VETA-1 x ray detection system

The alignment and X-ray imaging performance of the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF) Verification Engineering Test Article-I (VETA-I) was measured by the VETA-I X-Ray Detection System (VXDS). The VXDS was based on the X-ray detection system utilized in the AXAF Technology Mirror Assembly (TMA) program, upgraded to meet the more stringent requirements of the VETA-I test program. The VXDS includes two types of X-ray detectors: (1) a High Resolution Imager (HRI) which provides X-ray imaging capabilities, and (2) sealed and flow proportional counters which, in conjunction with apertures of various types and precision translation stages, provide the most accurate measurement of VETA-I performance. Herein we give an overview of the VXDS hardware including X-ray detectors, translation stages, apertures, proportional counters and flow counter gas supply system and associated electronics. We also describe the installation of the VXDS into the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) X-Ray Calibration Facility (XRCF). We discuss in detail the design and performance of those elements of the VXDS which have not been discussed elsewhere; translation systems, flow counter gas supply system, apertures and thermal monitoring system

Dapagliflozin enhances fat oxidation and ketone production in patients with type 2 diabetes

OBJECTIVE Insulin resistance is associatedwithmitochondrial dysfunction and decreased ATP synthesis. Treatment of individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with sodium-glucose transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) improves insulin sensitivity. However, recent reports have demonstrated development of ketoacidosis in subjects with T2DM treated with SGLT2i. The current study examined the effect of improved insulin sensitivity with dapagliflozin on 1) mitochondrial ATP synthesis and 2) substrate oxidation rates and ketone production. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The study randomized 18 individuals with T2DMto dapagliflozin (n = 9) or placebo (n = 9). Before and after 2 weeks, subjects received an insulin clamp with tritiated glucose, indirect calorimetry, and muscle biopsies. RESULTS Dapagliflozin reduced fasting plasma glucose (167 ± 13 to 128 ± 6 mg/dL) and increased insulin-stimulated glucose disposal by 36% (P < 0.01). Glucose oxidation decreased (1.06 to 0.80 mg/kg · min, P < 0.05), whereas nonoxidative glucose disposal (glycogen synthesis) increased (2.74 to 4.74 mg/kg · min, P = 0.03). Dapagliflozin decreased basal glucose oxidation and increased lipid oxidation and plasma ketone concentration (0.05 to 0.19 mmol/L, P < 0.01) in association with an increase in fasting plasma glucagon (77 ± 8 to 94 ± 13, P < 0.01). Dapagliflozin reduced the ATP synthesis rate, which correlated with an increase in plasma ketone concentration. CONCLUSIONS Dapagliflozin improved insulin sensitivity and caused a shift from glucose to lipid oxidation, which, together with an increase in glucagon-to-insulin ratio, provide the metabolic basis for increased ketone production

Palynostratigraphy and palynofacies of the early Eocene Gurha lignite mine, Rajasthan, India

A 105 m early Eocene section exposed in the Gurha mine in the Nagaur-Ganganagar Basin, Rajasthan, India, archiving remains of equatorial vegetation at a time of extreme global warmth and close to the onset of the India-Eurasia collision, is investigated using palynostratigraphic and palynofacies analyses. Four palynozones e.g., Palmidites plicatus Singh, Botryococcus braunii Kützing, Triangulorites bellus Kar and Ovoidites ligneolus are identified stratigraphically on the basis of abundance of these pollen taxa over others. The occurrence of taxonomically highly diverse angiosperm pollen in all the four palynozones attests to an extremely rich near-coastal tropical flora subject to frequent wildfires under a strongly seasonal precipitation regime. Palynotaxa characteristic of these palynozones are widely distributed in other early Paleogene sediments of India. Sedimentary organic matter (structured terrestrial, biodegraded, amorphous, grey amorphous, resins, charcoal/black-brown debris and algal remains) recovered from mire and lacustrine sediments are of terrestrial origin, recording fluctuations in burial anoxia and salinity. Episodes of elevated salinity are due either to seepage of marine waters and/or a periodic excess of evaporation over precipitation at times when the depositional system was closed

Life as a fortress – structure, function, and adaptive values of morphological and chemical defense in the oribatid mite Euphthiracarus reticulatus (Actinotrichida)

Background: Oribatid mites are among the primordial decomposer faunal elements and potential prey organisms insoil. Among their myriad morphological defenses are strong sclerotization and mineralization, cuticular tecta, and the “ptychoid” body-form, which allows to attain an encapsulated, seed-like appearance. Most oribatid mites possess a pair of exocrine glands that produce blends of hydrocarbons, terpenes, aromatics, alkaloids and cyanogenic compounds.Many species evolved “holistic” defensive strategies by combining several morphological and chemical traits. Methods: We describe the morphological and chemical bases of defense in the ptychoid oribatid Euphthiracarus reticulatus. The functional morphology was investigated with synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SRμCT) and highspeed life-radiography. Gland secretions were collected from 20,000 adult specimens, purified and fractionated by preparative capillary gas chromatography (pcGC) and analyzed by gas chromatography / mass spectrometry (GC/MS), high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The adaptive values of morphological and chemical defenses were estimated in bioassays against three predators: a similar-sized gamasid mite (Stratiolaelaps miles, ca. 0.8 mm, with slender chelicera for piercing membranous cuticular regions), and two larger staphylinid beetles, Stenus juno (ca. 7 mm, bearing a harpoon-like sticky labium and sickle-shaped mandibles) and Othius punctulatus (ca. 14 mm, bearing plesiomorphic chewing mandibles). Results: The secretions comprised two components: the diterpene β-springene and a novel compound with a mass of 276 g/mol – eventually elucidated as 2-(but-1-en-1-yl)-4-butylidene-3-(pent-2-en-1-yl)-pentanedial, to which we assign the trivial name δ-acaridial. Upon attacks by S. juno, E. reticulatus reacted quickly: within 150 ms from the first contact the encapsulation was almost completed – less time than the beetle needed to retract the labium and transfer the mite to the mandibles. Chemically-defended specimens of E. reticulatus effectively repelled all predators. After depletion of oil-gland reservoirs, however, O. punctulatus easily fed on the mites while S. miles and S. juno were not able to overcome the morphological barrier of strong cuticle and ptychoid body form. Conclusion: Such an effective, holistic defense strategy, involving both morphological and chemical traits, probably carries high resource-costs, but it allows adult euphthiracaroid mites to occupy an almost “enemy-free space” despite the high diversity of predators in soil

Life as a fortress structure, function, and adaptive values of morphological and chemical defense in the oribatid mite Euphthiracarus reticulatus (Actinotrichida)

Background Oribatid mites are among the primordial decomposer faunal elements and potential prey organisms in soil. Among their myriad morphological defenses are strong sclerotization and mineralization, cuticular tecta, and the “ptychoid” body-form, which allows to attain an encapsulated, seed-like appearance. Most oribatid mites possess a pair of exocrine glands that produce blends of hydrocarbons, terpenes, aromatics, alkaloids and cyanogenic compounds. Many species evolved “holistic” defensive strategies by combining several morphological and chemical traits. Methods We describe the morphological and chemical bases of defense in the ptychoid oribatid Euphthiracarus reticulatus. The functional morphology was investigated with synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SRCT) and high-speed life-radiography. Gland secretions were collected from 20,000 adult specimens, purified and fractionated by preparative capillary gas chromatography (pcGC) and analyzed by gas chromatography / mass spectrometry (GC/MS), high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The adaptive values of morphological and chemical defenses were estimated in bioassays against three predators: a similar-sized gamasid mite (Stratiolaelaps miles, ca. 0.8 mm, with slender chelicera for piercing membranous cuticular regions), and two larger staphylinid beetles, Stenus juno (ca. 7 mm, bearing a harpoon-like sticky labium and sickle-shaped mandibles) and Othius punctulatus (ca. 14 mm, bearing plesiomorphic chewing mandibles). Results The secretions comprised two components: the diterpene -springene and a novel compound with a mass of 276 g/mol eventually elucidated as 2-(but-1-en-1-yl)-4-butylidene-3-(pent-2-en-1-yl)-pentanedial, to which we assign the trivial name -acaridial. Upon attacks by S. juno, E. reticulatus reacted quickly: within 150 ms from the first contact the encapsulation was almost completed less time than the beetle needed to retract the labium and transfer the mite to the mandibles. Chemically-defended specimens of E. reticulatus effectively repelled all predators. After depletion of oil-gland reservoirs, however, O. punctulatus easily fed on the mites while S. miles and S. juno were not able to overcome the morphological barrier of strong cuticle and ptychoid body form. Conclusion Such an effective, holistic defense strategy, involving both morphological and chemical traits, probably carries high resource-costs, but it allows adult euphthiracaroid mites to occupy an almost “enemy-free space” despite the high diversity of predators in soil.(VLID)286348

Life as a fortress – structure, function, and adaptive values of morphological and chemical defense in the oribatid mite Euphthiracarus reticulatus (Actinotrichida)

Background: Oribatid mites are among the primordial decomposer faunal elements and potential prey organisms in soil. Among their myriad morphological defenses are strong sclerotization and mineralization, cuticular tecta, and the “ptychoid” body-form, which allows to attain an encapsulated, seed-like appearance. Most oribatid mites possess a pair of exocrine glands that produce blends of hydrocarbons, terpenes, aromatics, alkaloids and cyanogenic compounds. Many species evolved “holistic” defensive strategies by combining several morphological and chemical traits. Methods: We describe the morphological and chemical bases of defense in the ptychoid oribatid Euphthiracarus reticulatus. The functional morphology was investigated with synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SRμCT) and high-speed life-radiography. Gland secretions were collected from 20,000 adult specimens, purified and fractionated by preparative capillary gas chromatography (pcGC) and analyzed by gas chromatography / mass spectrometry (GC/MS), high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The adaptive values of morphological and chemical defenses were estimated in bioassays against three predators: a similar-sized gamasid mite (Stratiolaelaps miles, ca. 0.8 mm, with slender chelicera for piercing membranous cuticular regions), and two larger staphylinid beetles, Stenus juno (ca. 7 mm, bearing a harpoon-like sticky labium and sickle-shaped mandibles) and Othius punctulatus (ca. 14 mm, bearing plesiomorphic chewing mandibles). Results: The secretions comprised two components: the diterpene β-springene and a novel compound with a mass of 276 g/mol – eventually elucidated as 2-(but-1-en-1-yl)-4-butylidene-3-(pent-2-en-1-yl)-pentanedial, to which we assign the trivial name δ-acaridial. Upon attacks by S. juno, E. reticulatus reacted quickly: within 150 ms from the first contact the encapsulation was almost completed – less time than the beetle needed to retract the labium and transfer the mite to the mandibles. Chemically-defended specimens of E. reticulatus effectively repelled all predators. After depletion of oil-gland reservoirs, however, O. punctulatus easily fed on the mites while S. miles and S. juno were not able to overcome the morphological barrier of strong cuticle and ptychoid body form. Conclusion: Such an effective, holistic defense strategy, involving both morphological and chemical traits, probably carries high resource-costs, but it allows adult euphthiracaroid mites to occupy an almost “enemy-free space” despite the high diversity of predators in soil

PPI-Delayed Diagnosis of Gastrinoma: Oncologic Victim of Pharmacologic Success

Functional neuroendocrine tumors are often low-grade malignant neoplasms that can be cured by surgery if detected early, and such detection may in turn be accelerated by the recognition of neuropeptide hypersecretion syndromes. Uniquely, however, relief of peptic symptoms induced by hypergastrinemia is now available from acid-suppressive drugs such as proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs). Here we describe a clinical case in which time to diagnosis from the onset of peptic symptoms was delayed more than 10 years, in part reflecting symptom masking by continuous prescription of the PPI omeprazole. We propose diagnostic criteria for this under-recognized new clinical syndrome, and recommend that physicians routinely measure serum gastrin levels in persistent cases of PPI-dependent dyspepsia unassociated with H. pylori

Impacts of climate change on plant diseases – opinions and trends

There has been a remarkable scientific output on the topic of how climate change is likely to affect plant diseases in the coming decades. This review addresses the need for review of this burgeoning literature by summarizing opinions of previous reviews and trends in recent studies on the impacts of climate change on plant health. Sudden Oak Death is used as an introductory case study: Californian forests could become even more susceptible to this emerging plant disease, if spring precipitations will be accompanied by warmer temperatures, although climate shifts may also affect the current synchronicity between host cambium activity and pathogen colonization rate. A summary of observed and predicted climate changes, as well as of direct effects of climate change on pathosystems, is provided. Prediction and management of climate change effects on plant health are complicated by indirect effects and the interactions with global change drivers. Uncertainty in models of plant disease development under climate change calls for a diversity of management strategies, from more participatory approaches to interdisciplinary science. Involvement of stakeholders and scientists from outside plant pathology shows the importance of trade-offs, for example in the land-sharing vs. sparing debate. Further research is needed on climate change and plant health in mountain, boreal, Mediterranean and tropical regions, with multiple climate change factors and scenarios (including our responses to it, e.g. the assisted migration of plants), in relation to endophytes, viruses and mycorrhiza, using long-term and large-scale datasets and considering various plant disease control methods