First Record of \u3ci\u3eOchlerotatus Japonicus\u3c/i\u3e (Diptera: Culicidae) in St. Joseph County, Indiana

A single female specimen of Ochlerotatus japonicus (Theobald)(formerly Aedes japonicus), the Asian bush mosquito, was captured in St. Joseph County, IN on 29 July 2004. This is the first report of that species in northern Indiana. Additional specimens were subsequently collected, indicating probable establishment throughout the county

Direct glass bonded high specific power silicon solar cells for space applications

A lightweight, radiation hard, high performance, ultra-thin silicon solar cell is described that incorporates light trapping and a cover glass as an integral part of the device. The manufacturing feasibility of high specific power, radiation insensitive, thin silicon solar cells was demonstrated experimentally and with a model. Ultra-thin, light trapping structures were fabricated and the light trapping demonstrated experimentally. The design uses a micro-machined, grooved back surface to increase the optical path length by a factor of 20. This silicon solar cell will be highly tolerant to radiation because the base width is less than 25 microns making it insensitive to reduction in minority carrier lifetime. Since the silicon is bonded without silicone adhesives, this solar cell will also be insensitive to UV degradation. These solar cells are designed as a form, fit, and function replacement for existing state of the art silicon solar cells with the effect of simultaneously increasing specific power, power/area, and power supply life. Using a 3-mil thick cover glass and a 0.3 g/sq cm supporting Al honeycomb, a specific power for the solar cell plus cover glass and honeycomb of 80.2 W/Kg is projected. The development of this technology can result in a revolutionary improvement in high survivability silicon solar cell products for space with the potential to displace all existing solar cell technologies for single junction space applications

Dual positive and negative regulation of GPCR signaling by GTP hydrolysis

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) regulate a variety of intracellular pathways through their ability to promote the binding of GTP to heterotrimeric G proteins. Regulator of G protein signaling (RGS) proteins increase the intrinsic GTPase activity of G-subunits and are widely regarded as negative regulators of G protein signaling. Using yeast we demonstrate that GTP hydrolysis is not only required for desensitization, but is essential for achieving a high maximal (saturated level) response. Thus RGS-mediated GTP hydrolysis acts as both a negative (low stimulation) and positive (high stimulation) regulator of signaling. To account for this we generated a new kinetic model of the G protein cycle where GGTP enters an inactive GTP-bound state following effector activation. Furthermore, in vivo and in silico experimentation demonstrates that maximum signaling output first increases and then decreases with RGS concentration. This unimodal, non-monotone dependence on RGS concentration is novel. Analysis of the kinetic model has revealed a dynamic network motif that shows precisely how inclusion of the inactive GTP-bound state for the G produces this unimodal relationship

Mortality Rate of Bullous Pemphigoid in a US Medical Center

All patients at the Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals with a new diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid (BP) between May 1, 1997 and September 1, 2002 were included in this study. The age at onset, date of death or date of last follow-up visit, mode of treatment, co-morbidities, and initial and follow-up hospitalizations were noted. Thirty-eight new patients were identified and complete follow-up data were obtained on 37 of the patients. Patients were followed a minimum of 1 y or until the time of death. The mean duration of follow-up was 20 mo. Kaplan–Meier analysis of our population indicated a 1-y survival probability of 88.96% (standard error 5.21%), with a 95% confidence interval (75.6%, 94.2%). This survival rate was considerably higher than that recently reported in several studies from Europe (29%–41% first year mortality). Although the age at onset and co-morbidities of our patients were similar to those in the European studies, the rate of hospitalization of our patients was much lower than that of patients from Europe (1.5 d per patient vs 11–25 d per patient). This study suggests that differences in practice patterns may be an important factor in the reduced mortality rate in US BP patients compared with Europe

Sleep Disturbances in Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Relationship to Pain and Depression

Objective This study is an examination of sleep, pain, depression, and physical functioning at baseline and 1-year followup among patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Although it is clear that these symptoms are prevalent among FMS patients and that they are related, the direction of the relationship is unclear. We sought to identify and report sleep problems in this population and to examine their relationship to pain, depression, and physical functioning. Methods Patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia were recruited from a Southern California health maintenance organization and evaluated according to American College of Rheumatology criteria in the research laboratory. Six hundred patients completed the baseline assessment and 492 completed the 1-year assessment. Measures included the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, the McGill Pain Questionnaire, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire. Results The majority of the sample (96% at baseline and 94.7% at 1 year) scored within the range of problem sleepers. Path analyses examined the impact of baseline values on 1-year values for each of the 4 variables. No variable of interest predicted sleep, sleep predicted pain (β = 0.13), pain predicted physical functioning (β = −0.13), and physical functioning predicted depression (β = −0.10). Conclusion These findings highlight the high prevalence of sleep problems in this population and suggest that they play a critical role in exacerbating FMS symptoms. Furthermore, they support limited existing findings that sleep predicts subsequent pain in this population, but also extend the literature, suggesting that sleep may be related to depression through pain and physical functioning

Coping Among Breast Cancer Survivors: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Brief COPE

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Cancer survivors continue to cope with significant stressors after completing treatment. The Brief COPE (Carver, 1997) is frequently used to measure coping; however, its factor structure remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the best factor conceptualization of the Brief COPE for use among breast cancer survivors. METHODS: Breast cancer survivors (N = 1,127) completed the Brief COPE. We conducted confirmatory factor analyses comparing several a priori models based on research in cancer-relevant populations. RESULTS: Of the eight models examined, the 14-factor model of the Brief COPE showed the best fit. CONCLUSIONS: Despite efforts to simplify the structure of the Brief COPE, our results suggest coping among breast cancer survivors is best assessed using Carver's (1997) original 14-factor conceptualization

Rates of species introduction to a remote oceanic island

The introduction of species to areas beyond the limits of their natural distributions has a major homogenizing influence, making previously distinct biotas more similar. The scale of introductions has frequently been commented on, but their rate and spatial pervasiveness have been less well quantified. Here, we report the findings of a detailed study of pterygote insect introductions to Gough Island, one of the most remote and supposedly pristine temperate oceanic islands, and estimate the rate at which introduced species have successfully established. Out of 99 species recorded from Gough Island, 71 are established introductions, the highest proportion documented for any Southern Ocean island. Estimating a total of approximately 233 landings on Gough Island since first human landfall, this equates to one successful establishment for every three to four landings. Generalizations drawn from other areas suggest that this may be only one-tenth of the number of pterygote species that have arrived at the island, implying that most landings may lead to the arrival of at least one alien. These rates of introduction of new species are estimated to be two to three orders of magnitude greater than background levels for Gough Island, an increase comparable to that estimated for global species extinctions (many of which occur on islands) as a consequence of human activities

Initial Metabolic Profiles Are Associated with 7-Day Survival among Infants Born at 22-25 Weeks of Gestation.

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the association between early metabolic profiles combined with infant characteristics and survival past 7 days of age in infants born at 22-25 weeks of gestation. STUDY DESIGN:This nested case-control consisted of 465 singleton live births in California from 2005 to 2011 at 22-25 weeks of gestation. All infants had newborn metabolic screening data available. Data included linked birth certificate and mother and infant hospital discharge records. Mortality was derived from linked death certificates and death discharge information. Each death within 7 days was matched to 4 surviving controls by gestational age and birth weight z score category, leaving 93 cases and 372 controls. The association between explanatory variables and 7-day survival was modeled via stepwise logistic regression. Infant characteristics, 42 metabolites, and 12 metabolite ratios were considered for model inclusion. Model performance was assessed via area under the curve. RESULTS:The final model included 1 characteristic and 11 metabolites. The model demonstrated a strong association between metabolic patterns and infant survival (area under the curve [AUC] 0.885, 95% CI 0.851-0.920). Furthermore, a model with just the selected metabolites performed better (AUC 0.879, 95% CI 0.841-0.916) than a model with multiple clinical characteristics (AUC 0.685, 95% CI 0.627-0.742). CONCLUSIONS:Use of metabolomics significantly strengthens the association with 7-day survival in infants born extremely premature. Physicians may be able to use metabolic profiles at birth to refine mortality risks and inform postnatal counseling for infants born at <26 weeks of gestation

Confirmatory factor analysis of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index in women with hot flashes

OBJECTIVE: Women, especially those with hot flashes, report poor sleep quality during various stages of the menopausal transition and postmenopause. Sleep measurements vary widely because of the copious instruments available. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) is a frequently used questionnaire that produces a single score for sleep quality. This one-factor structure has not received consistent support in the literature. The goal of this analysis was to determine the best factor structure of the PSQI in women with hot flashes. METHODS: A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on PSQI baseline data from three randomized controlled clinical trials enrolling perimenopausal and postmenopausal women with hot flashes (N = 849) from the Menopause Strategies: Finding Lasting Answers for Symptoms and Health network. Several a priori factor models were compared. RESULTS: One-factor and two-factor models did not fit the data. A three-factor model comprising sleep efficiency, perceived sleep quality, and daily disturbance showed good fit; however, the sleep medication item was dropped because of poor fit and low rates of sleep medication use. The three-factor model was examined in African-American and white subsamples and was found to be similar in both groups; however, two items showed small group differences in strength as indicators. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep quality in midlife women with hot flashes, as measured by the PSQI, seems to comprise three correlated factors. Minor measurement differences detected between groups are of research interest but do not necessitate different scoring practices. Additional research is needed to further define sleep quality and its associations with health-related outcomes

Cortical neurons multiplex reward-related signals along with sensory and motor information

The ability to learn highly skilled movements may depend on the dopamine-related plasticity occurring in motor cortex, because the density of dopamine receptors—the reward sensor—increases in this area from rodents to primates. We hypothesized that primary motor (M1) and somatosensory (S1) neurons would encode rewards during operant conditioned motor behaviors. Rhesus monkeys were implanted with cortical multielectrode implants and trained to perform arm-reaching tasks with different reward schedules. Consistent with our hypothesis, M1 and S1 neurons represented reward anticipation and delivery and a mismatch between the quantities of anticipated and actual rewards. These same neurons also represented arm movement parameters. We suggest that this multiplexing of motor and reinforcement information by cortical neurons underlies motor learning