Lead contamination in candies imported from Latin America

The problem of lead in candies imported from Latin America is an important health disparities issue as it particularly affects the health of children living in Latino Diasporas in the United States. Our research team at the University of Nevada Las Vegas was the first to employ the X-ray florescence (XRF) machine in the screening of candies for lead. The XRF is a novel instrument that can quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively test for lead contamination. Once contaminated candies were identified, an exhaustive review of applicable laws and polices that can be utilized in the regulation of imported toxic candies was performed and, working in partnership with the Southern Nevada Health District, a Cease and Desist Order was issued based on our XRF findings. This paper traces the trajectory of the laboratory work performed and the legal research conducted that eventually lead to the issuance of the Cease and Desist Order. A thorough review of the laboratory-to-community translational research we achieved provides an important resource for both researchers and public health officials collaborating in the effort to remove contaminated candies from the shelves of stores and markets to ensure the health and safety of children

Development of genome-wide genetic assays in Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough

Illumina sequencing and other massively-parallel, short read sequencing technologies have become prevalent methods for querying the genetic systems of organisms. This trend was initially driven by the demand for general de novo and resequencing applications in eukaryotes, but uses for these instruments have recently grown in scope to also include more specific assays and methods intended for use in prokaryotic systems. This thesis seeks to develop two such assays for use in the sulfate reducing bacteria type species Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough. These novel assays continue advances made in other bacteria, and the use of this environmentally relevant obligate anaerobe will ensure their extension to other bacteria outside the easily-manipulated groups studied previously. The first assay is a variation on existing transposon sequencing (Tn-seq) assays, which seek to determine gene fitness profiles and essential genes by simultaneous analyses of whether the absence of each gene product alters the growth kinetics of the bacterium. Here we modify the standard Tn-seq procedure by including delivery of the transposon through conjugation and liquid culture enrichment of the mutant pool, creating transposon liquid enrichment sequencing (TnLE-seq). This simplifies and shortens the process, and also reduces barriers to application of the technique in microbes lacking a facile genetic system. The second assay provides a means of mapping consensus 3' end sites of RNA transcripts across a reference genome. This method is known as 3' RNA-seq and compliments an established technique for determining 5' start sites of transcripts. Together these facilitate the application of current sequencing technology to a wider array of microbes and a new type of biologically relevant genetic data

Urea block supplements for stubble

THERE was a great deal of controversy throughout the summer of Western Australia\u27s 1969-70 drought over the feeding of supplements other than grain to grazing sheep. This report summarises some of the experiments carried out by this Department to investigate various artificial means of supplementing sheep grazing stubbles and dry summer pastures. Further details of the experiments can be obtained by contacting the authors. The results failed to demonstrate economic responses to urea supplements for grazing sheep

Shortcuts to high symmetry solutions in gravitational theories

We apply the Weyl method, as sanctioned by Palais' symmetric criticality theorems, to obtain those -highly symmetric -geometries amenable to explicit solution, in generic gravitational models and dimension. The technique consists of judiciously violating the rules of variational principles by inserting highly symmetric, and seemingly gauge fixed, metrics into the action, then varying it directly to arrive at a small number of transparent, indexless, field equations. Illustrations include spherically and axially symmetric solutions in a wide range of models beyond D=4 Einstein theory; already at D=4, novel results emerge such as exclusion of Schwarzschild solutions in cubic curvature models and restrictions on ``independent'' integration parameters in quadratic ones. Another application of Weyl's method is an easy derivation of Birkhoff's theorem in systems with only tensor modes. Other uses are also suggested.Comment: 10 page

Comparison of location, depth, quality and intensity of experimentally induced pain in six low back muscles

Introduction: The pattern of pain originating from experimentally induced low back pain appears diffuse. This may be because sensory information from low back muscles converges, sensory innervation extends over multiple vertebral levels, or people have difficulty accurately representing the painful location on standardized pain maps

Pasture legume varieties and ewe fertility

ALTHOUGH it was first thought that all varieties of subterranean clover would cause ewe infertility, research in the last 10 to 15 years has shown that varieties differ in potency. The relative level of potency has also been shown to remain consistent for any one variety under normal conditions

Safe food and feed through an integrated toolbox for mycotoxin management: the MyToolBox approach

There is a pressing need to mobilise the wealth of knowledge from the international mycotoxin research conductedover the past 25-30 years, and to perform cutting-edge research where knowledge gaps still exist. This knowledgeneeds to be integrated into affordable and practical tools for farmers and food processors along the chain inorder to reduce the risk of mycotoxin contamination of crops, feed and food. This is the mission of MyToolBox – a four-year project which has received funding from the European Commission. It mobilises a multi-actorpartnership (academia, farmers, technology small and medium sized enterprises, food industry and policystakeholders) to develop novel interventions aimed at achieving a significant reduction in crop losses due tomycotoxin contamination. Besides a field-to-fork approach, MyToolBox also considers safe use options ofcontaminated batches, such as the efficient production of biofuels. Compared to previous efforts of mycotoxin reduction strategies, the distinguishing feature of MyToolBox is to provide the recommended measures to theend users along the food and feed chain in a web-based MyToolBox platform (e-toolbox). The project focuseson small grain cereals, maize, peanuts and dried figs, applicable to agricultural conditions in the EU and China. Crop losses using existing practices are being compared with crop losses after novel pre-harvest interventionsincluding investigation of genetic resistance to fungal infection, cultural control (e.g. minimum tillage or cropdebris treatment), the use of novel biopesticides suitable for organic farming, competitive biocontrol treatment and development of novel modelling approaches to predict mycotoxin contamination. Research into post-harvestmeasures includes real-time monitoring during storage, innovative sorting of crops using vision-technology, novelmilling technology and studying the effects of baking on mycotoxins at an industrial scale

Experiments with urea on private farms

Many District Advisers have carried out trials on private farms to test the response to a variety of types of supplementary feeds. This report gives brief details of five such experiments carried out with urea supplements over the last five years. Table 1 summarises the details and results of these trials

Covariants,joint invariants and the problem of equivalence in the invariant theory of Killing tensors defined in pseudo-Riemannian spaces of constant curvature

The invariant theory of Killing tensors (ITKT) is extended by introducing the new concepts of covariants and joint invariants of (product) vector spaces of Killing tensors defined in pseudo-Riemannian spaces of constant curvature. The covariants are employed to solve the problem of classification of the orthogonal coordinate webs generated by non-trivial Killing tensors of valence two defined in the Euclidean and Minkowski planes. Illustrative examples are provided.Comment: 60 pages. to appear in J. Math. Phy