Cloning and Expression Studies of Starch Phosphorylase From Solanum tuberosum

The aim of this project was to study starch phosphorylase gene expression in potato tubers during different physiological conditions when starch was mobilised, like wound healing and sprouting. One of the objectives was to clone plastidic potato tuber starch phosphorylase cDNA. cDNA libraries were constructed using mRNA from wounded and unwounded tuber tissue as templates for cDNA synthesis. Based on the amino acid sequence (Nakano & Fukui, 1986) of specific regions of potato tuber starch phosphorylase, two different sets of mixed oligonucleotide probes (called SP1 and SP2) were prepared and subsequently used to screen the cDNA libraries for starch phosphorylase recombinants

A study of the relation between inflation and exchange rates in the Fiji Islands: a cointegration and vector error correction approach

The main purpose of this study is to examine the effects of the exchange rates, international prices, and the demand shocks on inflation in Fiji. How the domestic inflation in a pegged exchange rate system is aligned with international price shocks is an important monetarist idea, and this is tested in this study. This study employs annual data from 1975 to 2010. The multivariate cointegration tests are done after the unit root tests, and further, the Vector Error Correction (VEC) model shows that the changes in Fiji’s CPI are Granger caused by the long-term trends in all other variables, and the CPI in Australia, and devaluation-year dummies are used as exogenous variables in the VEC model, and the changes in exchange rate and changes in demand shocks are the independent variables but made endogenous in the VEC model. The impulse response function also shows that due to the exchange rate depreciation, inflation has increased for many years in Fiji. The policy implication of our study is that as a monetary policy instrument, the flexibility of the exchange rate policy is indispensable for Fiji to appropriately absorb the international supply and price shocks

A study of the pass - through effects of exchange rates and international prices shocks on inflation in the Fiji Islands

The main purpose of this study is to examine the effects of the exchange rates,international prices, and the demand shocks on inflation in Fiji Island. The study covers the annual data from 1975 to 2010.The variables are transformed into changes/per cent and then Ordinary Least Squares methodology (OLS) is used. The appropriateness of the OLS assumptions is tested including the normality of the residuals, autocorrelations,heteroskedasticity and functional forms. The main findings are that the Fijian dollar depreciation increases, the international price shocks in the form of Australian consumer prices increase, the Keynesian demand shocks increase, and the devaluation events increase the consumer price inflation in Fiji. As a monetary policy instrument the flexibility of the exchange rate policy is indispensable for Fiji to absorb appropriately the international supply and price shocks. We have been able to include the international supply shocks, the domestic demand shocks, the exchange rates, and devaluation dummies in our model. Though we have used a simple OLS model, the originality of our study is the comprehensiveness of the theoretical variables in our model. This study will have an important implication for the small open economy of Fiji especially its exchange rate policy

Natural disasters and tourism-led growth economic growth a case study of Fiji : 1980-2014

Although tourism in recent years has emerged as engine of growth in Fiji, the uncertainties associated with the disastrous impact of tropical cyclones have been causing greater anxieties in recent times with increase in the number of cyclones each year hitting the South Pacific region. This paper focuses on the effects of cyclones on tourism and growth in Fiji. The data on damages inflicted by past annual cyclones are scanty. The quantitative estimates are based more on anecdotal evidence than on systematic assessments. Given these constraints, the paper attempts to undertake an empirical study through employing a bi-nary variable for cyclone, along with conventional variables.peer-reviewe

Advanced imaging and artificial intelligence for diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in glioblastoma

Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has a pivotal role in diagnosis and post-treatment management of glioblastoma, however it has limitations. This work investigates the use of advanced MRI techniques that assess the tumour microenvironment, and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques that compute quantitative features, as potential imaging biomarkers in key clinical issues faced by clinicians, through several retrospective studies. Results show that advanced multiparametric MRI is superior to current standard-of-care imaging for the diagnosis of glioblastoma, and in treatment response assessment. Results of AI techniques on pre-operative imaging show the ability to differentiate between glioblastoma and metastasis with an accuracy of 88.7%, prediction of overall survival with a high level of accuracy, and stratification of patients into high- and low-level groups of MGMT promoter methylation with accuracies between 45-67%. In the early post-treatment phase, AI analysis of imaging can distinguish between disease progression and pseudoprogression with an accuracy of 73.7%, compared to neuroradiologist accuracy of 32.9%. Integrating these techniques into routine clinical practice is essential to improve patient outcomes. Further work is required to validate advanced imaging and AI biomarkers, towards the longer-term goal of using these as clinical decision support tools, to benefit patients with glioblastoma and other brain tumours

Analysis of electroencephalograms in Alzheimer's disease patients with multiscale entropy

The aim of this study was to analyse the electroencephalogram (EEG) background activity of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients using the Multiscale Entropy (MSE). The MSE is a recently developed method that quantifies the regularity of a signal on different time scales. These time scales are inspected by means of several coarse-grained sequences formed from the analysed signals. We recorded the EEGs from 19 scalp electrodes in 11 AD patients and 11 age-matched controls and estimated the MSE profile for each epoch of the EEG recordings. The shape of the MSE profiles reveals the EEG complexity, and it suggests that the EEG contains information in deeper scales than the smallest one. Moreover, the results showed that the EEG background activity is less complex in AD patients than control subjects. We found significant difference

Tourism-Growth Nexus in the South Pacific Islands: Role of Financial Sector Development as a Contingent Factor An Empirical Study of Fiji: 1980-2014

Tourism in recent years has emerged as the engine of growth in Pacific island countries. In Fiji in particular, it has relegated its traditional sugar exports to third place. Besides the steadily increasing air passenger traffic, there has been a rising trend in cruise ship arrivals. Short visits by cruise ship travelers have become additional sources of income for a host of small scale tourist operators and vendors, most of them being outside the informal sector in around its two major ports. In this context, financial inclusion efforts have assumed greater importance as these incomes in some part can find their way as savings into banks. The role of financial sector development (FSD) has thus become a critical factor in the tourism-growth nexus. This paper finds while the FSD indicator when individually employed, whether as broad money or bank credit to private sector is supportive of the growth nexus, the interaction term is has emerged with a negative sign indicating that FSD does not play a complementary role. The financial sector of Fiji is still shallow, despite considerable progress in financial inclusion efforts, measures towards deepening of FSD depend not on one front of mobilization of savings, but on all round progress in various segments of financial sector

Tourism-Growth Nexus in the South Pacific Islands: Role of Financial Sector Development as a Contingent Factor An Empirical Study of Fiji: 1980-2014

Tourism in recent years has emerged as the engine of growth in Pacific island countries. In Fiji in particular, it has relegated its traditional sugar exports to third place. Besides the steadily increasing air passenger traffic, there has been a rising trend in cruise ship arrivals. Short visits by cruise ship travelers have become additional sources of income for a host of small scale tourist operators and vendors, most of them being outside the informal sector in around its two major ports. In this context, financial inclusion efforts have assumed greater importance as these incomes in some part can find their way as savings into banks. The role of financial sector development (FSD) has thus become a critical factor in the tourism-growth nexus. This paper finds while the FSD indicator when individually employed, whether as broad money or bank credit to private sector is supportive of the growth nexus, the interaction term is has emerged with a negative sign indicating that FSD does not play a complementary role. The financial sector of Fiji is still shallow, despite considerable progress in financial inclusion efforts, measures towards deepening of FSD depend not on one front of mobilization of savings, but on all round progress in various segments of financial sector

Pigment epithelium-derived factor inhibits retinal microvascular dysfunction induced by 12/15-lipoxygenase-derived eicosanoids

We recently demonstrated that 12/15-lipoxygenase (LOX) derived metabolites, hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids (HETEs), contribute to diabetic retinopathy (DR) via NADPH oxidase (NOX) and disruption of the balance in retinal levels of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF). Here, we test whether PEDF ameliorates retinal vascular injury induced by HETEs and the underlying mechanisms. Furthermore, we pursue the causal relationship between LOX–NOX system and regulation of PEDF expression during DR. For these purposes, we used an experimental eye model in which normal mice were injected intravitreally with 12-HETE with/without PEDF. Thereafter, fluorescein angiography (FA) was used to evaluate the vascular leakage, followed by optical coherence tomography (OCT) to assess the presence of angiogenesis. FA and OCT reported an increased vascular leakage and pre-retinal neovascularization, respectively, in response to 12-HETE that were not observed in the PEDF-treated group. Moreover, PEDF significantly attenuated the increased levels of vascular cell and intercellular adhesion molecules, VCAM-1 and ICAM-1, elicited by 12-HETE injection. Accordingly, the direct relationship between HETEs and PEDF has been explored through in-vitro studies using Müller cells (rMCs) and human retinal endothelial cells (HRECs). The results showed that 12- and 15-HETEs triggered the secretion of TNF-α and IL-6, as well as activation of NFκB in rMCs and significantly increased permeability and reduced zonula occludens protein-1 (ZO-1) immunoreactivity in HRECs. All these effects were prevented in PEDF-treated cells. Furthermore, interest in PEDF regulation during DR has been expanded to include NOX system. Retinal PEDF was significantly restored in diabetic mice treated with NOX inhibitor, apocynin, or lacking NOX2 up to 80% of the control level. Collectively, our findings suggest that interfering with LOX–NOX signaling opens up a new direction for treating DR by restoring endogenous PEDF that carries out multilevel vascular protective functions.National Eye Institute 5R01EY023315-02, Qatar National Research Fund NPRP 4-1046-3-284, and Vision Discovery Institute (MA), Mr. and Mrs. Richards travel award (ASI)