Spatial Price Discovery, Dynamics, and Leadership in Evolving Distiller’s Grain Markets

Recent dramatic growth in corn-based bio-refining has generated considerable growth in the by-product of this process, distiller’s grains. Distiller’s grains are rapidly becoming important livestock feed ingredient sources. However, little public market information is available on distiller’s grain. This study determines spatial and temporal price relationships among distiller’s grain markets. Results indicate spatial distiller’s grain markets operate somewhat independently suggesting potential arbitrage opportunities and indicating distiller’s grain markets are information starved. Furthermore, available futures markets are not viable price risk transfer tools for distiller’s grains.Crop Production/Industries, Demand and Price Analysis,

Utilizing Combined Methodologies to Define the Role of Plasma Membrane Delivery During Axon Branching and Neuronal Morphogenesis

During neural development, growing axons extend to multiple synaptic partners by elaborating axonal branches. Axon branching is promoted by extracellular guidance cues like netrin-1 and results in dramatic increases to the surface area of the axonal plasma membrane. Netrin-1-dependent axon branching likely involves temporal and spatial control of plasma membrane expansion, the components of which are supplied through exocytic vesicle fusion. These fusion events are preceded by formation of SNARE complexes, comprising a v-SNARE, such as VAMP2 (vesicle-associated membrane protein 2), and plasma membrane t-SNAREs, syntaxin-1 and SNAP25 (synaptosomal-associated protein 25). Detailed herein is a multi-pronged approach used to examine the role of SNARE mediated exocytosis in axon branching. The strength of the combined approach is data acquisition at a range of spatial and temporal resolutions, spanning from the dynamics of single vesicle fusion events in individual neurons to SNARE complex formation and axon branching in populations of cultured neurons. This protocol takes advantage of established biochemical approaches to assay levels of endogenous SNARE complexes and Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy of cortical neurons expressing VAMP2 tagged with a pH-sensitive GFP (VAMP2-pHlourin) to identify netrin-1 dependent changes in exocytic activity in individual neurons. To elucidate the timing of netrin-1-dependent branching, time-lapse differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy of single neurons over the order of hours is utilized. Fixed cell immunofluorescence paired with botulinum neurotoxins that cleave SNARE machinery and block exocytosis demonstrates that netrin-1 dependent axon branching requires SNARE-mediated exocytic activity

The effect of activated carbon on the organic and elemental composition of plant tissue culture medium

Ph.D

Lessons Learned from Positon-Electron Project Low Level RF and Longitudinal Feedback

The PEP-II B-Factory collider ended the final phase of operation at nearly twice the design current and 4X the design luminosity. To highlight the evolution from the original conceptual design through to the 1.2E34 final machine we choose one example each from the broadband feedback and from the LLRF system. They illustrate the original design estimation missed some very significant details, and how in the course of PEP-II operation unexpected difficulties led to significant insights and new approaches which allowed higher machine performance. We present valuable ”lessons learned” which are of interest to designers of next generation feedback and impedance controlled LLRF systems

Effects of Partnerships between Adolescents with Developmental Disabilities and Service Dogs

Background: With increasing frequency, service dogs are being placed with children with developmental disabilities (DDs). Occupational therapists and other professionals have advocated for the therapeutic use of service dog partnerships to facilitate greater independence and quality of life. There are no studies that examine service dog intervention with adolescents. Method: This study focused on the effects of partnerships between service dogs and three participant dyads, each including an adolescent with DDs and a parent. A single-subject, alternating treatment design was used to compare the effects of two conditions (service dog present or not present). The effects were examined for adolescents’ anxiety behaviors during transitions and during grocery store shopping, for social interactions during grocery store shopping, and for parents’ reported levels of stress. Results: Findings were that service dog partnerships reduced the presence of anxiety behaviors during transitions for one of the three adolescents; reduced the presence of anxiety behaviors during grocery store visits for two of the three adolescents; increased social interactions for all three of the participant dyads; and had no meaningful impact on self-reported parental stress level. Conclusion: For adolescents with DDs, professionals may want to consider service dog partnerships to decrease anxiety behaviors and increase social interactions in the community

Trim9 Deletion Alters the Morphogenesis of Developing and Adult-Born Hippocampal Neurons and Impairs Spatial Learning and Memory

During hippocampal development, newly born neurons migrate to appropriate destinations, extend axons, and ramify dendritic arbors to establish functional circuitry. These developmental stages are recapitulated in the dentate gyrus of the adult hippocampus, where neurons are continuously generated and subsequently incorporate into existing, local circuitry. Here we demonstrate that the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM9 regulates these developmental stages in embryonic and adult-born mouse hippocampal neurons in vitro and in vivo. Embryonic hippocampal and adult-born dentate granule neurons lacking Trim9 exhibit several morphological defects, including excessive dendritic arborization. Although gross anatomy of the hippocampus was not detectably altered by Trim9 deletion, a significant number of Trim9−/− adult-born dentate neurons localized inappropriately. These morphological and localization defects of hippocampal neurons in Trim9−/− mice were associated with extreme deficits in spatial learning and memory, suggesting that TRIM9-directed neuronal morphogenesis may be involved in hippocampal-dependent behaviors

Blindness Due to Polymicrogyria and Asymmetrical Dilation of the Lateral Ventricles in Standard Poodles

Polymicrogyria and asymmetric dilation of the lateral ventricles were seen in related Standard poodles that had cortical blindness. Three of the affected dogs also had gait and postural abnormalities, and one of these had seizures.Two of the affected dogs were littermates. Thorough ophthalmologic and neurologic examinations (including electroretinography, electromyography, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, plain radiographs, and computerized tomography scans) revealed no significant abnormalities outside of the brain that would account for the blindness. Computerized tomography scans in three dogs demonstrated bilateral dilation of the lateral ventricles which was more severe in the right. All dogs were necropsied between 5 and 9 months of age and had strikingly similar brain abnormalities. Numerous small irregular gyri with shallow sulci covered the middle and caudal dorsal and lateral cerebral cortex. The bony ridges of the inner calvaria in this area conformed to the underlying microgyral pattern. The lateral ventricles were asymmetrically dilated with the right more severely affected, particularly in the occipital area, and the cortical grey and white matter, including the corpus callosum, were thinned in these areas. The third and fourth ventricles and mesencephalic aqueduct were normal. Histologically, there was thinning and simplification of the cortical grey matter with an increased density of medium to large neurons. The corona radiata and subcortical white matter were also thinner than normal with no evidence of demyelination of astrocytic scarring. This congenital anomaly of the visual cortex causing blindness in the Standard Poodle appears to be inherited as an autosomal recessive trait

Measurements and Analysis of Longitudinal HOM Driven Coupled Bunch Modes in PEP-II Rings

The growth rates of the longitudinal higher-order impedance-driven beam modes have greatly increased since the initial PEP-II design and commissioning. This increase is attributed to the addition of 6 1.2MW RF stations with 8 accelerating cavities in the HER and 2 1.2MW RF stations with 4 accelerating cavities in the LER, which allowed operations at twice the design current and almost four times the luminosity. As a result, the damping requirements for the longitudinal feedback have greatly increased since the design, and the feedback filters and control schemes have evolved during PEP-II operations. In this paper, growth and damping rate data for the higher-order mode (HOM) driven coupled-bunch modes are presented from various PEP-II runs and are compared with historical estimates during commissioning. The effect of noise in the feedback processing channel is also studied. Both the stability and performance limits of the system are analyzed

TRIM9-dependent ubiquitination of DCC constrains kinase signaling, exocytosis, and axon branching

Extracellular netrin-1 and its receptor deleted in colorectal cancer (DCC) promote axon branching in developing cortical neurons. Netrin-dependent morphogenesis is preceded by multimerization of DCC, activation of FAK and Src family kinases, and increases in exocytic vesicle fusion, yet how these occurrences are linked is unknown. Here we demonstrate that tripartite motif protein 9 (TRIM9)-dependent ubiquitination of DCC blocks the interaction with and phosphorylation of FAK. Upon netrin-1 stimulation TRIM9 promotes DCC multimerization, but TRIM9-dependent ubiquitination of DCC is reduced, which promotes an interaction with FAK and subsequent FAK activation. We found that inhibition of FAK activity blocks elevated frequencies of exocytosis in vitro and elevated axon branching in vitro and in vivo. Although FAK inhibition decreased soluble N-ethylmaleimide attachment protein receptor (SNARE)-mediated exocytosis, assembled SNARE complexes and vesicles adjacent to the plasma membrane increased, suggesting a novel role for FAK in the progression from assembled SNARE complexes to vesicle fusion in developing murine neurons

LHC Beam Diffusion Dependence on RF Noise: Models and Measurements

Radio Frequency (RF) accelerating system noise and non-idealities can have detrimental impact on the LHC performance through longitudinal motion and longitudinal emittance growth. A theoretical formalism has been developed to relate the beam and RF loop dynamics with the bunch length growth [1]. Measurements were conducted at LHC to validate the formalism, determine the performance limiting RF components, and provide the foundation for beam diffusion estimates for higher energies and intensities. A brief summary of these results is presented in this work