Macroinvertebrate Infauna of a Salt Marsh Tidal Creek

Tidal creeks are the main avenues for exchange of materials between salt marshes and river mouth estuaries. The spatial and temporal distributions of benthic macroinvertebrate infauna of a tidal creek near St. Marks Lighthouse in northern Florida were investigated. One hundred and eleven species were found during the course of study. The numbers of species and individuals declined from the creek mouth to its origin. The results were compared to published macrobenthic invertebrate data from a nearby estuary and nearby salt marshes to determine the faunal relationships of these areas to the creek. More estuarine species than marsh species were found at the creek mouth but at the creek headwaters fewer estuarine than marsh species were found. However, numerous creek species had not been recorded from local salt marsh or estuarine locations. The evidence indicates this tidal creek to be an ecotone between the salt marsh and the adjoining estuarine habitat

Resonant Cavity Perturbation: A Promising New Method for the Assessment of Total Body Water in Children

The accurate measurement of total body water (TBW) in children has important clinical and nutritional applications. Resonant cavity perturbation (RCP) is a new method for estimating TBW. This method measures the dielectric properties of the body which are related to body water. For RCP measurements, each subject lay supine on a bed inside a screened room which acts as a resonant cavity. A network analyser measures the frequencies of two low-order cavity resonances of the room, with electric-field vectors that were respectively vertical and horizontal, the resonant frequency shifts relative to the empty room are then derived. These frequency shifts correlates with TBW. The aims of this present study were to a) develop TBWRCP predictive equations for children using TBWdil as the criterion method, b) cross-validate the derived equations, c) determine precision of the TBWRCP method, and d) compare the criterion method TBWdil with three methods of estimating TBW: RCP, MFBIS and Anthropometry. Predictive equations, independent of sex, were developed with linear regression in a group of 36 children. The relationship between combined RCP frequency shifts and TBWdilution had an r2=0.90 and standard error of the estimate (SEE) =1.42kg. Multiple regression analysis, that included a term for body mass index, only had a small effect on r2=0.93 and SEE=1.25kg. In-vivo TBW precision for the vertical, horizontal and combined frequency modes ranged from 0.7 to 3.4%. Bland Altman analysis indicated close agreement between the criterion method TBWdil and the three other methods of TBW estimation. Mean differences were TBWRCP(2) = 0.01+/-1.34kg, TBWMFBIS = 0.45+/-1.35kg, TBWAnthropometry = 0.29+/-1.29kg. Currently the RCP method does not significantly improve the prediction of TBW compared to MFBIS and anthropometry in this initial study. However the derived equation was independent of sex and body size had only a small effect

Support for immunization registries among parents of vaccinated and unvaccinated school-aged children: a case control study

BACKGROUND: Immunizations have reduced childhood vaccine preventable disease incidence by 98–100%. Continued vaccine preventable disease control depends on high immunization coverage. Immunization registries help ensure high coverage by recording childhood immunizations administered, generating reminders when immunizations are due, calculating immunization coverage and identifying pockets needing immunization services, and improving vaccine safety by reducing over-immunization and providing data for post-licensure vaccine safety studies. Despite substantial resources directed towards registry development in the U.S., only 48% of children were enrolled in a registry in 2004. Parental attitudes likely impact child participation. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to assess the attitudes of parents of vaccinated and unvaccinated school-aged children regarding: support for immunization registries; laws authorizing registries and mandating provider reporting; opt-in versus opt-out registry participation; and financial worth and responsibility of registry development and implementation. METHODS: A case control study of parents of 815 children exempt from school vaccination requirements and 1630 fully vaccinated children was conducted. Children were recruited from 112 elementary schools in Colorado, Massachusetts, Missouri, and Washington. Surveys administered to the parents, asked about views on registries and perceived utility and safety of vaccines. Parental views were summarized and logistic regression models compared differences between parents of exempt and vaccinated children. RESULTS: Surveys were completed by 56.1% of respondents. Fewer than 10% of parents were aware of immunization registries in their communities. Among parents aware of registries, exempt children were more likely to be enrolled (65.0%) than vaccinated children (26.5%) (p value = 0.01). A substantial proportion of parents of exempt children support immunization registries, particularly if registries offer choice for participation. Few parents of vaccinated (6.8%) and exempt children (6.7%) were aware of laws authorizing immunization registries. Support for laws authorizing registries and requiring health care providers to report to registries was more common among parents of vaccinated than exempt children. Most parents believed that the government, vaccine companies or insurance companies should pay for registries. CONCLUSION: Parental support for registries was relatively high. Parental support for immunization registries may increase with greater parental awareness of the risks of vaccine preventable diseases and utility of vaccination

Folding Circular Permutants of IL-1β: Route Selection Driven by Functional Frustration

Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is the cytokine crucial to inflammatory and immune response. Two dominant routes are populated in the folding to native structure. These distinct routes are a result of the competition between early packing of the functional loops versus closure of the β-barrel to achieve efficient folding and have been observed both experimentally and computationally. Kinetic experiments on the WT protein established that the dominant route is characterized by early packing of geometrically frustrated functional loops. However, deletion of one of the functional loops, the β-bulge, switches the dominant route to an alternative, yet, as accessible, route, where the termini necessary for barrel closure form first. Here, we explore the effect of circular permutation of the WT sequence on the observed folding landscape with a combination of kinetic and thermodynamic experiments. Our experiments show that while the rate of formation of permutant protein is always slower than that observed for the WT sequence, the region of initial nucleation for all permutants is similar to that observed for the WT protein and occurs within a similar timescale. That is, even permutants with significant sequence rearrangement in which the functional-nucleus is placed at opposing ends of the polypeptide chain, fold by the dominant WT “functional loop-packing route”, despite the entropic cost of having to fold the N- and C- termini early. Taken together, our results indicate that the early packing of the functional loops dominates the folding landscape in active proteins, and, despite the entropic penalty of coalescing the termini early, these proteins will populate an entropically unfavorable route in order to conserve function. More generally, circular permutation can elucidate the influence of local energetic stabilization of functional regions within a protein, where topological complexity creates a mismatch between energetics and topology in active proteins

NAFTA Chapter 11 as Supraconstitution

More and more legal scholars are turning to constitutional law to make sense of the growth of transnational and international legal orders. They often employ constitutional terminology loosely, in a bewildering variety of ways, with little effort to clarify their analytical frameworks or acknowledge the normative presuppositions embedded in their analysis. The potential of constitutional analysis as an instrument of critique of transnational legal orders is frequently lost in methodological confusion and normative controversy. An effort at clarification is necessary. We propose a functional approach to supraconstitutional analysis that applies across issue areas, accommodates variation in kinds and degrees of supraconstitutionalization, recognizes its simultaneously domestic and transnational character, and reflects its uneven incidence and impacts. We apply this framework to NAFTA to consider whether and how it superimposes a supraconstitutional legal order on member states\u27 domestic constitutional orders. We show that the main thrust of this contemporary supraconstitutional project is to restructure state and international political forms to promote market efficiency and discipline, enable free capital movement, confer privileged rights of citizenship and representation on corporate capital, insulate key aspects of the economy from state interference, and constrain democratic decision-making

From 'trading zones' to 'buffer zones': Art and metaphor in the communication of psychiatric genetics to publics

Psychiatric genetics has a difficult relationship with the public given its unshakeable connection to eugenics. Drawing from a five-year public engagement programme that emerged from an internationally renowned psychiatric genetics centre, we propose the concept of the Buffer Zone to consider how an exchange of viewpoints between groups of people – including psychiatric geneticists and lay publics - who are often uneasy in one another’s company can be facilitated through the use of art and metaphor. The artwork at the exhibitions provided the necessary socio-cultural context for scientific endeavours, whilst also enabled public groups to be part of, and remain in, the conversation. Crucial to stress is that this mitigation was not to protect the science; it was to protect the discussion

Taking Action Together: A YMCA-based protocol to prevent Type-2 Diabetes in high-BMI inner-city African American children

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Associated with a tripling in obesity since 1970, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in children has risen 9-10 fold. There is a critical need of protocols for trials to prevent T2DM in children.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>This protocol includes the theory, development, evaluation components and lessons learned from a novel YMCA-based T2DM prevention intervention designed specifically for high-BMI African American children from disadvantaged, inner-city neighborhoods of Oakland, California. The intervention was developed on the basis of: review of epidemiological and intervention studies of pediatric T2DM; a conceptual theory (social cognitive); a comprehensive examination of health promotion curricula designed for children; consultation with research, clinical experts and practitioners and; input from community partners. The intervention, <it>Taking Action Together</it>, included culturally sensitive and age-appropriate programming on: healthy eating; increasing physical activity and, improving self esteem.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Evaluations completed to date suggest that <it>Taking Action Together </it>may be an effective intervention, and results warrant an expanded evaluation effort. This protocol could be used in other community settings to reduce the risk of children developing T2DM and related health consequences.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01039116.</p

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric detection for multielement flow injection analysis and elemental speciation by reversed-phase liquid chromatography

The feasibility of using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer as a muitieiement detector for flow injection analysis (FIA) and ion-pair reversed-phase liquid chromatography was investigated. Sample introduction was by uitrasonk nebulization with aerosol desolvation. Absolute detecton limits for FIA ranged from 0.01 to 0.1 ng for most elements using 10-pL injections. Over 30 elements were surveyed for their response to both anionic and cationic ion pairing reagents. The separation and selective detection of various As and Se species were demonstrated, yielding detection limits near 0.1 ng (as element) for ail six species present. Determination of 15 elements in a single injection with multiple ion monitoring produced shniiar detection limits. Isotope ratios were measured with sufficient precision (better than 2%) and accuracy (about 1 %) on eluting peaks of Cd and Pb to demonstrate that liquid chromatographyhductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry should make speciation studies with stable tracer isotopes feasible