Genome-wide DNA-(de)methylation is associated with Noninfectious Bud-failure exhibition in Almond (Prunus dulcis [Mill.] D.A.Webb).

Noninfectious bud-failure (BF) remains a major threat to almond production in California, particularly with the recent rapid expansion of acreage and as more intensive cultural practices and modern cultivars are adopted. BF has been shown to be inherited in both vegetative and sexual progeny, with exhibition related to the age and propagation history of scion clonal sources. These characteristics suggest an epigenetic influence, such as the loss of juvenility mediated by DNA-(de)methylation. Various degrees of BF have been reported among cultivars as well as within sources of clonal propagation of the same cultivar. Genome-wide methylation profiles for different clones within almond genotypes were developed to examine their association with BF levels and association with the chronological time from initial propagation. The degree of BF exhibition was found to be associated with DNA-(de)methylation and clonal age, which suggests that epigenetic changes associated with ageing may be involved in the differential exhibition of BF within and among almond clones. Research is needed to investigate the potential of DNA-(de)methylation status as a predictor for BF as well as for effective strategies to improve clonal selection against age related deterioration. This is the first report of an epigenetic-related disorder threatening a major tree crop

Panel: Teaching To Increase Diversity and Equity in STEM

TIDES (Teaching to Increase Diversity and Equity in STEM) is a three-year initiative to transform colleges and universities by changing what STEM faculty, especially CS instructors, are doing in the classroom to encourage the success of their students, particularly those that have been traditionally underrepresented in computer science. Each of the twenty projects selected proposed new interdisciplinary curricula and adopted culturally sensitive pedagogies, with an eye towards departmental and institutional change. The four panelists will each speak about their TIDES projects, which all involved educating faculty about cultural competency. Three of the panelists infused introductory CS courses with applications from other disciplines, while one of the projects taught computational skills in natural science courses

Panel: Teaching To Increase Diversity and Equity in STEM

TIDES (Teaching to Increase Diversity and Equity in STEM) is a three-year initiative to transform colleges and universities by changing what STEM faculty, especially CS instructors, are doing in the classroom to encourage the success of their students, particularly those that have been traditionally underrepresented in computer science. Each of the twenty projects selected proposed new interdisciplinary curricula and adopted culturally sensitive pedagogies, with an eye towards departmental and institutional change. The four panelists will each speak about their TIDES projects, which all involved educating faculty about cultural competency. Three of the panelists infused introductory CS courses with applications from other disciplines, while one of the projects taught computational skills in natural science courses

Development of Self-Assembling Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery Applications

Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer in the world, and occurs in nearly four percent of all men. Although many cases are diagnosed as early stage cancer and the tumor can be removed by surgery, reoccurrence rates are high making treatment difficult and thus one of the most expensive cancers. To address this problem, drugs are injected intravesically after tumor removal to kill any residual cancer that may cause reoccurrence. While this was a significant improvement over surgery alone, high toxicity along with short residence times in the bladder limited its effectiveness. To combat these shortcomings, we will use short strands of DNA which cause an immune response to kill residual cancer. Unfortunately DNA is not readily taken up without first neutralizing the negative charge. In this study, nanoparticles were formed by neutralizing the DNA with varying positively charged polymers. Measurements were taken using Dynamic Light Scattering which determines size and dispersity of the nanoparticles. Stability was measured using heparin challenge and was run on agarose gel electrophoresis. After successful formulation of stable particles, a secondary coating of a modified fusion protein is planned to be used to confer enhanced stability as well as targeting. Chemical modification of the fusion protein via EDC (1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide) coupling, was done along with purification, and characterization by SDS PAGE (Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis), and Mass Spectrometry. Following successful formation of nanoparticles, future studies will be aimed at cytotoxicity and uptake in bladder cancer cells

The Effect of Conjugation on the Competition Between Internal Conversion and Electron Detachment: A Comparison Between Green Fluorescent and Red Kaede Protein Chromophores

Kaede, an analogue of green fluorescent protein (GFP), is a green-to-red photoconvertible fluorescent protein used as an in vivo ‘optical highlighter’ in bioimaging. The fluorescence quantum yield of the red Kaede protein is lower than that of GFP, suggesting that increasing the conjugation modifies the electronic relaxation pathway. Using a combination of anion photoelectron spectroscopy and electronic structure calculations, we find that the isolated red Kaede protein chromophore in the gas phase is deprotonated at the imidazole ring, unlike the GFP chromophore that is deprotonated at the phenol ring. We find evidence of an efficient electronic relaxation pathway from higher lying electronically excited states to the S1 state of the red Kaede chromophore that is not accessible in the GFP chromophore. Rapid autodetachment from high lying vibrational states of S1 is found to compete efficiently with internal conversion to the ground electronic state

Sleep homeostasis, seizures, and cognition in children with focal epilepsy

AIM: To investigate the link between sleep disruption and cognitive impairment in childhood epilepsy by studying the effect of epilepsy on sleep homeostasis, as reflected in slow-wave activity (SWA). METHOD: We examined SWA from overnight EEG-polysomnography in 19 children with focal epilepsy (mean [SD] age 11 years 6 months [3 years], range 6 years 6 months-15 years 6 months; 6 females, 13 males) and 18 age- and sex-matched typically developing controls, correlating this with contemporaneous memory consolidation task scores, full-scale IQ, seizures, and focal interictal discharges. RESULTS: Children with epilepsy did not differ significantly from controls in overnight SWA decline (p = 0.12) or gain in memory performance with sleep (p = 0.27). SWA was lower in patients compared to controls in the first hour of non-rapid eye movement sleep (p = 0.021), although not in those who remained seizure-free (p = 0.26). Full-scale IQ did not correlate with measures of SWA in patients or controls. There was no significant difference in SWA measures between focal and non-focal electrodes. INTERPRETATION: Overnight SWA decline is conserved in children with focal epilepsy and may underpin the preservation of sleep-related memory consolidation in this patient group. Reduced early-night SWA may reflect impaired or immature sleep homeostasis in those with a higher seizure burden

Bone CLARITY: Clearing, imaging, and computational analysis of osteoprogenitors within intact bone marrow

Bone tissue harbors unique and essential physiological processes, such as hematopoiesis, bone growth, and bone remodeling. To enable visualization of these processes at the cellular level in an intact environment, we developed “Bone CLARITY,” a bone tissue clearing method. We used Bone CLARITY and a custom-built light-sheet fluorescence microscope to detect the endogenous fluorescence of Sox9-tdTomato+ osteoprogenitor cells in the tibia, femur, and vertebral column of adult transgenic mice. To obtain a complete distribution map of these osteoprogenitor cells, we developed a computational pipeline that semiautomatically detects individual Sox9-tdTomato+ cells in their native three-dimensional environment. Our computational method counted all labeled osteoprogenitor cells without relying on sampling techniques and displayed increased precision when compared with traditional stereology techniques for estimating the total number of these rare cells. We demonstrate the value of the clearing-imaging pipeline by quantifying changes in the population of Sox9-tdTomato–labeled osteoprogenitor cells after sclerostin antibody treatment. Bone tissue clearing is able to provide fast and comprehensive visualization of biological processes in intact bone tissue

Sleep homeostasis, seizures, and cognition in children with focal epilepsy

AIM To investigate the link between sleep disruption and cognitive impairment in childhood epilepsy by studying the effect of epilepsy on sleep homeostasis, as reflected in slow-wave activity (SWA). METHOD We examined SWA from overnight EEG-polysomnography in 19 children with focal epilepsy (mean [SD] age 11 years 6 months [3 years], range 6 years 6 months-15 years 6 months; 6 females, 13 males) and 18 age- and sex-matched typically developing controls, correlating this with contemporaneous memory consolidation task scores, full-scale IQ, seizures, and focal interictal discharges. RESULTS Children with epilepsy did not differ significantly from controls in overnight SWA decline (p = 0.12) or gain in memory performance with sleep (p = 0.27). SWA was lower in patients compared to controls in the first hour of non-rapid eye movement sleep (p = 0.021), although not in those who remained seizure-free (p = 0.26). Full-scale IQ did not correlate with measures of SWA in patients or controls. There was no significant difference in SWA measures between focal and non-focal electrodes. INTERPRETATION Overnight SWA decline is conserved in children with focal epilepsy and may underpin the preservation of sleep-related memory consolidation in this patient group. Reduced early-night SWA may reflect impaired or immature sleep homeostasis in those with a higher seizure burden

Are we advancing universal health coverage through cataract services? Protocol for a scoping review.

INTRODUCTION: Universal health coverage (UHC) includes the dimensions of equity in access, quality services that improve health and protection against financial hardship. Cataract continues to be the leading cause of blindness globally, despite cataract surgery being an efficacious intervention. The aim of this scoping review is to map the nature, extent and global distribution of data on cataract services for UHC in terms of equity, access, quality and financial protection. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The search will be constructed by an Information Specialist and undertaken in MEDLINE, Embase and Global Health databases. We will include all published non-interventional primary research studies and systematic reviews that report a quantitative assessment of access, equity, quality or financial protection of cataract surgical services for adults at the subnational, national, regional or global level from population-based surveys or routinely collected health service data since 1 January 2000 and published through to February 2020.Screening and data charting will be undertaken using Covidence systematic review software. Titles and abstracts of identified studies will be screened by two authors independently. Full-text articles of potentially relevant studies will be obtained and reviewed independently by two authors against the inclusion criteria. Any discrepancies between the authors will be resolved by discussion, and with a third author as necessary. A data charting form will be developed and piloted on three studies by three authors and amendments made as necessary. Data will be extracted by two reviewers independently and summarised narratively and using maps. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval was not sought as the scoping review will only use published and publicly accessible data. The review will be published in an open access peer-reviewed journal. A summary of the results will be developed for website posting, stakeholder meetings and inclusion in the ongoing Lancet Global Health Commission on Global Eye Health