133 research outputs found
Teacher's Action Plan for "Shuttle External Tank and Solid Rocket Booster Math"
My name is Mike Prince and I was one of eleven Brevard County teachers selected by United Space Alliance, LLC (USA), to work at the Kennedy Space Center (KSQ along side USA & NASA engineers during the Summer of 2007. Attached is a summary of my experience
UNOLS Establishes SCOAR to Promote Research Aircraft Facilities for U.S. Ocean Sciences
Oceanography, Vol. 17, No. 4, pp. 176-185, December 2004
Needs assessment to strengthen capacity in water and sanitation research in Africa:experiences of the African SNOWS consortium
Despite its contribution to global disease burden, diarrhoeal disease is still a relatively neglected area for research funding, especially in low-income country settings. The SNOWS consortium (Scientists Networked for Outcomes from Water and Sanitation) is funded by the Wellcome Trust under an initiative to build the necessary research skills in Africa. This paper focuses on the research training needs of the consortium as identified during the first three years of the project
Terahertz-Based Porosity Measurement of Pharmaceutical Tablets: a Tutorial
Abstract: Porosity, one of the important quality attributes of pharmaceutical tablets, directly affects the mechanical properties, the mass transport and hence tablet disintegration, dissolution and ultimately the bioavailability of an orally administered drug. The ability to accurately and quickly monitor the porosity of tablets during manufacture or during the manufacturing process will enable a greater assurance of product quality. This tutorial systematically outlines the steps involved in the terahertz-based measurement method that can be used to quantify the porosity of a tablet within seconds in a non-destructive and non-invasive manner. The terahertz-based porosity measurement can be performed using one of the three main methods, which are (i) the zero-porosity approximation (ZPA); (ii) the traditional Bruggeman effective medium approximation (TB-EMA); and (iii) the anisotropic Bruggeman effective medium approximation (AB-EMA). By using a set of batches of flat-faced and biconvex tablets as a case study, the three main methods are compared and contrasted. Overall, frequency-domain signal processing coupled with the AB-EMA method was found to be most suitable approach in terms of accuracy and robustness when predicting the porosity of tablets over a range of complexities and geometries. This tutorial aims to concisely outline all the necessary steps, precautions and unique advantages associated with the terahertz-based porosity measurement method
Activation of Hsp90 Enzymatic Activity and Conformational Dynamics through Rationally Designed Allosteric Ligands
Hsp90 is a molecular chaperone of pivotal importance
for multiple cell pathways. ATP-regulated internal dynamics
are critical for its function and current pharmacological
approaches block the chaperone with ATP-competitive
inhibitors. Herein, a general approach to perturb Hsp90
through design of new allosteric ligands aimed at modulating
its functional dynamics is proposed. Based on the characterization
of a first set of 2-phenylbenzofurans showing
stimulatory effects on Hsp90 ATPase and conformational dynamics,
new ligands were developed that activate Hsp90 by
targeting an allosteric site, located 65 æ from the active site.
Specifically, analysis of protein responses to first-generation
activators was exploited to guide the design of novel derivatives
with improved ability to stimulate ATP hydrolysis. The
molecules’ effects on Hsp90 enzymatic, conformational, cochaperone
and client-binding properties were characterized
through biochemical, biophysical and cellular approaches.
These designed probes act as allosteric activators of the
chaperone and affect the viability of cancer cell lines for
which proper functioning of Hsp90 is necessary
Causes of nursing home placement for older people with dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Up to half of people with dementia in high income countries live in nursing homes and more than two-thirds of care home residents have dementia. Fewer than half of these residents report good quality of life and most older people are anxious about the prospect of moving into a nursing home. Robust evidence is needed as to the causes of admission to nursing homes, particularly where these risk factors are modifiable.
Methods: We conducted a systematic literature search to identify controlled comparison studies in which the primary outcome was admission to nursing home of older adults with dementia. Identified studies were assessed for validity and 26 (17 cohort and 9 case-control) were included. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted, including meta-analysis of 15 studies.
Results: Poorer cognition and behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) were consistently associated with an increased risk of nursing home admission and most of our meta-analyses demonstrated impairments in activities of daily living as a significant risk. The effects of community support services were unclear, with both high and low levels of service use leading to nursing home placement. There was an association between caregiver burden and risk of institutionalization, but findings with regard to caregiver depression varied, as did physical health associations, with some studies showing an increased risk of nursing home placement following hip fracture, reduced mobility, and multiple comorbidities.
Conclusion: We recommend focusing on cognitive enhancement strategies, assessment and management of BPSD, and carer education and support to delay nursing home placement
Crop Updates - 2003 Lupins
This session covers twenty one papers from different authors
LUPIN ISSUES AND R & D DIRECTIONS
Mark Sweetingham, Department of Agriculture
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
VARIETIES AND BREEDING
New lupin line for release – WALAN2141, Bevan J, Buirchell, Mark Sweetingham, Geoff Thomas, Amelia McLarty, Harmohinder Dhammu and CVT and Lupin Breeding teams, Department of Agriculture
Lupin variety trial, Martin Harries and Wayne Parker, Department of Agriculture
Herbicide tolerance of new lupins, Harmohinder S. Dhammu, Terry Piper and David Nicholson, Department of Agriculture
YELLOW AND ALBUS LUPINS
Selection for high lupin yield under terminal drought, Jairo A. Palta1&2, Neil C. Turner1&2 Bob French2&3 and Bevan Buirchell2&3 , 1CSIRO Plant Industry, Floreat, WA, 2CLIMA, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, 3Department of Agriculture
Outcrossing and isolation distance in yellow lupins, Kedar Adhikari, Bevan Buirchell and Katia Stefanova, Department of Agriculture
Development of aphid tolerant yellow lupins in Western Australia, Kedar Adhikari, Bevan Buirchell, Mark Sweetingham and Françoise Berlandier, Department of Agriculture
ESTABLISHMENT
Development of anthracnose resistant albus lupins for Western Australia, Kedar Adhikari, Bevan Buirchell, Mark Sweetingham and Geoff Thomas, Department of Agriculture
Lupin sowing methods for improved yields, Glen Riethmuller, Department of Agriculture
Moisture delving = more reliable lupin establishment, Paul Blackwell and Wayne Parker, Department of Agriculture
Effect of time of sewing, plant density and row orientation on lupins at various row spacings, Geoff Fosbery, Farm Focus Consultants, Bill Crabtree, Crabtree Consulting and Tracy Gilham, WANTFA
Influence of row spacing on water stress and water use of lupins, Bob French and Laurie Wahlsten, Department of Agriculture
AGRONOMY
Effect on lupin protein and yield from variety, planting time and seed rate, Pierre Fievez, Pierre Fievez and Associates
Lupin row cropping: herbicides to band, shield design and economics, Mike Collins, WANTFA and John Holmes, 4 Farmers
Harvest options for narrow leaf lupins, Martin Harries and Dirranie Kirby, Department of Agriculture
NUTRITION
Additional nutrients on lupin yield and protein, Pierre Fievez, Pierre Fievez and Associates
Demonstrating the effect of phosphorous placement on yields of narrow leaf lupin and yellow lupin on high phosphorus retention soils, Martin Harries and Wayne Parker, Department of Agriculture
PESTS AND DISEASES
How far are anthracnose spores spread by rain splash? Geoff Thomas, Mark Sweetingham and Ken Adcock, Department of Agriculture
Height of cereal stubble affects spread of lupin anthracnose, Geoff Thomas, Bill MacLeod and Ken Adcock, Department of Agriculture
Controlling non-necrotic strains of bean yellow mosaic virus in lupins by cultural methods, Roger Jones and Rohan Prince, Department of Agriculture, and Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture
MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Australian sweet lupin – is it the next human health food? Stuart Johnson, Deakin University; Ramon Hall, ARC SPIRT PhD Scholar; Madeleine Ball, University of Tasmania; Sofia Sipsas and David Petterson; Department of Agriculture
CONTACT DETAILS FOR PRINCIPAL AUTHOR
Re-visiting Meltsner: Policy Advice Systems and the Multi-Dimensional Nature of Professional Policy Analysis
10.2139/ssrn.15462511-2
Autoimmunity and immunodeficiency associated with monoallelic LIG4 mutations via haploinsufficiency
BACKGROUND: Biallelic mutations in LIG4 encoding DNA-ligase 4 cause a rare immunodeficiency syndrome manifesting as infant-onset life-threatening and/or opportunistic infections, skeletal malformations, radiosensitivity and neoplasia. LIG4 is pivotal during DNA repair and during V(D)J recombination as it performs the final DNA-break sealing step.
OBJECTIVE: We explored whether monoallelic LIG4 missense mutations may underlie immunodeficiency and autoimmunity with autosomal dominant inheritance.
METHODS: Extensive flow-cytometric immune-phenotyping was performed. Rare variants of immune system genes were analyzed by whole exome sequencing. DNA repair functionality and T cell-intrinsic DNA damage tolerance was tested with an ensemble of in vitro and in silico tools. Antigen-receptor diversity and autoimmune features were characterized by high-throughput sequencing and autoantibody arrays. Reconstitution of wild-type vs. mutant LIG4 were performed in LIG4 knock-out Jurkat T cells and DNA damage tolerance was subsequently assessed.
RESULTS: A novel heterozygous LIG4 loss-of-function mutation (p.R580Q), associated with a dominantly inherited familial immune-dysregulation consisting of autoimmune cytopenias, and in the index patient with lymphoproliferation, agammaglobulinemia and adaptive immune cell infiltration into nonlymphoid organs. Immunophenotyping revealed reduced naïve CD4 T cells and low TCR-Vα7.2 T cells, while T/B-cell receptor repertoires showed only mild alterations. Cohort screening identified two other non-related patients with the monoallelic LIG4 mutation p.A842D recapitulating clinical and immune-phenotypic dysregulations observed in the index family and displaying T cell-intrinsic DNA damage intolerance. Reconstitution experiments and molecular dynamics simulations categorize both missense mutations as loss-of-function and haploinsufficient.
CONCLUSION: We provide evidence that certain monoallelic LIG4 mutations may cause human immune dysregulation via haploinsufficiency
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