Western Bean Cutworm in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Now Ohio: Did Biotech Corn Influence the Spread of this Pest?

The western bean cutworm, Striacosta albicosta (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is native to North America. It was first reported as a pest of Colorado pinto beans in 1915. In 1935, adults were captured in western Nebraska (Hagen 1963) and later, in 1954, it was identified as a pest of corn in southern Idaho (Blickenstaff 1979). Since its discovery in the late 1880s, it has slowly and steadily expanded its known distribution eastward from Arizona to Iowa (Rice 2000) and Minnesota (O\u27Rourke and Hutchison 2000). The western bean cutworm was known to occasionally occur in western Iowa prior to 1975, but it was not until2000 that an economically damaging population was found in field corn. Since then, it has become an annual economic pest in western and central regions of the state. In 2004, western bean cutworms were collected in pheromone traps for the first time in Illinois and Missouri

A Parallel Autonomy Research Platform

We present the development of a full-scale “parallel autonomy” research platform including software and hardware. In the parallel autonomy paradigm, the control of the vehicle is shared; the human is still in control of the vehicle, but the autonomy system is always running in the background to prevent accidents. Our holistic approach includes: (1) a driveby-wire conversion method only based on reverse engineering, (2) mounting of relatively inexpensive sensors onto the vehicle, (3) implementation of a localization and mapping system, (4) obstacle detection and (5) a shared controller as well as (6) integration with an advanced autonomy simulation system (Drake) for rapid development and testing. The system can operate in three modes: (a) manual driving, (b) full autonomy, where the system is in complete control of the vehicle and (c) parallel autonomy, where the shared controller is implemented. We present results from extensive testing of a full-scale vehicle on closed tracks that demonstrate these capabilities

Tuning the Oxidation State, Nuclearity, and Chemistry of Uranium Hydrides with Phenylsilane and Temperature: The Case of the Classic Uranium(III) Hydride Complex [(C₅Me₅)₂U(μ-H)]₂

This work demonstrates that the oxidation state and chemistry of uranium hydrides can be tuned with temperature and the stoichiometry of phenylsilane. The trivalent uranium hydride [(C₅Me₅)₂U–H]_<i>x</i> (<b>5</b>) was found to be comprised of an equilibrium mixture of U­(III) hydrides in solution at ambient temperature. A single U­(III) species can be selectively prepared by treating (C₅Me₅)₂UMe₂ (<b>4</b>) with 2 equiv of phenylsilane at 50 °C. The U­(III) system is a potent reducing agent and displayed chemistry distinct from the U­(IV) system [(C₅Me₅)₂U­(H)­(μ-H)]₂ (<b>2</b>), which was harnessed to prepare a variety of organometallic complexes, including (C₅Me₅)₂U­(dmpe)­(H) (<b>6</b>), and the novel uranium­(IV) metallacyclopentadiene complex (C₅Me₅)₂U­(C₄Me₄) (<b>11</b>)

Clinical Trial Protocol: Phase 3, Multicenter, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel-Group, Efficacy, and Safety Study Comparing EG-1962 to Standard of Care Oral Nimodipine in Adults with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage [NEWTON-2 (Nimodipine Microparticles to Enhance Recovery While Reducing TOxicity After SubarachNoid Hemorrhage)]

BACKGROUND: Nimodipine is the only drug approved in the treatment of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) in many countries. EG-1962, a product developed using the Precisa™ platform, is an extended-release microparticle formulation of nimodipine that can be administered intraventricularly or intracisternally. It was developed to test the hypothesis that delivering higher concentrations of extended-release nimodipine directly to the cerebrospinal fluid would provide superior efficacy compared to systemic administration. RESULTS: A Phase 1/2a multicenter, controlled, randomized, open-label, dose-escalation study determined the maximum tolerated dose and supported the safety and tolerability of EG-1962 in patients with aSAH. EG-1962, 600 mg, was selected for a pivotal, Phase 3 multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group efficacy, and safety study comparing it to standard of care oral nimodipine in adults with aSAH. Key inclusion criteria are patients with a ruptured saccular aneurysm repaired by clipping or coiling, World Federation of Neurological Surgeons grade 2-4, and modified Fisher score of \u3e 1. Patients must have an external ventricular drain as part of standard of care. Patients are randomized to receive intraventricular investigational product (EG-1962 or NaCl solution) and an oral placebo or oral nimodipine in the approved dose regimen (active control) within 48 h of aSAH. The primary objective is to determine the efficacy of EG-1962 compared to oral nimodipine. CONCLUSIONS: The primary endpoint is the proportion of subjects with favorable outcome (6-8) on the Extended Glasgow Outcome Scale assessed 90 days after aSAH. The secondary endpoint is the proportion of subjects with favorable outcome on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment 90 days after aSAH. Data on safety, rescue therapy, delayed cerebral infarction, and health economics will be collected. Trail registration NCT02790632