease. Previous studies have suggested that genetic variants in the progesterone...... receptor gene (PGR) may be associated with ovarian cancer risk, although results have been inconsistent. We have established an international consortium to pool resources and data from many ovarian cancer case-control studies in an effort to identify variants that influence risk. In this study, three PGR...... single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), for which previous data have suggested they affect ovarian cancer risk, were examined. These were +331 C/T (rs10895068), PROGINS (rs1042838), and a 3' variant (rs608995). A total of 4788 ovarian cancer cases and 7614 controls from 12 case-control studies were...

Putative DNA-dependent RNA polymerase in Mitochondrial Plasmid of Paramecium caudatum Stock GT704

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trina Ekawati Tallei

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Mitochondria of Paramecium caudatum stock GT704 has a set of four kinds of linear plasmids with sizes of 8.2, 4.1, 2.8 and 1.4 kb. The plasmids of 8.2 and 2.8 kb exist as dimers consisting of 4.1- and 1.4-kb monomers, respectively. The plasmid 2.8 kb, designated as pGT704-2.8, contains an open reading frame encodes for putative DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RNAP. This study reveals that this RNAP belongs to superfamily of DNA/RNA polymerase and family of T7/T3 single chain RNA polymerase and those of mitochondrial plasmid of fungi belonging to Basidiomycota and Ascomycota. It is suggested that RNAP of pGT704-2.8 can perform transcription without transcription factor as promoter recognition. Given that only two motifs were found, it could not be ascertained whether this RNAP has a full function independently or integrated with mtDNA in carrying out its function.

Persistence of 14C maneb in lettuce plants an soil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennaceur, M.; Sennaoui, Z.; Meguenni, H.

1992-10-01

Maneb residue is studied on lettuce plant and soil after spraying on greenhouse with 14C maneb. The residues declined with time. After 37 days from the application, 14C maneb residues in water extracts declined to 1,5. 10-2ug/g from 5,8. 10-1ug/g of the zero day sample in lettuce plants and 4,6. 10-3ug/g from 1,73. 10-1ug/g in soil. The 14C internals residues in lettuce and soil increase respectively till 16 days and 24 days, then decrease to 88% and 4,05% after 37 days. ETU was present in lettuce plant after 8 days then decreases with time. Two metabolites were identified by TLC (EU,ETU)

Underground gas storage Lobodice geological model development based on 3D seismic interpretation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kopal, L.

2015-01-01

Aquifer type underground gas storage (UGS) Lobodice was developed in the Central Moravian part of Carpathian foredeep in Czech Republic 50 years ago. In order to improve knowledge about UGS geological structure 3D seismic survey was performed in 2009. Reservoir is rather shallow (400 - 500 m below surface) it is located in complicated locality so limitations for field acquisition phase were abundant. This article describes process work flow from 3D seismic field data acquisition to geological model creation. The outcomes of this work flow define geometry of UGS reservoir, its tectonics, structure spill point, cap rock and sealing features of the structure. Improving of geological knowledge about the reservoir enables less risky new well localization for UGS withdrawal rate increasing. (authors)

Efecto de un extracto hidroalcohólico de Uncaria tomentosa (uña de gato sobre la población de células dendríticas y sus moléculas hla-dr y cd86 ante el estímulo con lipopolisacáridos

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iván Lozada-Requena

2009-04-01

Full Text Available Objetivo. Determinar el efecto de un extracto hidroalcohólico de uña de gato, Uncaria tomentosa (UG sobre células dendríticas (DC de sangre periférica y la expresión de HLA-DR y CD86 en muestras de sangre periférica de individuos sanos tratadas con lipopolisacáridos (LPS. Materiales y métodos. El polvo de la corteza de UG se preparó como una decocción estéril a 30g/L por 30 minutos. Se obtuvo muestras de sangre periférica de individuos sanos. Las células mononucleares de sangre periférica (CMSP fueron separadas por gradiente de centrifugación, pretratadas o no durante dos horas con distintas concentraciones de UG y estimuladas 24 h con LPS, luego fueron marcadas con anticuerpos monoclonales fluorescentes específicos para HLA-DR, Linaje tipo 1 (Lin1, CD11c y CD86 y preparadas para la citometría de flujo. Resultados. Comparando con el grupo de CMSP con LPS pero sin UG se observó, de manera dosis dependiente, una disminución en el porcentaje de DC mieloides (DCm (p<0,05 y una tendencia a incrementar el porcentaje de DC plasmacitoides (DCp. En las DCp se observó una disminución de la intensidad de fluorescencia media (IFM de HLA-DR sólo a 500 y 1000 μg/mL de UG (p<0,001; mientras que hubo un incremento de la IFM de CD86 en todo el rango (p<0,05. En DCm a las mismas concentraciones no se observó efecto de UG sobre la IFM de HLA-DR y CD86. Conclusiones. Este extracto estandarizado de UG tiende a incrementar el porcentaje de DCp y disminuye el porcentaje de DCm. UG no afecta la expresión de HLA-DR y CD86 en DCm. Este estudio demuestra que este extracto de UG favorece la activación/diferenciación de DCp, la cual participa en mecanismos de respuesta inmune adaptativa.

Underground gas storage in the World - Cedigaz survey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benquey, R.

2010-01-01

The 2010 edition of 'Underground Gas Storage in the World' provides an update to the previous survey released by CEDIGAZ in 2006. At that time, 610 underground gas storage (UGS) facilities were in operation worldwide, with a working capacity of 319 billion cubic metres (bcm). As of 1 January 2010, this number had reached 642 facilities with a working gas capacity of 333 bcm, or 10.8% of world gas consumption. By 2020, the global UGS demand is expected to grow at a pace of 3.3% per year, and according to the projects identified, more than 760 UGS sites could be active in the world with a total working capacity of approximately 465 bcm. In this survey, CEDIGAZ analyses the following trends which characterise the rapid development of underground gas storage in the world: - the strong dynamics of the European storage market, where 127 projects could add 75 bcm of working capacity by 2020, - the continued development of the UGS market in the United States (49 projects), encouraged by market-based rates allowed by the FERC, and rapid permitting processes, - the development of facilities in countries with little or no storage capacities at present, in Asia/Oceania, the C.I.S., and Eastern Europe in particular. This survey provides an analysis of the recent evolutions in the technic-economic aspects of the underground gas storage business, as well as an overview of the UGS markets and their developments in the world, country by country. A specific section is dedicated to the analysis of future UGS needs in Europe by 2020: - Technic-economic aspects of UGS: This part of the survey analyses the latest technical improvements and research axes in the field of underground gas storage. As it is more difficult to build greenfield storage facilities, a lot of work has been done to improve the performance and flexibility of existing storage sites. This section also deals with the evolution of investment and operational costs in storage over the last few years. Furthermore, the

GRIN-Global: An International Project to Develop a Global Plant Genebank and Information Management System

Science.gov (United States)

Many of the world's national genebanks, responsible for the safeguarding and availability of their country's Plant Genetic Resource (PGR) collections, have lacked access to high quality IT needed to document and manage their collections electronically. The Germplasm Resource Information System (GRI...

The Clinical Spectrum of Plumbism; an Experience from a Tertiary Care Hospital in Karachi, Pakistan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lena Jafri

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background:Lead toxicity continues to remain a concerning health problem for developing nations like Pakistan. Due to the lack of studies, we aim to highlight the clinical spectrum of lead poisoning in patients presenting to an urban-based tertiary care hospital in Pakistan. Method:This is a retrospective review of patients admitted form January 2011 to December 2014 using a structured questionnaire for recording demographics, comorbidities, clinical findings, biochemical abnormalities, clinical findings and treatment provided. Patients were categorized as children (≤18yrs and adults (>18yrs, further divided into three groups; desired blood lead levels (BLLs [lead levels 70ug/dl]. Result: A total of 86 patients were included in the final analysis, majority (69.6% of whom were adult males with median age of 35 yrs. Median (IQR BLL was 6.3 ug/dl (12.8-2.7 in all age groups with BLL in children and adults of 4.2 ug/dl (3.1-5.7 and 6.5 ug/dl (2.6-14.7, respectively. 72% of the children had complaints related to the central nervous system with majority complaining of irritability. The gastrointestinal system was most commonly implicated in adults (93% with most common complaint of abdominal pain. The commonest risk factor showing a positive correlation with BLLs was battery handling in adults [median (IQR BLL 18.4ug/dl (8.35-36.1] and pica eating in children with BLLs in high but non-toxic range [median (IQR BLL 5.2ug/dl (2.7-5.7]. The highest BLLs were observed to lie within the high but non-toxic range group in one adult herbal medicine user (54.4 ug/dl and in children observed in the toxic range group (>10ug/dl due to occupational battery work exposure and residence in a congested zone.   Conclusion:Lead toxicity continues to be hazardous due to unchecked environmental and occupational exposure. Increasing awareness is tantamount in order to find a solution.

Immobilization of Aspergillus niger. beta. -D-glucosidase on aminated chitin and alumina/alginate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bon, E.; Freire, D.; Mendes, M.F.; Soares. V.F.

1986-01-01

The immobilization of ..beta..-glucosidase was studied by (a) covalent coupling to aminated chitin (IME-C) and (b) adsorption onto alumina followed by gel entrapment of the suspension with calcium alginate (IME-A). The levels of catalytic activity determined against salicin at 50 C were 23.0 U/g and 0.2 U/g for the IME-C and IMA-A respectively. The first system was shown to be quite stable with a loss of only 2% of the initial activity over 14 days. The IME-A system had a half life of 14 days. The activity of IME-C was studied using cellobiose and enzymatic hydrolysates of sugar cane bagasse at several cellobiose concentrations. The activities obtained with cellobiose were 104.0 U/g and 72.0 U/g respectively. 13 references.

BIOACTIVITIES AND MECHANISM OF SPIRO ENOL ETHER ANALOGUES AGAINST PIERIS RAPAE

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Zhi-xiangZhang; Dong-meiCheng; Han-hongXu; Yu-linWu; andJun-faFan

2004-01-01

Nineteen kinds of spiro enol ether analogues were screened with larvae of Pieris rapae for antifeedant activity. The results showed that the antifeedant activity of compounds No.20 and No.12 was higher than others. In non-choice test, AFC50 values within 24 h of compounds No.20 and No.12 against 3rd instar larvae of P. rapae were 226.93ug/mL and 370.00ug/mL, and that in choice test against 4th larvae were 280.54 ug/mL and 398.88 ug/mL, respectively. Compd. No.20 could prolong the eggs hatch time and reduce the haemolymph content and the protein content in haemolymph of 4th instar larvae obviously. Compd. No.20 could protect tested leaves and control larvae of P. rapae effectively.

The concentration of cadmium in hepatoma among Filipinos

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alejandrino, A.L.; Goze, C.B.; Paradero, R.R.

1977-08-01

The concentration of cadmium in liver hepatoma and in normal liver in Filipinos was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Using NBS Bovine Liver (SRM1577) as reference material, a value of 0.28+-0.025 ug/g dry weight was obtained for cadmium which is close to the certified NBS value of 0.27+-0.04 ug/g. The mean percentage recovery for cadmium determination by AAS was 98.38%. A mean value of 2.14+-1.58 ug Cd/g liver hepatoma was observed for the 12 cases investigated, showing decreased cadmium levels in the cancerous liver compared to the mean value of 12.62 ug Cd/g observed for normal liver obtained from 10 cases of accidental deaths. The values are expressed on a dry weight basis

Evaluation of estrogen receptor alpha and beta and progesterone receptor expression and correlation with clinicopathologic factors and proliferative marker Ki-67 in breast cancers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosa, Fabíola E; Caldeira, José R F; Felipes, Joice

2008-01-01

To elucidate the molecular profile of hormonal steroid receptor status, we analyzed ER-alpha, ER-beta, and PGR mRNA and protein expression in 80 breast carcinomas using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), quantitative RT-PCR, and immunohistochemical analysis. Qualitative ana...

Strategies For Sustainable Conservation And Use Of Legume ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Strategies For Sustainable Conservation And Use Of Legume Genetic Resources In Ghana. ... Ghana Journal of Science ... Strategic development of conservation technologies in plant genetic resources (PGR) is the backbone for agricultural development, food security and sustainable livelihood, now and for the future.

Experiment list: SRX735140 [Chip-atlas[Archive

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available SRX735140 hg19 TFs and others Epitope tags Uterus Endometrial stromal cells NA 4717...6648,92.9,11.2,8048 GSM1527529: PGR-B ChIPSeq; Homo sapiens; ChIP-Seq source_name=Endometrial stromal cells || cell type=Endometr

Experiment list: SRX735139 [Chip-atlas[Archive

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available SRX735139 hg19 TFs and others Epitope tags Uterus Endometrial stromal cells NA 5046...8720,97.1,10.0,3809 GSM1527528: PGR-A ChIPSeq; Homo sapiens; ChIP-Seq source_name=Endometrial stromal cells || cell type=Endometr

Open reading frame ssr2016 is required for antimycin A-sensitive photosystem I-driven cyclic electron flow in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yeremenko, Nataliya; Jeanjean, Robert; Prommeenate, Peerada; Krasikov, Vladimir; Nixon, Peter J.; Vermaas, Wim F. J.; Havaux, Michel; Matthijs, Hans C. P.

2005-01-01

Open reading frame ssr2016 encodes a protein with substantial sequence similarities to PGR5 identified as a component of the antimycin A-sensitive ferredoxin:plastoquinone reductase (FQR) in PSI cyclic photophosphorylation in Arabidopsis thaliana. We studied cyclic electron flow in Synechocystis sp.

Wybrane problemy koncentracji i centralizacji ziemi w PGR w Polsce

OpenAIRE

Ławniczak, Irena

1988-01-01

The subject-matter of the article is to present the process of concentration, déconcentration and centralization of land in the state sector of Polish agriculture in years 1950 - 1984. In turn, the purpose of the work is to find whether those processes were an objective phenomenon resulting from the level of development of production forces or — to the contrary — whether they were a consequence of administrative and political decisions made by central economic authorities and ...

Current insights into hormonal regulation of microspore embryogenesis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iwona eŻur

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Plant growth regulator (PGR crosstalk and interaction with the plant’s genotype and environmental factors play a crucial role in microspore embryogenesis (ME, controlling microspore-derived embryo differentiation and development as well as haploid/doubled haploid plant regeneration. The complexity of the PGR network which could exist at the level of biosynthesis, distribution, gene expression or signaling pathways, renders the creation of an integrated model of ME-control crosstalk impossible at present. However, the analysis of the published data together with the results received recently with the use of modern analytical techniques brings new insights into hormonal regulation of this process. This review presents a short historical overview of the most important milestones in the recognition of hormonal requirements for effective ME in the most important crop plant species and complements it with new concepts that evolved over the last decade of ME studies.

Lipase production by Penicillium restrictum using solid waste of industrial babassu oil production as substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Palma, M B; Pinto, A L; Gombert, A K; Seitz, K H; Kivatinitz, S C; Castilho, L R; Freire, D M

2000-01-01

Lipase, protease, and amylase production by Penicillium restrictum in solid-state fermentation was investigated. The basal medium was an industrial waste of babassu oil (Orbignya oleifera) production. It was enriched with peptone, olive oil, and Tween-80. The supplementation positively influenced both enzyme production and fungal growth. Media enriched with Tween-80 provided the highest protease activity (8.6 U/g), whereas those enriched with peptone and olive oil led to the highest lipase (27.8 U/g) and amylase (31.8 U/g) activities, respectively.

Do position and size matter? An analysis of cage and placement variables for optimum lordosis in PLIF reconstruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Landham, Priyan R; Don, Angus S; Robertson, Peter A

2017-11-01

To examine monosegmental lordosis after posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) surgery and relate lordosis to cage size, shape, and placement. Eighty-three consecutive patients underwent single-level PLIF with paired identical lordotic cages involving a wide decompression and bilateral facetectomies. Cage parameters relating to size (height, lordosis, and length) and placement (expressed as a ratio relative to the length of the inferior vertebral endplate) were recorded. Centre point ratio (CPR) was the distance to the centre of both cages and indicated mean position of both cages. Posterior gap ratio (PGR) was the distance to the most posterior cage and indicated position and cage length indirectly. Relationships between lordosis and cage parameters were explored. Mean lordosis increased by 5.98° (SD 6.86°). The cages used varied in length from 20 to 27 mm, in lordosis from 10° to 18°, and in anterior cage height from 10 to 17 mm. The mean cage placement as determined by CPR was 0.54 and by PGR was 0.16. The significant correlations were: both CPR and PGR with lordosis gain at surgery (r = 0.597 and 0.537, respectively, p lordosis with the final lordosis (r = 0.234, p lordosis (r = -0.297, p lordosis during PLIF surgery. Anterior placement with sufficient "clear space" behind the cages is recommended. In addition, cages should be of moderate height and length, so that they act as an effective pivot for lordosis.

Use of a simplified spectrophotometric method for quantitative determination of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity in normal children from two day-care centers of the city of São Paulo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Muller

2003-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: To evaluate the applicability of a simplified method forquantitative determination of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenaseactivity in normal children; to determine the mean, standarddeviation and threshold value under which the enzyme activity isconsidered deficient. Methods: Blood samples were collected from201 children from two day-care centers in the city of São Paulo.The subjects were considered normal based on physicalexamination and laboratory tests. The enzyme activity wasdetermined in red blood cells of normal children using the “TestCombination G-6-PDH®” kit. The following statistical analyses werecarried out: the results were submitted to Student’s t test,Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, lower confidence interval (one-tailedtest and Spearman’s correlation coefficient. Results: The meanhemoglobin value for girls was slightly higher than the mean valuefor boys, but this difference was not statistically significant. Therewas no statistical difference in mean enzyme activities for Caucasianand non-Caucasian children. There was no significant correlation amongenzyme activity levels, red blood cells, hemoglobin levels,hematocrit, reticulocytes, white blood cells and age of patients.The mean enzyme activity for boys was 4.448 U/g Hb, standarddeviation = 1.380 U/g Hb. For girls, the mean enzyme activity was4.531 U/g Hb, standard deviation = 1.386 U/g Hb, and the differencewas not statistically significant. Therefore, the two populationgroups were considered as one single population, presenting amean enzyme activity of 4.490 U/g Hb, standard deviation = 1.380 U/g Hb.Since the distribution curve of enzyme activity values was normal,a lower confidence interval was determined (one-tailed test, witha cutoff point of 2.227 U/g Hb. Conclusion: The method used bySolem proved to be simple, fast, very accurate and useful to detectglucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity and to identifychildren with enzyme deficiency.

Cloning the uteroglobin gene promoter from the relic volcano rabbit (Romerolagus diazi) reveals an ancient estrogen-response element.

Science.gov (United States)

Acosta-MontesdeOca, Adriana; Zariñán, Teresa; Macías, Héctor; Pérez-Solís, Marco A; Ulloa-Aguirre, Alfredo; Gutiérrez-Sagal, Rubén

2012-05-01

To gain further insight on the estrogen-dependent transcriptional regulation of the uteroglobin (UG) gene, we cloned the 5'-flanking region of the UG gene from the phylogenetically ancient volcano rabbit (Romerolagus diazi; Rd). The cloned region spans 812 base pairs (bp; -812/-1) and contains a noncanonical TATA box (TACA). The translation start site is 48 bp downstream from the putative transcription initiation site (AGA), and is preceded by a consensus Kozak box. Comparison of the Rd-UG gene with that previously isolated from rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) showed 93% in sequence identity as well as a number of conserved cis-acting elements, including the estrogen-response element (ERE; -265/-251), which differs from the consensus by two nucleotides. In MCF-7 cells, 17β-estradiol (E(2)) induced transcription of a luciferase reporter driven by the Rd-UG promoter in a similar manner as in an equivalent rabbit UG reporter; the Rd-UG promoter was 30% more responsive to E(2) than the rabbit promoter. Mutagenesis studies on the Rd-ERE confirmed this cis-element as a target of E(2) as two luciferase mutant reporters of the Rd-promoter, one with the rabbit and the other with the consensus ERE, were more responsive to the hormone than the wild-type reporter. Gel shift and super-shift assays showed that estrogen receptor-α indeed binds to the imperfect palindromic sequence of the Rd-ERE. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Smartphone and Universal Goniometer for Measurement of Elbow Joint Motions: A Comparative Study

Science.gov (United States)

Behnoush, Behnam; Tavakoli, Nasim; Bazmi, Elham; Nateghi Fard, Fariborz; Pourgharib Shahi, Mohammad Hossein; Okazi, Arash; Mokhtari, Tahmineh

2016-01-01

Background Universal goniometer (UG) is commonly used as a standard method to evaluate range of motion (ROM) as part of joint motions. It has some restrictions, such as involvement of both hands of the physician, leads to instability of hands and error. Nowadays smartphones usage has been increasing due to its easy application. Objectives The study was designed to compare the smartphone inclinometer-based app and UG in evaluation of ROM of elbow. Materials and Methods The maximum ROM of elbow in position of flexion and pronation and supination of forearm were examined in 60 healthy volunteers with UG and smartphone. Data were analyzed using SPSS (ver. 16) software and appropriate statistical tests were applied, such as paired t-test, ICC and Bland Altman curves. Results The results of this study showed high reliability and validity of smartphone in regarding UG with ICC > 0.95. The highest reliability for both methods was in elbow supination and the lowest was in the elbow flexion (0.84). Conclusions Smartphones due to ease of access and usage for the physician and the patient, may be good alternatives for UG. PMID:27625754

Taking it easy when playing ultimatum game with a Down syndrome proposer: Effects on behavior and medial frontal negativity.

Science.gov (United States)

Rêgo, Gabriel Gaudencio; Campanhã, Camila; do Egito, Julia Horta Tabosa; Boggio, Paulo Sérgio

2017-10-01

The ultimatum game (UG) is an endowment sharing game in which a proposer suggests a division of an asset to a recipient, who must accept or reject it. Economic studies showed that despite recipients usually rejecting unfair offers, perception and reaction to unfairness are highly dependent on who is the proposer. Event-related potentials (ERPs) commonly detected in UG games are the medial frontal negativity (MFN), a component detected in recipients facing unfair offers, and the P300, a component related to attentional and memory processes. Given this, we aimed to investigate the behavioral and ERP responses of healthy people playing the UG game with Down syndrome (DS) and typical development (TD) proposers. Nineteen subjects participated in this study. The UG behavioral data were similar to previous studies. ERP analysis showed no MFN in participants facing unfair offers. A higher P300 amplitude was detected when participants faced fair offers from TD compared to DS fair offers. We also found a positive correlation between P300 amplitude for TD offers and self-esteem scale score. Together these findings indicate that insertion of an atypical player in the UG led to changes in participants' perception and expectancy of the game.

and C-terminus of

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

amino acids 108–120) was expressed from Potato virus X (PVX)-based vector pGR106 as N- or C-terminal fusion with the PVX coat protein (PVX CP) in transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana plants. The fusion protein L2108-120-PVX CP was ...

American Society of Clinical Oncology/College Of American Pathologists guideline recommendations for immunohistochemical testing of estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hammond, M.E.; Hayes, D.F.; Dowsett, M.; Allred, D.C.; Hagerty, K.L.; Badve, S.; Fitzgibbons, P.L.; Francis, G.; Goldstein, N.S.; Hayes, M.; Hicks, D.G.; Lester, S.; Love, R.; Mangu, P.B.; McShane, L.; Miller, K.; Osborne, C.K.; Paik, S.; Perlmutter, J.; Rhodes, A.; Sasano, H.; Schwartz, J.N.; Sweep, F.C.; Taube, S.; Torlakovic, E.E.; Valenstein, P.; Viale, G.; Visscher, D.; Wheeler, T.; Williams, R.B.; Wittliff, J.L.; Wolff, A.C.

2010-01-01

PURPOSE: To develop a guideline to improve the accuracy of immunohistochemical (IHC) estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) testing in breast cancer and the utility of these receptors as predictive markers. METHODS: The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the College of

American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists guideline recommendations for immunohistochemical testing of estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hammond, M.E.; Hayes, D.F.; Dowsett, M.; Allred, D.C.; Hagerty, K.L.; Badve, S.; Fitzgibbons, P.L.; Francis, G.; Goldstein, N.S.; Hayes, M.; Hicks, D.G.; Lester, S.; Love, R.; Mangu, P.B.; McShane, L.; Miller, K.; Osborne, C.K.; Paik, S.; Perlmutter, J.; Rhodes, A.; Sasano, H.; Schwartz, J.N.; Sweep, F.C.; Taube, S.; Torlakovic, E.E.; Valenstein, P.; Viale, G.; Visscher, D.; Wheeler, T.; Williams, R.B.; Wittliff, J.L.; Wolff, A.C.

2010-01-01

PURPOSE: To develop a guideline to improve the accuracy of immunohistochemical (IHC) estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) testing in breast cancer and the utility of these receptors as predictive markers. METHODS: The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the College of

American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists guideline recommendations for immunohistochemical testing of estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer (unabridged version).

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hammond, M.E.; Hayes, D.F.; Dowsett, M.; Allred, D.C.; Hagerty, K.L.; Badve, S.; Fitzgibbons, P.L.; Francis, G.; Goldstein, N.S.; Hayes, M.; Hicks, D.G.; Lester, S.; Love, R.; Mangu, P.B.; McShane, L.; Miller, K.; Osborne, C.K.; Paik, S.; Perlmutter, J.; Rhodes, A.; Sasano, H.; Schwartz, J.N.; Sweep, F.C.; Taube, S.; Torlakovic, E.E.; Valenstein, P.; Viale, G.; Visscher, D.; Wheeler, T.; Williams, R.B.; Wittliff, J.L.; Wolff, A.C.

2010-01-01

PURPOSE: To develop a guideline to improve the accuracy of immunohistochemical (IHC) estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) testing in breast cancer and the utility of these receptors as predictive markers. METHODS: The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the College of

Status of sex steroid hormone receptors in large bowel cancer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meggouh, F.; Lointier, P.; Pezet, D.; Saez, S.

1991-01-01

To determine the potential role of sex steroid hormones in the development of colorectal tumors in humans, specific androgen (AR), estrogen (ER), and progesterone (PGR) receptors were investigated in normal mucosa (NM) and in tumor (T) paired biopsy specimens from 94 patients. Androgen receptors

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MDOM-06-0030 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ed neurotrophic factor (BDNF), mRNA /cds=p(1,786) /gb=XM_001368353 /gi=126332213 /ug=Mdm.339 /len=786 0.026 33% ... ...CBRC-MDOM-06-0030 gnl|UG|Mdm#S37377868 PREDICTED: Monodelphis domestica brain-deriv

report general | 1-Overview | 5-Publications | Indian Academy of ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

In this process, the advantages offered by distance education methods should also be exploited. ... The U.G. course should be solid and broad based, providing a good ... Thus all U.G. students should take some common courses in physics, ...

Evaluation of the ability of adjuvant tamoxifen-benefit gene signatures to predict outcome of hormone-naive estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen in the advanced setting

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sieuwerts, Anieta M; Lyng, Maria Bibi; Meijer-van Gelder, Marion E

2014-01-01

and NAT1 were significantly associated with a favorable PFS in multivariate analysis that included the traditional predictive factors: age, dominant relapse site, disease-free interval, ER and progesterone receptor (PGR), and adjuvant chemotherapy. This study shows that BCAR3, BCL2 and NAT1 in particular...

Heavy Metals Contamination in Coastal Sediments of Karachi, Pakistan

Science.gov (United States)

Siddique, A.; Mumtaz, M.; Zaigham, N. A.; Mallick, K. A.; Saied, S.; Khwaja, H. A.

2008-12-01

Toxic compounds such as heavy metals exert chronic and lethal effects in animals, plants, and human health. With the rapid industrialization, urbanization, and economic development in Karachi, heavy metals are continuing to be introduced to estuarine and coastal environment through rivers, runoff and land-based point sources. Pollution in the Karachi coastal region (167 km long) is mainly attributed to Lyari and Malir Rivers flowing through the city of Karachi. Both rivers are served by various channels of domestic and industrial wastes carrying more than 300 million gallons per day untreated effluent of 6000 industries and ultimately drain into the beaches of Arabian Sea. Concentrations of selected heavy metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in surface sediments from eighty-eight sites in Karachi coastal region were studied in order to understand metal contamination due to industrialization, urbanization, and economic development in Karachi. Sediment samples were collected in 2005 and 2006. We have found that heavy metal concentrations in surface sediments varied from 0.006 to 24.3 ug/g for Cd, 5.1 to 95 ug/g for Co, 2.9 to 571 ug/g for Cr, 6.9 to 272 ug/g for Cu, 0.55 to 6.5% for Fe, 1.2 to 318 ug/g for Mn, 7.5 to 75 ug/g for Ni, 6.3 to 121 ug/g for Pb, and 3.3 to 389 ug/g for Zn. Enrichment factors (EFs) were calculated to assess whether the concentrations observed represent background or contaminated levels. The highest levels of metals were found to be at the confluence of the Lyari and Malir River streams at the Arabian Sea, indicating the impact of the effluents of the highly urbanized and industrialized city of Karachi. Furthermore, this study assessed heavy metal toxicity risk with the application of Sediment Quality Guideline (SQG) indices (effect range low/effect range median values, ERL/ERM). Results indicated that the potential toxicity of marine environment can cause adverse biological effects to the biota directly and the human health

Effects of hyperthyroidism on hand grip strength and function.

Science.gov (United States)

Erkol İnal, Esra; Çarlı, Alparslan Bayram; Çanak, Sultan; Aksu, Oğuzhan; Köroğlu, Banu Kale; Savaş, Serpil

2015-01-01

Hyperthyroidism is a pathologic condition in which the body is exposed to excessive amounts of circulating thyroid hormones. Skeletal muscle is one of the major target organs of thyroid hormones. We evaluated hand grip strength and function in patients with overt hyperthyroidism. Fifty-one patients newly diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and 44 healthy controls participated in this study. Age, height, weight, and dominant hand of all participants were recorded. The diagnosis of hyperthyroidism was confirmed by clinical examination and laboratory tests. Hand grip strength was tested at the dominant hand with a Jamar hand dynamometer. The grooved pegboard test (PGT) was used to evaluate hand dexterity. The Duruöz Hand Index (DHI) was used to assess hand function. No significant differences were found in terms of clinical and demographic findings between the patients with hyperthyroidism and healthy controls (p > 0.05). Significant differences were found between the patients with hyperthyroidism and healthy controls regarding PGT and DHI scores (p Hyperthyroidism seemed to affect hand dexterity and function more than hand grip strength and seemed to be associated with reduced physical function more than muscle strength. This may also indicate that patients with hyperthyroidism should be evaluated by multidisplinary modalities.

Lipid-rich histology in a basal-type immunoprofile breast carcinoma: histochemical and immunohistochemical analysis of a case

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco Maria Maiello

2009-12-01

Full Text Available We describe the clinicopathological and morphological features of an unusual breast carcinoma classifiable as a lipid-rich variant of ductal invasive carcinoma, with a basal-type immunohistochemical profile. Basal-type breast cancers show no hormonal receptor expression, rarely over-express HER-2 but exhibit molecular high weight cytokeratins, EGFR and c-kit positivity. Special stains and histochemistry tests were used to elucidate the nature of vescicles in the neoplastic cells. Sudan IV was performed on formalin-fixed tissue. Commercially available antibodies tested were: ER, PgR, EGFR, HER2, c-kit, high molecular weight cytokeratins. Cytoplasmic lipids were highlighted as red-orange droplets on Sudan IV staining. As for immunohistochemistry, the tumor showed no reactivity to ER, PgR and HER2 (triple negative, and diffuse and strong positivity to high weight cytokeratins, EGFR and c-kit, such as a basal-type breast carcinoma. A basaloid phenotype in a lipid-rich carcinoma has not been previously reported.

Effects of visibility and types of the ground surface on the muscle activities of the vastus medialis oblique and vastus lateralis

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jeong-ki; Lee, Dong-yeop; Kim, Jin-Seop; Hong, Ji-Heon; You, Jae-Ho; Park, In-mo

2015-01-01

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of visibility and types of ground surface (stable and unstable) during the performance of squats on the muscle activities of the vastus medialis oblique (VMO) and vastus lateralis (VL). [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 25 healthy adults in their 20s. They performed squats under four conditions: stable ground surface (SGS) with vision-allowed; unstable ground surface (UGS) with vision-allowed; SGS with vision-blocked; and UGS with vision-blocked. The different conditions were performed on different days. Surface electromyogram (EMG) values were recorded. [Results] The most significant difference in the activity of the VMO and VL was observed when the subjects performed squats on the UGS, with their vision blocked. [Conclusion] For the selective activation of the VMO, performing squats on an UGS was effective, and it was more effective when subjects’ vision was blocked. PMID:26356407

Effects of antiandrogenic progestins, chlormadinone and cyproterone acetate, and the estrogen 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), and their mixtures: Transactivation with human and rainbowfish hormone receptors and transcriptional effects in zebrafish (Danio rerio) eleuthero-embryos

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Siegenthaler, Patricia Franziska [University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), School of Life Sciences, Gründenstrasse 40, CH-4132 Muttenz (Switzerland); Bain, Peter [Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Land and Water Flagship, PMB2, Glen Osmond, 5064 South Australia (Australia); Riva, Francesco [IRCCS – Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche “Mario Negri”, Environmental Biomarkers Unit, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, I-20156 Milan (Italy); Fent, Karl, E-mail: karl.fent@fhnw.ch [University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), School of Life Sciences, Gründenstrasse 40, CH-4132 Muttenz (Switzerland); Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zürich), Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollution Dynamics, Department of Environmental System Sciences, CH-8092 Zürich (Switzerland)

2017-01-15

Highlights: • Agonistic and antagonistic activity of CMA and CPA were assessed in vitro. • CMA and CPA showed different interaction with human and fish receptors. • No progestogenic but antiandrogenic and antiglucocorticoid activity occurred in fish. • CMA and CPA showed transcriptional changes in zebrafish embryos. • Binary mixtures of the progestins with EE2 were assessed in vitro and in vivo. - Abstract: Synthetic progestins act as endocrine disrupters in fish but their risk to the environment is not sufficiently known. Here, we focused on an unexplored antiandrogenic progestin, chlormadinone acetate (CMA), and the antiandrogenic progestin cyproterone acetate (CPA). The aim was to evaluate whether their in vitro interaction with human and rainbowfish (Melanotaenia fluviatilis) sex hormone receptors is similar. Furthermore, we investigated their activity in zebrafish (Danio rerio) eleuthero-embryos. First, we studied agonistic and antagonistic activities of CMA, CPA, and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), in recombinant yeast expressing either the human progesterone (PGR), androgen (AR), or estrogen receptor. The same compounds were also investigated in vitro in a stable transfection cell system expressing rainbowfish nuclear steroid receptors. For human receptors, both progestins exhibited progestogenic, androgenic and antiestrogenic activity with no antiandrogenic or estrogenic activity. In contrast, interactions with rainbowfish receptors showed no progestogenic, but antiandrogenic, antiglucocorticoid, and some antiestrogenic activity. Thus, interaction with and transactivation of human and rainbowfish PGR and AR were distinctly different. Second, we analyzed transcriptional alterations in zebrafish eleuthero‐embryos at 96 and 144 h post fertilization after exposure to CPA, CMA, EE2, and binary mixtures of CMA and CPA with EE2, mimicking the use in oral contraceptives. CMA led to slight down-regulation of the ar transcript, while CPA down-regulated ar

Identification of New Resistance Loci to African Stem Rust Race TTKSK in Tetraploid Wheats Based on Linkage and Genome-Wide Association Mapping.

Science.gov (United States)

Laidò, Giovanni; Panio, Giosuè; Marone, Daniela; Russo, Maria A; Ficco, Donatella B M; Giovanniello, Valentina; Cattivelli, Luigi; Steffenson, Brian; de Vita, Pasquale; Mastrangelo, Anna M

2015-01-01

Stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. and E. Henn. (Pgt), is one of the most destructive diseases of wheat. Races of the pathogen in the "Ug99 lineage" are of international concern due to their virulence for widely used stem rust resistance genes and their spread throughout Africa. Disease resistant cultivars provide one of the best means for controlling stem rust. To identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) conferring resistance to African stem rust race TTKSK at the seedling stage, we evaluated an association mapping (AM) panel consisting of 230 tetraploid wheat accessions under greenhouse conditions. A high level of phenotypic variation was observed in response to race TTKSK in the AM panel, allowing for genome-wide association mapping of resistance QTL in wild, landrace, and cultivated tetraploid wheats. Thirty-five resistance QTL were identified on all chromosomes, and seventeen are of particular interest as identified by multiple associations. Many of the identified resistance loci were coincident with previously identified rust resistance genes; however, nine on chromosomes 1AL, 2AL, 4AL, 5BL, and 7BS may be novel. To validate AM results, a biparental population of 146 recombinant inbred lines was also considered, which derived from a cross between the resistant cultivar "Cirillo" and susceptible "Neodur." The stem rust resistance of Cirillo was conferred by a single gene on the distal region of chromosome arm 6AL in an interval map coincident with the resistance gene Sr13, and confirmed one of the resistance loci identified by AM. A search for candidate resistance genes was carried out in the regions where QTL were identified, and many of them corresponded to NBS-LRR genes and protein kinases with LRR domains. The results obtained in the present study are of great interest as a high level of genetic variability for resistance to race TTKSK was described in a germplasm panel comprising most of the tetraploid wheat sub-species.

Quantifying airborne dispersal routes of pathogens over continents to safeguard global wheat supply.

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, M; Cox, J A; Hitchings, M D T; Burgin, L; Hort, M C; Hodson, D P; Gilligan, C A

2017-10-01

Infectious crop diseases spreading over large agricultural areas pose a threat to food security. Aggressive strains of the obligate pathogenic fungus Puccinia graminis f.sp. tritici (Pgt), causing the crop disease wheat stem rust, have been detected in East Africa and the Middle East, where they lead to substantial economic losses and threaten livelihoods of farmers. The majority of commercially grown wheat cultivars worldwide are susceptible to these emerging strains, which pose a risk to global wheat production, because the fungal spores transmitting the disease can be wind-dispersed over regions and even continents 1-11 . Targeted surveillance and control requires knowledge about airborne dispersal of pathogens, but the complex nature of long-distance dispersal poses significant challenges for quantitative research 12-14 . We combine international field surveys, global meteorological data, a Lagrangian dispersion model and high-performance computational resources to simulate a set of disease outbreak scenarios, tracing billions of stochastic trajectories of fungal spores over dynamically changing host and environmental landscapes for more than a decade. This provides the first quantitative assessment of spore transmission frequencies and amounts amongst all wheat producing countries in Southern/East Africa, the Middle East and Central/South Asia. We identify zones of high air-borne connectivity that geographically correspond with previously postulated wheat rust epidemiological zones (characterized by endemic disease and free movement of inoculum) 10,15 , and regions with genetic similarities in related pathogen populations 16,17 . We quantify the circumstances (routes, timing, outbreak sizes) under which virulent pathogen strains such as 'Ug99' 5,6 pose a threat from long-distance dispersal out of East Africa to the large wheat producing areas in Pakistan and India. Long-term mean spore dispersal trends (predominant direction, frequencies, amounts) are

Hedonic pricing analysis of the influence of urban green spaces onto residential prices : the case of Leipzig, Germany

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Liebelt, Veronika; Bartke, Stephan; Schwarz, Nina

2018-01-01

In the light of global urbanization and biodiversity loss, ecosystem services provided by urban green spaces (UGS) are becoming increasingly important, not least as a recovery and recreation opportunity for citizens. The valuation of UGS is significant for urban planners, who make decisions on the

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-TGUT-29-0000 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-TGUT-29-0000 gnl|UG|Tgu#S36163076 Taeniopygia guttata clone 0057P0006B02 megalencephalic leukoencephalo...pathy with subcortical cysts 1-like mRNA, complete sequence /gb=EF191703 /gi=120431699 /ug=Tgu.3485 /len=1532 1.8 21% ...

Language specific bootstraps for UG categories

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Kampen, N.J.

2005-01-01

This paper argues that the universal categories N/V are not applied to content words before the grammatical markings for reference D(eterminers) and predication I(nflection) have been acquired (van Kampen, 1997, contra Pinker, 1984). Child grammar starts as proto-grammar with language-specific

Laparoscopic-assisted vaginal pull-through: A new approach for congenital adrenal hyperplasia patients with high urogenital sinus

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Jacques Birraux

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: To open vaginal cavity to the pelvic floor is part of surgical treatment for urogenital sinus (UGS in girls with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH. For high UGS, this operative procedure can be challenging and may jeopardise urinary continence. Combined perineal and laparoscopic approaches could be useful to minimise perineal dissection and to facilitate the vaginal lowering. Patients and Methods: We report the procedure of a laparoscopic-assisted vaginal pull-through for supra-sphincteric UGS in a 5-year-old girl with CAH. Laparoscopic dissection of the vagina from the posterior wall of the bladder and urethra, division of the confluence and vaginal pull-through to the perineum are described. Discussion: The technique is derived from laparoscopic-assisted treatment for high ano-rectal malformations. Compared with current procedures for treatment for high UGS, laparoscopic-assisted approach allows mobilising vagina with minimal dissection of perineum and complete preservation of urethra. Another major advantage is to provide a direct vision for dissection of the space between rectum and urethra prior to vaginal pull-through. Conclusion: Laparoscopic-assisted vaginal pull-through appears to be an interesting approach for high UGS in CAH patients, reducing dissection and risk of urinary incontinence. This new approach needs to be strengthened by other cases.

Overnight social isolation in pigs decreases salivary cortisol but does not impair spatial learning and memory or performance in a decision making task

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Josef evan der Staay

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Pigs in modern farming practice may be exposed to a number of stressors, including social stressors such as mixing or isolation. This may potentially affect both cognitive abilities and stress physiology of the animals. We tested the hypothesis that overnight social isolation in pigs impairs performance in a cognitive Holeboard (HB task (Experiment 1 and the Pig Gambling Task (PGT (Experiment 2, a decision making task inspired by the Iowa Gambling Task. In addition, we tested the effect of overnight social isolation on salivary cortisol levels. A within-subjects approach was used in which performance in the two behavioral tasks and cortisol levels were first determined during normal social housing, followed by performance and cortisol levels after experiencing stress induced by overnight social isolation. A total of nineteen female pigs with a birthweight closest to their respective litter average was selected from 10 different litters and placed in two pens after weaning. Following habituation, pigs were trained in the HB task, starting at 10 weeks of age. Then, the pigs were isolated overnight, five individuals per night, at 15, 16 and 17 weeks of age. Between these three isolations, social housing and training in the HB continued. Starting 6 weeks after the end of the HB experiment, at approximately 23 weeks of age, the pigs were trained in the PGT. The effects of overnight social isolation on performance in this task were assessed once, when the pigs were 25 weeks old. Salivary cortisol was measured from samples collected 15 minutes after the start of isolation and at the end of the isolation period, and compared to baseline values collected before the start of social isolation. Our results did not confirm the hypothesis that isolation impaired HB performance and decision making in the PGT. Unexpectedly, overnight social isolation decreased cortisol levels below baseline values, an effect that was not associated with changes in performance

Radiation Dose and Image Quality from Coronary Angiography in 320-Detecor Row CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thanomphudsa, J.; Krisanachinda, A.; Tumkosit, M.

2012-01-01

Introduction: Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography examinations are increasing rapidly. New Computed Tomography has been developed to improve image quality with the patient dose reduction. The purpose of this study is to evaluate radiation dose and image quality of Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography in patients using 320-detector row CT. Methods: Forty-one patients referred for cardiac CT examinations at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital were included in this study. All coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) examinations were performed on the 320-detector row CT, Toshiba Aquilion One. Scanning protocol was investigated on dose estimates and image quality. Patients were scanned base on heart rate (HR) by HR 75 bpm use retrospective with dose modulation. Scanning parameters, kVp, mAs, HR, BMI, CTDIvol(mGy) and DLP(mGy.cm), were recorded to study the factors affecting the image quality and patient dose. And mA and kVp setting depend on BMI of the patient. Effective dose is calculated from DLP using specific conversion factor. The image quality was evaluated in 4 vessels by two radiologists. Noise assessment was also studied quantitatively. Results: The patient effective dose in prospective gating 70-80% was 3.6 ± 0.9 mSv, prospective gating 30-80% (1R-R) was 6.3 ± 1.9 mSv, and 30-80% (2R-R) was 10.8 ± 1.8 mSv and in retrospective with tube current modulation was 12.1± 7.7 mSv. Image noise was highest in PGT 70-80% 1R-R and decreased in RGT with tube current modulation, PGT 30-80% 1R-R and lowest in PGT 30-80% 2 R-R. And overall qualitative image quality was mostly good to excellent score. Discussion: The heart rate, heart rate variability and disease of the patient are affecting in the radiation dose and image quality so the suitable acquisition protocol used could be necessary. the effective dose and the image noise for the image quality. (author)

Overnight Social Isolation in Pigs Decreases Salivary Cortisol but Does Not Impair Spatial Learning and Memory or Performance in a Decision-Making Task.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Staay, F Josef; Schoonderwoerd, Annelieke J; Stadhouders, Bo; Nordquist, Rebecca E

2015-01-01

Pigs in modern farming practice may be exposed to a number of stressors, including social stressors such as mixing or isolation. This may potentially affect both cognitive abilities and stress physiology of the animals. We tested the hypothesis that overnight social isolation in pigs impairs performance in a cognitive holeboard (HB) task (Experiment 1) and the Pig Gambling Task (PGT) (Experiment 2), a decision-making task inspired by the Iowa Gambling Task. In addition, we tested the effect of overnight social isolation on salivary cortisol levels. A within-subjects approach was used in which performance in the two behavioral tasks and cortisol levels were first determined during normal social housing, followed by performance and cortisol levels after experiencing stress induced by overnight social isolation. A total of 19 female pigs with a birth weight closest to their respective litter average was selected from 10 different litters and placed in two pens after weaning. Following habituation, pigs were trained in the HB task, starting at 10 weeks of age. Then, the pigs were isolated overnight, five individuals per night, at 15, 16, and 17 weeks of age. Between these three isolations, social housing and training in the HB continued. Starting 6 weeks after the end of the HB experiment, at approximately 23 weeks of age, the pigs were trained in the PGT. The effects of overnight social isolation on performance in this task were assessed once, when the pigs were 25 weeks old. Salivary cortisol was measured from samples collected 15 min after the start of isolation and at the end of the isolation period and compared to baseline values collected before the start of social isolation. Our results did not confirm the hypothesis that isolation impaired HB performance and decision-making in the PGT. Unexpectedly, overnight social isolation decreased cortisol levels below baseline values, an effect that was not associated with changes in performance of the

Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture: opportunities and challenges emerging from the science and information technology revolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Halewood, Michael; Chiurugwi, Tinashe; Sackville Hamilton, Ruaraidh; Kurtz, Brad; Marden, Emily; Welch, Eric; Michiels, Frank; Mozafari, Javad; Sabran, Muhamad; Patron, Nicola; Kersey, Paul; Bastow, Ruth; Dorius, Shawn; Dias, Sonia; McCouch, Susan; Powell, Wayne

2018-03-01

Contents Summary 1407 I. Introduction 1408 II. Technological advances and their utility for gene banks and breeding, and longer-term contributions to SDGs 1408 III. The challenges that must be overcome to realise emerging R&D opportunities 1410 IV. Renewed governance structures for PGR (and related big data) 1413 V. Access and benefit sharing and big data 1416 VI. Conclusion 1417 Acknowledgements 1417 ORCID 1417 References 1417 SUMMARY: Over the last decade, there has been an ongoing revolution in the exploration, manipulation and synthesis of biological systems, through the development of new technologies that generate, analyse and exploit big data. Users of Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) can potentially leverage these capacities to significantly increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their efforts to conserve, discover and utilise novel qualities in PGR, and help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This review advances the discussion on these emerging opportunities and discusses how taking advantage of them will require data integration and synthesis across disciplinary, organisational and international boundaries, and the formation of multi-disciplinary, international partnerships. We explore some of the institutional and policy challenges that these efforts will face, particularly how these new technologies may influence the structure and role of research for sustainable development, ownership of resources, and access and benefit sharing. We discuss potential responses to political and institutional challenges, ranging from options for enhanced structure and governance of research discovery platforms to internationally brokered benefit-sharing agreements, and identify a set of broad principles that could guide the global community as it seeks or considers solutions. © 2018 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2018 New Phytologist Trust.

Phytoextraction of contaminated urban soils by Panicum virgatum L. enhanced with application of a plant growth regulator (BAP) and citric acid.

Science.gov (United States)

Aderholt, Matthew; Vogelien, Dale L; Koether, Marina; Greipsson, Sigurdur

2017-05-01

Lead (Pb) contamination in soil represents a threat to human health. Phytoextraction has gained attention as a potential alternative to traditional remediation methods because of lower cost and minimal soil disruption. The North American native switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) was targeted due to its ability to produce high biomass and grow across a variety of ecozones. In this study switchgrass was chemically enhanced with applications of the soil-fungicide benomyl, chelates (EDTA and citric acid), and PGR to optimize phytoextraction of Pb and zinc (Zn) from contaminated urban soils in Atlanta, GA. Exogenous application of two plant hormones was compared in multiple concentrations to determine effects on switchgrass growth: indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), and Gibberellic Acid (GA 3 ), and one PGR benzylaminopurine (BAP), The PGR BAP (1.0 μM) was found to generate a 48% increase in biomass compared to Control plants. Chemical application of citric acid, EDTA, benomyl, and BAP were tested separately and in combination in a pot experiment in an environmentally controlled greenhouse to determine the efficacy of phtyoextraction by switchgrass. Soil acidification by citric acid application resulted in highest level of aluminum (Al) and iron (Fe) in plants foliage resulting in severe phytotoxic effects. Total Pb phytoextraction was significantly highest in plants treated with combined chemical application of B + C and B + C + H. Suppression of AMF activities by benomyl application significantly increased concentrations of Al and Fe in roots. Application of benomyl reduced AMF colonization but was also shown to dramatically increase levels of septa fungi infection as compared to Control plants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Peritumoral granulomatous reaction in endometrial carcinoma: association with DNA mismatch repair protein deficiency, particularly loss of PMS2 expression.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Colin J R; Pearn, Amy; Pachter, Nicholas; Tan, Adeline

2018-04-30

The observation of peritumoral granulomatous reactions (PGRs) in two endometrial carcinomas (ECs) with a PMS2-deficient/MLH1-intact expression pattern led us to investigate whether PGRs in EC were specifically associated with DNA mismatch repair (MMR) protein deficiency, particularly PMS2 loss. Hysterectomy specimens from 22 MMR protein-intact and 54 MMR protein-deficient ECs were reviewed with specific attention to the presence of a PGR and a tumour-associated lymphoid reaction [including tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and stromal lymphoid infiltrates]. The MMR protein-deficient ECs included 22 cases with combined MLH1/PMS2 loss, 11 with combined MSH2/MSH6 loss, 11 with isolated MSH6 loss, and 10 with PMS2 loss but intact MLH1 staining (including the two 'index' cases). Overall, PGRs were identified in seven of 54 (13%) MMR protein-deficient ECs, five of which showed a PMS2-deficient/MLH1-intact immunophenotype; three of these patients had germline PMS2 mutations and one additional patient had a germline MSH6 mutation. None of the MMR protein-intact tumours showed a PGR. Although five of the seven PGR-positive ECs had a high-grade histological component, six were stage I. Most ECs with PGRs also showed TILs and stromal lymphoid reactions, similarly to MMR protein-deficient ECs in general. MMR protein-deficient ECs, particularly those with PMS2 loss, occasionally show PGRs in addition to stromal lymphoid infiltrates and TILs. Therefore, PGRs could be considered to constitute a histological prompt for consideration of Lynch syndrome. The potential prognostic significance of PGRs in EC requires further study. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Endoscopic Criteria for Evaluating Tumor Stage after Preoperative Chemoradiation Therapy in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Kyung Su; Sohn, Dae Kyung; Kim, Dae Yong; Kim, Byung Chang; Hong, Chang Won; Chang, Hee Jin; Kim, Sun Young; Baek, Ji Yeon; Park, Sung Chan; Kim, Min Ju; Oh, Jae Hwan

2016-04-01

Local excision may be an another option for selected patients with markedly down-staged rectal cancer after preoperative chemoradiation therapy (CRT), and proper evaluation of post-CRT tumor stage (ypT) is essential prior to local excision of these tumors. This study was designed to determine the correlations between endoscopic findings and ypT of rectal cancer. In this study, 481 patients with locally advanced rectal cancer who underwent preoperative CRT followed by surgical resection between 2004 and 2013 at a single institution were evaluated retrospectively. Pathological good response (p-GR) was defined as ypT ≤ 1, and pathological minimal or no response (p-MR) as ypT ≥ 2. The patients were randomly classified according to two groups, a testing (n=193) and a validation (n=288) group. Endoscopic criteria were determined from endoscopic findings and ypT in the testing group and used in classifying patients in the validation group as achieving or not achieving p-GR. Based on findings in the testing group, the endoscopic criteria for p-GR included scarring, telangiectasia, and erythema, whereas criteria for p-MR included nodules, ulcers, strictures, and remnant tumors. In the validation group, the kappa statistic was 0.965 (p < 0.001), and the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 0.362, 0.963, 0.654, and 0.885, respectively. The endoscopic criteria presented are easily applicable for evaluation of ypT after preoperative CRT for rectal cancer. These criteria may be used for selection of patients for local excision of down-staged rectal tumors, because patients with p-MR could be easily ruled out.

Histopathological features of breast tumours in BRCA1, BRCA2 and mutation-negative breast cancer families

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eerola, Hannaleena; Heikkilä, Päivi; Tamminen, Anitta; Aittomäki, Kristiina; Blomqvist, Carl; Nevanlinna, Heli

2005-01-01

Histopathological features of BRCA1 and BRCA2 tumours have previously been characterised and compared with unselected breast tumours; however, familial non-BRCA1/2 tumours are less well known. The aim of this study was to characterise familial non-BRCA1/2 tumours and to evaluate routine immunohistochemical and pathological markers that could help us to further distinguish families carrying BRCA1/2 mutations from other breast cancer families. Breast cancer tissue specimens (n = 262) from 25 BRCA1, 20 BRCA2 and 74 non-BRCA1/2 families were studied on a tumour tissue microarray. Immunohistochemical staining of oestrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PgR) and p53 as well as the histology and grade of these three groups were compared with each other and with the respective information on 862 unselected control patients from the archives of the Pathology Department of Helsinki University Central Hospital. Immunohistochemical staining of erbB2 was also performed among familial cases. BRCA1-associated cancers were diagnosed younger and were more ER-negative and PgR-negative, p53-positive and of higher grade than the other tumours. However, in multivariate analysis the independent factors compared with non-BRCA1/2 tumours were age, grade and PgR negativity. BRCA2 cases did not have such distinctive features compared with non-BRCA1/2 tumours or with unselected control tumours. Familial cases without BRCA1/2 mutations had tumours of lower grade than the other groups. BRCA1 families differed from mutation-negative families by age, grade and PgR status, whereas ER status was not an independent marker

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-ATHA-03-0010 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-ATHA-03-0010 gnl|UG|At#S11719378 Arabidopsis thaliana ATARP9 (ACTIN-RELATED PR...OTEIN 9); protein binding (ATARP9) mRNA, complete cds /cds=p(235,2025) /gb=NM_123716 /gi=30694311 /ug=At.26311 /len=2187 0.47 36% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-19-0006 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 0.0 100% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-19-0006 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-23-0072 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-23-0072 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 0.0 100% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-07-0070 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-07-0070 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730883 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (OPN1SW), mRNA /cds=p(8,1054) /gb=NM_001708 /gi=4502386 /ug=Hs.656404 /len=1101 0.0 100% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-23-0073 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-23-0073 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 0.0 100% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-23-0071 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-23-0071 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 0.0 95% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-ATHA-05-0034 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-ATHA-05-0034 gnl|UG|At#S11736431 Arabidopsis thaliana ATMPK19 (Arabidopsis tha...liana MAP kinase 19); MAP kinase (ATMPK19) mRNA, complete cds /cds=p(1,1761) /gb=NM_112333 /gi=30683276 /ug=At.8069 /len=1897 6.9 42% ...

Pramana – Journal of Physics | News

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

A novel pedagogical technique is presented that can be used in the undergraduate (UG) class to formulate a relativistically extended kinetic theory of gases and thermal speed distribution, while assuming the basic thermal symmetry arguments of the famous Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution as presented at the UG level.

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0691 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0691 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434263 AL836416 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd031apc...G19, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd031apcG19 /gb=AL836416 /gi=21878378 /ug=Tru.2410 /len=418 0.24 31% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0424 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0424 gnl|UG|Tru#S21433401 AL835449 EFRb Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRb017apc...D5, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRb017apcD5 /gb=AL835449 /gi=21877411 /ug=Tru.1107 /len=522 8.4 39% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0750 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0750 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434499 AL836465 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd031apc...H15, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd031apcH15 /gb=AL836465 /gi=21878427 /ug=Tru.81 /len=452 1.9 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0743 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0743 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434499 AL836465 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd031apc...H15, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd031apcH15 /gb=AL836465 /gi=21878427 /ug=Tru.81 /len=452 1.4 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0642 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0642 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434581 AL836626 EFRe Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRe005apc...A11, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRe005apcA11 /gb=AL836626 /gi=21878588 /ug=Tru.118 /len=378 3.6 33% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0924 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0924 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434557 AL836584 EFRe Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRe005apc...K15, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRe005apcK15 /gb=AL836584 /gi=21878546 /ug=Tru.1833 /len=509 7.4 31% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0627 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0627 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434842 AL836687 EFRe Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRe005apc...N22, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRe005apcN22 /gb=AL836687 /gi=21878649 /ug=Tru.3747 /len=363 1.4 48% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0118 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0118 gnl|UG|Tru#S21435395 AL837361 EFRh Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRh101apc...A11, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRh101apcA11 /gb=AL837361 /gi=21879323 /ug=Tru.2111 /len=407 2.4 33% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0587 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0587 gnl|UG|Tru#S21435116 AL837106 EFRf Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRf030apc...H13, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRf030apcH13 /gb=AL837106 /gi=21879068 /ug=Tru.387 /len=294 4.9 35% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0677 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0677 gnl|UG|Tru#S21435495 AL837483 EFRj Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRj028apc...P21, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRj028apcP21 /gb=AL837483 /gi=21879445 /ug=Tru.1777 /len=323 7.9 50% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0784 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0784 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434499 AL836465 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd031apc...H15, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd031apcH15 /gb=AL836465 /gi=21878427 /ug=Tru.81 /len=452 2.0 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0299 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0299 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434159 AL836234 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd007apc...O23, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd007apcO23 /gb=AL836234 /gi=21878196 /ug=Tru.1814 /len=463 0.63 32% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0473 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0473 gnl|UG|Tru#S21435395 AL837361 EFRh Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRh101apc...A11, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRh101apcA11 /gb=AL837361 /gi=21879323 /ug=Tru.2111 /len=407 0.47 28% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0104 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0104 gnl|UG|Tru#S21435233 AL837260 EFRg Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRg101apc...H6, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRg101apcH6 /gb=AL837260 /gi=21879222 /ug=Tru.2053 /len=465 3.3 30% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0391 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0391 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434264 AL836417 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd031apc...K15, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd031apcK15 /gb=AL836417 /gi=21878379 /ug=Tru.1810 /len=428 0.75 34% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-FRUB-02-0702 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-FRUB-02-0702 gnl|UG|Tru#S21434160 AL836235 EFRd Takifugu rubripes cDNA clone EFRd007apc...K11, mRNA sequence /clone=EFRd007apcK11 /gb=AL836235 /gi=21878197 /ug=Tru.2312 /len=411 6.4 28% ...

Investigation of Turkish marbles as shielding materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atasoy, H.; Tarcan, G.; Doekmen, S.

1992-01-01

The natural Turkish marbles, especially Usak Green (UG), Aegean Purple (AP), and Marmara White (MW) were tested as shielding materials using standard gamma sources such as Co-60, Cs-137 and Eu-152. The experiment showed that UG, AP and MW are very effective shields against gamma-rays. The result for this experiment is that the gamma-ray attenuation coefficients of UG, AP and MW are almost equal for the energy range from 0.1 MeV to 1.4 MeV. Also, the elemental compositions of the natural UG, AP and MW marbles have been determined by fast and thermal neutron activation analysis and fourteen elements including Na, Mg, Al, Si, Cl, K, Ca, V, Ti, Mn, Fe, La, Ba and Sc have been found using the gamma spectroscopic method. The range of element contents of all Turkish marbles are remarkably different, but most of the elements are common such as Ca, Fe, Na, Cl, Mg, Si. (orig.)

Studies on the preparation of radioactive labelled compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jae-Rok; Park, Kyung-Bae; Awh, Ok-Doo

1985-04-01

To deveolp 99 mTc instant labelling kits of dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA), glucoheptonic acid (GH), and tin colloid, molar ratios of the host compound to the stannous chloride, amount of the stannous chloride and pH were, respectively, controlled. The labelling yields and radiochemical purities were checked by means of a paper chromatography. Animal studies and clinical applications were also carried out. The results indicated that DMSA/SnCl 2 2H 2 O 3/1(mole/mole), SnCl 2 2H 2 O 410ug/ml/vial, pH 2.5, Ca GH/SnCl 2 2H 2 O 53/1(mole/mole), SnCl 2 2H 2 O 350 ug/ml/vial, pH 6.5, NaF 100ug/vial, SnCl 2 2H 2 O 150 ug/ml/vial, pH. 5.6 etc, were optimal conditions for the preparation of DMSA-, GH-, and tin colloid-kits, respectively. (Author)

High Magnetic Field in THz Plasma Wave Detection by High Electron Mobility Transistors

Science.gov (United States)

Sakowicz, M.; Łusakowski, J.; Karpierz, K.; Grynberg, M.; Valusis, G.

The role of gated and ungated two dimensional (2D) electron plasma in THz detection by high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) was investigated. THz response of GaAs/AlGaAs and GaN/AlGaN HEMTs was measured at 4.4K in quantizing magnetic fields with a simultaneous modulation of the gate voltage UGS. This allowed us to measure both the detection signal, S, and its derivative dS/dUGS. Shubnikov - de-Haas oscillations (SdHO) of both S and dS/dUGS were observed. A comparison of SdHO observed in detection and magnetoresistance measurements allows us to associate unambiguously SdHO in S and dS/dUGS with the ungated and gated parts of the transistor channel, respectively. This allows us to conclude that the entire channel takes part in the detection process. Additionally, in the case of GaAlAs/GaAs HEMTs, a structure related to the cyclotron resonance transition was observed.

The Extended Likeability Framework: A Theoretical Framework for and a Practical Case of Designing Likeable Media Applications for Preschoolers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vero vanden Abeele

2008-01-01

Full Text Available A theoretical framework and practical case for designing likeable interactive media applications for preschoolers in the home environment are introduced. First, we elaborate on the theoretical framework. We introduce the uses and gratifications paradigm (U&G. We argue that U&G is a good approach to researching likeability of media applications. Next, we complete the U&G framework with expectancy-value (EV theory. EV theory helps us move from theoretical insights to concrete design guidelines. Together, the U&G framework and the EV model form the foundation of our extended likeability framework for the design and evaluation of interactive media applications, for preschoolers in the home environment. Finally, we demonstrate a practical case of our extended likeability framework via the research project CuTI. The CuTI project aims at revealing those particular user gratifications and design attributes that are important to support playful behaviour and fun activities of preschoolers in the home environment.

[Correlation and interconversion between erythrocyte cholinesterase values obtained by the Michel and the EQM techniques].

Science.gov (United States)

Carmona-Fonseca, Jaime

2006-12-01

Several techniques are available to measure red cell cholinesterase; therefore, evaluations with several methods provide a measure of concordance. An equation was formulated to transform native data of reference values to reference units of cholinesterase activity as measured by Michel and EQM tests. The experimental design was descriptive, transversal and prospective. The group sampled was a representative adult working population, aged 18-75, without previous exposure to cholinesterase inhibitors pesticides. The individuals were affiliated to the Social Security System and resided in Valle de Aburrá and Cercano Oriente Antioqueño (Antioquia Province, northwestern Colombia). Of 827 individuals, quantitative erythrocytes (Michel y EQM) tests exhibited "r" coefficients between 0.67 and R2 coefficient of 44%.,This indicated that one test explained the results in other test in 44% of the cases. The corelation was higher in Aburrá than in Oriente. The linear model for the 827 individuals was as follows: EQM U/g oxy-hemoglobin = 9.575 U/ g oxy-hemoglobin + 29.791 (Michel delta pH/hour). Michel delta pH/hr = 0.3312 delta pH/hour + 0.0149 (EQM U/g oxy-hemoglobin), where EQM was expressed in U/g oxy-hemoglobin and Michel pH change/hr. Inter-sections (coefficient a) and inclines (coefficient b) were significant in this model. In the adjusted equations, after exclusion of 12 extreme data (1.5% of 827), the r coefficient increased from 0.67 to 0.72 The adjusted equations were as follows: EQM U/g oxy-hemoglobin = 8.1884 U/g oxy-hemoglobin + 31.3920 (Michel delta pH/hour); Michel delta pH/hr = 0.2925 delta pH/hr + 0.0161 (EQM U/g oxy-hemoglobin). This system of linear equations permitted the transformation of Michel (delta PH/ hr) units to EQM (U/g oxy-hemoglobin) units and vice versa. This will facilitate data comparisons by clinicians and epidemiologists who are using these methods of cholinesterase measurement.

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MMUS-14-0020 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-MMUS-14-0020 gnl|UG|Mm#S8040853 Mus musculus opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (Opn1sw), mRNA /cds=p(66,1106) /gb=NM_007538 /gi=31543369 /ug=Mm.56987 /len=2521 9e-37 29% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-23-0073 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-23-0073 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730883 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (OPN1SW), mRNA /cds=p(8,1054) /gb=NM_001708 /gi=4502386 /ug=Hs.656404 /len=1101 1e-80 43% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MMUS-03-0073 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-MMUS-03-0073 gnl|UG|Mm#S8040853 Mus musculus opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (Opn1sw), mRNA /cds=p(66,1106) /gb=NM_007538 /gi=31543369 /ug=Mm.56987 /len=2521 2e-27 27% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-03-0016 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 3e-50 34% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-03-0016 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Blood Lead Levels And Potental Environmental Exposures Among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

p = 0.439). Low risk parental occupation (p = 0.001) and. Kales sourced from the market/kiosks (p = 0.001) were significantly associated with BLL ≥ 10ug/dl. Soil lead levels (Soil Pb) ranged from 3,000 to 90,000ug/kg, which was very high ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-02-0038 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-GGAL-02-0038 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli...ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 4e-30 25% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-12-0011 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-GGAL-12-0011 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli...ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 5e-38 44% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-26-0008 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-GGAL-26-0008 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli...ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 8e-82 44% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-04-0034 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 1e-30 26% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-04-0034 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-06-0012 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 2e-85 49% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-06-0012 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-05-0037 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 4e-09 24% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-05-0037 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-07-0070 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-07-0070 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 1e-80 43% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-04-0026 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 6e-24 29% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-04-0026 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MMUS-20-0033 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-MMUS-20-0033 gnl|UG|Mm#S8040853 Mus musculus opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (Opn1sw), mRNA /cds=p(66,1106) /gb=NM_007538 /gi=31543369 /ug=Mm.56987 /len=2521 5e-78 42% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-06-0000 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 5e-36 29% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-06-0000 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-03-0043 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 6e-26 26% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-03-0043 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-10-0031 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-10-0031 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 4e-34 27% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-04-0026 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 1e-25 28% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-04-0026 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-01-0117 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-01-0117 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 9e-33 31% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-26-0008 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 9e-84 48% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-26-0008 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-10-0031 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-10-0031 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730883 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (OPN1SW), mRNA /cds=p(8,1054) /gb=NM_001708 /gi=4502386 /ug=Hs.656404 /len=1101 1e-32 28% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-23-0072 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-23-0072 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730883 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (OPN1SW), mRNA /cds=p(8,1054) /gb=NM_001708 /gi=4502386 /ug=Hs.656404 /len=1101 1e-80 43% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-03-0015 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 8e-27 32% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-03-0015 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-01-0052 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 5e-43 30% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-01-0052 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-06-0001 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 8e-21 24% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-06-0001 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MMUS-01-0101 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-MMUS-01-0101 gnl|UG|Mm#S8040853 Mus musculus opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (Opn1sw), mRNA /cds=p(66,1106) /gb=NM_007538 /gi=31543369 /ug=Mm.56987 /len=2521 3e-33 28% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-19-0006 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 1e-87 50% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-19-0006 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-MMUS-17-0171 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-MMUS-17-0171 gnl|UG|Mm#S8040853 Mus musculus opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (Opn1sw), mRNA /cds=p(66,1106) /gb=NM_007538 /gi=31543369 /ug=Mm.56987 /len=2521 2e-22 22% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-12-0011 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 1e-32 30% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-12-0011 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-03-0043 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(25,1080) /gb=NM_205409 /gi=45382276 /ug=Gga.786 /len=1507 8e-29 26% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-03-0043 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184022 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-04-0044 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-04-0044 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730560 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), medium-wave-sensitive (color blin...dness, deutan) (OPN1MW), mRNA /cds=p(1,1095) /gb=NM_000513 /gi=4503964 /ug=Hs.247787 /len=1095 2e-34 27% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-HSAP-04-0044 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-04-0044 gnl|UG|Hs#S1730883 Homo sapiens opsin 1 (cone pigments), short-wave-sensitive (color blind...ness, tritan) (OPN1SW), mRNA /cds=p(8,1054) /gb=NM_001708 /gi=4502386 /ug=Hs.656404 /len=1101 5e-23 25% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-GGAL-03-0047 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available ndness, protan) (OPN1LW), mRNA /cds=p(9,1097) /gb=NM_205440 /gi=45382134 /ug=Gga.716 /len=1318 3e-24 24% ... ...CBRC-GGAL-03-0047 gnl|UG|Gga#S19184093 Gallus gallus opsin 1 (cone pigments), long-wave-sensitive (color bli

Biodiversity in the city: key challenges for urban green space management

Science.gov (United States)

Myla F.J. Aronson; Christopher A. Lepczyk; Karl L. Evans; Mark A. Goddard; Susannah B. Lerman; J. Scott MacIvor; Charles H. Nilon; Timothy. Vargo

2017-01-01

Cities play important roles in the conservation of global biodiversity, particularly through the planning and management of urban green spaces (UGS). However, UGS management is subject to a complex assortment of interacting social, cultural, and economic factors, including governance, economics, social networks, multiple stakeholders, individual preferences, and social...

77 FR 6867 - Practice Guide for Proposed Trial Rules

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-09

... new trial proceedings to be conducted by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (Board) including inter... conducted by the Board including: (1) Inter partes review (IPR); (2) post-grant review (PGR); (3) a... response to the petition, including a simple statement that patent owner elects not to respond to the...

Validity and reliability of smartphone magnetometer-based goniometer evaluation of shoulder abduction--A pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Linda B; Sumner, Sean; Duong, Tina; Yan, Posu; Bajcsy, Ruzena; Abresch, R Ted; de Bie, Evan; Han, Jay J

2015-12-01

Goniometers are commonly used by physical therapists to measure range-of-motion (ROM) in the musculoskeletal system. These measurements are used to assist in diagnosis and to help monitor treatment efficacy. With newly emerging technologies, smartphone-based applications are being explored for measuring joint angles and movement. This pilot study investigates the intra- and inter-rater reliability as well as concurrent validity of a newly-developed smartphone magnetometer-based goniometer (MG) application for measuring passive shoulder abduction in both sitting and supine positions, and compare against the traditional universal goniometer (UG). This is a comparative study with repeated measurement design. Three physical therapists utilized both the smartphone MG and a traditional UG to measure various angles of passive shoulder abduction in a healthy subject, whose shoulder was positioned in eight different positions with pre-determined degree of abduction while seated or supine. Each therapist was blinded to the measured angles. Concordance correlation coefficients (CCCs), Bland-Altman plotting methods, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used for statistical analyses. Both traditional UG and smartphone MG were reliable in repeated measures of standardized joint angle positions (average CCC > 0.997) with similar variability in both measurement tools (standard deviation (SD) ± 4°). Agreement between the UG and MG measurements was greater than 0.99 in all positions. Our results show that the smartphone MG has equivalent reliability compared to the traditional UG when measuring passive shoulder abduction ROM. With concordant measures and comparable reliability to the UG, the newly developed MG application shows potential as a useful tool to assess joint angles. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Does reduced movement restrictions and use of assistive devices affect rehabilitation outcome after total hip replacement? A non-randomized, controlled study in 365 patients with six week follow up

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Lone Ramer; Petersen, Annemette Krintel; Søballe, Kjeld

(primary outcome, HOOS), anxiety (HADS), working status and patient satisfaction were administered before THR, 3 and 6 weeks after. Findings / Results HOOS function score at the 3 measurement times were (mean ± SD); UG: 46±17 - 76±9 - 83±14 compared to RG: 43±16 – 81±14 - 83±13, (difference between groups...... over time, p=0.004). For return to work 6 weeks post THR, UG compared to RG: 53% versus 32% (p=0.045). No significant differences between groups in anxiety, hip dislocations and patient satisfaction. Conclusions No clinically relevant difference between UG and RG on patient evaluated function was found...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-TGUT-37-0238 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available egment Chr 11 Brigham & Women's Genetics 0434 expressed variant 2-like mRNA, complete sequence /gb=DQ215253 /gi=76158658 /ug=Tgu.7189 /len=654 1.4 27% ... ...CBRC-TGUT-37-0238 gnl|UG|Tgu#S33942003 Taeniopygia guttata clone 0058P0013A02 DNA s

A low-noise MEMS accelerometer for unattended ground sensor applications

Science.gov (United States)

Speller, Kevin E.; Yu, Duli

2004-09-01

A low-noise micro-machined servo accelerometer has been developed for use in Unattended Ground Sensors (UGS). Compared to conventional coil-and-magnet based velocity transducers, this Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) accelerometer offers several key benefits for battlefield monitoring. Many UGS require a compass to determine deployment orientation with respect to magnetic North. This orientation information is critical for determining the bearing of incoming signals. Conventional sensors with sensing technology based on a permanent magnet can cause interference with a compass when used in close proximity. This problem is solved with a MEMS accelerometer which does not require any magnetic materials. Frequency information below 10 Hz is valuable for identification of signal sources. Conventional seismometers used in UGS are typically limited in frequency response from 20 to 200 Hz. The MEMS accelerometer has a flat frequency response from DC to 5 kHz. The wider spectrum of signals received improves detection, classification and monitoring on the battlefield. The DC-coupled output of the MEMS accelerometer also has the added benefit of providing tilt orientation data for the deployed UGS. Other performance parameters of the MEMS accelerometer that are important to UGS such as size, weight, shock survivability, phase response, distortion, and cross-axis rejection will be discussed. Additionally, field test data from human footsteps recorded with the MEMS accelerometer will be presented.

Cooperative Behavior in the Ultimatum Game and Prisoner’s Dilemma Depends on Players’ Contributions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amy R. Bland

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Economic games such as the Ultimatum Game (UG and Prisoner’s Dilemma (PD are widely used paradigms for studying fairness and cooperation. Monetary versions of these games involve two players splitting an arbitrary sum of money. In real life, however, people’s propensity to engage in cooperative behavior depends on their effort and contribution; factors that are well known to affect perceptions of fairness. We therefore sought to explore the impact of relative monetary contributions by players in the UG and PD. Adapted computerized UG and PD games, in which relative contributions from each player were manipulated, were administered to 200 participants aged 18–50 years old (50% female. We found that players’ contribution had large effects on cooperative behavior. Specifically, cooperation was greater amongst participants when their opponent had contributed more to joint earnings. This was manifested as higher acceptance rates and higher offers in the UG; and fewer defects in the PD compared to when the participant contributed more. Interestingly, equal contributions elicited the greatest sensitivity to fairness in the UG, and least frequent defection in the PD. Acceptance rates correlated positively with anxiety and sex differences were found in defection behavior. This study highlights the feasibility of computerized games to assess cooperative behavior and the importance of considering cooperation within the context of effortful contribution.

Uniform Gauss-Weight Quadratures for Discrete Ordinate Transport Calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carew, John F.; Hu, Kai; Zamonsky, Gabriel

2000-01-01

Recently, a uniform equal-weight quadrature set, UE n , and a uniform Gauss-weight quadrature set, UG n , have been derived. These quadratures have the advantage over the standard level-symmetric LQ n quadrature sets in that the weights are positive for all orders,and the transport solution may be systematically converged by increasing the order of the quadrature set. As the order of the quadrature is increased,the points approach a uniform continuous distribution on the unit sphere,and the quadrature is invariant with respect to spatial rotations. The numerical integrals converge for continuous functions as the order of the quadrature is increased.The numerical characteristics of the UE n quadrature set have been investigated previously. In this paper, numerical calculations are performed to evaluate the application of the UG n quadrature set in typical transport analyses. A series of DORT transport calculations of the >1-MeV neutron flux have been performed for a set of pressure-vessel fluence benchmark problems. These calculations employed the UG n (n = 8, 12, 16, 24, and 32) quadratures and indicate that the UG n solutions have converged to within ∼0.25%. The converged UG n solutions are found to be comparable to the UE n results and are more accurate than the level-symmetric S 16 predictions

Biochemical Effects of six Ti02 and four Ce02 Nanomaterials ...

Science.gov (United States)

Abstract The potential mammalian hepatotoxicity of nanomaterials were explored in dose-response and structure-activity studies with human hepatic HepG2 cells exposed to between 10 and 1000 ug/ml of six different TiO2 and four CeO2 nanomaterials for 3 days. Various biochemical parameters were then evaluated to study cytotoxicity, cell growth, hepatic function and oxidative stress. Few indications of cytotoxicity were observed between 10 and 100 ug/ml. In the 300 to 1000 ug/ml exposure range a moderate to substantial degree of cytotoxicity was observed. The percent of lactic dehydrogenase released from cells was the most sensitive cytotoxicity parameter. There were four major biochemical effects observed. By far decreased activities of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase was the major finding of this enzymatic study with some significant decreases observed at 10 ug/ml. In the range of 100 to 1000 ug/ml, the activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione reductase and glutathione peroxidase were decreased by many nanomaterials. There are six factors that contribute to substantial oxidative stress in cultured hepatocytes (decreased GSH content, and reduced G6PDH, GRD, GPX, SOD and altered catalase activities). Cytotoxicity per se did not seem to fully explain the patterns of biological responses observed. With respect to structure-activity, nanomaterials of CeO2 were more effective than TiO2 in reducing glutathione reductase and SOD activ

On the relationship between emotional state and abnormal unfairness sensitivity in alcohol dependence.

Science.gov (United States)

Brevers, Damien; Noël, Xavier; Hanak, Catherine; Verbanck, Paul; Kornreich, Charles

2015-01-01

Recent empirical findings suggest that alcohol dependence is characterized by heightened sensitivity to unfairness during social transactions. The present study went a step further and aimed to ascertain whether this abnormal level of sensitivity to unfairness is underlined by an increased emotional reactivity. Twenty-six recently abstinent alcohol-dependent (AD) individuals and 32 controls performed an ultimatum game (UG), in which participants had to respond to take-it-or-leave-it offers, ranging from fair to unfair and made by a fictive proposer. Emotional state was recorded during UG offers presentation and was indexed by the amplitude of skin conductance response (SCR). Results showed that AD decided to reject unfair offers more frequently than their controls, confirming previous data. The proportion of rejected unfair UG offers was correlated with SCR, in the AD but not in the control group. This finding suggests that deciding to accept or reject unfair UG offers is influenced by arousal-affective activity in AD, but not in controls. Heightened emotional reactivity may have driven AD to punish the proposer rather than acting as a rational economic agent. An implication of present findings is that AD might have difficult to cope with unfair situations triggered by social interactions. Future studies are needed in order to examine whether-emotional and behavioral-reactivity to unfairness during the UG could impact alcohol consumption and relapse in AD.

Estimation of PGR Induced Absolute Gravity Changes at Greenland GNET Stations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Emil; Strykowski, Gabriel; Forsberg, René

2011-01-01

An important subject in the climate debate is the study of the major ice sheets mass balance. Knowledge of the mass balance provides understanding of changes in the relative sea-level (RSL). Several methods are used for mass balance studies but they are associated with large uncertainties. One re...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-35-0003 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-35-0003 gnl|UG|Cfa#S19200945 ip12b05.b1 Brain - Cerebellum Library (DOGEST8) Canis familiaris cDNA clone ip12b05, mRNA sequence /clone=ip12b05 /gb=CK996905 /gi=45760585 /ug=Cfa.32635 /len=996 1.5 24% ...

Evidence for the Fundamental Difference Hypothesis or Not?: Island Constraints Revisited

Science.gov (United States)

Belikova, Alyona; White, Lydia

2009-01-01

This article examines how changes in linguistic theory affect the debate between the fundamental difference hypothesis and the access-to-Universal Grammar (UG) approach to SLA. With a focus on subjacency (Chomsky, 1973), a principle of UG that places constraints on "wh"-movement and that has frequently been taken as a test case for verifying…

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-23-0020 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-23-0020 gnl|UG|Cfa#S19198630 ip04e12.g1 Brain - Cerebellum Library (DOGEST8) Canis familiaris cDNA clone ip04e12, mRNA sequence /clone=ip04e12 /gb=CN002408 /gi=45766087 /ug=Cfa.29570 /len=708 8e-08 38% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-28-0014 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-28-0014 gnl|UG|Cfa#S19200361 ip42h12.b1 Brain - Cerebellum Library (DOGEST8) Canis familiaris cDNA clone ip42h12, mRNA sequence /clone=ip42h12 /gb=CK995838 /gi=45759518 /ug=Cfa.10205 /len=413 4e-05 37% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-33-0021 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-33-0021 gnl|UG|Cfa#S19197038 ip37b10.b1 Brain - Cerebellum Library (DOGEST8) Canis familiaris cDNA clone ip37b10, mRNA sequence /clone=ip37b10 /gb=CK998901 /gi=45762581 /ug=Cfa.4074 /len=820 2e-18 79% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-CFAM-01-0041 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-CFAM-01-0041 gnl|UG|Cfa#S19200707 ip06d09.b1 Brain - Cerebellum Library (DOGEST8) Canis familiaris cDNA clone ip06d09, mRNA sequence /clone=ip06d09 /gb=CK996471 /gi=45760151 /ug=Cfa.45094 /len=754 7e-17 70% ...

A new multiplicity formula for the Weyl modules of type A

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye Jiachen; Zhou Zhongguo

2003-08-01

A monomial basis and a filtration of subalgebras for the universal enveloping algebra U(g) of a complex simple Lie algebra g l of type A I is given in this note. In particular, a new multiplicity formula for the Weyl module V(λ) of U(g l ) is obtained in this note. (author)

Removal of reproductive suppression reveals latent sex differences in brain steroid hormone receptors in naked mole-rats, Heterocephalus glaber.

Science.gov (United States)

Swift-Gallant, Ashlyn; Mo, Kaiguo; Peragine, Deane E; Monks, D Ashley; Holmes, Melissa M

2015-01-01

Naked mole-rats are eusocial mammals, living in large colonies with a single breeding female and 1-3 breeding males. Breeders are socially dominant, and only the breeders exhibit traditional sex differences in circulating gonadal steroid hormones and reproductive behaviors. Non-reproductive subordinates also fail to show sex differences in overall body size, external genital morphology, and non-reproductive behaviors. However, subordinates can transition to breeding status if removed from their colony and housed with an opposite-sex conspecific, suggesting the presence of latent sex differences. Here, we assessed the expression of steroid hormone receptor and aromatase messenger RNA (mRNA) in the brains of males and females as they transitioned in social and reproductive status. We compared in-colony subordinates to opposite-sex subordinate pairs that were removed from their colony for either 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or until they became breeders (i.e., produced a litter). Diencephalic tissue was collected and mRNA of androgen receptor (Ar), estrogen receptor alpha (Esr1), progesterone receptor (Pgr), and aromatase (Cyp19a1) was measured using qPCR. Testosterone, 17β-estradiol, and progesterone from serum were also measured. As early as 1 week post-removal, males exhibited increased diencephalic Ar mRNA and circulating testosterone, whereas females had increased Cyp19a1 mRNA in the diencephalon. At 1 month post-removal, females exhibited increased 17β-estradiol and progesterone. The largest changes in steroid hormone receptors were observed in breeders. Breeding females had a threefold increase in Cyp19a1 and fivefold increases in Esr1 and Pgr, whereas breeding males had reduced Pgr and increased Ar. These data demonstrate that sex differences in circulating gonadal steroids and hypothalamic gene expression emerge weeks to months after subordinate animals are removed from reproductive suppression in their home colony.

A novel preconcentration technique for the PIXE analysis of water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Savage, J.M.; Robertson, J.D.; Majidi, V.

1994-01-01

The potential of using dried algae as a novel preconcentration technique for the analysis of water samples by PIXE was examined. 5 mg of dried algae powder were mixed with 5 mL of single- and multi-metal solutions. The algae cells were then collected by filtration on 0.6 um polycarbonate membranes and analyzed by PIXE using a dual energy irradiation. When C. vulgatis was used on mixed metal solutions, linear responses were observed for Ag + , Ba 2+ , and Cd 2+ in the concentration range from 10 ng/g to 1 ug/g; for Cu 2+ and Pb 2+ from 10 ng/g to 5 ug/g; and for Hg 2+ from 10 ng/g to 10 ug/g. When S. bacillaris was used, linear responses were observed from 10 ng/g up to 10 ug/g for all of the metal cations investigated. The PIXE results demonstrated that metal binding at low concentrations involves replacement of sodium on the cell wall and that at high concentrations magnesium is also replaced

Trustworthiness and Negative Affect Predict Economic Decision-Making.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Christopher M; Koenigs, Michael; Yamada, Torricia H; Teo, Shu Hao; Cavanaugh, Joseph E; Tranel, Daniel; Denburg, Natalie L

2011-09-01

The Ultimatum Game (UG) is a widely used and well-studied laboratory model of economic decision-making. Here, we studied 129 healthy adults and compared demographic (i.e., age, gender, education), cognitive (i.e., intelligence, attention/working memory, speed, language, visuospatial, memory, executive functions), and personality (i.e., "Big Five", positive affect, negative affect) variables between those with a "rational" versus an "irrational" response pattern on the UG. Our data indicated that participants with "rational" UG performance (accepting any offer, no matter the fairness) endorsed higher levels of trust, or the belief in the sincerity and good intentions of others, while participants with "irrational" UG performance (rejecting unfair offers) endorsed higher levels of negative affect, such as anger and contempt. These personality variables were the only ones that differentiated the two response patterns-demographic and cognitive factors did not differ between rational and irrational players. The results indicate that the examination of personality and affect is crucial to our understanding of the individual differences that underlie decision-making.

Fodder radish cake (Raphanus sativus L. as an alternative biomass for the production of cellulases and xylanases in solid-state cultivation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Zukovski

Full Text Available Abstract Fodder radish (FR is an oilseed crop with a high potential for biodiesel production due to its high productivity and the quality of its seed oil. FR oil extraction results in a residue that is rich in protein and fiber. In this study, FR cake (FRC was evaluated as carbon and nitrogen source for the production of cellulases and xylanases using Penicillium echinulatum S1M29 during solid-state cultivation. It was determined that it is possible to partially replace wheat bran (WB by FRC, resulting in 24.22 ± 0.25U/g Filter Paper Activity (144 hours, 210.5 ± 5.8U/g endoglucanase activity (144 hours, 22.62 ± 0.01U/g (-glucosidase activity (96 hours and 784.7 ± 70.19U/g xylanase activity (120 hours. These values are equal or higher than the enzymatic activity obtained using WB. These results may contribute to the reduction of the cost of enzymes used in the production of cellulosic ethanol or other biotechnological applications.

Geographical Gradients in Argentinean Terrestrial Mammal Species Richness and Their Environmental Correlates

Science.gov (United States)

Márquez, Ana L.; Real, Raimundo; Kin, Marta S.; Guerrero, José Carlos; Galván, Betina; Barbosa, A. Márcia; Olivero, Jesús; Palomo, L. Javier; Vargas, J. Mario; Justo, Enrique

2012-01-01

We analysed the main geographical trends of terrestrial mammal species richness (SR) in Argentina, assessing how broad-scale environmental variation (defined by climatic and topographic variables) and the spatial form of the country (defined by spatial filters based on spatial eigenvector mapping (SEVM)) influence the kinds and the numbers of mammal species along these geographical trends. We also evaluated if there are pure geographical trends not accounted for by the environmental or spatial factors. The environmental variables and spatial filters that simultaneously correlated with the geographical variables and SR were considered potential causes of the geographic trends. We performed partial correlations between SR and the geographical variables, maintaining the selected explanatory variables statistically constant, to determine if SR was fully explained by them or if a significant residual geographic pattern remained. All groups and subgroups presented a latitudinal gradient not attributable to the spatial form of the country. Most of these trends were not explained by climate. We used a variation partitioning procedure to quantify the pure geographic trend (PGT) that remained unaccounted for. The PGT was larger for latitudinal than for longitudinal gradients. This suggests that historical or purely geographical causes may also be relevant drivers of these geographical gradients in mammal diversity. PMID:23028254

Geographical Gradients in Argentinean Terrestrial Mammal Species Richness and Their Environmental Correlates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana L. Márquez

2012-01-01

Full Text Available We analysed the main geographical trends of terrestrial mammal species richness (SR in Argentina, assessing how broad-scale environmental variation (defined by climatic and topographic variables and the spatial form of the country (defined by spatial filters based on spatial eigenvector mapping (SEVM influence the kinds and the numbers of mammal species along these geographical trends. We also evaluated if there are pure geographical trends not accounted for by the environmental or spatial factors. The environmental variables and spatial filters that simultaneously correlated with the geographical variables and SR were considered potential causes of the geographic trends. We performed partial correlations between SR and the geographical variables, maintaining the selected explanatory variables statistically constant, to determine if SR was fully explained by them or if a significant residual geographic pattern remained. All groups and subgroups presented a latitudinal gradient not attributable to the spatial form of the country. Most of these trends were not explained by climate. We used a variation partitioning procedure to quantify the pure geographic trend (PGT that remained unaccounted for. The PGT was larger for latitudinal than for longitudinal gradients. This suggests that historical or purely geographical causes may also be relevant drivers of these geographical gradients in mammal diversity.

Determination of the uranium concentration in samples of raw, retorted and spent shale from Irati, Parana-Brazil, by the fission track registration technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cabral, R.G.

1981-02-01

The feasibility of the determination of uranium in oil shale, by the fission track registration technique is studied. The wet and dry methods were employed, using a Bayer policarbonate, Makrofol KG, as detector. It was created a new variant of the dry method. The fission track registration technique was used in samples of raw, retorted and spent shale from Irati, Parana in Brazil, 16 μg U/g, 20 μg U/g and 20μg U/g were found, respectively, with a total error ranging from 19% to 20%. Some experimental results were included for illustration and comparison. The feasibility of the determination of uranium in oil shale from Irati was verified. (Author) [pt

Determination of Trace Antimony (III by Adsorption Voltammetry at Carbon Paste Electrode

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nongyue He

2005-05-01

Full Text Available This work presents a sensitive method for the determination of trace antimonybased on the antimony-pyrogallol red (PGR adsorption at a carbon paste electrode (CPE.The optimal conditions were to use an electrode containing 25% paraffin oil and 75%high purity graphite powder as working electrode, a 0.10 mol/L HCl solution containing3.0×10-5 mol/L PGR as accumulation medium and a 0.20 mol/L HCl solution aselectrolyte with an accumulation time of 150 s and a reduction time of 60 s at -0.50 Vfollowed with a sweep from -0.50 V to 0.20 V. The mechanism of the electrode reactionwas discussed. Interferences of other metal ions were studied as well. The detection limitwas 1×10-9 mol/L. The linear range was from 2.0×10-9 mol/L to 5.0×10-7 mol/L.Application of the proposed method to the determination of antimony in water andhuman hair samples gave good results.

Regeneration efficiency based on genotype, culture condition and growth regulators of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md Abdul Muktadir

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Several experiments were carried out to establish an efficient regenerating protocol for cultivated eggplant varieties. Among the five varieties cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS medium with free plant growth regulator (PGR, Nayantara performed better considering the number of shoots/explant (2.48. Considering explant types and culture conditions, better performance was observed (3.68 shoots/explant when seed germination in the dark was proceeded by bottom hypocotyl segments cultured under dark conditions. A higher rate of shoot regeneration was observed in Nayantara when cultured in Zeatin Riboside (ZR and Thidizuron (TDZ supplemented MS medium. The highest number of shoots per explant was produced on MS medium supplemented with 2.0 mg/L ZR and 0.1 mg/L indole acetic acid (6.65 shoots/explant. Proliferation and elongation of the regenerated shoots were obtained in the MS medium with free PGR. The best rooting performance was observed in MS medium supplemented with 2.0 mg/L indole butyric acid. Plantlets with well developed roots and shoots were successfully transferred to soil.

Biochemistry and Chemotherapy of Malaria and Leishmaniasis

Science.gov (United States)

1993-12-06

ethanol plant extracts including; nutmeg (Myristicaceae sp.), ginger ( Zingiber officinale ), goldenseal root (Hydrastis canadensis), garlic (Allium...scorodoprasum (elephant garlic), Ailium sativum (garlic), Zingiber officinale ,ginger), Myristicaceae sp. (nutmeg), Hydrastis canadensis (goldenseal...They were Glycyrrhiza glabra (IC25: 6 ug protein/ml)(Fig.7), Zingiber officinale (IC25: 14 ug protein/ ml), and ethanol extracts of Myristacea sp

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0112 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0112 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 7e-49 71% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0109 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0109 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 4e-51 71% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0107 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0107 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 3e-59 84% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0115 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0115 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 1e-41 67% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0111 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0111 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 4e-48 73% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0105 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0105 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 9e-35 69% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0102 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0102 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 7e-30 54% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0103 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0103 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 6e-32 56% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0101 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0101 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 3e-47 77% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0113 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0113 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 2e-51 73% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0114 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0114 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 1e-38 62% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0108 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0108 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 7e-53 74% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0100 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0100 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 3e-52 75% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0106 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0106 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 2e-51 75% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0110 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0110 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 2e-71 99% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DRER-15-0104 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DRER-15-0104 gnl|UG|Dr#S24600640 nao61h10.y1 Zebrafish Posterior segment. Unno...rmalized (nao) Danio rerio cDNA clone nao61h10 5', mRNA sequence /clone=nao61h10 /clone_end=5' /gb=DN895013 /gi=62879776 /ug=Dr.126440 /len=809 5e-58 79% ...

Methods of Analysis by the U.S. Geological Survey Organic Geochemistry Research Group-Determination of Dissolved Isoxaflutole and Its Sequential Degradation Products, Diketonitrile and Benzoic Acid, in Water Using Solid-Phase Extraction and Liquid Chromatography/Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, Michael T.; Lee, Edward A.; Scribner, Elisabeth A.

2007-01-01

An analytical method for the determination of isoxaflutole and its sequential degradation products, diketonitrile and a benzoic acid analogue, in filtered water with varying matrices was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey Organic Geochemistry Research Group in Lawrence, Kansas. Four different water-sample matrices fortified at 0.02 and 0.10 ug/L (micrograms per liter) are extracted by vacuum manifold solid-phase extraction and analyzed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry using electrospray ionization in negative-ion mode with multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM). Analytical conditions for mass spectrometry detection are optimized, and quantitation is carried out using the following MRM molecular-hydrogen (precursor) ion and product (p) ion transition pairs: 357.9 (precursor), 78.9 (p), and 277.6 (p) for isoxaflutole and diketonitrile, and 267.0 (precursor), 159.0 (p), and 223.1 (p) for benzoic acid. 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid-d3 is used as the internal standard, and alachlor ethanesulfonic acid-d5 is used as the surrogate standard. Compound detection limits and reporting levels are calculated using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency procedures. The mean solid-phase extraction recovery values ranged from 104 to 108 percent with relative standard deviation percentages ranging from 4.0 to 10.6 percent. The combined mean percentage concentration normalized to the theoretical spiked concentration of four water matrices analyzed eight times at 0.02 and 0.10 ug/L (seven times for the reagent-water matrix at 0.02 ug/L) ranged from approximately 75 to 101 percent with relative standard deviation percentages ranging from approximately 3 to 26 percent for isoxaflutole, diketonitrile, and benzoic acid. The method detection limit (MDL) for isoxaflutole and diketonitrile is 0.003 ug/L and 0.004 ug/L for benzoic acid. Method reporting levels (MRLs) are 0.011, 0.010, and 0.012 ug/L for isoxaflutole, diketonitrile, and benzoic acid, respectively. On the basis

Criterion-Referenced Values of Grip Strength and Usual Gait Speed Using Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Disability as the Criterion.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Meng-Chih; Hsu, Chih-Cheng; Tsai, Yi-Fen; Chen, Ching-Yu; Lin, Cheng-Chieh; Wang, Ching-Yi

Current evidence suggests that grip strength and usual gait speed (UGS) are important predictors of instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) disability. Knowing the optimum cut points of these tests for discriminating people with and without IADL disability could help clinicians or researchers to better interpret the test results and make medical decisions. The purpose of this study was to determine the cutoff values of grip strength and UGS for best discriminating community-dwelling older adults with and without IADL disability, separately for men and women, and to investigate their association with IADL disability. We conducted secondary data analysis on a national dataset collected in the Sarcopenia and Translational Aging Research in Taiwan (START). The data used in this study consisted of health data of 2420 community-dwelling older adults 65 years and older with no history of stroke and with complete data. IADL disability was defined as at least 1 IADL item scored as "need help" or "unable to perform." Receiver operating characteristics analysis was used to estimate the optimum grip strength and UGS cut points for best discriminating older adults with/without IADL disability. The association between each physical performance (grip strength and UGS) and IADL disability was assessed with odds ratios (ORs). With IADL disability as the criterion, the optimal cutoff values of grip strength were 28.7 kg for men and 16.0 kg for women, and those for UGS were 0.76 m/s for men and 0.66 m/s for women. The grip strength test showed satisfactory discriminant validity (area under the curve > 0.7) in men and a strong association with IADL disability (OR > 4). Our cut points using IADL disability as the criterion were close to those indicating frailty or sarcopenia. Our reported cutoffs can serve as criterion-referenced values, along with those previously determined using different indicators, and provide important landmarks on the performance continua of older adults

[Frequency and in vitro susceptibility antiparasitic of Blastocystis hominis from patients admitted to the Hospital Regional Lambayeque, Peru].

Science.gov (United States)

Silva-Díaz, Heber; Flores-Esqueche, Lorena; Llatas-Cancino, Dunalia; Guevara Vásquez, Génesis; Silva-García, Teresa

2016-01-01

To describe the frequency and antiparasitic in vitro susceptibility of Blastocystis hominis in patients admitted to theHospital Regional Lambayeque, Peru. A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to August 2015 at 313 patients of all ages. B. hominis detection was performed on serial fecal samples by direct microscopic examination and microculture in modified Locke solution. The in vitro susceptibility testing against the drug metronidazole, nitazoxanide, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and erythromycin was performed in 24 strains of B. hominis, which grew up (microculture method) in 10 double concentrations of each antimicrobial (from 256 ug/ml to 0.5 ug/mL) plus a control. 46.3% (145/313) of the sample had B. hominis, also the age between 12 to 17 years and 60 years was associated with higher frequency of parasites (OR: 2.93 and 2.62). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) 90 of metronidazole and nitazoxanide was 3.19 ug/mL and 11.19 ug/ml, respectively, whereas the MIC 90 of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and erythromycin were above 256 ug/mL. B. hominis occurs in high frequency in patients admitted to the Hospital Regional in Lambayeque, proving to be an important problem of public health in the region. Also B. hominis isolated from these patients were shown to be susceptible in vitro to low concentrations of metronidazole and nitazoxanide so they could be chosen for treatment of this parasite.

On the relationship between emotional state and abnormal unfairness sensitivity in alcohol dependence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Damien eBrevers

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Recent empirical findings suggest that alcohol dependence is characterized by heightened sensitivity to unfairness during social transactions. The present study went a step further and aimed to ascertain whether this abnormal level of sensitivity to unfairness is underlined by an increased emotional reactivity. Twenty-six recently abstinent alcohol-dependent individuals (AD and 32 controls performed an Ultimatum Game (UG, in which participants had to respond to take-it-or-leave-it offers, ranging from fair to unfair and made by a fictive proposer. Emotional state was recorded during UG offers presentation and was indexed by the amplitude of skin conductance response (SCR. Results showed that AD decided to reject unfair offers more frequently than their controls, confirming previous data. The proportion of rejected unfair UG offers was correlated with SCR, in the AD but not in the control group. This finding suggests that deciding to accept or reject unfair UG offers is influenced by arousal-affective activity in AD, but not in controls. Heightened emotional reactivity may have driven AD to punish the proposer rather than acting as a rational economic agent. An implication of present findings is that AD might have difficult to cope with unfair situations triggered by social interactions. Future studies are needed are needed in order to examine whether - emotional and behavioral - reactivity to unfairness during the UG could impact alcohol consumption and relapse in AD.

U.S. Natural Gas Storage Risk-Based Ranking Methodology and Results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Folga, Steve [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Portante, Edgar [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Shamsuddin, Shabbir [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Tompkins, Angeli [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Talaber, Leah [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); McLamore, Mike [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Kavicky, Jim [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Conzelmann, Guenter [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Levin, Todd [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

2016-10-01

This report summarizes the methodology and models developed to assess the risk to energy delivery from the potential loss of underground gas storage (UGS) facilities located within the United States. The U.S. has a total of 418 existing storage fields, of which 390 are currently active. The models estimate the impacts of a disruption of each of the active UGS facilities on their owners/operators, including (1) local distribution companies (LDCs), (2) directly connected transporting pipelines and thus on the customers in downstream States, and (3) third-party entities and thus on contracted customers expecting the gas shipment. Impacts are measured across all natural gas customer classes. For the electric sector, impacts are quantified in terms of natural gas-fired electric generation capacity potentially affected from the loss of a UGS facility. For the purpose of calculating the overall supply risk, the overall consequence of the disruption of an UGS facility across all customer classes is expressed in terms of the number of expected equivalent residential customer outages per year, which combines the unit business interruption cost per customer class and the estimated number of affected natural gas customers with estimated probabilities of UGS disruptions. All models and analyses are based on publicly available data. The report presents a set of findings and recommendations in terms of data, further analyses, regulatory requirements and standards, and needs to improve gas/electric industry coordination for electric reliability.

Rates of BTEX Biodegradation under Nitrate Reducing Conditions in Wetland Sediments Impacted by Contaminated Groundwater

Science.gov (United States)

Olson, L. K.; McGuire, J. T.; Cozzarelli, I.; Smith, E. W.; Kneeshaw, T.

2010-12-01

Biodegradation rates are often controlled by dynamic interactions that occur at mixing interfaces between water masses of differing redox state. This study seeks to understand the controls on rates of BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and m,p,o-xylenes) degradation at a mixing interface by using in-situ experiments to simulate contaminated aquifer water containing nitrate discharging to a methanogenic wetland. BTEX biodegradation was evaluated during “dry” conditions (2009) and “wet” conditions (2010) in a shallow wetland near Bemidji, MN using innovative in-situ microcosms (ISMs) to measure rates of change over 8 weeks (2009) and 9 weeks (2010). ISM samplers contained an inner chamber filled with wetland sediments that were allowed to incubate for 2 weeks. This chamber was then closed to the surrounding environment and amended with test solution composed of contaminated groundwater augmented with tracer (bromide), nitrate and BTEX spike. Analysis of ISM sediments suggests that nitrate reduction and biodegradation rates are a function of both mineralogical and microbiological controls. Loss of nitrate, interpreted as nitrate reduction, was observed in both the dry and wet years with reduction slightly faster in the dry year (2.21mg/L/day versus 1.59 mg/L/day). Nitrate reduction was likely coupled to oxidation of various electron donors present in the system, including not only BTEX but also naturally occurring labile organic matter (ex. acetate) and inorganic electron donors (ex. Fe2+). BTEX degradation rates were considerably higher during the “wet” year than the “dry” year, with the fastest rates occurring immediately following test solution additions. For example, in the first 2 days of the “wet” ISM experiments degradation rates were 57.97ug/L/day for Benzene, 73.24ug/L/day for Toluene, 12.37ug/L/day for Ethyl Benzene and 85.61ug/L/day for Xylene compared to an ISM from the dry year which had slower degradation rates of 2.83ug/L/day for

Prueba de susceptibilidad antiparasitaria in vitro para Blastocystis hominis, Entamoeba histolytica-E. dispar, Balantidium coli

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rito Zerpa Larrauri

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Antecedentes: Pruebas de susceptibilidad antiparasitaria in vitro para Blastocystis hominis, Entamoeba histolytica-E. dispar y Balantidium coli, así como el cultivo para protozoarios intestinales, han sido publicados escasamente en la literatura médica. En nuestro medio aún no se ha comunicado pruebas de susceptibilidad in vitro para los parásitos mencionados. Objetivos: Plantear una alternativa de prueba de susceptibilidad antiparasitaria in vitro y conocer su resistencia frente a los antimicrobianos. Diseño: Estudio prospectivo, descriptivo. Instituciones: Instituto de Medicina Tropical "Daniel Alcides Carrión", Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, e Instituto Especializado de Salud del Niño, Lima, Perú. Material biológico: Cultivos de Blastocystis hominis, Entamoeba histolytica-E. dispar y Balantidium coli frente a cinco antimicrobianos. Métodos: Se trabajó con 64 cultivos de Blastocystis hominis, 16 de Entamoeba histolytica-dispar y 16 de Balantidium coli, frente a cinco antimicrobianos: metronidazol, cotrimoxazol, tetraciclina, furazolidona y ciprofloxacina. Las cepas de B. hominis, E. histolytica-E. dispar fueron cultivadas en el medio de Pavlova modificado, de 500 muestras de heces de niños con diagnóstico de parasitosis intestinal y las de B. coli de heces de cerdo. Las pruebas de susceptibilidad in vitro se realizaron con el método de microcultivos en el medio de Pavlova modificado, en pocitos con 200 uL del medio sin antiparasitarios (control y con antiparasitarios en 10 concentraciones, desde 128 ug/mL hasta 0,25 ug/mL; luego de incubación a 36º C por 48 horas, la lectura por examen microscópico directo comparó el desarrollo en el medio control con el desarrollo en los pocitos conteniendo los antimicrobianos. Principales medidas de resultados: Concentración inhibitoria mínima (CIM. Resultados: Se encontró para B. hominis, con metronidazol CIM 90: 64 ug/mL y CIM 50: 2 ug/mL; para E. histolytica-E. dispar con

Dioscorea trifida L.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

SAM

2014-04-09

Apr 9, 2014 ... Oxidation reached a similar level on medium S, T and ZR (2.17 - 2.40) while it was only 1.63 on medium. EBR. Well-developed shoots were ... pathogens, both in the field and during tuber storage, and viruses can accumulate .... Our objective was to study if these changes in. PGR content in the recovery ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-03-0012 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-03-0012 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 0.64 34% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0039 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0039 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593079 DMG1C.3_1.F09.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2L.8.057.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2L.8.057.a /gb=EW713118 /gi=156142072 /ug=Dm.26354 /len=1535 4e-11 25% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0014 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0014 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 1e-37 49% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0065 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0065 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593085 DMG1C.2_1.C03.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2R.19.116.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2R.19.116.a /gb=EW713124 /gi=156142078 /ug=Dm.26350 /len=1473 2e-11 29% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-03-0057 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-03-0057 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 6e-13 25% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0038 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0038 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593079 DMG1C.3_1.F09.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2L.8.057.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2L.8.057.a /gb=EW713118 /gi=156142072 /ug=Dm.26354 /len=1535 4e-84 95% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-03-0039 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-03-0039 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 7e-31 40% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0074 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0074 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593085 DMG1C.2_1.C03.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2R.19.116.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2R.19.116.a /gb=EW713124 /gi=156142078 /ug=Dm.26350 /len=1473 4e-09 28% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0066 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0066 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593085 DMG1C.2_1.C03.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2R.19.116.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2R.19.116.a /gb=EW713124 /gi=156142078 /ug=Dm.26350 /len=1473 3e-14 34% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0056 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0056 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 2e-11 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-06-0041 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-06-0041 gnl|UG|Dm#S40592667 DMG1A.1_1.E02.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2L.6.106.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2L.6.106.a /gb=EW712706 /gi=156141512 /ug=Dm.26303 /len=1270 0.17 28% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-08-0015 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-08-0015 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 4e-07 35% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-03-0045 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-03-0045 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 1e-23 38% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0034 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0034 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 8e-12 25% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0013 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0013 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 7e-29 43% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-08-0038 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-08-0038 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 6e-10 32% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-08-0039 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-08-0039 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 4e-07 39% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0037 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0037 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 2e-04 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0005 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0005 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 2e-06 20% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-03-0071 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-03-0071 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 3e-07 47% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0008 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0008 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 3e-12 22% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-08-0057 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-08-0057 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593121 DMG1C.2_1.G07.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.3.082.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.3.082.a /gb=EW713160 /gi=156142114 /ug=Dm.27906 /len=1533 2e-06 22% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0075 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0075 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593085 DMG1C.2_1.C03.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2R.19.116.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2R.19.116.a /gb=EW713124 /gi=156142078 /ug=Dm.26350 /len=1473 4e-66 93% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0037 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0037 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 2e-12 26% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0058 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0058 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 9e-26 32% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-02-0018 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-02-0018 gnl|UG|Dm#S40592688 DMG1A.1_1.C09.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3L.19.066.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3L.19.066.a /gb=EW712727 /gi=156141533 /ug=Dm.35847 /len=1518 1.4 35% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0021 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0021 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 2e-16 32% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0040 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0040 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593079 DMG1C.3_1.F09.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2L.8.057.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2L.8.057.a /gb=EW713118 /gi=156142072 /ug=Dm.26354 /len=1535 2e-05 30% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0006 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0006 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 0.048 17% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-01-0067 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-01-0067 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593085 DMG1C.2_1.C03.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr2R.19.116.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr2R.19.116.a /gb=EW713124 /gi=156142078 /ug=Dm.26350 /len=1473 2e-10 31% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0010 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0010 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593089 DMG1C.2_1.B05.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3L.17.035.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3L.17.035.a /gb=EW713128 /gi=156142082 /ug=Dm.15247 /len=1404 1.8 29% ...

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-DMEL-04-0015 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-DMEL-04-0015 gnl|UG|Dm#S40593060 DMG1C.3_1.C08.C1 MODENCODE_DM_A Drosophila melanogaster cDNA clone DMG...1-chr3R.5.051.a, mRNA sequence /clone=DMG1-chr3R.5.051.a /gb=EW713099 /gi=156142053 /ug=Dm.27239 /len=1584 9e-82 98% ...

Análisis de transferencia horizontal de genes en ensayos de biorremediación con grasas recalcitrantes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catalina Rozo

2010-01-01

Full Text Available El empleo de microorganismos como herramienta para la mineralización de contaminantes orgánicos es una práctica que ha tomado mucha fuerza gracias a su eficiencia y bajo costo. La transferencia horizontal vía conjugación de genes es un requerimiento básico para optimizar procesos de biorremediación, por esta razón, además de conocer la diversidad metabólica es fundamental entender las interacciones que ocurren en una comunidad bacteriana para potenciar los procesos de biorremediación en campo. En este estudio se busca evaluar el potencial de transferencia horizontal (TH, tanto in vitro como en microcosmos de suelo, de aislamientos de bacterias obtenidas de un pasivo ambiental de grasas provenientes de la explotación carbonífera del Cerrejón. Inicialmente se agruparon los aislamientos de acuerdo con sus patrones de resistencia a antibióticos: ampicilina, cloramfenicol, gentamicina, tetraciclina y kanamicina. El potencial de TH de las cepas Vlf4, Ot3, Ot6, Pgt4, Blf11 y Vlf13 fue evaluado in vitro en medio sólido Luria-Bertani (LB donde se obtuvieron nuevos fenotipos a partir de los cruces Vlf13xOt6 y Pgt4xOt6, el nuevo fenotipo indica resistencia a los dos marcadores (ampR, kanR y su morfología sugiere que el receptor, en los dos casos, es la cepa Ot6. Los parentales Vlf13, Pgt4 y Ot6 fueron identificados por amplificación del gen RNAr 16S como Pseudomonas sp., Pseudomonas sp. y Chryseobacterium sp., respectivamente, y los transconjugantes como Chryseobacterium sp. Posteriormente, estos dos cruces fueron sometidos a ensayos de transferencia horizontal en microcosmos de suelos, donde se hizo evidente nuevamente la presencia de TH a una menor tasa. Los resultados obtenidos indican la posibilidad de un potencial de transferencia horizontal de genes entre los aislamientos seleccionados, dando lugar a la probabilidad de formular en futuros estudios un consorcio de bacterias que demuestran tener esta ventaja adaptativa.

Study on underground gas storage in Europe and Central Asia; Etude sur le stockage souterrain du gaz en Europe et en Asie Centrale

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sedlacek, R. [NlfB, Germany (Germany); Rott, W. [Wintershall AG, Celle (Germany); Rokosz, W. [POGC, Poland (PL)] (and others)

2000-07-01

The Working Party on Gas of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), at its sixth session in 1996, decided to undertake a study on 'Underground gas storage in Europe and Central Asia'. The study was launched by the Working Party on Gas in the recognition of the role of underground gas storage (UGS) in the creation of unified European gas market, its liberalization, security of gas supply and cooperation among gas enterprises. The data analysed by the study was collected through the comprehensive questionnaire, circulated among gas companies/organizations of the ECE member-countries. To carry out the study, a special Ad Hoc Group of Experts, representing leading gas companies of the region, was set up. The study deals with a wide range of issues related to the underground storage of gas, such as current status of UGS in Europe and Central Asia, new and emerging technologies, new and existing UGS projects, regulatory framework, cost of storage in USA and in Europe, future gas markets development. An attempt was also made to identify the UGS facilities that play (and could provide in the future) the international contract border services. (authors)

Stworzenie świata według Leibniza

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michał Heller

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Leibniz's idea of creation is best epitomized by a note written by him on the margin of his work entitled 'Dialogus'. The note reads:'When God thinks things through and calculates, the world is made'. Simple calculations are almost mechanical. The true mathematical thinking begins when one is confronted with a problem that has to be solved, when starting from the known mathematical structure one has to construct a new structure, to comprehend its intricacies, the ways of its functioning, and its connections with other mathematical structures. And when one successfully applies the new mathematical structure to a physical theory, the new world is made. This was Leibniz's experience when he was discovering calculus and tried to apply it to mechanical problems. Leibniz's doctrine that our world is the best of all possible words is often ridiculed, but this attitude is the result of a very superficial reading of Leibniz's texts. In fact, God's calculations to choose the best possible world are similar to solving the variational problem in mathematics. Leibniz claims that in mathematical reasoning if there is neither 'maximum' nor 'minimum' nothing can happen. Similarly, if there were no world better that other possible worlds, God's wisdom would have not been able to create anything. Some consequences of this doctrine, concerning the nature of space, time and causality, are also considered.

Assessment of novel digital and smartphone goniometers for measurement of canine stifle joint angles.

Science.gov (United States)

Freund, Kristin A; Kieves, Nina R; Hart, Juliette L; Foster, Sasha A; Jeffery, Unity; Duerr, Felix M

2016-07-01

OBJECTIVE To evaluate accuracy and reliability of 3 novel goniometers for measurement of canine stifle joint angles and compare the results with those obtained with a universal goniometer (UG). SAMPLE 8 pelvic limbs from 4 canine cadavers. PROCEDURES Each limb was secured to a wooden platform at 3 arbitrarily selected fixed stifle joint angles. Goniometry was performed with 2 smartphone-based applications (novel goniometers A and B), a digital goniometer (novel goniometer C), and a UG; 3 evaluators performed measurements in triplicate for each angle with each device. Results were compared with stifle joint angle measurements on radiographs (used as a gold standard). Accuracy was determined by calculation of bias and total error, coefficients of variation were calculated to estimate reliability, and strength of linear association between radiographic and goniometer measurements was assessed by calculation of correlation coefficients. RESULTS Mean coefficient of variation was lowest for the UG (4.88%), followed by novel goniometers B (7.37%), A (7.57%), and C (12.71%). Correlation with radiographic measurements was highest for the UG (r = 0.97), followed by novel goniometers B (0.93), A (0.90), and C (0.78). Constant bias was present for all devices except novel goniometer B. The UG and novel goniometer A had positive constant bias; novel goniometer C had negative constant bias. Total error at 50° and 100° angles was > 5% for all devices. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE None of the devices accurately represented radiographically measured stifle joint angles. Additional veterinary studies are indicated prior to the use of novel goniometers in dogs.

Wastewater/Storm Water Characterization and Toxicity Identification Evaluation, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

1991-12-01

support the NPDES permit renewal appl ication. the studies should collect sufficient data to characterize waste streams, including wastewater and WINTP...26Apr 1 30Apr I 1May I 2May Arsenic I uiI ᝺ ᝺i ᝺  ᝺! ᝺ Barium I ug l I i  . 4001 SWot 1000 " 2600 Beryllium J ug 1 ᝺ <o 0 <o

Unattended Ground Sensors for Expeditionary Force 21 Intelligence Collections

Science.gov (United States)

2015-06-01

little impact on modern intelligence collections. This thesis analyzes and compares the units and individual Marine skillsets that employ UGS, and the...the sensor employment planning cycle, and the socialization of this plan through the proper chain-of-command [4]. Figure 8 depicts the Sensor...the use of newly developed cellphone based technologies and emerging UGS capabilities to assist in Listening Post/ Observation Post (LP/OP

Utilisation of nuclear energy and coal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-01-01

Following the views and experiences presented at an International Energy Conference held in November 1980 in Lisbon under the title ''Energy - A challenge for undertakings'', the Energy Commission of the International Chamber of Commerce has prepared a document which details the most important conclusions and makes recommendations. The costs and advantages are evaluated of nuclear energy and of coal. (P.G.R.)

Biosorption of U(VI) by the green algae Chlorella vulgaris in dependence of pH value and cell activity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vogel, M., E-mail: M.Vogel@fzd.de; Guenther, A.; Rossberg, A.; Li, B.; Bernhard, G.; Raff, J.

2010-12-15

Biosorption of uranium(VI) by the green alga Chlorella vulgaris was studied at varying uranium concentrations from 5 {mu}M to 1 mM, and in the environmentally relevant pH range of 4.4 to 7.0. Living cells bind in a 0.1 mM uranium solution at pH 4.4 within 5 min 14.3 {+-} 5.5 mg U/g dry biomass and dead cells 28.3 {+-} 0.6 mg U/g dry biomass which corresponds to 45% and 90% of total uranium in solution, respectively. During 96 h of incubation with uranium initially living cells died off and with 26.6 {+-} 2.1 mg U/g dry biomass bound similar amounts of uranium compared to dead cells, binding 27.0 {+-} 0.7 mg U/g dry biomass. In both cases, these amounts correspond to around 85% of the initially applied uranium. Interestingly, at a lower and more environmentally relevant uranium concentration of 5 {mu}M, living cells firstly bind with 1.3 {+-} 0.2 mg U/g dry biomass to 1.4 {+-} 0.1 mg U/g dry biomass almost all uranium within the first 5 min of incubation. But then algal cells again mobilize up to 80% of the bound uranium during ongoing incubation in the time from 48 h to 96 h. The release of metabolism related substances is suggested to cause this mobilization of uranium. As potential leachates for algal-bound uranium oxalate, citrate and ATP were tested and found to be able to mobilize more than 50% of the algal-bound uranium within 24 h. Differences in complexation of uranium by active and inactive algae cells were investigated with a combination of time-resolved laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (TRLFS), extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy. Obtained results demonstrated an involvement of carboxylic and organic/inorganic phosphate groups in the uranium complexation with varying contributions dependent on cell status, uranium concentration and pH.

Biosorption of U(VI) by the green algae Chlorella vulgaris in dependence of pH value and cell activity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vogel, M.; Guenther, A.; Rossberg, A.; Li, B.; Bernhard, G.; Raff, J.

2010-01-01

Biosorption of uranium(VI) by the green alga Chlorella vulgaris was studied at varying uranium concentrations from 5 μM to 1 mM, and in the environmentally relevant pH range of 4.4 to 7.0. Living cells bind in a 0.1 mM uranium solution at pH 4.4 within 5 min 14.3 ± 5.5 mg U/g dry biomass and dead cells 28.3 ± 0.6 mg U/g dry biomass which corresponds to 45% and 90% of total uranium in solution, respectively. During 96 h of incubation with uranium initially living cells died off and with 26.6 ± 2.1 mg U/g dry biomass bound similar amounts of uranium compared to dead cells, binding 27.0 ± 0.7 mg U/g dry biomass. In both cases, these amounts correspond to around 85% of the initially applied uranium. Interestingly, at a lower and more environmentally relevant uranium concentration of 5 μM, living cells firstly bind with 1.3 ± 0.2 mg U/g dry biomass to 1.4 ± 0.1 mg U/g dry biomass almost all uranium within the first 5 min of incubation. But then algal cells again mobilize up to 80% of the bound uranium during ongoing incubation in the time from 48 h to 96 h. The release of metabolism related substances is suggested to cause this mobilization of uranium. As potential leachates for algal-bound uranium oxalate, citrate and ATP were tested and found to be able to mobilize more than 50% of the algal-bound uranium within 24 h. Differences in complexation of uranium by active and inactive algae cells were investigated with a combination of time-resolved laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (TRLFS), extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy. Obtained results demonstrated an involvement of carboxylic and organic/inorganic phosphate groups in the uranium complexation with varying contributions dependent on cell status, uranium concentration and pH.

The role of cognitive and emotional perspective taking in economic decision making in the ultimatum game.

Science.gov (United States)

Takagishi, Haruto; Koizumi, Michiko; Fujii, Takayuki; Schug, Joanna; Kameshima, Shinya; Yamagishi, Toshio

2014-01-01

We conducted a simple resource allocation game known as the ultimatum game (UG) with preschoolers to examine the role of cognitive and emotional perspective-taking ability on allocation and rejection behavior. A total of 146 preschoolers played the UG and completed a false belief task and an emotional perspective-taking test. Results showed that cognitive perspective taking ability had a significant positive effect on the proposer's offer and a negative effect on the responder's rejection behavior, whereas emotional perspective taking ability did not impact either the proposer's or responder's behavior. These results imply that the ability to anticipate the responder's beliefs, but not their emotional state, plays an important role in the proposer's choice of a fair allocation in an UG, and that children who have not acquired theory of mind still reject unfair offers.

Active use of urban park facilities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindberg, Michael; Schipperijn, Jasper

2015-01-01

groups of the facilities. Facilities that provide the opportunity for games and playing activities are more used for PA than facilities directed at individual training of strength and fitness. The opportunity for socializing and playing while being physically active seems important for many users...... was mentioned as a key factor when designing facilities. Our results provide important knowledge to architects, planners and policy makers when aiming at designing activity-promoting facilities in UGS. Future studies need to further investigate the use of facilities among specific target groups, particularly......Abstract Urban green spaces (UGS), and more specific a higher number of facilities in UGS, have been positively associated with physical activity (PA). However, more detailed studies of which facilities generate high levels of PA, for which type of users, are relevant as existing knowledge...

Wpływy polskie w jidysz według "History of the Yiddish Language" Maxa Weinreicha – przegląd i próby weryfikacji

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michał Gajek

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Polish influence on Yiddish as described in Max Weinreich’s History of the Yiddish Language – overview and attempts at verification The Article concentrates on the findings regarding Slavic influence on Yiddish, described in the newest English-language edition of Max Weinreich’s History of the Yiddish Language – a canonical title for modern Yiddish studies. Its first task is to acquaint Polish readers with M. Weinreich’s propositions and findings on the general character of Polish-Yiddish and Slavic-Yiddish language contact. This will also be taken as an opportunity to briefly review the research on this subject conducted by Polish scholars. Additionally, the article will elaborate (albeit not exhaustively on the attempts to question and verify M. Weinreich’s theories which may prove interesting from the point of view of Slavic studies. Its second, equally important task is to describe chosen examples of the results of Slavic influence, in which Polish played a significant role, as they present themselves in the lexicon, morphology, word formation and syntax of Yiddish.   Wpływy polskie w jidysz według History of the Yiddish Language Maxa Weinreicha – przegląd i próby weryfikacji Artykuł skupia się na ustaleniach na temat wpływów słowiańskich w jidysz, zawartych w najnowszym, anglojęzycznym wydaniu pracy Maxa Weinreicha pt. History of the Yiddish Language, mającej status pozycji kanonicznej współczesnej jidyszystyki. Jego pierwszym celem jest przybliżenie polskiemu czytelnikowi tez i ustaleń M. Weinreicha, dotyczących ogólnego charakteru językowych kontaktów polsko- i słowiańsko-żydowskich. Przy tej okazji uwzględnione zostaną informacje na temat badań, jakie do tej pory poczynili w tej materii językoznawcy polscy. Ponadto (niewyczerpująco poruszona zostanie kwestia prób weryfikacji i podważenia jego twierdzeń, interesująca z punktu widzenia slawistyki. Drugim, nie mniej wa

Characterization of a Large Panel of Rabbit Monoclonal Antibodies against HIV-1 gp120 and Isolation of Novel Neutralizing Antibodies against the V3 Loop.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yali Qin

Full Text Available We recently reported the induction of potent, cross-clade neutralizing antibodies (nAbs against Human Immunodeficiency Virus type-1 (HIV-1 in rabbits using gp120 based on an M-group consensus sequence. To better characterize these antibodies, 93 hybridomas were generated, which represent the largest panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs ever generated from a vaccinated rabbit. The single most frequently recognized epitope of the isolated mAbs was at the very C-terminal end of the protein (APTKAKRRVVEREKR, followed by the V3 loop. A total of seven anti-V3 loop mAbs were isolated, two of which (10A3 and 10A37 exhibited neutralizing activity. In contrast to 10A3 and most other anti-V3 loop nAbs, 10A37 was atypical with its epitope positioned more towards the C-terminal half of the loop. To our knowledge, 10A37 is the most potent and broadly neutralizing anti-V3 loop mAb induced by vaccination. Interestingly, all seven anti-V3 loop mAbs competed with PGT121, suggesting a possibility that early induction of potent anti-V3 loop antibodies could prevent induction of more broadly neutralizing PGT121-like antibodies that target the conserved base of the V3 loop stem.

On star-critical and upper size Ramsey numbers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhang, Yanbo; Broersma, Haitze J.; Chen, Yaojun

2016-01-01

In this paper, we study the upper size Ramsey number u(G1,G2)u(G1,G2), defined by Erdős and Faudree, as well as the star-critical Ramsey number r∗(G1,G2)r∗(G1,G2), defined by Hook and Isaak. We define Ramsey-full graphs and size Ramsey good graphs, and perform a detailed study on these graphs. We

Gelatin methacrylamide as coating material in cell culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Egger, Michael; Tovar, Günter E M; Hoch, Eva; Southan, Alexander

2016-06-13

Unmodified gelatin (uG) is widely used as a coating material in cell culture for improving surface properties. In this study, the authors investigated if gelatin methacrylamide (GM) with a medium degree of methacrylamide modification (GM1.5) and a high degree of methacrylamide modification (GM4) are equally suitable for this purpose. Therefore, gold surfaces were coated with uG, GM1.5, and GM4 by adsorption of the polymers on the surfaces. Coating success was confirmed by spectroscopic ellipsometry, contact angle measurements, surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy (SPRS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The authors found that upon adsorption of uG, GM1.5, a nd GM4 on gold, thin films with thicknesses of 2.95 nm, 2.50 nm, and 2.26 nm were formed. The coated surfaces showed advancing contact angles of 46° (uG and GM1.5) and 52° (GM4) without alteration of the surface roughness determined by AFM. Protein adsorption taking place on the coated surfaces was measured during contact of the surfaces with fetal calf serum by SPRS. Protein adsorption on the coated surfaces was reduced by the factor of 6.4 (uG), 5.4 (GM1.5), and 4.6 (GM4) compared to gold surfaces. Human fibroblasts cultured on the surfaces showed excellent viability shown by water soluble tetrazolium salt assay as well as live/dead staining with propidium iodide and fluorescein diacetate. No cytotoxic effects of the GM coated surfaces were observed, giving rise to the conclusion that GMs are suitable materials as coatings in cell culture.

Impact of the rural pipeline in medical education: practice locations of recently graduated family physicians in Ontario.

Science.gov (United States)

Wenghofer, Elizabeth F; Hogenbirk, John C; Timony, Patrick E

2017-02-20

The "rural pipeline" suggests that students educated in rural, or other underserviced areas, are more likely to establish practices in such locations. It is upon this concept that the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) was founded. Our analysis answers the following question: Are physicians who were educated at NOSM more likely to practice in rural and northern Ontario compared with physicians who were educated at other Canadian medical schools? We used data from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. We compared practice locations of certified Ontario family physicians who had graduated from NOSM vs. other Canadian medical schools in 2009 or later. We categorized the physicians according to where they completed their undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) training, either at NOSM or elsewhere. We used logistic regression models to determine if the location of UG and PG training was associated with rural or northern Ontario practice location. Of the 535 physicians examined, 67 had completed UG and/or PG medical education at NOSM. Over two thirds of physicians with any NOSM education were practicing in northern areas and 25.4% were practicing in rural areas of Ontario compared with those having no NOSM education, with 4.3 and 10.3% in northern and rural areas, respectively. Physicians who graduated from NOSM-UG were more likely to have practices located in rural Ontario (OR = 2.57; p = 0.014) whereas NOSM-PG physicians were more likely to have practices in northern Ontario (OR = 57.88; p education was associated with an increased likelihood of practicing in rural (NOSM-UG) and northern (NOSM-PG) Ontario.

Locating Ground-Water Discharge in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, D.R.; Geist, D.R.; Saldi, K.; Hartwig, D.; Cooper, T.

1997-01-01

A bottom-contacting probe for measuring electrical conductivity at the sediment-water interface was used to scan the bed of the Columbia River adjacent to the Hanford Site in southeast Washington State during a 10-day investigation. Four river-sections, each about a kilometer in length, were scanned for variations in electrical conductivity. The probe was towed along the riverbed at a speed of 1 m/s and is position was recorded using a Global Positioning System. The bottom tows revealed several areas of elevated electrical conductivity. Where these anomalies were relatively easy to access, piezometers were driven into the riverbed and porewater electrical conductivity ranged from 111 to 150 uS/cm. The piezometers, placed in electrical conductivity ''hotspots'' yielded chemical or isotopic data consistent with previous analyses of water taken from monitoring wells and visible shoreline seeps. Tritium, nitrate, and chromium exceeded water quality standards in some porewaters. The highest tritium and nitrate levels were found near the Old Hanford Townsite at 120,000 pCi/L (+ 5,880 pCi/L total propagated analytical uncertainty) and ug/L (+ 5,880 ug/L), respectively. The maximum chromium (total and hexavalent) levels were found near 100-H reactor area where unfiltered porewater total chromium was 1,900 ug/L (+ 798 ug/L) and hexavalent chromium was 20 ug/L. The electrical conductivity probe provided rapid, cost-effective reconnaissance for ground-water discharge areas when used in combination with conventional piezometers. It may be possible to obtain quantitative estimates of both natural and contaminated ground-water discharge in the Hanford Reach with more extensive surveys of river bottom

Equal status in Ultimatum Games promotes rational sharing.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Xiao; Cao, Shinan; Bao, Jian-Zhang; Wang, Wen-Xu; Zhang, Boyu; Gao, Zi-You; Sánchez, Angel

2018-01-19

Experiments on the Ultimatum Game (UG) repeatedly show that people's behaviour is far from rational. In UG experiments, a subject proposes how to divide a pot and the other can accept or reject the proposal, in which case both lose everything. While rational people would offer and accept the minimum possible amount, in experiments low offers are often rejected and offers are typically larger than the minimum, and even fair. Several theoretical works have proposed that these results may arise evolutionarily when subjects act in both roles and there is a fixed interaction structure in the population specifying who plays with whom. We report the first experiments on structured UG with subjects playing simultaneously both roles. We observe that acceptance levels of responders approach rationality and proposers accommodate their offers to their environment. More precisely, subjects keep low acceptance levels all the time, but as proposers they follow a best-response-like approach to choose their offers. We thus find that status equality promotes rational sharing while the influence of structure leads to fairer offers compared to well-mixed populations. Our results are far from what is observed in single-role UG experiments and largely different from available predictions based on evolutionary game theory.

THE DETERMINATION OF BUPROPION HYDROCHLORIDE IN PHARMACEUTICAL DOSAGE FORMS BY ORIGINAL UV- AND SECOND DERIVATIVE UV SPECTROPHOTOMETRY, POTENTIOMETRIC AND CONDUCTOMETRIC METHODS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Duygu YENİCELİ

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Spectrophotometric, potentiometric and conductometric methods are developed for the determination of bupropion hydrochloride (BLIP in pharmaceutical tablets. For the first method, original UV-spectrophotometry, 252 nm was determined as the optimum wavelength and used for the determinations. For the other method, second derivative UV spectrophotometry, the absorbances were measured at 217.4 and 221.8 nm and the distance between these extremum values was determined according to peak to peak method. Two spectrophotometric methods were validated over the concentration range of 5.72 - 20.03 ug/mL. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation values of original UV-spectrophotometry were 0.75 ug/mL and 2.28 jug/mL. Also, these parameters were determined as 0.23 ug/mL and 0.68 ug/mL respectively, for the second derivative UV spectrophotometry. Developed methods were fully validated and the applicability of the methods for the determination of BUP in pharmaceuticals were demonstrated. Also, simple potentiometric and conductometric methods were developed and the applicability of these methods were demonstrated. The results of four analytical methods were compared with ANOVA test and no significant difference was found statistically. As a result, the developed methods could be proposed to the rutin content analysis to be simple, cheap, accurate, and precise

Differential response of oyster shell powder on enzyme profile and nutritional value of oyster mushroom Pleurotus florida PF05.

Science.gov (United States)

Naraian, Ram; Narayan, Om Prakash; Srivastava, Jatin

2014-01-01

Oyster mushroom Pleurotus florida was cultivated on different combinations of wheat straw (WS) as basal substrate and oyster shell powder (OSP) supplement. The OSP supplementation considerably responded to different cultivation phases. The mycelium grew fast and showed rapid growth rate (8.91 mmd(-1)) in WS + OSP (97 + 3) combination while WS + OSP (92 + 8) showed maximum laccase (3.133 U/g) and Mn peroxidase (MnP) activities (0.091 U/g). The climax level of laccase (5.433 U/g) and MnP (0.097 U/g) was recorded during fruit body initiation in WS + OSP (97 + 3) and WS + OSP (98 + 2) combinations, respectively. The WS + OSP (97 + 3) combination represented the best condition for mushroom cultivation and produced the highest biological efficiency (147%). In addition, protein and lipid contents in fruit bodies were slightly improved in response to OSP. The carbohydrate was significantly increased by raising concentration of OSP. The highest values of protein, carbohydrate, and lipid noted were 31.3 μg/g, 0.0639 (g/g), and 0.373 (g/g) correspondingly. Conclusively it was evident that lower concentrations of OSP acted positively and relatively to higher concentrations and improved nutritional content which may suitably be used to enhance both yield and nutritional values of mushroom.

Evaluating detection and estimation capabilities of magnetometer-based vehicle sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Slater, David M.; Jacyna, Garry M.

2013-05-01

In an effort to secure the northern and southern United States borders, MITRE has been tasked with developing Modeling and Simulation (M&S) tools that accurately capture the mapping between algorithm-level Measures of Performance (MOP) and system-level Measures of Effectiveness (MOE) for current/future surveillance systems deployed by the the Customs and Border Protection Office of Technology Innovations and Acquisitions (OTIA). This analysis is part of a larger M&S undertaking. The focus is on two MOPs for magnetometer-based Unattended Ground Sensors (UGS). UGS are placed near roads to detect passing vehicles and estimate properties of the vehicle's trajectory such as bearing and speed. The first MOP considered is the probability of detection. We derive probabilities of detection for a network of sensors over an arbitrary number of observation periods and explore how the probability of detection changes when multiple sensors are employed. The performance of UGS is also evaluated based on the level of variance in the estimation of trajectory parameters. We derive the Cramer-Rao bounds for the variances of the estimated parameters in two cases: when no a priori information is known and when the parameters are assumed to be Gaussian with known variances. Sample results show that UGS perform significantly better in the latter case.

Serum levels of zinc and copper in epileptic children during long-term therapy with anticonvulsants.

Science.gov (United States)

Talat, Mohamed A; Ahmed, Anwar; Mohammed, Lamia

2015-10-01

To evaluate the serum levels of zinc and copper in epileptic children during the long-term treatment of anticonvulsant drugs and correlate this with healthy subjects. A hospital-based group matched case-control study was conducted in the Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt between November 2013 and October 2014. Ninety patients aged 7.1 ± 3.6 years were diagnosed with epilepsy by a neurologist. The control group was selected from healthy individuals and matched to the case group. Serum zinc and copper were measured by the calorimetric method using a colorimetric method kit. The mean zinc level was 60.1 ± 22.6 ug/dl in the cases, and 102.1 ± 18 ug/dl in the controls (p<0.001). The mean copper level was 180.1 ± 32.4 ug/dl in cases compared with 114.5 ± 18.5 ug/dl in controls (p<0.001). Serum zinc levels in epileptic children under drug treatment are lower compared with healthy children. Also, serum copper levels in these patients are significantly higher than in healthy people. No significant difference in the levels of serum copper and zinc was observed in using one drug or multiple drugs in the treatment of epileptic patients.

High Burden of Subclinical Lead Toxicity after Phase Out of Lead from Petroleum in Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Majid, Hafsa; Khan, Aysha Habib; Khan, Nadeem Ullah; Siddiqui, Imran; Ghani, Farooq; Jafri, Lena

2017-12-01

To evaluate the frequency of subclinical lead toxicity. Cross-sectional study. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from January 2011 to December 2014. Analysis of laboratory data for blood lead levels (BLL) was performed. Lead was tested by atomic absorption spectrometer. For all subjects, only initial test results were included while the results of repeated testing were excluded. Exemption was sought from institutional ethical review committee. BLL of 2-10 ug/dl and 10-70 ug/dl in children and adults, respectively were taken as subclinical lead toxicity. Amongst the total number of subjects tested (n=524), 26.5% (n=139) were children (lead level 16.9 ug/dl (36.1-4)] and lower level [4.2 ug/dl (6.8-2.6)] in children with lead levels while most had either subclinical (76%, n=106) or toxic lead levels (8%, n=11). In adults, (55%, n=212) subjects had desired lead levels, and 40% (n=154) and 4.99% (n=19) had subclinical and toxic lead levels. Presence of subclinical lead poisoning even after phasing out of lead petroleum in Pakistanis is alarming, especially in children. A national population-based study to determine the lead status and targeted intervention to identify potential sources is need of the time.

Pectinase production by Penicillium viridicatum RFC3 by solid state fermentation using agricultural wastes and agro-industrial by-products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silva Dênis

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Pectin lyase and polygalacturonase production by newly isolated Penicillium viridicatum strain Rfc3 was carried out by means of solid state fermentation using orange bagasse, corn tegument, wheat bran and mango and banana peels as carbon sources. The maximal activity value of polygalacturonase (Pg (30U.g-1 was obtained using wheat bran as carbon source while maximal pectin lyase (Pl (2000 U.g-1 activity value was obtained in medium composed of orange bagasse. Mixtures of banana or mango peels with sugar cane bagasse resulted in increased Pg and Pl production compared to fermentations in which this residue was not used. The mixture of orange bagasse and wheat bran (50% increased the production of Pg and Pl to 55 U.g-1 and 3540 U.g -1 respectively. Fractions of Pg and Pl, isolated by gel filtration in Sephadex G50, presented optimum activity at pH 5.0 and 10.5 respectively. Maximal activity of Pg and Pl fractions was determined at 55ºC and 50ºC respectively. Pg was stable in neutral pH range and at 40ºC whereas Pl was stable in acidic pH and at 35ºC, for 1 h.

The role of cognitive and emotional perspective taking in economic decision making in the ultimatum game.

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Haruto Takagishi

Full Text Available We conducted a simple resource allocation game known as the ultimatum game (UG with preschoolers to examine the role of cognitive and emotional perspective-taking ability on allocation and rejection behavior. A total of 146 preschoolers played the UG and completed a false belief task and an emotional perspective-taking test. Results showed that cognitive perspective taking ability had a significant positive effect on the proposer's offer and a negative effect on the responder's rejection behavior, whereas emotional perspective taking ability did not impact either the proposer's or responder's behavior. These results imply that the ability to anticipate the responder's beliefs, but not their emotional state, plays an important role in the proposer's choice of a fair allocation in an UG, and that children who have not acquired theory of mind still reject unfair offers.

Why do we build nuclear power stations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keppler, E.

1984-01-01

The author discusses some aspects of interest in the context of opposition to nuclear power in Switzerland. The part played and to be played by nuclear power in Switzerland is discussed, criticisms and objections are countered, the implications of power generation without further nuclear contribution are examined, and requests in certain quarters for a tax on power generation except from alternative sources are rejected. (P.G.R.)

Mexico-U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress

Science.gov (United States)

2008-12-18

Mexico adopted a series of economic, political, and foreign policy reforms. It opened its economy to trade and investment, adopted electoral ...institutions and election agency. The Federal Election Institute (IFE) and Federal Electoral Tribunal (TEPJF) were well-regarded going into the 2006...Investiga PGR Crímenes Cometidos durante Conflicto en Oaxaca,” Notimex, January 4, 2007; Gerardo Soriano and Paulina I. Valencia, “Asegura APPO que

Cartel Car Bombings in Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

2013-08-01

Security OSINT Open Source Intelligence UXO Unexploded Ordnance PAN National Action Party (Partido Acción Nacional) PGR Office of the...infor- 35 mation beyond that provided by open source intelligence ( OSINT ). Such information, and the military intelligence process behind it that...required to be at the unclassified, yet limited distribution/sensitive and non-restric- tion on use OSINT levels for law enforcement utilization

Video image analysis in the Australian meat industry - precision and accuracy of predicting lean meat yield in lamb carcasses.

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkins, D L; Safari, E; Thompson, J M; Smith, C R

2004-06-01

A wide selection of lamb types of mixed sex (ewes and wethers) were slaughtered at a commercial abattoir and during this process images of 360 carcasses were obtained online using the VIAScan® system developed by Meat and Livestock Australia. Soft tissue depth at the GR site (thickness of tissue over the 12th rib 110 mm from the midline) was measured by an abattoir employee using the AUS-MEAT sheep probe (PGR). Another measure of this thickness was taken in the chiller using a GR knife (NGR). Each carcass was subsequently broken down to a range of trimmed boneless retail cuts and the lean meat yield determined. The current industry model for predicting meat yield uses hot carcass weight (HCW) and tissue depth at the GR site. A low level of accuracy and precision was found when HCW and PGR were used to predict lean meat yield (R(2)=0.19, r.s.d.=2.80%), which could be improved markedly when PGR was replaced by NGR (R(2)=0.41, r.s.d.=2.39%). If the GR measures were replaced by 8 VIAScan® measures then greater prediction accuracy could be achieved (R(2)=0.52, r.s.d.=2.17%). A similar result was achieved when the model was based on principal components (PCs) computed from the 8 VIAScan® measures (R(2)=0.52, r.s.d.=2.17%). The use of PCs also improved the stability of the model compared to a regression model based on HCW and NGR. The transportability of the models was tested by randomly dividing the data set and comparing coefficients and the level of accuracy and precision. Those models based on PCs were superior to those based on regression. It is demonstrated that with the appropriate modeling the VIAScan® system offers a workable method for predicting lean meat yield automatically.

Importance of genetic diversity assessment in crop plants and its recent advances: an overview of its analytical perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Govindaraj, M; Vetriventhan, M; Srinivasan, M

2015-01-01

The importance of plant genetic diversity (PGD) is now being recognized as a specific area since exploding population with urbanization and decreasing cultivable lands are the critical factors contributing to food insecurity in developing world. Agricultural scientists realized that PGD can be captured and stored in the form of plant genetic resources (PGR) such as gene bank, DNA library, and so forth, in the biorepository which preserve genetic material for long period. However, conserved PGR must be utilized for crop improvement in order to meet future global challenges in relation to food and nutritional security. This paper comprehensively reviews four important areas; (i) the significance of plant genetic diversity (PGD) and PGR especially on agriculturally important crops (mostly field crops); (ii) risk associated with narrowing the genetic base of current commercial cultivars and climate change; (iii) analysis of existing PGD analytical methods in pregenomic and genomic era; and (iv) modern tools available for PGD analysis in postgenomic era. This discussion benefits the plant scientist community in order to use the new methods and technology for better and rapid assessment, for utilization of germplasm from gene banks to their applied breeding programs. With the advent of new biotechnological techniques, this process of genetic manipulation is now being accelerated and carried out with more precision (neglecting environmental effects) and fast-track manner than the classical breeding techniques. It is also to note that gene banks look into several issues in order to improve levels of germplasm distribution and its utilization, duplication of plant identity, and access to database, for prebreeding activities. Since plant breeding research and cultivar development are integral components of improving food production, therefore, availability of and access to diverse genetic sources will ensure that the global food production network becomes more sustainable

Expression of estrogen receptor beta in the breast carcinoma of BRCA1 mutation carriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Litwiniuk, Maria M; Rożnowski, Krzysztof; Filas, Violetta; Godlewski, Dariusz D; Stawicka, Małgorzata; Kaleta, Remigiusz; Bręborowicz, Jan

2008-01-01

Breast cancers (BC) in women carrying mutations in BRCA1 gene are more frequently estrogen receptor negative than the nonhereditary BC. Nevertheless, tamoxifen has been found to have a protective effect in preventing contralateral tumors in BRCA1 mutation carriers. The identification of the second human estrogen receptor, ERβ, raised a question of its role in hereditary breast cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of ERα, ERβ, PgR (progesterone receptor) and HER-2 expression in breast cancer patients with mutated BRCA1 gene and in the control group. The study group consisted of 48 women with BRCA1 gene mutations confirmed by multiplex PCR assay. The patients were tested for three most common mutations of BRCA1 affecting the Polish population (5382insC, C61G, 4153delA). Immunostaining for ERα, ERβ and PgR (progesterone receptor) was performed using monoclonal antibodies against ERα, PgR (DakoCytomation), and polyclonal antibody against ERβ (Chemicon). The EnVision detection system was applied. The study population comprised a control group of 120 BC operated successively during the years 1998–99. The results of our investigation showed that BRCA1 mutation carriers were more likely to have ERα-negative breast cancer than those in the control group. Only 14.5% of BRCA1-related cancers were ERα-positive compared with 57.5% in the control group (P < 0.0001). On the contrary, the expression of ERβ protein was observed in 42% of BRCA1-related tumors and in 55% of the control group. An interesting finding was that most hereditary cancers (75% of the whole group) were triple-negative: ERα(-)/PgR(-)/HER-2(-) but almost half of this group (44.4%) showed the expression of ERβ. In the case of BRCA1-associated tumors the expression of ERβ was significantly higher than the expression of ERα. This may explain the effectiveness of tamoxifen in preventing contralateral breast cancer development in BRCA1 mutation carriers

Importance of Genetic Diversity Assessment in Crop Plants and Its Recent Advances: An Overview of Its Analytical Perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Govindaraj

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The importance of plant genetic diversity (PGD is now being recognized as a specific area since exploding population with urbanization and decreasing cultivable lands are the critical factors contributing to food insecurity in developing world. Agricultural scientists realized that PGD can be captured and stored in the form of plant genetic resources (PGR such as gene bank, DNA library, and so forth, in the biorepository which preserve genetic material for long period. However, conserved PGR must be utilized for crop improvement in order to meet future global challenges in relation to food and nutritional security. This paper comprehensively reviews four important areas; (i the significance of plant genetic diversity (PGD and PGR especially on agriculturally important crops (mostly field crops; (ii risk associated with narrowing the genetic base of current commercial cultivars and climate change; (iii analysis of existing PGD analytical methods in pregenomic and genomic era; and (iv modern tools available for PGD analysis in postgenomic era. This discussion benefits the plant scientist community in order to use the new methods and technology for better and rapid assessment, for utilization of germplasm from gene banks to their applied breeding programs. With the advent of new biotechnological techniques, this process of genetic manipulation is now being accelerated and carried out with more precision (neglecting environmental effects and fast-track manner than the classical breeding techniques. It is also to note that gene banks look into several issues in order to improve levels of germplasm distribution and its utilization, duplication of plant identity, and access to database, for prebreeding activities. Since plant breeding research and cultivar development are integral components of improving food production, therefore, availability of and access to diverse genetic sources will ensure that the global food production network becomes more

Macrodissection prior to closed system RT-qPCR is not necessary for estrogen receptor and HER2 concordance with IHC/FISH in breast cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Swati; Mani, Navin R; Carvajal-Hausdorf, Daniel E; Bossuyt, Veerle; Ho, Kenneth; Weidler, Jodi; Wong, Wendy; Rhees, Brian; Bates, Michael; Rimm, David L

2018-06-01

An on-demand, closed RT-qPCR, the GeneXpert (GX) system, has the potential to provide biomarker information in low-resourced settings and elsewhere. We used this system with a research use only version of the Breast Cancer STRAT4 cartridge that measures the mRNA expression levels of ERBB2, ESR1, PGR, and MKi67. Here we evaluated the impact of non-macrodissected (non m-d) versus macrodissected (m-d) samples using STRAT4 on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) core needle biopsies. Two cohorts were assessed: (1) 60 FFPE infiltrating ductal carcinoma (IDCA) cases and (2) 20 FFPE IDCA cases with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) with a range of HER2 expression as determined by clinical immunohistochemistry and fluorescence in situ hybridization (IHC/FISH). We observed about half of the core needle biopsy area as invasive tumor in both IDCA (mean = 51.5%) and IDCA with DCIS (mean = 53.5%) cohorts, but also found the mRNA levels were independent of tumor area. We found excellent agreement of the mRNA transcript level between the paired samples, m-d versus non m-d, for ERBB2, ESR1, PGR, and MKi67 for both the IDCA and IDCA with DCIS cohorts. No significant difference (P > 0.99) was observed when we compared the mRNA transcript level between the paired samples m-d versus non m-d. In addition, we noted a significant concordance (P < 0.001) between RT-qPCR and IHC/FISH for HER2-positivity, ER-positivity, and PR-positivity, independent of specimen dissection. These data suggest that mRNA expression for ERBB2, ESR, and PGR is sufficiently low in surrounding tissue cells such that macrodissection is not required for assessment of key breast cancer mRNA markers and is independent of the amount of input tumor. This approach may be valuable in settings lacking pathology expertise or using specimen types, such as fine-needle aspirates, where it may be challenging to separate non-tumor from tumor tissue.

Within-Flock Population Dynamics of Dichelobacter nodosus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura E. Green

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Footrot causes 70–90% of lameness in sheep in Great Britain. With approximately 5% of 18 million adult sheep lame at any one time, it costs the UK sheep industry £24–84 million per year. The Gram-negative anaerobe Dichelobacter nodosus is the causative agent, with disease severity influenced by bacterial load, virulence, and climate. The aim of the current study was to characterize strains of D. nodosus isolated by culture of swabs from healthy and diseased feet of 99 ewes kept as a closed flock over a 10-month period and investigate persistence and transmission of strains within feet, sheep, and the flock. Overall 268 isolates were characterized into strains by serogroup, proline–glycine repeat (pgr status, and multi-locus variable number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA. The culture collection contained 87 unique MLVA profiles and two major MLVA complexes that persisted over time. A subset of 189 isolates tested for the virulence marker aprV2 were all positive. The two MLVA complexes (76 and 114 comprised 62 and 22 MLVA types and 237 and 28 isolates, respectively. Serogroups B, and I, and pgrB were associated with MLVA complex 76, whereas serogroups D and H were associated with MLVA complex 114. We conclude that within-flock D. nodosus evolution appeared to be driven by clonal diversification. There was no association (P > 0.05 between serogroup, pgr, or MLVA type and disease state of feet. Strains of D. nodosus clustered within sheep and were transmitted between ewes over time. D. nodosus was isolated at more than one time point from 21 feet, including 5 feet where the same strain was isolated on two occasions at an interval of 1–33 weeks. Collectively, our results indicate that D. nodosus strains persisted in the flock, spread between sheep, and possibly persisted on feet over time.

Unigene BLAST: CBRC-RNOR-20-0133 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-RNOR-20-0133 gnl|UG|Rn#S14181288 UI-R-DO1-cms-c-10-0-UI.s1 UI-R-DO1 Rattus nor...vegicus cDNA clone UI-R-DO1-cms-c-10-0-UI 3', mRNA sequence /clone=UI-R-DO1-cms-c-10-0-UI /clone_end=3' /gb=BQ202827 /gi=20419292 /ti=154455115 /ug=Rn.83937 /len=645 0.001 44% ...

Trustworthiness and Negative Affect Predict Economic Decision-Making

OpenAIRE

Nguyen, Christopher M.; Koenigs, Michael; Yamada, Torricia H.; Teo, Shu Hao; Cavanaugh, Joseph E.; Tranel, Daniel; Denburg, Natalie L.

2011-01-01

The Ultimatum Game (UG) is a widely used and well-studied laboratory model of economic decision-making. Here, we studied 129 healthy adults and compared demographic (i.e., age, gender, education), cognitive (i.e., intelligence, attention/working memory, speed, language, visuospatial, memory, executive functions), and personality (i.e., “Big Five”, positive affect, negative affect) variables between those with a “rational” versus an “irrational” response pattern on the UG. Our data indicated t...

Planar algebra of the subgroup-subfactor

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

We think of R α G as the II1-factor (R ∪{ug: g ∈ G}) ⊂ L(L2(R)), where ug(ˆx) ..... define a global trace on P, where for 0± the trace for P0± ∼= C is the obvious identity .... function for strings is either a local maximum or a local minimum. ..... In order to understand how the inclusion tangles act on the subgroup-subfactor planar.

Gene : CBRC-HSAP-06-0003 [SEVENS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available CBRC-HSAP-06-0003 Novel 6 D UNKNOWN CN165_HUMAN 2e-21 63% dbj|BAC85887.1| unnamed protein product [Homo sapi...ens] 7e-35 68% gnl|UG|Hs#S28297950 DA109160 BRACE3 Homo sapiens cDNA clone BRACE302...5623 5', mRNA sequence /clone=BRACE3025623 /clone_end=5' /gb=DA109160 /gi=80475782 /ug=Hs.690917 /len=598 1e-39 69% MAPI...YRHMPPYPTNFCIFSRDRLSLCWPGWSPFLISGDPAALVSQSAGITGVSHGTWPFDCFSSFELGLFLPPHSPIAILEILGYQILPGQVSAPIDAYSNAVPFSHGF ...

Uso del escobajo como sustrato para el crecimiento de hongos de la pudrición blanca, la producción de enzimas ligninolíticas y la decoloración de tinturas Grape stalks as substrate for white rot fungi, lignocellulolytic enzyme production and dye decolorization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Levin

2012-06-01

Full Text Available El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar el potencial del escobajo, un residuo agroindustrial, como sustrato para el crecimiento y la producción de enzimas lignocelulósicas de tres hongos causantes de pudrición blanca en la madera: Trametes trogii, Stereum hirsutum y Coriolus antarcticus. Para ello se utilizaron técnicas de fermentación en estado sólido. También se ensayó la decoloración de colorantes industriales sobre estos cultivos. La pérdida de peso seco del sustrato fue similar después del día 60 (33-43 %. C. antarcticus produjo las mayores actividades de lacasa y Mn-peroxidasa (33,0 y 1,6 U/g peso seco. La mayor actividad endoglucanasa fue medida en cultivos de S. hirsutum (10,4 U/g, y la mayor actividad endoxilanasa en T. trogii (14,6 U/g. El sistema C. antarcticus/escobap mostró un importante potencial para su aplicación en la biorremediación de efluentes textiles, con porcentajes de decoloración de 93, 86, 82, 82, 77 y 58 % para índigo carmín, verde de malaquita, azure B, azul R brillante de remazol, cristal violeta y xilidina, respectivamente, en 5 h.The aim of this work was to evaluate the potential of grape stalks, an agroindustrial waste, for growth and lignocellulolytic enzyme production via solid-state fermentation, using the following three white rot fungi: Trametes trogii, Stereum hirsutum and Coriolus antarcticus. The decolorization of several dyes by the above mentioned cultures was also investigated. Similar values of dry weight loss of the substrate were measured after 60 days (33-43 %. C. antarcticus produced the highest laccase and Mn-peroxldase activities (33.0 and 1.6 U/g dry solid. The maximum endoglucanase production was measured in S. hirsutum cultures (10.4 U/g, while the endoxylanase peak corresponded to T. trogii (14.6 U/g. The C. antarcticus/grape stalk system seems potentially competitive in bioremediation of textile processing effluents, attaining percentages of decolorization of 93, 86, 82, 82

Error-free versus mutagenic processing of genomic uracil--relevance to cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Krokan, Hans E; Sætrom, Pål; Aas, Per Arne; Pettersen, Henrik Sahlin; Kavli, Bodil; Slupphaug, Geir

2014-07-01

Genomic uracil is normally processed essentially error-free by base excision repair (BER), with mismatch repair (MMR) as an apparent backup for U:G mismatches. Nuclear uracil-DNA glycosylase UNG2 is the major enzyme initiating BER of uracil of U:A pairs as well as U:G mismatches. Deficiency in UNG2 results in several-fold increases in genomic uracil in mammalian cells. Thus, the alternative uracil-removing glycosylases, SMUG1, TDG and MBD4 cannot efficiently complement UNG2-deficiency. A major function of SMUG1 is probably to remove 5-hydroxymethyluracil from DNA with general back-up for UNG2 as a minor function. TDG and MBD4 remove deamination products U or T mismatched to G in CpG/mCpG contexts, but may have equally or more important functions in development, epigenetics and gene regulation. Genomic uracil was previously thought to arise only from spontaneous cytosine deamination and incorporation of dUMP, generating U:G mismatches and U:A pairs, respectively. However, the identification of activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and other APOBEC family members as DNA-cytosine deaminases has spurred renewed interest in the processing of genomic uracil. Importantly, AID triggers the adaptive immune response involving error-prone processing of U:G mismatches, but also contributes to B-cell lymphomagenesis. Furthermore, mutational signatures in a substantial fraction of other human cancers are consistent with APOBEC-induced mutagenesis, with U:G mismatches as prime suspects. Mutations can be caused by replicative polymerases copying uracil in U:G mismatches, or by translesion polymerases that insert incorrect bases opposite abasic sites after uracil-removal. In addition, kataegis, localized hypermutations in one strand in the vicinity of genomic rearrangements, requires APOBEC protein, UNG2 and translesion polymerase REV1. What mechanisms govern error-free versus error prone processing of uracil in DNA remains unclear. In conclusion, genomic uracil is an

ANTIGENIC RELATEDNESS OF SELECTED FLAVIVIRUSES: STUDY WITH HOMOLOGOUS AND HETEROLOGOUS IMMUNE MOUSE ASCITIC FLUIDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S.S. BABA

1998-11-01

Full Text Available The antigenic relationship of 9 flaviviruses, Yellow fever (YF , Wesselsbron (WSL , Uganda S (UGS , Potiskum (POT, West Nile (WN , Banzi (BAN , Zika (ZK , Dengue type 1 (DEN-1 and Dengue type 2 (DEN-2, was assessed by cross-haemagglutination-inhibition (Cross-HI and cross-complement fixation (Cross-CF reactions between each of the viruses and their homologous immune mouse ascitic fluids. Titre ratios were calculated using the heterologous and homologous titres. Cross-CF reactions revealed wider antigenic variations among viruses than Cross-HI reactions. There was no significant antigenic variation between WSL, POT and YF viruses using either of those methods. However, definite differences in antigenicity were observed between them and UGS, BAN and ZK viruses. There were no significant differences between UGS, BAN and ZK or between DEN-1 and DEN-2. The serological relationship among flaviviruses is important in establishing diagnosis and epidemiology of these infections in Africa.A relação antigênica de 9 Flavivirus, Febre amarela (YF, Wesselsbron (WSL, Uganda S (UGS, Potiskum (POT, West Nile (WN, Banzi (BAN, Zika (ZK, Dengue tipo 1 (DEN-1 e Dengue tipo2 (DEN-2, foi avaliada por reação de inibição da hemaglutinação cruzada (cross-HI e reação de fixação do complemento cruzada (Cross-CF entre cada um dos virus e seu fluido ascítico homólogo em camundongos. Médias de títulos foram calculadas usando os títulos heterólogos e homólogos. Reações cruzadas CF revelaram maiores variações antigênicas entre virus do que reações cruzadas HI. Não houve variação antigênica significativa entre virus WSL, POT e YF usando cada um dos métodos. Todavia, diferenças definidas da antigenicidade foram observadas entre eles e os vírus UGS, BAN e ZK. Não existiram diferenças significativas entre UGS, BAN e ZK ou entre DEN-1 e DEN-2. A relação sorológica entre Flavivirus é importante para se estabelecer o diagnóstico e a

Effects of TBT (Tributyltin) on Marine Organisms: Field Assessment of a New Site-Specific Bioassay System.

Science.gov (United States)

1987-12-01

evaluated in San Diego Bay over a 7-month period using tributyltin ( TBT ) antifouling leachates. Three TBT concentrations (k = 0.065, 0.077 and 0.193 ug...tional value and epifaunal organisms and 2) test using tributyltin (TT) antifouling leachates. the efficacy of the PETS. The results of the TBT Three...Conoentrations of 0.200, study the effects of tributyltin (TBI), the primary 0.050 and 0.020 ug/l, respectively. Unfiltered toxic component of organotin AF

Ultrasound-Assisted Esterification of Valeric Acid to Alkyl Valerates Promoted by Biosilicified Lipases

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Soledad Cebrián-García

2018-06-01

Full Text Available A novel, environmentally friendly, and sustainable ultrasound-assisted methodology in the valorization of valeric acid to alkyl valerate using a biosilicified lipase from Candida antarctica is reported. This one-pot room temperature methodology of enzyme biosilicification leads to biosilicified lipases with improved activity and reaction efficiency as compared to free enzymes. Yields in the ultrasound-promoted esterification of valeric acid was ca. 90% in 2 h with 15% m/v of biosilicified lipase (Bio-lipase; 616 U/g biocatalyst enzymatic activity and a molar ratio 1:2 (valeric acid:ethanol, slightly superior to that observed by the free enzyme (75% conversion, 583U/g biocatalyst enzymatic activity. The reuse of enzymes in these conditions was tested and the results show a relatively good reusability of these biosilicified enzymes under the investigated conditions, particularly preserving fairly stable specific activities (616 vs. 430 U/g biocatalyst after four reuses.

Gas Storage in Europe, recent developments and outlook to 2035

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hureau, Geoffroy

2015-01-01

These slides present: the European gas storage market in 2014 (Review of 2014 trends, Current challenges, Role of storage); the Outlook to 2035 (Supply/Demand factors, Estimated Storage needs, Project backlog). In conclusion: an over capacity is expected until 2025.Supply and demand evolution, market liberalization and environmental constraints on coal will drive a new period of growth for UGS. Cedigaz estimates that European UGS capacity will increase by around 45 bcm by 2035. UGS projects represent 77 bcm Of which 22 bcm is under construction, there is a majority of salt-cavern projects (market liberalization), not so much new seasonal storage (security of supply?), not all planned storage will be built (Projects under competition for the same (regional) market, the situation is quite contrasted between NW Europe and South-Southeast Europe (and UK)). The challenges are the investment and the security of supply

Underrepresented minority high school and college students report STEM-pipeline sustaining gains after participating in the Loma Linda University Summer Health Disparities Research Program.

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Lorena M Salto

Full Text Available An urgent need exists for graduate and professional schools to establish evidence-based STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math pipeline programs to increase the diversity of the biomedical workforce. An untapped yet promising pool of willing participants are capable high school students that have a strong STEM interest but may lack the skills and the guided mentoring needed to succeed in competitive STEM fields. This study evaluates and compares the impact of the Loma Linda University (LLU Summer Health Disparities Research Program on high school (HS and undergraduate (UG student participants. The primary focus of our summer research experience (SRE is to enhance the research self-efficacy of the participants by actively involving them in a research project and by providing the students with personalized mentoring and targeted career development activities, including education on health disparities. The results of our study show that our SRE influenced terminal degree intent and increased participant willingness to incorporate research into future careers for both the HS and the UG groups. The quantitative data shows that both the HS and the UG participants reported large, statistically significant gains in self-assessed research skills and research self-efficacy. Both participant groups identified the hands-on research and the mentor experience as the most valuable aspects of our SRE and reported increased science skills, increased confidence in science ability and increased motivation and affirmation to pursue a science career. The follow-up data indicates that 67% of the HS participants and 90% of the UG participants graduated from college with a STEM degree; for those who enrolled in graduate education, 61% and 43% enrolled in LLU, respectively. We conclude that structured SREs can be highly effective STEM strengthening interventions for both UG and HS students and may be a way to measurably increase institutional and biomedical

Primary pollutants and potential photochemical smog formation in Makkah, Saudi Arabia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nasralla, M.M.; Seroji, A.R.

2007-01-01

This study was conducted in Mina Valley and the central district of the holy city, Makkah, during the pilgrimage (Hajj) season of 1424 Hijri (2004). During this season, more than 2.5 million people gathered in Makkah to perform the Hajj rituals. Two mobile air pollution laboratories were used to monitor NO, NO2, NOx, non-methane hydrocarbons and ozone (O3) in the atmosphere in Mina and Makkah. Instruments were calibrated periodically against standard gases. The present investigation showed clearly an ideal diurnal cycle of local ozone formation. Although the intensity of the incoming UV radiation was the lowest compared with other months of the year, recorded ozone levels approached the maximum allowable levels of 150 ug/m3 in Mina, and exceeded 160 ug/m3 in Makkah during the pilgrimage period. The problem was intensified by the high record levels NOx, sometimes reaching more than 800 ug/m3, 1h average, coupled with 1h average concentration of about 3 ppm non-methane hydrocarbons. Furthermore, the average maximum hourly ozone concentrations increased gradually from less than 60 ug/m3 during February to reach more than 200 ug/m3 (as an indication of smog formation) during some days of May. This coincides with the increase in the intensity of the incoming UV radiation reaching its maximum level in May. Consequently, it can be concluded that Makkah may face severe air pollution episodes when the pilgrimage season shifts to the summer months in the next few years. This may pose acute health problems for the elderly people and those with respiratory health problems. Good air quality and transportation management as well as the use of alternative clean fuel are highly recommended. (author)

Conveyor belt nuclear weighing machine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1977-01-01

In many industries the flow of materials on conveyor belts must be measured and controlled. Electromechanical weighing devices have high accuracy but are complicated and expensive to install and maintain. For many applications the nuclear weighing machine has sufficient accuracy but is considerably simpler, cheaper and more robust and is easier to maintain. The rating and performance of a gamma ray balance on the mar ket are detailed. (P.G.R.)

Contamination of Omnivorous Freshwater Fish Species and Sediments by Chlorinated Hydrocarbons in Poland

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Niewiadowska Alicja

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The occurrence and concentrations of organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs were determined in 158 muscle samples of bream (Abramis brama and roach (Rutilus rutilus, and 84 samples of sediments collected from 10 river and lake sampling sites in 2011 and 2012. The concentrations of DDTs (p,p’-DDT, o,p’-DDT, p,p’-DDE, and p,p’-DDD, HCH isomers (a-, ß-, and y-HCH, HCB, and PCBs (six indicator PCB congeners 28, 52, 101, 138, 153 and 180 were determined using the capillary gas chromatography. The mean concentrations of DDTs in bream and roach were in the range of 11.2-654 and 4.5-121 ug/kg wet weight respectively, and PCBs were in the range of 1.3-75.9 and 1.1-112 ug/kg wet weight, respectively. Mean concentrations of DDTs and PCBs in sediments were 0.5-270 ug/kg dry weight and ⋋0.1-2.2 ug/kg dry weight respectively. The study showed clear spatial differences in the levels of organochlorine pesticides and PCBs in fish and sediments from different aquatic ecosystems. The highest levels of contaminants were detected in fish and sediments from the Vistula River in vicinity of Cracow. The possible risk to the fish meat consumers and ecological risk were evaluated.

Pesticides in surface waters in areas influenced by banana production in Costa Rica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Castillo, L.E.; Ruepert, C.; Solis, E.

1999-01-01

Banana production in Costa Rica is highly dependent on pesticide use. However, only a few studies have been undertaken regarding the presence and environmental impact of the agrochemical substances used in the banana culture on the aquatic ecosystem of the Atlantic Region of Costa Rica. This study was, therefore, undertaken in Rio Suerte Basin that drains into the 'Nature Conservation Area' of Tortuguero in the Atlantic lowlands of the country from June 1993 to December 1994. In order to investigate further the occurrence of pesticides in the water bodies located near the possible sources especially during worst-case situations, water samples were analysed following pesticide applications during 1995-1997. Pesticide residues were determined by GC equipped with an electron capture detector (ECD) and a nitrogen phosphorous detector (NPD). The study targeted 11 of the 21 pesticides used in banana production, the others were not analyzed. The most frequently found compounds during the 1993-94 survey were the fungicide propiconazole and the nematocide cadusafos. Maximum concentrations measured after the pesticide applications were found in the main drainage canal and these were 2.1 ug/L carbofuran, 1.2 ug/L terbufos and 0.48 ug/L cadusafos. The peak concentration found shortly after the aerial application of the fungicide propiconazole was 13 ug/L in the creek leaving the banana plantation. (author)

Neural correlates of decision making after unfair treatment

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Yan eWu

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Empirical evidence indicates that people are inequity averse. However, it is unclear whether and how suffering unfairness impacts subsequent behavior. We investigated the consequences of unfair treatment in subsequent interactions with new interaction partners and the associated neural mechanisms. Participants were experimentally manipulated to experience fair or unfair treatment in the ultimatum game (UG, and subsequently, they were given the opportunity to retaliate in the dictator game (DG in their interactions with players who had not played a role in the previous fair or unfair treatment. The results showed that participants dictated less money to unrelated partners after frequently receiving unfair offers in the previous UG (versus frequently receiving fair offers in the previous UG, but only when they were first exposed to unfair UG/DG. Stronger activation in the right dorsal anterior insula was found during receiving unfair offers and during the subsequent offer-considering phase. The regional homogeneity (ReHo, a measure of the local synchronization of neighboring voxels in resting-state brain activity, in the left ventral anterior insula and left superior temporal pole was positively correlated with the behavior change. These findings suggest that unfair treatment may encourage a spread of unfairness, and that the anterior insula may be not only engaged in signaling social norm violations, but also recruited in guiding subsequent adaptive behaviors.

Evidence for disruption of normal circadian cortisol rhythm in women with obesity.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Safi, Zain A; Polotsky, Alex; Chosich, Justin; Roth, Lauren; Allshouse, Amanda A; Bradford, Andrew P; Santoro, Nanette

2018-04-01

Hyperactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may play a role in the pathogenesis of comorbidities encountered in obesity, including the relative hypogonadotropic hypogonadism that we and others have observed. We sought to examine serum cortisol profiles throughout the day and evening in a sample of normal weight women and women with obesity. In this cross-sectional study, regularly cycling obese (n = 12) and normal weight (n = 10) women were recruited. Mean serum cortisol was measured by frequent blood sampling for 16 h (8am-midnight) in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Women with obesity had significantly higher overall cortisol levels when compared to normal weight women (6.2 [4.3, 6.6] vs. 4.7 [3.7, 5.5] ug/dl, p = .04). Over the two-hour postprandial period, obese women displayed an almost two-fold greater (7.2 [6.5, 8.6] ug/dl) rise in cortisol than normal weight controls (4.4 [3.7, 6.2] ug/dl, p obese women demonstrated a sustained evening cortisol elevation compared to normal weight women, who displayed the typical decline in cortisol (3.2 [2.3, 4] vs. 2 [1.5, 3.2] ug/dl, p obesity may be related to risks of obesity-associated metabolic comorbidities and reproductive dysfunction often seen in these women.

Dietary Management of Hyperthyroidism in a Dog.

Science.gov (United States)

Looney, Andrea; Wakshlag, Joseph

An 8 yr old female spayed golden retriever presented for a routine exam during which ventral cervical soft tissue masses were identified. History included weight loss, increased activity and appetite, gagging, and occasional diarrhea. Exam findings included a body condition score of 4/9 and palpable ventral cervical nodules. A serum thyroxine (T4) value was 8.0 ug/dL (normal = 0.8-3.5ug/dL). Doppler systolic blood pressure readings ranged from 200-210 mmHg (normal systolic blood pressure hyperthyroidism due to active thyroid masses. Due to financial constraints, the owner elected conservative management. Initial treatment with methimazole resulted in a decreased T4 value of 5.0 ug/dL at approximately 4 mo after initiation of treatment. A commercially available iodine-restricted feline diet was fed and this resulted in further reduction in serum T4 levels, improved sleeping cycles, reduced anxiety, and reduced systolic blood pressure. A temporary suspension of iodine-restricted feline diet for 2 mo resulted in increases in serum T4 concentrations, which, subsequently, decreased with re-introduction of the diet. Roughly 10 mo after initiation of the therapeutic diet and 16 mo after intial diagnosis, the dog remains relatively normal clinically despite active growing cervical masses with T4 concentration of 2.3 ug/dL.

The relationship between seminal plasma zinc levels and high molecular weight zinc binding protein and sperm motility in Iraqi infertile men

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

AbdulRasheed, Omar F

2009-01-01

To evaluate the relationship between sperm motility and total seminal plasma zinc concentration and high molecular weight zinc bound protein values in infertile Iraqi men. A case-control study was conducted at the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, College of Medicine, Al-Nahrain University, Baghdad, Iraq between March 2005 to February 2006. The subjects for the study included 60 infertile male patients who were recruited Al-Kadhimiya Teaching Hospital, and Institute of Embryo Research and Infertility Treatment, Baghdad, Iraq. They were categorized according to their seminal parameters to oligozoospermia (n=32), azoospermia (n=22), and asthenozoospermia (n=6). Thirty nine fertile men (age range 31.87 +/- 3.76 years) were selected as controls, whose partners had conceived within the last year before participation with this study, and having normal spermiogram parameters. Seminal plasma zinc concentration and high molecular weight zinc binding proteins (HMW-Zn) were assayed in the ejaculates of fertile and infertile men. The seminal plasma zinc levels were 181.92 +/- 23.40 ug/mL in the oligozoospermia group, 178.50 +/- 18.61 ug/mL in the azoospermia group, 195.33 +/- 13.00 ug/mL in the asthenozoospermia group, and 184.66 +/- 21.31 ug/mL in the control group. The HMW-Zn% is a good index of sperm function rather than the total seminal plasma zinc levels. (author)

Composition and color stability of anthocyanin-based extract from purple sweet potato

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Xiu-li He

2015-09-01

Full Text Available AbstractPurple sweet potato (PSP can provide products with attractive color besides nutritious benefits in food processing. So, the compositions and color stability of an aqueous anthocyanin-based PSP extract were investigated in order to promote its wide use in food industry. PSP anthocyanins were extracted with water, and nine individual anthocyanins (48.72 ug mL–1 in total, 24.36 mg/100 g fresh PSP in yield were found by HPLC analysis. The PSP extract also contained 17.11 mg mL–1 of protein, 0.44 mg mL–1 of dietary fiber, 2.82 mg mL–1 of reducing sugars, 4.02 ug mL–1 of Se, 54.21 ug mL–1 of Ca and 60.83 ug mL–1 of Mg. Changes in color and stability of the PSP extract, as affected by pH, heat, light and extraction process, were further evaluated. Results indicated that PSP anthocyanins had good stability at pH 2.0-6.0, while the color of PSP extract kept stable during 30 days of storage at 20 °C in dark. Both UV and fluorescent exposure weakened the color stability of PSP extract and UV showed a more drastic effect in comparison. A steaming pretreatment of fresh PSP is beneficial to the color stability.

The Boundary Element Method Applied to the Two Dimensional Stefan Moving Boundary Problem

Science.gov (United States)

1991-03-15

Unc), - ( UGt )t - (UG,,),,] - (UG), If we integrate this equation with respect to r from 0 to t - c and with respect to and ij on the region 11(r...and others. "Moving Boundary Problems in Phase Change Mod- els," SIGNUM Newsletter, 20: 8-12 (1985). 21. Stefan, J. "Ober einige Probleme der Theorie ...ier Wirmelcitung," S.-B. \\Vein. Akad. Mat. Natur., 98: 173-484 (1889). 22.-. "flber (lie Theorie der Eisbildung insbesondere fiber die lisbildung im

Study on heat transfer coefficients during cooling of PET bottles for food beverages

Science.gov (United States)

Liga, Antonio; Montesanto, Salvatore; Mannella, Gianluca A.; La Carrubba, Vincenzo; Brucato, Valerio; Cammalleri, Marco

2016-08-01

The heat transfer properties of different cooling systems dealing with Poly-Ethylene-Terephthalate (PET) bottles were investigated. The heat transfer coefficient (Ug) was measured in various fluid dynamic conditions. Cooling media were either air or water. It was shown that heat transfer coefficients are strongly affected by fluid dynamics conditions, and range from 10 W/m2 K to nearly 400 W/m2 K. PET bottle thickness effect on Ug was shown to become relevant under faster fluid dynamics regimes.

High throughput, cell type-specific analysis of key proteins in human endometrial biopsies of women from fertile and infertile couples

Science.gov (United States)

Leach, Richard E.; Jessmon, Philip; Coutifaris, Christos; Kruger, Michael; Myers, Evan R.; Ali-Fehmi, Rouba; Carson, Sandra A.; Legro, Richard S.; Schlaff, William D.; Carr, Bruce R.; Steinkampf, Michael P.; Silva, Susan; Leppert, Phyllis C.; Giudice, Linda; Diamond, Michael P.; Armant, D. Randall

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND Although histological dating of endometrial biopsies provides little help for prediction or diagnosis of infertility, analysis of individual endometrial proteins, proteomic profiling and transcriptome analysis have suggested several biomarkers with altered expression arising from intrinsic abnormalities, inadequate stimulation by or in response to gonadal steroids or altered function due to systemic disorders. The objective of this study was to delineate the developmental dynamics of potentially important proteins in the secretory phase of the menstrual cycle, utilizing a collection of endometrial biopsies from women of fertile (n = 89) and infertile (n = 89) couples. METHODS AND RESULTS Progesterone receptor-B (PGR-B), leukemia inhibitory factor, glycodelin/progestagen-associated endometrial protein (PAEP), homeobox A10, heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor, calcitonin and chemokine ligand 14 (CXCL14) were measured using a high-throughput, quantitative immunohistochemical method. Significant cyclic and tissue-specific regulation was documented for each protein, as well as their dysregulation in women of infertile couples. Infertile patients demonstrated a delay early in the secretory phase in the decline of PGR-B (P localization provided important insights into the potential roles of these proteins in normal and pathological development of the endometrium that is not attainable from transcriptome analysis, establishing a basis for biomarker, diagnostic and targeted drug development for women with infertility. PMID:22215622

[A case of breast cancer postoperative metastases to the liver obtained cCR].

Science.gov (United States)

Enomoto, Katsuhisa; Sakurai, Kenichi

2011-11-01

A case is a 55-year-old woman. We noticed the right breast lump in May 2006. It was papillotubular carcinoma, ER(-), PgR -), HER2 (3+) by needle biopsy. The patient was introduced to our department in November 2006 for a close inspection and treatment. The palpation showed a mass without a firm flexibility, which was a border indistinctness of about 2 cm in size in the right AB area. We did not find a distant metastasis either. We operated for Bt+Ax (level II) in December. It was T2N0M0, stage IIA papillotubular carcinoma, ER(-), PgR(-), HER2 (3+) with histopathology. We recommended an adjuvant therapy but the patient refused. Since then we followed her up. After two years from the operation, multiple metastases were observed to the liver, FEC therapy was started. CT revealed that metastasized tumors were disappeared after six courses of treatment. Echography obtained cCR. Generally speaking, chemotherapy was effective for breast cancer as we compared it to endemic cancer of other organs. Meanwhile, it has been reported that many kinds of newly developed medicines for the treatment are available and effective. On the other hand, a selection of therapeutic drugs could be a problem for metastasized organs.

Digestibility Is Similar between Commercial Diets That Provide Ingredients with Different Perceived Glycemic Responses and the Inaccuracy of Using the Modified Atwater Calculation to Calculate Metabolizable Energy

Science.gov (United States)

Asaro, Natalie J.; Guevara, Marcial A.; Berendt, Kimberley; Zijlstra, Ruurd; Shoveller, Anna K.

2017-01-01

Dietary starch is required for a dry, extruded kibble; the most common diet type for domesticated felines in North America. However, the amount and source of dietary starch may affect digestibility and metabolism of other macronutrients. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of 3 commercial cat diets on in vivo and in vitro energy and macronutrient digestibility, and to analyze the accuracy of the modified Atwater equation. Dietary treatments differed in their perceived glycemic response (PGR) based on ingredient composition and carbohydrate content (34.1, 29.5, and 23.6% nitrogen-free extract for High, Medium, and LowPGR, respectively). A replicated 3 × 3 Latin square design was used, with 3 diets and 3 periods. In vivo apparent protein, fat, and organic matter digestibility differed among diets, while apparent dry matter digestibility did not. Cats were able to efficiently digest and absorb macronutrients from all diets. Furthermore, the modified Atwater equation underestimated measured metabolizable energy by approximately 12%. Thus, the modified Atwater equation does not accurately determine the metabolizable energy of high quality feline diets. Further research should focus on understanding carbohydrate metabolism in cats, and establishing an equation that accurately predicts the metabolizable energy of feline diets. PMID:29117110

Digestibility Is Similar between Commercial Diets That Provide Ingredients with Different Perceived Glycemic Responses and the Inaccuracy of Using the Modified Atwater Calculation to Calculate Metabolizable Energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalie J. Asaro

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Dietary starch is required for a dry, extruded kibble; the most common diet type for domesticated felines in North America. However, the amount and source of dietary starch may affect digestibility and metabolism of other macronutrients. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of 3 commercial cat diets on in vivo and in vitro energy and macronutrient digestibility, and to analyze the accuracy of the modified Atwater equation. Dietary treatments differed in their perceived glycemic response (PGR based on ingredient composition and carbohydrate content (34.1, 29.5, and 23.6% nitrogen-free extract for High, Medium, and LowPGR, respectively. A replicated 3 × 3 Latin square design was used, with 3 diets and 3 periods. In vivo apparent protein, fat, and organic matter digestibility differed among diets, while apparent dry matter digestibility did not. Cats were able to efficiently digest and absorb macronutrients from all diets. Furthermore, the modified Atwater equation underestimated measured metabolizable energy by approximately 12%. Thus, the modified Atwater equation does not accurately determine the metabolizable energy of high quality feline diets. Further research should focus on understanding carbohydrate metabolism in cats, and establishing an equation that accurately predicts the metabolizable energy of feline diets.

Physiological responses to copper in giant clams: a comparison of two methods in revealing effects on photosynthesis in zooxanthellae.

Science.gov (United States)

Elfwing, Tina; Blidberg, Eva; Tedengren, Michael

2002-08-01

In the present work physiological responses to a short term, sub-lethal exposure to copper (5 microg Cu2 l(-1) were studied on two species of giant clams, Tridacna gigas and Hippopus hippopus. All giant clams (fam. Tridacnidae) maintain a symbiotic relationship with photo-synthesising microalgae (zooxanthellae) and the phytotoxic effects of this copper concentration were approached with two different end points: changes in oxygen production and maximal quantum yield (Fv/Fm). Additionally we measured respiration, whereby Pg:R ratios could be calculated for the system (algae and clam) and used as an indicator of stress. Cu accumulation was only determined for T. gigas and showed significantly higher tissue concentrations in exposed specimens (11.3 microg Cu g(-1) dry wt) compared to the controls (4.2 microg Cu g(-1)). Both species displayed significantly reduced Pg:R ratios due to exposure, mainly explained by lowered gross production. No indication of stress was shown in the fluorescence measurements and possible explanations are discussed in the paper. We propose that inhibitions in the slow kinetics of photosynthesis were not captured by this fluorescence parameter. Accordingly we suggest that measurements of maximum fluorescence yield should be accompanied by complementary parameters when studying pollutants with unclear phytotoxic mechanisms.

Cadmium mimics the in vivo effects of estrogen in the uterus and mammary gland.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Michael D; Kenney, Nicholas; Stoica, Adriana; Hilakivi-Clarke, Leena; Singh, Baljit; Chepko, Gloria; Clarke, Robert; Sholler, Peter F; Lirio, Apolonio A; Foss, Colby; Reiter, Ronald; Trock, Bruce; Paik, Soonmyoung; Martin, Mary Beth

2003-08-01

It has been suggested that environmental contaminants that mimic the effects of estrogen contribute to disruption of the reproductive systems of animals in the wild, and to the high incidence of hormone-related cancers and diseases in Western populations. Previous studies have shown that functionally, cadmium acts like steroidal estrogens in breast cancer cells as a result of its ability to form a high-affinity complex with the hormone binding domain of the estrogen receptor. The results of the present study show that cadmium also has potent estrogen-like activity in vivo. Exposure to cadmium increased uterine wet weight, promoted growth and development of the mammary glands and induced hormone-regulated genes in ovariectomized animals. In the uterus, the increase in wet weight was accompanied by proliferation of the endometrium and induction of progesterone receptor (PgR) and complement component C3. In the mammary gland, cadmium promoted an increase in the formation of side branches and alveolar buds and the induction of casein, whey acidic protein, PgR and C3. In utero exposure to the metal also mimicked the effects of estrogens. Female offspring experienced an earlier onset of puberty and an increase in the epithelial area and the number of terminal end buds in the mammary gland.

Efficient somatic embryogenesis and molecular marker based analysis as effective tools for conservation of red-listed plant Commiphora wightii

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ASHOK KUMAR PARMAR

2014-08-01

Full Text Available A refined and high efficiency protocol for in vitro regeneration of Commiphora wightii, a red-listed medicinal plant of medicinal importance, has been developed through optimized somatic embryogenesis pathway. Cultures from immature fruits were induced and proliferated on B5 medium supplemented with 2.26 µM 2,4-D. Embryogenic calli were obtained and then maintained for extended periods by alternately subculturing on modified MS medium supplemented with 1.11 µM BAP, 0.57 µM IBA and with 0.5% activated charcoal or without PGR every 3-4 weeks. Cyclic embryogenesis was obtained. Late torpedo and early cotyledonary stages somatic embryos were regularly harvested from PGR-free modified MS medium. It was found that percent moisture available in culture containers play a critical role in maturation and subsequent germination of somatic embryos of C. wighti. Maximum germination of more than 80% was achieved through media recycling. Somatic embryo derived plants (emblings were acclimatized. After 5 months, acclimatized plants were out-planted in experimental field. These morphologically normal plants have been surviving for over 3 years. Molecular polymorphism was clearly evident when these plants were tested using RAPD primers, making the plants suitable for use in its species restoration program.

Is costly punishment altruistic? Exploring rejection of unfair offers in the Ultimatum Game in real-world altruists.

Science.gov (United States)

Brethel-Haurwitz, Kristin M; Stoycos, Sarah A; Cardinale, Elise M; Huebner, Bryce; Marsh, Abigail A

2016-01-07

In the Ultimatum Game (UG), incurring a cost to punish inequity is commonly termed altruistic punishment. This behaviour is thought to benefit others if the defector becomes more equitable in future interactions. However, clear connections between punishment in the UG and altruistic behaviours outside the laboratory are lacking. We tested the altruistic punishment hypothesis in a sample of extraordinarily altruistic adults, predicting that if punishing inequity is predictive of altruism more broadly, extraordinary altruists should punish more frequently. Results showed that punishment was not more prevalent in extraordinary altruists than controls. However, a self-reported altruism measure previously linked to peer evaluations but not behaviour, and on which extraordinary altruists and controls did not differ, did predict punishment. These findings support suggestions that altruistic punishment in the UG is better termed costly punishment and may be motivated by social, but not necessarily prosocial, concerns. Results also support prior suggestions that self-reported altruism may not reliably predict altruistic behaviour.

Evaluation of the use of transglutaminase in dairy drinks made from goat milk

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Daniela Cristina Faria Vieira

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of transglutaminase in dairy drinks made from with goat milk with 45% of serum, and the physical, chemical, microbiological and sensory characteristics of these drinks within the expiration date of the product. In the first phase, five different levels of transglutaminase (0, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 U/g were evaluated. In the second phase, the drink that had the best sensory acceptability was evaluated for 30 days. It was observed that the dairy drink treated with 0.5 U/g transglutaminase showed higher sensory acceptability in relation to the 7.18 overall impression. The color values of the dairy drink treated with 0.5 U/g showed no significant difference (p<0.05. The values of lactic acid bacteria are established according to the legislation. Results show the feasibility of the use of transglutaminase in dairy drinks.