Adhesion of Polymer Vesicles

The adhesion and bending modulus of polybutadiene-poly(ethylene oxide) block copolymer vesicles made from a bidisperse mixture of polymers is measured using micropipette aspiration. The adhesion energy between biotinylated vesicles and avidin beads is modeled by incorporating the extension of the adhesive ligands above the surface brush of the vesicle according to the blob model of bidisperse polymer mixtures of Komura and Safran assuming the polymer brush at the surface of the vesicle is compact. The same model accurately reproduces the scaling of the bending modulus with polymer composition

Mechanical Characterization of Hybrid Vesicles Based on Linear Poly(Dimethylsiloxane-b-Ethylene Oxide) and Poly(Butadiene-b-Ethylene Oxide) Block Copolymers

Poly(dimethylsiloxane-ethylene oxide) (PDMS-PEO) and poly(butadiene-b-ethylene oxide) (PBd-PEO) are two block copolymers which separately form vesicles with disparate membrane permeabilities and fluidities. Thus, hybrid vesicles formed from both PDMS-PEO and PBd-PEO may ultimately allow for systematic, application-specific tuning of vesicle membrane fluidity and permeability. However, given the relatively low strength previously noted for comb-type PDMS-PEO vesicles, the mechanical robustness of the resulting hybrid vesicles must first be confirmed. Toward this end, we have characterized the mechanical behavior of vesicles formed from mixtures of linear PDMS-PEO and linear PBd-PEO using micropipette aspiration. Tension versus strain plots of pure PDMS12-PEO46 vesicles revealed a non-linear response in the high tension regime, in contrast to the approximately linear response of pure PBd33-PEO20 vesicles. Remarkably, the area expansion modulus, critical tension, and cohesive energy density of PDMS12-PEO46 vesicles were each significantly greater than for PBd33-PEO20 vesicles, although critical strain was not significantly different between these vesicle types. PDMS12-PEO46/PBd33-PEO20 hybrid vesicles generally displayed graded responses in between that of the pure component vesicles. Thus, the PDMS12-PEO46/PBd33-PEO20 hybrid vesicles retained or exceeded the strength and toughness characteristic of pure PBd-PEO vesicles, indicating that future assessment of the membrane permeability and fluidity of these hybrid vesicles may be warranted

On the Spin of the Black Hole in IC 10 X-1

The compact X-ray source in the eclipsing X-ray binary IC 10 X–1 has reigned for years as ostensibly the most massive stellar-mass black hole, with a mass estimated to be about twice that of its closest rival. However, striking results presented recently by Laycock et al. reveal that the mass estimate, based on emission-line velocities, is unreliable and that the mass of the X-ray source is essentially unconstrained. Using Chandra and NuSTAR data, we rule against a neutron-star model and conclude that IC 10 X–1 contains a black hole. The eclipse duration of IC 10 X–1 is shorter and its depth shallower at higher energies, an effect consistent with the X-ray emission being obscured during eclipse by a Compton-thick core of a dense wind. The spectrum is strongly disk-dominated, which allows us to constrain the spin of the black hole via X-ray continuum fitting. Three other wind-fed black hole systems are known; the masses and spins of their black holes are high: M ~ 10 - 15M_☉ and ɑ_* > 0.8. If the mass of IC 10 X-1's black hole is comparable, then its spin is likewise high

A rare case of left additional renal artery in a Nigerian goat

The report of the occurrence of additional renal arteries in domestic animals is rare in the literature. We report a case of an additional renal artery in the left kidney found in a Red Sokoto goat cadaver. The additional renal artery originated from the abdominal aorta 3.80 cm cranial to the origin of the main renal artery. The additional renal artery was relatively long, being 6.30 cm from its origin to the cranial pole region of the kidney where it supplied the kidney. This to the best of our knowledge is the first report in the literature indexed in the Medline of an additional renal artery in a goat

When a Repository Is Not Enough: Redesigning a Digital Ecosystem to Serve Scholarly Communication

INTRODUCTION Our library’s digital asset management system (DAMS) was no longer meeting digital asset management requirements or expanding scholarly communication needs. We formed a multiunit task force (TF) to (1) survey and identify existing and emerging institutional needs; (2) research available DAMS (open source and proprietary) and assess their potential fit; and (3) deploy software locally for in-depth testing and evaluation. DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM We winnowed a field of 25 potential DAMS down to 5 for deployment and evaluation. The process included selection and identification of test collections and the creation of a multipart task based rubric based on library and campus needs assessments. Time constraints and DAMS deployment limitations prompted a move toward a new evaluation iteration: a shorter criteria-based rubric. LESSONS LEARNED We discovered that no single DAMS was “just right,” nor was any single DAMS a static product. Changing and expanding scholarly communication and digital needs could only be met by the more flexible approach offered by a multicomponent digital asset management ecosystem (DAME), described in this study. We encountered obstacles related to testing complex, rapidly evolving software available in a range of configurations and flavors (including tiers of vendor-hosted functionality) and time and capacity constraints curtailed in-depth testing. While we anticipate long-term benefits from “going further together” by including university-wide representation in the task force, there were trade-offs in distributing responsibilities and diffusing priorities. NEXT STEPS Shifts in scholarly communication at multiple levels—institutional, regional, consortial, national, and international—have already necessitated continual review and adjustment of our digital systems

Use of metabolomics for the identification and validation of clinical biomarkers for preterm birth:Preterm SAMBA

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T17:29:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2016-08-08Background: Spontaneous preterm birth is a complex syndrome with multiple pathways interactions determining its occurrence, including genetic, immunological, physiologic, biochemical and environmental factors. Despite great worldwide efforts in preterm birth prevention, there are no recent effective therapeutic strategies able to decrease spontaneous preterm birth rates or their consequent neonatal morbidity/mortality. The Preterm SAMBA study will associate metabolomics technologies to identify clinical and metabolite predictors for preterm birth. These innovative and unbiased techniques might be a strategic key to advance spontaneous preterm birth prediction. Methods/design: Preterm SAMBA study consists of a discovery phase to identify biophysical and untargeted metabolomics from blood and hair samples associated with preterm birth, plus a validation phase to evaluate the performance of the predictive modelling. The first phase, a case-control study, will randomly select 100 women who had a spontaneous preterm birth (before 37 weeks) and 100 women who had term birth in the Cork Ireland and Auckland New Zealand cohorts within the SCOPE study, an international consortium aimed to identify potential metabolomic predictors using biophysical data and blood samples collected at 20 weeks of gestation. The validation phase will recruit 1150 Brazilian pregnant women from five participant centres and will collect blood and hair samples at 20 weeks of gestation to evaluate the performance of the algorithm model (sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and likelihood ratios) in predicting spontaneous preterm birth (before 34 weeks, with a secondary analysis of delivery before 37 weeks). Discussion: The Preterm SAMBA study intends to step forward on preterm birth prediction using metabolomics techniques, and accurate protocols for sample collection among multi-ethnic populations. The use of metabolomics in medical science research is innovative and promises to provide solutions for disorders with multiple complex underlying determinants such as spontaneous preterm birth.University of Campinas (UNICAMP) School of Medical Sciences Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, R. Alexander Fleming, 101University of Auckland Gravida: National Centre for Growth and Development Liggins InstituteUniversity College Cork Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT) Department of Obstetrics and GynaecologyUniversity of Auckland South Auckland Clinical School Faculty of Medical and Health SciencesUniversity of Auckland School of Biological SciencesUniversity of Campinas (UNICAMP) LNBio-Brazilian Biosciences National Laboratory and School of Medical SciencesSchool of Medical Sciences University of CampinasLNBioSchool of Medicine of Botucatu UNESPSchool of Medicine Federal University of Rio Grande do SulSchool of Medicine Federal University of PernambucoSchool of Medicine Federal University of CearáKing's College London and King's Health PartnersMaternal and Fetal Health Research Centre University of ManchesterUniversity of LeedsUniversity of AdelaideSchool of Medicine of Botucatu UNES

Phylogeny, biogeography and diversification of the mining bee family Andrenidae

peer reviewedThe mining bees (Andrenidae) are a major bee family of over 3000 described species with a nearly global distribution. They are a particularly significant component of northern temperate ecosystems and are critical pollinators in natural and agricultural settings. Despite their ecological and evolutionary significance, our knowledge of the evolutionary history of Andrenidae is sparse and insufficient to characterize their spatiotemporal origin and phylogenetic relationships. This limits our ability to understand the diversification dynamics that led to the second most species-rich genus of all bees, Andrena Fabricius, and the most species-rich North American genus, Perdita Smith. Here, we develop a comprehensive genomic dataset of 195 species of Andrenidae, including all major lineages, to illuminate the evolutionary history of the family. Using fossil-informed divergence time estimates, we characterize macroevolutionary dynamics, incorporate paleoclimatic information, and present our findings in the context of diversification rate estimates for all other bee tribes. We found that diversification rates of Andrenidae steeply increased over the past 15 million years, particularly in the genera Andrena and Perdita. This suggests that these two groups and the brood parasites of the genus Nomada Scopoli (Apidae), which are the primary cleptoparasitic counterparts of Andrena, are similar in age and represent the fastest diversifying lineages of all bees. Using our newly developed time frame of andrenid evolution, we estimate a late Cretaceous origin in South America for the family and reconstruct the past dispersal events that led to its present-day distribution.15. Life on lan

Empirical Legal Studies Before 1940: A Bibliographic Essay

The modern empirical legal studies movement has well-known antecedents in the law and society and law and economics traditions of the latter half of the 20th century. Less well known is the body of empirical research on legal phenomena from the period prior to World War II. This paper is an extensive bibliographic essay that surveys the English language empirical legal research from approximately 1940 and earlier. The essay is arranged around the themes in the research: criminal justice, civil justice (general studies of civil litigation, auto accident litigation and compensation, divorce, small claims, jurisdiction and procedure, civil juries), debt and bankruptcy, banking, appellate courts, legal needs, legal profession (including legal education), and judicial staffing and selection. Accompanying the essay is an extensive bibliography of research articles, books, and reports