Forestry Bulletin No. 17: Films and Filmstrips on Forestry

Motion picture films and filmstrips in forestry and related fields are available from many sources in America. This publication is an attempt to provide for foresters and others interested in such aids a convenient means for selecting materials to meet their particular needs.https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/forestrybulletins/1013/thumbnail.jp

Bioaerosol Composition and Associated Hazards in a Prominent Fruit Beverage Production Facility

ThesisBioaerosols are defined as aerosols that comprise particles of biological origin or activity that may affect living organisms through infectivity, allergenicity, toxicity, or through pharmacological or other processes. Interest in bioaerosol exposure has increased over the last few decades. This is mainly due to the association of bioaerosols with a wide variety of adverse health effects that have a major public health impact such as contagious infectious diseases, acute toxic effects, allergies, and cancer. Exposure to bioaerosols may cause three major problems in the food industry, namely: (i) contamination of food (spoilage); (ii) allergic reactions in individual consumers; or (iii) infection by means of pathogenic microorganisms present in the aerosol. Unfortunately, there is limited information available with regards to the specific organisms/biological agents involved in these processes and how exactly these processes occur. This deficiency in knowledge can be attributed to a lack of research on these processes, possibly because the importance of bioaerosols has not been considered. Furthermore, international standards on acceptable maximum bioaerosol loads are not uniform, which creates confusion as to what the acceptable limit of microorganisms in bioaerosols should be. There is also a lack of standardised methods for the collection and analysis of bacterial and fungal bioaerosols, making it difficult to compare the data released by various researchers. According to the literature, controversy exists regarding: (i) the effect of the environment and season on bioaerosols; (ii) types of sampling procedures; (iii) whether the detection of the culturable fraction of bioaerosols is efficient; and (iv) whether these bioaerosols can in actual fact affect the product or cause occupational health problems. The aim of this study was therefore to address the above-mentioned questions by means of an investigation in a selected fruit juice production facility. The culturable and non-culturable fraction of bioaerosols were collected in this facility by active sampling using SAMPL’AIR LITE (AES Chemunex), a standard bioaerosol sampler, in different areas of the facility during the peak and off-peak seasons. It is noteworthy that the microbial counts observed during this study were high, with high total microbial counts detected during both sampling periods. This indicates that the air in the selected facility created ideal conditions for all types of bioaerosols. Traces of presumptive positive pathogens as well as yeast and mould were observed in the samples collected from five designated areas. Several environmental factors were analysed, but temperature was the only concrete environmental factor observed in the facility during this study. However, statistical analyses indicated that temperature had no statistically significant effect on the presence of bioaerosols in the facility. More than 380 bioaerosols were detected during culturable identification, with 92 different species confirmed. A unique group of controversial bioaerosols was identified, ranging from highly probable pathogens such as Bacillus spp., Staphylococcus spp. and even Candida spp. Not only were harmful microorganisms identified in the bioaerosols, but microorganisms that are capable of bio-diesel production, that possess anti-tumour activities and that are capable of post-harvest control were also detected. Data obtained by PCR-DGGE analysis were used to determine the similarity, richness and diversity of the bacterial composition in the different areas of the facility during the two sampling seasons. The highest microbial diversity and richness was obtained in the air of the area where the bottles were filled with the final product and where a large number of personnel was present. Data obtained during this study indicated high microbial counts and species diversity in the air of this specific production facility. Even though this does raise concern, it is important to note that the dose-relationship of microorganisms, even for pathogenic agents, has not yet been established. This is mainly due to a lack of valid methods to qualitatively assess exposure. It is therefore clear that there is still a need for the development of an environment/sample/facility sampler for bioaerosols in order to facilitate the immediate evaluation of the specific health risks associated with a specific industry. The information obtained by means of this study will be useful to address this gap in knowledge and will aid the fruit juice industry to better understand and control bioaerosols in their facilities. This may also relate to other industries where it is necessary for more specific, valid risk assessments and control of bioaerosols in order to ensure product and occupational health safety

1979-81 Catalog

https://encompass.eku.edu/ug_cat/1056/thumbnail.jp

1984-86 Catalog

https://encompass.eku.edu/ug_cat/1058/thumbnail.jp

Molecular mechanisms of hypoplastic left heart syndrome

Das hypoplastische Linksherzsyndrom (HLHS) stellt ein kongenitales Herz- und Gefäßfehlbildungssyndrom dar, welches durch eine Atresie oder Stenose der Aorten- und Mitralklappe sowie eine Hypoplasie des linken Ventrikels und der Aorta gekennzeichnet ist. Das HLHS ist unbehandelt ursächlich für 25 bis 40 % der neonatalen kardialen Todesfälle und gehört zu den schwerwiegendsten kongenitalen Herzfehlbildungen (CHDs). Die Ätiologie des HLHS ist bis heute weitgehend unklar. Um die molekularen Mechanismen in der Entstehung des HLHS zu untersuchen, wurden in dieser Arbeit Analysen auf Genom-, Epigenom- und Transkriptomebene an Keimbahn- bzw. Herzgewebematerial von Patienten mit HLHS und anderen CHDs durchgeführt. Dies umfasste auf Keimbahnebene Gesamt-Exom-Sequenzierungs (WES)-Analysen von Familien mit Catel-Manzke-Syndrom sowie von Familien mit nicht-syndromalen HLHS-Fällen. Auf somatischer Ebene wurden Herzgewebeproben von HLHS-Patienten hinsichtlich pathogener Mutationen untersucht und RNA-Sequenzierungen durchgeführt. Zudem erfolgten DNA-Methylierungsanalysen an Herzgewebe von Patienten mit HLHS und anderen CHDs. Auf Keimbahnebene ließen sich kausale Genvarianten im TGDS-Gen bei drei Familien mit Catel-Manzke-Syndrom und eine kausale de novo Splice-Donor-Mutation in NR2F2 bei einem nicht-syndromalen Fall mit HLHS nachweisen. Neben potenziell krankheitsrelevanten Genvarianten in C15orf62, TNKS1BP1 und PRF1 im familiären Kontext konnten auf somatischer Ebene im Herzgewebe der HLHS-Patienten funktionelle Mutationen in Genen kardialer Entwicklungsprozesse, wie z.B. NOTCH1, detektiert werden. Des Weiteren ließen sich erstmalig in primärem Herzgewebe von Patienten mit CHDs herzregionspezifische DNA-Methylierungsprofile nachweisen. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit lassen vermuten, dass prädisponierende vererbte Genvarianten in Kombination mit somatischen Mutationen und epigenetischen Aberrationen im Herzgewebe der Patienten in der Pathogenese des HLHS involviert sind.Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) displays a severe congenital heart defect (CHD) that encompasses a spectrum of structural defects characterized by atresia or stenosis of the aortic and mitral valve, as well as a hypoplasia of the left ventricle and aorta. HLHS, if left untreated, is responsible for 25 to 40 % of all neonatal cardiac deaths and represents one of the most severe cardiac malformations. The etiology of HLHS still remains unknown. In order to investigate the molecular mechanisms of HLHS, heart tissue and blood samples from different patients with HLHS, as well as from patients displaying other CHDs, have been examined. Genomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic datasets have been generated and analyzed in this thesis. This included a whole exome sequencing (WES) dataset from families with Catel-Manzke syndrome and from families with non-syndromic HLHS. In order to analyze somatic changes potentially involved in the pathogenesis of HLHS, WES and RNA sequencing was performed on heart tissue samples from independent cases. To further evaluate epigenetic alterations, DNA methylation profiles of heart tissue samples from cases with HLHS and different CHDs have been analyzed. Disease-causing mutations in TGDS have been identified in three families with Catel-Manzke syndrome. Furthermore, a de novo donor splice site mutation has been detected as a disease-causing variant in a case with HLHS. A family-based analysis revealed possibly disease-causing mutations in C15orf62, TNKS1BP1 und PRF1. Despite these findings, the analysis on heart tissue samples revealed functional variants in genes which are possibly linked to heart development, such as NOTCH1. For the first time, heart region specific DNA methylation profiles have been detected. The results of the present study suggest that predisposing inherited genetic variants acting in combination with somatic mutations and epigenetic aberrations in cardiac tissue might be involved in the pathogenesis of HLHS

1976-77 Catalog

https://encompass.eku.edu/ug_cat/1055/thumbnail.jp

Bibliography of Lewis Research Center technical publications announced in 1980

This compilation of abstracts describes and indexes over 780 research reports, journal articles, conference presentations, patents and patent applications, and theses resulting from the scientific and engineering work performed and managed by the Lewis Research Center in 1980. All the publications were announced in Scientific and Technical Aerospace Reports and/or International Aerospace Abstracts

Olivet Nazarene University Annual Catalog 1989-1990

https://digitalcommons.olivet.edu/acaff_catalog/1069/thumbnail.jp