22 research outputs found
From Romantic Gothic to Victorian Medievalism: 1817 and 1877
"The Cambridge History of the Gothic was conceived in 2015, when Linda Bree, then Editorial Director at Cambridge University Press, first suggested the idea to us
High-Throughput Screening and Quantitative Chemical Ranking for Sodium-Iodide Symporter Inhibitors in ToxCast Phase I Chemical Library
Thyroid
uptake of iodide via the sodium-iodide symporter (NIS)
is the first step in the biosynthesis of thyroid hormones that are
critical for health and development in humans and wildlife. Despite
having long been a known target of endocrine disrupting chemicals
such as perchlorate, information regarding NIS inhibition activity
is still unavailable for the vast majority of environmental chemicals.
This study applied a previously validated high-throughput approach
to screen for NIS inhibitors in the ToxCast phase I library, representing
293 important environmental chemicals. Here 310 blinded samples were
screened in a tiered-approach using an initial single-concentration
(100 ÎŒM) radioactive-iodide uptake (RAIU) assay, followed by
169 samples further evaluated in multi-concentration (0.001 ÎŒMâ100
ÎŒM) testing in parallel RAIU and cell viability assays. A novel
chemical ranking system that incorporates multi-concentration RAIU
and cytotoxicity responses was also developed as a standardized method
for chemical prioritization in current and future screenings. Representative
chemical responses and thyroid effects of high-ranking chemicals are
further discussed. This study significantly expands current knowledge
of NIS inhibition potential in environmental chemicals and provides
critical support to U.S. EPAâs Endocrine Disruptor Screening
Program (EDSP) initiative to expand coverage of thyroid molecular
targets, as well as the development of thyroid adverse outcome pathways
(AOPs)
Decomposition of terrestrial resource subsidies in headwater streams: Does consumer diversity matter?
<p>Resource subsidies and biodiversity are essential for maintaining community structure and ecosystem functioning, but the relative importance of consumer diversity and resource characteristics to decomposition remains unclear. Forested headwater streams are detritus-based systems, dependent on leaf litter inputs from adjacent riparian ecosystems, and decomposition of these resources is an important ecosystem function. Here, we examined the effects of consumer community diversity on leaf decomposition in a reciprocal transplant experiment. We asked (1) whether stream consumer communities are adapted to local resources and (2) how functional trait diversity among communities affects the leaf decomposition process. We did not find evidence that communities were adapted to locally derived resource subsidies. Instead, we found that consumer biomass and functional trait diversity as well as resource characteristics were the primary biotic drivers of decomposition. Consumer biomass was stimulated by specific resource subsidies, leading to direct and indirect effects of resource subsidies on ecosystem functioning. Contrary to current theory, we show that decomposition was higher with decreased detritivore functional diversity, suggesting dominant traits encompassing a specific niche increased decomposition. We also show that top-down, consumer diversity effects can be equal in magnitude to the bottom-up effects of resource characteristics during the decomposition process. Our research illustrates the importance of considering multiple biotic and abiotic drivers interacting via multiple pathways to affect a crucial ecosystem function.</p><br><p></p