Determining the Association between the Structure of Stream Benthic Macroinvertebrate Communities and Agricultural Best Management Practices

Farmers have been encouraged to adopt more sustainable farming practices (BMPs) that mitigate adverse agricultural effects on the natural environment. However, the ability of BMPs to protect or restore riverine systems continues to be questioned due to limited evidence directly linking BMP use with improved ecological conditions. The exclusion of hydrological pathways in previous field studies may explain why a direct link has not yet been established. The goal of this study was to assess the association between benthic macroinvertebrate community structure and the number and location of agricultural BMPs. Macroinvertebrates and water chemistry were sampled in 30 headwater catchments in the Grand River Watershed. Catchments exhibited gradients of BMP use and location as measured by the degree of hydrologic connectedness. Stepwise ordination regressions and variance partitioning were used to determine which environmental variables (i.e., BMP metrics, water chemistry parameters, habitat characteristics, and land use variables) were associated with benthic macroinvertebrate community structure. Water chemistry parameters were negatively associated with BMP metrics suggesting BMPs were mitigating losses of nutrients and sediments. However, BMP abundance and location explained minimal variation in benthic macroinvertebrate structure within the 30 sampled catchments. The absence of a strong association between BMPs and benthic macroinvertebrates may indicate a need for greater numbers and targeted siting of BMPS to improve water quality beyond a threshold point that would allow recolonization of intolerant invertebrate taxa. Focusing of conservation goals on ecological conditions and the promotion of BMPs that enhance in-stream habitat may also be required

Processing System Techniques for the 80\u27s

Increased spatial resolution of oncoming systems such as Thematic Mapper and the French SPOT, plus experience gained in the LANDSAT MSS lead to a requirement to understand the error sources in the scene-to-data tape portion of a remote sensing system. An evaluation of this portion of the system and its effects on processing remote sensing data derived therefrom is presented. Discussion is limited to passive sensors in the reflective portion of the spectrum

Vertebrate scavenger receptor class B member 2 (SCARB2): comparative studies of a major lysosomal membrane glycoprotein

Scavenger receptor class B member 2 (SCARB2) (also LIMP-2, CD36L2 or LGP85) is a major lysosomal membrane glycoprotein involved in endosomal and lysosomal biogenesis and maintenance. SCARB2 acts as a receptor for the lysosomal mannose-6-phosphate independent targeting of β-glucuronidase and enterovirus 71 and influences Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy. Genetic deficiency of this protein causes deafness and peripheral neuropathy in mice as well as myoclonic epilepsy and nephrotic syndrome in humans. Comparative SCARB2 amino acid sequences and structures and SCARB2 gene locations were examined using data from several vertebrate genome projects. Vertebrate SCARB2 sequences shared 43-100% identity as compared with 30-36% sequence identities with other CD36-like superfamily members, SCARB1 and CD36. At least 10 N-glycosylation sites were conserved among most vertebrate SCARB2 proteins examined. Sequence alignments, key amino acid residues and conserved predicted secondary structures were examined, including cytoplasmic, transmembrane and external lysosomal membrane sequences: cysteine disulfide residues, thrombospondin (THP1) binding sites and 16 proline and 20 glycine conserved residues, which may contribute to short loop formation within the exomembrane SCARB2 sequences. Vertebrate SCARB2 genes contained 12 coding exons. The human SCARB2 gene contained a CpG island (CpG100), ten microRNA-binding sites and several transcription factor binding sites (including PPARA) which may contribute to a higher level (2.4 times average) of gene expression. Phylogenetic analyses examined the relationships and potential evolutionary origins of the vertebrate SCARB2 gene with vertebrate SCARB1 and CD36 genes. These suggested that SCARB2 originated from duplications of the CD36 gene in an ancestral genome forming three vertebrate CD36 gene family members: SCARB1, SCARB2 and CD36

The Master of Science in Information Systems in a Regional Midwestern University

Graduate programs in information systems are gaining in popularity, partly because of the demand for professionals with expertise to work with electronic commerce and on the web, solve the Y2K problems, and implement enterprise software. A newly established graduate degree program at a large regional midwestern university has seen increased interest from students and companies because of the SAP R/3 initiative undertaken by the College of Business Administration. The MIS faculty are interested in offering a graduate program that fosters traditional educational goals as well as provides graduates with good jobs. This paper also evaluates the program within the recommendations of the joint ACM/AIS task force on the status of graduate IS curriculum

An Introduction to Enterprise Software Using SAP R/3: A Web-Based Course

SAP AG is the world’s leading provider of client/server business applications. To encourage the use of SAP R/3 to enhance education, SAP AG has initiated a University Alliance Program (UAP) in North America. Being an early participant in the UAP presented the challenge of integrating R/3 into the business and MIS curricula. A course development activity for this integration was the creation of an introductory course on SAP R/3. A World Wide Web format of online lessons for the course was selected in order to make the course available to students in an asynchronous format. This article provides an overview of the introductory course on the enterprise software, SAP R/3, as well as its delivery mode

Comparative structures and evolution of vertebrate lipase H (LIPH) genes and proteins: a relative of the phospholipase A1 gene families

Lipase H (LIPH) is a membrane-bound phospholipase generating 2-acyl lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) in the body. LPA is a lipid mediator required for maintaining homeostasis of diverse biological functions and in activating cell surface receptors such as P2Y5, which plays an essential role in hair growth. Bioinformatic methods were used to predict the amino acid sequences, secondary and tertiary structures, and gene locations for LIPH genes and encoded proteins using data from several vertebrate genome projects. Vertebrate LIPH genes contained ten coding exons transcribed on either the positive or negative DNA strands. Evidence is presented for duplicated LIPH genes for the chicken and zebra fish genomes. Vertebrate LIPH protein subunits shared 56–97 % sequence identities and exhibited sequence alignments and identities for key LIPH amino acid residues as well as extensive conservation of predicted secondary and tertiary structures with those previously reported for horse pancreatic lipase (LIPP), with ‘N-signal peptide’, ‘lipase,’ and ‘plat’ structural domains. Comparative studies of vertebrate LIPH sequences with other phospholipase A1-like lipases (LIPI and PS-PLA1), as well as vascular and pancreatic lipases, confirmed predictions for LIPH N-terminal signal peptides (residues 1–18); a conserved vertebrate LIPH N-glycosylation site (66NVT for human LIPH); active site ‘triad’ residues (Ser 154; Asp 178; His 248); disulfide bond residues (233–246; 270–281; 284–292; 427–446), and a ‘short’ 12 residue ‘active site lid’, which is comparable to other phospholipases examined. Phylogenetic analyses demonstrated the relationships and potential evolutionary origins of the vertebrate LIPH family of genes related to, but distinct from other phospholipase A1-like genes (LIPI and PS-PLA1), and from vascular lipase and pancreatic lipase gene families. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13205-012-0087-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Putting Muscle Into The M In An MIS Program

Rapid technological changes put pressure on MIS programs in the nation to modify their course offerings. Limited budgets and increased demands on faculty mean that these faculty have to be highly innovative in obtaining resources to support their programs. The authors provide insight into how such limitations can be overcome. They also recommend that teaching theoretical concepts and methodologies should take precedence over merely training students on specific software tools. Flexibility in MIS programs must ensure that MIS graduates join the marketplace with relevant skills-both technical and sof