Recent Developments: The Uniform Arbitration Act

This Article is an overview of recent court decisions that interpret state versions of the Uniform Arbitration Act ( U.A.A. ). Arbitration statutes patterned after the U.A.A. have been adopted by thirty-four states and the District of Columbia. The goal of this project is to promote uniformity in the interpretation of the U.A.A. by analyzing the various underlying policies and rationales of recent court decisions interpreting the U.A.A

The neurotranscriptome of the Aedes aegypti mosquito

Background A complete genome sequence and the advent of genome editing open up non-traditional model organisms to mechanistic genetic studies. The mosquito Aedes aegypti is an important vector of infectious diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever and has a large and complex genome, which has slowed annotation efforts. We used comprehensive transcriptomic analysis of adult gene expression to improve the genome annotation and to provide a detailed tissue-specific catalogue of neural gene expression at different adult behavioral states. Results We carried out deep RNA sequencing across all major peripheral male and female sensory tissues, the brain and (female) ovary. Furthermore, we examined gene expression across three important phases of the female reproductive cycle, a remarkable example of behavioral switching in which a female mosquito alternates between obtaining blood-meals from humans and laying eggs. Using genome-guided alignments and de novo transcriptome assembly, our re-annotation includes 572 new putative protein-coding genes and updates to 13.5 and 50.3 % of existing transcripts within coding sequences and untranslated regions, respectively. Using this updated annotation, we detail gene expression in each tissue, identifying large numbers of transcripts regulated by blood-feeding and sexually dimorphic transcripts that may provide clues to the biology of male- and female-specific behaviors, such as mating and blood-feeding, which are areas of intensive study for those interested in vector control. Conclusions This neurotranscriptome forms a strong foundation for the study of genes in the mosquito nervous system and investigation of sensory-driven behaviors and their regulation. Furthermore, understanding the molecular genetic basis of mosquito chemosensory behavior has important implications for vector control

Use of ETC-1002 to treat hypercholesterolemia in patients with statin intolerance

BackgroundOnce-daily, oral ETC-1002 reduces low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and has beneficial effects on other cardiometabolic risk factors but has not been examined in statin intolerant patients.ObjectivesTo study the efficacy and safety of ETC-1002 (a novel LDL-C–lowering agent) in patients with hypercholesterolemia and a history of statin intolerance.MethodsPatients intolerant to at least 1 statin were entered into this multicenter, double-blind, 8-week trial. Participants were required to have a history of muscle complaints that developed during statin treatment and resolved within 4 weeks of statin discontinuation. Patients (n = 56) were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to ETC-1002 60 mg daily or placebo. The ETC-1002 dose was increased at 2-week intervals to 120 mg, 180 mg, and 240 mg. The primary end point was the percentage change from baseline to week 8 in calculated LDL-C.ResultsETC-1002 reduced LDL-C 28.7% more than placebo (95% confidence interval, −35.4 to −22.1; P < .0001). ETC-1002 significantly reduced non–high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. Triglycerides and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol did not change with ETC-1002 treatment. Sixty-two percent of patients receiving ETC-1002 and none in the placebo group achieved the 2004 National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III LDL-C goal (P < .0001). Muscle-related adverse events occurred with similar frequency in the placebo and ETC-1002 treatment groups, causing no discontinuations in ETC-1002–treated patients.ConclusionsETC-1002 appears to be effective at reducing LDL-C and was well tolerated in patients with statin-associated muscle complaints. Longer and larger studies are required to confirm the absence of muscle side effects

metaboprep: an R package for pre-analysis data description and processing

MOTIVATION: Metabolomics is an increasingly common part of health research and there is need for preanalytical data processing. Researchers typically need to characterize the data and to exclude errors within the context of the intended analysis. Whilst some preprocessing steps are common, there is currently a lack of standardization and reporting transparency for these procedures. RESULTS: Here, we introduce metaboprep, a standardized data processing workflow to extract and characterize high quality metabolomics datasets. The package extracts data from preformed worksheets, provides summary statistics and enables the user to select samples and metabolites for their analysis based on a set of quality metrics. A report summarizing quality metrics and the influence of available batch variables on the data are generated for the purpose of open disclosure. Where possible, we provide users flexibility in defining their own selection thresholds. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: metaboprep is an open-source R package available at https://github.com/MRCIEU/metaboprep. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online

Reduced-Order Modeling of Turbulent Reacting Flows with Application to Ramjets and Scramjets

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90621/1/AIAA-50272-117.pd

Antibacterial activity of Manuka honey and its components: An overview

The importance of honey for medicinal purposes is well documented in some of the world’s oldest literature. Honey is well known and studied for its antimicrobial properties. The medicinal properties in honey originate from the floral source used by bees. Manuka honey is a dark monofloral honey rich in phenolic content, and currently it is gaining much attention for its antimicrobial activity. Researchers have found that honey is effective against a wide range of pathogens. The antibacterial potency of Manuka honey was found to be related to the Unique Manuka Factor (UMF) rating, which is correlated with the methylglyoxal and total phenols content. It is reported that different types of Manuka honey have differing effects and Gram-negative bacteria are more resistant than Gram-positive bacteria. Bacterial resistance to honey as antimicrobial agent has yet to be identified, possibly due to the presence of a complex mixture of methylglyoxal and other components. Honey is also reported to alter a bacterium’s shape and size through septal ring alteration, which affects cell morphology and growth. Research has shown that Manuka honey of different UMF values has medicinal properties of interest and it can be beneficial when used as a combination treatment with other antimicrobial agent

Abnormal repetitive behaviors in zebrafish and their relevance to human brain disorders

Abnormal repetitive behaviors (ARBs) are a prominent symptom of numerous human brain disorders and are commonly seen in rodent models as well. While rodent studies of ARBs continue to dominate the field, mounting evidence suggests that zebrafish (Danio rerio) also display ARB-like phenotypes and may therefore be a novel model organism for ARB research. In addition to clear practical research advantages as a model species, zebrafish share high genetic and physiological homology to humans and rodents, including multiple ARB-related genes and robust behaviors relevant to ARB. Here, we discuss a wide spectrum of stereotypic repetitive behaviors in zebrafish, data on their genetic and pharmacological modulation, and the overall translational relevance of fish ARBs to modeling human brain disorders. Overall, the zebrafish is rapidly emerging as a new promising model to study ARBs and their underlying mechanisms. © 2019 Elsevier B.V

The WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey: constraining galaxy bias and cosmic growth with three-point correlation functions

Higher order statistics are a useful and complementary tool for measuring the clustering of galaxies, containing information on the non-Gaussian evolution and morphology of large-scale structure in the Universe. In this work we present measurements of th