The Impact of Temperature on Physical Activity Levels During a 12-Week Walking Intervention

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Comparative Experimental Infection Study in Dogs with Ehrlichia canis, E. chaffeensis, Anaplasma platys and A. phagocytophilum

Citation: Nair, A. D. S., Cheng, C., Ganta, C. K., Sanderson, M. W., Alleman, A. R., Munderloh, U. G., & Ganta, R. R. (2016). Comparative Experimental Infection Study in Dogs with Ehrlichia canis, E. chaffeensis, Anaplasma platys and A. phagocytophilum. Plos One, 11(2), 21. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0148239Dogs acquire infections with the Anaplasmataceae family pathogens, E. canis, E. chaffeensis, E. ewingii, A. platys and A. phagocytophilum mostly during summer months when ticks are actively feeding on animals. These pathogens are also identified as causing diseases in people. Despite the long history of tick-borne diseases in dogs, much remains to be defined pertaining to the clinical and pathological outcomes of infections with these pathogens. In the current study, we performed experimental infections in dogs with E. canis, E. chaffeensis, A. platys and A. phagocytophilum. Animals were monitored for 42 days to evaluate infection-specific clinical, hematological and pathological differences. All four pathogens caused systemic persistent infections detectible throughout the 6 weeks of infection assessment. Fever was frequently detected in animals infected with E. canis, E. chaffeensis, and A. platys, but not in dogs infected with A. phagocytophilum. Hematological differences were evident in all four infected groups, although significant overlap existed between the groups. A marked reduction in packed cell volume that correlated with reduced erythrocytes and hemoglobin was observed only in E. canis infected animals. A decline in platelet numbers was common with E. canis, A. platys and A. phagocytophilum infections. Histopathological lesions in lung, liver and spleen were observed in all four groups of infected dogs; infection with E. canis had the highest pathological scores, followed by E. chaffeensis, then A. platys and A. phagocytophilum. All four pathogens induced IgG responses starting on day 7 post infection, which was predominantly comprised of IgG2 subclass antibodies. This is the first detailed investigation comparing the infection progression and host responses in dogs after inoculation with four pathogens belonging to the Anaplasmataceae family. The study revealed a significant overlap in clinical, hematological and pathological changes resulting from the infections

Achievement of Low Emissions by Engine Modification to Utilize Gas-to-Liquid Fuel and Advanced Emission Controls on a Class 8 Truck

A 2002 Cummins ISM engine was modified to be optimized for operation on gas-to-liquid (GTL) fuel and advanced emission control devices. The engine modifications included increased exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), decreased compression ratio, and reshaped piston and bowl configuration

Stability of Biodiesel and Biodiesel Blends: Interim Report

This is an interim report for a study of biodiesel oxidative stability. It describes characterization and accelerated stability test results for 19 B100 samples and six diesel fuels

Time-to-birth prediction models and the influence of expert opinions

Preterm birth is the leading cause of death among children under five years old. The pathophysiology and etiology of preterm labor are not yet fully understood. This causes a large number of unnecessary hospitalizations due to high--sensitivity clinical policies, which has a significant psychological and economic impact. In this study, we present a predictive model, based on a new dataset containing information of 1,243 admissions, that predicts whether a patient will give birth within a given time after admission. Such a model could provide support in the clinical decision-making process. Predictions for birth within 48 h or 7 days after admission yield an Area Under the Curve of the Receiver Operating Characteristic (AUC) of 0.72 for both tasks. Furthermore, we show that by incorporating predictions made by experts at admission, which introduces a potential bias, the prediction effectiveness increases to an AUC score of 0.83 and 0.81 for these respective tasks

A Comparison of Qualifications Based-Selection and Best Value Procurement for Construction Manager/General Contractor Highway Construction

Faster project delivery and the infusion of contractor knowledge into design are the primary drivers for choosing construction manager/general contractor (CM/GC) project delivery. This paper focuses on the use of qualifications-based (QBS) and best-value (BV) procurement approaches, how and why agencies use each, and their associated opportunities and obstacles. Data for this study were obtained from a majority of federally funded CM/GC projects completed between 2005 to 2015. The findings are that BV and QBS projects characteristics and performance have no statistically significant difference. The choice of BV or QBS coincides with the agency’s CM/GC stage of organizational development and influences of non-agency stakeholders on the CM/GC process. When agencies and the local industry are new to CM/GC, they were found to use BV as it is closer to the traditional procurement culture and it is perceived to result in a fair market project price. Alternatively, agencies and local industry partners with an established history of using CM/GC were found to choose QBS. The low level of design at the time of procurement, means that assumptions relating to risk, production rates, materials sources, etc. may be too preliminary to secure a reliable price. The use of BV procurement was found to pose a risk to innovation and increase negotiation efforts. Qualitative trends from the project data, interviews and literature point to agencies using QBS for the majority of CM/GC project and BV on CM/GC projects with lesser complexity or more highly developed designs at the time of selection

UNA DINÁMICA EXPERIMENTAL EDUCATIVA E INTERACTIVA EN EL MUSEO DE HISTORIA NATURAL “VERA ALLEMAN HAEGHEBAERT ”: LÍNEA DE TIEMPO

El Día Internacional de los Museos se celebra cada año el 18 de mayo, fecha para la cual el Museo de Historia Natural “Vera Alleman Haeghebaert”, de la Universidad Ricardo Palma organiza diversas actividades, desde conferencias para el alumnado hasta dinámicas de rigor social que involucren la difusión del conocimiento a diferentes niveles educativos. Es así que se crea la dinámica denominada “Línea de Tiempo”, con una visión educativa apoyada en el conocimiento científico y transformada en una actividad con opción a variaciones según el grado académico de las personas participantes, y que otorga accesibilidad a información sobre la historia de nuestro planeta. Recibiendo cada participante un número de imágenes de especies deflora y fauna extinta, este deberá clasificarlo en el periodo geológico correcto luego de haber recibido la explicación correspondiente en la visita al museo, reforzando así lo expuesto, creando identidad con los fósiles peruanos incluidos en la dinámica y dando a conocer la importancia de la protección de los yacimientos paleontológicos que nos permiten tener este conocimiento

Optimization of Conductivity and Transparency in Amorphous In-Zn-O Transparent Conductors: Preprint

Amorphous mixed metal oxide TCOs are of increasing interest due to the excellent opto-electronic properties and smoothness (RRMS < 0.5 nm) obtained for sputtered films deposited at less than 100 ..deg..C. Here, we have investigated the combined materials phase space of oxygen stoichiometry and metals composition (In:Zn ratio) and made two key discoveries

Requirement of CHROMOMETHYLASE3 for somatic inheritance of the spontaneous tomato epimutation Colourless non-ripening

Naturally-occurring epimutants are rare and have mainly been described in plants. However how these mutants maintain their epigenetic marks and how they are inherited remain unknown. Here we report that CHROMOMETHYLASE3 (SlCMT3) and other methyltransferases are required for maintenance of a spontaneous epimutation and its cognate Colourless non-ripening (Cnr) phenotype in tomato. We screened a series of DNA methylation-related genes that could rescue the hypermethylated Cnr mutant. Silencing of the developmentally-regulated SlCMT3 gene results in increased expression of LeSPL-CNR, the gene encodes the SBP-box transcription factor residing at the Cnr locus and triggers Cnr fruits to ripen normally. Expression of other key ripening-genes was also up-regulated. Targeted and whole-genome bisulfite sequencing showed that the induced ripening of Cnr fruits is associated with reduction of methylation at CHG sites in a 286-bp region of the LeSPL-CNR promoter, and a decrease of DNA methylation in differentially-methylated regions associated with the LeMADS-RIN binding sites. Our results indicate that there is likely a concerted effect of different ethyltransferases at the Cnr locus and the plant-specific SlCMT3 is essential for sustaining Cnr epi-allele. Maintenance of DNA methylation dynamics is critical for the somatic stability of Cnr epimutation and for the inheritance of tomato non-ripening phenotype

Intercomparison Exercise for Heavy Metals in PM10

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) has carried out an Intercomparison Exercise (IE) for the determination of heavy metals in particulate matter (PM10). The IE focussed on Lead (Pb), Arsenic (As), Nickel (Ni) and Cadmium (Cd), the heavy metals regulated by the 1st and 4th Daughter Directives for Air Pollution. Copper (Cu), Chromium (Cr) and Zinc (Zn), the elements included in the EMEP programme together with Aluminium (Al), Cobalt (Co), Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn) and Vanadium (V) were also tested. Fourteen Laboratories, generally members of the Network of Air Quality Reference Laboratories (AQUILA), participated in the IE. The participants mainly used microwave digestion with nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) or Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (GF-AAS) for analysis as recommended in the reference method (EN 14902). However, a few participants used other methods: Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF), Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES) and Voltammetry for analysis and vaporisation on hot plate before microwave digestion, Soxhlet extraction, high pressure or cold Hydrogen Fluoride methods for digestion. Each participant received 5 samples to be analysed: a liquid sample prepared by dilution of a Certified Reference Material (CRM), a solution of a dust CRM sample digested by the JRC13F, a sub-sample of a dust CRM that each participating laboratory had to digest and analyse, a solution prepared by JRC after digestion of an exposed filter and a pair of filters (one blank filter and one exposed filter) to be digested and analysed by each participant. For 89 % of all types of samples, the DQOs of the 1st and 4th European Directives (uncertainty of 25 % for Pb and 40 % for As, Cd and Ni) were met. All together, this is a very good score. The best results were obtained for the liquid CRM, dust CRM digested by JRC, dust CRM and filter digested by JRC with 92, 90, 96 and 93 % of DQOs being met, respectively. It was found that the DQOs were not met if the difference of acidity between test samples and participant calibration standards was high. Conversely, only 76 % of DQOs were met for the filter to be digested by each participant with (about 85 % for Cd and Ni, 73/64 % for Pb and As, the most difficult element to determine). The worst results were associated with special events: explosion in microwave oven during digestion for two participants, a wrong dilution factor used by one participant and a huge contamination in the blank filter for another participant. Among the two explosions, one of them was probably the effect of a lack of temperature control in the digestion vessel. For the other explosion, the microwave digestion and the digestion program advised by EN 14902 is to be questioned. Moreover, satisfactory results were obtained using Soxhlet extraction, high pressure method and cold Hydrogen Fluoride digestion methods which are not presented in EN 14902. The DQOs of As and Cd could not be met with EDXRF whose limit of detection was too high for these two elements and for Cd using Voltammetry which suffered a strong interference for this element. Regarding the methods of analysis, apart the points mentioned just before about EDXRF and Voltammetry, good results were observed using ICP-OES for Cd, Ni and Pb. A few discrepancies were also registered for GF-AAS and ICP-MS but they were created by the special events or acidity problem mentioned before. This shows that even though GF-AAS and ICP-MS are found suitable, the implementation by each participant may be responsible for important mistakes.JRC.H.4-Transport and air qualit