Matrix bandwidth and profile reduction

This program, REDUCE, reduces the bandwidth and profile of sparse symmetric matrices, using row and corresponding column permutations. It is a realization of the algorithm described by the authors elsewhere. It was extensively tested and compared with several other programs and was found to be considerably faster than the others, superior for bandwidth reduction and as satisfactory as any other for profile reduction

The replacement histone H2A.Z in a hyperacetylated form is a feature of active genes in the chicken

The replacement histone H2A.Z is variously reported as being linked to gene expression and preventing the spread of heterochromatin in yeast, or concentrated at heterochromatin in mammals. To resolve this apparent dichotomy, affinity-purified antibodies against the N-terminal region of H2A.Z, in both a triacetylatedandnon- acetylatedstate, areusedin native chromatin immmuno-precipitation experiments with mononucleosomes from three chicken cell types. The hyperacetylated species concentrates at the 50 end of active genes, both tissue specific and housekeeping but is absent from inactive genes, while the unacetylated form is absent from both active and inactive genes. A concentration of H2A.Z is also found at insulators under circumstances implying a link to barrier activity but not to enhancer blocking. Although acetylated H2A.Z is widespread throughout the interphase genome, at mitosis its acetylation is erased, the unmodified form remaining. Thus, although H2A.Z may operate as an epigenetic marker for active genes, its N-terminal acetylation does not

The replacement histone H2A.Z in a hyperacetylated form is a feature of active genes in the chicken

The replacement histone H2A.Z is variously reported as being linked to gene expression and preventing the spread of heterochromatin in yeast, or concentrated at heterochromatin in mammals. To resolve this apparent dichotomy, affinity-purified antibodies against the N-terminal region of H2A.Z, in both a triacetylatedandnon- acetylatedstate, areusedin native chromatin immmuno-precipitation experiments with mononucleosomes from three chicken cell types. The hyperacetylated species concentrates at the 50 end of active genes, both tissue specific and housekeeping but is absent from inactive genes, while the unacetylated form is absent from both active and inactive genes. A concentration of H2A.Z is also found at insulators under circumstances implying a link to barrier activity but not to enhancer blocking. Although acetylated H2A.Z is widespread throughout the interphase genome, at mitosis its acetylation is erased, the unmodified form remaining. Thus, although H2A.Z may operate as an epigenetic marker for active genes, its N-terminal acetylation does not

Differential localization and expression of complement in a rat model of motor neuron disease

ComBio is the major ASBMB conference held each year, in association with other organisations. This page has links to past, current and future ComBio meetings. Further information and links will be placed online as they become available

Exploring the interdependencies of research funders in the UK

Investment in medical research is vital to the continuing improvement of the UK's health and wealth. It is through research that we expand our understanding of disease and develop new treatments for patients. Medical research charities currently contribute over £1 billion annually to medical research in the UK, of which over £350 million is provided by Cancer Research UK. Many charities, including Cancer Research UK, receive no government funding for their research activity. Cancer Research UK is engaged in a programme of work in order to better understand the medical research funding environment and demonstrate the importance of sustained investment. A key part of that is the Office of Health Economics‟ (OHE) 2011 report “Exploring the interdependency between public and charitable medical research”. This study found that there are substantial benefits, both financial and qualitative, from the existence of a variety of funders and that reductions in the level of government financial support for medical research are likely to have broader negative effects. This contributed to other evidence which found that the activities and funding of the charity, public and private sectors respectively are complementary, i.e. mutually reinforcing, rather than duplicative or merely substituting for one another. “Exploring the interdependencies of research funders in the UK” by the Office of Health Economics (OHE) and SPRU: Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Sussex, represents a continued effort to build the evidence base around the funding of medical research. This report uncovers the extent to which funders of cancer research are interdependent, nationally and internationally. Key figures show that two thirds of publications acknowledging external support have relied on multiple funders, while just under half benefited from overseas funding, and almost a fifth are also supported by industry. In addition the analysis shows that the general public would not want tax funding of cancer research to be reduced, but would not donate enough to charities to compensate for any such reduction

Promoting healthy eating in pregnancy: What kind of support services do women say they want?

Aim: To identify characteristics of the services and support women want to enable them to eat healthily during pregnancy to make a potential future service acceptable to this population. Background: An unhealthy diet during pregnancy may have a significant influence on pregnancy outcome, either directly through nutrient deficiencies or indirectly through maternal weight gain. Many pregnant women in the United Kingdom gain too much weight in pregnancy, and this weight gain may lead to an increased risk of preeclampsia, gestational diabetes and having an obese child. Thus, there is a need for interventions aimed at improving healthy eating in pregnancy. It is crucial in developing successful interventions to understand how participation can be maximised by optimising intervention acceptability. Methods: Four focus groups were conducted; two with prenatal women (n = 9) and two with postnatal women (n = 14). Discussion focused on identifying relevant characteristics of a service targeting prenatal and postnatal women's eating to ensure that a future service was acceptable to the women. Findings: The participants’ responses were clustered into three broad themes: (1) early information leading to routine formation of healthier eating habits, (2) the delivery of practical sessions to increase information and (3) health professionals providing support and signposting to services. The participants reported wanting a practical service held in a convenient location, preferably led by women who have been pregnant themselves. The participants also reported wanting to be offered this service in pregnancy to help them get into a routine before they gave birth. Several suggestions for how this service should be marketed were mentioned, including through midwives and the internet. This research provides practical information for how to design support for prenatal women to increase their knowledge and practical skills regarding eating healthily during their pregnancy

NGC 1866: First Spectroscopic Detection of Fast Rotating Stars in a Young LMC Cluster

High-resolution spectroscopic observations were taken of 29 extended main sequence turn-off (eMSTO) stars in the young ($\sim$200 Myr) LMC cluster, NGC 1866 using the Michigan/Magellan Fiber System and MSpec spectrograph on the Magellan-Clay 6.5-m telescope. These spectra reveal the first direct detection of rapidly rotating stars whose presence has only been inferred from photometric studies. The eMSTO stars exhibit H-alpha emission (indicative of Be-star decretion disks), others have shallow broad H-alpha absorption (consistent with rotation $\gtrsim$150 km s$^{-1}$), or deep H-alpha core absorption signaling lower rotation velocities ($\lesssim$150 km s$^{-1}$ ). The spectra appear consistent with two populations of stars - one rapidly rotating, and the other, younger and slowly rotating.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Magellanic Cloud X-ray Sources: III. Completion of a ROSAT Survey

This paper concludes a series of three papers presenting ROSAT High-Resolution Imager (HRI) observations of unidentified Einstein and serendipitous ROSAT X-ray sources in the direction of the Magellanic Clouds. Accurate positions and fluxes have been measured for these sources. Optical photometry and spectroscopy were obtained to search for identifications in order to determine the physical nature of these sources. The present paper includes new data for 24 objects; identifications are given or confirmed for 30 sources. For six sources optical finding charts showing the X-ray positions are provided. The results from this program are summarized, showing the populations of luminous X-ray sources in the Magellanic Clouds are quite different from those in the Galaxy.Comment: 28 pages, 2 figures; to appear in Astronomical Journa

A multi-scalar perspective on health and urban housing: an umbrella review

With more than half the world’s population living in cities, understanding how the built environment impacts human health at different urban scales is crucial. To be able to shape cities for health, an understanding is needed of planetary health impacts, which encompass the human health impacts of human-caused disruptions on the Earth’s natural ecosystems. This umbrella review maps health evidence across the spatial scales of the built environment (building; neighbourhood; and wider system, including city, regional and planetary levels), with a specific focus on urban housing. Systematic reviews published in English between January 2011 and December 2020 were searched across 20 databases, with 1176 articles identified and 124 articles screened for inclusion. Findings suggests that most evidence reports on health determinants at the neighbourhood level, such as greenspace, physical and socio-economic conditions, transport infrastructure and access to local services. Physical health outcomes are also primarily reported, with an emerging interest in mental health outcomes. There is little evidence on planetary health outcomes and significant gaps in the research literature are identified. Based on these findings, three potential directions are identified for future research

How to find discrete contact symmetries

This paper describes a new algorithm for determining all discrete contact symmetries of any differential equation whose Lie contact symmetries are known. The method is constructive and is easy to use. It is based upon the observation that the adjoint action of any contact symmetry is an automorphism of the Lie algebra of generators of Lie contact symmetries. Consequently, all contact symmetries satisfy various compatibility conditions. These conditions enable the discrete symmetries to be found systematically, with little effort