Hydra tropomyosin TROP1 is expressed in head-specific epithelial cells and is a major component of the cytoskeletal structure that anchors nematocytes

A cDNA clone encoding a 253 amino acid tropomyosin was isolated from Hydra in a differential screen for headspecific genes. The Hydra tropomyosin gene, designated trop1, is a single copy gene, lacks introns and is strongly expressed in tentacle-specific epithelial cells. Analysis of protein synthesis in head and gastric tissue indicated a high rate of tropomyosin synthesis in head tissue. Immunolocalization of tropomyosin in tentacle tissue revealed a cushion-like tropomyosin-containing structure within battery cells at the base of nematocytes. The structure appears to form part of the cytoskeletal anchor for nematocytes. Tropomyosin cushions were also observed in epithelial cells along the body column, which contain mounted stenotele nematocytes

On the construction of explosive relation algebras

Fork algebras are an extension of relation algebras obtained by extending the set of logical symbols with a binary operator called fork. This class of algebras was introduced by Haeberer and Veloso in the early 90's aiming at enriching relation algebra, an already successful language for program specification, with the capability of expressing some form of parallel computation. The further study of this class of algebras led to many meaningful results linked to interesting properties of relation algebras such as representability and finite axiomatizability, among others. Also in the 90's, Veloso introduced a subclass of relation algebras that are expansible to fork algebras, admitting a large number of non-isomorphic expansions, referred to as explosive relation algebras. In this work we discuss some general techniques for constructing algebras of this type

Galaxy And Mass Assembly (GAMA): a deeper view of the mass, metallicity and SFR relationships

A full appreciation of the role played by gas metallicity (Z), star formation rate (SFR) and stellar mass (M*) is fundamental to understanding how galaxies form and evolve. The connections between these three parameters at different redshifts significantly affect galaxy evolution, and thus provide important constraints for galaxy evolution models. Using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey–Data Release 7 (SDSS–DR7) and the Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA) surveys, we study the relationships and dependences between SFR, Z and M*, as well as the Fundamental Plane for star-forming galaxies. We combine both surveys using volume-limited samples up to a redshift of z ≈ 0.36. The GAMA and SDSS surveys complement each other when analysing the relationships between SFR, M* and Z. We present evidence for SFR and metallicity evolution to z ∼ 0.2. We study the dependences between SFR, M*, Z and specific SFR (SSFR) on the M*–Z, M*–SFR, M*–SSFR, Z–SFR and Z–SSFR relations, finding strong correlations between all. Based on those dependences, we propose a simple model that allows us to explain the different behaviour observed between low- and high-mass galaxies. Finally, our analysis allows us to confirm the existence of a Fundamental Plane, for which M* = f(Z, SFR) in star-forming galaxies

Mixing Time Scale Models for Multiple Mapping Conditioning with Two Reference Variables

A novel multiple mapping conditioning (MMC) approach has been developed for the modelling of turbulent premixed flames including mixture inhomogeneities due to mixture stratification or mixing with the cold surroundings. MMC requires conditioning of a mixing operator on characteristic quantities (reference variables) to ensure localness of mixing in composition space. Previous MMC used the LES-filtered reaction progress variable as reference field. Here, the reference variable space is extended by adding the LES-filtered mixture fraction effectively leading to a double conditioning of the mixing operator. The model is used to predict a turbulent stratified flame and is validated by comparison with experimental data. The introduction of the second reference variable also requires modification of the mixing time scale. Two different mixing time scale models are compared in this work. A novel anisotropic model for stratified combustion leads to somewhat higher levels of fluctuations for the passive scalar when compared with the original model but differences remain small within the flame front. The results show that both models predict flame position and flame structure with good accuracy

A new reference genome assembly for the microcrustacean Daphnia pulex

Comparing genomes of closely related genotypes from populations with distinct demographic histories can help reveal the impact of effective population size on genome evolution. For this purpose, we present a high quality genome assembly of Daphnia pulex (PA42), and compare this with the first sequenced genome of this species (TCO), which was derived from an isolate from a population with >90% reduction in nucleotide diversity. PA42 has numerous similarities to TCO at the gene level, with an average amino acid sequence identity of 98.8 and >60% of orthologous proteins identical. Nonetheless, there is a highly elevated number of genes in the TCO genome annotation, with similar to 7000 excess genes appearing to be false positives. This view is supported by the high GC content, lack of introns, and short length of these suspicious gene annotations. Consistent with the view that reduced effective population size can facilitate the accumulation of slightly deleterious genomic features, we observe more proliferation of transposable elements (TEs) and a higher frequency of gained introns in the TCO genome