On the isolation of TI-plasmid from Agrobacterium tumefaciens

An efficient lysis method for Agrobacterium cells was developed, which allows a reproducible isolation of the tumor inducing (TI)-plasmid. The lysis method is based on the sensitivity of this bacterium to incubation with lysozyme, n-dodecylamine,EDTA, followed by Sarkosyl, after growth in the presence of carbenicillin. We also present a procedure for the isolation of the TI-plasmid on a large scale, that might be used for the mass isolation of other large plasmids which like the TI-plasmid, can not be cleared with earlier described procedures. The purity of the plasmid preparations was determined with DNA renaturation kinetics, which method has the advantage that the plasmid need not to be in the supercoiled or open circular form

A structural description of Oregon counties, 1973-1978

Local government officials and county planners may find descriptive information concerning the economic structure of each Oregon county useful for planning for future economic development. Specifically, citizens of counties and planning districts need to know whether industries in their area are growing or declining and in which industries a comparative advantage occurs. A regional economy is comprised of a mix of industries. Growth (decline) in various industrial sectors contributes to overall regional growth (decline). Numerous factors may account for an industry's growth: high productivity of capital and labor; new technologies which increase output per unit cost; positive labor-management relations which lead to improved performance; and unique locational advantages which may reduce input, transport, or other costs. Prior to identifying the possible determinants of growth in a specific area, a technique which measures the differences in growth rates among regions is necessary. Shift-share analysis is a descriptive tool which permits a systematic assessment of the industrial changes occurring in a region. The shift-share technique determines how specific industries in certain regions are performing relative to the same industries in a larger reference region. The primary objective of the thesis is to apply the modified shift-share technique proposed by Kalbacher [1979] to delineate changes in income in each Oregon county for the time period 1973 to 1978. The Pacific Northwest region which includes the states of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington is the designated reference economy. Labor and proprietors' income data, available at the county level from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, are utilized to measure the change in a region's economic activity level relative to the Pacific Northwest region. The shift-share model does not provide, by itself, a clear-cut explanation on how regions grow and to what extent interregional growth divergencies can be explained. In order to explain the varying rates of growth experienced by the individual Oregon counties, additional analysis of factors underlying the regional share component is necessary. Selected variables, which represent economic and social characteristics of each Oregon county, are utilized in the regression analysis which attempts to identify possible determinants of a county's regional share value

Evaluation of spectra VRE, a new chromogenic agar medium designed to screen for vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium

Spectra VRE (Remel, Lenexa, KS) is a chromogenic medium designed to recover and differentiate vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis (VRE). This medium was compared to bile esculin azide agar (BEAV) and was 98.2% sensitive and 99.3% specific compared to BEAV, which was 87.6% sensitive and 87.1% specific at 24 h

Language Partners at the YWCA: UNI Spanish, English and TESOL students collaborating with English students in community ESOL classes

In 2016, a collaboration began between UNI faculty and students in service learning courses in the Department of Languages & Literatures and classes in English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) at the YWCA of Black Hawk County. Since that time, students in two Spanish courses (Latinos in the U.S. and Advanced Conversation & Reading) and one English linguistics course (Structure of English) have worked as language partners with adult learners of English in full semester and partial semester community-based learning projects over the course of five consecutive semesters (Spring 2016 to Spring 2018). Members of the L&L faculty, Elise DuBord, Jennifer Cooley and Caroline Ledeboer, have facilitated this collaboration with ESOL instructors and Multicultural Services Coordinators, Alejandra Huesca and Umaru Balde. As institutional partners, Department of Languages & Literatures and the YWCA have developed a positive and sustainable working relationship. Over one hundred UNI students have worked at the YWCA through coursework in their majors with approximately fifty community English students in this informal setting. These adult language learners come from a wide range of educational and language backgrounds, ranging from francophone and Portuguese-speaking Africa, Spanish-speaking Latin America, Serbo-Croatian Bosnia, and several language groups from Myanmar (Burma). Typical class sessions in the ESOL classes include informal English lessons on practical topics, such as food, shopping, the public library, and medical appointments, but the central components of this project are the communication skills and intercultural competency that all participants develop

A multi-mRNA host-response molecular blood test for the diagnosis and prognosis of acute infections and sepsis: Proceedings from a clinical advisory panel

Current diagnostics are insufficient for diagnosis and prognosis of acute infections and sepsis. Clinical decisions including prescription and timing of antibiotics, ordering of additional diagnostics and level-of-care decisions rely on understanding etiology and implications of a clinical presentation. Host mRNA signatures can differentiate infectious from noninfectious etiologies, bacterial from viral infections, and predict 30-day mortality. The 29-host-mRNA blood-based InSe

Culture and PCR detection of Haemophilus influenzae and Haemophilus haemolyticus in Australian indigenous children with bronchiectasis

A PCR for protein D (hpd#3) was used to differentiate nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHI) from Haemophilus haemolyticus. While 90% of nasopharyngeal specimens and 100% of lower-airway specimens from 84 Indigenous Australian children with bronchiectasis had phenotypic NTHI isolates confirmed as H. influenzae, only 39% of oropharyngeal specimens with phenotypic NTHI had H. influenzae. The nasopharynx is therefore the preferred site for NTHI colonization studies, and NTHI is confirmed as an important lower-airway pathogen