Clonal analysis of a human antibody response. Quantitation of precursors of antibody-producing cells and generation and characterization of monoclonal IgM, IgG, and IgA to rabies virus.

We quantitated and characterized the changes in the human B cell repertoire, at the clonal level, before and after immunization with rabies virus. Moreover, we generated 10 monoclonal cell lines producing IgM, IgG, and IgA antibodies to the virus. We found that in healthy subjects, not previously exposed to the virus, nearly 2% of the circulating B lymphocytes were committed to the production of antibodies that bound the virus. These B cells expressed the surface CD5 molecule. The antibodies they produced were polyreactive IgM that displayed a relatively low affinity for the virus components (Kd, 1.0-2.4 x 10(-6) g/microliters). After immunization, different anti-virus (IgG and IgA) antibody-producing cells consistently appeared in the circulation and increased from less than 0.005% to greater than 10% of the total B cells committed to the production of IgG and IgA, respectively. Most of such B cells do not express CD5 and produce monoreactive antibodies of high affinity for rabies virus (Kd, 6.5 x 10(-9) to 1.2 x 10(-10) g/microliters). One of these IgG mAbs efficiently neutralized rabies virus in vitro and in vivo, as detailed elsewhere (Dietzschold, B., P. Casali, Y. Ueki, M. Gore, C. E. Rupprecht, A. L. Notkins, and H. Koprowski, manuscript submitted for publication). Hybridization experiments using probes specific for the different human V gene segment families revealed that cell precursors producing low affinity IgM binding to rabies virus utilized a restricted number of VH gene segments (i.e., only members of the VHIIIb subfamily), whereas cell precursors producing high affinity IgG and IgA to rabies virus utilized an assortment of different VH gene segments (i.e., members of the VHI, VHIII, VHIV, and VHVI families and VHIIIb subfamily). In conclusion, our studies show that EBV transformation in conjunction with limiting dilution technology and somatic cell hybridization techniques are useful methods for quantitating, at the B cell clonal level, the human antibody response to foreign Ags and for generating human mAbs of predetermined specificity and high affinity

Building Information Modeling in Commercial Construction Projects

This paper explains the scope of Building information modeling in commercial construction projects, various studies performed by different researchers, background of building information modeling, data requirement and its flow between different parties involved in construction process and the various advantages and limitations of building information modeling in commercial construction projects

The Importance of Culture-Fit for Remembering Church Sermons

This experiment tested the degree to which culture-fit influences memory for the content of a sermon. We hypothesized that people who read a sermon emphasizing the infallibility of Christian scriptures will remember it more accurately if they have collectivistic rather than individualistic values. In contrast, we hypothesized that people who read a sermon emphasizing the subjectivity of Christian scriptures will remember it more accurately if they have individualistic rather than collectivistic values. Participants (n = 270) were randomly assigned to read either an orthodox- or quest-oriented sermon regarding Peter 1:20-21. They then completed a true-false memory test as to whether or not statements were in the sermon they read. Later, they completed an online survey of their cultural values and beliefs. Results indicated that highly collectivistic individuals’ memories were negatively affected in the Quest Condition, but not in the Orthodox Condition. Implications for the culture-fit of religious information are discussed

The role of computed tomography in the evaluation of cerebrovascular accidents

Background:Cerebrovascular accidents (CVA) or stroke ranks first in frequency and important among all the neurological diseases of adult life. 50% of neurological disorders in a hospital are of this type. It is the third leading cause of death throughout the world. The prolonged morbidity and extended hospitalization required by these patients makes the disease one of the most devastating in medicine. The purpose of the present study was to document the presence or absence of hemorrhage or infarct, to determine the size, location of infarct, reasonably assessing the territory to blood vessels involved and to detect the incidence of negative cases of clinically suspected stroke.Methods:100 cases admitted to KIMS, Hubli and those referred to the NMR scan centre, Hubli with the clinical diagnosis of acute stroke were taken up for the study. The study was done from May 2010 to April 2012.Results:Out of 100 patients clinically suspected of CVA, submitted for CT scan study of the brain, 69 patients had infarcts, 21 patients had hemorrhage, 8 patients had CVT, 1 patient had SAH and 1 patient had normal scans. Infarcts (69%) formed the major group of the CVA cases involving most commonly the LMCA territory in 10 (14.49%) patients. Hemorrhage (21%) formed the second major group of CVA cases involving most commonly the RMCA territory 9 (42.85%) patients.Conclusions:CT scanning is a gold standard technique for the diagnosis and management of stroke and can be ideally done in all cases.The role of computed tomography in the evaluation of                cerebrovascular accident

Detecting and understanding non-compliance with conservation rules

AbstractThis paper establishes the context for the special issue, “Detecting and Understanding Violations of Conservation Rules”. Illicit or non-compliant human behaviors may occur in all ecosystems and range from subsistence illegal resource collection to poaching by organized criminal syndicates. Such acts have an enormous impact on social–ecological systems, but monitoring non-compliance is challenging, primarily because the topic is sensitive and victims are voiceless. The future of many conservation areas depends upon compliance with conservation rules. However, with a growing human population, consumptive societies, and rapid expansion of business opportunities fueled by new technology, there is little doubt that demand will remain steady or increase for many of our natural resources. We outline major conservation compliance issues and impacts, and review models and methods used to monitor and respond to the problem for both subsistence and commercial non-compliance