Adjustable mount for electro-optic transducers in an evacuated cryogenic system

The invention is an adjustable mount for positioning an electro-optic transducer in an evacuated cryogenic environment. Electro-optic transducers are used in this manner as high sensitivity detectors of gas emission lines of spectroscopic analysis. The mount is made up of an adjusting mechanism and a transducer mount. The adjusting mechanism provided five degrees of freedom, linear adjustments and angular adjustments. The mount allows the use of an internal lens to focus energy on the transducer element thereby improving the efficiency of the detection device. Further, the transducer mount, although attached to the adjusting mechanism, is isolated thermally such that a cryogenic environment can be maintained at the transducer while the adjusting mechanism remains at room temperature. Radiation shields also are incorporated to further reduce heat flow to the transducer location

Development of a longitudinal integrated clerkship at an academic medical center

In 2005, medical educators at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), began developing the Parnassus Integrated Student Clinical Experiences (PISCES) program, a year-long longitudinal integrated clerkship at its academic medical center. The principles guiding this new clerkship were continuity with faculty preceptors, patients, and peers; a developmentally progressive curriculum with an emphasis on interdisciplinary teaching; and exposure to undiagnosed illness in acute and chronic care settings. Innovative elements included quarterly student evaluation sessions with all preceptors together, peer-to-peer evaluation, and oversight advising with an assigned faculty member. PISCES launched with eight medical students for the 2007/2008 academic year and expanded to 15 students for 2008/2009. Compared to UCSF's traditional core clerkships, evaluations from PISCES indicated significantly higher student satisfaction with faculty teaching, formal didactics, direct observation of clinical skills, and feedback. Student performance on discipline-specific examinations and United States Medical Licensing Examination step 2 CK was equivalent to and on standardized patient examinations was slightly superior to that of traditional peers. Participants' career interests ranged from primary care to surgical subspecialties. These results demonstrate that a longitudinal integrated clerkship can be implemented successfully at a tertiary care academic medical center

Elevated c-Src is linked to altered cell–matrix adhesion rather than proliferation in KM12C human colorectal cancer cells

Elevated expression and/or activity of c-Src, the prototype of the Src family of protein tyrosine kinases, is associated with the development of human colon cancer. However, despite the known pleiotropic effects of these kinases in promoting (a) cell growth downstream of growth factor receptors, and (b) the dynamic regulation of integrin adhesions in fibroblast model systems, their precise role in epithelial cancer cells is unknown. Here we addressed whether elevated expression and activity of cellular Src alters cell proliferation and/or cell–matrix adhesion in cancer cells from the Fidler model of colorectal metastasis. Although elevated Src correlates with ability to metastasise to the liver after intrasplenic injection, we found that this was not linked to enhanced growth, either in vitro or in vivo as sub-cutaneous tumours. However, elevated Src was associated with enhanced attachment to extracellular matrix. In addition, adhesion to fibronectin, was suppressed by agents that inhibited Src activity, while enforced elevation of Src in non-metastatic cells was sufficient to stimulate adhesion to fibronectin and enhanced assembly of adhesion complexes, without influencing cell growth. Thus, we conclude that one role of elevated Src in human colon cancer cells is to modulate integrin-dependent cell–matrix attachment and formation of adhesion structures, which may, in turn, influence cell motility and integrin-dependent cellular responses

Development of the Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) - An Advanced Airborne DIAL Instrument

. The Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) Instrument is the first fully-engineered, autonomous Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) System for the measurement of water vapor in the troposphere (aerosol and cloud measurements are included). LASE uses a double-pulsed Ti:Sapphire laser for the transmitter with a 30 ns pulse length and 150 mJ/pulse. The laser beam is "seeded" to operate on a selected water vapor absorption line in the 815-nm region using a laser diode and an onboard absorption reference cell. A 40 cm diameter telescope collects the backscattered signals and directs them onto two detectors. LASE collects DIAL data at 5 Hz while onboard a NASA/Ames ER-2 aircraft flying at altitudes from 16-21 km. LASE was designed to operate autonomously within the environment and physical constraints of the ER-2 aircraft and to make water vapor profile measurements across the troposphere to better than 10% accuracy. LASE has flown 19 times during the development of the instrument an..

Development of the Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE): An Advanced Airborne DIAL Instrument

The Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) Instrument is the first fully-engineered, autonomous Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) System for the measurement of water vapor in the troposphere (aerosol and cloud measurements are included). LASE uses a double-pulsed Ti:Sapphire laser for the transmitter with a 30 ns pulse length and 150 mJ/pulse. The laser beam is "seeded" to operate on a selected water vapor absorption line in the 815-nm region using a laser diode and an onboard absorption reference cell. A 40 cm diameter telescope collects the backscattered signals and directs them onto two detectors. LASE collects DIAL data at 5 Hz while onboard a NASA/Ames ER-2 aircraft flying at altitudes from 16-21 km. LASE was designed to operate autonomously within the environment and physical constraints of the ER-2 aircraft and to make water vapor profile measurements across the troposphere to better than 10% accuracy. LASE has flown 19 times during the development of the instrument and the validation of the science data. This paper describes the design, operation, and reliability of the LASE Instrument

Conversions to the lidar atmospheric sensing experiment (LASE) instrument for nadir and zenith measurements

Abstract. The Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) Instrument is the first fully-engineered, autonomous Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) System for the measurement of water vapor in the troposphere (aerosol and cloud measurements are included). LASE uses a double-pulsed Ti:Sapphire laser for the transmitter with a 30 ns pulse length and 150 mJ/pulse. The laser beam is "seeded " to operate on a selected water vapor absorption line in the 815-nm region using a laser diode and an onboard absorption reference cell. A 40 cm diameter telescope collects the backscattered signals and directs them onto two detectors. LASE collects DIAL data at 5 Hz while onboard a NASA/Ames ER-2 aircraft flying at altitudes from 16-21 km. LASE was designed to operate autonomously within the environment and physical constraints of the ER-2 aircraft and to make water vapor profile measurements across the troposphere to better than 10 % accuracy. LASE has flown 19 times during the development of the instrument and the validation of the science data. This paper describes the design, operation, and reliability of the LASE Instrument.

Src-induced de-regulation of E-cadherin in colon cancer cells requires integrin signalling

Although Src expression and activity are often elevated in colon cancer(1-3), the precise consequences of overexpression of the non-catalytic Src homology (SH) domains, or enhanced catalytic activity, are unknown. We show that, in KM12C colon cancer cells, elevated Src activity causes the components of adherens junctions, including vinculin, to be redistributed to Src-induced integrin-adhesion complexes. Specifically, elevated Src activity blocks proper assembly of cell-cell contacts after cells are switched from media containing a low level of calcium to media containing a high level of calcium, and E-cadherin remains internalized. In contrast, although elevated expression of the non-catalytic domains of Src is sufficient to induce assembly of integrin-adhesion complexes, it does not induce disorganization of E-cadherin-associated intercellular contacts. Surprisingly, Src-induced disruption of E-cadherin localization requires specific integrin signalling, because E-cadherin redistribution is blocked by loss of cell-matrix interaction, or by inhibitory antibodies to alpha(v) or beta(1) integrin subunits. Furthermore, phosphorylation of the integrin-regulated focal adhesion kinase (FAK) on Src-specific sites is required for Src-induced de-regulation of E-cadherin, demonstrating interdependence between integrin-induced signals and cadherin-associated adhesion changes induced by Src