Characterization of the SOS meta-regulon in the human gut microbiome

Motivation: Data from metagenomics projects remain largely untapped for the analysis of transcriptional regulatory networks. Here, we provide proof-of-concept that metagenomic data can be effectively leveraged to analyze regulatory networks by characterizing the SOS meta-regulon in the human gut microbiome. Results: We combine well-established in silico and in vitro techniques to mine the human gut microbiome data and determine the relative composition of the SOS network in a natural setting. Our analysis highlights the importance of translesion synthesis as a primary function of the SOS response. We predict the association of this network with three novel protein clusters involved in cell wall biogenesis, chromosome partitioning and restriction modification, and we confirm binding of the SOS response transcriptional repressor to sites in the promoter of a cell wall biogenesis enzyme, a phage integrase and a death-on-curing protein. We discuss the implications of these findings and the potential for this approach for metagenome analysis

7. Development And Initial Validation Of The Multicultural Counseling Awareness Scale

In recent years counseling programs have devoted increasing attention to multicultural issues in the curriculum. The counseling profession\u27s initial interest in multicultural training (or development) was buoyed by the Division of Counseling Psychology (Division #17 of the American Psychological Association [APA]) position paper on multicultural competencies (Sue et al., 1982). This position paper delineated 11 cross-cultural counseling competencies organized within the categories of awareness (beliefs/attitudes), knowledge, and skills. The Awareness category refers to the counselor\u27s awareness of his or her own value biases and how these biases may translate into culturally insensitive counseling; to the need to check biases and stereotypes; and to the need to develop a positive orientation towards multiculturalism. Knowledge refers to the counselor\u27s knowledge of his or her own worldview as well as the worldview of his or her clients; and to additional culture- specific information such as the impact of racism on clients, models of acculturation and racial identity development, and so forth. Finally, Skills refers to the counselor\u27s ability to translate awareness and knowledge into culturally sensitive and relevant interventions (Pedersen, 1988; Sue et al., 1982; Sue, Arredondo, & McDavis, 1992). Since the Sue et al. (1982) position paper was published, numerous professional preparation programs have added multicultural components to their curriculum. According to the Hollis and Wantz (1990, 1994) national surveys of counseling programs, 76 new multicultural courses were developed and added to existing curriculums from 1989 to 1991, and another 27 programs added a course from 1993 to 1995. In a survey of APA-accredited counseling psychology programs, Hills and Strozier (1992) found that 87% of the programs offered a multicultural course, and 59% of the programs required the course. Also surveying APA-accredited counseling psychology programs, Quintana and Bernal (1995) found that 73% of the programs offered at least one multicultural course and 42% required one course. In the most recent survey to date, of both APA accredited and non-accredited counseling psychology programs, Ponterotto (in press) found that 89% of responding programs have a required multicultural counseling course, and 58% of programs integrate multicultural issues into all courses

A Comparison of Swimming Economy Between Two Full-Sleeve Wetsuits

A wetsuit is an important piece of equipment that a triathlete uses during their swim-bike-run race. Wetsuits differ based on style (e.g., full-sleeve or sleeveless), manufacturer and price. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare swimming economy in two full-sleeve wetsuits in a group of recreational swimmers and triathletes. METHODS: Nine men (34.3 ± 13.3 years old) and six women (37.8 ± 16.0 years old) completed a progressive swim test to exhaustion in a swim flume without a wetsuit to determine their peak rate of oxygen consumption (VO2peak). This was followed by three 5-min swimming bouts at a constant, submaximal speed. The three trials were randomized and consisted of an entry-level full-sleeve wetsuit (blueseventy Sprint), a high-end full-sleeve wetsuit (blueseventy Helix) and no wetsuit. Rates of O2 consumption and CO2 production were measured using a metabolic cart and heart rate was determined with a chest strap. Data from the last 2 min of each submaximal swimming trial were analyzed. RESULTS: Peak rate of O2 consumption was 40.6 ± 8.0 ml kg-1 min-1 and corresponded to a respiratory exchange ratio, heart rate and rating of perceived exertion (RPE; Borg scale) of 0.97 ± 0.07, 165 ± 12 bpm, and 16.2 ± 1.7, respectively. The pace for the submaximal swimming trials was 1.02 ± 0.14 m/s, which corresponded to 79.7% ± 6.7% of their VO2peak. The subjects expended 9.8 ± 2.7 and 9.9 ± 2.9 kcal/min while swimming in the high-end and entry-level wetsuit, respectively. Both wetsuits reduced energy expenditure compared to swimming without a wetsuit (11.8 ± 3.5 kcal/min; p \u3c 0.001). Heart rate was significantly higher (p \u3c 0.001) with no wetsuit (146 ± 12 bpm), but did not differ between wetsuits (high-end 137 ± 13 bpm; entry-level 137 ±15 bpm). Arm cadence did not differ between trials (p = 0.571). Lastly, RPE was 12.1 ± 1.6 with no wetsuit compared to 10.9 ± 1.4 (p = 0.018) and 11.1 ± 1.5 (p = 0.051) for the high-end and entry-level wetsuits, respectively. CONCLUSION: The were no differences in any measured variable between wetsuits, although swimming with either wetsuit was more economical compared to swimming without a wetsuit. Data from this study suggest that a wetsuit should be worn when allowed but that the specific model of wetsuit may be less important. Future studies should compare two homogenous groups of swimmers or triathletes (e.g., elite vs. beginner) or see how wearing a wetsuit affects performance during the cycling segment of a triathlon

Evaluation of Externality Costs in Life-Cycle Optimization of Municipal Solid Waste Management Systems

The development of sustainable solid waste management (SWM) systems requires consideration of both economic and environmental impacts. Societal life-cycle costing (S-LCC) provides a quantitative framework to estimate both economic and environmental impacts, by including “budget costs” and “externality costs”. Budget costs include market goods and services (economic impact), whereas externality costs include effects outside the economic system (e.g., environmental impact). This study demonstrates the applicability of S-LCC to SWM life-cycle optimization through a case study based on an average suburban U.S. county of 500 000 people generating 320 000 Mg of waste annually. Estimated externality costs are based on emissions of CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, PM_2.5, PM₁₀, NO_<i>x</i>, SO₂, VOC, CO, NH₃, Hg, Pb, Cd, Cr (VI), Ni, As, and dioxins. The results indicate that incorporating S-LCC into optimized SWM strategy development encourages the use of a mixed waste material recovery facility with residues going to incineration, and separated organics to anaerobic digestion. Results are sensitive to waste composition, energy mix and recycling rates. Most of the externality costs stem from SO₂, NO_<i>x</i>, PM_2.5, CH₄, fossil CO₂, and NH₃ emissions. S-LCC proved to be a valuable tool for policy analysis, but additional data on key externality costs such as organic compounds emissions to water would improve future analyses

A new approach to high resolution, high contrast electron microscopy of macromolecular block copolymer assemblies

Determining the structure of macromolecular samples is vital for understanding and adapting their function. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is widely used to achieve this, but, owing to the weak electron scattering cross-section of carbon, TEM images of macromolecular samples are generally low contrast and low resolution. Here we implement a fast and practically simple routine to achieve high-contrast imaging of macromolecular samples using exit wave reconstruction (EWR), revealing a new level of structural detail. This is only possible using ultra-low contrast supports such as the graphene oxide (GO) used here and as such represents a novel application of these substrates. We apply EWR on GO membranes to study self-assembled block copolymer structures, distinguishing not only the general morphology or nanostructure, but also evidence for the substructure (i.e. the polymer chains) which gives insight into their formation mechanisms and functional properties

Mapping evapotranspiration with high-resolution aircraft imagery over vineyards using one- and two-source modeling schemes

Thermal and multispectral remote sensing data from low-altitude aircraft can provide high spatial resolution necessary for sub-field ( 10 m) and plant canopy (1 m) scale evapotranspiration (ET) monitoring. In this study, highresolution (sub-meter-scale) thermal infrared and multispectral shortwave data from aircraft are used to map ET over vineyards in central California with the two-source energy balance (TSEB) model and with a simple model having operational immediate capabilities called DATTUTDUT (Deriving Atmosphere Turbulent Transport Useful To Dummies Using Temperature). The latter uses contextual information within the image to scale between radiometric land surface temperature (TR) values representing hydrologic limits of potential ET and a non-evaporative surface. Imagery from 5 days throughout the growing season is used for mapping ET at the sub-field scale. The performance of the two models is evaluated using tower-based measurements of sensible (H) and latent heat (LE) flux or ET. The comparison indicates that TSEB was able to derive reasonable ET estimates under varying conditions, likely due to the physically based treatment of the energy and the surface temperature partitioning between the soil/cover crop inter-row and vine canopy elements. On the other hand, DATTUTDUT performance was somewhat degraded presumably because the simple scaling scheme does not consider differences in the two sources (vine and inter-row) of heat and temperature contributions or the effect of surface roughness on the efficiency of heat exchange. Maps of the evaporative fraction (EFDLE/(H CLE)) from the two models had similar spatial patterns but different magnitudes in some areas within the fields on certain days. Large EF discrepancies between the models were found on 2 of the 5 days (DOY 162 and 219) when there were significant differences with the tower-based ET measurements, particularly using the DATTUTDUT model. These differences in EF between the models translate to significant variations in daily water use estimates for these 2 days for the vineyards. Model sensitivity analysis demonstrated the high degree of sensitivity of the TSEB model to the accuracy of the TR data, while the DATTUTDUT model was insensitive to systematic errors in TR as is the case with contextual-based models. However, it is shown that the study domain and spatial resolution will significantly influence the ET estimation from the DATTUTDUT model. Future work is planned for developing a hybrid approach that leverages the strengths of both modeling schemes and is simple enough to be used operationally with high-resolution imagery

Hemispherical power asymmetry: parameter estimation from CMB WMAP5 data

We reexamine the evidence of the hemispherical power asymmetry, detected in the CMB WMAP data using a new method. At first, we analyze the hemispherical variance ratios and compare these with simulated distributions. Secondly, working within a previously-proposed CMB bipolar modulation model, we constrain model parameters: the amplitude and the orientation of the modulation field as a function of various multipole bins. Finally, we select three ranges of multipoles leading to the most anomalous signals, and we process corresponding 100 Gaussian, random field (GRF) simulations, treated as observational data, to further test the statistical significance and robustness of the hemispherical power asymmetry. For our analysis we use the Internally-Linearly-Coadded (ILC) full sky map, and KQ75 cut-sky V channel, foregrounds reduced map of the WMAP five year data (V5). We constrain the modulation parameters using a generic maximum a posteriori method. In particular, we find differences in hemispherical power distribution, which when described in terms of a model with bipolar modulation field, exclude the field amplitude value of the isotropic model A=0 at confidence level of ~99.5% (~99.4%) in the multipole range l=[7,19] (l=[7,79]) in the V5 data, and at the confidence level ~99.9% in the multipole range l=[7,39] in the ILC5 data, with the best fit (modal PDF) values in these particular multipole ranges of A=0.21 (A=0.21) and A=0.15 respectively. However, we also point out that similar or larger significances (in terms of rejecting the isotropic model), and large best-fit modulation amplitudes are obtained in GRF simulations as well, which reduces the overall significance of the CMB power asymmetry down to only about 94% (95%) in the V5 data, in the range l=[7,19] (l=[7,79]).Comment: 24 pages, 10 figures; few typos corrected; published in JCA

The delay time distribution of supernovae from integral-field spectroscopy of nearby galaxies

Constraining the delay time distribution (DTD) of different supernova (SN) types can shed light on the time-scales of galaxy chemical enrichment and feedback processes affecting galaxy dynamics, and SN progenitor properties. Here, we present an approach to recover SN DTDs based on integral-field spectroscopy (IFS) of their host galaxies. Using a statistical analysis of a sample of 116 SNe in 102 galaxies, we evaluate different DTD models for SN types Ia (73), II (28), and Ib/c (15). We find the best SN Ia DTD fit to be a power law with an exponent α = -1.1 +/- 0.3 (50 per cent confidence interval (C.I.)), and a time delay (between star formation and the first SNe) Δ = 50-35+100 Myr (50 per cent C.I.). For core collapse (CC) SNe, both of the Zapartas et al. DTD models for single and binary stellar evolution are consistent with our results. For SNe II and Ib/c, we find a correlation with a Gaussian DTD model with σ = 82-23+129 Myr and σ = 56-9+141 Myr (50 per cent C.I.), respectively. This analysis demonstrates that IFS opens a new way of studying SN DTD models in the local Universe