Functional role of a consensus peptide which is common to α-, β-, and γ-tubulin, to actin and centractin, to phytochrome A, and to the TCP1α chaperonin protein

AbstractThe TRiC (TCP1 Ring Complex) chaperonin complex participates in the functional folding of actin, centractin, α-,β-,γ-tubulin, and phytochrome. Each of the cytoskeletal proteins contain a peptide, RK(A,C,T)F/KRAF, located towards the C-terminus, which is homologous to a TCP1α peptide, while the equivalent phytochrome peptide (RLKAF in certain isoforms) is very similar to the KLRAF peptide of TCP1α. We propose that this TCP1α peptide binds to the nascent polypeptides as they emerge from the ribosome, that this binding restricts the folding pathway, and that the TCP1α peptide is subsequently displaced by the synthesis of the consensus peptide. This hypothesis is strongly supported by the crystallographic structure of actin

Challenges & Rewards with an Institutional Repository

UVM Libraries launched ScholarWorks @ UVM in 2013 to collect, preserve and disseminate scholarly works of faculty, students as well as make collections, reports and other materials more discoverable and available.This institutional repository has grown to over twenty collections, comprising of student dissertations and theses, public health projects, historic botanical research, Vermont history, faculty publications and more.Challenges include varied participation across campus, impacting work flow in library positions, and adding another library service.Author’s works enjoy increased discoverability from all over the world, from low income countries to individuals that seek information without the benefit of library resources. IRs support libraries’ intellectual mission

The DDO IVC Distance Project: Survey Description and the Distance to G139.6+47.6

We present a detailed analysis of the distance determination for one intermediate Velocity Cloud (IVC G139.6+47.6) from the ongoing DDO IVC Distance Project. Stars along the line of sight to G139.6+47.6 are examined for the presence of sodium absorption attributable to the cloud, and the distance bracket is established by astrometric and spectroscopic parallax measurements of demonstrated foreground and background stars. We detail our strategy regarding target selection, observational setup, and analysis of the data, including a discussion of wavelength calibration and sky subtraction uncertainties. We find a distance estimate of 129 (+/- 10) pc for the lower limit and 257 (+211-33) pc for the upper limit. Given the high number of stars showing absorption due to this IVC, we also discuss the small-scale covering factor of the cloud and the likely significance of non-detections for subsequent observations of this and other similar IVC's. Distance measurements of the remaining targets in the DDO IVC project will be detailed in a companion paper.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, LaTe

Globally dispersed engineering teams at Delphi Packard Electric Systems

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design & Management Program, February 2001.Includes bibliographical references (p. 135-136).Globally dispersed engineering teams within Delphi Packard Electric Systems were studied to identify areas for future improvement in global team performance. The research consisted of several management interviews and the administering of a survey to global team members and team leaders at various Delphi Packard Electric Systems engineering and manufacturing facilities located throughout the world. The results of the survey were analyzed using bivariate statistical analysis methods and suggestions for future improvement were developed based on the interviews and survey results. The suggestions were summarized as leadership leverage points for various levels of leadership within the company, including team leaders, regional (local) managers, and global managers. A system dynamics causal loop model was also developed to describe the relationships for various factors that affect team performance, including availability of capital (material resources), skills of the team members, individual and collective team effort, team interaction and communication, use of task-appropriate strategies, global versus local issues, and team results. The original survey was modified and expanded to allow future researchers to better address the variables and relationships that were presented in the casual loop system dynamics model.by Christopher D. Burns.S.M

Rapid manufacturing – impact on supply chain methodologies and practice

This paper demonstrates the use of Rapid Manufacturing (RM) as the enabling technology for flexible manufacturing in a number of industrial sectors. The paper discusses the evolution of Rapid Prototyping (RP) to Rapid Manufacturing and the current issues that require further research for the successful integration of this technology within manufacturing companies. The use of RM will have particular impact on supply chain management paradigms such as lean and agile and has particular strategic fit with mass customisation. The effect RM will have on these paradigms is discussed and confirmed with example cases from automotive production, motor sport and medical devices industries. In conclusion RM has already been shown in the three cases to offer benefits, particularly where fast re-configuration of the manufacturing process is required and with the production of customised components

Spatio-temporal variation of core and satellite arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus communities in Miscanthus giganteus

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are a group of obligate plant symbionts which can promote plant nutrition. AMF communities are diverse, but the factors which control their assembly in space and time remain unclear. In this study, the contributions of geographical distance, environmental heterogeneity and time in shaping AMF communities associated with Miscanthus giganteus (a perennial grass originating from south-east Asia) were determined over a 13 months period. In particular, the community was partitioned into core (abundant and persistent taxa) and satellite (taxa with low abundance and persistence) constituents and the drivers of community assembly for each determined. β-diversity was exceptionally low across the 140 m line transects, and there was limited evidence of geographical scaling effects on the composition of the core, satellite or combined communities. However, AMF richness and community composition changed over time associated with fluctuation within both the core and satellite communities. The degree to which AMF community variation was explained by soil properties was consistently higher in the core community than the combined and satellite communities, suggesting that the satellite community had considerable stochasticity associated with it. We suggest that the partitioning of communities into their core and satellite constituents could be employed to enhance the variation explained within microbial community analyses

The Absolute Magnitude of RRc Variables From Statistical Parallax

We present the first definitive measurement of the absolute magnitude of RR Lyrae c-type variable stars (RRc) determined purely from statistical parallax. We use a sample of 247 RRc selected from the All Sky Automated Survey (ASAS) for which high-quality light curves, photometry and proper motions are available. We obtain high-resolution echelle spectra for these objects to determine radial velocities and abundances as part of the Carnegie RR Lyrae Survey (CARRS). We find that M_(V,RRc) = 0.52 +/- 0.11 at a mean metallicity of [Fe/H] = -1.59. This is to be compared with previous estimates for RRab stars (M_(V,RRab) = 0.75 +/- 0.13 and the only direct measurement of an RRc absolute magnitude (RZ Cephei, M_(V, RRc) = 0.27 +/- 0.17). We find the bulk velocity of the halo to be (W_pi, W_theta, W_z) = (10.9,34.9,7.2) km/s in the radial, rotational and vertical directions with dispersions (sigma_(W_pi), sigma_(W_theta), sigma_(W_z)) = (154.7, 103.6, 93.8) km/s. For the disk, we find (W_pi, W_theta, W_z) = (8.5, 213.2, -22.1) km/s with dispersions (sigma_(W_pi), sigma_(W_theta), sigma_(W_z)) = (63.5, 49.6, 51.3) km/s. Finally, we suggest that UCAC2 proper motion errors may be overestimated by about 25%Comment: Submitted to ApJ. 11 pages including 6 figure