The Role of Peroxidases in the Development of Plants and Their Responses to Abiotic Stresses.

Peroxidases and its effects on plants were analysed. Peroxidases are involved in many physiological processes in plants, involving responses to biotic and abiotic stresses and the biosynthesis of lignin. Liglin is a polymer responsible for rendering the plant stronger and more rigid and also making the cell walls hydrophobic. Peroxidases are involved in the polymerization of the precursors of lignin. They are also involved in the scavenging of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), which are partially reduced forms of atmospheric oxygen, highly reactive, and capable of causing oxidative damage to the cell. Peroxidases can be a source of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) but also are capable of scavenging it. The overexpression of a peroxidase gene with the consequent elevated levels of the enzyme were analysed in this study. A pathogen related cell wall peroxidise gene from barley (prx8) isolated by the Thordal-Christensen et al. (1992) was cloned into a binary vector Burbridge (2001). This gene was transformed into Nicotiana tabacum L. cx. Xanthi. Also, the prx8 gene was cloned into a vector driven by the chlorophyll a/b binding promoter (cab) and transformed into Malus domestica var. Greensleeves. This plant was chosen as a woody species, due to the involvement of peroxidises in the lignification process and its importance in wood production. Transgenic plants from both species were characterised and analysed. They were submitted to abiotic stresses, such as heat and cold stress, high salinity and metal ions in high concentrations. Transgenic plants overexpressing the prx8 gene showed an increased tolerance to these abiotic stresses. In fact, germination rates of transgenic tobacco seeds in the presence of high salinity levels and metal ions in the medium were higher than wild type seeds. Electrolyte leakage of leaf discs presented with higher temperatures was reduced in transgenic plants, showing a higher tolerance to the heat stress. This was further proved on soil grown plants presented with high temperatures. The role of peroxidises in the development of plants was also studied. Plants showed acceleration in the growth rate when compared to wild type plants. Experiments on the apple plants also showed an increase in the number of xylem vessels. These transgenic plants proved the very important role of this cell wall peroxidise in the responses to environmental changes as well as the development of the plants

The interplay among religiosity, heath, and ethnicity : changing patterns in the U.S., 1972-2010

Because ethnic minorities continue to experience health inequities in America, the powerful social forces that help determine our health become all the more relevant to explore. Within this social context, an often overlooked factor is the role that religiosity plays in influencing health. This investigation explored the relationships among religiosity, health, and ethnicity. Primary aims were to specify the change that has occurred over time in religiosity, health, and socio-demographic variables and to determine whether religiosity has a unique influence on health for each ethnic group. The General Social Survey, a large, nationally representative dataset was utilized. Comparisons of correlations (among health, religiosity, and socioeconomic variables) across time revealed that in general, the relationship between religious attendance and health has strengthened, the relationship between education and health has weakened, and the relationships between socioeconomic variables and religiosity have strengthened. Particularly for ethnic minorities, socioeconomic factors have become stronger predictors of religiosity over time. Analyses of covariance of religious attendance and health were conducted separately. Main effects of ethnicity, age, gender and era were highly significant for both dependent variables. For religious attendance, all possible two-way interactions among ethnicity, age, gender, and era were significant as well. For example, ethnic differences in attendance were greater for middle age than for younger adults, were greater for women than for men, and were greater in the recent era than in the previous era. For subjective health, the two-way interactions of ethnicity by age, ethnicity by gender, ethnicity by era, and the three-way interaction of era by ethnicity by age were all significant. Most striking was the greater decline over eras in health of Latinos relative to that of other groups. Finally, the relationship between religiosity and health did not prove to differ significantly across ethnic groups; Although ethnic minorities are strongly religiously committed, the impact of religiosity on health is not stronger/more beneficial for ethnic minorities than for non-Latino Whites. In conclusion, the interplay among religiosity, health, and ethnicity is complex and ever evolving

Religiosity/Spirituality and Cancer Risk Assessment for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer: Latina and non-Latina women in New Mexico

Introduction: Although cancer risk assessment for high-risk individuals and families can offer life-saving information and options for cancer risk management, Latinas have historically underutilized cancer prevention services. Much needed is a better understanding of what encourages and discourages engagement in cancer risk assessment services among Latino populations. Religiosity/spirituality is potentially relevant to such engagement given religion has often been a central coping resource for Latina cancer survivors. Aim: This study explored the potential impact of religiosity/spirituality and psychological processes on how Latinas and non-Latinas approach decisions regarding preventative health behaviors. Methods: As a small subset of a larger research project, a total of 49 women participated in a mixed-methods, two-part study. Participants were all females who had a personal history of breast cancer, were at increased risk for hereditary breast cancer, but had not received any cancer risk assessment counseling or genetic testing. In the first phase of this larger study, focus group participants (n = 13) offered their thoughts on how religion/spirituality impacts decisions to get cancer risk assessment. In the second phase, a different group of participants (n = 36) who were about to receive a pilot intervention to promote cancer risk assessment were asked about their religiosity, cancer worry, perceptions of cancer risk, and intentions for cancer risk assessment in a baseline survey conducted over the phone. Both quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed. Results: Religion was significantly more salient for Latina women than for non-Latina women. Controlling for religious salience, Latina women had significantly lower intentions for cancer risk assessment. For Latina women, religious salience was negatively associated with intentions for cancer risk assessment, while for non-Latina women, it was positively associated, although this contrast was non-significant statistically. For women considering themselves at low risk for hereditary breast cancer, religious salience was negatively associated with intentions for cancer risk assessment, but for women considering themselves at high risk, religious salience was positively associated with intentions. However, this contrast was also non-significant. Conclusion: This study offers mixed-methods evidence for the relevance and potential impact of religiosity on coping with cancer risk among Latina and non-Latina women, which can inform public health interventions. For those who consider religiosity/spirituality a salient and defining influence in their lives, encouraging positive and active religious coping to frame risk perceptions and to cope with cancer risk could be a promising approach to increase motivation for cancer risk assessment

Euthanasia and the Teaching of Argumentation in Chile

This paper reports on a research project about Chilean students’ argumentation competency. Our thesis is that ethical issues are an impediment for the teaching of argumentation at high school level. To prove this, we analyze students’ discussions and we compare them with standard philosophical discussions to show the breach between them. We use the pragma-dialectical approach to contrast the different kinds of argumentation

Intestinal Inflammation Model Inducing Gut Leakage by Different Methods in Broiler Chickens Using FITC-d as a Marker

Traditionally, antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) have been used in food animals to reduce enteric inflammation and maintain intestinal homeostasis, thus improving performance. Due to increasing restrictions regarding the use of AGP, precise and high throughput enteric inflammation models and markers to search for effective alternatives are urgently needed. Oral administration of fluorescein isothiocyanate dextran (FITC-d) and its passage into blood can be used as a marker for tight junction permeability. FITC-d is a large molecule (3-5 kDa) which does not usually leak through the intact gastrointestinal tract barrier. However, when conditions disrupt the tight junctions between epithelial cells, the FITC-d molecule can enter circulation as demonstrated by an increase in trans-mucosal permeability associated with chemically induced disruption of tight junctions by elevated serum levels of FITC-d after oral administration. In chapter one, we evaluated the dose titration of FITC-d for optimal measurement of enteric inflammation in broiler chicks using the following models: a) 24h feed restriction (FR); b) dextran sodium sulfate (DSS); or c) rye-based diet (RBD). In these experiments, FR, DSS, and RBD significantly increased (P \u3c 0.05) serum concentrations of FITC-d, suggesting that FITC-d may be a good indicator of permeability as has been shown in some mammalian models. In chapter two, a series of experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of dexamethasone (DEX) treatment in feed on systemic (serum) FITC-d levels, total numbers of aerobic bacteria in liver as an index of bacterial translocation (BT), differential white blood cell counts, and immune organs in broiler chickens. DEX-treated chickens showed a significant increase in serum FITC-d and BT, again indicating that stress increased paracellular leakage across the gut epithelium associated with dissolution of tight junctions. Additionally, heterophil/lymphocyte ratio was significantly increased and relative spleen and bursa of Fabricious weight ratios were significantly decreased in DEX-treated chicks. These results provide a robust measurement model for enteric inflammation model in broiler chickens to further evaluate candidate non-antibiotic anti-inflammatory treatments as candidate AGPs

Towards an Artificial Intelligence based Decision Support System to Evaluate Various Transit Projects

This dissertation addressed a subset of the Transit Network Design Problem (Transit-NDP), where the main evaluation parameter is the impact of various transit projects – Bus Lines, Tram, Light Rail, Rail – on the Network Travel Time (NTT) of the vehicles. The NTT is estimated using the static four-step travel demand model (trip generation, trip distribution, modal split, and traffic assignment). A set of five metaheuristic models were developed and implemented for this specific Transit-NDP, namely, Simulated Annealing (SA)-VISUM, Simulated Annealing-Random Forest Regression Model (SA-RF), Tabu Search (TS)-Random Forest (TS-RF), SA-RF-TS-VISUM, SA-RF-VISUM. These models were evaluated using two test networks (Halle Salle with 6521 OD pairs and Karlsruhe with 527,076 OD pairs). An enumeration and sampling study provided insights into the impact of various combinations of transit projects on the NTT. At the same time, it also served as the dataset that the RF model was based on. A set of demand-budget combinations were tested for each network – Demand (100%, 120%, 140%, 160%, 180%) and Budget (0%, 20%, 40%, 60%). The best solutions found in the Halle Salle network ranged between 100% demand, 48.23% NTT reduction to a 180% demand, 53.47% NTT reduction. Correspondingly, the best solutions found in the Karlsruhe Network ranged between 100% demand and 39.52% NTT reduction, whereas 180% demand resulted in a 53.99% NTT reduction. The principal conclusion for implementing these metaheuristics is that the utilization of an ensemble metaheuristic model encompassing a set of metaheuristics will be most beneficial as no dominating metaheuristics were found to outperform the others. The budget-demand sensitivity analysis produced the following significant outcomes: 1) the best solution found at higher budget levels does not necessarily include transit projects that were included at lower budget levels, 2) the best solution found at higher demand levels does not necessarily include transit projects that were included at lower demand levels. 3) The utilization of the RF model as a surrogate model to estimate the NTT based on the generated dataset of multiple tests runs – instead of the VISUM model - in synergy with the SA and TS resulted in reducing the corresponding computational time in the order of 0.07 hours (average) and a standard deviation of 0.01 hours for SA-RF, and 1.70 hours (average) and a standard deviation of 0.14 hours for TS-RF. 4) The metaheuristic models systematically found better solutions than the corresponding sampling method providing confidence in the utilization of metaheuristics to find “near-optimal” solutions. Under the Halle Salle network, almost all the metaheuristics implemented found solutions within 0.02% to 0.03% of the best solutions found by other metaheuristics under all tests conducted. A significant outcome of this thesis is the following: Given a transportation network with a set of candidate transit projects being proposed by the major stakeholders, this research develops and implements an ensemble of models comprised of 1) a set of random test run combinations of candidate transit projects, and 2) a set test runs of various metaheuristics, to produce a set of the “best solution states,” where the main parameter is the corresponding NTT. This ensemble of models, which is envisioned to become self-calibrated utilizing the substantial traffic flow and control and infrastructure data, could be implemented and produce the corresponding results in a few weeks or months, depending on the network size. This ensemble of models will be able to provide the primary stakeholders with the impact of the best solutions found based on the various demand/budget combinations with regard to the NTT parameter in a consistent and systematic manner. This thesis explored a set of widely used metaheuristics such as Simulated Annealing, Tabu Search, and Random Forest Regression. The successful implementation – both in finding good solutions and computational time - of these metaheuristics points to the development and implementation of additional metaheuristics, such as genetic algorithms and neural networks that are also utilized in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) extensively. In addition, they provide confidence in establishing a continuously updated AI-based model to evaluate a set of transportation network projects where additional parameters other than the NTT should be taken into consideration, as the NDP is a multi-objective problem