IMPROVING INTERACTION BETWEEN TECHNICAL AND CONTRACTING PERSONNEL AT NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE CENTER, PHILADELPHIA DIVISION

Organizational policy changes in contracting have created a competency gap in the pre-award phase contracting activities for acquisition professionals working in technical departments seeking procurement of products or services. Considering current contracting policies and perceived knowledge gaps in the technical community with respect to contract development, the goal of this research is to examine the organizational structure and policies of Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD) to ensure maximum efficacy of the contracting process. The primary objective of this research is to determine what organizational policies, capability gaps, or other challenges hinder communication and collaboration between the technical and contracting departments at NSWCPD. A secondary objective of this research is to determine what initiatives can be taken at NSWCPD to improve interaction between these two working groups and to document a comprehensive strategic plan for implementation. The research team found several areas worth addressing to improve the efficacy of contract artifact development at NSWCPD. Recommendations are provided to address the communication gap, including establishing an integrated product team to improve the quality of contracting artifacts and networking amongst those teams through working groups, and to capitalize on modern technologies to ensure the production of contracting artifacts are up to speed with current technology.Civilian, Department of the NavyCivilian, Department of the NavyCivilian, Department of the NavyApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited

Terror, War, and the Economy in George W. Bush’s Approval Ratings: The Importance of Salience in Presidential Approval

George W. Bush\u27s presidency provides a fertile ground to further develop the standard model of presidential approval. In contrast to the vast presidential approval literature, early studies of Bush conclude economic conditions had no effect once the war in Iraq began. Rather than require a fundamental rethinking of presidential approval theories, we argue that approval models must take into account issue salience. When a factor is salient, it has a stronger effect. During the Bush presidency, with considerable over-time variation in the salience of the economy, terrorism, and the war in Iraq, each, in turn, powerfully affected Bush\u27s approval

Budesonide Enhances Agonist-Induced Bronchodilation in Human Small Airways by Increasing cAMP Production in Airway Smooth Muscle

The non-genomic mechanisms by which glucocorticoids modulate β2 agonist-induced-bronchodilation remain elusive. Our studies aimed to elucidate mechanisms mediating the beneficial effects of glucocorticoids on agonist-induced bronchodilation. Utilizing human precision cut lung slices (hPCLS), we measured bronchodilation to formoterol, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), cholera toxin (CTX) or forskolin in the presence and absence of budesonide. Using cultured human airway smooth muscle (HASM), intracellular cAMP was measured in live cells following exposure to formoterol, PGE2, or forskolin in the presence or absence of budesonide. We showed that simultaneous budesonide administration amplified formoterol-induced bronchodilation and attenuated agonist-induced phosphorylation of myosin light chain, a necessary signaling event mediating force generation. In parallel studies, cAMP levels were augmented by simultaneous exposure of HASM cells to formoterol and budesonide. Budesonide, fluticasone and prednisone alone rapidly increased cAMP levels, but steroids alone had little effect on bronchodilation in hPCLS. Bronchodilation induced by PGE2, CTX or forskolin was also augmented by simultaneous exposure to budesonide in hPCLS. Furthermore, HASM cells expressed membrane-bound glucocorticoid receptors that failed to translocate with glucocorticoid stimulation, and that potentially mediated the rapid effects of steroids on β2 agonist-induced bronchodilation. Knockdown of glucocorticoid receptor α had little effect on budesonide-induced and steroid-dependent augmentation of formoterol-induced cAMP generation in HASM. Collectively, these studies suggest that glucocorticoids amplify cAMP-dependent bronchodilation by directly increasing cAMP levels. These studies identify a molecular mechanism by which the combination of glucocorticoids and β2 agonists may augment bronchodilation in diseases such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Glucocorticoids Rapidly Activate cAMP Production via G\u3csub\u3eαs\u3c/sub\u3e to Initiate Non-Genomic Signaling That Contributes to One-Third of Their Canonical Genomic Effects

Glucocorticoids are widely used for the suppression of inflammation, but evidence is growing that they can have rapid, non-genomic actions that have been unappreciated. Diverse cell signaling effects have been reported for glucocorticoids, leading us to hypothesize that glucocorticoids alone can swiftly increase the 3′,5′-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) production. We found that prednisone, fluticasone, budesonide, and progesterone each increased cAMP levels within 3 minutes without phosphodiesterase inhibitors by measuring real-time cAMP dynamics using the cAMP difference detector in situ assay in a variety of immortalized cell lines and primary human airway smooth muscle (HASM) cells. A membrane- impermeable glucocorticoid showed similarly rapid stimulation of cAMP, implying that responses are initiated at the cell surface. siRNA knockdown of Gαs virtually eliminated glucocorticoidstimulated cAMP responses, suggesting that these drugs activate the cAMP production via a G protein-coupled receptor. Estradiol had small effects on cAMP levels but G protein estrogen receptor antagonists had little effect on responses to any of the glucocorticoids tested. The genomic and non-genomic actions of budesonide were analyzed by RNA-Seq analysis of 24 hours treated HASM, with and without knockdown of Gαs. A 140-gene budesonide signature was identified, of which 48 genes represent a non-genomic signature that requires Gαs signaling. Collectively, this non-genomic cAMP signaling modality contributes to one-third of the gene expression changes induced by glucocorticoid treatment and shifts the view of how this important class of drugs exerts its effect

‘Nedoceratops’: An Example of a Transitional Morphology

Background: The holotype and only specimen of the chasmosaurine ceratopsid dinosaur ‘Nedoceratops hatcheri ’ has been the source of considerable taxonomic debate since its initial description. At times it has been referred to its own genus while at others it has been considered synonymous with the contemporaneous chasmosaurine Triceratops. Most recently, the debate has focused on whether the specimen represents an intermediate ontogenetic stage between typical young adult Triceratops and the proposed mature morphology, which was previously considered to represent a distinct genus, ‘Torosaurus’. Methodology/Principal Findings: The only specimen of ‘Nedoceratops hatcheri ’ was examined and the proposed diagnostic features of this taxon were compared with other chasmosaurine ceratopsids. Every suggested autapomorphy of ‘Nedoceratops ’ is found in specimens of Triceratops. In this study, Triceratops includes the adult ‘Torosaurus ’ morphology. The small parietal fenestra and elongate squamosals of Nedoceratops are consistent with a transition from a short, solid parietalsquamosal frill to an expanded, fenestrated condition. Objections to this hypothesis regarding the number of epiossifications of the frill and alternations of bone surface texture were explored through a combination of comparative osteology and osteohistology. The synonymy of the three taxa was further supported by these investigations. Conclusions/Significance: The Triceratops, ‘Torosaurus’, and ‘Nedoceratops ’ morphologies represent ontogenetic variatio

Transforming Growth Factor-β1 Decreases β2-Agonist–induced Relaxation in Human Airway Smooth Muscle

Helper T effector cytokines implicated in asthma modulate the contractility of human airway smooth muscle (HASM) cells. We have reported recently that a profibrotic cytokine, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, induces HASM cell shortening and airway hyperresponsiveness. Here, we assessed whether TGF-β1 affects the ability of HASM cells to relax in response to β2-agonists, a mainstay treatment for airway hyperresponsiveness in asthma. Overnight TGF-β1 treatment significantly impaired isoproterenol (ISO)-induced relaxation of carbachol-stimulated, isolated HASM cells. This single-cell mechanical hyporesponsiveness to ISO was corroborated by sustained increases in myosin light chain phosphorylation. In TGF-β1–treated HASM cells, ISO evoked markedly lower levels of intracellular cAMP. These attenuated cAMP levels were, in turn, restored with pharmacological and siRNA inhibition of phosphodiesterase 4 and Smad3, respectively. Most strikingly, TGF-β1 selectively induced phosphodiesterase 4D gene expression in HASM cells in a Smad2/3-dependent manner. Together, these data suggest that TGF-β1 decreases HASM cell β2-agonist relaxation responses by modulating intracellular cAMP levels via a Smad2/3-dependent mechanism. Our findings further define the mechanisms underlying β2-agonist hyporesponsiveness in asthma, and suggest TGF-β1 as a potential therapeutic target to decrease asthma exacerbations in severe and treatment-resistant asthma

Torosaurus Is Not Triceratops: Ontogeny in Chasmosaurine Ceratopsids as a Case Study in Dinosaur Taxonomy

Background: In horned dinosaurs, taxonomy is complicated by the fact that the cranial ornament that distinguishes species changes with age. Based on this observation, it has been proposed that the genera Triceratops and Torosaurus are in fact synonymous, with specimens identified as Torosaurus representing the adult form of Triceratops. The hypothesis of synonymy makes three testable predictions: 1) the species in question should have similar geographic and stratigraphic distributions, 2) specimens assigned to Torosaurus should be more mature than those assigned to Triceratops, and 3) intermediates should exist that combine features of Triceratops and Torosaurus. The first condition appears to be met, but it remains unclear whether the other predictions are borne out by the fossil evidence. Methodology/Principal Findings: We assessed the relative maturity of Torosaurus and Triceratops specimens by coding skulls for characters that vary with maturity, and then using a clustering analysis to arrange them into a growth series. We found that a well-defined sequence of changes exists in horned dinosaurs: development of cranial ornament occurs in juveniles, followed by fusion of the skull roof in subadults, and finally, the epoccipitals, epijugals, and rostral fuse to the skull in adults. Using this scheme, we identified mature and immature individuals of both Torosaurus and Triceratops. Furthermore, we describe the ventral depressions on the frill of Triceratops, and show that they differ in shape and position from the parietal fenestrae of Torosaurus. Thus, we conclude that these structures are not intermediates between the soli

A New Saurolophine Dinosaur from the Latest Cretaceous of Far Eastern Russia

Background: Four main dinosaur sites have been investigated in latest Cretaceous deposits from the Amur/Heilongjiang Region: Jiayin and Wulaga in China (Yuliangze Formation), Blagoveschensk and Kundur in Russia (Udurchukan Formation). More than 90% of the bones discovered in these localities belong to hollow-crested lambeosaurine saurolophids, but flat-headed saurolophines are also represented: Kerberosaurus manakini at Blagoveschensk and Wulagasaurus dongi at Wulaga. Methodology/Principal Findings: Herein we describe a new saurolophine dinosaur, Kundurosaurus nagornyi gen. et sp. nov. from the Udurchukan Formation (Maastrichtian) of Kundur, represented by disarticulated cranial and postcranial material. This new taxon is diagnosed by four autapomorphies. Conclusions/Significance: A phylogenetic analysis of saurolophines indicates that Kundurosaurus nagornyi is nested within a rather robust clade including Edmontosaurus spp. Saurolophus spp. and Prosaurolophus maximus, possibly as a sister-taxon for Kerberosaurus manakini also from the Udurchukan Formation of Far Eastern Russia. The high diversity and mosaic distribution of Maastrichtian hadrosaurid faunas in the Amur-Heilongjiang region are the result of a complex palaeogeographical history and imply that many independent hadrosaurid lineages dispersed without any problem between western America and eastern Asia at the end of the Cretaceous. © 2012 Godefroit et al.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe