Lifespan-increasing drug nordihydroguaiaretic acid inhibits p300 and activates autophagy.

Aging is characterized by the progressive loss of physiological function in all organisms. Remarkably, the aging process can be modulated by environmental modifications, including diet and small molecules. The natural compound nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA) robustly increases lifespan in flies and mice, but its mechanism of action remains unclear. Here, we report that NDGA is an inhibitor of the epigenetic regulator p300. We find that NDGA inhibits p300 acetyltransferase activity in vitro and suppresses acetylation of a key p300 target in histones (i.e., H3K27) in cells. We use the cellular thermal shift assay to uniquely demonstrate NDGA binding to p300 in cells. Finally, in agreement with recent findings indicating that p300 is a potent blocker of autophagy, we show that NDGA treatment induces autophagy. These findings identify p300 as a target of NDGA and provide mechanistic insight into its role in longevity

An automatic multi-stepping approach to aircraft ice prediction

Flying an aircraft in icing conditions may seriously degrade its aerodynamical performance and threaten the flight safety. Over the years, new technologies and improved procedures have limited the potential risks caused by aircraft icing. Experimental studies being very expensive, numerous computer codes have been developed to simulate ice shapes and tackle the problem. Typically in these codes, a flow solution and key icing parameters are evaluated around a clean un-iced geometry and their values remain constant during the entire simulation. This approach may be acceptable for short exposure times or when the ice shape only slightly deforms the initial geometry. However, in other cases, the values of the icing parameters may vary and the simulation will loose its accuracy: for large shapes, the presence of the ice influences the surrounding airflow significantly, altering the value of icing parameters and ultimately the ice accretion. Calculating more accurate ice shapes therefore requires to periodically recompute the flow field around the body during the simulation and determine updated values for icing parameters. This procedure, known as multi-stepping, is investigated in this thesis and adapted to the new threedimensional icing code ICECREMO2. Several multi-step algorithms are presented and tested on cylinders and airfoils. When possible, the ice shapes simulated are compared with experimental results. The first multi-step calculations were generally performed manually. The user had to perform a rather tedious work and inappropriate instructions could lead to severe inaccuracies in the simulations. To avoid these difficulties, a fully automated procedure will be developed including all stages of a multi-step computation. This significantly reduces user interaction and the overall computing time. The present research work forms part of the ICECREMO2 project. ICECREMO2 is a three-dimensional ice accretion and water flow code developed collaboratively by Airbus UK, BAe Systems, Dunlop Aerospace, Rolls-Royce, GKN Westland Helicopters, QinetiQ and Cranfield University under the auspices of the UK Department of Trade and Industry. iEThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Modeling rain-fed maize vulnerability to droughts using the standardized precipitation index from satellite estimated rainfall-Southern Malawi case study

During 1990s, disaster risk reduction emerged as a novel, proactive approach to managing risks from natural hazards. The World Bank, USAlD, and other international donor agencies began making efforts to mainstream disaster risk reduction in countries whose population and economies were heavily dependent on rain-fed agriculture. This approach has more significance in light of the increasing climatic hazard patterns and the climate scenarios projected for different hazard prone countries in the world. The Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) has been monitoring the food security issues in the sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and in Haiti. FEWS NET monitors the rainfall and moisture availability conditions with the help of NOAA RFE2 data for deriving food security status in Africa. This paper highlights the efforts in using satellite estimated rainfall inputs to develop drought vulnerability models in the drought prone areas in Malawi. The satellite RFE2 based SPI corresponding to the critical tasseling and silking phases (in the months of January, February, and March) were statistically regressed with drought-induced yield losses at the district level. The analysis has shown that the drought conditions in February and early March lead to most damage to maize yields in this region. The district-wise vulnerabilities to drought were up scaled to obtain a regional maize vulnerability model for southern Malawi. The results would help in establishing an early monitoring mechanism for drought impact assessment, give the decision makers additional time to assess seasonal outcomes, and identify potential food-related hazards in Malawi

Reduced Mobility of the Alternate Splicing Factor (Asf) through the Nucleoplasm and Steady State Speckle Compartments

Compartmentalization of the nucleus is now recognized as an important level of regulation influencing specific nuclear processes. The mechanism of factor organization and the movement of factors in nuclear space have not been fully determined. Splicing factors, for example, have been shown to move in a directed manner as large intact structures from sites of concentration to sites of active transcription, but splicing factors are also thought to exist in a freely diffusible state. In this study, we examined the movement of a splicing factor, ASF, green fluorescent fusion protein (ASF–GFP) using time-lapse microscopy and the technique fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). We find that ASF–GFP moves at rates up to 100 times slower than free diffusion when it is associated with speckles and, surprisingly, also when it is dispersed in the nucleoplasm. The mobility of ASF is consistent with frequent but transient interactions with relatively immobile nuclear binding sites. This mobility is slightly increased in the presence of an RNA polymerase II transcription inhibitor and the ASF molecules further enrich in speckles. We propose that the nonrandom organization of splicing factors reflects spatial differences in the concentration of relatively immobile binding sites

Drought Monitoring and Assessment: Remote Sensing and Modeling Approaches for the Famine Early Warning Systems Network

Drought monitoring is an essential component of drought risk management. It is usually carried out using drought indices/indicators that are continuous functions of rainfall and other hydrometeorological variables. This chapter presents a few examples of how remote sensing and hydrologic modeling techniques are being used to generate a suite of drought monitoring indicators at dekadal (10-day), monthly, seasonal, and annual time scales for several selected regions around the world. Satellite-based rainfall estimates are being used to produce drought indicators such as standardized precipitation index, dryness indicators, and start of season analysis. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index is being used to monitor vegetation condition. Several satellite data products are combined using agrohydrologic models to produce multiple short- and long-term indicators of droughts. All the data sets are being produced and updated in near-real time to provide information about the onset, progression, extent, and intensity of drought conditions. The data and products produced are available for download from the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) data portal at http:// earlywarning.usgs.gov. The availability of timely information and products support the decision-making processes in drought-related hazard assessment, monitoring, and management with the FEWS NET. The drought-hazard monitoring approach perfected by the U.S. Geological Survey for FEWS NET through the integration of satellite data and hydrologic modeling can form the basis for similar decision support systems. Such systems can operationally produce reliable and useful regional information that is relevant for local, district-level decision making

GCIP water and energy budget synthesis (WEBS)

As part of the World Climate Research Program\u27s (WCRPs) Global Energy and Water-Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) Continental-scale International Project (GCIP), a preliminary water and energy budget synthesis (WEBS) was developed for the period 1996–1999 from the “best available” observations and models. Besides this summary paper, a companion CD-ROM with more extensive discussion, figures, tables, and raw data is available to the interested researcher from the GEWEX project office, the GAPP project office, or the first author. An updated online version of the CD-ROM is also available at http://ecpc.ucsd.edu/gcip/webs.htm/. Observations cannot adequately characterize or “close” budgets since too many fundamental processes are missing. Models that properly represent the many complicated atmospheric and near-surface interactions are also required. This preliminary synthesis therefore included a representative global general circulation model, regional climate model, and a macroscale hydrologic model as well as a global reanalysis and a regional analysis. By the qualitative agreement among the models and available observations, it did appear that we now qualitatively understand water and energy budgets of the Mississippi River Basin. However, there is still much quantitative uncertainty. In that regard, there did appear to be a clear advantage to using a regional analysis over a global analysis or a regional simulation over a global simulation to describe the Mississippi River Basin water and energy budgets. There also appeared to be some advantage to using a macroscale hydrologic model for at least the surface water budgets

Composição química de café conilon (Coffea canephora).

O objetivo neste trabalho foi estudar a composição química de um grupo de clones de Coffea canephora pertencentes ao programa de pesquisa em melhoramento genético da espécie no Instituto Capixaba de Pesquisa e Extensão Rural - Incaper, no Estado do Espírito Santo. Foram avaliados, em 49 clones, os teores de cafeína, trigonelina, ácidos clorogênicos e sólidos solúveis totais. Verificou-se a existência de expressiva variação entre os diferentes clones analisados, com valores extremos variando entre de 1,51 a 2,64% para cafeína; de 0,64 a 1,30% para trigonelina; de 3,61 a 5,64% para ácidos clorogênicos e de 29,36 a 36,36% para sólidos solúveis. Esses resultados indicam a existência de variabilidade genética para as características estudadas, bem como a possibilidade de seleção de plantas possuidoras de características qualitativas de maior interesse comercial

Cultivo de Coffea Canephora conduzido com arqueamento de plantas jovens em condição de sequeiro e irrigado.

A cafeicultura constitui-se no sustentáculo econômico de 80% dos municípios do Estado do Espírito Santo e responde por 43% do valor bruto da produção agrícola capixaba. O sistema de manejo das lavouras de café conilon vem sendo aprimorados constantemente no Estado. Experiências preliminares realizadas indicam que o arqueamento de plantas jovens mostra comportamento diferenciado quando aplicado a diferentes variedades, em diferentes ambientes, e em lavouras irrigadas e não irrigadas e em plantio em diferentes épocas. Este trabalho objetivou estudar a influencia do sistema de condução de plantas com arqueamento no desempenho produtivo de diferentes genótipos de café conilon (Coffea canephora) cultivados em condição de sequeiro e irrigado. Foram conduzidos quatro experimentos na Fazenda Experimental de Sooretama, implantados em novembro de 2008 no delineamento de blocos ao acaso com treze tratamentos, três repetições e parcelas de 10 plantas, denominados de Arqueado Irrigado, Não Arqueado Irrigado, Arqueado Sequeiro e Não Arqueado Sequeiro. O arqueamento das plantas jovens foi realizado cerca de 60 dias após o plantio em campo. Após a emissão e seleção das novas brotações, as plantas foram conduzidas com quatro hastes ortotrópicas distribuídas em torno do caule. Resultados das analises estatísticas individuas dos quatro experimentos nas quatro colheitas, mostraram não ter havido diferenças significativas entre os genótipos estudados na primeira safra para a característica produtividade de grãos em quaisquer dos sistemas de condução. A partir da segunda colheita, contudo, os genótipos se distribuíram em vários e distintos grupos quanto a produção obtida. Com base na média dos sistemas, verificou-se maior produtividade no sistema arqueado irrigado, seguido do não arqueado irrigado, arqueado sequeiro e não arqueado sequeiro. Os dados conjuntos evidenciaram que a resposta do cafeeiro conilon submetido ao arqueamento das plantas jovens é influenciada pelo material genético e pelo fato da lavoura ser ou não irrigada, sendo que somente alguns poucos genótipos não apresentam comportamento diferenciado. As maiores produtividades médias foram alcançadas em lavouras conduzidas arqueadas e em cultivo irrigado

Avaliação de clones precoces de café conilon no Sul do Estado do Espírito Santo.

O trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar sessenta clones de maturação precoce do programa de melhoramento genético do Instituto Capixaba de Pesquisa, Assistência Técnica e Extensão Rural - Incaper quanto a característica produtividade. O experimento foi conduzido na Fazenda Experimental de Bananal do Norte, Incaper, localizada no município de Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, ES. O delineamento experimental foi blocos casualizados com quatro repetições. A parcela foi formada por cinco plantas úteis. O espaçamento foi de 3,0 x 1,2 metros. Foram avaliados os clones precoces nas três primeiras colheitas, anos 2006, 2007 e 2008. Os clones foram agrupados pelo teste de Scott Knott à 5% de probabilidade. A produtividade média envolvendo as três colheitas foi de 53,27 sacas beneficiadas por hectare. Os clones 003/93, 006/93, 342/97, 110/86, 18/86, 16+13, 232/97, 129/86, 011/93, 105/89, 85/89, 23/89, 002/86, 109A/89, 23/93, 22/89, 133/89, 160/89, 003/86 e 4B/89 foram os mais promissores com produtividade variando de 56,81 a 92,26 sacas beneficiadas por hectare. Esses resultados, associados ao da quarta colheita (junho de 2009), e de outras características avaliadas, serão importantes para seleção de clones para serem agrupados e constituir nova variedade clonal de maturação precoce, mais especificamente, para o sul do Estado do Espírito Santo