My Road

Contains advertisements and/or short musical examples of pieces being sold by publisher.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/6859/thumbnail.jp

Effects of Protein-Coated Nanofibers on Conformation of Gingival Fibroblast Spheroids: Potential Utility for Connective Tissue Regeneration

Deep wounds in the gingiva caused bytrauma or surgery require a rapid and robust healing of connective tissues. Wepropose utilizing gas-brushed nanofibers coated with collagen and fibrin for that purpose. Our hypotheses are that protein-coated nanofibers will: (i) attract and mobilize cells in various spatial orientations, and (ii) regulate the expression levels ofspecific extracellular matrix (ECM)-associated proteins, determining the initial conformational nature ofdense and soft connective tissues. Gingival fibroblast monolayers and3D spheroids were cultured onECMsubstrate and covered with gas-blown poly-(DL-lactide-co-glycolide)(PLGA) nanofibers (uncoated/coated with collagen and fibrin). Cell attraction and rearrangement was followed byF-actin staining and confocal microscopy. Thicknesses ofthe cell layers, developed within the nanofibers, were quantified byImageJ software. The expression ofcollagen1α1 chain (Col1α1), fibronectin, and metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) encoding genes was determined byquantitative reverse transcription analysis. Collagen- and fibrin- coated nanofibers induced cell migration toward fibers and supported cellular growth within the scaffolds. Both proteins affected the spatial rearrangement offibroblasts byfavoring packed cell clusters or intermittent cell spreading. These cell arrangements resembled the structural characteristic ofdense and soft connective tissues, respectively. Within three days ofincubation, fibroblast spheroids interacted with the fibers, and grew robustlybyincreasing their thickness compared to monolayers. While theECMkeycomponents, such as fibronectin andMMP2encoding genes, were expressed in both protein groups, Col1α1 was predominantlyexpressed in bundled fibroblasts grown on collagen fibers. This enhanced expression ofcollagen1 is typical for dense connective tissue. Based on results ofthis study, our gas-blown, collagen- and fibrin-coated PLGA nanofibers are viable candidates for engineering soft and dense connective tissues with the required structural characteristics and functions needed for wound healing applications. Rapid regeneration of these layers should enhance healing ofopen wounds in a harsh oral environment

Success of organ donation after out-of-hospital cardiac death and the barriers to its acceptance

It is well documented that transplants save lives and improve quality of life for patients suffering from kidney, liver, and heart failure. Uncontrolled donation after cardiac death (UDCD) is an effective and ethical alternative to existing efforts towards increasing the available pool of organs. However, people who die from an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest are currently being denied the opportunity to be organ donors except in those few locations where out-of-hospital UDCD programs are active, such as in Paris, Madrid, and Barcelona. Societies have the medical and moral obligation to develop UDCD programs

Monte Carlo Radiative Transfer

I outline methods for calculating the solution of Monte Carlo Radiative Transfer (MCRT) in scattering, absorption and emission processes of dust and gas, including polarization. I provide a bibliography of relevant papers on methods with astrophysical applications.Comment: To appear in the Chandra Centennial issue of the Bulletin of the Astronomical Society of India, volume 39 (2011), eds D.J. Saikia and Virginia Trimble; 27 pages, 1 figur

Death and dying in ‘Third Way’ death manuals: Shaping life and death after neoliberalism

In this chapter, I consider what might be called the “Third Way” death manuals of Philip Gould and Kate Gross, who were both, in different ways, involved with the New Labour Project. Their memoirs describe their experiences of dying and are notable for the conclusions to which they come; conclusions which suggest values at odds with the individualist and progressive narratives that shape neoliberal views of what it means to life well. In considering the tensions and possibilities that shape their respective narratives, new ways of living in the face of death become possible

Isotope Geochemistry of Proterozoic Talc Occurrences in Archean Marbles of the Ruby Mountains, Southwest Montana, U.S.A

Talc occurs as massive, economic deposits in upper amphibolite facies marbles of Archean age in southwestern Montana. Previous workers have demonstrated that the talc is a replacement of the marble that resulted from interaction with a large volume of fluid. δ18O (SMOW) values for dolomite and calcite range from 20-25‰ for the unaltered Archean marbles to as little as 8-10‰ in the talc deposits, suggesting that the metasomatic fluids had low δ18O values. In contrast, δ13C values for calcite and dolomite are similar for all samples (-2 to +2‰ PDB). Therefore, it is likely that the metasomatic fluids were oxygen-rich and carbon-poor, namely water-rich and CO2-poor. A CO2-poor fluid is also indicated by Δ13C (calcite-graphite) values (3.6-5.3‰), which appear little altered from values expected for upper amphibolite facies marbles, and by the occurrence of the mineral assemblage talc+calcite, 40Ar/39Ar age spectra for hornblende, phlogopite, and biotite record cooling at 1.72 Ga from a regional thermal event. 40Ar/39Ar age spectra of fine-grained muscovite associated with the talc date talc formation at 1.36 Ga. The Ar data limit the temperature of talc crystallization to below ∼350 DEGC, the biotite closure temperature for Ar diffusion. If the metasomatic fluid was seawater (0‰), then the carbonate oxygen data require a minimum temperature of 270 DEGC for talc formation. Oxygen (δ18O = 4.7 to 8.8‰) and hydrogen (D/H = -49.9 to -57.6 SMOW) isotope data for the talc are consistent with a 200-300 DEGC metasomatic fluid derived from seawater, based on theoretical models of the fractionation of oxygen and hydrogen between talc and water. Regional, northwest-trending faults associated with the extension that formed the Belt Basin in the Middle Proterozoic may have provided channels for seawater to circulate in continental crust and to react with marble, forming talc at depths of 5-10 km

Regular Tart Cherry Intake Alters Abdominal Adiposity, Adipose Gene Transcription, and Inflammation in Obesity-Prone Rats Fed a High Fat Diet

Abstract Obesity, systemic inflammation, and hyperlipidemia are among the components of metabolic syndrome, a spectrum of phenotypes that can precede the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Animal studies show that intake of anthocyanin-rich extracts can affect these phenotypes. Anthocyanins can alter the activity of tissue peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), which affect energy substrate metabolism and inflammation. However, it is unknown if physiologically relevant, anthocyanin-containing whole foods confer similar effects to concentrated, anthocyanin extracts. The effect of anthocyanin-rich tart cherries was tested in the Zucker fatty rat model of obesity and metabolic syndrome. For 90 days, rats were pair-fed a higher fat diet supplemented with either 1% (wt/wt) freeze-dried, whole tart cherry powder or with a calorie- and macronutrient-matched control diet. Tart cherry intake was associated with reduced hyperlipidemia, percentage fat mass, abdominal fat (retroperitoneal) weight, retroperitoneal interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) expression, and plasma IL-6 and TNF-α. Tart cherry diet also increased retroperitoneal fat PPAR-α and PPAR-γ mRNA (P=.12), decreased IL-6 and TNF-α mRNA, and decreased nuclear factor κB activity. In conclusion, in at-risk obese rats fed a high fat diet, physiologically relevant tart cherry consumption reduced several phenotypes of metabolic syndrome and reduced both systemic and local inflammation. Tart cherries may reduce the degree or trajectory of metabolic syndrome, thereby reducing risk for the development of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78120/1/jmf.2008.0270.pd

Blueberry Intake Alters Skeletal Muscle and Adipose Tissue Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Activity and Reduces Insulin Resistance in Obese Rats

Metabolic syndrome can precede the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease and includes phenotypes such as obesity, systemic inflammation, insulin resistance, and hyperlipidemia. A recent epidemiological study indicated that blueberry intake reduced cardiovascular mortality in humans, but the possible genetic mechanisms of this effect are unknown. Blueberries are a rich source of anthocyanins, and anthocyanins can alter the activity of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), which affect energy substrate metabolism. The effect of blueberry intake was assessed in obesity-prone rats. Zucker Fatty and Zucker Lean rats were fed a higher-fat diet (45% of kcal) or a lower-fat diet (10% of kcal) containing 2% (wt/wt) freeze-dried whole highbush blueberry powder or added sugars to match macronutrient and calorie content. In Zucker Fatty rats fed a high-fat diet, the addition of blueberry reduced triglycerides, fasting insulin, homeostasis model index of insulin resistance, and glucose area under the curve. Blueberry intake also reduced abdominal fat mass, increased adipose and skeletal muscle PPAR activity, and affected PPAR transcripts involved in fat oxidation and glucose uptake/oxidation. In Zucker Fatty rats fed a low-fat diet, the addition of blueberry also significantly reduced liver weight, body weight, and total fat mass. Finally, Zucker Lean rats fed blueberry had higher body weight and reduced triglycerides, but all other measures were unaffected. In conclusion, whole blueberry intake reduced phenotypes of metabolic syndrome in obesity-prone rats and affected PPAR gene transcripts in adipose and muscle tissue involved in fat and glucose metabolism.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90448/1/jmf-2E2010-2E0292.pd