Ontogeny of iodothyronine deiodinases in human liver

The role of the deiodinases D1, D2, and D3 in the tissue-specific and time-dependent regulation of thyroid hormone bioactivity during fetal development has been investigated in animals but little is known about the ontogeny of these enzymes in humans. We analyzed D1, D2, and D3 activities in liver microsomes from 10 fetuses of 15-20 weeks gestation and from 8 apparently

ISBS 2018 AUCKLAND CONFERENCE SPORTS TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE PROGRAMME

The coordinators Amber Taylor (AUT Ventures), Rosanne Ellis (AUT Research and Innovation Office), and Ryan Archibald (ATEED) have selected companies with new products to be explored by biomechanists. We hope you gain ideas for your research and learn how to commercialise your products at this showcase. ISBS 2018 Auckland Conference Industry Partner Tekscan are supporting the lunch during the showcase. Dr Jono Neville, Shelley Diewald, and Farhan Tinwala will be showcasing AUT Strain Gauge. AUT Strain gauge allows for a valid and reliable assessment of the strength of an entire class or team in a relatively short amount of time. Steve Leftly and Farshid Sarmast will be showcasing Myovolt which is a breakthrough muscle massage system that you wear. It delivers vibration therapy to any part of the body, it\u27s easy to use, lightweight and has benefits backed by clinical research. Parn Jones, Eric Helms and Wilson Huang will be showcasing Avice which is a wearable device that gives you real-time actionable feedback during weight training. It measures changes in muscle performance to inform you how close to muscular failure you are. Xiaoyou Lin and Bandt Li are showcasing Pressure Mat which is a new resistive-sensing contact mat for detecting the pseudo force, of sports activities such as running, jumping, stepping. Holly Sutich and Bradley Phagan will be showcasing Beta-Energy which is a healthier natural energy drink. It provides sustainable energy so you don’t get the crash that you do from a normal energy drink. Arien Hielkema and Yasir Al-Hilali will showcase MyBio Motion which is a smart wearable knee sleeve. It provides support for rehabilitation from post-operative or knee trauma, and prevention from a knee injury. Daniel Thomson and Emily Coates will showcase Circuband which has successfully paired Virtual Reality with Resistance Training to make fitness more engaging and stimulating for both athletes and the public. Colin Anderson will demonstrate Physio Wear

Rab27a controls HIV-1 assembly by regulating plasma membrane levels of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate

During the late stages of the HIV-1 replication cycle, the viral polyprotein Pr55Gag is recruited to the plasma membrane (PM), where it binds phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2) and directs HIV-1 assembly. We show that Rab27a controls the trafficking of late endosomes carrying phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase type 2 α (PI4KIIα) toward the PM of CD4+ T cells. Hence, Rab27a promotes high levels of PM phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate and the localized production of PI(4,5)P2, therefore controlling Pr55Gag membrane association. Rab27a also controls PI(4,5)P2 levels at the virus-containing compartments of macrophages. By screening Rab27a effectors, we identified that Slp2a, Slp3, and Slac2b are required for the association of Pr55Gag with the PM and that Slp2a cooperates with Rab27a in the recruitment of PI4KIIα to the PM. We conclude that by directing the trafficking of PI4KIIα-positive endosomes toward the PM, Rab27a controls PI(4,5)P2 production and, consequently, HIV-1 replication.Fil: Pereyra Gerber, Federico Pehuén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida; ArgentinaFil: Cabrini, Mercedes. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida; ArgentinaFil: Jancic, Carolina Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Medicina Experimental. Academia Nacional de Medicina de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Paoletti, Luciana Elisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas. Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario; ArgentinaFil: Banchio, Claudia Elena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas. Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario; ArgentinaFil: Von Bilderling, Catalina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Sigaut, Lorena. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Centro de Microscopías Avanzadas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Pietrasanta, Lia. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Centro de Microscopías Avanzadas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Duette, Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida; ArgentinaFil: Freed, Eric O.. National Cancer Institute at Frederick; Estados UnidosFil: Basile, Genevieve de Saint. Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale; FranciaFil: Moita, Catarina Ferreira. Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia; PortugalFil: Moita, Luis Ferreira. Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia; PortugalFil: Amigorena, Sebastian. Institute Curie; FranciaFil: Benaroch, Philippe. Institute Curie; FranciaFil: Geffner, Jorge Raúl. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida; ArgentinaFil: Ostrowski, Matias. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas en Retrovirus y Sida; Argentin

A reverse pathway? Actual and perceived skill proficiency and physical activity

Purpose: Motor skills are considered a prerequisite to physical activity, yet the relationship may be reciprocal and perceived sports competence might mediate associations.Methods: In 2006/2007, 215 adolescents completed motor skill proficiency (Get Skilled Get Active), perceived sport competence (Physical Self-Perception Profile) and physical activity assessments (Adolescent Physical Activity Recall Questionnaire) as part of the Physical Activity and Skills Study. Using AMOS (Version 7.0), reciprocal relationships were examined between motor skill (object control and locomotor) and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Both models were then run in different versions to understand the role of perceived sports competence as a potential mediator. Results: Mean age was 16.4 yr (SD = 0.6), 51.6% (111/215) were females. A reciprocal relationship between object control and MVPA and a one-way relationship from MVPA to locomotor skill was found. When perceived sports competence was examined as a mediator, the best-fitting model versions explained 16% (R&sup2; = 0.16)MVPA variation, and 30% object control (R&sup2; = 0.30), and 12% locomotor skill variation (R&sup2; = 0.12) (reverse relationship). Perceived sports competence partially mediates the relationship between object control proficiency and physical activity for both directions and fully mediates the relationship between physical activity and locomotor skill; but only when locomotor skill is the outcome.Conclusions: If the relationship between object control skill and physical activity is viewed as a &lsquo;&lsquo;positive feedback loop,&rsquo;&rsquo; skill development and increasing physical activity should simultaneously be targeted in physical activity interventions. Increasing perceived sport competence should also be an intervention focus.<br /

Genome Sequence Conservation of Hendra Virus Isolates during Spillover to Horses, Australia

Bat-to-horse transmission of Hendra virus has occurred at least 14 times. Although clinical signs in horses have differed, genome sequencing has demonstrated little variation among the isolates. Our sequencing of 5 isolates from recent Hendra virus outbreaks in horses found no correlation between sequences and time or geographic location of outbreaks

A DSEL for Studying and Explaining Causation

We present a domain-specific embedded language (DSEL) in Haskell that supports the philosophical study and practical explanation of causation. The language provides constructs for modeling situations comprised of events and functions for reliably determining the complex causal relationships that emerge between these events. It enables the creation of visual explanations of these causal relationships and a means to systematically generate alternative, related scenarios, along with corresponding outcomes and causes. The DSEL is based on neuron diagrams, a visual notation that is well established in practice and has been successfully employed for causation explanation and research. In addition to its immediate applicability by users of neuron diagrams, the DSEL is extensible, allowing causation experts to extend the notation to introduce special-purpose causation constructs. The DSEL also extends the notation of neuron diagrams to operate over non-boolean values, improving its expressiveness and offering new possibilities for causation research and its applications.Comment: In Proceedings DSL 2011, arXiv:1109.032

Pulmonary Metagenomic Sequencing Suggests Missed Infections in Immunocompromised Children

This article is made available for unrestricted re-use and analyses in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic or until permissions are revoked in writing.BACKGROUND: Despite improved diagnostics, pulmonary pathogens in immunocompromised children frequently evade detection, leading to significant mortality. Therefore, we aimed to develop a highly sensitive metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) assay capable of evaluating the pulmonary microbiome and identifying diverse pathogens in the lungs of immunocompromised children. METHODS: We collected 41 lower respiratory specimens from 34 immunocompromised children undergoing evaluation for pulmonary disease at 3 children's hospitals from 2014-2016. Samples underwent mechanical homogenization, parallel RNA/DNA extraction, and metagenomic sequencing. Sequencing reads were aligned to the National Center for Biotechnology Information nucleotide reference database to determine taxonomic identities. Statistical outliers were determined based on abundance within each sample and relative to other samples in the cohort. RESULTS: We identified a rich cross-domain pulmonary microbiome that contained bacteria, fungi, RNA viruses, and DNA viruses in each patient. Potentially pathogenic bacteria were ubiquitous among samples but could be distinguished as possible causes of disease by parsing for outlier organisms. Samples with bacterial outliers had significantly depressed alpha-diversity (median, 0.61; interquartile range [IQR], 0.33-0.72 vs median, 0.96; IQR, 0.94-0.96; P < .001). Potential pathogens were detected in half of samples previously negative by clinical diagnostics, demonstrating increased sensitivity for missed pulmonary pathogens (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: An optimized mNGS assay for pulmonary microbes demonstrates significant inoculation of the lower airways of immunocompromised children with diverse bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Potential pathogens can be identified based on absolute and relative abundance. Ongoing investigation is needed to determine the pathogenic significance of outlier microbes in the lungs of immunocompromised children with pulmonary disease

ISBS 2018 AUCKLAND CONFERENCE SPRINZ-HPSNZ-AUT MILLENNIUM APPLIED PROGRAMME

An interactive afternoon of sessions delivered by High Performance Sport New Zealand (HPSNZ) and AUT SPRINZ Biomechanists, Performance Analysts and other biomechanics relevant sport facing practitioners. The 11 sessions are at AUT Millennium (AUTM), which is a satellite site of AUT University and the Auckland training hub for many HPSNZ supported sports such as athletics, sailing, and swimming. These sports and others (cycling, rowing, snow sports etc.) will be represented in the line-up. The applied sessions involve practical demonstrations of aspects of analysis and/or tools used to deliver in the field to directly positively impact athletes performances on the world stage. Following these engaging sessions there will be tasting of New Zealand wine, allowing for further discussion and networking. Sir Graeme Avery will be acknowledged for his contribution to sport science. Mike Stanley is AUT Millennium Chief Executive & NZ Olympic Committee President will explain the partners in the facility. AUT Millennium is a charitable trust established to help New Zealanders live longer and healthier lives, and to enjoy and excel in sport through the provision of world-class facilities, services, research and education. Founded in 2002 as Millennium Institute of Sport and Health (MISH) by Sir Stephen Tindall and Sir Graeme Avery as a premium health and fitness facility for both athletes and the public alike. Partnered with AUT University in 2009, forming AUT Millennium, to expand research and education in the sporting sector. Professor Barry Wilson is an Adjunct Professor with SPRINZ at Auckland University of Technology and will be outlining the research and student opportunities. Martin Dowson is the General Manager Athlete Performance Support at High Performance Sport New Zealand and has overall responsibility for the programme. Simon Briscoe, AUT Millennium Applied Session Coordinator, is the head of the Performance and Technique Analysis discipline within HPSNZ. Simon is coordinating the applied sessions along with technical support from Dr Allan Carman, Research Fellow, AUT SPRINZ. Jodi Cossor and Matt Ingram will provide a demonstration of a multidisciplinary approach driven by biomechanical analysis for Paralympic swimmers. Justin Evans and Sarah-Kate Millar will provide a practical session assessing the athletes rowing stroke to assist the coach on technical changes. This session will demonstrate various rowing traits and how the biomechanist and coach can work together to optimise boat speed. Mike Schofield and Kim Hébert-Losier will provide a session looking at shotput and the evidence based approach to coaching. Dr Craig Harrison and Professor John Cronin will provide examples from the AUTM Athlete Development programme. Kim Simperingham and Jamie Douglas who work with high performance rugby athletes will outline sprinting mechanics in practice. Dr Bruce Hamilton, Fiona Mather, Justin Ralph and Rone Thompson will demonstrate the approach of HPSNZ and Cycling NZ performance health teams in the use of some specific tools for prevention of injury and optimisation of performance. Kelly Sheerin, Denny Wells and Associate Professor Thor Besier will provide examples of using IMU and motion capture methods for running and basketball biomechanics research, education and service. Dr Rodrigo Bini and Associate Professor Andrew Kilding will show how linking of biomechanics and physiology improves injury prevention and performance enhancement. Robert Tang, Andre de Jong and Farhan Tinwala discuss select projects developed by Goldmine, HPSNZ’s in-house engineering team, and how these innovations have enabled unprecedented levels of biomechanics feedback. Cameron Ross and Paul McAlpine demonstrate the technology being used at the Snow Sports NZ training centre in Cadrona to enhance load monitoring of athletes. This application allows greater insight into training performances and biomechanical loads than has been previously possible in the training environment. AUT Millennium tour guides are coordinated by Josh McGeown and include Enora Le Flao, Dustin Oranchuk, Erika Ikeda, Jono Neville, Aaron Uthoff, Andrew Pichardo, Farhan Tinwala, Shelley Diewald, Renata Bastos Gottgtroy, Jessica Yeoman, Casey Watkins, Eric Harbour, Anja Zoellner, Alyssa Joy Spence, Victor Lopez Jr, and Albert Chang

Real Potential

There\u27s a student in my philosophy class who has real potential. I might express this thought in any of the following ways: She is potentially a philosopher ; She is a potential philosopher ; She has the potential to be a philosopher. The first way uses a cognate of potential as an adverb to modify is. The second ways uses potential as an adjective to modify philosopher. However, the third way uses potential as a noun to refer to something that the student has. What kind of thing is this potential? One worry about even asking this question is that this nominalization of the adjective potential suggests a metaphysical picture that is an artifact of language. This is even more strongly suggested by the less ambiguous nominalization potentiality. Once we have the term potentiality, we have a new kind of entity to countenance, and questions about its nature arise. One might argue, just because we use the word potentiality, we should not think that it refers to a thing that someone can have. There is something disingenuous about such an argument. It proceeds as if the adverbial and adjectival uses of potential are unproblematic, and questions only arise with the nominalization. But it is not obvious what it means to potentially be something, or what it means to be a potential something. To say that someone is potentially a philosopher is to talk about a way of being that falls short of actuality. And a potential philosopher is not a kind of philosopher at all. So what is it? Each of the three above formulations is a modal claim. If there is anything philosophical puzzling about a potentiality claim, it is not going to go away by translating it into an equivalent modal claim. In this chapter I defend the existence of potentialities against anti-realist arguments, and make a proposal as to their nature. The proposal, in short, is that potentialities are properties, specifically dispositions, though more needs to be said about properties and dispositions. I will do this in Part I. In Part II, I will address two lines of argument against potentialities: that they are reducible, and that they are causally inert