7 research outputs found
Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory - Preliminary Design Report
The DUSEL Project has produced the Preliminary Design of the Deep Underground
Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL) at the rehabilitated former
Homestake mine in South Dakota. The Facility design calls for, on the surface,
two new buildings - one a visitor and education center, the other an experiment
assembly hall - and multiple repurposed existing buildings. To support
underground research activities, the design includes two laboratory modules and
additional spaces at a level 4,850 feet underground for physics, biology,
engineering, and Earth science experiments. On the same level, the design
includes a Department of Energy-shepherded Large Cavity supporting the Long
Baseline Neutrino Experiment. At the 7,400-feet level, the design incorporates
one laboratory module and additional spaces for physics and Earth science
efforts. With input from some 25 science and engineering collaborations, the
Project has designed critical experimental space and infrastructure needs,
including space for a suite of multidisciplinary experiments in a laboratory
whose projected life span is at least 30 years. From these experiments, a
critical suite of experiments is outlined, whose construction will be funded
along with the facility. The Facility design permits expansion and evolution,
as may be driven by future science requirements, and enables participation by
other agencies. The design leverages South Dakota's substantial investment in
facility infrastructure, risk retirement, and operation of its Sanford
Laboratory at Homestake. The Project is planning education and outreach
programs, and has initiated efforts to establish regional partnerships with
underserved populations - regional American Indian and rural populations
The geography of malaria genetics in the Democratic Republic of Congo: A complex and fragmented landscape
Understanding how malaria parasites move between populations is important, particularly given the potential for malaria to be reintroduced into areas where it was previously eliminated. We examine the distribution of malaria genetics across seven sites within the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and two nearby countries, Ghana and Kenya, in order to understand how the relatedness of malaria parasites varies across space, and whether there are barriers to the flow of malaria parasites within the DRC or across borders. Parasite DNA was retrieved from dried blood spots from 7 Demographic and Health Survey sample clusters in the DRC. Malaria genetic characteristics of parasites from Ghana and Kenya were also obtained. For each of 9 geographic sites (7 DRC, 1 Ghana and 1 Kenya), a pair-wise R(ST) statistic was calculated, indicating the genetic distance between malaria parasites found in those locations. Mapping genetics across the spatial extent of the study area indicates a complex genetic landscape, where relatedness between two proximal sites may be relatively high (R(ST) > 0.64) or low (R(ST) < 0.05), and where distal sites also exhibit both high and low genetic similarity. Mantel’s tests suggest that malaria genetics differ as geographic distances increase. Principal Coordinate Analysis suggests that genetically related samples are not co-located. Barrier analysis reveals no significant barriers to gene flow between locations. Malaria genetics in the DRC have a complex and fragmented landscape. Limited exchange of genes across space is reflected in greater genetic distance between malaria parasites isolated at greater geographic distances. There is, however, evidence for close genetic ties between distally located sample locations, indicating that movement of malaria parasites and flow of genes is being driven by factors other than distance decay. This research demonstrates the contributions that spatial disease ecology and landscape genetics can make to understanding the evolutionary dynamics of infectious diseases