Satellite and ground radiotracking of elk

Radiotracking and monitoring of free-living animals in natural environments is providing an effective new technique for acquiring information on biological processes, including animal orientation and navigation. To test the practicability of extending the technique by using satellite systems for tracking animals, a female elk was instrumented with an electronic collar. It contained both the Interrogation Recording Location System (IRLS) transponder and a Craighead-Varney ground-tracking transmitter. The elk was successfully tracked and monitored by satellite during month of April 1970. This was the first time an animal had been tracked by satellite on the surface of the earth

Different Mechanisms of Calcitonin, Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide, and Somatostatin Regulation by Glucocorticoids in a Cell Culture of Human Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma

We have employed the TT cell line, a model for the human medullary thyroid carcinoma cell, lo study the regulation of peptide hormone production by glucocorticoids. Complementary DNA probes were used to measure the calcitonin (CT), CT gene-related peptide (CGRP), and somatostatin (SRIF) mRNA levels. Dose-response experiments in serum-free medium showed that dexamethasone (six-day treatment) lowered somatostatin (to 1% of basal) and CGRP mRNA (to 50% of basal) and stimulated CT mRNA (threefold to thirteenfold) with a half-maximal effective concentration of 10−8 M. Time course studies for cells continuously exposed to 10−6 M dexamethasone showed a rapid (within hours) lowering of SRIF mRNA, whereas the effects on CT and CGRP mRNA required six to eight days. These results demonstrate the presence of two mechanisms, transcriptional (somatostatin) and posttranscriptional (the RNA splice decision to make CT or CGRP mRNA). that can be hormonally regulated

EuroSpine Task Force on Research: support for spine researchers

In recognition of the value of research to the practice of spine care, Federico Balagué and Ferran Pellisé, at the time President and Secretary for EuroSpine, asked Margareta Nordin to set up a Task Force on Research (TFR) for EuroSpine during summer 2011. The concept was to stimulate and facilitate a research community within the society, through two main functions: (1) distribution of EuroSpine funds to researchers; (2) develop and deliver research training/education courses. What has the EuroSpine TFR accomplished since its inception

Correlations of Globular Cluster Properties: Their Interpretations and Uses

Correlations among the independently measured physical properties of globular clusters (GCs) can provide powerful tests for theoretical models and new insights into their dynamics, formation, and evolution. We review briefly some of the previous work, and present preliminary results from a comparative study of GC correlations in the Local Group galaxies. The results so far indicate that these diverse GC systems follow the same fundamental correlations, suggesting a commonality of formative and evolutionary processes which produce them.Comment: An invited review, to appear in "New Horizons in Globular Cluster Astronomy", eds. G. Piotto, G. Meylan, S.G. Djorgovski, and M. Riello, ASPCS, in press (2003). Latex file, 8 pages, 5 eps figures, style files include

The Low Velocity Wind from the Circumstellar Matter Around the B9V Star sigma Herculis

We have obtained FUSE spectra of sigma Her, a nearby binary system, with a main sequence primary, that has a Vega-like infrared excess. We observe absorption in the excited fine structure lines C II* at 1037 A, N II* at 1085 A, and N II** at 1086 A that are blueshifted by as much as ~30 km/sec with respect to the star. Since these features are considerably narrower than the stellar lines and broader than interstellar features, the C II and N II are circumstellar. We suggest that there is a radiatively driven wind, arising from the circumstellar matter, rather than accretion as occurs around beta Pic, because of sigma Her's high luminosity. Assuming that the gas is liberated by collisions between parent bodies at 20 AU, the approximate distance at which blackbody grains are in radiative equilibrium with the star and at which 3-body orbits become unstable, we infer dM/dt ~ 6 * 10^-12 M_{sun}/yr. This wind depletes the minimum mass of parent bodies in less than the estimated age of the system.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, ApJ in pres

The Synergizer service for translating gene, protein and other biological identifiers

Summary: The Synergizer is a database and web service that provides translations of biological database identifiers. It is accessible both programmatically and interactively

Transcriptional Regulation of the Human Calcitonin Gene: A Progress Report

We have applied DNA transfer techniques lo study the transcriptional regulation of the calcitonin (CT) gene in a C-cell line (TT) derived from a human medullary thyroid carcinoma. TT cells were transfected with a fusion gene containing the CT gene promoter and 5\u27 -flanking DNA attached to the promoter-less growth hormone gene (reporter). We quantitated the reporter gene product to monitor transcriptional activation by the CT promoter and deletion mutants of the 5\u27 -flanking DNA. We found that the proximal CT promoter which includes the DNA sequence from +1 to -129 bp upstream from the CT transcription start site did not induce transcription in C-cells or in NIH 3T3 cells. The attachment of additional 5\u27-flanking DNA, extending up to -1460 bp enhanced transcription up to twelvefold in TT cells but had no effect on transcription in 3T3 cells. Deletion of a sequence located at -1290 to -820 bp on the CT 5\u27 -flanking DNA abolished the transcription of the reporter gene. Attachment of the DNA sequence located between -1333 to -731 to the fusion gene, containing the CT promoter (+1 to -129) and the reporter gene, restored transcription of the reporter gene in TT cells. We conclude that an enhancer of CT transcription, which is active in C-cells but not in 3T3 cells, is located between -1290 and -820 of the CT 5\u27-flanking DNA