The NYU Survey Service: Promoting Value in Undergraduate Education

New York University\u27s Data Service Studio has recently launched the NYU Survey Service, whose ultimate aim is to support the development and administration of surveys of all types. For the web-based component, we utilize a product called Qualtrics, which allows university affiliates to develop and administer web-based surveys. This article describes the process by which we at NYU came to offer the service during a time when concerns abound about the ability of libraries to support and expand services while still meeting service imperatives such as robust data services. While many considerations went into this evaluation and the ultimate conclusion to pilot the service, we emphasize those most related to data and information literacy, undergraduate instruction, learning and research, library collaborations and application administration and support

Comparison of Three Aspirin Formulations in Human Volunteers

<p>Introduction: The treatment of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) includes the administration of aspirin. Current guidelines recommend chewing aspirin tablets to increase absorption. While this is intuitive, there are scant data supporting this recommendation. The purpose of this study is to assess which of 3 different aspirin formulations is most rapidly absorbed after ingestion.</p> <p>Methods: A prospective, open-label, 3-way crossover volunteer study at a tertiary university medical center with human subjects 18 years or older. Fasted subjects were randomly assigned to receive aspirin 1,950 mg as (1) solid aspirin tablets swallowed whole, (2) solid aspirin tablet chewed then swallowed, or (3) a chewable aspirin formulation chewed and swallowed. Serum salicylate measurements were obtained over a period of 180 minutes. Pharmacokinetic parameters were determined.</p> <p>Results: Thirteen males and 1 female completed all 3 arms of study. Peak serum salicylate concentrations were seen at 180 minutes in all groups. Mean peaks were 10.4, 11.3, and 12.2 mg/dL in groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Mean area under the time concentration was 1,153, 1,401, and 1,743 mg-min/dL in groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. No measurable salicylate concentrations were seen in 6 subjects in group 1 at 60 minutes as compared to 1 subject in group 2. All subjects in group 3 had measurable levels at 45 minutes. There were no adverse effects in any of the subjects during the study period.</p> <p>Conclusion: Our data demonstrate that the chewable aspirin formulation achieved the most rapid rate of absorption. In addition, the chewable formulation absorption was more complete than the other formulations at 180 minutes. These data suggest that in the treatment of ACS, a chewable aspirin formulation may be preferable to solid tablet aspirin, either chewed or swallowed. [West J Emerg Med. 2011;12(4):381–385.]</p

Characterization of Xylan Utilization and Discovery of a New Endoxylanase in Thermoanaerobacterium Saccharolyticum through Targeted Gene Deletions

The economical production of fuels and commodity chemicals from lignocellulose requires the utilization of both the cellulose and hemicellulose fractions. Xylanase enzymes allow greater utilization of hemicellulose while also increasing cellulose hydrolysis. Recent metabolic engineering efforts have resulted in a strain of Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum that can convert C5 and C6 sugars, as well as insoluble xylan, into ethanol at high yield. To better understand the process of xylan solubilization in this organism, a series of targeted deletions were constructed in the homoethanologenic T. saccharolyticum strain M0355 to characterize xylan hydrolysis and xylose utilization in this organism. While the deletion of -xylosidase xylD slowed the growth of T. saccharolyticum on birchwood xylan and led to an accumulation of short-chain xylo-oligomers, no other single deletion, including the deletion of the previously characterized endoxylanase XynA, had a phenotype distinct from that of the wild type.This result indicates a multiplicity of xylanase enzymes which facilitate xylan degradation in T. saccharolyticum. Growth on xylan was prevented only when a previously uncharacterized endoxylanase encoded by xynC was also deleted in conjunction with xynA. Sequence analysis of xynC indicates that this enzyme, a low-molecular-weight endoxylanase with homology to glycoside hydrolase family 11 enzymes, is secreted yet untethered to the cell wall. Together, these observations expand our understanding of the enzymatic basis of xylan hydrolysis by T. saccharolyticum

Functional Heterologous Expression of an Engineered Full Length Cipa from Clostridium Thermocellum in Thermoanaerobacterium Saccharolyticum

Background: Cellulose is highly recalcitrant and thus requires a specialized suite of enzymes to solubilize it into fermentable sugars. In C. thermocellum, these extracellular enzymes are present as a highly active multi-component system known as the cellulosome. This study explores the expression of a critical C. thermocellum cellulosomal component in T. saccharolyticum as a step toward creating a thermophilic bacterium capable of consolidated bioprocessing by employing heterologously expressed cellulosomes. Results:We developed an inducible promoter system based on the native T. saccharolyticum xynA promoter, which was shown to be induced by xylan and xylose. The promoter was used to express the cellulosomal component cipA*, an engineered form of the wild-type cipAfrom C. thermocellum. Expression and localization to the supernatant were both verified for CipA*. When a ΔcipA mutant C. thermocellum strain was cultured with a CipA*-expressing T. saccharolyticum strain, hydrolysis and fermentation of 10 grams per liter SigmaCell 101, a highly crystalline cellulose, were observed. This trans-species complementation of a cipA deletion demonstrated the ability for CipA* to assemble a functional cellulosome. Conclusion: This study is the first example of an engineered thermophile heterologously expressing a structural component of a cellulosome. To achieve this goal we developed and tested an inducible promoter for controlled expression in T. saccharolyticum as well as a synthetic cipA . In addition, we demonstrate a high degree of hydrolysis (up to 93%) on microcrystalline cellulose

Enantiomer-Specific Binding of Ruthenium(II) Molecular Wires by the Amine Oxidase of Arthrobacter globiformis

The copper amine oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis (AGAO) is reversibly inhibited by molecular wires comprising a Ru(II) complex head group and an aromatic tail group joined by an alkane linker. The crystal structures of a series of Ru(II)-wire−AGAO complexes differing with respect to the length of the alkane linker have been determined. All wires lie in the AGAO active-site channel, with their aromatic tail group in contact with the trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ) cofactor of the enzyme. The TPQ cofactor is consistently in its active (“off-Cu”) conformation, and the side chain of the so-called “gate” residue Tyr296 is consistently in the “gate-open” conformation. Among the wires tested, the most stable complex is produced when the wire has a −(CH_2)_4− linker. In this complex, the Ru(II)(phen)(bpy)_2 head group is level with the protein molecular surface. Crystal structures of AGAO in complex with optically pure forms of the C4 wire show that the linker and head group in the two enantiomers occupy slightly different positions in the active-site channel. Both the Λ and Δ isomers are effective competitive inhibitors of amine oxidation. Remarkably, inhibition by the C4 wire shows a high degree of selectivity for AGAO in comparison with other copper-containing amine oxidases

Pre-hospital management protocols and perceived difficulty in diagnosing acute heart failure

Aim To illustrate the pre-hospital management arsenals and protocols in different EMS units, and to estimate the perceived difficulty of diagnosing suspected acute heart failure (AHF) compared with other common pre-hospital conditions. Methods and results A multinational survey included 104 emergency medical service (EMS) regions from 18 countries. Diagnostic and therapeutic arsenals related to AHF management were reported for each type of EMS unit. The prevalence and contents of management protocols for common medical conditions treated pre-hospitally was collected. The perceived difficulty of diagnosing AHF and other medical conditions by emergency medical dispatchers and EMS personnel was interrogated. Ultrasound devices and point-of-care testing were available in advanced life support and helicopter EMS units in fewer than 25% of EMS regions. AHF protocols were present in 80.8% of regions. Protocols for ST-elevation myocardial infarction, chest pain, and dyspnoea were present in 95.2, 80.8, and 76.0% of EMS regions, respectively. Protocolized diagnostic actions for AHF management included 12-lead electrocardiogram (92.1% of regions), ultrasound examination (16.0%), and point-of-care testings for troponin and BNP (6.0 and 3.5%). Therapeutic actions included supplementary oxygen (93.2%), non-invasive ventilation (80.7%), intravenous furosemide, opiates, nitroglycerine (69.0, 68.6, and 57.0%), and intubation 71.5%. Diagnosing suspected AHF was considered easy to moderate by EMS personnel and moderate to difficult by emergency medical dispatchers (without significant differences between de novo and decompensated heart failure). In both settings, diagnosis of suspected AHF was considered easier than pulmonary embolism and more difficult than ST-elevation myocardial infarction, asthma, and stroke. Conclusions The prevalence of AHF protocols is rather high but the contents seem to vary. Difficulty of diagnosing suspected AHF seems to be moderate compared with other pre-hospital conditions

Fast fluorescence techniques for crystallography beamlines

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/86817/1/S0021889811016748.pd

Globetrotting strangles: the unbridled national and international transmission of Streptococcus equi between horses.

The equine disease strangles, which is characterized by the formation of abscesses in the lymph nodes of the head and neck, is one of the most frequently diagnosed infectious diseases of horses around the world. The causal agent, Streptococcus equi subspecies equi, establishes a persistent infection in approximately 10 % of animals that recover from the acute disease. Such 'carrier' animals appear healthy and are rarely identified during routine veterinary examinations pre-purchase or transit, but can transmit S. equi to naïve animals initiating new episodes of disease. Here, we report the analysis and visualization of phylogenomic and epidemiological data for 670 isolates of S. equi recovered from 19 different countries using a new core-genome multilocus sequence typing (cgMLST) web bioresource. Genetic relationships among all 670 S. equi isolates were determined at high resolution, revealing national and international transmission events that drive this endemic disease in horse populations throughout the world. Our data argue for the recognition of the international importance of strangles by the Office International des Épizooties to highlight the health, welfare and economic cost of this disease. The Pathogenwatch cgMLST web bioresource described herein is available for tailored genomic analysis of populations of S. equi and its close relative S. equi subspecies zooepidemicus that are recovered from horses and other animals, including humans, throughout the world. This article contains data hosted by Microreact