Low-Temperature Polymorphic Phase Transition in a Crystalline Tripeptide L-Ala-L-Pro-Gly·H2O Revealed by Adiabatic Calorimetry

We demonstrate application of precise adiabatic vacuum calorimetry to observation of phase transition in the tripeptide l-alanyl-l-prolyl-glycine monohydrate (APG) from 6 to 320 K and report the standard thermodynamic properties of the tripeptide in the entire range. Thus, the heat capacity of APG was measured by adiabatic vacuum calorimetry in the above temperature range. The tripeptide exhibits a reversible first-order solid-to-solid phase transition characterized by strong thermal hysteresis. We report the standard thermodynamic characteristics of this transition and show that differential scanning calorimetry can reliably characterize the observed phase transition with <5 mg of the sample. Additionally, the standard entropy of formation from the elemental substances and the standard entropy of hypothetical reaction of synthesis from the amino acids at 298.15 K were calculated for the studied tripeptide.National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (U.S.) (EB-003151)National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (U.S.) (EB-001960)National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (U.S.) (EB-002026

Environmental differences between sites control the diet and nutrition of the carnivorous plant Drosera rotundifolia

Background and aims: Carnivorous plants are sensitive to small changes in resource availability, but few previous studies have examined how differences in nutrient and prey availability affect investment in and the benefit of carnivory. We studied the impact of site-level differences in resource availability on ecophysiological traits of carnivory for Drosera rotundifolia L. Methods: We measured prey availability, investment in carnivory (leaf stickiness), prey capture and diet of plants growing in two bogs with differences in N deposition and plant available N: Cors Fochno (0.62 g m−2 yr.−1, 353 μg l−1), Whixall Moss (1.37 g m−2 yr.−1, 1505 μg l−1). The total N amount per plant and the contributions of prey/root N to the plants’ N budget were calculated using a single isotope natural abundance method. Results: Plants at Whixall Moss invested less in carnivory, were less likely to capture prey, and were less reliant on prey-derived N (25.5% compared with 49.4%). Actual prey capture did not differ between sites. Diet composition differed – Cors Fochno plants captured 62% greater proportions of Diptera. Conclusions: Our results show site-level differences in plant diet and nutrition consistent with differences in resource availability. Similarity in actual prey capture may be explained by differences in leaf stickiness and prey abundance

Technical assessment of Mir-1 life support hardware for the international space station

NASA has been progressively learning the design and performance of the Russian life support systems utilized in their Mir space station. In 1992, a plan was implemented to assess the benefits of the Mir-1 life support systems to the Freedom program. Three primary tasks focused on: evaluating the operational Mir-1 support technologies and understanding if specific Russian systems could be directly utilized on the American space station and if Russian technology design information could prove useful in improving the current design of the planned American life support equipment; evaluating the ongoing Russian life support technology development activities to determine areas of potential long-term application to the U.S. space station; and utilizing the expertise of their space station life support systems to evaluate the benefits to the current U.S. space station program which included the integration of the Russian Mir-1 designs with the U.S. designs to support a crew of six

Evaluating the Effects of Pharmacological Levels of Zinc Oxide, Diet Acidification and Dietary Crude Protein on Growth Performance of Nursery Pigs

A total of 360 weaned pigs (DNA 200 × 400; initially 12.9 lb BW) were used in a 42-d growth study to evaluate the effects of pharmacological levels of zinc oxide (ZnO), diet acidification, and dietary crude protein (CP) on pig performance. Pigs were weaned at approximately 21-d of age and were randomly assigned to pens (5 pigs per pen) and allotted to 1 of 8 dietary treatments with 9 pens per treatment. Experimental diets were fed from d 0 to 21 with a common diet fed from d 21 to 42. The eight treatment diets were arranged as a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial with main effects of Zn from ZnO (110 ppm from d 0 to 21 or 3,000 ppm from d 0 to 7, and 2,000 ppm from d 7 to 21), diet acidification, (without or with 1.2% sodium diformate), and dietary CP (21 or 18%, [1.40 vs. 1.20% standardized ileal digestible Lys, respectively]). Fecal samples were collected weekly to determine dry matter content. No 2- or 3-way interactions (P \u3e 0.05) were observed throughout the 42-d growth study for growth performance; however, there was a ZnO × acidifier × CP interaction (P \u3c 0.05) for fecal dry matter on d 7 and overall, where reducing CP without acidification increased fecal DM when ZnO was not in the diet, but had little effect when ZnO was present in the diet. From d 0 to 21, pigs fed added ZnO had improved (P \u3c 0.05) average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI), feed efficiency (F/G), and increased d 21 body weight (BW) compared to those fed 110 ppm Zn. Added sodium diformate improved (P \u3c 0.05), ADG, F/G, and BW. Pigs fed 21% CP had improved (P \u3c 0.05) ADG and F/G and tended (P \u3c 0.10) to have increased d 21 BW. In the subsequent period (d 21 to 42) after the experimental diets were fed, there was no evidence of difference in growth perfor­mance among treatments. Overall (d 0 to 42), adding ZnO or sodium diformate from d 0 to 21 tended to increase ADG (P ≤ 0.10) with no evidence of difference in ADFI and F/G. Increasing dietary CP from 18 to 21% from d 0 to 21 improved (P \u3c 0.05) overall F/G. In summary, dietary addition of ZnO or sodium diformate independently improved nursery pig performance

Evaluation of AviPlus on Growth Performance of Nursery and Growing-Finishing Pigs

This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of AviPlus (a combination of micro-encapsulated sorbic and citric acids and synthetic thymol and vanillin botani­cals; Vetagro Inc., Chicago, IL) on growth performance during the wean-to-finish period in a commercial research environment. A total of 1,215 pigs (L337 × 1050; PIC, Hendersonville, TN) were used in a 156-d wean-to-finish experiment. Pigs were weaned at approximately 21 d of age and placed in pens based on initial body weight (BW) with 27 pigs per pen in a randomized complete block design. During the 42-day nursery period, pigs were allotted to 1 of 2 treatments in an unbalanced treatment structure with 15 pens (replications) fed the control diet and 30 pens (replications) fed diets containing AviPlus at 6 lb/ton from d 0 to 21 and 2 lb/ton from d 21 to 42. On d 42, pigs were transported as intact pens from the nursery to the commer­cial finishing facility. During the finishing period 3 treatments were applied, which included: 1) pigs on the control diet in nursery remained on control diets; 2) 50% of pigs in nursery provided AviPlus were then fed 1 lb AviPlus throughout finishing; and 3) 50% of pigs in nursery provided AviPlus were then fed the control diet throughout finishing. All pens on finishing treatments 2 and 3 were allotted based on ending nursery BW to the finishing treatment. There were 15 replications per treatment in the finishing period. From d 0 to 21, pigs fed diets with AviPlus had a tendency for improved (P \u3c 0.058) F/G when compared to pigs fed the control diet; however, there was no evidence of difference (P \u3e 0.05) for ADG, ADFI, or d 21 BW. From d 21 to 42, there was no evidence of difference (P \u3e 0.05) for ADG, ADFI, or F/G. For the overall nursery period (d 0 to 42), pigs fed diets with AviPlus had improved (P \u3c 0.05) F/G when compared to pigs fed the control diet, but there was no evidence of differ­ence (P \u3e 0.05) for d 42 BW, ADG, or ADFI between treatments. From d 42 to 106, there was no evidence of difference (P \u3e 0.05) for ADG, ADFI, and F/G. However, from d 106 to 156, pigs fed diets containing AviPlus in both the nursery and finishing periods had decreased (P \u3c 0.05) ADG when compared to pigs fed the control diet and pigs receiving AviPlus only in the nursery, with no evidence of difference (P \u3e 0.05) for other growth responses. For the overall finishing period (d 42 to 156) and overall experimental period (d 0 to 156), there was no evidence of difference (P \u3e 0.05) for BW, ADG, ADFI, or F/G. For mortality and removals, there was no evidence of differ­ence (P \u3e 0.05) observed during the nursery, finishing or overall. In summary, providing AviPlus during the nursery phase improved early and overall nursery F/G, but there was no effect on overall wean-to-finish performance

The RESOLVE and ECO Gas in Galaxy Groups Initiative: The Group Finder and the Group HI–Halo Mass Relation

We present a four-step group-finding algorithm for the Gas in Galaxy Groups (G3) initiative, a spin-off of the z ∼ 0 REsolved Spectroscopy Of a Local VolumE (RESOLVE) and Environmental COntext (ECO) surveys. In preparation for future comparisons to intermediate redshift (e.g., the LADUMA survey), we design the group finder to adapt to incomplete, shallow, or nonuniform data. We use mock catalogs to optimize the group finder’s performance. Compared to friends-of-friends (with false-pair splitting), the G3 algorithm offers improved completeness and halo-mass recovery with minimal loss of purity. Combining it with the volume-limited H I census data for RESOLVE and ECO, we examine the H I content of galaxy groups as a function of group halo mass. Group-integrated H I mass M rises monotonically over halo masses M ∼ 10–10 M, pivoting in slope at M ∼ 10M, the gas-richness threshold scale. We present the first measurement of the scatter in this relation, which has a median of ∼0.3 dex and is asymmetric toward lower M I,grp. We discuss interesting tensions with theoretical predictions and prior measurements of the M–M relation. In an appendix, we release RESOLVE DR4 and ECO DR3, including updates to survey redshifts, photometry, and group catalogs, as well as a major expansion of the ECO H I inventory with value-added data products. © 2023. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical SocietyWe are grateful to the anonymous referee, whose feedback has improved the quality of this work. We also thank Adrienne Erickcek, Andrew Mann, Mugdha Polimera, Matthew Bershady, Joshua Oppor, Jeremy Darling, Hayley Roberts, and Amir Kazemi-Moridani for valuable feedback at varying stages of the project. Z.L.H., S.J.K., and E.R.C. acknowledge support for this research from National Science Foundation (NSF) grant AST-1814486. Z.L.H. and D.S.C. are also supported through a North Carolina Space Grant Graduate Research Fellowship. S.J.K. and D.S.C. acknowledge support from NSF grant AST-2007351. A.J.B. acknowledges support from NSF grant AST-1814421. K.M.H. acknowledges financial support from the State Agency for Research of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities through the "Center of Excellence Severo Ocho" awarded to the Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia (SEV-2017-0709), via participation in SKA-SPAIN, funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN), and financial support from grant RTI2018-096228-B-C31 (MCIU/AEI/FEDER,UE)

Marine Ecoregion and Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Affect Recruitment and Population Structure of a Salt Marsh Snail

Marine species with planktonic larvae often have high spatial and temporal variation in recruitment that leads to subsequent variation in the ecology of benthic adults. Using a combination of published and unpublished data, we compared the population structure of the salt marsh snail, Littoraria irrorata, between the South Atlantic Bight and the Gulf Coast of the United States to infer geographic differences in recruitment and to test the hypothesis that the Deepwater Horizon oil spill led to widespread recruitment failure of L. irrorata in Louisiana in 2010. Size-frequency distributions in both ecoregions were bimodal, with troughs in the distributions consistent with a transition from sub-adults to adults at ~13 mm in shell length as reported in the literature; however, adult snails reached larger sizes in the Gulf Coast. The ratio of sub-adults to adults was 1.5–2 times greater in the South Atlantic Bight than the Gulf Coast, consistent with higher recruitment rates in the South Atlantic Bight. Higher recruitment rates in the South Atlantic Bight could contribute to higher snail densities and reduced adult growth in this region. The ratio of sub-adults to adults in Louisiana was lower in 2011 than in previous years, and began to recover in 2012–2014, consistent with widespread recruitment failure in 2010, when large expanses of spilled oil were present in coastal waters. Our results reveal an important difference in the ecology of a key salt marsh invertebrate between the two ecoregions, and also suggest that the Deepwater Horizon oil spill may have caused widespread recruitment failure in this species and perhaps others with similar planktonic larval stages

Evaluating the Route of Antibiotic Administration and its Effect on Nursery Pig Growth Performance

This experiment was conducted to determine the influence of the route of antibiotic administration (in-feed vs. in-water) on nursery pig growth performance. A total of 2,592 pigs (L337 × 1050, PIC Hendersonville, TN; initially 14.5 lb) were used in a 28-d trial. Pigs were weaned at 21 d of age and placed in a commercial research facility with 27 pigs per pen. After a 7-d pre-trial period, pens of pigs were assigned to weight blocks in a randomized complete block design. There were 12 replications per treat­ment with pen as experimental unit for in-feed medication treatments and a pair of pens as the experimental unit for water medication treatments. The six treatments included a control (no medication), chlortetracycline (CTC) provided via feed or water to achieve 9.98 mg/lb body weight (BW), tiamulin in feed (2.27 mg/lb BW) or water (10.43 mg/lb BW), or a combination of CTC and tiamulin in feed. Experimental treat­ments were provided for 14-d followed by a 14-d period without medication. For statis­tical analysis, the interaction of antibiotic type × route of administration was tested in a 2 × 2 factorial with main effect of antibiotic type (CTC or tiamulin) and route of administration (in-feed or in-water). Pairwise comparisons were also made between the control and all individual treatments. From d 0 to 14 (P \u3c 0.05), d 14 to 28 (P \u3c 0.10), and d 0 to 28 (P \u3c 0.05) there was an antibiotic × route of administration interac­tion observed for average daily gain (ADG). The interactions were a result of pigs fed diets containing CTC having improved (P \u3c 0.05) ADG compared to CTC in-water, whereas pigs provided tiamulin in-water exhibited improved ADG compared with tiamulin in feed. There was an antibiotic × route of administration interaction observed for feed-to-gain ratio (F/G) from d 0 to 14 and 0 to 28. Pigs provided tiamulin in the feed had the poorest F/G, whereas F/G was not different among the other treatments. Providing CTC in the feed or water or tiamulin in the water improved (P \u3c 0.05) ADG compared to pigs fed the control diet. Providing either CTC or tiamulin in the feed increased (P \u3c 0.05) average daily feed intake (ADFI) as compared with providing the antibiotics in water. Pigs fed antibiotics in the feed had increased (P \u3c 0.05) ADFI compared to the control with those provided antibiotics in the water being margin­ally greater (P \u3c 0.10) in ADFI than the control. For ADG (d 0 to 28), pigs provided CTC in feed, tiamulin in the water, or the combination of CTC and tiamulin in the feed during the treatment period had increased ADG (P \u3c 0.05) compared to pigs fed the control diet. For ADFI, there was no evidence of an interaction or main effects; however, when compared to the control, pigs provided CTC in-feed, tiamulin in-water, or the combination in the feed all had increased ADFI. In summary, providing CTC in feed with or without tiamulin or tiamulin in the water improved nursery pig growth performance

Arbeitsangebotseffekte einer subventionierten Altersteilzeitregelung in Österreich

In this paper we evaluate the impact of the old-age part-time scheme (OAPT) on the Austrian labor market which was a policy to allow flexible retirement options for the elderly with an aim to increase labor supply. According to our matching estimates, employment probability increases slightly; especially in the first two years after entrance into the programme. Furthermore, the programme seems to reduce the measured unemployment risk. However, the total number of hours worked is significantly reduced by OAPT. While the policy is meant to reduce early exit from the labor force by allowing part-time work, our analysis indicates that most workers substitute part-time work for full-time work and thus the overall effect is rather negative

Studies in RF power communication, SAR, and temperature elevation in wireless implantable neural interfaces

Implantable neural interfaces are designed to provide a high spatial and temporal precision control signal implementing high degree of freedom real-time prosthetic systems. The development of a Radio Frequency (RF) wireless neural interface has the potential to expand the number of applications as well as extend the robustness and longevity compared to wired neural interfaces. However, it is well known that RF signal is absorbed by the body and can result in tissue heating. In this work, numerical studies with analytical validations are performed to provide an assessment of power, heating and specific absorption rate (SAR) associated with the wireless RF transmitting within the human head. The receiving antenna on the neural interface is designed with different geometries and modeled at a range of implanted depths within the brain in order to estimate the maximum receiving power without violating SAR and tissue temperature elevation safety regulations. Based on the size of the designed antenna, sets of frequencies between 1 GHz to 4 GHz have been investigated. As expected the simulations demonstrate that longer receiving antennas (dipole) and lower working frequencies result in greater power availability prior to violating SAR regulations. For a 15 mm dipole antenna operating at 1.24 GHz on the surface of the brain, 730 uW of power could be harvested at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) SAR violation limit. At approximately 5 cm inside the head, this same antenna would receive 190 uW of power prior to violating SAR regulations. Finally, the 3-D bio-heat simulation results show that for all evaluated antennas and frequency combinations we reach FCC SAR limits well before 1 °C. It is clear that powering neural interfaces via RF is possible, but ultra-low power circuit designs combined with advanced simulation will be required to develop a functional antenna that meets all system requirements. © 2013 Zhao et al