Home Appreciation Participation Notes: A Solution to Housing Affordability and the Current Mortgage Crisis

This paper introduces Home Appreciation Participation Notes (HAPNs), an innovative new housing finance tool. Housing is a commodity providing two distinct utilities: shelter and investment. Traditionally, buyers have had to purchase both elements in tandom. HAPNs allow buyers to purchase these elements individually. Thus, buyers can focus on purchasing housing units that best fit their shelter needs, investing in housing appreciation to whatever extent is appropriate for the needs of their investment portfolio. HAPNs are different from previous financing tools in three key ways: there is no payment burden until ownership of the home is transferred, the risk of housing price declines is shifted to investors, and the final payoff is indexed to the appreciation rates of local housing prices. With these three features, HAPNs considerably improve the affordability of homeownership while reducing the risk of default and avoiding the moral hazard associated with shared appreciation instruments.

Atrial natriuretic factor during atrial fibrillation and supraventricular tachycardia

Plasma immunoreactive atrial natriuretic factor was measured in 10 patients with chronic atrial fibrillation before and after cardioversion to sinus rhythm, and in 14 patients during electrophysiologic evaluation of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. The mean plasma concentration of atrial natriuretic factor in atrial fibrillation was 138 ± 48 pg/ml and decreased to 116 ± 45 pg/ml 1 hour after cardioversion to sinus rhythm (p < 0.005). The mean plasma concentration of atrial natriuretic factor increased from 117 ± 53 pg/ml in sinus rhythm to 251 ± 137 pg/ml during laboratory-induced supraventricular tachycardia (p < 0.005). Right atrial pressures were recorded in 12 patients; the baseline atrial pressure was 4.3 ± 1.9 mm Hg and increased to 7.4 ± 3.6 mm Hg during supraventricular tachycardia (p < 0.005). A modest but significant linear relation was noted between the changes in plasma atrial natriuretic factor and right atrial pressure measurements during induced supraventricular tachycardia (r = 0.60, p < 0.05).In conclusion, changes in atrial rhythm and pressure may be an important factor modulating the release of atrial natriuretic factor in the circulation and raised levels of this hormone may be a contributing factor for the polyuria and the hypotension associated with paroxysmal supraventricular tachyarrhythmias

A small satellite design for deep space network testing and training

With the continuing exploration of the Solar System and the reemphasis on Earth focused missions, the need for faster data transmission rates has grown. Ka-band could allow a higher data delivery rate over the current X-band, however the adverse effects of the Earth's atmosphere on Ka are as yet unknown. The Deep Space Network and Jet Propulsion Lab have proposed to launch a small satellite that would simultaneously transmit X and Ka signals to test the viability of switching to Ka-band. The Mockingbird Design Team at the University of Texas at Austin applied small satellite design principles to achieve this objective. The Mockingbird design, named BATSAT, incorporates simple, low-cost systems designed for university production and testing. The BATSAT satellite is a 0.64 m diameter, spherical panel led satellite, mounted with solar cells and omni-directional antennae. The antennae configuration negates the need for active attitude control or spin stabilization. The space-frame truss structure was designed for 11 g launch loads while allowing for easy construction and solar-panel mounting. The communication system transmits at 1 mW by carrying the required Ka and X-band transmitters, as well as an S band transmitter used for DSN training. The power system provides the 8.6 W maximum power requirements via silicon solar arrays and nickel-cadmium batteries. The BATSAT satellite will be lofted into an 1163 km, 70 deg orbit by the Pegasus launch system. This orbit fulfills DSN dish slew rate requirements while keeping the satellite out of the heaviest regions of the Van Allen radiation belts. Each of the three DSN stations capable of receiving Ka-band (Goldstone, Canberra, and Madrid) will have an average of 85 minutes of view-time per day over the satellites ten year design life. Mockingbird Designs hopes that its small satellite design will not only be applicable to this specific mission scenario, but that it could easily be modified for instrument capability for university, government, and/or commercial research

Infant Feeding Practices and Subsequent Dietary Patterns of School-Aged Children in a US Birth Cohort

BACKGROUND: Infant feeding practices are thought to shape food acceptance and preferences. However, few studies have evaluated whether these affect child diet later in life. OBJECTIVE: The study objective was to examine the association between infant feeding practices and dietary patterns (DPs) in school-aged children. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of data from a diverse prospective birth cohort with 10 years of follow-up (WHEALS [Wayne County Health Environment Allergy and Asthma Longitudinal Study]) was conducted. PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: Children from the WHEALS (Detroit, MI, born 2003 through 2007) who completed a food screener at age 10 years were included (471 of 1,258 original participants). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The main outcome was DPs at age 10 years, identified using the Block Kids Food Screener. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS PERFORMED: Latent class analysis was applied for DP identification. Breastfeeding and age at solid food introduction were associated with DPs using a 3-step approach for latent class modeling based on multinomial logistic regression models. RESULTS: The following childhood DPs were identified: processed/energy-dense food (35%), variety plus high intake (41%), and healthy (24%). After weighting for loss to follow-up and covariate adjustment, compared with formula-fed children at 1 month, breastfed children had 0.41 times lower odds of the processed/energy-dense food DP vs the healthy DP (95% CI 0.14 to 1.25) and 0.53 times lower odds of the variety plus high intake DP (95% CI 0.17 to 1.61), neither of which were statistically significant. Results were similar, but more imprecise, for breastfeeding at 6 months. In addition, the association between age at solid food introduction and DP was nonsignificant, with each 1-month increase in age at solid food introduction associated with 0.81 times lower odds of the processed/energy-dense food DP relative to the healthy DP (95% CI 0.64 to 1.02). CONCLUSIONS: A significant association between early life feeding practices and dietary patterns at school age was not detected. Large studies with follow-up beyond early childhood that can also adjust for the multitude of potential confounders associated with breastfeeding are needed

Progression of C-reactive protein from birth through preadolescence varies by mode of delivery

INTRODUCTION: Delivery via caesarean section (C-section) has been associated with an increased risk of childhood chronic diseases such as obesity and asthma, which may be due to underlying systemic inflammation. However, the impact of specific C-section types may be differential, as emergency C-sections typically involve partial labor and/or membrane rupture. Our objectives were to determine if mode of delivery associates with longitudinal profiles of high sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) -a marker of systemic inflammation-from birth through preadolescence, and to examine if CRP mediates the association between mode of delivery and preadolescent body mass index (BMI). METHODS: Data from the WHEALS birth cohort (N = 1,258) were analyzed; 564 of the 1,258 children in the cohort had data available for analysis. Longitudinal plasma samples (birth through 10-years of age) from 564 children from were assayed for hs-CRP levels. Maternal medical records were abstracted to obtain mode of delivery. Growth mixture models (GMMs) were used to determine classes of hs-CRP trajectories. Poisson regression with robust error variance was used to calculate risk ratios (RRs). RESULTS: Two hs-CRP trajectory classes were identified: class 1 (76% of children) was characterized by low hs-CRP, while class 2 (24% of children) was characterized by high and steadily increasing hs-CRP. In multivariable models, children delivered via planned C-section had 1.15 times higher risk of being in hs-CRP class 2, compared to vaginal deliveries (p = 0.028), while no association was found for unplanned C-section deliveries [RR (95% CI) = 0.96 (0.84, 1.09); p = 0.49]. Further, the effect of planned C-section on BMI z-score at age 10 was significantly mediated by hs-CRP class (percent mediated = 43.4%). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest potentially beneficial effects of experiencing partial or full labor, leading to a lower trajectory of systemic inflammation throughout childhood and decreased BMI during preadolescence. These findings may have implications for chronic disease development later in life

Maternal and cord blood vitamin D level and the infant gut microbiota in a birth cohort study

Background: Mounting evidence suggests both vitamin D and the early life gut microbiome influence childhood health outcomes. However, little is known about how these two important exposures are related. We aimed to examine associations between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels during pregnancy or at delivery (cord blood) and infant gut microbiota. Methods: Maternal and cord blood 25[OH]D levels were assessed in a sample of pregnant women. Compositional analyses adjusted for race were run on the gut microbiota of their offspring at 1 and 6 months of age. Results: Mean prenatal 25(OH)D level was 25.04 ± 11.62 ng/mL and mean cord blood 25(OH)D level was 10.88 ± 6.77 ng/mL. Increasing prenatal 25(OH)D level was significantly associated with decreased richness (p = 0.028) and diversity (p = 0.012) of the gut microbiota at 1 month of age. Both prenatal and cord 25(OH)D were significantly associated with 1 month microbiota composition. A total of 6 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were significantly associated with prenatal 25(OH)D level (four positively and two negatively) while 11 OTUs were significantly associated with cord 25(OH)D (10 positively and one negatively). Of these, OTU 93 (Acinetobacter) and OTU 210 (Corynebacterium), were consistently positively associated with maternal and cord 25(OH)D; OTU 64 (Ruminococcus gnavus) was positively associated with prenatal 25(OH)D but negatively associated with cord 25(OH)D. Conclusions: Prenatal maternal and cord blood 25(OH)D levels are associated with the early life gut microbiota. Future studies are needed to understand how vitamin D and the microbiome may interact to influence child health

Loss of TET2 increases B-1 cell number and IgM production while limiting CDR3 diversity

Recent studies have demonstrated a role for Ten-Eleven Translocation-2 (TET2), an epigenetic modulator, in regulating germinal center formation and plasma cell differentiation in B-2 cells, yet the role of TET2 in regulating B-1 cells is largely unknown. Here, B-1 cell subset numbers, IgM production, and gene expression were analyzed in mice with global knockout of TET2 compared to wildtype (WT) controls. Results revealed that TET2-KO mice had elevated numbers of B-1a and B-1b cells in their primary niche, the peritoneal cavity, as well as in the bone marrow (B-1a) and spleen (B-1b). Consistent with this finding, circulating IgM, but not IgG, was elevated in TET2-KO mice compared to WT. Analysis of bulk RNASeq of sort purified peritoneal B-1a and B-1b cells revealed reduced expression of heavy and light chain immunoglobulin genes, predominantly in B-1a cells from TET2-KO mice compared to WT controls. As expected, the expression of IgM transcripts was the most abundant isotype in B-1 cells. Yet, only in B-1a cells there was a significant increase in the proportion of IgM transcripts in TET2-KO mice compared to WT. Analysis of the CDR3 of the BCR revealed an increased abundance of replicated CDR3 sequences in B-1 cells from TET2-KO mice, which was more clearly pronounced in B-1a compared to B-1b cells. V-D-J usage and circos plot analysis of V-J combinations showed enhanced usage of VH11 and VH12 pairings. Taken together, our study is the first to demonstrate that global loss of TET2 increases B-1 cell number and IgM production and reduces CDR3 diversity, which could impact many biological processes and disease states that are regulated by IgM

1964

Turf Management Club by John Traynor (page 1) Who Is Superintendent Here by H.E. Frenette (1) Good Turf Can Result from good Sodding (3) Golf Course Superintendent by Edwart Wiacek (4) Picture - Outstanding Senior Prof. Troll Picture - recognition for Blazers St. Andrew\u27s, Scotland by William Hynd (5) Analogy of a Turf Manager by James B. Cole (6) Fish Trouble by Peter A. Langelier and Dennis P. Leger (8) Square Rings by Robert P. McGuire (9) A Different Type of Course by Robert Hall (10) Literature by Pierre Coste (11) Weeds in Golf Course Turf and Their Control by John F. Cornman (A-1) The USe of Liquid Fertilizer by Anthony B. Longo (A-3) Fertilizing a Golf Course Through an Irrigation System by Herbert E. Berg (A-6) The Extent of Winter Injury on Golf Courses by James L. Holmes (A-11) The Problem of Winter Injury by James B. Beard (A-13) Establishing, Maintaining, and Selling Sod for Turf Areas in New England by George F. Stewart (A-20) Problems of Maintaining Turf Around Industrial Grounds by George Moore (A-22) Landscaping Industrial sites by A.W. Boicourt (A-25) Introduction to the panel Discussion on Grasses for Tees and Their Management by Alexander M. Radko (A-28) Building a Golf Tee by Phil Cassidy (A-29) Grasses for Tees and Their Management by Wm. Dest (A-31) Golf Course Tee maintenance by Jim Fulwider (A-32) Tees by F. Thompson (A-33) How to Draw up a Contract by Lawrence D. Rhoades (A-34) My Contract by Lucien E. Duval (A-37) The Golf Car Problem by Geoffrey S. Cornish (A-41) Golf Cars and Turfgrass by Lee Record (A-42) Course Design and Golf Cars by William F. Mitchell (A-42) Golf Cars and the Established Course by Sherwood Moore (A-45) Course Design and Golf Cars by Phil Wogan (a-52) Introduction of Cars to the New Course by M. Ovian (A-56

Purification of Reversibly Oxidized Proteins (PROP) Reveals a Redox Switch Controlling p38 MAP Kinase Activity

Oxidation of cysteine residues of proteins is emerging as an important means of regulation of signal transduction, particularly of protein kinase function. Tools to detect and quantify cysteine oxidation of proteins have been a limiting factor in understanding the role of cysteine oxidation in signal transduction. As an example, the p38 MAP kinase is activated by several stress-related stimuli that are often accompanied by in vitro generation of hydrogen peroxide. We noted that hydrogen peroxide inhibited p38 activity despite paradoxically increasing the activating phosphorylation of p38. To address the possibility that cysteine oxidation may provide a negative regulatory effect on p38 activity, we developed a biochemical assay to detect reversible cysteine oxidation in intact cells. This procedure, PROP, demonstrated in vivo oxidation of p38 in response to hydrogen peroxide and also to the natural inflammatory lipid prostaglandin J2. Mutagenesis of the potential target cysteines showed that oxidation occurred preferentially on residues near the surface of the p38 molecule. Cysteine oxidation thus controls a functional redox switch regulating the intensity or duration of p38 activity that would not be revealed by immunodetection of phosphoprotein commonly interpreted as reflective of p38 activity