The effect of electrolytes on the viscosity and time of set of silicic acid gels

This thesis contains the results of experiments of the effects of electrolysis of the viscosity and time of set of silicic acid gels

Sorghum Genome Sequencing by Methylation Filtration

Sorghum bicolor is a close relative of maize and is a staple crop in Africa and much of the developing world because of its superior tolerance of arid growth conditions. We have generated sequence from the hypomethylated portion of the sorghum genome by applying methylation filtration (MF) technology. The evidence suggests that 96% of the genes have been sequence tagged, with an average coverage of 65% across their length. Remarkably, this level of gene discovery was accomplished after generating a raw coverage of less than 300 megabases of the 735-megabase genome. MF preferentially captures exons and introns, promoters, microRNAs, and simple sequence repeats, and minimizes interspersed repeats, thus providing a robust view of the functional parts of the genome. The sorghum MF sequence set is beneficial to research on sorghum and is also a powerful resource for comparative genomics among the grasses and across the entire plant kingdom. Thousands of hypothetical gene predictions in rice and Arabidopsis are supported by the sorghum dataset, and genomic similarities highlight evolutionarily conserved regions that will lead to a better understanding of rice and Arabidopsis

1964

Turf Management Club by John Traynor (page 1) Who Is Superintendent Here by H.E. Frenette (1) Good Turf Can Result from good Sodding (3) Golf Course Superintendent by Edwart Wiacek (4) Picture - Outstanding Senior Prof. Troll Picture - recognition for Blazers St. Andrew\u27s, Scotland by William Hynd (5) Analogy of a Turf Manager by James B. Cole (6) Fish Trouble by Peter A. Langelier and Dennis P. Leger (8) Square Rings by Robert P. McGuire (9) A Different Type of Course by Robert Hall (10) Literature by Pierre Coste (11) Weeds in Golf Course Turf and Their Control by John F. Cornman (A-1) The USe of Liquid Fertilizer by Anthony B. Longo (A-3) Fertilizing a Golf Course Through an Irrigation System by Herbert E. Berg (A-6) The Extent of Winter Injury on Golf Courses by James L. Holmes (A-11) The Problem of Winter Injury by James B. Beard (A-13) Establishing, Maintaining, and Selling Sod for Turf Areas in New England by George F. Stewart (A-20) Problems of Maintaining Turf Around Industrial Grounds by George Moore (A-22) Landscaping Industrial sites by A.W. Boicourt (A-25) Introduction to the panel Discussion on Grasses for Tees and Their Management by Alexander M. Radko (A-28) Building a Golf Tee by Phil Cassidy (A-29) Grasses for Tees and Their Management by Wm. Dest (A-31) Golf Course Tee maintenance by Jim Fulwider (A-32) Tees by F. Thompson (A-33) How to Draw up a Contract by Lawrence D. Rhoades (A-34) My Contract by Lucien E. Duval (A-37) The Golf Car Problem by Geoffrey S. Cornish (A-41) Golf Cars and Turfgrass by Lee Record (A-42) Course Design and Golf Cars by William F. Mitchell (A-42) Golf Cars and the Established Course by Sherwood Moore (A-45) Course Design and Golf Cars by Phil Wogan (a-52) Introduction of Cars to the New Course by M. Ovian (A-56

Venus Observations at 40 and 90 GHz with CLASS

Using the Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor, we measure the disk-averaged absolute Venus brightness temperature to be 432.3 $\pm$ 2.8 K and 355.6 $\pm$ 1.3 K in the Q and W frequency bands centered at 38.8 and 93.7 GHz, respectively. At both frequency bands, these are the most precise measurements to date. Furthermore, we observe no phase dependence of the measured temperature in either band. Our measurements are consistent with a CO$_2$-dominant atmospheric model that includes trace amounts of additional absorbers like SO$_2$ and H$_2$SO$_4$.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, published in PS

The Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor Receiver Design

The Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor consists of four instruments performing a CMB polarization survey. Currently, the 40 GHz and first 90 GHz instruments are deployed and observing, with the second 90 GHz and a multichroic 150/220 GHz instrument to follow. The receiver is a central component of each instrument's design and functionality. This paper describes the CLASS receiver design, using the first 90 GHz receiver as a primary reference. Cryogenic cooling and filters maintain a cold, low-noise environment for the detectors. We have achieved receiver detector temperatures below 50 mK in the 40 GHz instrument for 85% of the initial 1.5 years of operation, and observed in-band efficiency that is consistent with pre-deployment estimates. At 90 GHz, less than 26% of in-band power is lost to the filters and lenses in the receiver, allowing for high optical efficiency. We discuss the mounting scheme for the filters and lenses, the alignment of the cold optics and detectors, stray light control, and magnetic shielding.Comment: Fixed formatting of abstract; 20 Pages, 11 Figures, SPIE Conference Proceeding

Assessing the Utility of Thermodynamic Features for microRNA Target Prediction under Relaxed Seed and No Conservation Requirements

BACKGROUND: Many computational microRNA target prediction tools are focused on several key features, including complementarity to 5'seed of miRNAs and evolutionary conservation. While these features allow for successful target identification, not all miRNA target sites are conserved and adhere to canonical seed complementarity. Several studies have propagated the use of energy features of mRNA:miRNA duplexes as an alternative feature. However, different independent evaluations reported conflicting results on the reliability of energy-based predictions. Here, we reassess the usefulness of energy features for mammalian target prediction, aiming to relax or eliminate the need for perfect seed matches and conservation requirement. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We detect significant differences of energy features at experimentally supported human miRNA target sites and at genome-wide sites of AGO protein interaction. This trend is confirmed on datasets that assay the effect of miRNAs on mRNA and protein expression changes, and a simple linear regression model leads to significant correlation of predicted versus observed expression change. Compared to 6-mer seed matches as baseline, application of our energy-based model leads to ∼3-5-fold enrichment on highly down-regulated targets, and allows for prediction of strictly imperfect targets with enrichment above baseline. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: In conclusion, our results indicate significant promise for energy-based miRNA target prediction that includes a broader range of targets without having to use conservation or impose stringent seed match rules

Brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål), genome: putative underpinnings of polyphagy, insecticide resistance potential and biology of a top worldwide pest

Background Halyomorpha halys (Stål), the brown marmorated stink bug, is a highly invasive insect species due in part to its exceptionally high levels of polyphagy. This species is also a nuisance due to overwintering in human-made structures. It has caused significant agricultural losses in recent years along the Atlantic seaboard of North America and in continental Europe. Genomic resources will assist with determining the molecular basis for this species’ feeding and habitat traits, defining potential targets for pest management strategies. Results Analysis of the 1.15-Gb draft genome assembly has identified a wide variety of genetic elements underpinning the biological characteristics of this formidable pest species, encompassing the roles of sensory functions, digestion, immunity, detoxification and development, all of which likely support H. halys’ capacity for invasiveness. Many of the genes identified herein have potential for biomolecular pesticide applications. Conclusions Availability of the H. halys genome sequence will be useful for the development of environmentally friendly biomolecular pesticides to be applied in concert with more traditional, synthetic chemical-based controls

Differential expression of microRNAs during fiber development between fuzzless- lintless mutant and its wild-type allotetraploid cotton

Cotton is one of the most important textile crops but little is known how microRNAs regulate cotton fiber development. Using a well-studied cotton fiberless mutant Xu-142-fl, we compared 54 miRNAs for their expression between fiberless mutant and its wildtype. In wildtype Xu-142, 26 miRNAs are involved in cotton fiber initiation and 48 miRNAs are related to primary wall synthesis and secondary wall thickening. Thirty three miRNAs showed different expression in fiber initiation between Xu-142 and Xu- 142-fl. These miRNAs potentially target 723 protein-coding genes, including transcription factors, such as MYB, ARF, and LRR. ARF18 was newly predicted targets of miR160a, and miR160a was expressed at higher level in −2DPA of Xu-142-fl compared with Xu-142. Furthermore, the result of Gene Ontology- based term classification (GO), EuKaryotic Orthologous Groups (KOG) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis shows that miRNA targets were classified to 222 biological processes, 64 cellular component and 42 molecular functions, enriched in 22 KOG groups, and classified into 28 pathways. Together, our study provides evidence for better understanding of miRNA regulatory roles in the process of fiber development, which is helpful to increase fiber yield and improve fiber quality

Nuclear localised more sulphur accumulation1 epigenetically regulates sulphur homeostasis in Arabidopsis thaliana

Sulphur (S) is an essential element for all living organisms. The uptake, assimilation and metabolism of S in plants are well studied. However, the regulation of S homeostasis remains largely unknown. Here, we report on the identification and characterisation of the more sulphur accumulation1 (msa1-1) mutant. The MSA1 protein is localized to the nucleus and is required for both S adenosylmethionine (SAM) production and DNA methylation. Loss of function of the nuclear localised MSA1 leads to a reduction in SAM in roots and a strong S-deficiency response even at ample S supply, causing an over- accumulation of sulphate, sulphite, cysteine and glutathione. Supplementation with SAM suppresses this high S phenotype. Furthermore, mutation of MSA1 affects genome-wide DNA methylation, including the methylation of S-deficiency responsive genes. Elevated S accumulation in msa1-1 requires the increased expression of the sulphate transporter genes SULTR1;1 and SULTR1;2 which are also differentially methylated in msa1-1. Our results suggest a novel function for MSA1 in the nucleus in regulating SAM biosynthesis and maintaining S homeostasis epigenetically via DNA methylation

Multiple M. tuberculosis Phenotypes in Mouse and Guinea Pig Lung Tissue Revealed by a Dual-Staining Approach

A unique hallmark of tuberculosis is the granulomatous lesions formed in the lung. Granulomas can be heterogeneous in nature and can develop a necrotic, hypoxic core which is surrounded by an acellular, fibrotic rim. Studying bacilli in this in vivo microenvironment is problematic as Mycobacterium tuberculosis can change its phenotype and also become acid-fast negative. Under in vitro models of differing environments, M. tuberculosis alters its metabolism, transcriptional profile and rate of replication. In this study, we investigated whether these phenotypic adaptations of M. tuberculosis are unique for certain environmental conditions and if they could therefore be used as differential markers. Bacilli were studied using fluorescent acid-fast auramine-rhodamine targeting the mycolic acid containing cell wall, and immunofluorescence targeting bacterial proteins using an anti-M. tuberculosis whole cell lysate polyclonal antibody. These techniques were combined and simultaneously applied to M. tuberculosis in vitro culture samples and to lung sections of M. tuberculosis infected mice and guinea pigs. Two phenotypically different subpopulations of M. tuberculosis were found in stationary culture whilst three subpopulations were found in hypoxic culture and in lung sections. Bacilli were either exclusively acid-fast positive, exclusively immunofluorescent positive or acid-fast and immunofluorescent positive. These results suggest that M. tuberculosis exists as multiple populations in most conditions, even within seemingly a single microenvironment. This is relevant information for approaches that study bacillary characteristics in pooled samples (using lipidomics and proteomics) as well as in M. tuberculosis drug development