Alternative Marketing Strategies for Corn and Soybeans

Three questions outlined the scope of this study: 1. What marketing strategies might be used by South Dakota producers to cope with changing market conditions? 2. What marketing strategies maximized net returns for the crop years from 1972 through 1977? 3. How does basis work in marketing strategy

Rail Car Dilemma

The purpose of this bulletin is to provide information regarding the shortage of railcars. Factors that have an impact on the availability of railcars are addressed, and a cost analysis of rail car ownership is examined

Nocardia macrotermitis sp. nov. and Nocardia aurantia sp. nov., isolated from the gut of the fungus-growing termite Macrotermes natalensis

The taxonomic positions of two novel aerobic, Gram-stain-positive Actinobacteria, designated RB20$^{T}$ and RB56$^{T}$, were determined using a polyphasic approach. Both were isolated from the fungus-farming termite Macrotermes natalensis. Results of 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that both strains are members of the genus Nocardia with the closest phylogenetic neighbours Nocardia miyunensis JCM12860$^{T}$ (98.9 %) and Nocardia nova DSM44481$^{T}$ (98.5 %) for RB20$^{T}$ and Nocardia takedensis DSM 44801$^{T}$ (98.3 %), Nocardia pseudobrasiliensis DSM 44290$^{T}$ (98.3 %) and Nocardia rayongensis JCM 19832$^{T}$ (98.2 %) for RB56$^{T}$. Digital DNA–DNA hybridization (DDH) between RB20$^{T}$ and N. miyunensis JCM12860$^{T}$ and N. nova DSM 44481$^{T}$ resulted in similarity values of 33.9 and 22.0 %, respectively. DDH between RB56$^{T}$ and N. takedensis DSM44801$^{T}$ and N. pseudobrasiliensis DSM44290$^{T}$ showed similarity values of 20.7 and 22.3 %, respectively. In addition, wet-lab DDH between RB56$^{T}$ and N. rayongensis JCM19832$^{T}$ resulted in 10.2 % (14.5 %) similarity. Both strains showed morphological and chemotaxonomic features typical for the genus Nocardia , such as the presence of meso-diaminopimelic acid (A$_{2}$pm) within the cell wall, arabinose and galactose as major sugar components within whole cell-wall hydrolysates, the presence of mycolic acids and major phospholipids (diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol), and the predominant menaquinone MK-8 (H4, ω-cyclo). The main fatty acids for both strains were hexadecanoic acid (C$_{16 : 0}$), 10-methyloctadecanoic acid (10-methyl C$_{18 : 0}$) and cis-9-octadecenoic acid (C$_{18 : 1}$ ω9c). We propose two novel species within the genus Nocardia : Nocardia macrotermitis sp. nov. with the type strain RB20$^{T}$ (=VKM Ac-2841$^{T}$=NRRL B65541$^{T}$) and Nocardia aurantia sp. nov. with the type strain RB56$^{T}$ (=VKM Ac-2842$^{T}$=NRRL B65542$^{T}$)

Comparative Genomics and Mutational Analysis Reveals a Novel XoxF-Utilizing Methylotroph in the Roseobacter Group Isolated From the Marine Environment

The Roseobacter group comprises a significant group of marine bacteria which are involved in global carbon and sulfur cycles. Some members are methylotrophs, using one-carbon compounds as a carbon and energy source. It has recently been shown that methylotrophs generally require a rare earth element when using the methanol dehydrogenase enzyme XoxF for growth on methanol. Addition of lanthanum to methanol enrichments of coastal seawater facilitated the isolation of a novel methylotroph in the Roseobacter group: Marinibacterium anthonyi strain La 6. Mutation of xoxF5 revealed the essential nature of this gene during growth on methanol and ethanol. Physiological characterization demonstrated the metabolic versatility of this strain. Genome sequencing revealed that strain La 6 has the largest genome of all Roseobacter group members sequenced to date, at 7.18 Mbp. Multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) showed that whilst it displays the highest core gene sequence similarity with subgroup 1 of the Roseobacter group, it shares very little of its pangenome, suggesting unique genetic adaptations. This research revealed that the addition of lanthanides to isolation procedures was key to cultivating novel XoxF-utilizing methylotrophs from the marine environment, whilst genome sequencing and MLSA provided insights into their potential genetic adaptations and relationship to the wider community

Barrier-free subsurface incorporation of 3d metal atoms into Bi(111) films

By combining scanning tunneling microscopy with density functional theory it is shown that the Bi(111) surface provides a well-defined incorporation site in the first bilayer that traps highly coordinating atoms such as transition metals (TMs) or noble metals. All deposited atoms assume exactly the same specific sevenfold coordinated subsurface interstitial site while the surface topography remains nearly unchanged. Notably, 3d TMs show a barrier-free incorporation. The observed surface modification by barrier-free subsorption helps to suppress aggregation in clusters. It allows a tuning of the electronic properties not only for the pure Bi(111) surface, but may also be observed for topological insulators formed by substrate-stabilized Bi bilayers. © 2015 American Physical Society.DFG/SFB/616DFG/SPP/1601DFG/Pf238/3

Front Immunol

NK cells are phenotypically and functionally diverse lymphocytes due to variegated expression of a large array of receptors. NK-cell activity is tightly regulated through integration of receptor-derived inhibitory and activating signals. Thus, the receptor profile of each NK cell ultimately determines its ability to sense aberrant cells and subsequently mediate anti-viral or anti-tumor responses. However, an in-depth understanding of how different receptor repertoires enable distinct immune functions of NK cells is lacking. Therefore, we investigated the phenotypic diversity of primary human NK cells by performing extensive phenotypic characterization of 338 surface molecules using flow cytometry (n = 18). Our results showed that NK cells express at least 146 receptors on their surface. Of those, 136 (>90%) exhibited considerable inter-donor variability. Moreover, comparative analysis of CD56bright and CD56dim NK cells identified 70 molecules with differential expression between the two major NK-cell subsets and allowed discrimination of these subsets via unsupervised hierarchical clustering. These receptors were associated with a broad range of NK-cell functions and multiple molecules were not previously associated with predominant expression on either subset (e.g. CD82 and CD147). Altogether, our study contributes to an improved understanding of the phenotypic diversity of NK cells and its potential functional implications on a cellular and population level. While the identified distinct signatures in the receptor repertoires provide a molecular basis for the differential immune functions exerted by CD56bright and CD56dim NK cells, the observed inter-individual differences in the receptor repertoire of NK cells may contribute to a diverging ability to control certain diseases

Serum tumor markers in pediatric osteosarcoma: a summary review

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary high-grade bone tumor in both adolescents and children. Early tumor detection is key to ensuring effective treatment. Serum marker discovery and validation for pediatric osteosarcoma has accelerated in recent years, coincident with an evolving understanding of molecules and their complex interactions, and the compelling need for improved pediatric osteosarcoma outcome measures in clinical trials. This review gives a short overview of serological markers for pediatric osteosarcoma, and highlights advances in pediatric osteosarcoma-related marker research within the past year. Studies in the past year involving serum markers in patients with pediatric osteosarcoma can be assigned to one of four categories, i.e., new approaches and new markers, exploratory studies in specialized disease subsets, large cross-sectional validation studies, and longitudinal studies, with and without an intervention

Nocturnin Expression Is Induced by Fasting in the White Adipose Tissue of Restricted Fed Mice

The relationship between circadian clocks and metabolism is intimate and complex and a number of recent studies have begun to reveal previously unknown effects of food and its temporal availability on the clock and the rhythmic transcriptome of peripheral tissues. Nocturnin, a circadian deadenylase, is expressed rhythmically in a wide variety of tissues, but we report here that Nocturnin expression is arrhythmic in epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT) of mice housed in 12∶12 LD with ad libitum access to food. However, Nocturnin expression becomes rhythmic in eWAT of mice placed on restricted feeding. We show here that Nocturnin's rhythmic expression pattern is not dependent upon feeding, nor is it acutely induced by feeding in the liver or eWAT of ad libitum fed mice. However, Nocturnin is acutely induced by the absence of the expected meal in eWAT of restricted fed mice. A rise in cAMP levels also induces Nocturnin expression, suggesting that Nocturnin's induction in eWAT by fasting is likely mediated through the same pathways that activate lipolysis. Therefore, this suggests that Nocturnin plays a role in linking nutrient sensing by the circadian clock to lipid mobilization in the adipocytes

Circadian Clock Gene Expression in the Coral Favia fragum over Diel and Lunar Reproductive Cycles

Natural light cycles synchronize behavioral and physiological cycles over varying time periods in both plants and animals. Many scleractinian corals exhibit diel cycles of polyp expansion and contraction entrained by diel sunlight patterns, and monthly cycles of spawning or planulation that correspond to lunar moonlight cycles. The molecular mechanisms for regulating such cycles are poorly understood. In this study, we identified four molecular clock genes (cry1, cry2, clock and cycle) in the scleractinian coral, Favia fragum, and investigated patterns of gene expression hypothesized to be involved in the corals' diel polyp behavior and lunar reproductive cycles. Using quantitative PCR, we measured fluctuations in expression of these clock genes over both diel and monthly spawning timeframes. Additionally, we assayed gene expression and polyp expansion-contraction behavior in experimental corals in normal light:dark (control) or constant dark treatments. Well-defined and reproducible diel patterns in cry1, cry2, and clock expression were observed in both field-collected and the experimental colonies maintained under control light:dark conditions, but no pattern was observed for cycle. Colonies in the control light:dark treatment also displayed diel rhythms of tentacle expansion and contraction. Experimental colonies in the constant dark treatment lost diel patterns in cry1, cry2, and clock expression and displayed a diminished and less synchronous pattern of tentacle expansion and contraction. We observed no pattern in cry1, cry2, clock, or cycle expression correlated with monthly spawning events suggesting these genes are not involved in the entrainment of reproductive cycles to lunar light cycles in F. fragum. Our results suggest a molecular clock mechanism, potentially similar to that in described in fruit flies, exists within F. fragum