26,297 research outputs found
Restricted dog leucocyte antigen (DLA) class II haplotypes and genotypes in Beagles
AbstractBeagles are commonly used in vaccine trials as part of the regulatory approval process. Genetic restriction within this breed and the impact this might have on vaccine responses are rarely considered. This study was designed to characterise diversity of dog leucocyte antigen (DLA) class II genes in a breeding colony of laboratory Beagles, whose offspring are used in vaccine studies. DLA haplotypes were determined by PCR and sequence-based typing from genomic DNA extracted from blood. Breeding colony Beagles had significantly different DLA haplotype frequencies in comparison with pet Beagles and both groups showed limited DLA diversity. Restricted DLA class II genetic variability within Beagles might result in selective antigen presentation and vaccine responses that are not necessarily representative of those seen in other dog breeds
Arkansas Cotton Variety Test 2016
The primary goal of the Arkansas Cotton Variety Test is to provide unbiased data regarding the agronomic performance of cotton varieties and advanced breeding lines in the major cotton-growing areas of Arkansas
Making the small oblique parameters large
We compute the oblique parameters, including the three new parameters ,
and introduced recently by the Montreal group, for the case of one
scalar multiplet of arbitrary weak isospin and weak hypercharge . We
show that, when the masses of the heaviest and lightest components of the
multiplet remain constant, but increases, the oblique parameter and
the three new oblique parameters increase like , while only
increases like . For large multiplets with masses not much higher than , the oblique parameters and may become much larger than
and .Comment: 9 pages, standard LATEX, 3 figures available from the authors, report
CMU-HEP93-17 and DOE-ER/40682-4
High-resolution width-modulated pulse rebalance electronics for strapdown gyroscopes and accelerometers
Three different rebalance electronic loops were designed, implemented, and evaluated. The loops were width-modulated binary types using a 614.4 kHz keying signal; they were developed to accommodate the following three inertial sensors with the indicated resolution values: (1) Kearfott 2412 accelerometer - resolution = 260 micro-g/data pulse, (2) Honeywell GG334 gyroscope - resolution = 3.9 milli-arc-sec/data pulse, (3) Kearfott 2401-009 accelerometer - resolution = 144 milli-g/data pulse. Design theory, details of the design implementation, and experimental results for each loop are presented
Fast field-cycling NMR of cartilage : a way toward molecular imaging
Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Stability, reliability and cross-mode correlations of tests in a recommended 8-minute performance assessment battery
A need exists for an automated performance test system to study drugs, agents, treatments, and stresses of interest to the aviation, space, and environmental medical community. The purpose of this present study is to evaluate tests for inclusion in the NASA-sponsored Automated Performance Test System (APTS). Twenty-one subjects were tested over 10 replications with tests previously identified as good candidates for repeated-measure research. The tests were concurrently administered in paper-and-pencil and microcomputer modes. Performance scores for the two modes were compared. Data from trials 1 to 10 were examined for indications of test stability and reliability. Nine of the ten APT system tests achieved stability. Reliabilities were generally high. Cross-correlation of microbased tests with traditional paper-and-pencil versions revealed similarity of content within tests in the different modes, and implied at least three cognition and two motor factors. This protable, inexpensive, rugged, computerized battery of tests is recommended for use in repeated-measures studies of environmental and drug effects on performance. Identification of other tests compatible with microcomputer testing and potentially capable of tapping previously unidentified factors is recommended. Documentation of APTS sensitivity to environmental agents is available for more than a dozen facilities and is reported briefly. Continuation of such validation remains critical in establishing the efficacy of APTS tests
Field dependence of the temperature at the peak of the ZFC magnetization
The effect of an applied magnetic field on the temperature at the maximum of
the ZFC magnetization, , is studied using the recently obtained
analytic results of Coffey et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 80}(1998) 5655) for
the prefactor of the N\'{e}el relaxation time which allow one to precisely
calculate the prefactor in the N\'{e}el-Brown model and thus the blocking
temperature as a function of the coefficients of the Taylor series expansion of
the magnetocrystalline anisotropy. The present calculations indicate that even
a precise determination of the prefactor in the N\'{e}el-Brown theory, which
always predicts a monotonic decrease of the relaxation time with increasing
field, is insufficient to explain the effect of an applied magnetic field on
the temperature at the maximum of the ZFC magnetization. On the other hand, we
find that the non linear field-dependence of the magnetization along with the
magnetocrystalline anisotropy appears to be of crucial importance to the
existence of this maximum.Comment: 14 LaTex209 pages, 6 EPS figures. To appear in J. Phys.: Condensed
Matte
Lipid-free Antigen B subunits from echinococcus granulosus: oligomerization, ligand binding, and membrane interaction properties
Background:
The hydatid disease parasite Echinococcus granulosus has a restricted lipid metabolism, and needs to harvest essential lipids from the host. Antigen B (EgAgB), an abundant lipoprotein of the larval stage (hydatid cyst), is thought to be important in lipid storage and transport. It contains a wide variety of lipid classes, from highly hydrophobic compounds to phospholipids. Its protein component belongs to the cestode-specific Hydrophobic Ligand Binding Protein family, which includes five 8-kDa isoforms encoded by a multigene family (EgAgB1-EgAgB5). How lipid and protein components are assembled into EgAgB particles remains unknown. EgAgB apolipoproteins self-associate into large oligomers, but the functional contribution of lipids to oligomerization is uncertain. Furthermore, binding of fatty acids to some EgAgB subunits has been reported, but their ability to bind other lipids and transfer them to acceptor membranes has not been studied.<p></p>
Methodology/Principal Findings:
Lipid-free EgAgB subunits obtained by reverse-phase HPLC were used to analyse their oligomerization, ligand binding and membrane interaction properties. Size exclusion chromatography and cross-linking experiments showed that EgAgB8/2 and EgAgB8/3 can self-associate, suggesting that lipids are not required for oligomerization. Furthermore, using fluorescent probes, both subunits were found to bind fatty acids, but not cholesterol analogues. Analysis of fatty acid transfer to phospholipid vesicles demonstrated that EgAgB8/2 and EgAgB8/3 are potentially capable of transferring fatty acids to membranes, and that the efficiency of transfer is dependent on the surface charge of the vesicles.<p></p>
Conclusions/Significance:
We show that EgAgB apolipoproteins can oligomerize in the absence of lipids, and can bind and transfer fatty acids to phospholipid membranes. Since imported fatty acids are essential for Echinococcus granulosus, these findings provide a mechanism whereby EgAgB could engage in lipid acquisition and/or transport between parasite tissues. These results may therefore indicate vulnerabilities open to targeting by new types of drugs for hydatidosis therapy.<p></p>
Searching for "monogenic diabetes" in dogs using a candidate gene approach
BACKGROUND: Canine diabetes is a common endocrine disorder with an estimated breed-related prevalence ranging from 0.005% to 1.5% in pet dogs. Increased prevalence in some breeds suggests that diabetes in dogs is influenced by genetic factors and similarities between canine and human diabetes phenotypes suggest that the same genes might be associated with disease susceptibility in both species. Between 1-5% of human diabetes cases result from mutations in a single gene, including maturity onset diabetes of the adult (MODY) and neonatal diabetes mellitus (NDM). It is not clear whether monogenic forms of diabetes exist within some dog breeds. Identification of forms of canine monogenic diabetes could help to resolve the heterogeneity of the condition and lead to development of breed-specific genetic tests for diabetes susceptibility. RESULTS: Seventeen dog breeds were screened for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in eighteen genes that have been associated with human MODY/NDM. Six SNP associations were found from five genes, with one gene (ZFP57) being associated in two different breeds. CONCLUSIONS: Some of the genes that have been associated with susceptibility to MODY and NDM in humans appear to also be associated with canine diabetes, although the limited number of associations identified in this study indicates canine diabetes is a heterogeneous condition and is most likely to be a polygenic trait in most dog breeds. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/2052-6687-1-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users
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