Handling Procedures of Vegetable Crops

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is working towards future long duration manned space flights beyond low earth orbit. The duration of these missions may be as long as 2.5 years and will likely include a stay on a lunar or planetary surface. The primary goal of the Advanced Food System in these long duration exploratory missions is to provide the crew with a palatable, nutritious, and safe food system while minimizing volume, mass, and waste. Vegetable crops can provide the crew with added nutrition and variety. These crops do not require any cooking or food processing prior to consumption. The vegetable crops, unlike prepackaged foods, will provide bright colors, textures (crispy), and fresh aromas. Ten vegetable crops have been identified for possible use in long duration missions. They are lettuce, spinach, carrot, tomato, green onion, radish, bell pepper, strawberries, fresh herbs, and cabbage. Whether these crops are grown on a transit vehicle (e.g., International Space Station) or on the lunar or planetary surface, it will be necessary to determine how to safely handle the vegetables while maintaining acceptability. Since hydrogen peroxide degrades into water and oxygen and is generally recognized as safe (GRAS), hydrogen peroxide has been recommended as the sanitizer. The objective of th is research is to determine the required effective concentration of hydrogen peroxide. In addition, it will be determined whether the use of hydrogen peroxide, although a viable sanitizer, adversely affects the quality of the vegetables. Vegetables will be dipped in 1 % hydrogen peroxide, 3% hydrogen peroxide, or 5% hydrogen peroxide. Treated produce and controls will be stored in plastic bags at 5 C for up to 14 days. Sensory, color, texture, and total plate count will be measured. The effect on several vegetables including lettuce, radish, tomato and strawberries has been completed. Although each vegetable reacts to hydrogen peroxide differently, the data suggest that 5% hydrogen peroxide reduces the shelf life of the vegetable. A dip of either 1 % or 3% hydrogen peroxide helps reduce the microbial total count while not adversely affecting the quality of the vegetable

Causes of prehospital misinterpretations of ST elevation myocardial infarction

Objectives: To determine the causes of software misinterpretation of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) compared to clinically identified STEMI to identify opportunities to improve prehospital STEMI identification. Methods: We compared ECGs acquired from July 2011 through June 2012 using the LIFEPAK 15 on adult patients transported by the Los Angeles Fire Department. Cases included patients ≥18 years who received a prehospital ECG. Software interpretation of the ECG (STEMI or not) was compared with data in the regional EMS registry to classify the interpretation as true positive (TP), true negative (TN), false positive (FP), or false negative (FN). For cases where classification was not possible using registry data, 3 blinded cardiologists interpreted the ECG. Each discordance was subsequently reviewed to determine the likely cause of misclassification. The cardiologists independently reviewed a sample of these discordant ECGs and the causes of misclassification were updated in an iterative fashion. Results: Of 44,611 cases, 50% were male (median age 65; inter-quartile range 52–80). Cases were classified as 482 (1.1%) TP, 711 (1.6%) FP, 43371 (97.2%) TN, and 47 (0.11%) FN. Of the 711 classified as FP, 126 (18%) were considered appropriate for, though did not undergo, emergent coronary angiography, because the ECG showed definite (52 cases) or borderline (65 cases) ischemic ST elevation, a STEMI equivalent (5 cases) or ST-elevation due to vasospasm (4 cases). The sensitivity was 92.8% [95% CI 90.6, 94.7%] and the specificity 98.7% [95% CI 98.6, 98.8%]. The leading causes of FP were ECG artifact (20%), early repolarization (16%), probable pericarditis/myocarditis (13%), indeterminate (12%), left ventricular hypertrophy (8%), and right bundle branch block (5%). There were 18 additional reasons for FP interpretation (<4% each). The leading causes of FN were borderline ST-segment elevations less than the algorithm threshold (40%) and tall T waves reducing the ST/T ratio below threshold (15%). There were 11 additional reasons for FN interpretation occurring ≤3 times each. Conclusion: The leading causes of FP automated interpretation of STEMI were ECG artifact and non-ischemic causes of ST-segment elevation. FN were rare and were related to ST-segment elevation or ST/T ratio that did not meet the software algorithm threshold

SUMOylation inhibits FOXM1 activity and delays mitotic transition

The forkhead box transcription factor FOXM1 is an essential effector of G2/M-phase transition, mitosis and the DNA damage response. As such, it is frequently deregulated during tumorigenesis. Here we report that FOXM1 is dynamically modified by SUMO1 but not by SUMO2/3 at multiple sites. We show that FOXM1 SUMOylation is enhanced in MCF-7 breast cancer cells in response to treatment with epirubicin and mitotic inhibitors. Mutation of five consensus conjugation motifs yielded a SUMOylation-deficient mutant FOXM1. Conversely, fusion of the E2 ligase Ubc9 to FOXM1 generated an auto-SUMOylating mutant (FOXM1-Ubc9). Analysis of wild-type FOXM1 and mutants revealed that SUMOylation inhibits FOXM1 activity, promotes translocation to the cytoplasm and enhances APC/Cdh1-mediated ubiquitination and degradation. Further, expression of the SUMOylation-deficient mutant enhanced cell proliferation compared with wild-type FOXM1, whereas the FOXM1-Ubc9 fusion protein resulted in persistent cyclin B1 expression and slowed the time from mitotic entry to exit. In summary, our findings suggest that SUMOylation attenuates FOXM1 activity and causes mitotic delay in cytotoxic drug response

The impact of communicating genetic risks of disease on risk-reducing health behaviour: systematic review with meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of communicating DNA based disease risk estimates on risk-reducing health behaviours and motivation to engage in such behaviours. DESIGN: Systematic review with meta-analysis, using Cochrane methods. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials up to 25 February 2015. Backward and forward citation searches were also conducted. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised and quasi-randomised controlled trials involving adults in which one group received personalised DNA based estimates of disease risk for conditions where risk could be reduced by behaviour change. Eligible studies included a measure of risk-reducing behaviour. RESULTS: We examined 10,515 abstracts and included 18 studies that reported on seven behavioural outcomes, including smoking cessation (six studies; n=2663), diet (seven studies; n=1784), and physical activity (six studies; n=1704). Meta-analysis revealed no significant effects of communicating DNA based risk estimates on smoking cessation (odds ratio 0.92, 95% confidence interval 0.63 to 1.35, P=0.67), diet (standardised mean difference 0.12, 95% confidence interval -0.00 to 0.24, P=0.05), or physical activity (standardised mean difference -0.03, 95% confidence interval -0.13 to 0.08, P=0.62). There were also no effects on any other behaviours (alcohol use, medication use, sun protection behaviours, and attendance at screening or behavioural support programmes) or on motivation to change behaviour, and no adverse effects, such as depression and anxiety. Subgroup analyses provided no clear evidence that communication of a risk-conferring genotype affected behaviour more than communication of the absence of such a genotype. However, studies were predominantly at high or unclear risk of bias, and evidence was typically of low quality. CONCLUSIONS: Expectations that communicating DNA based risk estimates changes behaviour is not supported by existing evidence. These results do not support use of genetic testing or the search for risk-conferring gene variants for common complex diseases on the basis that they motivate risk-reducing behaviour. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: This is a revised and updated version of a Cochrane review from 2010, adding 11 studies to the seven previously identified.A previous version of this review was funded as part of a grant from the Medical Research Council, UK (Risk communication in preventive medicine: optimising the impact of DNA risk information; G0500274). Updating this review was funded by an NIHR Senior Investigator award to TMM. The funder had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; and preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the BMJ Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i110

An Experimental Investigation of the Scaling of Columnar Joints

Columnar jointing is a fracture pattern common in igneous rocks in which cracks self-organize into a roughly hexagonal arrangement, leaving behind an ordered colonnade. We report observations of columnar jointing in a laboratory analog system, desiccated corn starch slurries. Using measurements of moisture density, evaporation rates, and fracture advance rates as evidence, we suggest an advective-diffusive system is responsible for the rough scaling behavior of columnar joints. This theory explains the order of magnitude difference in scales between jointing in lavas and in starches. We investigated the scaling of average columnar cross-sectional areas due to the evaporation rate, the analog of the cooling rate of igneous columnar joints. We measured column areas in experiments where the evaporation rate depended on lamp height and time, in experiments where the evaporation rate was fixed using feedback methods, and in experiments where gelatin was added to vary the rheology of the starch. Our results suggest that the column area at a particular depth is related to both the current conditions, and hysteretically to the geometry of the pattern at previous depths. We argue that there exists a range of stable column scales allowed for any particular evaporation rate.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, for supporting online movies, go to http://www.physics.utoronto.ca/nonlinear/movies/starch_movies.htm

Consumption of cocoa flavanols results in acute improvements in mood and cognitive performance during sustained mental effort

Cocoa flavanols (CF) positively influence physiological processes in ways that suggest their consumption may improve aspects of cognitive function. This study investigated the acute cognitive and subjective effects of CF consumption during sustained mental demand. In this randomized, controlled, double-blinded, balanced, three period crossover trial 30 healthy adults consumed drinks containing 520 mg, 994 mg CF and a matched control, with a three-day washout between drinks. Assessments included the state anxiety inventory and repeated 10-min cycles of a Cognitive Demand Battery comprising of two serial subtraction tasks (Serial Threes and Serial Sevens), a Rapid Visual Information Processing (RVIP) task and a mental fatigue scale, over the course of 1 h. Consumption of both 520 mg and 994 mg CF significantly improved Serial Threes performance. The 994 mg CF beverage significantly speeded RVIP responses but also resulted in more errors during Serial Sevens. Increases in self-reported mental fatigue were significantly attenuated by the consumption of the 520 mg CF beverage only. This is the first report of acute cognitive improvements following CF consumption in healthy adults. While the mechanisms underlying the effects are unknown they may be related to known effects of CF on endothelial function and blood flow

Are people with negative diabetes screening tests falsely reassured? Parallel group cohort study embedded in the ADDITION (Cambridge) randomised controlled trial

Objective To assess whether receiving a negative test result at primary care based stepwise diabetes screening results in false reassurance

Workers in the vanguard: the 1960 Industrial Relations Ordinance and the struggle for independence in Aden

The promulgation in 1960 of a new Industrial Relations Ordinance in Aden was a singular event in the history of British decolonisation because it made many forms of strike action illegal. Earlier initiatives to liberalise trade union law in the colonies were intended to channel and manage the discontent of workers; but for nationalist movements, the new order in industrial relations provided an opportunity to mobilise workers in the cause of independence. Aden, which was the location of a significant British base, a major oil refinery and a key commercial port, became the site of a bitter confrontation between the nascent trade union movement and the colonial administration. Three aspects of the conflict were of particular significance. First, Aden’s unique political status as a British colony in the Arab world and it strategic and economic value, contributed to the fractious industrial relations environment. Secondly, conflicts between workers and the colonial government demonstrate continuity with wider British efforts to suppress anti-colonial dissent and demonstrate that charges of appeasement in the last years of empire are not well founded. Lastly, the exceptional nature of the new legislation attracted the critical attention of the ILO and the major international trade union confederations, which internationalised the dispute over the IRO. An examination of the manner in which the British government sought to regulate its relations with various labour organisations, including the British TUC, the colonial ATUC and the two rival international labour confederations of the WFTU and ICFTU, demonstrates that the conduct of industrial relations in Aden was significant in the context of both the Cold War and decolonisation

Hepatic fibrosis and immune phenotype vary by HCV viremia in HCV/HIV co-infected subjects: A Women\u27s interagency HIV study.

HCV and HIV independently lead to immune dysregulation. The mechanisms leading to advanced liver disease progression in HCV/HIV coinfected subjects remain unclear. In this cross-sectional study, we assessed the association of HCV viremia, liver fibrosis, and immune response patterns in well-characterized HIV phenotypes: Elite controllers (Elites), HIV controlled (ARTc), and HIV uncontrolled (ARTuc) matched by age and race. Groups were stratified by HCV RNA status. Regulatory T-cell frequencies, T-cell activation (HLADR+CD38+), apoptosis (Caspase-3+), and intracellular cytokines (interferon-γ, IL-2, IL-17) were assessed using multiparametric flow-cytometry. Liver fibrosis was scored by AST to platelet ratio index (APRI). We found liver fibrosis (APRI) was 50% lower in Elites and ARTc compared to ARTuc. Higher liver fibrosis was associated with significantly low CD4+ T cell counts (P \u3c 0.001, coefficient r = −0.463). Immune activation varied by HIV phenotype but was not modified by HCV viremia. HCV viremia was associated with elevated CD8 T-cell Caspase-3 in Elites, ARTuc, and HIV− except ARTc. CD8 T-cell Caspase-3 levels were significantly higher in HCV RNA+ Elites (P = 0.04) and ARTuc (P = 0.001) and HIV− groups (P = 0.02) than ARTc. Importantly, ARTuc HCV RNA+ had significantly higher CD4 T-cell interleukin-17 levels than ARTuc HCV RNA− (P = 0.005). HIV control was associated with lower liver fibrosis in HCV/HIV co-infected women. HCV viremia is associated with an inflammatory CD4 TH-17 phenotype in absence of HIV control and higher frequency of pro-apoptosis CD8 T-cells critical to avert progression of HIV and HCV disease that is attenuated in ART controllers. Elite controllers with HCV viremia are more prone to CD8 T-cell apoptosis than ART controllers, which could have negative consequences over time, highlighting the importance of ART control in HCV/HIV coinfected individuals