Identification of a Rare Coding Variant in Complement 3 Associated with Age-related Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is a common cause of blindness in the elderly. To identify rare coding variants associated with a large increase in risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), we sequenced 2,335 cases and 789 controls in 10 candidate loci (57 genes). To increase power, we augmented our control set with ancestry-matched exome sequenced controls. An analysis of coding variation in 2,268 AMD cases and 2,268 ancestry matched controls revealed two large-effect rare variants; previously described R1210C in the CFH gene (fcase = 0.51%, fcontrol = 0.02%, OR = 23.11), and newly identified K155Q in the C3 gene (fcase = 1.06%, fcontrol = 0.39%, OR = 2.68). The variants suggest decreased inhibition of C3 by Factor H, resulting in increased activation of the alternative complement pathway, as a key component of disease biology

Response of a Lake Michigan coastal lake to anthropogenic catchment disturbance

A paleolimnological investigation of post-European sediments in a Lake Michigan coastal lake was used to examine the response of Lower Herring Lake to anthropogenic impacts and its role as a processor of watershed inputs. We also compare the timing of this response with that of Lake Michigan to examine the role of marginal lakes as ‘early warning’ indicators of potential changes in the larger connected system and their role in buffering Lake Michigan against anthropogenic changes through biotic interactions and material trapping. Sediment geochemistry, siliceous microfossils and nutrient-related morphological changes in diatoms, identified three major trophic periods in the recent history of the lake. During deforestation and early settlement (pre-1845–1920), lake response to catchment disturbances results in localized increases in diatom abundances with minor changes in existing communities. In this early phase of disturbance, Lower Herring Lake acts as a sediment sink and a biological processor of nutrient inputs. During low-lake levels of the 1930s, the lake goes through a transitional period characterized by increased primary productivity and a major shift in diatom communities. Post-World War II (late 1940s–1989) anthropogenic disturbances push Lower Herring Lake to a new state and a permanent change in diatom community structure dominated by Cyclotella comensis . The dominance of planktonic summer diatom species associated with the deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM) is attributed to epilimnetic nutrient depletion. Declining Si:P ratios are inferred from increased sediment storage of biogenic silica and morphological changes in the silica content of Aulacoseira ambigua and Stephanodiscus niagarae . Beginning in the late 1940s, Lower Herring Lake functions as a biogeochemical processor of catchment inputs and a carbon, nutrient and silica sink. Microfossil response to increased nutrients and increased storage of biogenic silica in Lower Herring Lake and other regional embayments occur approximately 20–25 years earlier than in a nearby Lake Michigan site. Results from this study provide evidence for the role of marginal lakes and bays as nutrient buffering systems, delaying the impact of anthropogenic activities on the larger Lake Michigan system.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/43091/1/10933_2004_Article_1688.pd

Hanford Works Report HW-45008

An improved method of water plant control has been developed at Hanford which employs a sensitive turbidiy measuring microphorometer and a model water filtration plant. The microphotometer operates on a light scattering principle and is accurate in the range of 0.0 to 0.1 parts per million turbidity. The model filter plant used is a five gallon per minute plant which can simulate the conditions normally occurring in the large water plants. It is the purpose of this report to describe the model filter plant and to demonstrate the value of the model and microphotometer for effective water plant control and water plant design scoping

Controlling eutrophication by reducing both nitrogen and phosphorus

Improvements in the water quality of many freshwater and most coastal marine ecosystems requires reductions in both nitrogen and phosphorus inputs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Stick-slip motions in the friction force microscope: Effects of tip compliance

When a microcantilever with a nanoscale tip is scanned laterally over a surface to measure the nanoscale frictional forces, the onset of stick-slip tip motions is an extremely important phenomenon that signals the onset of lateral friction forces. In this article, we investigate theoretically the influence of tip and microcantilever compliance on this phenomenon. We show that static considerations alone cannot predict uniquely the onset of single or multiple atom slip events. Instead, the nonlinear dynamics of the tip during a slip event need to be carefully investigated to determine if the tip evolves to a single or multiple atom stick-slip motions. The results suggest that the relative compliances of the tip and microcantilever can be engineered to induce single or multiple atom stick-slip events and thus control lateral friction forces at the nanoscale