Variation of the synarcual in the California Ray, Raja inornata (Elasmobranchii: Rajidae)

Seven juvenile specimens of Raja inornata were CT scanned and digitally modeled to examine the variation of synarcual morphology with changing size. The synarcual is a highly variable skeletal element across batoids with great potential for use in phylogenetic studies. Results show that as R. inornata increases in body size, the synarcual becomes more elongate and laterally compressed. Projections of the synarcual become more pronounced with increasing size as well. The synarcual of R. inornata is narrower than that of R. erinacea. There appears to be a correlation between median crest width and synarcual spine size. Also, in the context of higher-level batoid phylogenetics, the morphologically ventral position of the u-shaped lateral stay is considered primitive

Nonlinear stability of the Taub-NUT soliton in 6+1 dimensions

Using mixed numerical and analytical methods we give evidence that the 6+1 dimensional Taub-NUT soliton is asymptotically nonlinearly stable against small perturbations preserving biaxial Bianchi IX symmetry. We also show that for sufficiently strong perturbations the soliton collapses to a warped black hole. Since this black hole solution is not known in closed form, for completeness of the exposition we prove its existence and determine its properties. In particular, the mass of the black hole is computed.Comment: 19 pages, 5 figure

Energetics of three interacting mass-imbalanced bodies in a three-dimensional spherical harmonic trap

We consider a system of three particles, either three identical bosons or two identical fermions plus an impurity, within an isotropic three-dimensional trap interacting via a contact interaction. Using two approaches, one using an infinite sum of basis states for the wavefunction and the other a closed form wavefunction, we calculate the allowable energy eigenstates of the system as a function of the interaction strength, including the strongly and weakly interacting limits. For the fermionic case this is done while maintaining generality regarding particle masses. We find that the two methods of calculating the spectrum are in excellent agreement and we find that both methods are unable to specify the energy of Efimov states and in fact the energies of Efimov states diverge in the same manner. We show that the numeric limitations of the summation approach correspond to the effective range boundary condition of the closed form approach to a high degree of accuracy

Quench dynamics of mass-imbalanced three-body fermionic systems in a spherical trap

We consider a system of two identical fermions of general mass interacting with a third distinguishable particle via a contact interaction within an isotropic three-dimensional harmonic trap. We calculate time-dependent observables of the system after it is quenched in s-wave scattering length. To do this we use exact closed form mass-imbalanced hyperspherical solutions to the static three-body problem. These exact solutions enable us to calculate two time-dependent observables, the Ramsey signal and particle separation, after the system undergoes a quench from non-interacting to the unitary regime or vice-versa

Cadaveric and Chart Retrospective on Shoulder Variation: Morphology and Pain

Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) is a category of several types of manual techniques used by osteopathic physicians. According to the osteopathic tradition, structure and function are intimately related. This project examined the relationship between shoulder structure and function in an osteopathic framework, with a specific goal to understand how the structure of the acromion affects the development of shoulder injuries. For the first part of this project, cadaveric dissections were performed and muscle diameters were taken of structures within the subacromial space. The second part of this project assessed the efficacy of OMT in shoulder somatic dysfunction for patients treated at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM)

Plastination Procedure @ PCOM: Current Practice and Future Uses

Introduction: Since its invention by German anatomist Gunther von Hagens, the process of forced-impregnation plastination of organic specimens has become the standard for the preservation of biological tissue specimens. This practice serves as the most practical method to preserve these specimens for study and is utilized at PCOM regularly for this purpose. During the steps of plastination, aqueous and lipid tissues are replaced by a curable polymer to produce plastinates that do not decompose, can be handled without gloves, and retain most characteristics of the original specimens. For decades, PCOM used this method to prepare a permanent teaching collection in support of medical education. In the last five years, the lab has been reactivated and prepares specimens for allied health professional education, enrichment of the Doctor of Osteopathy curriculum, and outreach at regional institutions (e.g., The Franklin Institute, The Nebinger School, etc.). Objectives: The purpose of this poster is to inform the PCOM community of current plastination practices and suggest future uses. Methods: To prepare specimens for plastination, they must be preserved in fixative. We currently dissect and stage all tissues after the fixative process. Dissections are prepared by work-study students at PCOM who have completed the relevant anatomy course (interested students please contact Dr. Claeson). After fixation, tissues are dehydrated in progressively more concentrated washes of cold-temperature acetone (-20ºC) until concentration is between 98-100%. After dehydration, they are placed into a silicone polymer bath and brought to room temperature. The room temperature bath technique is the primary deviation from von Hagen (1977). Once at room temperature in the bath, vacuum pressure is used to replace the acetone that fills each cell with silicone. A hardening agent is then administered to finish the process. Results & Conclusions: Current initiatives have included building a collection of heart specimens to support a cardiac workshop which pairs anatomy and physiology. Most recently, a brain anatomy collection is being built. Brain specimens include axial cross sections, whole and half brains, and pathological specimens. These specimens are currently used at many outreach events and will be incorporated into a featured anatomy series as part of the medical school curriculum. Future research initiatives may also begin via current practices

Investigating the association of rs2910164 with cancer predisposition in an Irish cohort.

IntroductionMicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNA molecules that exert post-transcriptional effects on gene expression by binding with cis-regulatory regions in target messenger RNA (mRNA). Polymorphisms in genes encoding miRNAs or in miRNA-mRNA binding sites confer deleterious epigenetic effects on cancer risk. miR-146a has a role in inflammation and may have a role as a tumour suppressor. The polymorphism rs2910164 in the MIR146A gene encoding pre-miR-146a has been implicated in several inflammatory pathologies, including cancers of the breast and thyroid, although evidence for the associations has been conflicting in different populations. We aimed to further investigate the association of this variant with these two cancers in an Irish cohort.MethodsThe study group comprised patients with breast cancer (BC), patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) and unaffected controls. Germline DNA was extracted from blood or from saliva collected using the DNA Genotek Oragene 575 collection kit, using crystallisation precipitation, and genotyped using TaqMan-based PCR. Data were analysed using SPSS, v22.ResultsThe total study group included 1516 participants. This comprised 1386 Irish participants; 724 unaffected individuals (controls), 523 patients with breast cancer (BC), 136 patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) and three patients with dual primary breast and thyroid cancer. An additional cohort of 130 patients with DTC from the South of France was also genotyped for the variant. The variant was detected with a minor allele frequency (MAF) of 0.19 in controls, 0.22 in BC and 0.27 and 0.26 in DTC cases from Ireland and France, respectively. The variant was not significantly associated with BC (per allele odds ratio = 1.20 (0.98-1.46), P  = 0.07), but was associated with DTC in Irish patients (per allele OR = 1.59 (1.18-2.14), P = 0.002).ConclusionThe rs2910164 variant in MIR146A is significantly associated with DTC, but is not significantly associated with BC in this cohort