The Diagnostic Stability of Developmental Delay and Developmental Language Disorder in Infants and Toddlers

Numerous children are diagnosed with Developmental Delay (DD) and Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) each year in the US. There are inconsistent diagnostic definitions for these disorders because individual states determine diagnostic criteria, complicating prevalence and diagnostic stability estimation. In the current study, 37 children received a diagnosis of DD and 21 received a diagnosis of DLD at an initial evaluation as part of participation in a study investigating the early detection of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs), and were seen for a follow-up evaluation. The DD group was significantly more likely to retain this diagnosis at follow-up than the DLD group. The DD and DLD group made significant gains on developmental measures between evaluations, and the DLD group made significantly greater gains in language skills than the DD group. Children in the DD group who were more delayed at their initial evaluation were more likely to retain their diagnosis at follow-up, approaching significance. Males from the DD group retained their diagnosis more often than males in the DLD group. Maternal education and family income did not have an effect on diagnostic stability in the DD and DLD groups. A small number of children from both the DD and DLD group received a diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Disorder at follow-up, but this did not differ significantly between the groups or by gender. These findings emphasize the need for more clear and consistent diagnostic criteria for DD and DLD to allow for clearer measurement of prevalence and analysis of diagnostic stability

A review and evaluation of the Langley Research Center's Scientific and Technical Information Program. Results of phase 5. Design and evaluation of STI systems: A selected, annotated bibliography

A selected, annotated bibliography of literature citations related to the design and evaluation of STI systems is presented. The use of manual and machine-readable literature searches; the review of numerous books, periodicals reports, and papers; and the selection and annotation of literature citations were required. The bibliography was produced because the information was needed to develop the methodology for the review and evaluation project, and a survey of the literature did not reveal the existence of a single published source of information pertinent to the subject. Approximately 200 citations are classified in four subject areas. The areas include information - general; information systems - design and evaluation, including information products and services; information - use and need; and information - economics

Interaction between the tRNA-Binding and C-Terminal Domains of Yeast Gcn2 Regulates Kinase Activity In Vivo

Citation: Lageix, S., Zhang, J. W., Rothenburg, S., & Hinnebusch, A. G. (2015). Interaction between the tRNA-Binding and C-Terminal Domains of Yeast Gcn2 Regulates Kinase Activity In Vivo. Plos Genetics, 11(2), 28. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1004991The stress-activated protein kinase Gcn2 regulates protein synthesis by phosphorylation of translation initiation factor eIF2 alpha. Gcn2 is activated in amino acid-deprived cells by binding of uncharged tRNA to the regulatory domain related to histidyl-tRNA synthetase, but the molecular mechanism of activation is unclear. We used a genetic approach to identify a key regulatory surface in Gcn2 that is proximal to the predicted active site of the HisRS domain and likely remodeled by tRNA binding. Mutations leading to amino acid substitutions on this surface were identified that activate Gcn2 at low levels of tRNA binding (Gcd(-) phenotype), while other substitutions block kinase activation (Gcn(-) phenotype), in some cases without altering tRNA binding by Gcn2 in vitro. Remarkably, the Gcn(-) substitutions increase affinity of the HisRS domain for the C-terminal domain (CTD), previously implicated as a kinase autoinhibitory segment, in a manner dampened by HisRS domain Gcd(-) substitutions and by amino acid starvation in vivo. Moreover, tRNA specifically antagonizes HisRS/CTD association in vitro. These findings support a model wherein HisRS-CTD interaction facilitates the autoinhibitory function of the CTD in nonstarvation conditions, with tRNA binding eliciting kinase activation by weakening HisRS-CTD association with attendant disruption of the autoinhibitory KD-CTD interaction

Separated at Birth? Microarray Analysis of Two Strikingly Similar Yersinia Species

This is the final version of the article. Available from [publisher] via the DOI in this record.--We acknowledge financial support for this project from DSTL and The Wellcome Trust. We also acknowledge BµG@S (the Bacterial Microarray Group at St George’s) and The Wellcome Trust for funding their work; Keith Vass from the University of Glasgow; and Mike Prentice from St. Bartholomew’s Hospital for his advice and expertise in all things Yersinia

Sect and House in Syria: History, Architecture, and Bayt Amongst the Druze in Jaramana

This paper explores the connections between the architecture and materiality of houses and the social idiom of bayt (house, family). The ethnographic exploration is located in the Druze village of Jaramana, on the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus. It traces the histories, genealogies, and politics of two families, bayt Abud-Haddad and bayt Ouward, through their houses. By exploring the two families and the architecture of their houses, this paper provides a detailed ethnographic account of historical change in modern Syria, internal diversity, and stratification within the intimate social fabric of the Druze neighbourhood at a time of war, and contributes a relational approach to the anthropological understanding of houses

GCN2-dependent phosphorylation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor-2α in Arabidopsis

The yeast regulatory protein kinase, general control non-derepressible-2 (GCN2) plays a key role in general amino acid control. GCN2 phosphorylates the α subunit of the trimeric eukaryotic translation initiation factor-2 (eIF2), bringing about a decrease in the general rate of protein synthesis but an increase in the synthesis of GCN4, a transcription factor that promotes the expression of genes encoding enzymes for amino acid biosynthesis. The present study concerned the phosphorylation of Arabidopsis eIF2α (AteIF2α) by the Arabidopsis homologue of GCN2, AtGCN2, and the role of AtGCN2 in regulating genes encoding enzymes of amino acid biosynthesis and responding to virus infection. A null mutant for AtGCN2 called GT8359 was obtained and western analysis confirmed that it lacked AtGCN2 protein. GT8359 was more sensitive than wild-type Arabidopsis to herbicides that affect amino acid biosynthesis. Phosphorylation of AteIF2α occurred in response to herbicide treatment but only in wild-type Arabidopsis, not GT8359, showing it to be AtGCN2-dependent. Expression analysis of genes encoding key enzymes for amino acid biosynthesis and nitrate assimilation revealed little effect of loss of AtGCN2 function in GT8359 except that expression of a nitrate reductase gene, NIA1, was decreased. Analysis of wild-type and GT8359 plants infected with Turnip yellow mosaic virus or Turnip crinkle virus showed that AteIF2α was not phosphorylated

Syrian Foreign Policy and the United States: From Bush to Obama

Exploring the evolution of Syrian foreign policy under President Bashar al-Assad, this concise volume focuses on Syria’s relationship with the United States. The authors consider the enduring determinants of Syrian policy, as well as such key issues as the country’s involvement in Lebanon and its stance vis-à-vis the war in Iraq. They also assess the personal role of President al-Assad and the impact of external forces on internal reforms.Contents:Foreword—R. HinnebuschSyria Under Bashar: Between Economic Reform and Nationalist Realpolitik—R. Hinnebusch.Syrian Foreign Policy: Between Domestic Needs and the External Environment—M.J. Kabalan.The Role of Bashar al-Assad in Syrian Foreign Policy—D. Lesch.Inching Out of Isolation: Managing a Different Relationship with Syria—B. Kodmani

Borrelia burgdorferi membranes are the primary targets of reactive oxygen species

Spirochetes living in an oxygen-rich environment or when challenged by host immune cells are exposed to reactive oxygen species (ROS). These species can harm/destroy cysteinyl residues, iron-sulphur clusters, DNA and polyunsaturated lipids, leading to inhibition of growth or cell death. Because Borrelia burgdorferi contains no intracellular iron, DNA is most likely not a major target for ROS via Fenton reaction. In support of this, growth of B. burgdorferi in the presence of 5 mM H2O2 had no effect on the DNA mutation rate (spontaneous coumermycin A1 resistance), and cells treated with 10 mM t-butyl hydroperoxide or 10 mM H2O2 show no increase in DNA damage. Unlike most bacteria, B. burgdorferi incorporates ROS-susceptible polyunsaturated fatty acids from the environment into their membranes. Analysis of lipoxidase-treated B. burgdorferi cells by Electron Microscopy showed significant irregularities indicative of membrane damage. Fatty acid analysis of cells treated with lipoxidase indicated that host-derived linoleic acid had been dramatically reduced (50-fold) in these cells, with a corresponding increase in the levels of malondialdehyde by-product (fourfold). These data suggest that B. burgdorferi membrane lipids are targets for attack by ROS encountered in the various stages of the infective cycle

Introduction: diverging or converging dynamics? EU and US policies in North Africa - an introduction

According to a number of scholars of international relations, the transatlantic relationship is going through a very significant and possibly irreversible crisis. It is claimed that the different reactions of the United States and the European Union to both September 11th and the war in Iraq were the catalyst for a rift that had been deepening for some time, leading to competition between the two actors. The literature on the foreign policy of the US and the EU in the Middle East and North Africa also points to this rift in order to explain the seemingly contradictory policies that the two actors implement in the region, with the US being more forceful in its attempts to export democracy and in supporting Israel while the EU adopts a less confrontational attitude and is perceived to be more friendly to the Palestinians. This article, which introduces a special issue on the nature of US and EU foreign policies in North Africa, argues on the contrary that the transatlantic rift does not really exist. While there are certainly differences in discourse and policies, both the EU and the US share the same concerns and have similar strategic objectives in the region, leading the two actors towards cooperation and division of labour rather than confrontation