Phenology and Infestation Patterns of the Cottonwood Twig Borer (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in Iowa

Cottonwood twig borer, Gypsonoma haimbachiana (Lepidoptera: Totricidae), phenology and infestation patterns on Populus spp. were examined over a 2-year period in Iowa. Weekly sampling of infested shoots during the host growing season verified the existence of five instars. Head capsule size increased nonlinearly from the first to the fifth instar and corresponded to a concomitant geometric increase in the volume of larval feeding galleries. The sampling indicated that the cottonwood twig borer had two generations per year in Iowa. Corresponding with the two generations, two peaks of larval abundance were observed; one in the second week of June and the other in the first week of August. Greater volume of feeding galleries occurred in the early season generation compared with the late season generation. Sampling of infested shoots revealed that more than 80% of infested terminals contained only one active attack (freshly bored hole in tree terminal with frass present); more than 88% of feeding galleries contained only one larva; and more than 80% of the larvae were found in the first active attack nearest the terminal apex. These data were compared with results published on the phenology and attack patterns of the cottonwood twig borer in the southern United States

Phenology and Infestation Patterns of the Cottonwood Twig Borer (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in Iowa

Cottonwood twig borer, Gypsonoma haimbachiana (Lepidoptera: Totricidae), phenology and infestation patterns on Populus spp. were examined over a 2-year period in Iowa. Weekly sampling of infested shoots during the host growing season verified the existence of five instars. Head capsule size increased nonlinearly from the first to the fifth instar and corresponded to a concomitant geometric increase in the volume of larval feeding galleries. The sampling indicated that the cottonwood twig borer had two generations per year in Iowa. Corresponding with the two generations, two peaks of larval abundance were observed; one in the second week of June and the other in the first week of August. Greater volume of feeding galleries occurred in the early season generation compared with the late season generation. Sampling of infested shoots revealed that more than 80% of infested terminals contained only one active attack (freshly bored hole in tree terminal with frass present); more than 88% of feeding galleries contained only one larva; and more than 80% of the larvae were found in the first active attack nearest the terminal apex. These data were compared with results published on the phenology and attack patterns of the cottonwood twig borer in the southern United States

Serum kynurenic acid is reduced in affective psychosis

A subgroup of individuals with mood and psychotic disorders shows evidence of inflammation that leads to activation of the kynurenine pathway and the increased production of neuroactive kynurenine metabolites. Depression is hypothesized to be causally associated with an imbalance in the kynurenine pathway, with an increased metabolism down the 3-hydroxykynurenine (3HK) branch of the pathway leading to increased levels of the neurotoxic metabolite, quinolinic acid (QA), which is a putative Nmethyl- D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor agonist. In contrast, schizophrenia and psychosis are hypothesized to arise from increased metabolism of the NMDA receptor antagonist, kynurenic acid (KynA), leading to hypofunction of GABAergic interneurons, the disinhibition of pyramidal neurons and striatal hyperdopaminergia. Here we present results that challenge the model of excess KynA production in affective psychosis. After rigorous control of potential confounders and multiple testing we find significant reductions in serum KynA and/or KynA/QA in acutely ill inpatients with major depressive disorder (N = 35), bipolar disorder (N = 53) and schizoaffective disorder (N = 40) versus healthy controls (N = 92). No significant difference was found between acutely ill inpatients with schizophrenia (n = 21) and healthy controls. Further, a post hoc comparison of patients divided into the categories of non-psychotic affective disorder, affective psychosis and psychotic disorder (non-affective) showed that the greatest decrease in KynA was in the affective psychosis group relative to the other diagnostic groups. Our results are consistent with reports of elevations in proinflammatory cytokines in psychosis, and preclinical work showing that inflammation upregulates the enzyme, kynurenine mono-oxygenase (KMO), which converts kynurenine into 3-hydroxykynurenine and quinolinic acid

Executive function predicts school readiness in autistic and typical preschool children

Children’s emerging executive functions (EF) have been shown to be critical for a whole range of other functions, including school readiness and later academic success. Here we examine for the first time whether individual differences in EF are uniquely associated with autistic children’s readiness to learn in school, beyond general and developmental influences in age and ability. Thirty autistic and 30 typical preschool children, matched on age and ability, were assessed on EF (working memory, inhibition, set-shifting) and school readiness measures. Autistic children performed significantly worse on school readiness measures and EF measures relative to typical children. Furthermore, individual differences in children’s EF skills, especially in inhibitory control and working memory, were uniquely related to variation in their school readiness for both autistic and non-autistic children. The findings from this cross-sectional study provide further support for the potential role of EF in explaining the variability in autistic children’s functional outcomes

Comparison of Space Launch System Aerodynamic Surface Pressure Measurements from Experimental Testing and CFD

A comparison of surface pressure coefficient measurements obtained using pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) measurements with predictions from the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code FUN3D is presented for the NASA SLS Block 1B crew vehicle. Overall, the flow features over the SLS configuration were captured by both the PSP data and CFD data at freestream Mach numbers (M(sub )) of 0.8 and 1.3. Overall, the flow features over the SLS are captured by the PSP data but the intensities of large pressure gradients are less intense than what was predicted by the CFD data. Several examples of this observation are given including the flow interaction at the booster nose cone edge, core body, and forward booster attachment hardware at M(sub ) = 0.8

Preliminary Test Results for Stability and Control Characteristics of a Generic T-Tail Transport Airplane at High Angle of Attack

Tests of a generic T-tail transport airplane, in flaps-up configuration, were conducted using two wind tunnels, a water tunnel, and computational fluid dynamics. Static force and moment testing, forced oscillation testing and dye flow visualization test techniques were used. The purpose of the testing was to obtain stability and control characteristics for development of a research flight simulator aerodynamic database. The purpose of that database was for assessment of aerodynamic model fidelity requirements to train airline pilots to recognize and recover from full stall conditions. Preliminary results, at initial stall conditions, include: an unstable stall pitch break, and near-neutral roll damping. Preliminary results, at deep stall conditions, include: a potential static longitudinal trim condition at approximately 35 degrees angle of attack, large aerodynamic asymmetries, and localized unstable dynamic stability

An empirical approach towards the efficient and optimal production of influenza-neutralizing ovine polyclonal antibodies demonstrates that the novel adjuvant CoVaccine HT(TM) is functionally superior to Freund's adjuvant

Passive immunotherapies utilising polyclonal antibodies could have a valuable role in preventing and treating infectious diseases such as influenza, particularly in pandemic situations but also in immunocompromised populations such as the elderly, the chronically immunosuppressed, pregnant women, infants and those with chronic diseases. The aim of this study was to optimise current methods used to generate ovine polyclonal antibodies. Polyclonal antibodies to baculovirus-expressed recombinant influenza haemagglutinin from A/Puerto Rico/8/1934 H1N1 (PR8) were elicited in sheep using various immunisation regimens designed to investigate the priming immunisation route, adjuvant formulation, sheep age, and antigen dose, and to empirically ascertain which combination maximised antibody output. The novel adjuvant CoVaccine HT™ was compared to Freund’s adjuvant which is currently the adjuvant of choice for commercial production of ovine polyclonal Fab therapies. CoVaccine HT™ induced significantly higher titres of functional ovine anti-haemagglutinin IgG than Freund’s adjuvant but with fewer side effects, including reduced site reactions. Polyclonal hyperimmune sheep sera effectively neutralised influenza virus in vitro and, when given before or after influenza virus challenge, prevented the death of infected mice. Neither the age of the sheep nor the route of antigen administration appeared to influence antibody titre. Moreover, reducing the administrated dose of haemagglutinin antigen minimally affected antibody titre. Together, these results suggest a cost effective way of producing high and sustained yields of functional ovine polyclonal antibodies specifically for the prevention and treatment of globally significant diseases.Natalie E. Stevens, Cara K. Fraser, Mohammed Alsharifi, Michael P. Brown, Kerrilyn R. Diener, John D. Haybal

Muscle-specific ablation of glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) does not impair basal or overload-stimulated skeletal muscle glucose uptake

Glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) is believed to solely mediate basal (insulin-independent) glucose uptake in skeletal muscle; yet recent work has demonstrated that mechanical overload, a model of resistance exercise training, increases muscle GLUT1 levels. The primary objective of this study was to determine if GLUT1 is necessary for basal or overload-stimulated muscle glucose uptake. Muscle-specific GLUT1 knockout (mGLUT1KO) mice were generated and examined for changes in body weight, body composition, metabolism, systemic glucose regulation, muscle glucose transporters, and muscle

(Un)becoming women: Indian factory women's counternarratives of gender

This paper portrays the life stories of five factory workers in Delhi whose life trajectories run counter to normative femininity. As daughters and wives, they are neglected, abandoned or rejected by their families; they live alone, with their parents past the age that is their natal right, with siblings, or with families and men who are not related to them. I explore the circulation of their counternarratives and how their gender transgressions go public through ordinary forms of talk, such as gossip and rumor. I argue that their move out of the normative is not produced by, but produces, their gender politics; that their agency emerges cognitively from the telling of their stories in tandem with their interlocutors' credulity and uptake; and that the site of gender politics for working class Indian women lies in the informal subaltern publics that are formed by the circulation of their stories. Contrary to the notion of a stable unitary subject that precedes the political, these women's counternarratives demonstrate the subject‐in‐process as a political effect. Their alterity does not exist outside the heteronormative gender order but demarcates the boundaries of its historicity, hinting at both the internal contradictions of existing gender relations and their future possibilities.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/112196/1/j.1467-954X.2011.02026.x.pd