Cumulative clinical experience with use of insulin lispro: critical appraisal, role in therapy, and patient considerations

We have now at our disposal the new rapid-acting insulin analogs, of which insulin lispro was the first to become commercially available. While the differences in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic characteristics are indisputable, the clinical benefits attained by these changes have not been as clear. In the present review, we discuss the structure, pharmacology, and landmark studies related to insulin lispro. The clinical characteristics of insulin lispro are compared with those of insulin regular and other insulin analogs in different clinical situations. Also included are the aspects of quality of life and cost-effectiveness that may modify the modern practitioner’s decision to adopt one type of insulin over another

Intrasexual competition facilitates the evolution of alternative mating strategies in a colour polymorphic fish

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Intense competition for access to females can lead to males exploiting different components of sexual selection, and result in the evolution of alternative mating strategies (AMSs). Males of <it>Poecilia parae</it>, a colour polymorphic fish, exhibit five distinct phenotypes: drab-coloured (immaculata), striped (parae), structural-coloured (blue) and carotenoid-based red and yellow morphs. Previous work indicates that immaculata males employ a sneaker strategy, whereas the red and yellow morphs exploit female preferences for carotenoid-based colours. Mating strategies favouring the maintenance of the other morphs remain to be determined. Here, we report the role of agonistic male-male interactions in influencing female mating preferences and male mating success, and in facilitating the evolution of AMSs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our study reveals variation in aggressiveness among <it>P. parae </it>morphs during indirect and direct interactions with sexually receptive females. Two morphs, parae and yellow, use aggression to enhance their mating success (i.e., number of copulations) by 1) directly monopolizing access to females, and 2) modifying female preferences after winning agonistic encounters. Conversely, we found that the success of the drab-coloured immaculata morph, which specializes in a sneak copulation strategy, relies in its ability to circumvent both male aggression and female choice when facing all but yellow males.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Strong directional selection is expected to deplete genetic variation, yet many species show striking genetically-based polymorphisms. Most studies evoke frequency dependent selection to explain the persistence of such variation. Consistent with a growing body of evidence, our findings suggest that a complex form of balancing selection may alternatively explain the evolution and maintenance of AMSs in a colour polymorphic fish. In particular, this study demonstrates that intrasexual competition results in phenotypically distinct males exhibiting clear differences in their levels of aggression to exclude potential sexual rivals. By being dominant, the more aggressive males are able to circumvent female mating preferences for attractive males, whereas another male type incorporates subordinate behaviours that allow them to circumvent male aggression and female mating preferences. Together, these and previous results indicate that exploiting different aspects of social interactions may allow males to evolve distinct mating strategies and thus the long term maintenance of polymorphisms within populations.</p

Strength of concrete-filled steel box columns with local buckling effects

The key aspects and features of a nonlinear fiber element analysis method for predicting the strength and behavior of concrete-filled steel box columns with local buckling effects are discussed. The methods is quite useful in predicting the ultimate strengths and behavior of concrete slabs and can also be employed in the advanced analysis of composite frames

A Powerful and Computationally Efficient Algorithm for Transmission Loss Calculation

This paper deals with the formulation of transmission loss PL of a power system through a set of new coefficients (A coefficients) which are extremely efficient, exact and robust and suitable for real time application. Results on a few IEEE test systems are exciting and encouraging. They demonstrate that these A coefficients faithfully represent the system loss, are extremely robust and need not be re-evaluated for changes in the system loading conditions either for evaluation of system loss or cost of generation for economic load dispatch

Difference in Plumage Color Used in Species Recognition between Incipient Species Is Linked to a Single Amino Acid Substitution in the Melanocortin‐1 Receptor

This is the publisher's version, also available electronically from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/600084Many studies demonstrate that differences in mating signals are used by incipient species in recognizing potential mates or sexual competitors (i.e., species recognition). Little is known, however, about the genetic changes responsible for these differences in mating signals. Populations of the Monarcha castaneiventris flycatcher vary in plumage color across the Solomon Islands, with a subspecies on Makira Island having chestnut bellies and blue‐black upper parts (Monarcha castaneiventris megarhynchus) and a subspecies on neighboring satellite islands being entirely blue‐black (melanic; Monarcha castaneiventris ugiensis). Here we show that a single nonsynonymous point mutation in the melanocortin‐1 receptor (MC1R) gene is present in all melanic birds from one island (Santa Ana) but absent in all chestnut‐bellied birds from Makira Island, implicating this mutation in causing melanism. Birds from a second satellite island (Ugi) do not show the same perfect association between this MC1R variant and plumage color, suggesting an alternative mechanism for melanism on this island. Finally, taxidermic mount presentation experiments in Makira (chestnut) and Santa Ana (melanic) suggest that the plumage difference mediates species recognition. Assuming that the signals used in species recognition are also used in mutual mate choice, our results indicate that a single amino acid substitution contributes to speciation