Cloning of bovine intercellular adhesion molecules and characterization of expression of neutrophil adhesion molecules in periparturient cows and calves

The interactions of circulating leukocytes with the endothelium represent a key point in the effector functions of the immune system by regulating the specificity and strength of cell-cell interactions. The recruitment of neutrophils to sites of inflammation is initiated by chemoattractants. The initial contact of neutrophils on vascular endothelial cells is a rolling interaction mediated by members of the selectin family. These include E-selectin and P-selectin on the surface of activated endothelial cells, and L-selectin on neutrophils. The subsequent activation of leukocyte [beta]2 integrins, which bind to the glycoprotein intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) on endothelial cells, is essential for firm adhesion of leukocytes to the blood vessel wall and subsequent extravasation into the surrounding tissue;Some periparturient cows, as well as neonatal calves, have been known to be reduced in their capacity to respond to bacterial infection. In our first study, constitutive [beta]2-integrin (CD 18) and L-selectin (CD62L) expression on neutrophils was determined from periparturient Holstein cows and neonatal calves by flow cytometry. Platelet-activating factor was used to activate neutrophils to measure up- and down-regulation of the adhesion molecules in vitro. Mean values for both constitutive and stimulated CD18 expression on neutrophils from cows and calves were highest at parturition, then declined during the first 15 hours postpartum on calf neutrophils, while CD62L declined dramatically by 9 to 15 hours after calving on cow and calf neutrophils. The constitutive CD18 and L-selectin levels on cow neutrophils recovered to prepartum values by one week postpartum. Calf neutrophil levels of CD18 expression recovered by one week of age and did not reach the original levels seen at birth whereas L-selectin expression exceeded birth levels by one week postpartum;In the second and third experiments, bovine intercellular adhesion molecules, ICAM-1 and ICAM-3 were cloned, sequenced and analyzed. Bovine ICAM-3 sequence was derived from a bovine mammary gland cDNA library and a bovine lymph node cDNA library. The cDNA sequence contains 1827 bp encoding for 544 aa. The deduced amino acid (aa) sequence from the coding region of bovine ICAM-3 shows 61% identity with human ICAM-3. The bovine ICAM-1 gene was obtained from a bovine endothelial cell cDNA library screened using a DNA fragment derived from bovine ICAM-3 gene. The 3398 bp bovine ICAM-1 sequence codes for 535 amino acids and shows 58% identity with human ICAM-1 and 47% identity with bovine ICAM-3 at the amino acid level. The predicted number and positions of cysteine residues in bovine ICAM-1 are all conserved among species including bovine ICAM-3. Both bovine ICAM-l and-3 proteins consist of five immunoglobulin-like domains, thus aligning them with the immunoglobulin gene superfamily. Northern blot results show that the bovine ICAM-1 gene is expressed in stimulated leukocytes and bovine ICAM-3 predominantly in resting neutrophils

IMPACT OF A 16-WEEK BEHAVIORAL WEIGHT-LOSS PROGRAM ON DIETARY AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY CHANGES

Behavioral weight loss programs have been shown to be effective for short-term weight loss, however the impact of these programs on dietary changes is unclear. This study examined the changes in participant’s diet and physical activity over the course of a 16-week Internet behavioral weight-loss program. A single-center randomized controlled trial was conducted from August 2008 to December 2008 in Lexington, KY, and sixty-six women whose mean (SD) age was 48.6 (10.8) years and body mass index was 31.8 (3.7) kg/m2 completed all dietary and physical measures. Participants received two face-to-face group sessions with a dietitian, at baseline and 4-weeks, in addition to 16 weekly behavioral weight loss lessons delivered via an Internet website. Participants showed a significant reduction in energy intake (1879.2±771.7 vs. 1372.9±423.7; p\u3c0.001), dietary energy density (2.1±0.5 vs. 1.9±0.5; p=0.002) and a significant increase in diet quality score as measured by the HEI-2005 (53.9±9.9 vs. 57.4±10.6; p =0.002). Participants did not show significant differences in physical activity intensity, duration or energy expenditure. However, post hoc analysis revealed that those who adopted a healthy life style, such as eating more fruits and vegetables and being physically active, achieved greater weight loss than those who did not adopt a healthy lifestyle. Participation in this Internet behavioral weight loss program significantly improved dietary intake in adult women and did not significantly improve daily physical activity levels

Influence of Continuous Casting Speeds on Cast Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of an ADC14 Alloy

To improve the mechanical properties of the casting alloys, various attempts have been made to use alternative casting technologies. The Ohno continuous casting (OCC) process is a unidirectional solidification method, which leads to high-quality cast samples. In this study, the Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloy was cast at casting speeds of 1 mm/s, 2 mm/s, and 3 mm/s, by the OCC process. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the casting process parameters, such as casting speeds and cooling conditions, on the crystallization characteristics and mechanical properties of OCC-Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloy. Particularly, secondary dendrite arms spacing of alpha-Al dendrites in OCC samples significantly decreases with increasing casting speed. Moreover, the mean tensile strength of the samples, produced at the highest casting speed of 4.0 mm/s, is significantly higher than that for the samples produced at a casting speed of 1.0 mm/s

On instantons as Kaluza-Klein modes of M5-branes

Instantons and W-bosons in 5d maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory arise from a circle compactification of the 6d (2,0) theory as Kaluza-Klein modes and winding self-dual strings, respectively. We study an index which counts BPS instantons with electric charges in Coulomb and symmetric phases. We first prove the existence of unique threshold bound state of (noncommutative) U(1) instantons for any instanton number, and also show that charged instantons in the Coulomb phase correctly give the degeneracy of SU(2) self-dual strings. By studying SU(N) self-dual strings in the Coulomb phase, we find novel momentum-carrying degrees on the worldsheet. The total number of these degrees equals the anomaly coefficient of SU(N) (2,0) theory. We finally show that our index can be used to study the symmetric phase of this theory, and provide an interpretation as the superconformal index of the sigma model on instanton moduli space.1156sciescopu

Printing of wirelessly rechargeable solid-state supercapacitors for soft, smart contact lenses with continuous operations

Recent advances in smart contact lenses are essential to the realization of medical applications and vision imaging for augmented reality through wireless communication systems. However, previous research on smart contact lenses has been driven by a wired system or wireless power transfer with temporal and spatial restrictions, which can limit their continuous use and require energy storage devices. Also, the rigidity, heat, and large sizes of conventional batteries are not suitable for the soft, smart contact lens. Here, we describe a human pilot trial of a soft, smart contact lens with a wirelessly rechargeable, solid-state supercapacitor for continuous operation. After printing the supercapacitor, all device components (antenna, rectifier, and light-emitting diode) are fully integrated with stretchable structures for this soft lens without obstructing vision. The good reliability against thermal and electromagnetic radiations and the results of the in vivo tests provide the substantial promise of future smart contact lenses