1,072 research outputs found
The Early Steps Project: Occupational Therapy in a Pediatric Primary Care Setting
The purpose of this study is expand on the Early STEPs project goal of identifying early developmental delays in infants and young children in a health disparate population and to collect preliminary data to lay the groundwork for a future NIH grant proposal. Individuals with less education have poor health and shorter life expectancies than well-educated individuals, and research reveals that poverty is directly related to limited education. An innovative approach is needed to overcome barriers, improve health literacy, and educate parents on effective parenting strategies for this population. Technology may be the part of the solution to this issue. Through Early STEPs, the occupational therapists will continue to refer families to early intervention and therapy services as appropriate and follow-up to ensure that services are initiated. The OT will also determine if the parents are utilizing the Word Gap App and other provided resources to support their child\u27s development and to manage their stress. By increasing parental awareness and knowledge of language and motor skill development, the environments of underserved children will be enriched and parental stress will be reduced so that these children can have improved health and reach their full potential
Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycans Are a Common Component of Neuronal Inclusions and Astrocytic Reaction in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Previously, we showed three differentially sulfated forms of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPG) associated with senile plaques, astrocytes and neurofibrillary tangles in Alzheimer\u27s disease. Here, monoclonal antibodies were used to demonstrate CSPGs in other neurodegenerative diseases. CSPGs were found associated with inclusions of Parkinson\u27s, diffuse Lewy body, Pick\u27s diseases, and progressive supranuclear palsy. Reacting astrocytes in each of these neurodegenrative diseases and Huntington\u27s disease showed immunoreactivity for CSPG. CSPG distribution in a variety of neurodegenerative diseases suggests that similar mechanisms may be involved in the accumulation of proteoglycans in a number of filamentous inclusions
Acute Toxicity of Residual Chlorine and Ammonia to Some Native Illinois Fishes
Ninety-six hour residual chlorine bioassays were conducted on bluegill and channel catfish. In 96-hr acute toxicity studies with ammonia (NH3 -N) bass, in addition to bluegill and channel catfish, were included. The studies were performed in waters typical of most lakes and streams in midwestern states, i.e., relatively high in alkalinity and the salts of and magnesium. Observations of the characteristics and reaction of the fishes to each toxicant were noted. The 96-hr median tolerance limits for residual chlorine were: from 0.18 to 0.33 mg/1 for bluegill depending on temperature and fish weight; about 0.09 mg/1 for channel catfish with temperature not a factor. For ammonia the 96-hr median tolerance limits were: from 0.40 to 1.3 mg/1 for bluegill depending on temperature and fish weight; from 0.72 mg/1 at 22° C to 1.2 mg/1 at 30°C for bass and 1.5 mg/1 at 22°C to 3.0 mg/1 at 28° C for channel catfish with size not a factor. For the protection of the fishes investigated, and consistent with Illinois water pollution regulations, residual chlorine should not be detectable and NH3-N should not exceed a concentration of 0.04 mg/1.publishedpeer reviewedOpe
Computer modeling the fatigue crack growth rate behavior of metals in corrosive environments
The objective of this task was to develop a method to digitize FCP (fatigue crack propagation) kinetics data, generally presented in terms of extensive da/dN-Delta K pairs, to produce a file for subsequent linear superposition or curve-fitting analysis. The method that was developed is specific to the Numonics 2400 Digitablet and is comparable to commercially available software products as Digimatic(sup TM 4). Experiments demonstrated that the errors introduced by the photocopying of literature data, and digitization, are small compared to those inherent in laboratory methods to characterize FCP in benign and aggressive environments. The digitizing procedure was employed to obtain fifteen crack growth rate data sets for several aerospace alloys in aggressive environments
Current Population Statistics Do Not Favor Photoevaporation over Core-Powered Mass Loss as the Dominant Cause of the Exoplanet Radius Gap
We search for evidence of the cause of the exoplanet radius gap, i.e. the
dearth of planets with radii near . If the cause was
photoevaporation, the radius gap should trend with proxies for the early-life
high-energy emission of planet-hosting stars. If, alternatively, the cause was
core-powered mass loss, no such trends should exist. Critically, spurious
trends between the radius gap and stellar properties arise from an underlying
correlation with instellation. After accounting for this underlying
correlation, we find no trends remain between the radius gap and stellar mass
or present-day stellar activity as measured by near-UV emission. We dismiss the
nondetection of a radius gap trend with near-UV emission because present-day
near-UV emission is unlikely to trace early-life high-energy emission, but we
provide a catalog of GALEX near-UV and far-UV emission measurements for general
use. We interpret the nondetection of a radius gap trend with stellar mass by
simulating photoevaporation with mass-dependent evolution of stellar
high-energy emission. The simulation produces an undetectable trend between the
radius gap and stellar mass under realistic sources of error. We conclude that
no evidence, from this analysis or others in the literature, currently exists
that clearly favors either photoevaporation or core powered mass loss as the
primary cause of the exoplanet radius gap. However, repeating this analysis
once the body of well-characterized planets has roughly doubled
could confirm or rule out photoevaporation.Comment: 27 pages, 32 figures, accepted to Ap
R-matrix Quantization of the Elliptic Ruijsenaars--Schneider model
It is shown that the classical L-operator algebra of the elliptic
Ruijsenaars-Schneider model can be realized as a subalgebra of the algebra of
functions on the cotangent bundle over the centrally extended current group in
two dimensions. It is governed by two dynamical r and -matrices
satisfying a closed system of equations. The corresponding quantum R and
-matrices are found as solutions to quantum analogs of these
equations. We present the quantum L-operator algebra and show that the system
of equations on R and arises as the compatibility condition for
this algebra. It turns out that the R-matrix is twist-equivalent to the Felder
elliptic R^F-matrix with playing the role of the twist. The
simplest representation of the quantum L-operator algebra corresponding to the
elliptic Ruijsenaars-Schneider model is obtained. The connection of the quantum
L-operator algebra to the fundamental relation RLL=LLR with Belavin's elliptic
R matrix is established. As a byproduct of our construction, we find a new
N-parameter elliptic solution to the classical Yang-Baxter equation.Comment: latex, 29 pages, some misprints are corrected and the meromorphic
version of the quantum L-operator algebra is discusse
Consistency of the Disposition Index in the Face of Diet Induced Insulin Resistance: Potential Role of FFA
Objective
Insulin resistance induces hyperinsulinemic compensation, which in turn maintains almost a constant disposition index. However, the signal that gives rise to the hyperinsulinemic compensation for insulin resistance remains unknown.
Methods
In a dog model of obesity we examined the possibility that potential early-week changes in plasma FFA, glucose, or both could be part of a cascade of signals that lead to compensatory hyperinsulinemia induced by insulin resistance.
Results
Hypercaloric high fat feeding in dogs resulted in modest weight gain, and an increase in adipose tissue with no change in the non-adipose tissue size. To compensate for the drop in insulin sensitivity, there was a significant rise in plasma insulin, which can be attributed in part to a decrease in the metabolic clearance rate of insulin and increased insulin secretion. In this study we observed complete compensation for high fat diet induced insulin resistance as measured by the disposition index. The compensatory hyperinsulinemia was coupled with significant changes in plasma FFAs and no change in plasma glucose.
Conclusions
We postulate that early in the development of diet induced insulin resistance, a change in plasma FFAs may directly, through signaling at the level of β-cell, or indirectly, by decreasing hepatic insulin clearance, result in the observed hyperinsulinemic compensation
Classes of fast and specific search mechanisms for proteins on DNA
Problems of search and recognition appear over different scales in biological
systems. In this review we focus on the challenges posed by interactions
between proteins, in particular transcription factors, and DNA and possible
mechanisms which allow for a fast and selective target location. Initially we
argue that DNA-binding proteins can be classified, broadly, into three distinct
classes which we illustrate using experimental data. Each class calls for a
different search process and we discuss the possible application of different
search mechanisms proposed over the years to each class. The main thrust of
this review is a new mechanism which is based on barrier discrimination. We
introduce the model and analyze in detail its consequences. It is shown that
this mechanism applies to all classes of transcription factors and can lead to
a fast and specific search. Moreover, it is shown that the mechanism has
interesting transient features which allow for stability at the target despite
rapid binding and unbinding of the transcription factor from the target.Comment: 65 pages, 23 figure
Incident Heart Failure and Cognitive Decline: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study
Cognitive impairment is found in a significant proportion of patients with heart failure (HF). While cognitive impairment may be a consequence of HF, early signs of cognitive impairment may also indicate subclinical vascular disease, and thus a risk factor for future cardiovascular events
Merging late Holocene molecular organic and foraminiferal-based geochemical records of sea surface temperature in the Gulf of Mexico
Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2011. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Paleoceanography 26 (2011): PA1209, doi:10.1029/2010PA002000.A molecular organic geochemical proxy (TEX86) for sea surface temperature (SST) is compared with a foraminifera-based SST proxy (Mg/Ca) in a decadal-resolution marine sedimentary record spanning the last 1000 years from the Gulf of Mexico. We assess the relative strengths of the organic and inorganic paleoceanographic techniques for reconstructing high-resolution SST variability during recent climate events, including the Little Ice Age (LIA) and the Medieval Warm Period (MWP). SST estimates based on the molecular organic proxy TEX86 show a similar magnitude and pattern of SST variability to foraminiferal Mg/Ca-SST estimates but with some important differences. For instance, both proxies show a cooling (1°C–2°C) of Gulf of Mexico SSTs during the LIA. During the MWP, however, Mg/Ca-SSTs are similar to near-modern SSTs, while TEX86 indicates SSTs that were cooler than modern. Using the respective SST calibrations for each proxy results in TEX86-SST estimates that are 2°C–4°C warmer than Mg/Ca-SST throughout the 1000 year record. We interpret the TEX86-SST as a summer-weighted SST signal from the upper mixed layer, whereas the Mg/Ca-SST better reflects the mean annual SST. Downcore differences in the SST estimates between the two proxies (ΔT = TEX86 − Mg/Ca) are interpreted in the context of varying seasonality and/or changing water column temperature gradients.This work was supported,
in part, by the National Science Foundation under grants OCE‐0318361
and OCE‐0903017
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