Knockout of the US29 Gene of Human Cytomegalovirus Using BAC Recombineering

Color poster with text, diagrams, images, and charts.The purpose of this study was to determine the function of the US29 gene in Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV) by knocking it out using Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC) technology.University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

The Giving Trees: The (Un)Sustainability of Palm Oil in Indonesia

Palm oil is the main source of cooking oil for much of Africa, Asia and Brazil. Due to the increasingly high demand for palm oil, countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia have cleared millions of acres of tropical rainforests to create space for oil palm plantations. This deforestation has led to extreme environmental and social concerns such as the burning of peatlands, the endangerment of a number of species, including the Sumatran Tiger, rhinos and orangutans, and the displacement of native populations. Indonesia is the world’s largest consumer and producer of palm oil, producing almost half of the world’s supply which has created a dependence on palm oil for the success of their economy. This has created an economics-ecology dilemma for the country, yet, still, the success of their economy is dependent on the sustainability of their environment. There have been a number of international efforts to improve the sustainability of the industry, but there has been no lasting change as the attraction to profits has greatly outweighed the negative implications of growth. The environmental impacts of the industry raise serious concerns for the survival of these rich and vital rainforests. In his book, Loving Nature, James A. Nash discusses a number of theological arguments for ecology that are can be directly applied to the palm oil industry of Indonesia. Christians, Nash discusses, are called to love thy neighbor, which must include non-human neighbors. Christians also have the responsibility to care for future generations, which entails preserving the natural resources of our planet. The social and ecological effects of the Indonesian palm oil industry violate the integrity of the planet, our neighbors, and future generations, and is thus violating Christian ecological responsibility

Another Description of Ross\u27 Gull

One immature was observed at Sutherland Reservoir, Lincoln County, on 17 December (myself) and 19 December (myself and Dorothy J. Rosche), 1992. I saw this bird a few hours after Silcock and Dinsmore discovered it on 17 Dec. [See article on p. 88.] It flew by the end of the pier at close distances (as close as 20 feet) for hours on both days of observation. It sometimes landed momentarily on small pieces of ice as it picked up morsels floating in the water. It was a small gull and much more dainty than the nearby Bonaparte\u27s Gulls. It had a very small, rounded head and a very short, stubby, blackish bill. I believe it was a first-year bird molting into second-year plumage. The obviously wedge-shaped tail possessed well-worn tips. The only thing left of the dark tail band was a dark spot or two. The dark wing band of the immature was reduced to a short, dark bar on the inner wing, more noticeable on one side of the bird than the other (and very visible when the bird perched). The dark black collar marking was just beginning to appear, a small, darkish line being the only thing visible on each side of the head at this time. The pointed wings were rather uniformly gray on both sides; the trailing edge of the wing was whitish. The bird remained until 3 January, 1993, when it was last seen at the inlet to the reservoir. I personally visited with some 18 people who travelled to observe the bird from New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Colorado, and Florida

IDCS NETWORK ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS

The purpose of this design analysis is to determine the feasibility of network alternatives available to support the Exploratory Study Facilities (ESF) site characterization test data gathering activity as well as the facility control and monitoring systems. If it is found that more than one feasible alternative exists, a cost analysis will also be conducted to determine the least costly alternative

Trichuris suis ova in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and clinically isolated syndrome (TRIOMS): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Trichuris suis ova is a probiotic treatment based on the hygiene hypothesis. It has been demonstrated as safe and effective in autoimmune inflammatory bowel diseases and clinical trials indicate that helminth infections also have an immunomodulatory effect in multiple sclerosis.We hypothesize that administering 2,500 Trichuris suis ova eggs orally every two weeks for 12 months is--due to its immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effect--significantly more effective than oral placebo in preventing new T2 and Gd+ lesions, as quantified by cerebral MRI and clinical examination, in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and clinically isolated syndrome. METHODS/DESIGN: Fifty patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis or clinically isolated syndrome with clinical activity, not undergoing any standard therapies, will be randomized 1:1 to Trichuris suis ova 2,500 eggs every two weeks or matching placebo. The safety, tolerability and effect on disease activity and in vivo mechanisms of action of Trichuris suis ova in MS will be assessed by neurological, laboratory and immunological exams and magnetic resonance imaging throughout the 12-month treatment period and over a follow-up period of 6 months. Various immunological analyses will be used to assess the overall patient immune response prior to and at varying time points following treatment with Trichuris suis ova. DISCUSSION: We anticipate that Trichuris suis ova will be well tolerated and more effective than the placebo in preventing new T2 and Gd+ lesions, as quantified by MRI. We also expect the Th1/Th17 proinflammatory response to shift towards the more anti-inflammatory Th2 response. This study has important clinical implications and will involve extensive research on the immunology of helminth therapy. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01413243

Überblick über Spurenelemente in Böden der Aue der Mittleren Elbe

Floodplain soils across the Central Elbe River, Germany, have unique features. These soils vary considerably in their properties due to rapid fluvial processes and in metal contents due to frequent industrial discharge into the river. Although there have been works studying such soils, there has never been a comprehensive study that would monitor a large number of entire soil profiles along the Elbe River. Our aim was to describe the main properties of 94 profiles representing different soils along the Elbe River, their content from 15 potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in various depths, and assess various soil contamination and health risk indices. We measured soil properties auch as pH, organic carbon (OC), particle size distribution, as well as total concentrations of aluminium (Al), arsenic (As), barium (Ba), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), rubidium (Rb), strontium (Sr), tin (Sn), vanadium (V), zirconium (Zr), and zinc (Zn) in all soil profiles. We presented the data for all soil horizons and in top- (0-30 cm depth) and subsoil (>30 cm depth). We found that pH, OC, and clay differed significantly between top- and subsoil horizons reflecting different water regimes and other factors. On the other hand, Al, Fe, and Mn were not affected significantly by depth. Among the studied PTEs, Sn was found to be generating the highest values in Contamination Factor, Geoaccumulation Index, and Enrichment Factor; it was followed by As, Zn, and Pb. Other PTEs such as Ba, Rb, Sr, V, and Zr, and exhibited much lower soil contamination index values. The Pollution Load Index was very high. Health risk assessment indicated rather unexpectedly that Zr was the primary contributor to total risk. We conclude that in multi-element contamination cases, even PTEs with low soil concentrations (such as Zr here) may have predominant role in the risk related to soil contamination

Identified research directions for using manufacturing knowledge earlier in the product lifecycle

Design for manufacturing (DFM), especially the use of manufacturing knowledge to support design decisions, has received attention in the academic domain. However, industry practice has not been studied enough to provide solutions that are mature for industry. The current state of the art for DFM is often rule-based functionality within computer-aided design (CAD) systems that enforce specific design requirements. That rule-based functionality may or may not dynamically affect geometry definition. And, if rule-based functionality exists in the CAD system, it is typically a customisation on a case-by-case basis. Manufacturing knowledge is a phrase with vast meanings, which may include knowledge on the effects of material properties decisions, machine and process capabilities or understanding the unintended consequences of design decisions on manufacturing. One of the DFM questions to answer is: How can manufacturing knowledge, depending on its definition, be used earlier in the product life cycle to enable a more collaborative development environment? This paper will discuss the results of a workshop on manufacturing knowledge that highlights several research questions needing more study. This paper proposes recommendations for investigating the relationship of manufacturing knowledge with shape, behaviour and context characteristics of a product to produce a better understanding of what knowledge is most important. In addition, the proposal includes recommendations for investigating the system-level barriers to reusing manufacturing knowledge and how model-based manufacturing may ease the burden of knowledge sharing. Lastly, the proposal addresses the direction of future research for holistic solutions of using manufacturing knowledge earlier in the product life cycle

Coal-packed methane biofilter for mitigation of green house gas emissions from coal mine ventilation air

Methane emitted by coal mine ventilation air (MVA) is a significant greenhouse gas. A mitigation strategy is the oxidation of methane to carbon dioxide, which is approximately twenty-one times less effective at global warming than methane on a mass-basis. The low non-combustible methane concentrations at high MVA flow rates call for a catalytic strategy of oxidation. A laboratory-scale coal-packed biofilter was designed and partially removed methane from humidified air at flow rates between 0.2 and 2.4 L min -1 at 30°C with nutrient solution added every three days. Methane oxidation was catalysed by a complex community of naturally-occurring microorganisms, with the most abundant member being identified by 16S rRNA gene sequence as belonging to the methanotrophic genus Methylocystis. Additional inoculation with a laboratorygrown culture of Methylosinus sporium, as investigated in a parallel run, only enhanced methane consumption during the initial 12 weeks. The greatest level of methane removal of 27.260.66 g methane m23 empty bed h21 was attained for the non-inoculated system, which was equivalent to removing 19.762.9% methane from an inlet concentration of 1% v/v at an inlet gas flow rate of 1.6 L min21 (2.4 min empty bed residence time). These results show that low-cost coal packing holds promising potential as a suitable growth surface and contains methanotrophic microorganisms for the catalytic oxidative removal of methane.©2014 Limbri et al

Effects of Growing Season Fire on Northern Bobwhite Nest Site Selection and Survival

Restoration and management of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) communities necessitates frequent prescribed fire. Prior to human colonization of the southeastern United States thousands of years ago, longleaf pine forests burned primarily during the growing-season as a result of lightning-ignited fires. Growing-season prescribed fire may suppress woody vegetation and promote herbaceous groundcover better than dormant-season fire. Despite the potential ecological benefits of growing-season fire, many land managers use only dormant-season prescribed fire to avoid destruction of ground nests, including those from northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus). Our objective was to determine bobwhite nest survival and nest-site selection in the presence of early, growing-season prescribed fire on a 3-year return interval. We compared vegetation composition and structure at nest sites and paired random sites to identify important predictors of nest-site selection and to evaluate the effects of habitat covariates on nest survival. We captured bobwhite and attached radio transmitters. Radio-marked individuals were tracked to locate nests and determine nest survival. We documented 2 nests that burned during a growing-season prescribed fire. All 14 nests were located within units that were burned at least 2 years prior, putting these nests at a greater risk for being destroyed by prescribed fire that occurred on a 3-year return interval. We suggest that restricting early, growing-season prescribed burning to April through early June should limit an overlap between prescribed burns and the peak of northern bobwhite nesting season, which occurred mid-July at our study site. Additionally, longer fire return intervals may be needed to allow development of woody understory structure selected by bobwhites for nesting, especially on poor soils like those on our study site in the Sandhills physiographic region