Non-ionizing 405nm light as a potential bactericidal technology for platelet safety : evaluation of in vitro bacterial inactivation and in vivo platelet recovery in severe combined immunodeficient mice

Bacterial contamination of ex vivo stored platelets is a cause of transfusion-transmitted infection. Violet-blue 405 nm light has recently demonstrated efficacy in reducing the bacterial burden in blood plasma, and its operational benefits such as non-ionizing nature, penetrability, and non-requirement for photosensitizing agents, provide a unique opportunity to develop this treatment for in situ treatment of ex vivo stored platelets as a tool for bacterial reduction. Sealed bags of platelet concentrates, seeded with low-level Staphylococcus aureus contamination, were 405 nm light-treated (3-10 mWcm-2) up to 8 hr. Antimicrobial efficacy and dose efficiency was evaluated by quantification of the post-treatment surviving bacterial contamination levels. Platelets treated with 10 mWcm-2 for 8 hr were further evaluated for survival and recovery in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Significant inactivation of bacteria in platelet concentrates was achieved using all irradiance levels, with 99.6-100% inactivation achieved by 8 hr (P<0.05). Analysis of applied dose demonstrated that lower irradiance levels generally resulted in significant decontamination at lower doses: 180 Jcm-2/10 mWcm-2 (P=0.008) compared to 43.2 Jcm-2/3 mWcm-2 (P=0.002). Additionally, the recovery of light-treated platelets, compared to non-treated platelets, in the murine model showed no significant differences (P ≥ 0.05). This report paves the way for further comprehensive studies to test 405 nm light treatment as a bactericidal technology for stored platelet

The unfriendly ISM in the radio galaxy 4C12.50 (PKS 1345+12)

The radio source 4C12.50 has often been suggested to be a prime candidate for the link between ultraluminous infrared galaxies and young radio galaxies. A VLBI study of the neutral hydrogen in the nuclear regions of this object shows that most of the gas detected close to the systemic velocity is associated with an off-nuclear cloud (~50 to 100 pc from the radio core) with a column density of ~10^22 T_spin/100 K) cm^(-2) and an HI mass of a few times 10^5 to 10^6 M_sun. We consider a number of possibilities to explain the results. In particular, we discus the possibility that this cloud indicates the presence of a rich and clumpy interstellar medium in the centre, likely left over from the merger that triggered the activity and that this medium influences the growth of the radio source. The location of the cloud -- at the edge of the northern radio jet/lobe -- suggests that the radio jet might be interacting with a gas cloud. This interaction could be responsible for bending the young radio jet. The velocity profile of the gas is relatively broad (~150$ km/s) and we interpret this as kinematical evidence for interaction of the radio plasma with the cloud. We also consider the model where the cloud is part of a broader circumnuclear structure. Only a limited region of this structure would have sufficient background radio brightness and large enough column depth in neutral gas to obtain detectable HI absorption against the counterjet. The VLBI study of the neutral hydrogen in 4C12.50 suggests that HI detected near the systemic velocity (as it is often the case in radio galaxies) may not necessarily be connected with a circumnuclear disk or torus (as is very often assumed) but instead could be a tracer of the large-scale medium that surrounds the active nucleus and that may influence the growth of the young radio source.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in A&

Corn nitrogen rate recommendation tools’ performance across eight US midwest corn belt states

Determining which corn (Zea mays L.) N fertilizer rate recommendation tools best predict crop N need would be valuable for maximizing profits and minimizing environmental consequences. Simultaneous comparisons of multiple tools across various environmental conditions have been limited. The objectives of this research were to evaluate the performance of publicly‐available N fertilizer recommendation tools across diverse soil and weather conditions for: (i) prescribing N rates for planting and split‐fertilizer applications, and (ii) economic and environmental effects. Corn N‐response trials using standardized methods were conducted at 49 sites, spanning eight US Midwest states and three growing seasons. Nitrogen applications included eight rates in 45 kg N ha−1 increments all at‐planting and matching rates with 45 kg N ha−1 at‐planting plus at the V9 development stage. Tool performances were compared to the economically optimal N rate (EONR). Over this large geographic region, only 10 of 31 recommendation tools (mainly soil nitrate tests) produced N rate recommendations that weakly correlated to EONR (P ≤ .10; r2 ≤ .20). With other metrics of performance, the Maximum Return to N (MRTN) soil nitrate tests, and canopy reflectance sensing came close to matching EONR. Economically, all tools but the Maize‐N crop growth model had similar returns compared to EONR. Environmentally, yield goal based tools resulted in the highest environmental costs. Results show that no tool was universally reliable over this study\u27s diverse growing environments, suggesting that additional tool development is needed to better represent N inputs and crop utilization at a larger regional level

Feedback through multiple outbursts in the cluster 2A 0335+096

We examine the core of the X-ray bright galaxy cluster 2A 0335+096 using deep Chandra X-ray imaging and spatially-resolved spectroscopy, and include new radio observations. The set of around eight X-ray bright blobs in the core of the cluster, appearing like eggs in a bird's nest, contains multiphase gas from ~0.5 to 2 keV. The morphology of the coolest X-ray emitting gas at 0.5 keV temperature is similar to the Halpha emitting nebula known in this cluster, which surrounds the central galaxy. XMM-Newton grating spectra confirm the presence of material at these temperatures, showing excellent agreement with Chandra emission measures. On scales of 80 to 250 kpc there is a low temperature, high metallicity, swirl of intracluster medium as seen in other clusters. In the core we find evidence for a further three X-ray cavities, in addition to the two previously discovered. Enhancements in 1.5 GHz radio emission are correlated with the X-ray cavities. The total 4PV enthalpy associated with the cavities is around 5x10^59 erg. This energy would be enough to heat the cooling region for ~5x10^7 yr. We find a maximum pressure discontinuity of 26 per cent (2 sigma) across the surface brightness edge to the south-west of the cluster core. This corresponds to an upper limit on the Mach number of the cool core with respect to its surroundings of 0.55.Comment: 11 pages, 16 figures, accepted by MNRA

NCF1 gene and pseudogene pattern: association with parasitic infection and autoimmunity

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Neutrophil cytosolic factor 1, p47^phox(NCF1) is a component of the leukocyte NADPH oxidase complex mediating formation of reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) which play an important role in host defense and autoimmunity. An individual genomic pattern of <it>ncf1 </it>and its two types of pseudogenes (reflected by the ΔGT/GTGT ratio) may influence the individual capacity to produce ROI.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>NCF1ΔGT/GTGT ratios were correlated with clinical parameters and ROI production during <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>malaria and with susceptibility to the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis (MS).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Among Gabonese children with severe malaria, ROI production from peripheral blood tended to be higher in individuals with a ΔGT/GTGT ratio ≤ 1:1. ΔGT/GTGT ratios were not associated with susceptibility to MS, but to age-of-onset among MS patients.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The genomic pattern of <it>NCF1 </it>and its pseudogenes might influence ROI production but only marginally influence susceptibility to and outcome of malaria and MS.</p

Implementation of a parentage control system in Portuguese beef-cattle with a panel of microsatellite markers

A study was conducted to assess the feasibility of applying a panel of 10 microsatellite markers in parentage control of beef cattle in Portugal. In the first stage, DNA samples were collected from 475 randomly selected animals of the Charolais, Limousin and Preta breeds. Across breeds and genetic markers, means for average number of alleles, effective number of alleles, expected heterozygosity and polymorphic information content, were 8.20, 4.43, 0.733 and 0.70, respectively. Enlightenment from the various markers differed among breeds, but the set of 10 markers resulted in a combined probability above 0.9995 in the ability to exclude a random putative parent. The marker-set thus developed was later used for parentage control in a group of 140 calves from several breeds, where there was the suspicion of possible faulty parentage recording. Overall, 76.4% of the calves in this group were compatible with the recorded parents, with most incompatibilities due to misidentification of the dam. Efforts must be made to improve the quality of pedigree information, with particular emphasis on information recorded at the calf's birth

A sample of southern Compact Steep Spectrum radio sources: The VLBI observations

A small sample of 7 southern Compact Steep Spectrum (CSS) radio sources has been selected as part of the study of a larger flux-limited complete sample of radio sources. High resolution images, using the VLBI network in the southern hemisphere and the high resolution MERLIN array, are presented for all sources in the CSS sample. The overall morphology of each source consists of well-defined double lobes but with substantial diffuse and extended components present. In the majority of cases only a fraction of the total flux density is detected on the VLBI baselines, indicating the presence of larger extended radio structures. However, all sources are unresolved at arcsecond scales and are of sub-galactic size, with linear size in the range 0.1-2 kpc. The radio properties of the sources agree well with CSS sources in other samples.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A, 11 pages, 10 figures (Fig4 in jpg format

An unbiased sample of bright southern Compact Steep Spectrum and Gigahertz Peaked Spectrum Sources

Compact Steep Spectrum (CSS) and Gigahertz Peaked Spectrum (GPS) sources are classes of compact, powerful, extragalactic objects. These sources are thought to be the earliest stages in the evolution of radio galaxies, capturing the ignition (or, in some cases, re-ignition) of the AGN. As well as serving as probes of the early stages of large-scale radio sources, these sources are good, stable, amplitude calibrators for radio telescopes. We present an unbiased flux density limited (>1.5 Jy at 2.7 GHz) catalogue of these objects in the Southern Hemisphere, including tabulated data, radio spectra, and where available, optical images and measurements. The catalogue contains 26 sources, consisting of 2 new candidate and 15 known CSS sources, and 9 known GPS sources. We present new Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) data on ten of these 26 sources, and data on a further 42 sources which were excluded from our final sample. This bright sample will serve as a reference sample for comparison with subsequent faint (mJy level) samples of CSS and GPS candidates currently being compiled.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS. 13 figures and 10 tables. The full version of Table 8 will be available online after publication by MNRAS. Boldface commands remove