Examining predation as a possible means of controlling Crown-of- Thorns Starfish (Acanthaster planci) outbreaks on reefs around Lizard Island, Australia

Since the world’s coral reefs are currently threatened by a variety of different natural and anthropogenic factors, research on protecting coral reefs is pivotal to protect these diverse ecosystems. However, only Indo-Pacific reefs such as the Great Barrier Reef are dying due to a corallivorous echinoderm threat known as the Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (Acanthaster planci). A. planci is a starfish which feeds on coral tissue and can quickly reduce coral cover on a reef during an outbreak. Although scientists are still unsure as to what causes these outbreaks, one suggestion is the predator-removal theory. The predator removal-theory states that major predators of A. planci are being overfished and are unable to regulate the A. planci population, resulting in outbreaks. This study’s goal was to determine the major predators of A. planci in an attempt to ascertain if predation could be used to control A. planci populations. In situ predation experiments were preformed on reefs off of Lizard Island by staking whole A. planci on the reef with cameras to record any instances of predation. Internal organs were also put out on the reef with the whole A. planci, mimicking the condition of an A. planci after a predation event. The weight of female gonads was collected from select A. planci to determine the percentage of body mass composed of gonad. Overall, nine species of fish were found to consume parts of the A. planci and one of which (Lethinus nebulosus) was found to be commercially exploited. It was also determined that A. planci predators could be divided up into categories of “lethal predation” and “sublethal predation”, with most predators of the internal organs falling under sublethal predation. Since none of the fish species that ate gonads were planktivores, it is improbable that these species are egg predators and regulate A. planci populations during spawning events. Finally, the percentage of mass 4 Chan composed of gonads increased greatly with size, stressing the importance of controlling these highly fecund individuals. Overall, future studies could continue to identify predators of A. planci and rates of predation of fish species on A. planci should be determined in order to estimate whether or not it is enough to regulate A. planci populations

The Friction Coefficient of Commercially Available Contact Lenses at a Cornea-Contact Lens Biointerface

Background: At the ocular surface, epithelial cells are subject to shear and frictionforces during blinking. This can lead to wear damage, especially when there isinadequate lubrication in the presence of a compromised tear film1. Contact lenses areassociated with increased lid wiper damage, epitheliopathy and tear film instability2caused by increased friction due to the lens material3. This may lead to dry eye disease.Due to this, lenses often include agents that attempt to improve surface properties.These properties, particularly friction, are therefore paramount to preventing ocularsurface damage and discomfort.Methods: A custom cornea-contact lens biomechanical friction test was used totest commercially available contact lenses (Air Optix Aqua, Acuvue Oasys, Acuvue2,and Acuvue TruEye Dailies) The contact lenses and human corneas (obtained fromLions Eye Bank, n=5) were articulated against each other in a saline bath at effectivesliding velocities between 0.3-30 mm/sec and under loads of approximately 12-32 kPa.Friction coefficients were calculated from the axial load and torque measured duringarticulation of the test surfaces.Results: Kinetic friction coefficients, <mkinetic, Neq>, in saline for each lens wasapproximately 0.080.02, 0.120.04, 0.150.05 and 0.090.02 for Acuvue2, Air Optix,TruEye and Oasys respectively (meansem). Values of <mkinetic, Neq> in TruEye weresignificantly greater than those in both AC2 and Oasys (p<0.05), which were not similarto each other and Air Optix Aqua (p>0.05).Conclusions: TruEye, a silicone hydrogel daily wear lens, had higher friction thanboth Oasys and Acuvue2, which were not significantly different from each other. Theseresults suggest that the unique wetting agent contained in Oasys and TruEye do notsignificantly affect in vitro friction measurements. Future experiments will examine ifadding ocular lubricants, such as hyaluronan and/or lubricin, can further reduce thefriction of these lenses and ultimately improve in vivo wear

REGULATION OF TN10 TRANSPOSITION BY HOST FACTORS H-NS AND IHF

Host factor proteins, IHF and H-NS, regulate TnlO transposition by mediating transpososome assembly and by providing stability to the transpososome to perform transposition. To investigate the structural role on the TnlO transpososome provided by H-NS, relative stabilities of the folded and unfolded transpososome forms bound to H-NS were determined. H-NS was found to bind stronger to the unfolded transpososome in promoting intermolecular transposition. The impact of an increased IHF affinity on transposition was explored with a transpososome that resisted unfolding in order to examine the relationship between transpososome unfolding and transposon excision. The unfolding defect led to impaired transposon excision, hence affecting strand transfer efficiency. Strand transfer efficiency was improved by adding H-NS, although excision remained defective. Together, IHF and H-NS regulate TnlO transposition by modulating structural transitions in the transpososome to promote propagation of the transposon and to enhance fitness of the transposon for evolutionary purpose

Diagnosis isn\u27t enough: Understanding the connections between high health care utilization, chronic conditions and disabilities among U.S. working age adults

Background Under the ACA, new programs are being developed to enhance care coordination and reduce health care costs among people with chronic conditions, disabilities, and high utilization of health care. However, the relationships between these groups are not well understood. Objectives Our aims were to (1) identify high utilizers of health care in the U.S. working age (18–64) population, (2) examine the overlap between this group and people with chronic conditions and/or disabilities, (3) identify predictors of high service use or cost among these subpopulations, and (4) recommend approaches for stratification of individuals with high health care utilization. Methods Using pooled national data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2006–2008), we created indices to identify elevated or high utilization and cost groups. We performed descriptive analyses, bivariate comparisons and multivariate analyses to examine the relations between these populations and individuals with chronic conditions and/or disabilities. Results While the large majority of persons with high use/cost had chronic conditions, the minority of persons with chronic conditions had high health care utilization. However, among persons with chronic conditions, disability was a significant predictor of high utilization. Annual expenditures were significantly elevated among people with disabilities, particularly when activities of daily living were limited. Conclusions We conclude that medical diagnosis alone is insufficient for the development of eligibility criteria for, or the evaluation of, programs intended to better the delivery or coordination of services for high utilizers of health care services. New approaches are needed to assess functional limitations and identify ongoing needs for services and supports

Not for Human Consumption : Prison Food\u27s Absent Regulatory Regime

Prison food is poor quality. The regulations which govern prison food are subpar and unenforceable by prisoners, due in large part to Sandin v. Conner and the Prison Litigation Reform Act. This Article aims to draw attention to the dire food conditions in prisons, explain the lax federal administrative law that permits these conditions, highlight the role of Sandin v. Conner and the Prison Litigation Reform Act in curtailing prisoners’ rights, and criticize the role of the private entity American Correctional Association in enabling mass neglect of prison food. The authors recommend that the Prison Litigation Reform Act be repealed, that Sandin v. Conner be overturned, and that Food Service Manual standards be improved to provide prisoners with more calories, more options, and more variety. Prisoners will be better positioned to enforce food rights in the courts under the recommended regime

Occupation-Focused Aquatic Therapy for Stroke Survivors

This capstone project explores the impact of aquatics-based occupational therapy on stroke survivors\u27 quality of life. A needs assessment was performed at an outpatient aquatic physical therapy clinic, and an aquatic program was developed based on stroke survivors\u27 unmet physical, social, mental, and occupational needs.https://soar.usa.edu/otdcapstonesspring2024/1039/thumbnail.jp

Cultural frontiers: women directors in post-revolutionary New Wave Iranian cinema

Iranian New Wave Cinema (1969 to present) has risen to international fame, especially in post-revolutionary years, for its social realist themes and contribution to national identity. This film movement boasts a number of successful women directors, whose films have impressed audiences and film festivals worldwide. This study examines the works of three Iranian women directors, Rakhshan Bani-Etemad, Tamineh Milani, and Samira Makhmalbaf, for their films’ social, political, and cultural themes and commentary while also investigating the directors’ techniques in managing censorship codes that regulate their production and content. Importantly, these women directors must also navigate the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance’s censorship laws, which dictate that challenging the government’s law or Islamic law is illegal and punishable. These women directors make films that highlight the issues and social status of Iranian women, the working class, and the under-privileged; they touch upon motherhood, love, marriage, abuse, war, and more. Moreover, they are social films that compose the genre of “women’s films,” though the characters and filmmakers are both men and women. While scholars have looked at the way Iranian women directors challenging both the traditional, one-dimensional representations of women in cinema, such as those in filmfarsi, this research draws upon feminist theory to argue that women directors utilize a number of strategies to elude or challenge censorship codes, which range from creative shooting to simply skipping the censorship review process altogether. Films by Iranian women directors reject the Orientalist conception of Iranian women as Muslim women who are prisoners of their culture and society

No Effect Of Host Species On Phenoloxidase Activity In A Mycophagous Beetle

Ecological immunology is an interdisciplinary field that helps elucidate interactions between the environment and immune response. The host species individuals experience have profound effects on immune response in many species of insects. However, this conclusion comes from studies of herbivorous insects even though species of mycophagous insects also inhabit many different host species. The goal of this study was to determine if fungal host species as well as individual, sex, body size, and host patch predict one aspect of immune function, phenoloxidase activity (PO). We sampled a metapopulation of Bolitotherus cornutus, a mycophagous beetle in southwestern Virginia. B. cornutus live on three species of fungus that differ in nutritional quality, social environment, and density. A filter paper phenoloxidase assay was used to quantify phenoloxidase activity. Overall, PO activity was significantly repeatable among individuals (0.57) in adult B. cornutus. While there was significant variance among individuals in PO activity, there were surprisingly no significant differences in PO activity among subpopulations, beetles living on different host species, or between the sexes; there was also no effect of body size. Our results suggest that other factors such as age, genotype, disease prevalence, or natal environment may be generating variance among individuals in PO activity

Sustainable Approaches to Food Production

Permaculture is a system of ecological design that aims to create more sustainable communities: its principles reinforce to participants understanding patterns of nature, learning food production, managing water catchment and storage, utilizing renewable energy, and building communities. A permaculture system is the exemplary sustainable approach to food production systems that the Campus Garden aims to bring to the University at Buffalo. The belief is that through the building of this garden, we have created a community at UB that has a heightened understanding of where its food comes from (fair share), how that food affects individuals’ bodies (people care), and how food production affects the environment (earth care). With the framework of “Grow better, not bigger” in mind, the ultimate goal of this research is to double the amount of food production to forty-pounds, in the same 20’x20’ plot of the UB Campus Garden. To advance the Garden’s vision and further emphasize the importance of sustainability, it is our goal to explore different gardening techniques for implementation during the growing season. The four components to this alternative growing research include: 1) Community engagement and education; 2) Permaculture and companion planning; 3) Container gardening; and, 4) Vertical gardening. This research allows us to utilize the Garden’s space as best possible and be a representation to the campus community of how food production can occur despite space constraints. Wholly, we aim to educate individuals on alternative gardening techniques, prove that implementation of these techniques is plausible at other sites, and expand the campus community’s understanding of the importance of food production processes