Development and test of a Microwave Ice Accretion Measurement Instrument (MIAMI)

The development of an ice accretion measurement instrument that is a highly sensitive, accurate, rugged and reliable microprocessor controlled device using low level microwave energy for non-instrusive real time measurement and recording of ice growth history, including ice thickness and accretion rate is discussed. Data is displayed and recorded digitally. New experimental data is presented, obtained with the instrument, which demonstrates its ability to measure ice growth on a two-dimensional airfoil. The device is suitable for aircraft icing protection. It may be mounted flush, non-intrusively, on any part of an aircraft skin including rotor blades and engine inlets

ODP Leg 137, borehole fluid chemistry in Hole 504B

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/95686/1/grl5867.pd

Identification of tissue-specific cell death using methylation patterns of circulating DNA

Minimally invasive detection of cell death could prove an invaluable resource in many physiologic and pathologic situations. Cell-free circulating DNA (cfDNA) released from dying cells is emerging as a diagnostic tool for monitoring cancer dynamics and graft failure. However, existing methods rely on differences in DNA sequences in source tissues, so that cell death cannot be identified in tissues with a normal genome. We developed a method of detecting tissue-specific cell death in humans based on tissue-specific methylation patterns in cfDNA. We interrogated tissue-specific methylome databases to identify cell type-specific DNA methylation signatures and developed a method to detect these signatures in mixed DNA samples. We isolated cfDNA from plasma or serum of donors, treated the cfDNA with bisulfite, PCR-amplified the cfDNA, and sequenced it to quantify cfDNA carrying the methylation markers of the cell type of interest. Pancreatic β-cell DNA was identified in the circulation of patients with recently diagnosed type-1 diabetes and islet-graft recipients; oligodendrocyte DNA was identified in patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis; neuronal/glial DNA was identified in patients after traumatic brain injury or cardiac arrest; and exocrine pancreas DNA was identified in patients with pancreatic cancer or pancreatitis. This proof-of-concept study demonstrates that the tissue origins of cfDNA and thus the rate of death of specific cell types can be determined in humans. The approach can be adapted to identify cfDNA derived from any cell type in the body, offering a minimally invasive window for diagnosing and monitoring a broad spectrum of human pathologies as well as providing a better understanding of normal tissue dynamics

Welfare Families\u27 Use Of Early Childhood Care And Education Programs, And Implications For Their Children\u27s Development

With recent legislation placing a strong emphasis on the transition of welfare mothers into the workforce, it becomes increasingly important to understand whether and how participation in early childhood care and education programs has implications for the development of children from welfare families. This study focused on a sample of 182 African-American families, all of whom had applied for or were receiving Aid to Families With Dependent Children, and each with a child of between 3 and 5 years of age. We first examined which of a wide range of background characteristics predicted participation in early childhood care and education programs. We then examined whether measures of the children\u27s school readiness and social maturity were predicted by current participation in an early childhood program, above and beyond the background characteristics associated with the use of such a program. Our results indicate that participation in an early childhood program is associated with significantly higher scores on the measure of school readiness