Identification of Coliphages in the Aviary at Brookgreen Gardens and the Factors that Might Influence Coliphage Population Dynamics in this Cypress Swamp Environment

It has been understood that the presence of coliphages (bacteriophages specific for E. coli) in water is an indirect measurement of fecal contamination. Bacteriophages have been suggested to hold an important role in regulating the bacterial population. This pilot study analyzes the relationship between the presence of coliphages in the water in the aviary at Brookgreen Gardens and how environmental factors such as temperature, pH, and turbidity affect the presence of these viruses over the time period of three months (June 2017 through August 2017). Coliphages found in volary water sources were speculated to be deposited directly by birds that live in the Brookgreen Gardens aviary. These birds remain in an enclosed area, thus making the location a reservoir potentially rich in bacteriophage number and diversity. Plaque assays were conducted to look for the presence of the coliphages. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis was conducted on all samples collected in order to characterize any possible coliphages identified via plaque assays. The results gathered from both microbial (plaque assay) and molecular (PCR) methods varied immensely, with numerous positive results found at each site for each week of analysis over the three-month period. All PCR tests conducted on samples were deemed negative for coliphage presence, indicating that these coliphages are especially unique or may be RNA-based. These findings confirm that there are indeed bacteriophages present in the Brookgreen Gardens aviary, and that pH, turbidity, and temperature did not appear to play a prominent role in the presence of the coliphages. The location in the aviary which yielded the most positive results (Site 1) was the site at which the birds were most frequently observed defecating, providing indirect evidence that the fecal matter of the birds is the most important factor in bacteriophage presence

EFEK PROTEKTIF EKSTRAK BERAS HITAM (Oryza sativa L.) TERHADAP PEMBENTUKAN SEL BUSA PADA TIKUS WISTAR (Rattus norvegicus) YANG DI BERI DIET PRODISLIPIDEMIA

ABSTRACT Cardiovascular disease is a disease with a high prevalence level lately and a major disease that killed men and women in The United States of America, Europe and most of many countries in Asia. Clinical studies tells that cardiovascular disease correlated with atheroma (atherosclerotic plaque) and its complication like thrombosis. Hence, in order to prevent and handle atherosclerotic, it’s important to take steps to increase antioxidative status and to hamper hyperlipidemia and inflammation on the victim. One of the natural food ingredients with high antioxidant is the black rice which is a functional food with high antioxidant (anthocyanin). To know protection effect from black rice extract in the formation foam cells on wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus). The research type is experimental laboratory with posttest only control group design, with 27 wistar rats which divided into 3 groups. The black rice extract will be given via tube feeding with 2ml dose each day. In 28th day the rat will be determine, and the aortic arth will be taken to histopathological test. The web will be colored with papanicolaou stain technique. The research results showed the K3 (BR2) group as a normal control group, the foam cells formation didn’t occur. On K2 (DPD+BR2) group as a negative control group showed there were foam cells formation in the 28th day. On K1 (DPD in 14 days and continued with black rice diet in 7 days) showed the tunica media was changed, which is the less foam cell formation in the tunica media. The black rice extract have a positive effect in the formation foam cell to the rat that has been given pro dyslipidemia diet (DPD). The black rice can be used as a functional food ingredients that can  give good nutrients for health. Keywords : Black Rice, Atherosclerotic, Foam Cells, Wistar Rats, Rattus norvegicus, Anthocyanin. ABSTRAK Penyakit kardiovaskuler merupakan penyakit dengan tingkat prevalensi yang tinggi akhir-akhir ini dan merupakan pembunuh utama pria dan wanita di Amerika Serikat, Eropa dan sebagian Asia. Studi klinis telah menunjukkan bahwa penyakit kardiovaskuler berkorelasi dengan ateroma (plak aterosklerosis) beserta komplikasinya seperti trombosis. Oleh karena itu, dalam pencegahan dan penanganan aterosklerosis, penting untuk mengambil langkah-langkah untuk meningkatkan status antioksidatif dan untuk menghambat hiperlipidemia serta inflamasi pada penderita. Salah satu bahan makanan alami yang kaya antioksidan adalah beras hitam yang merupakan pangan fungsional yang kaya antioksidan (antosianin). Mengetahui efek protektif ekstrak beras hitam terhadap pembentukan sel busa pada tikus wistar (Rattus novergicus). Jenis penelitian yang digunakan adalah penelitian experimental laboratorik dengan menggunakan rancangan posttest only control group design. berjumlah 27 ekor tikus dibagi menjadi 3 kelompok. Ekstrak beras hitam diberikan melalui tube feeding dengan dosis 2ml perhari. Pada hari ke 28 hewan coba akan diterminasi, dan diambil arcus aortanya untuk pemeriksaan histopatologi. Jaringan diwarnai menggunakan teknik pewarnaan papanicolaou. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan kelompok K3 (BR2) sebagai kelompok kontrol normal menunjukkan tidak terjadi pembentukan sel busa. Pada kelompok K2 (DPD+BR2) sebagai kelompok kontrol negatif terjadi pembentukan sel busa pada hari ke 28. Pada kelompok perlakuan K1 (DPD selama 14 hari dan dilanjutkan dengan diet ekstrak beras hitam selama 7 hari) menunjukkan adanya perubahan pada tunika media, ini ditandai dengan sedikitnya penumpukan sel busa yang berada pada tunika media. Ekstrak beras hitam mempunyai efek protektif terhadap pembentukan sel busa pada tikus yang diberikan diet Pro-Dislipidemia (DPD). Beras hitam dapat digunakan sebagai bahan pangan fungsional yang memberikan manfaat bagi kesehatan. Kata Kunci : Beras Hitam, Aterosklerosis, Sel Busa, Rattus norvegicus, Antosianin

The \u3ci\u3eLATERAL ROOT DENSITY\u3c/i\u3e gene regulates root growth during water stress in wheat

Drought stress is the major limiting factor in agriculture. Wheat, which is the most widely grown crop in the world, is predominantly cultivated in drought-prone rainfed environments. Since roots play a critical role in water uptake, root response to water limitations is an important component for enhancing wheat adaptation. In an effort to discover novel genetic sources for improving wheat adaptation, we characterized a wheat translocation line with a chromosomal segment from Agropyron elongatum, a wild relative of wheat, which unlike common wheat maintains root growth under limited-water conditions. By exploring the root transcriptome data, we found that reduced transcript level of LATERAL ROOT DENSITY (LRD) gene under limited water in the Agropyron translocation line confers it the ability to maintain root growth. The Agropyron allele of LRD is down-regulated in response to water limitation in contrast with the wheat LRD allele, which is up-regulated by water deficit stress. Suppression of LRD expression in wheat RNAi plants confers the ability to maintain root growth under water limitation. We show that exogenous gibberellic acid (GA) promotes lateral root growth and present evidence for the role of GA in mediating the differential regulation of LRD between the common wheat and the Agropyron alleles under water stress. Suppression of LRD also had a positive pleiotropic effect on grain size and number under optimal growth conditions. Collectively, our findings suggest that LRD can be potentially useful for improving wheat response to water stress and altering yield components

“Nipahol”: A Locally Formulated Sanitizer/Disinfectant from Nipa Bioethanol for Possible Use Against Covid-19

“Nipahol” is high-grade bioethanol produced from nipa sap using the proprietary fermentation and distillation technologies developed by a group of researchers at the Mariano Marcos State University-National Bioenergy Research and Innovation Center (MMSU-NBERIC). To ensure the quality and efficacy of the formulated product, the present study was set to explore the antibacterial potential of the locally formulated nipa disinfectant/antiseptic as an alternative alcohol formulation for possible use during the COVID-19 pandemic using standard microbiological assays. Susceptibility test revealed that at least 70% nipa alcohol formulations showed inhibitory activity against Staphylococcus aureus (6.25 mm and 4.25 mm zone of inhibitions). The 95% nipa alcohol concentration showed a bactericidal effect against Escherichia coli and S. aureus. High percent (%) bacterial cell reduction (90-99.9% log reduction) was observed when alcohol concentration and time increases. A confirmatory antimicrobial susceptibility test conducted by Philippine Department of Science and Technology, Microbiology Division reported that 95% nipa alcohol showed active inhibitory effect to test organisms while partial active observed in 70% nipa alcohol formulation. Glo-Germ Test revealed nipa disinfectant/antiseptic is as effective as commercial alcohol, thus, it can be utilized as an alternative intervention to prevent the spread of infectious microorganisms. The effectiveness of nipa disinfectant/antiseptic formulations is heightened with proper handwashing, strictly following proper hygiene, and health protocols. In conclusion, the formulated nipahol possesses the antibacterial potential to inhibit the multiplication of E. coli and S. aureus

Measuring and Correcting Wind-Induced Pointing Errors of the Green Bank Telescope Using an Optical Quadrant Detector

Wind-induced pointing errors are a serious concern for large-aperture high-frequency radio telescopes. In this paper, we describe the implementation of an optical quadrant detector instrument that can detect and provide a correction signal for wind-induced pointing errors on the 100m diameter Green Bank Telescope (GBT). The instrument was calibrated using a combination of astronomical measurements and metrology. We find that the main wind-induced pointing errors on time scales of minutes are caused by the feedarm being blown along the direction of the wind vector. We also find that wind-induced structural excitation is virtually non-existent. We have implemented offline software to apply pointing corrections to the data from imaging instruments such as the MUSTANG 3.3 mm bolometer array, which can recover ~70% of sensitivity lost due to wind-induced pointing errors. We have also performed preliminary tests that show great promise for correcting these pointing errors in real-time using the telescope's subreflector servo system in combination with the quadrant detector signal.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures; accepted for publication in PAS

Nuclear Weapons R&D Organizations in Nine Nations

This report describes the organizations controlling research and development (R&D) on nuclear weapons in several nations, and presents a brief history of the organizations controlling nuclear weapons R&D in the United States. It discusses whether these organizations are civilian or military, though in many nations the lines between civilian and military are blurred

Radio continuum observations of Class I protostellar disks in Taurus: constraining the greybody tail at centimetre wavelengths

We present deep 1.8 cm (16 GHz) radio continuum imaging of seven young stellar objects in the Taurus molecular cloud. These objects have previously been extensively studied in the sub-mm to NIR range and their SEDs modelled to provide reliable physical and geometrical parametres.We use this new data to constrain the properties of the long-wavelength tail of the greybody spectrum, which is expected to be dominated by emission from large dust grains in the protostellar disk. We find spectra consistent with the opacity indices expected for such a population, with an average opacity index of beta = 0.26+/-0.22 indicating grain growth within the disks. We use spectra fitted jointly to radio and sub-mm data to separate the contributions from thermal dust and radio emission at 1.8 cm and derive disk masses directly from the cm-wave dust contribution. We find that disk masses derived from these flux densities under assumptions consistent with the literature are systematically higher than those calculated from sub-mm data, and meet the criteria for giant planet formation in a number of cases.Comment: submitted MNRA

AMI-LA radio continuum observations of Spitzer c2d small clouds and cores: Perseus region

We present deep radio continuum observations of the cores identified as deeply embedded young stellar objects in the Perseus molecular cloud by the Spitzer c2d programme at a wavelength of 1.8 cm with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager Large Array (AMI-LA). We detect 72% of Class 0 objects from this sample and 31% of Class I objects. No starless cores are detected. We use the flux densities measured from these data to improve constraints on the correlations between radio luminosity and bolometric luminosity, infrared luminosity and, where measured, outflow force. We discuss the differing behaviour of these objects as a function of protostellar class and investigate the differences in radio emission as a function of core mass. Two of four possible very low luminosity objects (VeLLOs) are detected at 1.8 cm.Comment: 18 pages, 9 figures, accepted MNRA

An ammonia spectral map of the L1495-B218 filaments in the Taurus molecular cloud. I. Physical properties of filaments and dense cores

We present deep NH3 observations of the L1495-B218 filaments in the Taurus molecular cloud covering over a 3° angular range using the K-band focal plane array on the 100 m Green Bank Telescope. The L1495-B218 filaments form an interconnected, nearby, large complex extending over 8 pc. We observed NH3 (1, 1) and (2, 2) with a spectral resolution of 0.038 km s−1 and a spatial resolution of 31''. Most of the ammonia peaks coincide with intensity peaks in dust continuum maps at 350 and 500 μm. We deduced physical properties by fitting a model to the observed spectra. We find gas kinetic temperatures of 8–15 K, velocity dispersions of 0.05–0.25 km s−1, and NH3 column densities of 5 × 1012 to 1 × 1014 cm−2. The CSAR algorithm, which is a hybrid of seeded-watershed and binary dendrogram algorithms, identifies a total of 55 NH3 structures, including 39 leaves and 16 branches. The masses of the NH3 sources range from 0.05 to 9.5 ${{M}_{\odot }}$. The masses of NH3 leaves are mostly smaller than their corresponding virial mass estimated from their internal and gravitational energies, which suggests that these leaves are gravitationally unbound structures. Nine out of 39 NH3 leaves are gravitationally bound, and seven out of nine gravitationally bound NH3 leaves are associated with star formation. We also found that 12 out of 30 gravitationally unbound leaves are pressure confined. Our data suggest that a dense core may form as a pressure-confined structure, evolve to a gravitationally bound core, and undergo collapse to form a protostar