Jurassic Redbeds of the Connecticut Valley: (1) Brownstones of the Portland Formation; and (2) Playa-Playa Lake-Oligomictic Lake Model for Parts of the East Berlin, Shuttle Meadow, and Portland Formations

Guidebook for field trips in Connecticut and south central Massachusetts: New England Intercollegiate Geological Conference 74th annual meeting, University of Connecticut, Storrs Connecticut , October 2 and 3, 1982: Trip M-

Magnetoresistance Anisotropy of Polycrystalline Cobalt Films: Geometrical-Size- and Domain-Effects

The magnetoresistance (MR) of 10 nm to 200 nm thin polycrystalline Co-films, deposited on glass and insulating Si(100), is studied in fields up to 120 kOe, aligned along the three principal directions with respect to the current: longitudinal, transverse (in-plane), and polar (out-of-plane). At technical saturation, the anisotropic MR (AMR) in polar fields turns out to be up to twice as large as in transverse fields, which resembles the yet unexplained geometrical size-effect (GSE), previously reported for Ni- and Permalloy films. Upon increasing temperature, the polar and transverse AMR's are reduced by phonon-mediated sd-scattering, but their ratio, i.e. the GSE remains unchanged. Basing on Potters's theory [Phys.Rev.B 10, 4626(1974)], we associate the GSE with an anisotropic effect of the spin-orbit interaction on the sd-scattering of the minority spins due to a film texture. Below magnetic saturation, the magnitudes and signs of all three MR's depend significantly on the domain structures depicted by magnetic force microscopy. Based on hysteresis loops and taking into account the GSE within an effective medium approach, the three MR's are explained by the different magnetization processes in the domain states. These reveal the importance of in-plane uniaxial anisotropy and out-of-plane texture for the thinnest and thickest films, respectively.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figure

Biological Markers in Lower Jurassic Synrift Lacustrine Black Shales, Hartford Basin, Connecticut, U.S.A.

The East Berlin Formation (Lower Jurassic, Hartford basin, Connecticut, U.S.A.) is distinctive for its six cyclic units of lacustrine black shale and gray mudstone. separated by playa and fluvial redbeds. The black shales arc each about a meter thick and were deposited in subtropical, thermally stratified, oligomictic lakes, the youngest of which (lakes 3 through 6) were large enough to flood most of the basin and attained depths of several tens of meters. The saturate fractions of solvent extracts of organic-rich black shales from each of the six lakes, collected at fresh roadcuts near East Berlin, arc dominated by extended homologous series of n-alkanes, alkylcyclohexanes, and branched chain alkanes. A striking feature of the black shales is the presence of a series of extended tricyclic terpanes from C20 to at least C41. Hopanes arc either not detectable or present only in subordinate quantities relative to the tricyclic terpanes. The samples arc depleted in hopanes in part because of the elevated maturity level (mid to late oil window). Tricyclic terpane concentrations may also have been enhanced by fractionation effects related to oil expulsion out of the black shales. In addition, the original organic matter may have been exceptionally rich in tricyclic terpane precursors, i.e. fossil lipids of prokaryotes present in anoxic, moderately saline, alkaline lakes

Involvement of Transcription Factor NR2F2 in Human Trophoblast Differentiation

differentiation of human villous cytotrophoblast (CTB) cells to a syncytiotrophoblast (STB) phenotype, mRNA levels for the nuclear hormone receptor NR2F2 (ARP-1, COUP-TFII) increase rapidly, reaching a peak at day 1 of differentiation that is 8.8-fold greater than that in undifferentiated CTB cells. To examine whether NR2F2 is involved in the regulation of villous CTB cell differentiation, studies were performed to determine whether NR2F2 regulates the expression of TFAP2A (AP-2α), a transcription factor that is critical for the terminal differentiation of these cells to a STB phenotype.Overexpression of NR2F2 in primary cultures of human CTB cells and JEG-3 human choriocarcinoma cells induced dose-dependent increases in TFAP2A promoter activity. Conversely, siRNA mediated silencing of the NR2F2 gene in villous CTB undergoing spontaneous differentiation blocked the induction of the mRNAs for TFAP2A and several STB cell specific marker genes, including human placental lactogen (hPL), pregnancy specific glycoprotein 1 (PSG1) and corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) by 51–59%. The induction of TFAP2A promoter activity by NR2F2 was potentiated by the nuclear hormone receptors retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARA) and retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRA).Taken together, these results strongly suggest that NR2F2 is involved in villous CTB cell differentiation and that NR2F2 acts, at least in part, by directly activating TFAP2A gene expression and by potentiating the transactivation of TFAP2A by RARA and RXRA

Polarity of T Cell Shape, Motility, and Sensitivity to Antigen

AbstractT cell activation requires contact with APCs. We used optical techniques to demonstrate T cell polarity on the basis of shape, motility, and localized sensitivity to antigen. An intracellular Ca2+ clamp showed that T cell shape and motility are extremely sensitive to changes in [Ca2+]i (Kd = 200 nM), with immobilization and rounding occurring via a calcineurin-independent pathway. Ca2+-dependent immobilization prolonged T cell contact with the antigen-presenting B cell; buffering the [Ca2+]i signal prevented the formation of stable cell pairs. Optical tweezers revealed spatial T cell sensitivity to antigen by controlling placement on the T cell surface of either B cells or α-CD3 MAb-coated beads. T cells were 4-fold more sensitive to contact made at the leading edge of the T cell compared with the tail. We conclude that motile T cells are polarized antigen sensors that respond physically to [Ca2+]i signals to stabilize their interaction with APCs

Fatigue in Patients with Lung Cancer Is Related with Accelerated Tryptophan Breakdown

BACKGROUND: Patients with cancer often suffer from fatigue and decreased quality of life which might be related to the breakdown of essential amino acid tryptophan. METHODS: In 50 patients with lung cancer we examined fatigue and the deterioration of quality of life in patients using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy Anemia (FACT-An) and -Fatigue (FACT-F) subscales of FACT-General and the Mental adjustment to Cancer (MAC) questionnaires. Results were compared with tryptophan breakdown as well as serum concentrations of immune activation markers. RESULTS: Scores of psychological tests correlated significantly with tryptophan breakdown and with circulatory markers of inflammation. However, immune activation and tryptophan breakdown were not related to MAC scores. CONCLUSIONS: Tryptophan breakdown relates with fatigue and impaired quality of life in patients with lung cancer, while declining tryptophan levels are not associated with patients'coping strategies

Organic Geochemistry of a Lower Jurassic Synrift Lacustrine Sequence, Hartford Basin, Connecticut, U.S.A.

Synrift terrestrial strata of the Lower Jurassic East Berlin Formation (Hartford basin, Connecticut, U.S.A.) record cyclical expansion and contraction of major lakes, six of which were deep enough to develop anoxic bottom waters. We have studied one representative lacustrine sequence in detail, sampling a new roadcut near the village of East Berlin. The section examined is 4 m thick, with a gray siltstone at the base, deposited in shallow water, overlain by an organic-rich black shale (deep water), succeeded in turn by another gray siltstone, deposited as the lake waters gradually receded. The upper gray siltstone is chemically distinct from the lower siltstone, as it contains small amounts of corrensite, analcime and gypsum, reflecting the increasing salinity and alkalinity of the contracting lake. The samples in the center of the black shale unit contain laminae of thermally-altered, yellowish orange-fluorescing, mottled telalginite. The fluorescence properties indicate a peak oil generation maturity level, confirmed by a vitrinite reflectance of 1.13% and a Methylphenanthrene Index of 1.08. The other samples have less organic matter, becoming increasingly lean towards the top and bottom of the sequence. Samples in the middle of the black shale unit are distinguished by the presence of an homologous series of tricyclic terpanes extending from C20 to at least C41 , and by the near absence of hopanes and steranes. Moving upsection into the gray siltstone, the samples contain markedly less extractable organic material (EOM) and the concentration of tricyclic terpanes relative to hopanes steadily decreases. In the uppermost sample, hopanes are the predominant terpanes. Moving downsection from the black shale into the lower gray siltstone, EOM and the ratio of tricyclic terpanes also decrease, except in the lowermost samples, which contain terpane distributions like those of the middle part of the black shale. This likely is migrated material, because bitumen fills microfractures and extensive megafractures. The lack of hopanes and steranes in the black shales cannot simply be a maturation effect, as these biomarkers appear in the adjacent beds. Instead, the unusual terpane distributions may indicate a changing depositional environment, documenting the geochemical evolution of the lake. Or, more likely, they may result from fractionation during expulsion of petroleum from these mature source rocks

African-Americans and the Administration of Justice

The status of African Americans in relationship to the administration of justice has improved since the 1940s. Significantly, however, researchers continue to find racial discrimination and racial disadvantage operating in various aspects of the criminal justice process in numerous jurisdictions. Such findings are unacceptable in a society that claims to honor equal justice under law. This article is reprinted from Summary, Volume 1 of the Assessment of the Status of African-Americans series, published in 1990 by the William Monroe Trotter Institute, University of Massachusetts at Boston, and edited by Wornie L. Reed. Materials included in the article were adapted from papers submitted by members of the Assessment of the Status of African-Americans Study Group on Political Participation and the Administration of Justice

Uncertainty Analysis in Population-Based Disease Microsimulation Models

Objective. Uncertainty analysis (UA) is an important part of simulation model validation. However, literature is imprecise as to how UA should be performed in the context of population-based microsimulation (PMS) models. In this expository paper, we discuss a practical approach to UA for such models. Methods. By adapting common concepts from published UA guidelines, we developed a comprehensive, step-by-step approach to UA in PMS models, including sample size calculation to reduce the computational time. As an illustration, we performed UA for POHEM-OA, a microsimulation model of osteoarthritis (OA) in Canada. Results. The resulting sample size of the simulated population was 500,000 and the number of Monte Carlo (MC) runs was 785 for 12-hour computational time. The estimated 95% uncertainty intervals for the prevalence of OA in Canada in 2021 were 0.09 to 0.18 for men and 0.15 to 0.23 for women. The uncertainty surrounding the sex-specific prevalence of OA increased over time. Conclusion. The proposed approach to UA considers the challenges specific to PMS models, such as selection of parameters and calculation of MC runs and population size to reduce computational burden. Our example of UA shows that the proposed approach is feasible. Estimation of uncertainty intervals should become a standard practice in the reporting of results from PMS models