The Human Studies Database Project: Federating Human Studies Design Data Using the Ontology of Clinical Research

Human studies, encompassing interventional and observational studies, are the most important source of evidence for advancing our understanding of health, disease, and treatment options. To promote discovery, the design and results of these studies should be made machine-readable for large-scale data mining, synthesis, and re-analysis. The Human Studies Database Project aims to define and implement an informatics infrastructure for institutions to share the design of their human studies. We have developed the Ontology of Clinical Research (OCRe) to model study features such as design type, interventions, and outcomes to support scientific query and analysis. We are using OCRe as the reference semantics for federated data sharing of human studies over caGrid, and are piloting this implementation with several Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) institutions

Microstructural Evolution in Thin Films of Electronic Materials

Contains reports on ten research projects.Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-89-C-0001National Science FoundationU.S. Air Force - Office of Scientific Research Contract AFOSR 85-0154Semiconductor Research CorporationAT&TInternational Business Machines CorporationNational Institutes of Healt

Microstructural Evolution in Thin Films of Electronic Materials

Contains reports on eight research projects.National Science Foundation (Grant ECS 85-06565)U.S. Air Force - Office of Scientific Research (Contract AFOSR 85-0154)National Science Foundation-Materials Research Laboratory(Grant DMR 81-19285)National Science Foundation (Grant DMR 85-06030)International Business Machines, Inc. Faculty Development AwardMitsui Career Development AwardInternational Business Machines, Inc.Semiconductor Research Corporation (Contract 86-05-080)Joint Services Electronics Program (Contract DAAG-29-83-K-0003)Charles Stark Draper LaboratoryDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)Nippon Telegraph and Telephone, Inc

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

A Biologic Model for Assessment of Osseous Strain Patterns and Plating Systems in the Human Maxilla

Purpose: This study was conducted to examine a biomechanical model and to help answer fundamental questions that relate to rigid plate fixation in the maxilla. Specifically, we sought to elucidate the principal strain patterns generated in the maxilla secondary to masticatory forces as well as the amount of permanent deformational changes incurred due to these loading forces. Materials and Methods: Cadaveric heads with the mandible removed were defleshed and placed in a 2-part testing rig to hold and position the skull for testing in a standard material testing system. Rosette strain gages were attached at predefined points on the skull, and an Instron machine was used to load the skull through the loading port on the tray. A Le Fort I osteotomy was then performed on the skull, and a Walter Lorenz Ultra-Micro plating system was applied by a surgeon to reconnect the upper jaw. A 2-mm gap was left at the line of the osteotomy, and a transducer was attached to measure closure of the gap. Again the skull was loaded with the Instron (Canton, MA) machine. Results: The results indicate a linear relationship exists with both maximum (tensile) and minimum (compressive) strain patterns relative to incremental load placement on the intact maxilla. The strain patterns after the Le Fort I osteotomy and plating were different and less linear. The differential variable reluctance transducer data showed a low rate of closure or transient increase in the gap at low loads (0 to 15 kilopond [kp] range) and a steeper slope of closure during high loads (15 to 60 kp range). It is also evident that axial loading forces cause permanent deformation and failure of osseous plating systems predominantly through bending. Conclusions: This model provides a foundation of knowledge regarding biomechanical strains in the maxilla subjected to static compressive loads in the force range of mastication. In addition, it serves as a comparative reference to assess rigidity of various craniofacial plating systems and to validate proposed standardized synthetic models. With the advent of increasingly precise surgery and new plating systems, this model can be used to help guide placement and design of plating systems; thereby allowing for ideal stabilization and optimizing surgical outcome

Multiplex PCR assay for malaria vector Anopheles minimus and four related species in the Myzomyia Series from Southeast Asia

Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) of the Anopheles (Cellia) Myzomyia Series are important malaria vectors in Africa, India and Southeast Asia. Among 10 named species of Myzomyia known from the Oriental Region, seven form the An. minimus group. Even for expert taxonomists, the adults of these species remain difficult to identify morphologically. For technical staff of malaria control programmes, confusion may extend to misidentification of species that are not formally within the minimus group. For identification of specimens from Indochina (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam), we describe a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay, based on rDNA internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequences, that employs a cocktail of primers to identify An. minimus Theobald sibling species A and C (sensu; Green et al., 1990) and three other species in the An. minimus group (An. aconitus Donitz, An. pampanai Buttiker & Beales, An. varuna Iyengar), as well as An. jeyporiensis James, also belonging to the Myzomyia Series. As the test is DNA-based, it can be applied to all life stages of these mosquitoes for ecological investigations and vector incrimination studies. This PCR assay is simpler, quicker, cheaper and more readily interpreted than previous assays