Crassulacean acid metabolism in the Gesneriaceae

The occurrence of the Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) was studied in four epiphytic species of the Gesneriaceae: two neotropical species, Codonanthe crassifolia and Columnea linearis, and two paleotropical species, Aoschynanthus pulcher and Saintpaulia ionantha. Gas exchange parameters, enzymology, and leaf anatomy, including mesophyll succulence and rel­ ative percent of the mesophyll volume occupied by airspace, were studied for each species. Codonanthe crassifolia was the only species to show nocturnal CO2 uptake and a diurnal organic acid fluctuation. According to these results, Codonanthe crassifolia shows CAM-cycling under well-watered conditions and when subjected to drought, it switches to CAM-idling. Other characteristics, such as leaf anatomy, mesophyll succulence, and PEP carboxylase and NADP malic enzyme activity, indicate attributes of the CAM pathway. All other species tested showed C3 photosynthesis. The most C3-like species is Columnea linearis, according to the criteria tested in this investigation. The other two species show mesophyll succulence and relative percent of the leaf volume occupied by airspace within the CAM range, but no other characters of the CAM pathway. The leaf structure of certain genera of the Gesneriaceae and of the genus Peperomia in the Piperaceae are similar, both having an upper succulent, multiple epidermis, a medium palisade of one or a few cell layers, and a lower, succulent spongy parenchyma not too unlike CAM photosynthetic tissue. We report ecophysiological similarities between these two distantly related families. Thus, the occurrence of CAM-cycling may be more common among epiphytic species than is currently known

Kinetic Meditative Experimental Drawing

This lesson for high school students provides an opportunity to make a work of art without a preconceived plan by using their bodies and spontaneous movements to control mark-making. Symmetry is explored along with the art of Heather Hansen and Tony Orrico.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/zuckermanmuseum_p12/1008/thumbnail.jp

Gait in Parkinson’s disease: a visuo-cognitive challenge

Vision and cognition have both been related to gait impairment in Parkinson’s disease (PD) through separate strands of research. The cumulative and interactive effect of both (which we term visuo-cognition) has not been previously investigated and little is known about the influence of cognition on vision with respect to gait. Understanding the role of vision, cognition and visuo-cognition in gait in PD is critical for data interpretation and to infer and test underlying mechanisms. The purpose of this comprehensive narrative review was to examine the interdependent and interactive role of cognition and vision in gait in PD and older adults. Evidence from a broad range of research disciplines was reviewed and summarised. A key finding was that attention appears to play a pivotal role in mediating gait, cognition and vision, and should be considered emphatically in future research in this field

Reminiscences of eastern Oregon

Gerald W. Williams Collectio

Extended fisheries jurisdiction and the development problems of small island countries.

Thesis. 1979. M.C.P.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning.MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH.Bibliography: leaves 120-123.M.C.P

Vision, visuo-cognition and postural control in Parkinson's disease: An associative pilot study

Introduction Impaired postural control (PC) is common in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and is a major contributor to falls, with significant consequences. Mechanisms underpinning PC are complex and include motor and non-motor features. Research has focused predominantly on motor and sensory inputs. Vision and visuo-cognitive function are also integral to PC but have largely been ignored to date. The aim of this observational cross-sectional pilot study was to explore the relationship of vision and visuo-cognition with PC in PD. Methods Twelve people with PD and ten age-matched healthy controls (HC) underwent detailed assessments for vision, visuo-cognition and postural control. Vision assessments included visual acuity and contrast sensitivity. Visuo-cognition was measured by visuo-perception (object identification), visuo-construction (ability to copy a figure) and visuo-spatial ability (judge distances and location of object within environment). PC was measured by an accelerometer for a range of outcomes during a 2-min static stance. Spearman's correlations identified significant associations. Results Contrast sensitivity, visuo-spatial ability and postural control (ellipsis) were significantly impaired in PD (p = 0.017; p = 0.001; and p = 0.017, respectively). For PD only, significant correlations were found for higher visuo-spatial function and larger ellipsis (r = 0.64; p = 0.024) and impaired attention and reduced visuo-spatial function (r = −0.62; p = 0.028). Conclusions Visuo-spatial ability is associated with PC deficit in PD, but in an unexpected direction. This suggests a non-linear pattern of response. Further research is required to examine this novel and important finding

‘Why has my world become more confusing than it used to be?’ Professional doctoral students reflect on the development of their identity

This article reports on research into the experience of professional doctoral students and is written by the students themselves. We, the authors, are currently studying for the Doctorate in Education at the University of Manchester, UK. We place our work in the context of recent empirical research into the development of doctoral student identity, noting that these literatures are usually authored by programme directors and supervisors. Using a theoretical approach based on the work of Etienne Wenger, we examine how the aims and curriculum of our programme interplay with our professional learning. In interviews with our cohort of students, we explore the complexity and non-linearity of learning. We do not find a simple progression from practitioner to researcher; rather, we find a fluid and complex relationship between those two identities. We consider the extent to which Wenger’s modes of identification are a useful conceptual tool for understanding this interplay and for theorising about our findings. We conclude that there is further scope for the development of our theoretical framework by drawing on other scholarly work on identity development and reflexivit

Data on the concentrations of etoposide, PSC833, BAPTA-AM, and cycloheximide that do not compromise the vitality of mature mouse oocytes, parthenogenetically activated and fertilized embryos

AbstractThese data document the vitality of mature mouse oocytes (Metaphase II (MII)) and early stage embryos (zygotes) following exposure to the genotoxic chemotherapeutic agent, etoposide, in combination with PSC833, a selective inhibitor of permeability glycoprotein. They also illustrate the vitality of parthenogenetically activated and fertilized embryos following incubation with the calcium chelator BAPTA-AM (1,2-Bis(2-aminophenoxy)ethane- N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid tetrakis (acetoxymethyl ester)), cycloheximide (an antibiotic that is capable of inhibiting protein synthesis), and hydrogen peroxide (a potent reactive oxygen species). Finally, they present evidence that permeability glycoprotein is not represented in the proteome of mouse spermatozoa. Our interpretation and discussion of these data feature in the article “Identification of a key role for permeability glycoprotein in enhancing the cellular defense mechanisms of fertilized oocytes” (Martin et al., in press) [1]

Stochastic signatures of involuntary head micro-movements can be used to classify females of ABIDE into different subtypes of neurodevelopmental disorders.

© 2017 Torres, Mistry, Caballero and Whyatt. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).Background: The approximate 5:1 male to female ratio in clinical detection of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) prevents research from characterizing the female phenotype. Current open access repositories [such as those in the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE I-II)] contain large numbers of females to help begin providing a new characterization of females on the autistic spectrum. Here we introduce new methods to integrate data in a scale-free manner from continuous biophysical rhythms of the nervous systems and discrete (ordinal) observational scores. Methods: New data-types derived from image-based involuntary head motions and personalized statistical platform were combined with a data-driven approach to unveil sub-groups within the female cohort. Further, to help refine the clinical DSM-based ASD vs. Asperger's Syndrome (AS) criteria, distributional analyses of ordinal score data from Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS)-based criteria were used on both the female and male phenotypes. Results: Separate clusters were automatically uncovered in the female cohort corresponding to differential levels of severity. Specifically, the AS-subgroup emerged as the most severely affected with an excess level of noise and randomness in the involuntary head micro-movements. Extending the methods to characterize males of ABIDE revealed ASD-males to be more affected than AS-males. A thorough study of ADOS-2 and ADOS-G scores provided confounding results regarding the ASD vs. AS male comparison, whereby the ADOS-2 rendered the AS-phenotype worse off than the ASD-phenotype, while ADOS-G flipped the results. Females with AS scored higher on severity than ASD-females in all ADOS test versions and their scores provided evidence for significantly higher severity than males. However, the statistical landscapes underlying female and male scores appeared disparate. As such, further interpretation of the ADOS data seems problematic, rather suggesting the critical need to develop an entirely new metric to measure social behavior in females. Conclusions: According to the outcome of objective, data-driven analyses and subjective clinical observation, these results support the proposition that the female phenotype is different. Consequently the “social behavioral male ruler” will continue to mask the female autistic phenotype. It is our proposition that new observational behavioral tests ought to contain normative scales, be statistically sound and combined with objective data-driven approaches to better characterize the females across the human lifespan.Peer reviewe