288 research outputs found
PCR-based assay for detection of four coral pathogens
Several microorganisms have been identified as pathogenic agents responsible for various outbreaks of coral disease. Little has been learned about the exclusivity of a pathogen to given disease signs. Most pathogens have only been implicated within a subset of corals, leaving gaps in our knowledge of the host range and geographic extent of a given pathogen. PCR-based assays provide a rapid and inexpensive route for detection of pathogens. Pathogen-specific 16S rDNA primer sets were designed to target four identified coral
pathogens: Aurantimonas coralicida, Serratia marcescens, Vibrio shilonii, and Vibrio coralliilyticus. Assays detected the presence of targets at concentrations of less than one cell per microliter. The assay was applied to 142 coral samples from the Florida Keys, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands as an in situ specificity test. Assays displayed a high-level of specificity, seemingly limited only by the resolution of the 16S rDNA
Multimorbidity and socioeconomic deprivation in primary care consultations
Purpose: The influence of multimorbidity on the clinical encounter is poorly understood, especially in areas of high socioeconomic deprivation where burdensome multimorbidity is concentrated. The aim of the current study was to examine the effect of multimorbidity on general practice consultations, in areas of high and low deprivation.
Methods: We conducted secondary analyses of 659 video-recorded routine consultations involving 25 general practitioners (GPs) in deprived areas and 22 in affluent areas of Scotland. Patients rated the GPâs empathy using the Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) measure immediately after the consultation. Videos were analyzed using the Measure of Patient-Centered Communication. Multilevel, multi-regression analysis identified differences between the groups.
Results: In affluent areas, patients with multimorbidity received longer consultations than patients without multimorbidity (mean 12.8 minutes vs 9.3, respectively; P = .015), but this was not so in deprived areas (mean 9.9 minutes vs 10.0 respectively; P = .774). In affluent areas, patients with multimorbidity perceived their GP as more empathic (P = .009) than patients without multimorbidity; this difference was not found in deprived areas (P = .344). Video analysis showed that GPs in affluent areas were more attentive to the disease and illness experience in patients with multimorbidity (P < .031) compared with patients without multimorbidity. This was not the case in deprived areas (P = .727).
Conclusions: In deprived areas, the greater need of patients with multimorbidity is not reflected in the longer consultation length, higher GP patient centeredness, and higher perceived GP empathy found in affluent areas. Action is required to redress this mismatch of need and service provision for patients with multimorbidity if health inequalities are to be narrowed rather than widened by primary care
Field manual for investigating coral disease outbreaks
Coral reefs throughout their circumtropical range are declining at an accelerating rate. Recent predictions indicate that 20% of the worldâs reefs have been degraded, another 24% are under imminent risk of collapse, and if current estimates hold, by 2030, 26% of the worldâs reefs will be lost (Wilkinson 2004). Recent changes to these ecosystems have included losses of apex predators, reductions of important herbivorous fishes and invertebrates, and precipitous declines in living coral cover, with many reefs now dominated by macroalgae. Causes have been described in broad sweeping terms: global climate change, over-fishing and destructive fishing, land-based sources of pollution, sedimentation, hurricanes, mass bleaching events and disease. Recognition that corals can succumb to disease was first reported in the early 1970âs. Then it was a unique observation, with relatively few isolated reports until the mid 1990âs. Today disease has spread to over 150 species of coral, reported from 65 countries throughout all of the worldâs tropical oceans (WCMC Global Coral Disease Database). While disease continues to increase in frequency and distribution throughout the world, definitive causes of coral diseases have remained elusive for the most part, with reef managers not sufficiently armed to combat it
Vibrations and Berry Phases of Charged Buckminsterfullerene
A simple model of electron-vibron interactions in buckminsterfullerene ions
is solved semiclassically. Electronic degeneracies of C induce
dynamical Jahn-Teller distortions, which are unimodal for and
bimodal for . The quantization of motion along the Jahn-Teller
manifold leads to a symmetric-top rotator Hamiltonian. I find Molecular
Aharonov-Bohm effects where electronic Berry phases determine the vibrational
spectra, zero point fluctuations, and electrons' pair binding energies. The
latter are relevant to superconductivity in alkali-fullerenes.Comment: Latex 11 pages. IIT-00
Factors associated with self-identification of an eating disorder history among Latinas meeting criteria for past or current eating disorders
Objective: This paper compared Latinas who self-identified as having had an eating disorder (ED) with those who did not (despite both groups meeting criteria for an ED history) on ED pathology and mental health stigma. Method: Seventy-seven Latinas completed an online survey. Results: All 77 participants met criteria for lifetime EDs, and 92% met current criteria for an ED; however, 47% did not report having an ED history vs. 53% did report an ED history. There was no difference on binge eating frequency. Those who endorsed an ED history engaged in more compensatory behaviors, had higher EAT-26 scores, and were less fearful of stigmatization due to seeking mental health treatment. Those reporting an ED history were more likely to have met criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, generally more recognizable EDs than binge eating disorder and other specified feeding or eating disorders, than those who did not report an ED history. Discussion: Latinas with certain patterns of eating pathology and those with less fear of being stigmatized due to seeking mental health treatment were more likely to endorse an ED history, which has implications for treatment seeking
Effects of supplementation of limit-fed growing diets with either soybean meal or nonenzymatically browned soybean meal on steer performance
Seventy two individually fed Angus Ă Hereford
steers (642 lb) were used to evaluate the
effects of supplementing limit-fed, growing diets
with either soybean meal (SBM) or nonenzymatically
browned soybean meal (NSBM).
Eight steers were allotted to a control diet
composed of 39.1% high-moisture corn, 42%
cottonseed hulls, 10.4% ground corn, 5% cane
molasses 2.25% urea, and 1.5% vitamins and
minerals (dry basis). The remaining steers were
allotted to diets that derived 100, 80, 60, or
40% of their supplemental protein from SBM or
60, 45, 30, or 15% of their supplemental protein
from NSBN. The balance of supplemental
protein came from urea. All diets were formulated
to contain 13.0% crude protein (dry
basis). Steers were fed once daily for 80 days
at 2.25% of BW. Average daily gain and
efficiency did not differ (P>.05) between
sources (ADG=1.932 + .103 Ă (% CP from
SBM) + .097 Ă (% CP from NSBM);
gain:feed=.140 + .0058 Ă (% CP from SBM) +
.0051 Ă (% CP from NSBM)). The lack of
response to NBSBM supplementation above
that for SBM suggests that either degradable
intake protein was limiting in the basal diet or a
large proportion of the amino acids in the
NSBM were unavailable due to overprocessing
Development of an approximate method for quantum optical models and their pseudo-Hermicity
An approximate method is suggested to obtain analytical expressions for the
eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the some quantum optical models. The method
is based on the Lie-type transformation of the Hamiltonians. In a particular
case it is demonstrated that Jahn-Teller Hamiltonian can
easily be solved within the framework of the suggested approximation. The
method presented here is conceptually simple and can easily be extended to the
other quantum optical models. We also show that for a purely imaginary coupling
the Hamiltonian becomes non-Hermitian but -symmetric. Possible generalization of this approach is outlined.Comment: Paper prepared fo the "3rd International Workshop on Pseudo-Hermitian
Hamiltonians in Quantum Physics" June 2005 Istanbul. To be published in
Czechoslovak Journal of Physic
Dakota GoldÂź-brand dried distillerâs grains with solubles: effects on finishing performance and carcass characteristics
A 153-day trial was conducted using
345 heifers to determine optimal level of
Dakota Gold dried distillerâs grains with
solubles (DDGS) in finishing diets based
on steam-flaked corn. Diets contained six
levels of DDGS: 0%, 15%, 30%, 45%,
60%, and 75%. DDGS affected average
daily gain, final weight and hot carcass
weight, all of which increased with 15%
DDGS and then decreased as additional
DDGS was added. Growth performance of
heifers fed 30% DDGS was similar to those
fed no DDGS. In general, heifers were
overfinished, with 61% being Yield Grade
3 or greater and 83% grading Choice or
Prime. Backfat tended to decrease with
addition of DDGS, and kidney, pelvic, and
heart fat and marbling scores tended to be
greatest for intermediate levels of DDGS.
Percentage of carcasses grading Choice or
Prime tended to be lower for heifers fed 60
or 75% DDGS
The molecular epidemiology of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 in six cities in Britain and Ireland
The authors sequenced the p17 coding regions of the gag gene from 211 patients infected either through injecting drug use (IDU) or by sexual intercourse between men from six cities in Scotland, N. England, N. Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland. All sequences were of subtype 5. Phylogenetic analysis revealed substantial heterogeneity in the sequences from homosexual men. In contrast, sequence from over 80% of IDUs formed a relatively tight cluster, distinct both from those of published isolates and of the gay men. There was no large-scale clustering of sequences by city in either risk group, although a number of close associations between pairs of individuals were observed. From the known date of the HIV-1 epidemic among IDUs in Edinburgh, the rate of sequence divergence at synonymous sites is estimated to be about 0.8%. On this basis it has been estimated that the date of divergence of the sequences among homosexual men to be about 1975, which may correspond to the origin of the B subtype epidemic
Water wave propagation and scattering over topographical bottoms
Here I present a general formulation of water wave propagation and scattering
over topographical bottoms. A simple equation is found and is compared with
existing theories. As an application, the theory is extended to the case of
water waves in a column with many cylindrical steps
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