The Passion of Gibson: evaluating a recent interpretation of Christ\u27s suffering and death in light of the New Testament

Passion of the Christ Publisher: [S.l.] : Icon Film Distribution, 2004

Device for in-situ cleaving of hard crystals

Cleaving crystals in a vacuum chamber is a simple method for obtaining atomically flat and clean surfaces for materials that have a preferential cleaving plane. Most in-situ cleavers use parallel cutting edges that are applied from two sides on the sample. We found in ambient experiments that diagonal cutting pliers, where the cleavage force is introduced in a single point instead of a line work very well also for hard materials. Here, we incorporate the diagonal cutting plier principle in a design compatible with ultra-high vacuum requirements. We show optical microscopy (mm scale) and atomic force microscopy (atomic scale) images of NiO(001) surfaces cleaved with this device.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures Submitted to Review of Scientific Instruments (2005

Plant Germplasm Resources

Landraces and wild relatives of crops from centers of diversity have been rich sources of resistance to new pathogens, insect pests, and other stresses as well as for traits to improve food and fiber quality, animal feed, and industrial products. Because very few crops grown in the U.S. are native, plant introductions are vital to our agriculture. The National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) was established to acquire, preserve, and distribute plant genetic resources from around the world so that scientists have immediate access to these source materials. The active collection is maintained and distributed by 19 national germplasm repositories. The base collection is preserved at -I8°C at the National Seed Storage Laboratory. The NPGS\u27s genetic resources are made freely available to all bona fide users for the benefit of humankind. Recent international agreements such as the Biodiversity Convention will impact acquisition and exchange of germplasm, but the NPGS goal is to maintain the germplasm exchange critical to feeding the increasing world population in the future

Regulation of sonic hedgehog-GLI1 downstream target genes PTCH1, Cyclin D2, Plakoglobin, PAX6 and NKX2.2 and their epigenetic status in medulloblastoma and astrocytoma

Abstract Background The Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway is critical for cell growth and differentiation. Impairment of this pathway can result in both birth defects and cancer. Despite its importance in cancer development, the Shh pathway has not been thoroughly investigated in tumorigenesis of brain tumors. In this study, we sought to understand the regulatory roles of GLI1, the immediate downstream activator of the Shh signaling pathway on its downstream target genes PTCH1, Cyclin D2, Plakoglobin, NKX2.2 and PAX6 in medulloblastoma and astrocytic tumors. Methods We silenced GLI1 expression in medulloblastoma and astrocytic cell lines by transfection of siRNA against GLI1. Subsequently, we performed RT-PCR and quantitative real time RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) to assay the expression of downstream target genes PTCH1, Cyclin D2, Plakoglobin, NKX2.2 and PAX6. We also attempted to correlate the pattern of expression of GLI1 and its regulated genes in 14 cell lines and 41 primary medulloblastoma and astrocytoma tumor samples. We also assessed the methylation status of the Cyclin D2 and PTCH1 promoters in these 14 cell lines and 58 primary tumor samples. Results Silencing expression of GLI1 resulted up-regulation of all target genes in the medulloblastoma cell line, while only PTCH1 was up-regulated in astrocytoma. We also observed methylation of the cyclin D2 promoter in a significant number of astrocytoma cell lines (63%) and primary astrocytoma tumor samples (32%), but not at all in any medulloblastoma samples. PTCH1 promoter methylation was less frequently observed than Cyclin D2 promoter methylation in astrocytomas, and not at all in medulloblastomas. Conclusions Our results demonstrate different regulatory mechanisms of Shh-GLI1 signaling. These differences vary according to the downstream target gene affected, the origin of the tissue, as well as epigenetic regulation of some of these genes.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78313/1/1471-2407-10-614.xmlhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78313/2/1471-2407-10-614.pdfPeer Reviewe

Theory and Application of Dissociative Electron Capture in Molecular Identification

The coupling of an electron monochromator (EM) to a mass spectrometer (MS) has created a new analytical technique, EM-MS, for the investigation of electrophilic compounds. This method provides a powerful tool for molecular identification of compounds contained in complex matrices, such as environmental samples. EM-MS expands the application and selectivity of traditional MS through the inclusion of a new dimension in the space of molecular characteristics--the electron resonance energy spectrum. However, before this tool can realize its full potential, it will be necessary to create a library of resonance energy scans from standards of the molecules for which EM-MS offers a practical means of detection. Here, an approach supplementing direct measurement with chemical inference and quantum scattering theory is presented to demonstrate the feasibility of directly calculating resonance energy spectra. This approach makes use of the symmetry of the transition-matrix element of the captured electron to discriminate between the spectra of isomers. As a way of validating this approach, the resonance values for twenty-five nitrated aromatic compounds were measured along with their relative abundance. Subsequently, the spectra for the isomers of nitrotoluene were shown to be consistent with the symmetry-based model. The initial success of this treatment suggests that it might be possible to predict negative ion resonances and thus create a library of EM-MS standards.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figure

An Efficient Algorithm for Optimizing Adaptive Quantum Metrology Processes

Quantum-enhanced metrology infers an unknown quantity with accuracy beyond the standard quantum limit (SQL). Feedback-based metrological techniques are promising for beating the SQL but devising the feedback procedures is difficult and inefficient. Here we introduce an efficient self-learning swarm-intelligence algorithm for devising feedback-based quantum metrological procedures. Our algorithm can be trained with simulated or real-world trials and accommodates experimental imperfections, losses, and decoherence

Revealing common artifacts due to ferromagnetic inclusions in highly-oriented pyrolytic graphite

We report on an extensive investigation to figure out the origin of room-temperature ferromagnetism that is commonly observed by SQUID magnetometry in highly-oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). Electron backscattering and X-ray microanalysis revealed the presence of micron-size magnetic clusters (predominantly Fe) that are rare and would be difficult to detect without careful search in a scanning electron microscope in the backscattering mode. The clusters pin to crystal boundaries and their quantities match the amplitude of typical ferromagnetic signals. No ferromagnetic response is detected in samples where we could not find such magnetic inclusions. Our experiments show that the frequently reported ferromagnetism in pristine HOPG is most likely to originate from contamination with Fe-rich inclusions introduced presumably during crystal growth.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

Neoplastic cells are a rare component in human glioblastoma microvasculature

Microvascular proliferation is a key biological and diagnostic hallmark of human glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive forms of human cancer. It has recently been suggested that stem-like glioblastoma cells have the capacity to differentiate into functional endothelial cells, and that a significant proportion of the vascular lining in tumors has a neoplastic origin. In principle, this finding could significantly impact the efficacy and development of antiangiogenic therapies targeting the vasculature. While the potential of stem-like cancer cells to form endothelium in culture seems clear, in our clinical experience using a variety of molecular markers, neoplastic cells do not contribute significantly to the endothelial-lined vasculature of primary human glioblastoma. We sought to confirm this impression by analyzing vessels in glioblastoma previously examined using chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH) for EGFR and immunohistochemistry for mutant IDH1. Vessels containing cells expressing these definitive neoplastic markers were identified in a small fraction of tumors, but only 10% of vessel profiles examined contained such cells and when identified these cells comprised less than 10% of the vascular cellularity in the cross section. Interestingly, these rare intravascular cells showing EGFR amplification by CISH or mutant IDH1 protein by immunohistochemistry were located in the middle or outer portions of vessel walls, but not amongst the morphologic boundaries of the endothelial lining. To more directly address the capacity of glioblastoma cells to contribute to the vascular endothelium, we performed double labeling (Immunofluorescence/FISH) for the endothelial marker CD34 and EGFR gene locus. Although rare CD34 positive neoplastic cells unassociated with vessels were identified (<1%), this analysis did not identify EGFR amplified cells within vascular linings, and further supports our observations that incorporation of glioblastoma cells into the tumor vessels is at best extremely rare, and therefore of questionable clinical or therapeutic significance

Establishment of detailed reference values for luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, estradiol, and progesterone during different phases of the menstrual cycle on the Abbott ARCHITECT® analyzer

During a normal menstrual cycle, serum levels of luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol, and progesterone can vary widely between cycles for the same woman, as well as between different woman. Reliable reference values based on the local population are important for correct interpretation of laboratory results. The purpose of our study was to determine detailed reference values for these hormones throughout the menstrual cycle using the Abbott ARCHITECT system. From 20 volunteers (age 20-36years) with normal cycles and no use of oral contraceptives, samples were taken every day during their cycle. Volunteers received three vaginal ultrasound examinations (days 10 and 13, and 1 or 2days after ovulation) to measure follicular and corpus luteum development. Hormone levels were measured using the corresponding ARCHITECT assay and were synchronized to the LH peak. Median, and 5th and 95th percentile values were determined for each day of the cycle, as well as for early follicular (days −15 to −6), late follicular (days −5 to −1), LH peak (day 0), early luteal (+1 to +4), mid-luteal (days +5 to +9), and late luteal (days +10 to +14) phases of the cycle. Based on our data, we were able to establish detailed reference values for LH, FSH, estradiol, and progesterone, which should aid in the interpretation of results for these reproductive hormones in a variety of circumstances. Clin Chem Lab Med 2006;44:883-