Fusiform Rust Incidence in Loblolly and Slash Pine Plantations in East Texas

A method to predict the incidence of fusiform rust (Cronartium quercuum [Berk.] Miyabe ex Shirai f. sp. fusiforme) in unthinned loblolly (Pinus taeda L.) and slash pine (Pinus elliotti Englem.) plantations located on non-oldfields in East Texas is presented. In addition, procedures are described to estimate changes in rust incidence over time as: 1. A rust-free tree remains rust free, develops stem or branch galls, or dies. 2. A tree with branch galls remains with branch galls only, develops stem galls, or dies. 3. A tree with stem galls remains with stem galls, or dies. Multinomial logistic regression models utilizing basic plantation parameters as predictors were fit to estimate current rust incidence and, then, the change in rust condition over time. South. J. Appl. For. 15(2):79-84

Characterizing Fusiform Rust Incidence and Distribution in East Texas

Three measurement cycles were completed on an extensive network of loblolly( Pinus taeda L.) pine and slash (Pinus elliottii Engelm.) pine plots in industrial plantations throughout East Texas in 1984, 1987, and 1990.Because the incidence of fusiform rust caused by Cronartium quercuum [Berk.] Miyabe ex Shirai f. sp. fusiforme had been recorded at each measurement, it is possible to characterize the temporal and geographic distribution of fusiform rust among these industrial pine plantations in East Texas. Average rust incidence for each species by two year age classes is presented. For loblolly pine, there is no apparent change in overall average incidence between 1987 and 1990, whereas for slash pine, there is an apparent overall average decline of about 7-8 percentage points. For some slash pine age classes, the incidence decline is 20-30 percentage points. Loblolly and slash pine rust incidence maps depict the geographic distribution of rust infection by plantation age groups in East Texas. South. J. Appl. For. 18(1):29-3

In Vitro Reconstituted Biotransformation of 4-Fluorothreonine from Fluoride Ion: Application of the Fluorinase

SummaryIn this paper, we report that fluoride ion is converted to the amino acid/antibiotic 4-fluorothreonine 2 in a biotransformation involving five (steps a–e) overexpressed enzymes. The biotransformation validates the biosynthetic pathway to 4-fluorothreonine in the bacterium Streptomyces cattleya (Schaffrath et al., 2002). To achieve an in vitro biotransformation, the fluorinase and the purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) enzymes (steps a and b), which are coded for by the flA and flB genes of the fluorometabolite gene cluster in S. cattleya, were overexpressed. Also, an isomerase gene product that can convert 5-FDRP 6 to 5-FDRibulP 7 (step c) was identified in S. cattleya, and the enzyme was overexpressed for the biotransformation. A fuculose aldolase gene from S. coelicolor was overexpressed in E. coli and was used as a surrogate aldolase (step d) in these experiments. To complete the complement of enzymes, an ORF coding the PLP-dependent transaldolase, the final enzyme of the fluorometabolite pathway, was identified in genomic DNA by a reverse genetics approach, and the S. cattleya gene/enzyme was then overexpressed in S. lividans. This latter enzyme is an unusual PLP-dependent catalyst with some homology to both bacterial serine hydroxymethyl transferases (SHMT) and C5 sugar isomerases/epimerases. The biotransformation demonstrates the power of the fluorinase to initiate C-F bond formation for organo-fluorine synthesis

Recursive Calculation of One-Loop QCD Integral Coefficients

We present a new procedure using on-shell recursion to determine coefficients of integral functions appearing in one-loop scattering amplitudes of gauge theories, including QCD. With this procedure, coefficients of integrals, including bubbles and triangles, can be determined without resorting to integration. We give criteria for avoiding spurious singularities and boundary terms that would invalidate the recursion. As an example where the criteria are satisfied, we obtain all cut-constructible contributions to the one-loop n-gluon scattering amplitude, A_n^{oneloop}(...--+++...), with split-helicity from an N=1 chiral multiplet and from a complex scalar. Using the supersymmetric decomposition, these are ingredients in the construction of QCD amplitudes with the same helicities. This method requires prior knowledge of amplitudes with sufficiently large numbers of legs as input. In many cases, these are already known in compact forms from the unitarity method.Comment: 36 pages; v2 clarification added and typos fixed, v3 typos fixe

Kelt-17B: A Hot-Jupiter Transiting an A-Star in a misaligned orbit detected with Doppler Tomography

We present the discovery of a hot Jupiter transiting the V = 9.23 mag main-sequence A-star KELT-17 (BD+14 1881). KELT-17b is a ${1.31}_{-0.29}^{+0.28}\,{M}_{{\rm{J}}}$, ${1.525}_{-0.060}^{+0.065}\,{R}_{{\rm{J}}}$ hot-Jupiter in a 3.08-day period orbit misaligned at −115fdg9 ± 4fdg1 to the rotation axis of the star. The planet is confirmed via both the detection of the radial velocity orbit, and the Doppler tomographic detection of the shadow of the planet during two transits. The nature of the spin–orbit misaligned transit geometry allows us to place a constraint on the level of differential rotation in the host star; we find that KELT-17 is consistent with both rigid-body rotation and solar differential rotation rates ($\alpha \lt 0.30$ at $2\sigma$ significance). KELT-17 is only the fourth A-star with a confirmed transiting planet, and with a mass of ${1.635}_{-0.061}^{+0.066}\,{M}_{\odot }$, an effective temperature of 7454 ± 49 K, and a projected rotational velocity of $v\sin {I}_{* }={44.2}_{-1.3}^{+1.5}\,\mathrm{km}\,{{\rm{s}}}^{-1};$ it is among the most massive, hottest, and most rapidly rotating of known planet hosts

Parametric imaging of attenuation by optical coherence tomography: review of models, methods, and clinical translation

SIGNIFICANCE: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) provides cross-sectional and volumetric images of backscattering from biological tissue that reveal the tissue morphology. The strength of the scattering, characterized by an attenuation coefficient, represents an alternative and complementary tissue optical property, which can be characterized by parametric imaging of the OCT attenuation coefficient. Over the last 15 years, a multitude of studies have been reported seeking to advance methods to determine the OCT attenuation coefficient and developing them toward clinical applications. AIM: Our review provides an overview of the main models and methods, their assumptions and applicability, together with a survey of preclinical and clinical demonstrations and their translation potential. RESULTS: The use of the attenuation coefficient, particularly when presented in the form of parametric en face images, is shown to be applicable in various medical fields. Most studies show the promise of the OCT attenuation coefficient in differentiating between tissues of clinical interest but vary widely in approach. CONCLUSIONS: As a future step, a consensus on the model and method used for the determination of the attenuation coefficient is an important precursor to large-scale studies. With our review, we hope to provide a basis for discussion toward establishing this consensus

Automated Selection of Hotspots (ASH): enhanced automated segmentation and adaptive step finding for Ki67 hotspot detection in adrenal cortical cancer

BACKGROUND: In prognosis and therapeutics of adrenal cortical carcinoma (ACC), the selection of the most active areas in proliferative rate (hotspots) within a slide and objective quantification of immunohistochemical Ki67 Labelling Index (LI) are of critical importa

Lepton Polarization and Forward-Backward Asymmetries in b -> s tau+ tau-

We study the spin polarizations of both tau leptons in the decay b -> s tau+ tau-. In addition to the polarization asymmetries involving a single tau, we construct asymmetries for the case where both polarizations are simultaneously measured. We also study forward-backward asymmetries with polarized tau's. We find that a large number of asymmetries are predicted to be large, >~ 10%. This permits the measurement of all Wilson coefficients and the b-quark mass, thus allowing the standard model (SM) to be exhaustively tested. Furthermore, there are many unique signals for the presence of new physics. For example, asymmetries involving triple-product correlations are predicted to be tiny within the SM, O(10^{-2}). Their observation would be a clear signal of new physics.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX, 4 figures (included). Paper somewhat reorganized, references greatly expanded, conclusions unchange

Measurement of Pion Enhancement at Low Transverse Momentum and of the Delta-Resonance Abundance in Si-Nucleus Collisions at AGS Energy

We present measurements of the pion transverse momentum (p_t) spectra in central Si-nucleus collisions in the rapidity range 2.0<y<5.0 for p_t down to and including p_t=0. The data exhibit an enhanced pion yield at low p_t compared to what is expected for a purely thermal spectral shape. This enhancement is used to determine the Delta-resonance abundance at freeze-out. The results are consistent with a direct measurement of the Delta-resonance yield by reconstruction of proton-pion pairs and imply a temperature of the system at freeze-out close to 140 MeV.Comment: 12 pages + 4 figures (uuencoded at end-of-file