Sr-Nd isotope geochemistry of the early Precambrian sub-alkaline mafic igneous rocks from the southern Bastar craton, Central India

Sr–Nd isotope data are reported for the early Precambrian sub-alkaline mafic igneous rocks of the southern Bastar craton, central India. These mafic rocks are mostly dykes but there are a few volcanic exposures. Field relationships together with the petrological and geochemical characteristics of these mafic dykes divide them into two groups; Meso-Neoarchaean sub-alkaline mafic dykes (BD1) and Paleoproterozoic (1.88 Ga) sub-alkaline mafic dykes (BD2). The mafic volcanics are Neoarchaean in age and have very close geochemical relationships with the BD1 type. The two groups have distinctly different concentrations of high-field strength (HFSE) and rare earth elements (REE). The BD2 dykes have higher concentrations of HFSE and REE than the BD1 dykes and associated volcanics and both groups have very distinctive petrogenetic histories. These rocks display a limited range of initial 143Nd/144Nd but a wide range of apparent initial 87Sr/86Sr. Initial 143Nd/144Nd values in the BD1 dykes and associated volcanics vary between 0.509149 and 0.509466 and in the BD2 dykes the variation is between 0.510303 and 0.510511. All samples have positive εNd values the BD1 dykes and associated volcanics have εNd values between +0.3 and +6.5 and the BD2 dykes between +1.9 to +6.0. Trace element and Nd isotope data do not suggest severe crustal contamination during the emplacement of the studied rocks. The positive εNd values suggest their derivation from a depleted mantle source. Overlapping positive εNd values suggest that a similar mantle source tapped by variable melt fractions at different times was responsible for the genesis of BD1 (and associated volcanics) and BD2 mafic dykes. The Rb–Sr system is susceptible to alteration and resetting during post-magmatic alteration and metamorphism. Many of the samples studied have anomalous apparent initial 87Sr/86Sr suggesting post-magmatic changes of the Rb–Sr system which severely restricts the use of Rb–Sr for petrogenetic interpretation

A conserved function of the zinc finger transcription factor Sp8/9 in allometric appendage growth in the milkweed bug Oncopeltus fasciatus

The genes encoding the closely related zinc finger transcription factors Buttonhead (Btd) and D-Sp1 are expressed in the developing limb primordia of Drosophila melanogaster and are required for normal growth of the legs. The D-Sp1 homolog of the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, Sp8 (appropriately termed Sp8/9), is also required for the proper growth of the leg segments. Here we report on the isolation and functional study of the Sp8/9 gene from the milkweed bug Oncopeltus fasciatus. We show that Sp8/9 is expressed in the developing appendages throughout development and that the downregulation of Sp8/9 via RNAi leads to antennae, rostrum, and legs with shortened and fused segments. This supports a conserved role of Sp8/9 in allometric leg segment growth. However, all leg segments including the claws are present and the expression of the leg genes Distal-less, dachshund, and homothorax are proportionally normal, thus providing no evidence for a role of Sp8/9 in appendage specification

CD44 and OTP are strong prognostic markers for pulmonary carcinoids

textabstractPurpose: Pulmonary carcinoids are well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors showing usually a favorable prognosis. However, there is a risk for late recurrence and/or distant metast

Insertional mutagenesis screening identifies the zinc finger homeodomain 2 (zfh2) gene as a novel factor required for embryonic leg development in Tribolium castaneum

The genetic control of leg development is well characterized in the fly Drosophila melanogaster. These control mechanisms, however, must differ to some degree between different insect species to account for the morphological diversity of thoracic legs in the insects. The legs of the flour beetle Tribolium castaneum differ from the Drosophila legs in their developmental mode as well as in their specific morphology especially at the larval stage. In order to identify genes involved in the morphogenesis of the Tribolium larval legs, we have analyzed EGFP enhancer trap lines of Tribolium. We have identified the zfh2 gene as a novel factor required for normal leg development in Tribolium. RNA interference with zfh2 function leads to two alternative classes of leg phenotype. The loss of a leg segment boundary and the generation of ectopic outgrowths in one class of phenotype suggest a role in leg segmentation and segment growth. The malformation of the pretarsal claw in the second class of phenotype suggests a role in distal development and the morphogenesis of the claw-shaped morphology of the pretarsus. This suggests that zfh2 is involved in the regulation of an unidentified target gene in a concentration-dependent manner. Our results demonstrate that enhancer trap screens in T. castaneum have the potential to identify novel gene functions regulating specific developmental processes

Risk-taking, delay discounting, and time perspective in adolescent gamblers: an experimental study

Previous research has demonstrated that adult pathological gamblers (compared to controls) show risk-proneness, foreshortened time horizon, and preference for immediate rewards. No study has ever examined the interplay of these factors in adolescent gambling. A total of 104 adolescents took part in the research. Two equal-number groups of adolescent non-problem and problem gamblers, defined using the South Oaks Gambling Screen-Revised for Adolescents (SOGS-RA), were administered the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), the Consideration of Future Consequences (CFC-14) Scale, and the Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ). Adolescent problem gamblers were found to be more risk-prone, more oriented to the present, and to discount delay rewards more steeply than adolescent non-problem gamblers. Results of logistic regression analysis revealed that BART, MCQ, and CFC scores predicted gambling severity. These novel finding provides the first evidence of an association among problematic gambling, high risk-taking proneness, steep delay discounting, and foreshortened time horizon among adolescents. It may be that excessive gambling induces shortsighted behaviors that, in turn, facilitate gambling involvement

Attitudes towards fibromyalgia: A survey of Canadian chiropractic, naturopathic, physical therapy and occupational therapy students

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The frequent use of chiropractic, naturopathic, and physical and occupational therapy by patients with fibromyalgia has been emphasized repeatedly, but little is known about the attitudes of these therapists towards this challenging condition.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We administered a cross-sectional survey to 385 senior Canadian chiropractic, naturopathic, physical and occupational therapy students in their final year of studies, that inquired about attitudes towards the diagnosis and management of fibromyalgia.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>336 students completed the survey (response rate 87%). While they disagreed about the etiology (primarily psychological 28%, physiological 23%, psychological and physiological 15%, unsure 34%), the majority (58%) reported that fibromyalgia was difficult to manage. Respondants were also conflicted in whether treatment should prioritize symptom relief (65%) or functional gains (85%), with the majority (58%) wanting to do both. The majority of respondents (57%) agreed that there was effective treatment for fibromyalgia and that they possessed the required clinical skills to manage patients (55%).</p> <p>Chiropractic students were most skeptical in regards to fibromyalgia as a useful diagnostic entity, and most likely to endorse a psychological etiology. In our regression model, only training in naturopathic medicine (unstandardized regression coefficient = 0.33; 95% confidence interval = 0.11 to 0.56) and the belief that effective therapies existed (unstandardized regression coefficient = 0.42; 95% confidence interval = 0.30 to 0.54) were associated with greater confidence in managing patients with fibromyalgia.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The majority of senior Canadian chiropractic, naturopathic, physical and occupational therapy students, and in particular those with naturopathic training, believe that effective treatment for fibromyalgia exists and that they possess the clinical skillset to effectively manage this disorder. The majority place high priority on both symptom relief and functional gains when treating fibromyalgia.</p

Coverage, Continuity and Visual Cortical Architecture

The primary visual cortex of many mammals contains a continuous representation of visual space, with a roughly repetitive aperiodic map of orientation preferences superimposed. It was recently found that orientation preference maps (OPMs) obey statistical laws which are apparently invariant among species widely separated in eutherian evolution. Here, we examine whether one of the most prominent models for the optimization of cortical maps, the elastic net (EN) model, can reproduce this common design. The EN model generates representations which optimally trade of stimulus space coverage and map continuity. While this model has been used in numerous studies, no analytical results about the precise layout of the predicted OPMs have been obtained so far. We present a mathematical approach to analytically calculate the cortical representations predicted by the EN model for the joint mapping of stimulus position and orientation. We find that in all previously studied regimes, predicted OPM layouts are perfectly periodic. An unbiased search through the EN parameter space identifies a novel regime of aperiodic OPMs with pinwheel densities lower than found in experiments. In an extreme limit, aperiodic OPMs quantitatively resembling experimental observations emerge. Stabilization of these layouts results from strong nonlocal interactions rather than from a coverage-continuity-compromise. Our results demonstrate that optimization models for stimulus representations dominated by nonlocal suppressive interactions are in principle capable of correctly predicting the common OPM design. They question that visual cortical feature representations can be explained by a coverage-continuity-compromise.Comment: 100 pages, including an Appendix, 21 + 7 figure

Right ventricular peak systolic longitudinal strain is a sensitive marker for right ventricular deterioration in adult patients with tetralogy of Fallot

The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of right ventricular (RV) longitudinal peak systolic strain (LPSS) assessment for the follow-up of adult patients with corrected tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). Adult patients (n = 18) with corrected TOF underwent echocardiography and CMR twice with a time interval of 4.2 ± 1.7 years. RV performance was derived from CMR, and included RV volumes and ejection fraction (EF). LPSS was calculated globally (GLPSS) and in the RV free wall (LPSS FW), with echocardiographic speckle-tracking strain-analysis. Baseline (G)LPSS values were compared between patients and healthy controls; the relation between (G)LPSS and CMR parameters was evaluated and the changes in (G)LPSS and CMR parameters during follow-up were compared. GLPSS and LPSS FW were significantly reduced in patients as compared to controls (−14.9 ± 0.7% vs. −21.6 ± 0.9% and −15.5 ± 0.9% vs. −22.7 ± 1.5%, P < 0.01). Moderate agreement between LPSS and CMR parameters was observed. RV EF remained unchanged during follow-up, whereas GLPSS and LPSS FW demonstrated a significant reduction. RVEF showed a 1% increase, whereas GLPSS decreased by 14%, and LPSS FW by 27%. RV LPSS is reduced in TOF patients as compared to controls; during follow-up RV EF remained unchanged whereas LPSS decreased suggesting that RV LPSS may be a sensitive marker to detect early deterioration in RV performance

Efficient Visual Search from Synchronized Auditory Signals Requires Transient Audiovisual Events

BACKGROUND: A prevailing view is that audiovisual integration requires temporally coincident signals. However, a recent study failed to find any evidence for audiovisual integration in visual search even when using synchronized audiovisual events. An important question is what information is critical to observe audiovisual integration. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we demonstrate that temporal coincidence (i.e., synchrony) of auditory and visual components can trigger audiovisual interaction in cluttered displays and consequently produce very fast and efficient target identification. In visual search experiments, subjects found a modulating visual target vastly more efficiently when it was paired with a synchronous auditory signal. By manipulating the kind of temporal modulation (sine wave vs. square wave vs. difference wave; harmonic sine-wave synthesis; gradient of onset/offset ramps) we show that abrupt visual events are required for this search efficiency to occur, and that sinusoidal audiovisual modulations do not support efficient search. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Thus, audiovisual temporal alignment will only lead to benefits in visual search if the changes in the component signals are both synchronized and transient. We propose that transient signals are necessary in synchrony-driven binding to avoid spurious interactions with unrelated signals when these occur close together in time

Exact model reduction of combinatorial reaction networks

Receptors and scaffold proteins usually possess a high number of distinct binding domains inducing the formation of large multiprotein signaling complexes. Due to combinatorial reasons the number of distinguishable species grows exponentially with the number of binding domains and can easily reach several millions. Even by including only a limited number of components and binding domains the resulting models are very large and hardly manageable. A novel model reduction technique allows the significant reduction and modularization of these models