Time dependent properties of thermoplastic protein produced from bloodmeal with sodium sulphite as an anti-crosslinking agent

The aim of this research was to investigate how the time dependent mechanical behaviour of bloodmeal-based thermoplastic was affected by varying sodium sulphite content at two injection moulding temperatures (120°C at exit or 140°C at exit). Thermoplastic protein was prepared by extrusion with 2, 3 or 4g sodium sulphite (SS), 3g sodium dodecyl sulphate, 10 g urea, 20 g triethylene glycol and 40 g water per 100 g bloodmeal, then injection moulded into test specimens. Pull to break, creep and stress relaxation tests were performed on conditioned samples and glass transition temperature (Tg) was determined by dynamic mechanical analysis. Ultimate tensile strength was 7.9, 7.6 and 5.6 MPa for samples moulded at 120°C and 7.6, 6.3 and 5.7 MPa when moulded at 140°C with 2, 3 and 4 g SS respectively. Experimental creep data was modelled with a 4 element model, consisting of a spring and dashpot in parallel, in series with an additional spring and dashpot. Plotting creep compliance versus time showed increasing chain mobility as SS content increased. Relaxation was modelled with the Struik equation for short-time experiments. Relaxation times were 530, 360 and 250 s with 2, 3 and 4 g SS respectively when moulded at the lower temperature. At 140°C, relaxation times were 440, 430 and 190 s for these SS contents. Tg was in the range 57-65°C (1 Hz peak in tanδ) for all samples, but was lowest for samples with 4 g SS. These results show that both increased sodium sulphite and the higher moulding temperature increased chain mobility in the processed plastic

Target Recognition by RNase E RNA-Binding Domain AR2 Drives sRNA Decay in the Absence of PNPase

The C-terminal domain (CTD) of the major endoribonuclease RNase E not only serves as a scaffold for the central RNA decay machinery in gram-negative bacteria but also mediates coupled degradation of small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) and their cognate target transcripts following RNA chaperone Hfq-facilitated sRNA-mRNA base pairing. Despite the crucial role of RNase E CTD in sRNA-dependent gene regulation, the contribution of particular residues within this domain in recruiting sRNAs and mRNAs upon base pairing remains unknown. We have previously shown that in Escherichia coli, the highly conserved 3\u27-5\u27-exoribonuclease polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase) paradoxically stabilizes sRNAs by limiting access of RNase E to Hfq-bound sRNAs and by degrading target mRNA fragments that would otherwise promote sRNA decay. Here, we report that in the absence of PNPase, the RNA-binding region AR2 in the CTD is required for RNase E to initiate degradation of the Hfq-dependent sRNAs CyaR and RyhB. Additionally, we show that introducing mutations in either hfq that disrupts target mRNA binding to Hfq or the AR2 coding region of rne impairs RNase E binding to sRNAs. Altogether, our data support a model where sRNAs are recruited via bound mRNA targets to RNase E by its AR2 domain after Hfq catalyzes sRNA-mRNA pairing. These results also support our conclusion that in a PNPase-deficient strain, more rapid decay of sRNAs occurs due to accelerated pairing with mRNA targets as a consequence of their accumulation. Our findings provide insights into the mechanisms by which sRNAs and mRNAs are regulated by RNase E

Comparison of Transcriptional Profiles of Treponema pallidum During Experimental Infection of Rabbits and In Vitro Culture: Highly Similar, yet Different

Treponema pallidum ssp. pallidum, the causative agent of syphilis, can now be cultured continuously in vitro utilizing a tissue culture system, and the multiplication rates are similar to those obtained in experimental infection of rabbits. In this study, the RNA transcript profiles of the T. pallidum Nichols during in vitro culture and rabbit infection were compared to examine whether gene expression patterns differed in these two environments. To this end, RNA preparations were converted to cDNA and subjected to RNA-seq using high throughput Illumina sequencing; reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR was also performed on selected genes for validation of results. The transcript profiles in the in vivo and in vitro environments were remarkably similar, exhibiting a high degree of concordance overall. However, transcript levels of 94 genes (9%) out of the 1,063 predicted genes in the T. pallidum genome were significantly different during rabbit infection versus in vitro culture, varying by up to 8-fold in the two environments. Genes that exhibited significantly higher transcript levels during rabbit infection included those encoding multiple ribosomal proteins, several prominent membrane proteins, glycolysis-associated enzymes, replication initiator DnaA, rubredoxin, thioredoxin, two putative regulatory proteins, and proteins associated with solute transport. In vitro cultured T. pallidum had higher transcript levels of DNA repair proteins, cofactor synthesis enzymes, and several hypothetical proteins. The overall concordance of the transcript profiles may indicate that these environments are highly similar in terms of their effects on T. pallidum physiology and growth, and may also reflect a relatively low level of transcriptional regulation in this reduced genome organism

Evidence of strong dynamic core excitation in 19^{19}C resonant break-up

The resonant break-up of $^{19}$C on protons measured at RIKEN [Phys. Lett. B 660, 320 (2008)] is analyzed in terms of a valence-core model for $^{19}$C including possible core excitations. The analysis of the angular distribution of a prominent peak appearing in the relative-energy spectrum could be well described with this model and is consistent with the previous assignment of $5/2^{+}$ for this state. Inclusion of core-excitation effects are found to be essential to give the correct magnitude of the cross section for this state. By contrast, the calculation assuming an inert $^{18}$C core is found to largely underestimate the data.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, to be submitte

Agricultural Experiences and Factors of Undergraduates Who Enroll in a College of Agriculture

Industry partners and College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) faculty have observed students entering the college possessed fewer agriculture experiences and skills than their predecessors. They have also lamented the increasing pressure to develop industry-ready students, when the gaps are ever wider between their experience and skills entering college and what are required upon graduation. During the 2011 spring quarter, all CAFES students (N = 3,366) were sent an electronic survey that resulted in 911 responses (27% response rate). Three quarters of the students were female and one third were seniors. Prior to enrolling at the university, 34% had the opportunity to enroll in secondary agriculture courses but only 25% actually did enroll. Of those who enrolled in secondary agriculture courses, 15% enrolled all four years of high school. Only 28% were raised in a rural setting, with 12% on a farm and 12% on a ranch. When asked to identify what or who influenced their decisions to enroll in a CAFES major, the leading factor was parent(s), followed by a campus visit. Despite CAFES\u27 large enrollment, former FFA and 4-H members are a minority, even with the work these organizations do to prime students for careers in agriculture. Recommendations to increase enrollment of students with agricultural experiences and skills include: encouraging students to attend campus events early in their secondary careers to capture interest and foster relationships, charging university faculty to attend local meetings and visit programs on their travels and crediting experiences and skills gained through organizations such as FFA and 4-H on admission metrics to ensure students entering CAFES have valuable experiences and skills to build upon

Student Apathy as Defined by Secondary Agricultural Education Students

Student motivation continues to be a source of concern for educators. This phenomenological study captured the voices of secondary agriculture students as they shared their perspectives and experiences surrounding student apathy. Four focus group interviews were conducted at four central California high schools with distinguished agriculture programs. The following question guided the research: What experience do secondary agriculture students have with student apathy in their academic environments? Findings suggest student apathy is born of personal choice and grown through mediocre teaching, archaic assessment and the absence of learning purpose. Recommendations suggest students, teachers, the local school and teacher educators form a unified front to combat the phenomenon through purposeful and consistent action

Normal Enough? Tools to Aid Decision Making

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of the following article: Neil H. Spencer, Margaret Lay and Lindsey Kevan de Lopez, ‘Normal enough? Tools to aid decision making’, International Journal of Social Research Methodology, Vol. 20(2): 167-179, 2017, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2016.1155379. Published by Taylor & Francis.When undertaking quantitative hypothesis testing, social researchers need to decide whether the data with which they are working is suitable for parametric analyses to be used. When considering the relevant assumptions they can examine graphs and summary statistics but the decision making process is subjective and must also take into account the robustness of the proposed tests to deviations from the assumptions. We review the contemporary advice on this issue available to researchers and look back to the roots of hypothesis testing and associated work undertaken by eminent statisticians since the 1930s. From this we create a set of flow charts to give researchers tools they can use to make decisions in a more objective manner.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio