Magnesium Polymer Electrolytes Based on the Polycarbonate Poly(2-butyl-2-ethyltrimethylene-carbonate)

Magnesium electrolytes based on a polycarbonate with either magnesium tetrakis(hexafluoroisopropyloxy) borate (Mg(B(HFIP)$_4$)$_2$) or magnesium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (Mg(TFSI)$_2$) for magnesium batteries were prepared and characterized. The side-chain-containing polycarbonate, poly(2-butyl-2-ethyltrimethylene carbonate) (P(BEC)), was synthesized by ring opening polymerization (ROP) of 5-ethyl-5-butylpropane oxirane ether carbonate (BEC) and mixed with Mg(B(HFIP)$_4$)$_2$ or Mg(TFSI)$_2$_ to form low- and high-salt-concentration polymer electrolytes (PEs). The PEs were characterized by impedance spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), rheology, linear sweep voltammetry, cyclic voltammetry, and Raman spectroscopy. A transition from classical salt-in-polymer electrolytes to polymer-in-salt electrolytes was indicated by a significant change in glass transition temperature as well as storage and loss moduli. Ionic conductivity measurements indicated the formation of polymer-in-salt electrolytes for the PEs with 40 mol % Mg(B(HFIP)$_4$)$_2$ (HFIP40). In contrast, the 40 mol % Mg(TFSI)$_2$ PEs showed mainly the classical behavior. HFIP40 was further found to have an oxidative stability window greater than 6 V vs Mg/Mg$^{2+}$, but showed no reversible stripping-plating behavior in an Mg||SS cell

Effects of a Meditation and Contemplative Practice Course on College Students’ Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Mental Health

Objectives: Mindfulness-based practices have been shown to be effective in reducing depression and anxiety among college students. Less is known about whether coursework incorporating contemplative practices has similar beneficial effects. This study sought to investigate the benefits of a course focusing on contemplative practices that included mindfulness-based practice inside and outside the classroom. Method: In Study 1, 42 students enrolled in Meditation and Contemplative Practice, a course taught through the Department of Classics, Philosophy, and Religious Studies, completed measures of mindfulness, self-compassion, depression, and anxiety at the beginning and end of the semester. In Study 2, 43 students in this course, and 65 students in an Introduction to World Religions course completed the same measures at the beginning and end of the semester. In Study 3, 15 students enrolled in the contemplative practices course completed a pre-test, a post-test, and a follow-up assessment six weeks later. Results: Across all three studies mindfulness and self-compassion rose over the course of the semester. In Study 1, anxiety significantly decreased. In Study 2, those in the religious studies course did not experience increased mindfulness or self-compassion over the course of the semester. Furthermore, there were significant interactions indicating that the religion students increased in depression and anxiety over the course of the semester while those in the contemplative practices class decreased. Study 3 indicated that the gains made during the semester continued after the course was over. Conclusions: Results indicate that coursework on contemplative practices is beneficial to the mental health of college students

Novel picornavirus in turkey poults with hepatitis, California, USA

To identify a candidate etiologic agent for turkey viral hepatitis, we analyzed samples from diseased turkey poults from 8 commercial flocks in California, USA, that were collected during 2008–2010. High-throughput pyrosequencing of RNA from livers of poults with turkey viral hepatitis (TVH) revealed picornavirus sequences. Subsequent cloning of the ≈9-kb genome showed an organization similar to that of picornaviruses with conservation of motifs within the P1, P2, and P3 genome regions, but also unique features, including a 1.2-kb sequence of unknown function at the junction of P1 and P2 regions. Real-time PCR confirmed viral RNA in liver, bile, intestine, serum, and cloacal swab specimens from diseased poults. Analysis of liver by in situ hybridization with viral probes and immunohistochemical testing of serum demonstrated viral nucleic acid and protein in livers of diseased poults. Molecular, anatomic, and immunologic evidence suggests that TVH is caused by a novel picornavirus, tentatively named turkey hepatitis virus

OGA: an ontological tool of human phenotypes with genetic associations

Background: The availability of genetic data has increased dramatically in recent years. The greatest value of this data is its potential for personalized medicine. Many new associations are reported every day from Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS). However, robust, reproducible associations are elusive for some complex diseases. Ontologies present a potential way to distinguish between spurious associations and those with a potential influence on the phenotype. Such an approach would be based on finding associations of the same genetic variant with closely related, but distinct, phenotypes. This approach can be accomplished with a phenotype ontology that also holds genetic association data. Results: Here, we report a structured knowledge application to navigate and to facilitate the discovery of relationships between different phenotypes and their genetic associations. Conclusions: OGA allows users to (1) find the intersecting set of genes for phenotypes of interest, (2) find empirical p values for such observations and (3) OGA outperforms similar applications in number of total concepts and genes mapped

Molecular characterization of severe and mild cases of Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 strain from Argentina

While worldwide pandemic influenza A(H1N1) pdm case fatality rate (CFR) was 0.4%, Argentina's was 4.5%. A total of 34 strains from mild and severe cases were analyzed. A full genome sequencing was carried out on 26 of these, and a partial sequencing on the remaining eight. We observed no evidence that the high CFR can be attributed to direct virus changes. No evidence of re-assortment, mutations associated with resistance to antiviral drugs, or genetic drift that might contribute to virulence was observed. Although the mutation D225G associated with severity in the latest reports from the Ukraine and Norway is not observed among the Argentine strains, an amino acid change in the area (S206T) surrounding the HA receptor binding domain was observed, the same previously established worldwide

Panmicrobial Oligonucleotide Array for Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases

To facilitate rapid, unbiased, differential diagnosis of infectious diseases, we designed GreeneChipPm, a panmicrobial microarray comprising 29,455 sixty-mer oligonucleotide probes for vertebrate viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites. Methods for nucleic acid preparation, random primed PCR amplification, and labeling were optimized to allow the sensitivity required for application with nucleic acid extracted from clinical materials and cultured isolates. Analysis of nasopharyngeal aspirates, blood, urine, and tissue from persons with various infectious diseases confirmed the presence of viruses and bacteria identified by other methods, and implicated Plasmodium falciparum in an unexplained fatal case of hemorrhagic feverlike disease during the Marburg hemorrhagic fever outbreak in Angola in 2004–2005

Detection of Respiratory Viruses and Subtype Identification of Influenza A Viruses by GreeneChipResp Oligonucleotide Microarray

Acute respiratory infections are significant causes of morbidity, mortality, and economic burden worldwide. An accurate, early differential diagnosis may alter individual clinical management as well as facilitate the recognition of outbreaks that have implications for public health. Here we report on the establishment and validation of a comprehensive and sensitive microarray system for detection of respiratory viruses and subtyping of influenza viruses in clinical materials. Implementation of a set of influenza virus enrichment primers facilitated subtyping of influenza A viruses through the differential recognition of hemagglutinins 1 through 16 and neuraminidases 1 through 9. Twenty-one different respiratory virus species were accurately characterized, including a recently identified novel genetic clade of rhinovirus.Fil: Quan, Phenix-Lan. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Palacios, Gustavo. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Jabado, Omar J. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Conlan, Sean. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Hirschberg, David L. Stanford School of Medicine; Estados Unidos.Fil: Pozo, Francisco. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Jack, Philippa J. M. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: Cisterna, Daniel. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Renwick, Neil. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Hui, Jeffrey. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Drysdale, Andrew. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Amos-Ritchie, Rachel. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: Baumeister, Elsa. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Savy, Vilma. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Lager, Kelly M. USDA. National Animal Disease Center; Estados Unidos.Fil: Richt, Jürgen A. USDA. National Animal Disease Center; Estados Unidos.Fil: Boyle, David B. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: García-Sastre, Adolfo. Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Department of Microbiology and Emerging Pathogens Institute; Estados Unidos.Fil: Casas, Inmaculada. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Perez-Breña, Pilar. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Briese, Thomas. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Lipkin, W. Ian. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos

Detection of Respiratory Viruses and Subtype Identification of Influenza A Viruses by GreeneChipResp Oligonucleotide Microarray

Acute respiratory infections are significant causes of morbidity, mortality, and economic burden worldwide. An accurate, early differential diagnosis may alter individual clinical management as well as facilitate the recognition of outbreaks that have implications for public health. Here we report on the establishment and validation of a comprehensive and sensitive microarray system for detection of respiratory viruses and subtyping of influenza viruses in clinical materials. Implementation of a set of influenza virus enrichment primers facilitated subtyping of influenza A viruses through the differential recognition of hemagglutinins 1 through 16 and neuraminidases 1 through 9. Twenty-one different respiratory virus species were accurately characterized, including a recently identified novel genetic clade of rhinovirus.Fil: Quan, Phenix-Lan. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Palacios, Gustavo. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Jabado, Omar J. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Conlan, Sean. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Hirschberg, David L. Stanford School of Medicine; Estados Unidos.Fil: Pozo, Francisco. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Jack, Philippa J. M. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: Cisterna, Daniel. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Renwick, Neil. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Hui, Jeffrey. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Drysdale, Andrew. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Amos-Ritchie, Rachel. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: Baumeister, Elsa. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Savy, Vilma. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas; Argentina.Fil: Lager, Kelly M. USDA. National Animal Disease Center; Estados Unidos.Fil: Richt, Jürgen A. USDA. National Animal Disease Center; Estados Unidos.Fil: Boyle, David B. Australian Animal Health Laboratory. CSIRO Livestock Industries; Australia.Fil: García-Sastre, Adolfo. Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Department of Microbiology and Emerging Pathogens Institute; Estados Unidos.Fil: Casas, Inmaculada. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Perez-Breña, Pilar. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Centro Nacional de Microbiología; España.Fil: Briese, Thomas. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos.Fil: Lipkin, W. Ian. Columbia University. Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory; Estados Unidos

Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation of Farmed Salmon Is Associated with Infection with a Novel Reovirus

Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) mariculture has been associated with epidemics of infectious diseases that threaten not only local production, but also wild fish coming into close proximity to marine pens and fish escaping from them. Heart and skeletal muscle inflammation (HSMI) is a frequently fatal disease of farmed Atlantic salmon. First recognized in one farm in Norway in 1999[1], HSMI was subsequently implicated in outbreaks in other farms in Norway and the United Kingdom[2]. Although pathology and disease transmission studies indicated an infectious basis, efforts to identify an agent were unsuccessful. Here we provide evidence that HSMI is associated with infection with piscine reovirus (PRV). PRV is a novel reovirus identified by unbiased high throughput DNA sequencing and a bioinformatics program focused on nucleotide frequency as well as sequence alignment and motif analyses. Formal implication of PRV in HSMI will require isolation in cell culture and fulfillment of Koch's postulates, or prevention or modification of disease through use of specific drugs or vaccines. Nonetheless, as our data indicate that a causal relationship is plausible, measures must be taken to control PRV not only because it threatens domestic salmon production but also due to the potential for transmission to wild salmon populations