INSIGHTS INTO ENZYMATIC MANIPULATIONS OF NUCLEIC ACIDS

This dissertation details three studies dealing with the manipulation of nucleicacids. In the first investigation, each of the four natural nucleobases were analyzed for theability to serve as a universal template at the ligation junction of a T4 DNA ligasereaction. This resulted in the first instance of sequence-independent ligation catalyzed byany DNA ligase. Although all of the nucleobases display universal templatingcapabilities, thymidine and guanosine provided the most effective results. In addition,lowered MgCl2 and ATP concentrations, as well as the inclusion of DMSO, also aided inthe sequence-independent ligation reported here. In the course of these studies, currentmethods of removing urea from denaturing-gel purified nucleic acids provedcumbersome. Therefore, in the second study simple butanol extraction was examined as ameans to eliminate urea from nucleic acid solutions. Stepwise butanol extraction was themost effective approach to solving this problem and provided a much needed techniquefor nucleic acid purification. This type of extraction also does not result in significantlosses of nucleic acid sample. The third study exploits the molecular recognition andcatalytic properties inherent in an autocatalytic group I intron to develop a ribozyme thatcan replace the 5\u27 end of an RNA substrate with a different RNA. This 5\u27 replacementsplicing reaction can potentially repair mutations on the 5\u27 ends of RNA transcripts thatlead to a variety of genetic mutations. The model system was a common mutation in asmall model mimic of the k-ras gene in vitro, which predisposes individuals to lungcancer. This 5\u27 replacement splicing reaction occurred in vitro using this small modelsystem; the reaction was also enhanced by the alteration of the molecular interactionsinvolved. The results and implications of each of these studies are detailed in thisdissertation

Vela & Niyah

In this thesis paper, I will document and analyze the process of making my graduate thesis film, Vela & Niyah. I will start by stating my overall goal of the film, then move into each specific area of the filmmaking process and what was done to accomplish this goal. I will detail my successes and struggles throughout the process. I will analyze my own work, and reflect on the important lessons learned while making my thesis film. In the end, I will determine if my thesis proves true, and if I was successful in the individual aspects of filmmaking, as well as the thesis film as a whole

Vela & Niyah

In this thesis paper, I will document and analyze the process of making my graduate thesis film, Vela & Niyah. I will start by stating my overall goal of the film, then move into each specific area of the filmmaking process and what was done to accomplish this goal. I will detail my successes and struggles throughout the process. I will analyze my own work, and reflect on the important lessons learned while making my thesis film. In the end, I will determine if my thesis proves true, and if I was successful in the individual aspects of filmmaking, as well as the thesis film as a whole

Population dynamics of plaice Pleuronectes platessa L in the inshore waters of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey

This study examines the population dynamics of juvenile and adult plaice Pleuronectes platessa L. in the coastal inshore area of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey. The population dynamics of the adult population were studied by conducting autumnal otter trawl surveys in 2004/05. The data obtained were compared with an earlier study conducted in the same area in 1974/77 and with current data for other plaice stocks in North West Europe. The size/age structure, length/weight relationship, growth rate, mortality rate and size/age at first maturity (L5o/A5o) were described for male and female plaice. The results of the survey showed that the size/age structures of male and female fish were different with the older, larger and heavier fish comprising predominately female fish The length/weight relationships were different for male and female fish with males exhibiting isometric growth (b=3.02) and females exhibiting positive allometric growth (b=3.20). Growth patterns, described using the von Bertalanffy growth model, were significantly different between male (K= 0.62 year 1; LW=26.4 cm SL) and female (K= 0.25 year 1; L. =43.8 cm SL) plaice. The instantaneous rate of total mortality was higher for male plaice than for females (Z: 3=1.05 year I cf. Y=0.64 year ). Male plaice matured at a significantly smaller size and younger age than female plaice (L50, d'=16 cm SL cf ? =20 cm SL; Aso, d=1.33 years cf. Y=2.11 years). A comparison of the results of the 2004/05 survey with the earlier 1974/77 survey showed differences in the size/age structure, growth rate and maturity ogives between the two surveys. A meta-analysis of the population dynamics of plaice stocks in North West Europe revealed consistent similarities in the size-structure and patterns of growth and maturation between the populations. A detailed analysis was conducted of the population dynamics of plaice in the coastal inshore area of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey, based on the autumnal RV Prince Madog fisheries surveys, for the time period 1970-2006. A cyclical trend in abundance (number of plaice hour-1) was apparent in the catch data which was significantly correlated with the winter North Atlantic Oscillation Index (wNAOI). The results indicated no significant changes in the size composition of the plaice catch during the 4 decades (average sizes; (3=24.0 cm SL cf. ? =29.1 cm TL) but a decline in the proportion of older age classes (>_5 years old) in the catch (average ages; c3=2.6 years cf. Y=3.1 years). Analysis of the sex-ratio data between 1970 and 2006 indicated a decrease in the proportion of male plaice caught in the fisheries surveys over the last 4 decades. Male and female plaice both showed contrasting changes in growth patterns between 1970 and 2006. For female plaice, L. tended to increase over time with no change in K values. In contrast, male plaice showed no long term change in L. over time, but an increase in K-values post-1990. The Lso/Aso datasets were limited but analysis of the available data indicated a decrease in L5o/A5o values for male and female plaice over time. The population biology data for plaice (currently underexploited but historically overexploited in the 1970s and 1980s) for the time period 1970-2006 were compared with comparable data for dab Limanda limanda L. (an unexploited species in the Irish Sea) and whiting Merlangius merlangus L. (an overexploited species in the Irish Sea) obtained from the same fisheries surveys. Analysis of the time series data revealed changes in the size and growth patterns for the three species that were consistent with their level of exploitation (i. e. no changes for dab cf changes for plaice and whiting). A similar analysis of the Lso/Aso data was more limited but suggested decreases in the maturity ogive values of plaice and dab. The results were suggestive of fisheries-induced evolution in plaice and whiting in the South East Irish Sea. The population dynamics of plaice were examined in relation to summer/winter/annual sea surface temperatures (SST) and wNAOI to examine whether any changes were related to recent climate change. This analysis indicated a correlation between abundance and wNAOI with higher abundances (number plaice hour') recorded in the survey when the wNAOI was in negative phase. A simple model outlining the effects of increased/decreased SST on size and growth was proposed. For male plaice, the correlations between LC/K and SST/ wNAOI followed those predicted by the model, but the response was not observed for female plaice. A detailed three year survey of the growth, length/weight relationship and condition of juvenile plaice on two nursery grounds (Conwy and Red Wharf Bays) between April 2004 and March 2007 are reported. Modal progression analysis was used to follow the growth of the 2004,2005 and 2006 year classes with the average size increasing from 1.5-2.0 cm SL in April/May to ca. 8-10 cm SL the following February/March Seasonal variations in the length/weight relationships and in condition factors were observed on both nursery grounds. Condition was lowest in the winter/spring and increased in the summer/autumn as a result of increased food availability and growth opportunity. No differences were observed between the two nursery grounds

Visceral leishmaniasis among children presenting with pancytopenia

Background: Pancytopenia can result from either a failure of production of hematopoietic progenitors or peripheral destruction of a cellular element either due to infection, immune-mediated damage or hypersplenism. Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), one of the chronic parasitic diseases in the world that affects millions of people recently, leishmaniasis has been seen with increasing frequency in patients with Pancytopenia.Objective: To determine the frequency of visceral leishmaniasis among children presenting with pancytopenia at Pediatric Department, Azzd Jammu and Kashmir Medical College MuzaffarabadMethodology This cross sectional study was conducted at the Department of paeds SKBZ/ CMH, Muzaffarabad. The study duration was 6 months from June 2018 to December 2018. All children with pancytopenia either of gender were enrolled. After taking informed demographic information, all the cases underwent bone marrow sampling to assess the Visceral Leishmaniasis. All the data was collected by self-made proforma.Results: Total 75 patients were studied; their mean age of patients was 6.74±3.14 years. Males were in majority 67.69% and 32.31% were females. Leishmaniasis was found 15.38% of the cases. Leishmaniasis was statistically insignificant according to age and gender; p-values were quite insignificant.Conclusion: It is concluded that the visceral leishmaniasis in children with pancytopenia was 15.38%

Challenges of Arabic in Smartphone’s Applications: A Field Study on Dammam Intermediate, Secondary and Collegiate Schools in the Eastern Province

تهدف هذه الدراسة إلى إبراز ما تواجهه اللغة العربية من تحديات متعددة في ظل استخدام تطبيقات الهواتف الذكية كالواتس آب، وفيس بوك، وتويتر، والانستغرام وغيرها من وسائل تواصل اجتماعي حولت العالم إلى قرية صغيرة لا ضوابط للتواصل بين مستخدميها إلا شروط الاستخدام التي تفرضها التطبيقات نفسها؛ ونظراً لأن هذه التحديات تعدُّ وجها لأزمة الهُويَّة اللغوية بكل تعقيداتها؛ آثرنا اختيار هذا العنوان" تحديات اللغة العربية في تطبيقات الهواتف الذاكية"؛ ليكون مجالاً للبحث، من خلال تطبيق استبانة على عينة عشوائية من المجتمع السعودي (المرحلة المتوسطة والثانوية والجامعية)، بلغ عددها (261) عينة، واقتضت طبيعة البحث استخدام المنهجية التعددية بالاعتماد على المنهج الوصفي - التحليلي الذي يوفر الفهم الصحيح الواقعي للحال الموصوفة، وإظهار خصائصها، ومن ثم وصف متغيرات الدراسة المتمثلة في تحديات الهُويَّة اللغوية، مع الاعتماد على المنهج الاجتماعي؛ للكشف عن أثر تطبيقات الهواتف الذكية في إضعاف اللغة العربية في المجتمع السعودي، وقد خلص البحث إلى نتائج عدة أهمها: - إن اللغة العربية تواجه تحديات هجينة كثيرة تشكل خطرا يهدد هُويَّتها. - تنوع وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي، وتشير النتائج أن الوسيلة المفضلة بالدرجة الأولى لجميع المراحل الواتس آب. - انتشار اللهجة العامية بين الشباب والمراهقين نطقا وكتابة، لقلة الثقافة العربية عندهم، وهذا يشكل خطرا مجهولا يداهم فصاحة اللغة العربية. - تشي النتائج أن هناك من يخجل من استخدام اللغة العربية، ويجد فيها وجها من وجوه التخلف والبدائية مقابل الإنجليزية يجد فيها وجهًا من وجوه التطور والرقي والحضارة.This study aims to highlight the multiple challenges that the Arabic language faces in light of the use of smart phone applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media that have transformed the world into a small village with no controls for communication between its users except the terms of use imposed by the applications themselves. Given that these challenges are a face of the linguistic identity crisis with all its complexities; We preferred to choose this title "The Challenges of the Arabic Language in Smartphone Applications" to be an area of ​​research, and a questionnaire was applied to a random sample of Saudi society (intermediate, secondary and university levels), which numbered (261) samples. Relying on the descriptive analytical correlative approach that provides a correct and realistic understanding of the described situation, showing its characteristics, and then describing the study variables represented by the challenges of linguistic identity, while relying on the social approach: To reveal the impact of smart phone applications in weaken the Arabic language in Saudi society, the research concluded several results, the most important of which are: The Arabic language faces many hybrid challenges in dangerous that threaten its identity. -Diversity of social media, activities that are the preferred method in the first place for all stages is WhatsApp. The spread of the colloquial dialect among young people and adolescents, both verbally and in writing, due to the lack of Arabic culture among them, and this constitutes an unknown danger to the fluency of the Arabic language. -The results indicate that there are those who are ashamed of using the Arabic language, and find in it a face of backwardness and primitiveness, compared to English in which they find a facet of development, progress and civilization

Population dynamics of plaice Pleuronectes platessa L in the inshore waters of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey

This study examines the population dynamics of juvenile and adult plaice Pleuronectes platessa L. in the coastal inshore area of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey. The population dynamics of the adult population were studied by conducting autumnal otter trawl surveys in 2004/05. The data obtained were compared with an earlier study conducted in the same area in 1974/77 and with current data for other plaice stocks in North West Europe. The size/age structure, length/weight relationship, growth rate, mortality rate and size/age at first maturity (L5o/A5o) were described for male and female plaice. The results of the survey showed that the size/age structures of male and female fish were different with the older, larger and heavier fish comprising predominately female fish The length/weight relationships were different for male and female fish with males exhibiting isometric growth (b=3.02) and females exhibiting positive allometric growth (b=3.20). Growth patterns, described using the von Bertalanffy growth model, were significantly different between male (K= 0.62 year 1; LW=26.4 cm SL) and female (K= 0.25 year 1; L. =43.8 cm SL) plaice. The instantaneous rate of total mortality was higher for male plaice than for females (Z: 3=1.05 year I cf. Y=0.64 year ). Male plaice matured at a significantly smaller size and younger age than female plaice (L50, d'=16 cm SL cf ? =20 cm SL; Aso, d=1.33 years cf. Y=2.11 years). A comparison of the results of the 2004/05 survey with the earlier 1974/77 survey showed differences in the size/age structure, growth rate and maturity ogives between the two surveys. A meta-analysis of the population dynamics of plaice stocks in North West Europe revealed consistent similarities in the size-structure and patterns of growth and maturation between the populations. A detailed analysis was conducted of the population dynamics of plaice in the coastal inshore area of North West Wales and Eastern Anglesey, based on the autumnal RV Prince Madog fisheries surveys, for the time period 1970-2006. A cyclical trend in abundance (number of plaice hour-1) was apparent in the catch data which was significantly correlated with the winter North Atlantic Oscillation Index (wNAOI). The results indicated no significant changes in the size composition of the plaice catch during the 4 decades (average sizes; (3=24.0 cm SL cf. ? =29.1 cm TL) but a decline in the proportion of older age classes (>_5 years old) in the catch (average ages; c3=2.6 years cf. Y=3.1 years). Analysis of the sex-ratio data between 1970 and 2006 indicated a decrease in the proportion of male plaice caught in the fisheries surveys over the last 4 decades. Male and female plaice both showed contrasting changes in growth patterns between 1970 and 2006. For female plaice, L. tended to increase over time with no change in K values. In contrast, male plaice showed no long term change in L. over time, but an increase in K-values post-1990. The Lso/Aso datasets were limited but analysis of the available data indicated a decrease in L5o/A5o values for male and female plaice over time. The population biology data for plaice (currently underexploited but historically overexploited in the 1970s and 1980s) for the time period 1970-2006 were compared with comparable data for dab Limanda limanda L. (an unexploited species in the Irish Sea) and whiting Merlangius merlangus L. (an overexploited species in the Irish Sea) obtained from the same fisheries surveys. Analysis of the time series data revealed changes in the size and growth patterns for the three species that were consistent with their level of exploitation (i. e. no changes for dab cf changes for plaice and whiting). A similar analysis of the Lso/Aso data was more limited but suggested decreases in the maturity ogive values of plaice and dab. The results were suggestive of fisheries-induced evolution in plaice and whiting in the South East Irish Sea. The population dynamics of plaice were examined in relation to summer/winter/annual sea surface temperatures (SST) and wNAOI to examine whether any changes were related to recent climate change. This analysis indicated a correlation between abundance and wNAOI with higher abundances (number plaice hour') recorded in the survey when the wNAOI was in negative phase. A simple model outlining the effects of increased/decreased SST on size and growth was proposed. For male plaice, the correlations between LC/K and SST/ wNAOI followed those predicted by the model, but the response was not observed for female plaice. A detailed three year survey of the growth, length/weight relationship and condition of juvenile plaice on two nursery grounds (Conwy and Red Wharf Bays) between April 2004 and March 2007 are reported. Modal progression analysis was used to follow the growth of the 2004,2005 and 2006 year classes with the average size increasing from 1.5-2.0 cm SL in April/May to ca. 8-10 cm SL the following February/March Seasonal variations in the length/weight relationships and in condition factors were observed on both nursery grounds. Condition was lowest in the winter/spring and increased in the summer/autumn as a result of increased food availability and growth opportunity. No differences were observed between the two nursery grounds