Totally Implantable Biosensor for Metabolic Monitoring and Manufacturing of Complex Parenterals

This seminar will cover Implantable, miniaturized biosensors for glucose monitoring and as well as aspects of manufacturing of complex parenterals. The development of a smart biosensor coating (containing drug releasing microspheres in a hydrogel) that prevents the foreign body response and allows long-term functionality of the sensors will be presented along with in vivo data covering rodent as well as a large animal model. Manufacturing of complex parenteral drug products is challenging and is complicated by the need for FDA regulation. Till now the industry has utilized batch style manufacturing methods which tend be unreliable and result in inconsistent product quality, high defect rate, and long processing times with high economical cost. This has led to product recalls as well as product shortages. The advantageous of continuous manufacturing will be discussed along with the platform for continuous manufacturing of liposome products that our team has developed at UConn

Effective Organizational Practices for Middle and High School Grades

At the request of the Accountability Review Council, Research for Action identified effective organizational practices used by better performing schools serving substantial numbers of low income middle and high school students in the School District of Philadelphia. These practices are organized into three spheres: Conditions for Teaching, Student-Centered School Community, and Instructional Program. For each sphere, the report offers broad strategies and specific practices to enact the strategies. Nuanced school case studies show how the practices can work synergistically and coherently in schools to help students succeed

Ecosystem services and economic values provided by urban park trees in the air polluted city of Mashhad

Estimates of air pollutant removal by urban park trees in heavily polluted city of Mashhad, Iran, the associated economic value and the impact on air quality improvement are the main contributors of this study. The economic value of Mellat Park is substantial with a benefit-cost ratio at 0.6; however, the design of Mellat Park has not been adopted in accordance with air quality condition. While carbon emissions is not substantial, a significant part of Mellat Park's value (53.5 %) arises from carbon sequestration. Regarding PM2.5, the most harmful air pollutant, there was a decline in air quality. The economic analysis of the park's three most frequent and three most valuable species highlights the inconsistency between the tree species and the environmental demands. If Acer rubrum (the most valuable species) or Paulownia (the second most valuable species) had been planted rather than Platanus orientalis (the most common species), the park's tree value would have seen 2.7 times increase and a 41.8 % boost. Local scale design considering the link between air pollution and vegetation configuration -including landscape for vegetation and superior plant species - can maximize value of the park's trees on removal rates and air quality improvement

Prospectus, January 26, 1983

SPRING RECORD BROKEN; News Digest; Computer will provide basic data storage; Tea ceremony backed by 450 years of tradition; Student papers taken; Comedy auditions set; PMA wants members; Reality, not drama, taught; Play detective!; Parkland Invitational Tournament Jan. 14-15 1983; Classified; Apathy is disappointing; Skylines; Weapons training part of CJC plans; Spring brings another chance; Trivia quiz returns; Rundgren goes it alone; Nonsense makes sense; Benatar album is anti-bootleg effort; Championship, MVP award go to Cobras; Third ski trip next monthhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1983/1026/thumbnail.jp

Ecological Footprint and Its Determinants in MENA Countries: A Spatial Econometric Approach

Publication history: Accepted - 15 September 2022; Published online - 18 September 2022Countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have been facing serious environmental issues due to over-exploitation of natural resources. This paper analyzes the ecological footprint as a proxy of environmental degradation and determines its influencing factors in 18 MENA countries during 2000–2016. Despite the many studies on the relationship between the ecological footprint and its determinants in the region, the current study use spatial econometric models to take into account spatial dependence in the ecological footprint as well as its determinants. Using a spatial Durbin model, we revealed that neighbors’ behavior can significantly affect a country’s ecological footprint. Factors such as GDP per capita, trade openness, and financial development were found to increase environmental degradation, while the renewable energy consumption, urbanization, and quality of democracy effectively reduce the ecological footprint. These factors not only affect the ecological footprint in the host country, but also affect it in the adjacent countries in different ways. Due to the interdependence of the countries, we recommend development of a regional vision of the bio-economy such that the scope of the analysis goes beyond the country level to account for territorial effects. Furthermore, considering the great potential for renewable energy consumption in the region, we recommend MENA countries to develop use of renewable energy sources in order to reduce environmental degradation in the regio

Response to the editorial by Dr Geraghty

This article is written in response to the linked editorial by Dr Geraghty about the adaptive Pacing, graded Activity and Cognitive behaviour therapy; a randomised Evaluation (PACE) trial, which we led, implemented and published. The PACE trial compared four treatments for people diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. All participants in the trial received specialist medical care. The trial found that adding cognitive behaviour therapy or graded exercise therapy to specialist medical care was as safe as, and more effective than, adding adaptive pacing therapy or specialist medical care alone. Dr Geraghty has challenged these findings. In this article, we suggest that Dr Geraghty’s views are based on misunderstandings and misrepresentations of the PACE trial; these are corrected

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Direct Observation of the Myosin Va Recovery Stroke That Contributes to Unidirectional Stepping along Actin

Myosins are ATP-driven linear molecular motors that work as cellular force generators, transporters, and force sensors. These functions are driven by large-scale nucleotide-dependent conformational changes, termed “strokes”; the “power stroke” is the force-generating swinging of the myosin light chain–binding “neck” domain relative to the motor domain “head” while bound to actin; the “recovery stroke” is the necessary initial motion that primes, or “cocks,” myosin while detached from actin. Myosin Va is a processive dimer that steps unidirectionally along actin following a “hand over hand” mechanism in which the trailing head detaches and steps forward ∼72 nm. Despite large rotational Brownian motion of the detached head about a free joint adjoining the two necks, unidirectional stepping is achieved, in part by the power stroke of the attached head that moves the joint forward. However, the power stroke alone cannot fully account for preferential forward site binding since the orientation and angle stability of the detached head, which is determined by the properties of the recovery stroke, dictate actin binding site accessibility. Here, we directly observe the recovery stroke dynamics and fluctuations of myosin Va using a novel, transient caged ATP-controlling system that maintains constant ATP levels through stepwise UV-pulse sequences of varying intensity. We immobilized the neck of monomeric myosin Va on a surface and observed real time motions of bead(s) attached site-specifically to the head. ATP induces a transient swing of the neck to the post-recovery stroke conformation, where it remains for ∼40 s, until ATP hydrolysis products are released. Angle distributions indicate that the post-recovery stroke conformation is stabilized by ≥5 kBT of energy. The high kinetic and energetic stability of the post-recovery stroke conformation favors preferential binding of the detached head to a forward site 72 nm away. Thus, the recovery stroke contributes to unidirectional stepping of myosin Va

Amplitude Reduction and Phase Shifts of Melatonin, Cortisol and Other Circadian Rhythms after a Gradual Advance of Sleep and Light Exposure in Humans

Background: The phase and amplitude of rhythms in physiology and behavior are generated by circadian oscillators and entrained to the 24-h day by exposure to the light-dark cycle and feedback from the sleep-wake cycle. The extent to which the phase and amplitude of multiple rhythms are similarly affected during altered timing of light exposure and the sleepwake cycle has not been fully characterized. Methodology/Principal Findings: We assessed the phase and amplitude of the rhythms of melatonin, core body temperature, cortisol, alertness, performance and sleep after a perturbation of entrainment by a gradual advance of the sleep-wake schedule (10 h in 5 days) and associated light-dark cycle in 14 healthy men. The light-dark cycle consisted either of moderate intensity ‘room ’ light (,90–150 lux) or moderate light supplemented with bright light (,10,000 lux) for 5 to 8 hours following sleep. After the advance of the sleep-wake schedule in moderate light, no significant advance of the melatonin rhythm was observed whereas, after bright light supplementation the phase advance was 8.1 h (SEM 0.7 h). Individual differences in phase shifts correlated across variables. The amplitude of the melatonin rhythm assessed under constant conditions was reduced after moderate light by 54 % (17–94%) and after bright light by 52 % (range 12–84%), as compared to the amplitude at baseline in the presence of a sleep-wake cycle. Individual differences in amplitude reduction of the melatonin rhythm correlated with the amplitude of body temperature, cortisol and alertness