Shock absorber Patent

Design and development of double acting shock absorber for spacecraft docking operation

Shock absorber operates over wide range

Piston-type hydraulic shock absorber, with a metered damping system, operates over a wide range of kinetic energy loading rates. It is used for absorbing shock and vibration on mounted machinery and heavy earth-moving equipment

Evidence for ferredoxin glutamate synthase activity in grape shoot tissues

Research NoteFerredoxin glutamate synthase (ferredoxin glutamine: oxoglutarate aminotransferase, or Fd-GOGAT, EC 1.4.7.1) activity was detected in grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.). Highest Fd-GOGAT activity was found in lamina tissue. Moderate levels of activity were found in petiole, tendril, rachis, and flower tissues. No activity was detected in extracts from pedicel tissue. Western blotting with rice Fd-GOGAT antibodies resulted in a positive reaction with single grape protein band of 73 kDa in all tissue types tested

Live high-train low altitude training: responders and non-responders

Objective: Investigate differences between athletes that responded (improved performance) compared to those that did not, after a 20-day “live high-train low” (LHTL) altitude training camp. Methods: Ten elite triathletes completed 20 days of live high (1545-1650 m), train low (300 m) training. The athletes underwent (i), two 800-m swimming time trials at sea-level (1 week prior to and 1 week after the altitude camp) and (ii) two 10-min standardised submaximal cycling tests at altitude on day 1 and day 20 of the altitude camp. Acute mountain sickness (AMS) was also measured during the camp. Based on their 800-m swimming time trial performances, athletes were divided into responders (improved by 3.2 ± 2.2%, mean ± SD, n=6) and non-responders (decreased by 1.8 ± 1.2%, n=4). Results: Compared to non-responders, the responders had lower exercise heart rates (-6.3 ± 7.8%, mean ± 90% CL, and higher oxygen saturations (1.2 ± 1.3%) at the end of the 10-min submaximal test after the camp. Compared to the responders, the non-responders had substantially higher VE and VE/VO₂ during the submaximal test on day 1 of the altitude training camp, and a substantially higher RER during the submaximal test on day 20 of the camp. As a result of the altitude training, exercise economy of the non-responders compared to the responders deteriorated (i.e., non-responders required more oxygen per watt). Non-responders were 3.0 times (90% CL=0.5-16.6) more likely to suffer symptoms of acute mountain sickness during first 5 days of altitude compared to responders. Conclusion: Changes in SpO₂, heart rate and some respiratory variables during exercise and resting AMS scores may help determine athletes that respond to LHTL altitude training camps from athletes that fail to respond to such training

Exercise training versus angioplasty for stable claudication. Long and medium term results of a prospective, randomised trial

Objectives:To compare percutaneous transluminal angioplsty (PTA) against exercise training in the treatment of stable claudication.Design:Prospective, randomised trial.Materials:Fifty-six patients with unilateral, stable, lower limb claudication assessed prior to randomisation, at 3 monthly intervals for 15 months, and at approximately 6 years follow-up. Thirty-seven patients were available for long term review.Outcome measures:Ankle/brachial pressure index (ABPI), treadmill claudication and maximum walking distances, percentage fall in ankle systolic pressure after exercise.Results:Significant increases were seen in ABPI in the patients treated with PTA at all assessment to 15 months. However in terms of improved walking performance, the most significant changes in claudication and maximum walking distance were seen in the exercise training group. At long term follow-up, there was no significant difference between the groups. Subgroup analysis by angiographic site of disease showed greater functional improvement in those patients with disease confined to the superficial femoral artery treated by exercise training. The overall prognosis for the whole group of patients was benign, with only two (4%) undergoing amputation.Conclusions:Exercise training confers a greater improvement in claudication and maximum walking distance than PTA, especially in patients with disease confined to the superficial femoral artery

Communications Biophysics

Contains reports on four research projects.U.S. Air Force under Contract AF19(604)-411

Early MicroRNA expression profile as a prognostic biomarker for the development of pelvic inflammatory disease in a mouse model of chlamydial genital infection

It is not currently possible to predict the probability of whether a woman with a chlamydial genital infection will develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). To determine if specific biomarkers may be associated with distinct chlamydial pathotypes, we utilized two Chlamydia muridarum variants (C. muridarum Var001 [CmVar001] and CmVar004) that differ in their abilities to elicit upper genital tract pathology in a mouse model. CmVar004 has a lower growth rate in vitro and induces pathology in only 20% of C57BL/6 mouse oviducts versus 83.3% of oviducts in CmVar001-infected mice. To determine if chemokine and cytokine production within 24 h of infection is associated with the outcome of pathology, levels of 15 chemokines and cytokines were measured. CmVar004 infection induced significantly lower levels of CXCL1, CXCL2, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and CCL2 in comparison to CmVar001 infection with similar rRNA (rs16) levels for Chlamydiae. A combination of microRNA (miRNA) sequencing and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis of 134 inflammation-related miRNAs was performed 24 h postinfection to determine if the chemokine/cytokine responses would also be reflected in miRNA expression profiles. Interestingly, 12 miRNAs (miR-135a-5p, miR298-5p, miR142-3p, miR223-3p, miR299a-3p, miR147-3p, miR105, miR325-3p, miR132-3p, miR142-5p, miR155-5p, and miR-410-3p) were overexpressed during CmVar004 infection compared to CmVar001 infection, inversely correlating with the respective chemokine/cytokine responses. To our knowledge, this is the first report demonstrating that early biomarkers elicited in the host can differentiate between two pathological variants of chlamydiae and be predictive of upper tract disease. © 2014 Yeruva et al

Insights into the role of DNA methylation in diatoms by genome-wide profiling in Phaeodactylum tricornutum

DNA cytosine methylation is a widely conserved epigenetic mark in eukaryotes that appears to have critical roles in the regulation of genome structure and transcription. Genome-wide methylation maps have so far only been established from the supergroups Archaeplastida and Unikont. Here we report the first whole-genome methylome from a stramenopile, the marine model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum. Around 6% of the genome is intermittently methylated in a mosaic pattern. We find extensive methylation in transposable elements. We also detect methylation in over 320 genes. Extensive gene methylation correlates strongly with transcriptional silencing and differential expression under specific conditions. By contrast, we find that genes with partial methylation tend to be constitutively expressed. These patterns contrast with those found previously in other eukaryotes. By going beyond plants, animals and fungi, this stramenopile methylome adds significantly to our understanding of the evolution of DNA methylation in eukaryotes.Fil: Veluchamy, Alaguraj. Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure; FranciaFil: Lin, Xin. Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure; Francia. Xiamen University; ChinaFil: Maumus, Florian.Fil: Rivarola, Maximo Lisandro.Fil: Bhavsar, Jaysheel.Fil: Creasy, Todd.Fil: O'Brien, Kimberly.Fil: Sengamalay, Naomi A..Fil: Tallon, Luke J..Fil: Smith, Andrew D..Fil: Rayko, Edda.Fil: Ahmed, Ikhlak.Fil: Crom, Stéphane Le.Fil: Farrant, Gregory K..Fil: Sgro, Jean-Yves.Fil: Olson, Sue A..Fil: Bondurant, Sandra Splinter.Fil: Allen, Andrew.Fil: Rabinowicz, Pablo D..Fil: Sussman, Michael R..Fil: Bowler, Chris.Fil: Tirichine, Leïla