Federal Project Management

Managing more money means more money to lose. This session will help you identify when a project might lose its eligibility for federal funds. We also explain managing for capital projects, including discussions on the new federal act (BIL), federal performance end dates, inactive project funds, and other important factors for managing the federal resources of your projects

Federal Project Management: Competitive Grants/Local Federal Aid

Managing more money means having more money to lose. This session will help you identify when a project might lose its eligibility for federal funds. We also explain managing capital projects, including discussions on the new federal act (BIL), competitive grants, federal performance end dates, inactive project funds, and other important factors for managing the federal resources of your projects

Testosterone affects song modulation during simulated territorial intrusions in male black redstarts (Phoenicurus ochruros)

Although it has been suggested that testosterone plays an important role in resource allocation for competitive behavior, details of the interplay between testosterone, territorial aggression and signal plasticity are largely unknown. Therefore, we investigated if testosterone acts specifically on signals that communicate the motivation or ability of individuals to engage in competitive situations in a natural context. We studied the black redstart, a territorial songbird species, during two different life-cycle stages, the early breeding phase in spring and the non-breeding phase in fall. Male territory holders were implanted with the androgen receptor blocker flutamide (Flut) and the aromatase inhibitor letrozole (Let) to inhibit the action of testosterone and its estrogenic metabolites. Controls received a placebo treatment. Three days after implantation birds were challenged with a simulated territorial intrusion (STI). Song was recorded before, during and after the challenge. In spring, both treatment groups increased the number of elements sung in parts of their song in response to the STI. However, Flut/Let-implanted males reacted to the STI with a decreased maximum acoustic frequency of one song part, while placebo-implanted males did not. Instead, placebo-implanted males sang the atonal part of their song with a broader frequency range. Furthermore, placebo-, but not Flut/Let-implanted males, sang shorter songs with shorter pauses between parts in the STIs. During simulated intrusions in fall, when testosterone levels are naturally low in this species, males of both treatment groups sang similar to Flut/Let-implanted males during breeding. The results suggest that song sung during a territorial encounter is of higher competitive value than song sung in an undisturbed situation and may, therefore, convey information about the motivation or quality of the territory holder. We conclude that testosterone facilitates context-dependent changes in song structures that may be honest signals of male quality in black redstarts

PER3 Polymorphism Predicts Cumulative Sleep Homeostatic but Not Neurobehavioral Changes to Chronic Partial Sleep Deprivation

The variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) polymorphism 5-repeat allele of the circadian gene PERIOD3 (PER3(5/5)) has been associated with cognitive decline at a specific circadian phase in response to a night of total sleep deprivation (TSD), relative to the 4-repeat allele (PER3(4/4)). PER3(5/5) has also been related to higher sleep homeostasis, which is thought to underlie this cognitive vulnerability. To date, no study has used a candidate gene approach to investigate the response to chronic partial sleep deprivation (PSD), a condition distinct from TSD and one commonly experienced by millions of people on a daily and persistent basis. We evaluated whether the PER3 VNTR polymorphism contributed to cumulative neurobehavioral deficits and sleep homeostatic responses during PSD.PER3(5/5) (n = 14), PER3(4/5) (n = 63) and PER3(4/4) (n = 52) healthy adults (aged 22-45 y) demonstrated large, but equivalent cumulative decreases in cognitive performance and physiological alertness, and cumulative increases in sleepiness across 5 nights of sleep restricted to 4 h per night. Such effects were accompanied by increasing daily inter-subject variability in all groups. The PER3 genotypes did not differ significantly at baseline in habitual sleep, physiological sleep structure, circadian phase, physiological sleepiness, cognitive performance, or subjective sleepiness, although during PSD, PER3(5/5) subjects had slightly but reliably elevated sleep homeostatic pressure as measured physiologically by EEG slow-wave energy in non-rapid eye movement sleep compared with PER3(4/4) subjects. PER3 genotypic and allelic frequencies did not differ significantly between Caucasians and African Americans.The PER3 VNTR polymorphism was not associated with individual differences in neurobehavioral responses to PSD, although it was related to one marker of sleep homoeostatic response during PSD. The comparability of PER3 genotypes at baseline and their equivalent inter-individual vulnerability to sleep restriction indicate that PER3 does not contribute to the neurobehavioral effects of chronic sleep loss

The Premammillary Nucleus of the Hypothalamus Is Not Necessary for Photoperiodic Timekeeping in Female Turkeys (\u3cem\u3eMeleagris gallopavo\u3c/em\u3e)

In birds, seasonal reproduction is regulated by day length, with long days in the spring activating the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis and reproductive behaviors. The photoreceptors mediating this process remain unknown, but recently, the premammillary nucleus (PMM) of the hypothalamus has been implicated as the site of photoperiodic signaling in turkeys. We performed electrolytic lesions of the PMM to elucidate its role in the photoactivation and maintenance of egg production in female turkeys. Our results show that ablation of the PMM does not alter the normal lay cycle. No differences were found between lesioned birds and sham controls in the latency to lay following photostimulation, nor in subsequent egg production over a period of 29 weeks. No differences in the incidence of gonadal regression were found, indicating that the PMM is not essential for the termination of breeding. We conclude that any role of the PMM in photoperiodic regulation, if it exists, is redundant with other components of the system

Circadian Plasticity in Photoreceptor Cells Controls Visual Coding Efficiency in Drosophila melanogaster

In the fly Drosophila melanogaster, neuronal plasticity of synaptic terminals in the first optic neuropil, or lamina, depends on early visual experience within a critical period after eclosion [1]. The current study revealed two additional and parallel mechanisms involved in this type of synaptic terminal plasticity. First, an endogenous circadian rhythm causes daily oscillations in the volume of photoreceptor cell terminals. Second, daily visual experience precisely modulates the circadian time course and amplitude of the volume oscillations that the photoreceptor-cell terminals undergo. Both mechanisms are separable in their molecular basis. We suggest that the described neuronal plasticity in Drosophila ensures continuous optimal performance of the visual system over the course of a 24 h-day. Moreover, the sensory system of Drosophila cannot only account for predictable, but also for acute, environmental changes. The volumetric changes in the synaptic terminals of photoreceptor cells are accompanied by circadian and light-induced changes of presynaptic ribbons as well as extensions of epithelial glial cells into the photoreceptor terminals, suggesting that the architecture of the lamina is altered by both visual exposure and the circadian clock. Clock-mutant analysis and the rescue of PER protein rhythmicity exclusively in all R1-6 cells revealed that photoreceptor-cell plasticity is autonomous and sufficient to control visual behavior. The strength of a visually guided behavior, the optomotor turning response, co-varies with synaptic-terminal volume oscillations of photoreceptor cells when elicited at low light levels. Our results show that behaviorally relevant adaptive processing of visual information is performed, in part, at the level of visual input level

The Timing of the Shrew: Continuous Melatonin Treatment Maintains Youthful Rhythmic Activity in Aging Crocidura russula

BACKGROUND:Laboratory conditions nullify the extrinsic factors that determine the wild expected lifespan and release the intrinsic or potential lifespan. Thus, wild animals reared in a laboratory often show an increased lifespan, and consequently an increased senescence phase. Senescence is associated with a broad suite of physiological changes, including a decreased responsiveness of the circadian system. The time-keeping hormone melatonin, an important chemical player in this system, is suspected to have an anti-aging role. The Greater White-toothed shrew Crocidura russula is an ideal study model to address questions related to aging and associated changes in biological functions: its lifespan is short and is substantially increased in captivity; daily and seasonal rhythms, while very marked the first year of life, are dramatically altered during the senescence process which starts during the second year. Here we report on an investigation of the effects of melatonin administration on locomotor activity of aging shrews. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:1) The diel fluctuations of melatonin levels in young, adult and aging shrews were quantified in the pineal gland and plasma. In both, a marked diel rhythm (low diurnal concentration; high nocturnal concentration) was present in young animals but then decreased in adults, and, as a result of a loss in the nocturnal production, was absent in old animals. 2) Daily locomotor activity rhythm was monitored in pre-senescent animals that had received either a subcutaneous melatonin implant, an empty implant or no implant at all. In non-implanted and sham-implanted shrews, the rhythm was well marked in adults. A marked degradation in both period and amplitude, however, started after the age of 14-16 months. This pattern was considerably delayed in melatonin-implanted shrews who maintained the daily rhythm for significantly longer. CONCLUSIONS:This is the first long term study (>500 days observation of the same individuals) that investigates the effects of continuous melatonin delivery. As such, it sheds new light on the putative anti-aging role of melatonin by demonstrating that continuous melatonin administration delays the onset of senescence. In addition, the shrew appears to be a promising mammalian model for elucidating the precise relationships between melatonin and aging

Molecular evidence for gender differences in the migratory behaviour of a small seabird

Molecular sexing revealed an unexpectedly strong female bias in the sex ratio of pre-breeding European Storm Petrels (Hydrobates pelagicus), attracted to playback of conspecific calls during their northwards migration past SW Europe. This bias was consistent across seven years, ranging from 80.8% to 89.7% female (mean annual sex ratio ± SD = 85.5% female ±4.1%). The sex ratio did not differ significantly from unity (i.e., 50% female) among (i) Storm Petrel chicks at a breeding colony in NW France, (ii) adults found dead on beaches in Southern Portugal, (iii) breeding birds attending nest burrows in the UK, captured by hand, and (iv) adults captured near a breeding colony in the UK using copies of the same sound recordings as used in Southern Europe, indicating that females are not inherently more strongly attracted to playback calls than males. A morphological discriminant function analysis failed to provide a good separation of the sexes, showing the importance of molecular sexing for this species. We found no sex difference in the seasonal or nocturnal timing of migration past Southern Europe, but there was a significant tendency for birds to be caught in sex-specific aggregations. The preponderance of females captured in Southern Europe suggests that the sexes may differ in migration route or in their colony-prospecting behaviour during migration, at sites far away from their natal colonies. Such differences in migration behaviour between males and females are poorly understood but have implications for the vulnerability of seabirds to pollution and environmental change at sea during the non-breeding season

The De-Ubiquitinylating Enzyme, USP2, Is Associated with the Circadian Clockwork and Regulates Its Sensitivity to Light

We have identified a novel component of the circadian clock that regulates its sensitivity to light at the evening light to dark transition. USP2 (Ubiquitin Specific Protease 2), which de-ubiquitinylates and stabilizes target proteins, is rhythmically expressed in multiple tissues including the SCN. We have developed a knockout model of USP2 and found that exposure to low irradiance light at ZT12 increases phase delays of USP2−/− mice compared to wildtype. We additionally show that USP2b is in a complex with several clock components and regulates the stability and turnover of BMAL1, which in turn alters the expression of several CLOCK/BMAL1 controlled genes. Rhythmic expression of USP2 in the SCN and other tissues offers a new level of control of the clock machinery through de-ubiqutinylation and suggests a role for USP2 during circadian adaptation to environmental day length changes

Maternal Obesity Induced by Diet in Rats Permanently Influences Central Processes Regulating Food Intake in Offspring

Hypothalamic systems which regulate appetite may be permanently modified during early development. We have previously reported hyperphagia and increased adiposity in the adult offspring of rodents fed an obesogenic diet prior to and throughout pregnancy and lactation. We now report that offspring of obese (OffOb) rats display an amplified and prolonged neonatal leptin surge, which is accompanied by elevated leptin mRNA expression in their abdominal white adipose tissue. At postnatal Day 30, before the onset of hyperphagia in these animals, serum leptin is normal, but leptin-induced appetite suppression and phosphorylation of STAT3 in the arcuate nucleus (ARC) are attenuated; the level of AgRP-immunoreactivity in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVH), which derives from neurones in the ARC and is developmentally dependent on leptin, is also diminished. We hypothesise that prolonged release of abnormally high levels of leptin by neonatal OffOb rats leads to leptin resistance and permanently affects hypothalamic functions involving the ARC and PVH. Such effects may underlie the developmental programming of hyperphagia and obesity in these rats