Termite resistance of DMDHEU-treated wood.

Four field trials were conducted with wood modified with dimethyloldihydroxy-ethyleneurea (DMDHEU) in contact with subterranean termites. Trials 1 to 3 were conducted with Coptotermes acinaciformis (Froggatt); 1 and 2 in south-east Queensland, and 3 in northern Queensland, Australia. Trial 4 was conducted in northern Queensland with Mastotermes darwiniensis (Froggatt). Four timber species (Scots pine, beech, Slash pine and Spotted gum) and two levels (1.3 M and 2.3 M) of DMDHEU were used. The tests were validated. DMDHEU successfully prevented damage by C. acinaciformis in south-east Queensland, but not in northern Queensland. It also did not protect the wood against M. darwiniensis. Except for beech in trial 4, DMDHEU led to reduced mass losses caused by termite attack compared to the unmodified feeder stakes. Slash pine (in trials 1 and 3) and Spotted gum (in trial 1) presented low mass losses. Modification of Scots pine was more effective against termite damage than the modification of beech

Synthesis, Structure, and Reactivity of a Rhenium Oxo-Vinylalkylidene Complex

The reaction of 3 equiv of KOC(CF_3)_2Me with ReOCl_3(PPh_3)_2 in dichloromethane, followed by recrystallization from hexanes/THF, gives ReO[OC(CF_3)_2Me]_3(THF)_2( 1) in 35 7% yield. An X-ray diffraction study of 1 (monoclinic, P2_1/n, a = 10.010(3) Å, b = 29.247(6) Å, c = 10.800(3) Å, β = 117.09(1)', Z = 4) reveals a facial arrangement of the three alkoxide ligands around the metal center in a distorted octahedron. The ligand environment in 1 is quite crowded, as evidenced by an elongated Re-O bond between rhenium and one of the THF ligands. The reaction of 3,3-diphenylcyclopropene with 1 in dichloromethane gives initially a mixture of two isomeric rhenium oxo-vinylalkylidene complexes, of which the isomer syn,mer-ReO[C(H)-CH=CPh_2] [OC(CF3)2Me]3(THF) (2b) was isolated in 87% yield. An X-ray diffraction study of 2b (triclinic, P1^(bar), a = 10.459(3) Å, b = 10.913(3) Å, c = 21.308(6) Å, α = 91.16(3)°,β = 102.05-(2)°, γ = 117.98(2)°, 2 = 2) supports a pseudooctahedral structure with mutually trans vinylalkylidene and THF ligands. Complex 2b does not react readily with internal or terminal olefins; however, the addition of GaBr_3 (1 equiv) to 2b yields moderately active catalyst(s) that metathesize cis-2-pentene at ~6.7 turnovers min^(-1). No propagating alkylidene species are observed during the metathesis reaction

Non-Lorentzian line shapes for interfering rotational resonances in the predissociation of O(2)

Rotationally resolved measurements are presented of interacting predissociating resonances in the Schumann-Runge bands of O₂that exhibit destructive quantum interference for energies between the line centers. The interacting resonances are described using a coupled line shape derived by treating simultaneously the perturbation and predissociation processes using the method of Fano.B. R. Lewis, P. M. Dooley, J. P. England, S. T. Gibson, and K. G. H. Baldwin, L. W. Toro

A metadata-aware application for remote scoring and exchange of tissue microarray images.

BACKGROUND: The use of tissue microarrays (TMA) and advances in digital scanning microscopy has enabled the collection of thousands of tissue images. There is a need for software tools to annotate, query and share this data amongst researchers in different physical locations. RESULTS: We have developed an open source web-based application for remote scoring of TMA images, which exploits the value of Microsoft Silverlight Deep Zoom to provide a intuitive interface for zooming and panning around digital images. We use and extend existing XML-based standards to ensure that the data collected can be archived and that our system is interoperable with other standards-compliant systems. CONCLUSION: The application has been used for multi-centre scoring of TMA slides composed of tissues from several Phase III breast cancer trials and ten different studies participating in the International Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC). The system has enabled researchers to simultaneously score large collections of TMA and export the standardised data to integrate with pathological and clinical outcome data, thereby facilitating biomarker discovery.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

An evaluation of seasonal variations in footwear worn by adults with inflammatory arthritis: a cross-sectional observational study using a web-based survey

Background: Foot problems are common in adults with inflammatory arthritis and therapeutic footwear can be effective in managing arthritic foot problems. Accessing appropriate footwear has been identified as a major barrier, resulting in poor adherence to treatment plans involving footwear. Indeed, previous New Zealand based studies found that many people with rheumatoid arthritis and gout wore inappropriate footwear. However, these studies were conducted in a single teaching hospital during the New Zealand summer therefore the findings may not be representative of footwear styles worn elsewhere in New Zealand, or reflect the potential influence of seasonal climate changes. The aim of the study was to evaluate seasonal variations in footwear habits of people with inflammatory arthritic conditions in New Zealand. Methods: A cross-sectional study design using a web-based survey. The survey questions were designed to elicit demographic and clinical information, features of importance when choosing footwear and seasonal footwear habits, including questions related to the provision of therapeutic footwear/orthoses and footwear experiences. Results: One-hundred and ninety-seven participants responded who were predominantly women of European descent, aged between 46–65 years old, from the North Island of New Zealand. The majority of participants identified with having either rheumatoid arthritis (35%) and/or osteoarthritis (57%) and 68% reported established disease (>5 years duration). 18% of participants had been issued with therapeutic footwear. Walking and athletic shoes were the most frequently reported footwear type worn regardless of the time of year. In the summer, 42% reported wearing sandals most often. Comfort, fit and support were reported most frequently as the footwear features of greatest importance. Many participants reported difficulties with footwear (63%), getting hot feet in the summer (63%) and the need for a sandal which could accommodate a supportive insole (73%). Conclusions: Athletic and walking shoes were the most popular style of footwear reported regardless of seasonal variation. During the summer season people with inflammatory arthritis may wear sandals more frequently in order to accommodate disease-related foot deformity. Healthcare professionals and researchers should consider seasonal variation when recommending appropriate footwear, or conducting footwear studies in people with inflammatory arthritis, to reduce non-adherence to prescribed footwear

Association between tumour infiltrating lymphocytes, histotype and clinical outcome in epithelial ovarian cancer.

BACKGROUND: There is evidence that some ovarian tumours evoke an immune response, which can be assessed by tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). To facilitate adoption of TILs as a clinical biomarker, a standardised method for their H&E visual evaluation has been validated in breast cancer. METHODS: We sought to investigate the prognostic significance of TILs in a study of 953 invasive epithelial ovarian cancer tumour samples, both primary and metastatic, from 707 patients from the prospective population-based SEARCH study. TILs were analysed using a standardised method based on H&E staining producing a percentage score for stromal and intratumoral compartments. We used Cox regression to estimate hazard ratios of the association between TILs and survival. RESULTS: The extent of stromal and intra-tumoral TILs were correlated in the primary tumours (n = 679, Spearman's rank correlation = 0.60, P < 0.001) with a similar correlation in secondary tumours (n = 224, Spearman's rank correlation = 0.62, P < 0.001). There was a weak correlation between stromal TIL levels in primary and secondary tumour samples (Spearman's rank correlation = 0.29, P < 0.001) and intra-tumoral TIL levels in primary and secondary tumour samples (Spearman's rank correlation = 0.19, P = 0.0094). The extent of stromal TILs differed between histotypes (Pearson chi2 (12d.f.) 54.1, P < 0.0001) with higher levels of stromal infiltration in the high-grade serous and endometriod cases. A significant association was observed for higher intratumoral TIL levels and a favourable prognosis (HR 0.74 95% CI 0.55-1.00 p = 0.047). CONCLUSION: This study is the largest collection of epithelial ovarian tumour samples evaluated for TILs. We have shown that stromal and intratumoral TIL levels are correlated and that their levels correlate with clinical variables such as tumour histological subtype. We have also shown that increased levels of both intratumoral and stromal TILs are associated with a better prognosis; however, this is only statistically significant for intratumoral TILs. This study suggests that a clinically useful immune prognostic indicator in epithelial ovarian cancer could be developed using this technique

Perfluorinated alkyl acids and fecundity assessment in striped mullet (\u3ci\u3eMugil cephalus\u3c/i\u3e) at Merritt Island national wildlife refuge

This study investigated wild caught striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (MINWR) for levels of 15 perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAA) in tandem with individual fecundity measurements (Oocyte sub-stage 2 late, n=42) and oocyte reproductive stages (Stages 1–5, n=128). PFAAmeasurementswere quantified in stripedmullet liver (n=128),muscle (n=49), and gonad (n=10). No significant negative impacts of liver PFAA burden on wild-caught,mullet fecundity endpoints were observed in this study; however, changes in PFAAwere observed in the liver asmullet progressed through different sub-stages of oocyte development. Of the PFAA with significant changes by sub-stage of oocyte development, the carboxylic acids (perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorononanoic acid, and perfluorotridecanoic acid) increased in the liver with increasing sub-stage while the sulfonic acid and its precursor (perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanesulfonamide, respectively) decreased in the liver with increasing sub-stage of oocyte development. This is a unique find and suggests PFAA change location of compartmentalization as mullet progress towards spawning. Investigations also revealed higher than expected median muscle and gonad levels of PFOS in striped mullet collected at MINWR (9.01 ng/g and 80.2 ng/g, respectively)