Potential Celecoxib analogue precursors derived via Aldol condensation

https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/student_scholarship_posters/1080/thumbnail.jp

Time correlations and 1/f behavior in backscattering radar reflectivity measurements from cirrus cloud ice fluctuations

The state of the atmosphere is governed by the classical laws of fluid motion and exhibits correlations in various spatial and temporal scales. These correlations are crucial to understand the short and long term trends in climate. Cirrus clouds are important ingredients of the atmospheric boundary layer. To improve future parameterization of cirrus clouds in climate models, it is important to understand the cloud properties and how they change within the cloud. We study correlations in the fluctuations of radar signals obtained at isodepths of winter and fall cirrus clouds. In particular we focus on three quantities: (i) the backscattering cross-section, (ii) the Doppler velocity and (iii) the Doppler spectral width. They correspond to the physical coefficients used in Navier Stokes equations to describe flows, i.e. bulk modulus, viscosity, and thermal conductivity. In all cases we find that power-law time correlations exist with a crossover between regimes at about 3 to 5 min. We also find that different type of correlations, including 1/f behavior, characterize the top and the bottom layers and the bulk of the clouds. The underlying mechanisms for such correlations are suggested to originate in ice nucleation and crystal growth processes.Comment: 33 pages, 9 figures; to appear in the Journal of Geophysical Research - Atmosphere

What Did Our Ancestors Eat?

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75025/1/j.1753-4887.1989.tb02765.x.pd

Assessment of regression-based methods to adjust for publication bias through a comprehensive simulation study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In meta-analysis, the presence of funnel plot asymmetry is attributed to publication or other small-study effects, which causes larger effects to be observed in the smaller studies. This issue potentially mean inappropriate conclusions are drawn from a meta-analysis. If meta-analysis is to be used to inform decision-making, a reliable way to adjust pooled estimates for potential funnel plot asymmetry is required.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A comprehensive simulation study is presented to assess the performance of different adjustment methods including the novel application of several regression-based methods (which are commonly applied to detect publication bias rather than adjust for it) and the popular Trim & Fill algorithm. Meta-analyses with binary outcomes, analysed on the log odds ratio scale, were simulated by considering scenarios with and without i) publication bias and; ii) heterogeneity. Publication bias was induced through two underlying mechanisms assuming the probability of publication depends on i) the study effect size; or ii) the p-value.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The performance of all methods tended to worsen as unexplained heterogeneity increased and the number of studies in the meta-analysis decreased. Applying the methods conditional on an initial test for the presence of funnel plot asymmetry generally provided poorer performance than the unconditional use of the adjustment method. Several of the regression based methods consistently outperformed the Trim & Fill estimators.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Regression-based adjustments for publication bias and other small study effects are easy to conduct and outperformed more established methods over a wide range of simulation scenarios.</p

β-Dystrobrevin, a New Member of the Dystrophin Family: IDENTIFICATION, CLONING, AND PROTEIN ASSOCIATIONS

Dystrophin, the protein disrupted in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, is one of several related proteins that are key components of the submembrane cytoskeleton. Three dystrophin-related proteins (utrophin, dystrophin-related protein-2 (DRP2), and dystrobrevin) have been described. Here, we identify a human gene on chromosome 2p22-23 that encodes a novel protein, beta-dystrobrevin, with significant homology to the other known dystrobrevin (now termed alpha-dystrobrevin). Sequence alignments including this second dystrobrevin strongly support the concept that two distinct subfamilies exist within the dystrophin family, one composed of dystrophin, utrophin, and DRP2 and the other composed of alpha- and beta-dystrobrevin. The possibility that members of each subfamily form distinct protein complexes was examined by immunopurifying dystrobrevins and dystrophin. A beta-dystrobrevin antibody recognized a protein of the predicted size (71 kDa) that copurified with the dystrophin short form, Dp71. Thus, like alpha-dystrobrevin, beta-dystrobrevin is likely to associate directly with dystrophin. alpha- and beta-dystrobrevins failed to copurify with each other, however. These results suggest that members of the dystrobrevin subfamily form heterotypic associations with dystrophin and raise the possibility that pairing of a particular dystrobrevin with dystrophin may be regulated, thereby providing a mechanism for assembly of distinct submembrane protein complexes

Prion Uptake in the Gut: Identification of the First Uptake and Replication Sites

After oral exposure, prions are thought to enter Peyer's patches via M cells and accumulate first upon follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) before spreading to the nervous system. How prions are actually initially acquired from the gut lumen is not known. Using high-resolution immunofluorescence and cryo-immunogold electron microscopy, we report the trafficking of the prion protein (PrP) toward Peyer's patches of wild-type and PrP-deficient mice. PrP was transiently detectable at 1 day post feeding (dpf) within large multivesicular LAMP1-positive endosomes of enterocytes in the follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) and at much lower levels within M cells. Subsequently, PrP was detected on vesicles in the late endosomal compartments of macrophages in the subepithelial dome. At 7–21 dpf, increased PrP labelling was observed on the plasma membranes of FDCs in germinal centres of Peyer's patches from wild-type mice only, identifying FDCs as the first sites of PrP conversion and replication. Detection of PrP on extracellular vesicles displaying FAE enterocyte-derived A33 protein implied transport towards FDCs in association with FAE-derived vesicles. By 21 dpf, PrP was observed on the plasma membranes of neurons within neighbouring myenteric plexi. Together, these data identify a novel potential M cell-independent mechanism for prion transport, mediated by FAE enterocytes, which acts to initiate conversion and replication upon FDCs and subsequent infection of enteric nerves

Long-term cycles in the history of life: Periodic biodiversity in the Paleobiology Database

Time series analysis of fossil biodiversity of marine invertebrates in the Paleobiology Database (PBDB) shows a significant periodicity at approximately 63 My, in agreement with previous analyses based on the Sepkoski database. I discuss how this result did not appear in a previous analysis of the PBDB. The existence of the 63 My periodicity, despite very different treatment of systematic error in both PBDB and Sepkoski databases strongly argues for consideration of its reality in the fossil record. Cross-spectral analysis of the two datasets finds that a 62 My periodicity coincides in phase by 1.6 My, equivalent to better than the errors in either measurement. Consequently, the two data sets not only contain the same strong periodicity, but its peaks and valleys closely correspond in time. Two other spectral peaks appear in the PBDB analysis, but appear to be artifacts associated with detrending and with the increased interval length. Sampling-standardization procedures implemented by the PBDB collaboration suggest that the signal is not an artifact of sampling bias. Further work should focus on finding the cause of the 62 My periodicity.Comment: Published in PLoS ONE. 5 pages, 3 figures. Version with live links, discussion available at http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0004044#to

FULL-SCALE TESTING OF A CAUSTIC SIDE SOLVENT EXTRACTION SYSTEM TO REMOVE CESIUM FROM SAVANNAH RIVER SITE RADIOACTIVE WASTE

Savannah River Site (SRS) personnel have completed construction and assembly of the Modular Caustic Side Solvent Extraction Unit (MCU) facility. Following assembly, they conducted testing to evaluate the ability of the process to remove non-radioactive cesium and to separate the aqueous and organic phases. They conducted tests at salt solution flow rates of 3.5, 6.0, and 8.5 gpm. During testing, the MCU Facility collected samples and submitted them to Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) personnel for analysis of cesium, Isopar{reg_sign} L, and Modifier [1-(2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropoxy)-3-(4-sec-butylphenoxy)-2-propanol]. SRNL personnel analyzed the aqueous samples for cesium by Inductively-Coupled Plasma Mass Spectroscopy (ICP-MS) and the solvent samples for cesium using a Parr Bomb Digestion followed by ICP-MS. They analyzed aqueous samples for Isopar{reg_sign} L and Modifier by gas chromatography (GC)

Measurements of single top quark production cross sections and |Vtb| in ppbar collisions at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV

We present measurements of production cross sections of single top quarks in \ppbar collisions at $\sqrt{s}=1.96\;\rm TeV$ in a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $5.4\;\rm fb^{-1}$ collected by the D0 detector at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider. We select events with an isolated electron or muon, an imbalance in transverse energy, and two, three, or four jets, with one or two of them containing a bottom hadron. We obtain an inclusive cross section of \sigma({\ppbar}{\rargap}tb+X, tqb+X) = 3.43\pm^{0.73}_{0.74}\;\rm pb and use it to extract the CKM matrix element $0.79 < |V_{tb}| \leq 1$ at the 95% C.L. We also measure \sigma({\ppbar}{\rargap}tb+X) = 0.68\pm^{0.38}_{0.35}\;\rm pb and \sigma({\ppbar}{\rargap}tqb+X) = 2.86\pm^{0.69}_{0.63}\;\rm pb when assuming, respectively, $tqb$ and $tb$ production rates as predicted by the standard model.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Anatomy of STEM Teaching in American Universities: A Snapshot from a Large-Scale Observation Study

National and local initiatives focused on the transformation of STEM teaching in higher education have multiplied over the last decade. These initiatives often focus on measuring change in instructional practices, but it is difficult to monitor such change without a national picture of STEM educational practices, especially as characterized by common observational instruments. We characterized a snapshot of this landscape by conducting the first large scale observation-based study. We found that lecturing was prominent throughout the undergraduate STEM curriculum, even in classrooms with infrastructure designed to support active learning, indicating that further work is required to reform STEM education. Additionally, we established that STEM faculty’s instructional practices can vary substantially within a course, invalidating the commonly-used teaching evaluations based on a one-time observation