Elucidation of UBQLN2 liquid-liquid phase separation mechanisms via point mutations and domain deletions

Organization, separation, and cellular regulation are all functions of membraneless organelles (MLOs), which arise by a biophysical phenomenon termed liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS). By this process, macromolecules in a mixed liquid solution condense together to form liquid droplets within a liquid solution, comparable to oil droplets in water. Some known MLOs formed in cells via LLPS include nucleoli, stress granules, Cajal bodies, and processing-bodies, among other membrane-lacking liquid granules. Previous work has shown that many proteins which compose these liquid compartments also undergo LLPS isolated in vitro, and thus have become model systems to investigate the forces that drive these macromolecules to undergo phase transitions. Currently, the LLPS field has identified key features of proteins which contribute to phase separation. Included in this are sequences of intrinsic disorder and structured sequences, prion-like regions, oligomerization, and multivalent interactions. In this thesis, the protein of interest, UBQLN2, contains all such features. Additionally, prior work in the Castañeda lab and others has shown that UBQLN2 is recruited to stress granules, and disease-related inclusion bodies. In vitro, UBQLN2 phase separates into spherical liquid droplets in a concentration and temperature-dependent manner. As UBQLN2 exhibits LLPS both in vitro and in vivo, it serves as a model system to uncover, on a molecular level, the driving forces of phase separation. The studies provided herein, investigate the properties of UBQLN2 phase separation and how they are modified with the introduction of mutations and domain deletions. By identifying how molecular variations modify UBQLN2 LLPS properties, one can identify a molecular code which UBQLN2 follows to drive and modulate its LLPS. Through experimental investigation via turbidity assays, phase diagram construction, microscopy, and self-association studies, we elucidate the molecular foundations of UBQLN2 LLPS. Here, I propose that UBQLN2 LLPS is driven by “sticker” sequences which contribute to interchain interactions, and that hydrophobic and polar interactions are important sequence-intrinsic features which drive LLPS and control material properties of UBQLN2 droplets. Additionally, I look at UBQLN2 on a domain-by-domain level to uncover how sequence features like structure, disorder, and prion propensity may contribute differently to phase separation. Finally, I propose a method of UBQLN2 purification that potentially incorporates native post-translational modifications (PTMs) to create a more physiologically relevant system for study

Sexual consent in Greece and the United States : a cultural comparison

Despite a growing, global social pressure to emphasize the importance of sexual consent, there remains a lack of empirical research into the topic. Though research into sexual consent is an expanding field, there are significant gaps in our knowledge in this important area. Very little work examines the context of sexual consent embedded within cultural factors or compares processes and perspectives on consent between cultures. As a result, there is little insight into how culture influences and shapes consent. This study is an extension of a smaller study that focused on recognizing and understanding the nuances of sexual consent communication and interpretation among young adults in an American college setting. With this extension, interview data was collected from young adults in Greece. Using Constructivist Grounded Theory (CGT) methods, interview data from Greece and the United States were analyzed separately, and as one larger dataset. Theoretical models for each country's data were generated through the constant comparative methods consistent with CGT. Comparisons between codes for each country were also made, resulting in an overarching theoretical model and a rich discussion section examining similarities and differences between and within Greece and the United States. The three main themes that emerged from the iterative comparison of all data were Socially Constructed Expectations, Catalyst to Sexual Activity, and Behavior Throughout Sexual Activity, which are all nested within one another and within consensual sex.Includes bibliographical references

Prospectus, Sep 21, 2016

Many entertainment options during 12th annual Pygmalion Festival, Belgium sees first case of minor being granted euthanasia(AP), Parkland College wins national land surveying education award, Produced at Parkland, album by The Inn Keepers available for download, New production \u27First Lady Suite\u27 at Parkland theatre, Cobra men\u27s soccer defeats St. Charleshttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2016/1021/thumbnail.jp

Prospectus, September 21, 2016

Many entertainment options during 12th annual Pygmalion Festival, Belgium sees first case of minor being granted euthanasia(AP), Parkland College wins national land surveying education award, Produced at Parkland, album by The Inn Keepers available for download, New production \u27First Lady Suite\u27 at Parkland theatre, Cobra men\u27s soccer defeats St. Charleshttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2016/1021/thumbnail.jp

Prospectus, October 12, 2016

PARKLAND OFFERS DEPRESSION SCREENINGS; Meet the Staff: Kelly Youngblood; Seamus Reilly; Vice President for Institutional Advancements, Irish singer; Survey, Mapping Career Fair set for Oct. 20; Clown hysteria spreading, Illinois not immune; Pennies for Pumpkins 2016; Parkland police stress safety for campus; Prospectus editor visits Bloomington Zoo; Notice to faculty, students regarding final exams; Prospectus staff attends Illinois Community College Journalism Association Conferencehttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2016/1024/thumbnail.jp

Silkworms with Spider Silklike Fibers Using Synthetic Silkworm Chow Containing Calcium Lignosulfonate, Carbon Nanotubes, and Graphene

Silkworm silk has become increasingly relevant for material applications. However, the industry as a whole is retracting because of problems with mass production. One of the key problems is the inconsistent properties of the silk. A means by which to improve the silk material properties is through enhanced sericulture techniques. One possible technique is altering the feed of the silkworms to include single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) or graphene (GR). Recently published results have demonstrated substantial improvement in fiber mechanical properties. However, the effect of the surfactant used to incorporate those materials into the feed on the fiber mechanical properties in comparison to normal silkworm silk has not been studied or reported. Thus, the total effect of feeding the SWNT and GR in the presence of surfactants on silkworms is not understood. Our study focuses on the surfactant [calcium lignosulfonate (LGS)] and demonstrates that it alone results in appreciable improvement of mechanical properties in comparison to nontreated silkworm silk. Furthermore, our study demonstrates that mixing the LGS, SWNT, and GR directly into the artificial diet of silkworms yields improved mechanical properties without decline below the control silk at high doses of SWNT or GR. Combined, we present evidence that mixing surfactants, in this case LGS, directly with the diet of silkworms creates a high-quality fiber product that can exceed 1 GPa in tensile strength. With the addition of nanocarbons, either SWNT or GR, the improvement is even greater and consistently surpasses control fibers. However, feeding LGS alone is a more economical and practical choice to consistently improve the mechanical properties of silkworm fiber

2012 Wild Blueberry Project Reports

The 2012 edition of the Wild Blueberry Project Reports was prepared for the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine and the Wild Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Do wild blueberries alleviate risk factors related to the Metabolic Syndrome? 2. Development of effective intervention measures to maintain and improve food safety for wild blueberries 3. Control tactics for blueberry pest insects, 2012 4. Development and implementation of a wild blueberry thrips IPM program, 2012 5. IPM 6. Biology of blueberry and pest insects, 2012 7. Biology of beneficial insects and blueberry pollination, 2012 8. Pesticide residues on lowbush blueberry, 2012 9. Maine wild blueberry –mummy berry research and extension 10. Efficacy of Apogee growth regulator for stimulating rhizome growth into bare spots in wild blueberry fields 11. Velpar by Matrix pre and post-emergence applications - demonstration plots 12. Wild blueberry Extension Education Program in 2012 INPUT SYSTEMS STUDY: 13. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year Three of a four-year study – experimental design 14. Food safety- Prevalence study of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella spp. on lowbush blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium) 15. Abundance of insect pest species and natural enemies in lowbush blueberry fields maintained under different management practices 16. Input Systems Study: Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year 3 of a four-year study, disease management results 17. Plant productivity, Year Three of a four-year study 18. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year Three of a four-year study, weed management results 19. Effects of organic and conventional management systems on the phosphorus solubility of lowbush blueberry barren soils 20. Systems approach to improving sustainability of wild blueberry production – soil health and chemistry measures 21. Evaluation of fungicides for control of mummy berry disease (ancillary study) 22. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production – Ancillary land-leveling study, Year Two of a four-year study (ancillary study) 23. Pre-emergent combinations of herbicides for weed control in wild blueberry fields – 2012 results from the 2011 trial (ancillary study) 24. Pre-emergent combinations of herbicides for weed control in wild blueberry fields – 2012 trial (ancillary study) 25. Evaluation of herbicides for control of fineleaf sheep fescue for grass control in wild blueberries (ancillary study) 26. Pre-emergence application timing and rate of Alion and Sandea in combination with Velpar or Sinbar on weed control and injury to wild blueberry (ancillary study) 27. Compost and mulch effects on soil health and nutrient dynamics in wild blueberry (ancillary study

Potential value of a rapid syndromic multiplex PCR for the diagnosis of native and prosthetic joint infections: a real-world evidence study.

Introduction: The BIOFIRE Joint Infection (JI) Panel is a diagnostic tool that uses multiplex-PCR testing to detect microorganisms in synovial fluid specimens from patients suspected of having septic arthritis (SA) on native joints or prosthetic joint infections (PJIs). Methods: A study was conducted across 34 clinical sites in 19 European and Middle Eastern countries from March 2021 to June 2022 to assess the effectiveness of the BIOFIRE JI Panel. Results: A total of 1527 samples were collected from patients suspected of SA or PJI, with an overall agreement of 88.4 % and 85 % respectively between the JI Panel and synovial fluid cultures (SFCs). The JI Panel detected more positive samples and microorganisms than SFC, with a notable difference on Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus species, Enterococcus faecalis, Kingella kingae, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and anaerobic bacteria. The study found that the BIOFIRE JI Panel has a high utility in the real-world clinical setting for suspected SA and PJI, providing diagnostic results in approximately 1 h. The user experience was positive, implying a potential benefit of rapidity of results\u27 turnover in optimising patient management strategies. Conclusion: The study suggests that the BIOFIRE JI Panel could potentially optimise patient management and antimicrobial therapy, thus highlighting its importance in the clinical setting

2017 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1004/thumbnail.jp

Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV: mapping the Milky Way, nearby galaxies, and the distant universe

We describe the Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV (SDSS-IV), a project encompassing three major spectroscopic programs. The Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2) is observing hundreds of thousands of Milky Way stars at high resolution and high signal-to-noise ratios in the near-infrared. The Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey is obtaining spatially resolved spectroscopy for thousands of nearby galaxies (median ). The extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (eBOSS) is mapping the galaxy, quasar, and neutral gas distributions between and 3.5 to constrain cosmology using baryon acoustic oscillations, redshift space distortions, and the shape of the power spectrum. Within eBOSS, we are conducting two major subprograms: the SPectroscopic IDentification of eROSITA Sources (SPIDERS), investigating X-ray AGNs and galaxies in X-ray clusters, and the Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey (TDSS), obtaining spectra of variable sources. All programs use the 2.5 m Sloan Foundation Telescope at the Apache Point Observatory; observations there began in Summer 2014. APOGEE-2 also operates a second near-infrared spectrograph at the 2.5 m du Pont Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, with observations beginning in early 2017. Observations at both facilities are scheduled to continue through 2020. In keeping with previous SDSS policy, SDSS-IV provides regularly scheduled public data releases; the first one, Data Release 13, was made available in 2016 July