The contrasting oceanography of the Rhodes Gyre and the Central Black Sea

The Rhodes Gyre, a prominent feature of the oceanography of the eastern Mediterranean, is modelled as a vertical, continuous flow, cylindrical reactor illuminated during the day at its upper end. If the Gyre is supposed to be in a steady state whilst the concentrations, C, of a chemical are being measured, the nett rate of formation or consumption of the chemical is given by -w d C/d z + u d C/d r, where w is the upward velocity of the water in the vertical, z , direction and u is the velocity of the water in the radial, r, direction. The behaviour of w and u is analysed to show that the Gyre may be used as a field laboratory in which rates of chemical change may be derived from depth profiles together with values of the surface velocities of the Gyre waters. In contrast, the central Black Sea is modelled as an ideal, strongly stratified sea in which the nett rates of formation or consumption of chemicals under steady state conditions are given by Ds d2C/ds 2, where s is the water density and Ds is an eddy diffusion coefficient. Computations reveal that, given better knowledge of its eddy diffusion coefficients, the Black Sea can also be treated as a field laboratory where rates of reaction mediated by bacteria may be derived from depth profiles

TBX2 represses PTEN in rhabdomyosarcoma and skeletal muscle.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most frequent soft tissue sarcoma in children that shares many features of developing skeletal muscle. TBX2, a T-box family member, is highly upregulated in tumor cells of both major RMS subtypes where it functions as an oncogene. TBX2 is a repressor that is often overexpressed in cancer cells and functions in bypassing cell growth control, including the repression of the cell cycle regulators p14 and p21. We have found that TBX2 directly represses the tumor-suppressor phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in both RMS and normal muscle. Exogenous expression of TBX2 in normal muscle cells downregulates PTEN, and depletion or interference with TBX2 in RMS cells upregulates PTEN. Human RMS tumors show high levels of TBX2 and correspondingly low levels of PTEN. The expression of PTEN in clinical RMS samples is relatively uncharacterized, and we establish that suppression of PTEN is a frequent event in both subtypes of RMS. TBX2 represses PTEN by directly binding to the promoter and recruiting the histone deacetylase, HDAC1. RMS cells have high levels of activated AKT owing to the deregulation of phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) signaling, and depletion or interference with TBX2, which upregulates PTEN, results in a reduction of phospho-AKT. We have also found that the highly related T-box family member TBX3 does not repress PTEN in the muscle lineage. This work suggests that TBX2 is a central component of the PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway deregulation in RMS cells and that targeting TBX2 in RMS tumors may offer a novel therapeutic approach for RMS.Oncogene advance online publication, 21 December 2015; doi:10.1038/onc.2015.486

Target gene selectivity of the myogenic basic helix–loop–helix transcription factor myogenin in embryonic muscle

AbstractThe myogenic regulatory factors MyoD and myogenin are crucial for skeletal muscle development. Despite their importance, the mechanisms by which these factors selectively regulate different target genes are unclear. The purpose of the present investigation was to compare embryonic skeletal muscle from myogenin+/+ and myogenin−/− mice to identify genes whose expression was dependent on the presence of myogenin but not MyoD and to determine whether myogenin-binding sites could be found within regulatory regions of myogenin-dependent genes independent of MyoD. We identified a set of 140 muscle-expressed genes whose expression in embryonic tongue muscle of myogenin−/− mice was downregulated in the absence of myogenin, but in the presence of MyoD. Myogenin bound within conserved regulatory regions of several of the downregulated genes, but MyoD bound only to a subset of these same regions, suggesting that many downregulated genes were selective targets of myogenin. The regulatory regions activated gene expression in cultured myoblasts and fibroblasts overexpressing myogenin or MyoD, indicating that expression from exogenously introduced DNA could not recapitulate the selectivity for myogenin observed in vivo. The results identify new target genes for myogenin and show that myogenin's target gene selectivity is not based solely on binding site sequences

Factors influencing quality of life following lower limb amputation for peripheral arterial occlusive disease: a systematic review of the literature

Background: The majority of lower limb amputations are undertaken in people with peripheral arterial occlusive disease,\ud and approximately 50% have diabetes. Quality of life is an important outcome in lower limb amputations; little is known\ud about what influences it, and therefore how to improve it.\ud Objectives: The aim of this systematic review was to identify the factors that influence quality of life after lower limb\ud amputation for peripheral arterial occlusive disease.\ud Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Cochrane databases were searched to identify\ud articles that quantitatively measured quality of life in those with a lower limb amputation for peripheral arterial occlusive\ud disease. Articles were quality assessed by two assessors, evidence tables summarised each article and a narrative\ud synthesis was performed.\ud Study design: Systematic review.\ud Results: Twelve articles were included. Study designs and outcome measures used varied. Quality assessment scores\ud ranged from 36% to 92%. The ability to walk successfully with a prosthesis had the greatest positive impact on quality\ud of life. A trans-femoral amputation was negatively associated with quality of life due to increased difficulty in walking\ud with a prosthesis. Other factors such as older age, being male, longer time since amputation, level of social support and\ud presence of diabetes also negatively affected quality of life.\ud Conclusion: Being able to walk with a prosthesis is of primary importance to improve quality of life for people with lower\ud limb amputation due to peripheral arterial occlusive disease. To further understand and improve the quality of life of this\ud population, there is a need for more prospective longitudinal studies, with a standardised outcome measure

An Overview of the AURORA Gigabit Testbed

AURORA is one of five U.S. testbeds charged with exploring applications of, and technologies necessary for, networks operating at gigabit per second or higher bandwidths. AURORA is also an experiment in collaboration, where government support (through the Corporation for National Research Initiatives, which is in turn funded by DARPA and the NSF) has spurred interaction among centers of excellence in industry, academia, and government. The emphasis of the AURORA testbed, distinct from the other four testbeds, is research into the supporting technologies for gigabit networking. Our targets include new software architectures, network abstractions, hardware technologies, and applications. This paper provides an overview of the goals and methodologies employed in AURORA, and reports preliminary results from our first year of research

The AURORA Gigabit Testbed

AURORA is one of five U.S. networking testbeds charged with exploring applications of, and technologies necessary for, networks operating at gigabit per second or higher bandwidths. The emphasis of the AURORA testbed, distinct from the other four testbeds, BLANCA, CASA, NECTAR, and VISTANET, is research into the supporting technologies for gigabit networking. Like the other testbeds, AURORA itself is an experiment in collaboration, where government initiative (in the form of the Corporation for National Research Initiatives, which is funded by DARPA and the National Science Foundation) has spurred interaction among pre-existing centers of excellence in industry, academia, and government. AURORA has been charged with research into networking technologies that will underpin future high-speed networks. This paper provides an overview of the goals and methodologies employed in AURORA, and points to some preliminary results from our first year of research, ranging from analytic results to experimental prototype hardware. This paper enunciates our targets, which include new software architectures, network abstractions, and hardware technologies, as well as applications for our work

Theory of Circle Maps and the Problem of One-Dimensional Optical Resonator with a Periodically Moving Wall

We consider the electromagnetic field in a cavity with a periodically oscillating perfectly reflecting boundary and show that the mathematical theory of circle maps leads to several physical predictions. Notably, well-known results in the theory of circle maps (which we review briefly) imply that there are intervals of parameters where the waves in the cavity get concentrated in wave packets whose energy grows exponentially. Even if these intervals are dense for typical motions of the reflecting boundary, in the complement there is a positive measure set of parameters where the energy remains bounded.Comment: 34 pages LaTeX (revtex) with eps figures, PACS: 02.30.Jr, 42.15.-i, 42.60.Da, 42.65.Y

Re-Inventing Public Education:The New Role of Knowledge in Education Policy-Making

This article focuses on the changing role of knowledge in education policy making within the knowledge society. Through an examination of key policy texts, the Scottish case of Integrated Children Services provision is used to exemplify this new trend. We discuss the ways in which knowledge is being used in order to re-configure education as part of a range of public services designed to meet individuals' needs. This, we argue, has led to a 'scientization' of education governance where it is only knowledge, closely intertwined with action (expressed as 'measures') that can reveal problems and shape solutions. The article concludes by highlighting the key role of knowledge policy and governance in orienting education policy making through a re-invention of the public role of education

Scaling of the Critical Function for the Standard Map: Some Numerical Results

The behavior of the critical function for the breakdown of the homotopically non-trivial invariant (KAM) curves for the standard map, as the rotation number tends to a rational number, is investigated using a version of Greene's residue criterion. The results are compared to the analogous ones for the radius of convergence of the Lindstedt series, in which case rigorous theorems have been proved. The conjectured interpolation of the critical function in terms of the Bryuno function is discussed.Comment: 26 pages, 3 figures, 13 table

Emotions in business-to-business service relationships

Emotion in business-to-business service relationships regarding cargo services is explored. The service relationship is characterised by mutual trust and cooperation. Contact is mainly via telephone or e-mail with some face-to-face interactions and participants providing a complex, multi-skilled seamless service. Experience rather than training plays a vital role with long-term service relationships built up and maintained. Emotional sensitivity is acquired partly by experience and a repeat customer base but mainly through a genuine desire to help and get to know others. In contrast to the view of emotional labour bringing managerial control or adverse affects to service staff, the emotion engendered by this work is authentic expression bringing personal satisfaction