1,470 research outputs found
Stand Analysis of an Invading Firetree (Myrica faya Aiton) Population, Hawaii
Since 1971, the exotic firetree (Myricafaya) has been invading a
native ohia tree (Metrosideros collina subsp. polymorpha Rock) habitat in the
1959 Kilauea Iki devastation area, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Ninetysix
trees of the invading population were analyzed as to structural and fruiting
characteristics.
Data were collected from two permanent transects that were designed to
provide for continued study of the fire tree and ohia community.
Initial findings reveal that the present firetree spread depends on an outside
seed source, and successful seedling establishment is dependent on favorable
microhabitat conditions beneath ohia trees. As yet, no competitive replacement
of ohia trees by fire trees has been observed. On the contrary, firetrees
over 2 m tall that had grown up and into ohia tree crowns were exhibiting
poor vigor. Additionally, there is a high positive correlation between fire tree
loss of vigor and diameter increase beyond 4-5 em.
Preliminary observations suggest that fire tree seed dispersal depends on
birds, primarily, the exotic Japanese white-eye (Zosterops japonica)
Treatment of infected dental pulps of monkeys with vancomycin and calcium hydroxide
Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)This study was undertaken to investigate histologically the
effect of a combination of a potent antibiotic and calcium hydroxide
when used as a medication in direct pulp therapy.
The pulps of 74 teeth in one Macaca Speciosa monkey and
two Macaca Nemestrina monkeys were exposed and left open to the
oral environment for 48 hours to insure contamination. These
pulps received direct treatment with one of four experimental
medications: 1) starch and water; 2) vancomycin, starch and
water; 3) calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water; and
4) vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water.
In 30 days the teeth were removed from two animals and at 90
days from the other for histologic evaluation.
A satisfactory response was observed in all the teeth
treated with vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and
water; in 94.4 per cent of the teeth treated with calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water; in 33.3 per cent of those treated with vancomycin and starch; and in 11.2 per cent of those receiving starch and water. Complete bridging was seen
in all teeth treated with vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl
cellulose and water. This was confirmed by the use of Procion
brilliant red H-8BS dye and the study of serial sections.
Under the conditions of this investigation, vancomycin in
combination with calcium hydroxide and methyl cellulose was
effective in controlling infection and promoting reparative
dentin formation in monkeys
Sex-specific predictors of improved walking with step-monitored, home-based exercise in peripheral artery disease
The aim of this study was to determine whether baseline clinical characteristics and the duration and intensity of ambulation during our step-monitored home-based exercise program were predictive of changes in ambulatory outcomes at completion of the program in symptomatic patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD). Twenty-two men (ankle–brachial index (ABI) = 0.71 ± 0.19) and 24 women (ABI = 0.66 ± 0.23) completed the home exercise program, consisting of intermittent walking to mild-to-moderate claudication pain for 3 months. Ambulatory outcome measures were peak walking time (PWT) and claudication onset time (COT) during a treadmill test, and the distance recorded during a 6-minute walk distance test (6MWD). Men experienced significant increases (p<0.01) in COT, PWT, and 6MWD following the home exercise program, and women had significant increases in 6MWD (p<0.01) and PWT (p<0.05). In women, average exercise cadence during the home exercise sessions was the only predictor that entered the model for change in COT (p=0.082), and was the first predictor in the model for change in PWT (p=0.029) and 6MWD (p=0.006). In men, the ABI was the only predictor that entered the model for change in 6MWD (p=0.002), and ABI was a predictor along with metabolic syndrome in the model for change in COT (p=0.003). No variables entered the model for change in PWT. Faster ambulatory cadence during the step-monitored home-based exercise program may predict greater improvements in ambulatory function in women, whereas having less severe PAD and comorbid burden at baseline may predict greater improvements in ambulatory function in men. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00618670Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline
Mechanisms Mediating the Biologic Activity of Synthetic Proline, Glycine, and Hydroxyproline Polypeptides in Human Neutrophils
The accumulation of neutrophils at sites of tissue injury or infection is mediated by chemotactic factors released as part of the inflammatory process. Some of these factors are generated as a direct consequence of tissue injury or infection, including degradation fragments of connective tissue collagen and bacterial- or viral-derived peptides containing collagen-related structural motifs. In these studies, we examined biochemical mechanisms mediating the biologic activity of synthetic polypeptides consisting of repeated units of proline (Pro), glycine (Gly), and hydroxyproline (Hyp), major amino acids found within mammalian and bacterial collagens. We found that the peptides were chemoattractants for neutrophils. Moreover, their chemotactic potency was directly related to their size and composition. Thus, the pentameric peptides (Pro-Pro-Gly)(5) and (Pro-Hyp-Gly)(5) were more active in inducing chemotaxis than the corresponding decameric peptides (Pro-Pro-Gly)(10) and (Pro-Hyp-Gly)(10). In addition, the presence of Hyp in peptides reduced chemotactic activity. The synthetic peptides were also found to reduce neutrophil apoptosis. In contrast to chemotaxis, this activity was independent of peptide size or composition. The effects of the peptides on both chemotaxis and apoptosis were blocked by inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K) and p38 mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase. However, only (Pro-Pro-Gly)(5) and (Pro-Pro-Gly)(10) induced expression of PI3-K and phosphorylation of p38 MAP kinase, suggesting a potential mechanism underlying reduced chemotactic activity of Hyp-containing peptides. Although none of the synthetic peptides tested had any effect on intracellular calcium mobilization, each induced nuclear binding activity of the transcription factor NF-κB. These findings indicate that polymeric polypeptides containing Gly-X-Y collagen-related structural motifs promote inflammation by inducing chemotaxis and blocking apoptosis. However, distinct calcium-independent signaling pathways appear to be involved in these activities
Influence of diabetes on ambulation and inflammation in men and women with symptomatic peripheral artery disease
AbstractObjectiveTo determine whether diabetes and sex were factors associated with ambulatory function, endothelial cell inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis, and with circulating biomarkers of inflammation and antioxidant capacity in patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) and claudication.Materials/MethodsAmbulatory function of 180 symptomatic men and women with PAD was assessed during a graded maximal treadmill test, 6-minute walk test, and 4-meter walk test. Patients were further characterized on endothelial effects of circulating factors present in the sera using a cell culture-based bioassay on primary human arterial endothelial cells, and on circulating inflammatory and vascular biomarkers.ResultsMen and women with diabetes had greater prevalence (p = 0.007 and p = 0.015, respectively) of coronary artery disease (CAD) than patients without diabetes. To assure that this difference did not influence planned comparisons, the data set was stratified on CAD. Diabetic men with CAD had a lower peak walking time (PWT) during the treadmill test and a slower 4-meter gait speed compared to non-diabetic men with CAD (p < 0.05). Diabetic women with CAD had a lower PWT compared to their non-diabetic counterparts (p < 0.01). Additionally, diabetic men with CAD had higher pigment epithelium-derived factor (p < 0.05) than their non-diabetic counterparts, and diabetic women with CAD had higher leptin (p < 0.01) and interleukin-8 levels (p < 0.05).ConclusionsIn patients with PAD, diabetic men and women with CAD had more severe claudication than their non-diabetic counterparts, as measured by shorter PWT, and the men had further ambulatory impairment manifested by slower 4-meter gait speed. Furthermore, the diabetic patients with CAD had elevations in interleukin-8, leptin, and PEDF
1936 The Freshman, vol. 3, no. 17
The Freshman was a weekly, student newsletter issued on Mondays throughout the academic year. The newsletter included calendar notices, coverage of campus social events, lectures, and athletic teams. The intent of the publication was to create unity, a sense of community, and class spirit among first year students. Included in this issue is an article about the cancellation of the annual Freshmen Banquet due to financial constraints
A reappraisal of explosive–effusive silicic eruption dynamics: syn-eruptive assembly of lava from the products of cryptic fragmentation
Silicic volcanic eruptions range in style from gently effusive to highly explosive, and may switch style unpredictably during a single eruption. Direct observations of subaerial rhyolitic eruptions (Chaiten 2008, Cordón Caulle 2011–2012, Chile) challenged long-standing paradigms of explosive and effusive eruptive styles and led to the formulation of new models of hybrid activity. However, the processes that govern such hybrid explosive–effusive activity remain poorly understood. Here, we bring together observations of the well-studied 2011–2012 Cordón Caulle eruption with new textural and petrologic data on erupted products, and video and still imagery of the eruption. We infer that all of the activity – explosive, effusive, and hybrid – was fed by explosive fragmentation at depth, and that effusive behaviour arose from sticking and sintering, in the shallow vent region, of the clastic products of deeper, cryptic fragmentation. We use a scaling approach to determine that there is sufficient time available, during emplacement, for diffusive pyroclast degassing and sintering to produce a degassed plug that occludes the shallow conduit, feeding clastogenic, apparently effusive, lava-like deposits. Based on evidence from Cordón Caulle, and from other similar eruptions, we further argue that hybrid explosive–effusive activity is driven by episodic gas-fracking of the occluding lava plug, fed by the underlying pressurized ash- and pyroclast-laden region. The presence of a pressurized pocket of ash-laden gas within the conduit provides a mechanism for generation of harmonic tremor, and for syn-eruptive laccolith intrusion, both of which were features of the Cordón Caulle eruption. We conclude that the cryptic fragmentation models is more consistent with available evidence than the prevailing model for effusion of silicic lava that assume coherent non-fragmental rise of magma from depth to the surface without wholesale explosive fragmentation
A model for permeability evolution during volcanic welding
Volcanic ash and pyroclasts can weld when deposited hot by pyroclastic density currents, in near-vent fall deposits, or in fractures in volcano interiors. Welding progressively decreases the permeability of the particle packs, influencing a range of magmatic and volcanic processes, including magma outgassing, which is an important control on eruption dynamics. Consequently, there is a need for a quantitative model for permeability evolution during welding of ash and pyroclasts under the range of conditions encountered in nature. Here we present in situ experiments in which hydrous, crystal-free, glassy pyroclasts are imaged via x-ray tomography during welding at high temperature. For each 3D dataset acquired, we determine the porosity, Darcian gas permeability, specific surface area, and pore connectivity. We find that all of these quantities decrease as a critical percolation threshold is approached. We develop a constitutive mathematical model for the evolution of permeability in welding volcanic systems based on percolation theory, and validate the model against our experimental data. Importantly, our model accounts for polydispersivity of the grainsize in the particle pack, the pressures acting on the pack, and changes in particle viscosity arising from degassing of dissolved H2O during welding. Our model is theoretically grounded and has no fitting parameters, hence it should be valid across all magma compositions. The model can be used to predict whether a cooling pyroclast pack will have sufficient time to weld and to degas, the scenarios under which a final deposit will retain a permeable network, the timescales over which sealing occurs, and whether a welded deposit will have disequilibrium or equilibrium H2O content. A user-friendly implementation of the model is provided
Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 Early Release Science: Emission-Line Galaxies from Infrared Grism Observations
We present grism spectra of emission-line galaxies (ELGs) from 0.6-1.6
microns from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. These new
infrared grism data augment previous optical Advanced Camera for Surveys G800L
0.6-0.95 micron grism data in GOODS-South from the PEARS program, extending the
wavelength covereage well past the G800L red cutoff. The ERS grism field was
observed at a depth of 2 orbits per grism, yielding spectra of hundreds of
faint objects, a subset of which are presented here. ELGs are studied via the
Ha, [OIII], and [OII] emission lines detected in the redshift ranges 0.2<z<1.4,
1.2<z<2.2 and 2.0<z<3.3 respectively in the G102 (0.8-1.1 microns; R~210) and
G141 (1.1-1.6 microns; R~130) grisms. The higher spectral resolution afforded
by the WFC3 grisms also reveals emission lines not detectable with the G800L
grism (e.g., [SII] and [SIII] lines). From these relatively shallow
observations, line luminosities, star-formation rates, and grism spectroscopic
redshifts are determined for a total of 48 ELGs to m(AB)~25 mag. Seventeen
GOODS-South galaxies that previously only had photometric redshifts now have
new grism-spectroscopic redshifts, in some cases with large corrections to the
photometric redshifts (Delta(z)~0.3-0.5). Additionally, one galaxy had no
previously-measured redshift but now has a secure grism-spectroscopic redshift,
for a total of 18 new GOODS-South spectroscopic redshifts. The faintest source
in our sample has a magnitude m(AB)=26.9 mag. The ERS grism data also reflect
the expected trend of lower specific star formation rates for the highest mass
galaxies in the sample as a function of redshift, consistent with downsizing
and discovered previously from large surveys. These results demonstrate the
remarkable efficiency and capability of the WFC3 NIR grisms for measuring
galaxy properties to faint magnitudes and redshifts to z>2.Comment: Accepted for publication in AJ. Updated to include referee comments.
Updated sample using improved reduction contains 23 new galaxies (Table 1;
Figures 2 & 3
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