A preliminary assessment on use of biochar as a soil additive for reducing the soil-to-plant update of cesium isotopes in radioactively contaminated environments

peer-reviewedA series of Kd tracer batch experiments were conducted to assess the absorptive-desorption properties of Biochar as a potential agent to selectively sequester labile soil Cs or otherwise help reduce the uptake of Cs isotopes into plants. A parallel experiment was conducted for strontium. Fine-grained fractionated Woodlands tree Biochar was found to have a relatively high affinity for Cs ions (Kd > 100) in comparison with untreated coral soil (Kd < 10) collected from the Marshall Islands. The Biochar material also contains an abundance of K (and Mg). These findings support a hypothesis that the addition of Biochar as a soil amendment may provide a simple yet effective method for reducing the soil-to-plant transfer of Cs isotopes in contaminated environments

CD8+ T cells from a novel T cell receptor transgenic mouse induce liver-stage immunity that can be boosted by blood-stage infection in rodent malaria

To follow the fate of CD8+ T cells responsive to Plasmodium berghei ANKA (PbA) infection, we generated an MHC I-restricted TCR transgenic mouse line against this pathogen. T cells from this line, termed PbT-I T cells, were able to respond to blood-stage infection by PbA and two other rodent malaria species, P. yoelii XNL and P. chabaudi AS. These PbT-I T cells were also able to respond to sporozoites and to protect mice from liver-stage infection. Examination of the requirements for priming after intravenous administration of irradiated sporozoites, an effective vaccination approach, showed that the spleen rather than the liver was the main site of priming and that responses depended on CD8&alpha;+ dendritic cells. Importantly, sequential exposure to irradiated sporozoites followed two days later by blood-stage infection led to augmented PbT-I T cell expansion. These findings indicate that PbT-I T cells are a highly versatile tool for studying multiple stages and species of rodent malaria and suggest that cross-stage reactive CD8+ T cells may be utilized in liver-stage vaccine design to enable boosting by blood-stage infections

Lawson criterion for ignition exceeded in an inertial fusion experiment

For more than half a century, researchers around the world have been engaged in attempts to achieve fusion ignition as a proof of principle of various fusion concepts. Following the Lawson criterion, an ignited plasma is one where the fusion heating power is high enough to overcome all the physical processes that cool the fusion plasma, creating a positive thermodynamic feedback loop with rapidly increasing temperature. In inertially confined fusion, ignition is a state where the fusion plasma can begin "burn propagation" into surrounding cold fuel, enabling the possibility of high energy gain. While "scientific breakeven" (i.e., unity target gain) has not yet been achieved (here target gain is 0.72, 1.37 MJ of fusion for 1.92 MJ of laser energy), this Letter reports the first controlled fusion experiment, using laser indirect drive, on the National Ignition Facility to produce capsule gain (here 5.8) and reach ignition by nine different formulations of the Lawson criterion

Transcriptional profile of breast muscle in heat stressed layers is similar to that of broiler chickens at control temperature

Abstract Background In recent years, the commercial importance of changes in muscle function of broiler chickens and of the corresponding effects on meat quality has increased. Furthermore, broilers are more sensitive to heat stress during transport and at high ambient temperatures than smaller egg-laying chickens. We hypothesised that heat stress would amplify muscle damage and expression of genes that are involved in such changes and, thus, lead to the identification of pathways and networks associated with broiler muscle and meat quality traits. Broiler and layer chickens were exposed to control or high ambient temperatures to characterise differences in gene expression between the two genotypes and the two environments. Results Whole-genome expression studies in breast muscles of broiler and layer chickens were conducted before and after heat stress; 2213 differentially-expressed genes were detected based on a significant (P < 0.05) genotype × treatment interaction. This gene set was analysed with the BioLayout Express3D and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis software and relevant biological pathways and networks were identified. Genes involved in functions related to inflammatory reactions, cell death, oxidative stress and tissue damage were upregulated in control broilers compared with control and heat-stressed layers. Expression of these genes was further increased in heat-stressed broilers. Conclusions Differences in gene expression between broiler and layer chickens under control and heat stress conditions suggest that damage of breast muscles in broilers at normal ambient temperatures is similar to that in heat-stressed layers and is amplified when broilers are exposed to heat stress. The patterns of gene expression of the two genotypes under heat stress were almost the polar opposite of each other, which is consistent with the conclusion that broiler chickens were not able to cope with heat stress by dissipating their body heat. The differentially expressed gene networks and pathways were consistent with the pathological changes that are observed in the breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers

An Educational Cartoon Accelerates Amblyopia Therapy and Improves Compliance, Especially among Children of Immigrants

Purpose: We showed previously that an educational cartoon that explains without words why amblyopic children should wear their eye patch improves compliance, especially in children of immigrant parents who speak Dutch poorly. We now implemented this cartoon in clinics in low socioeconomic status (SES) areas with a large proportion of immigrants and clinics elsewhere in the Netherlands. Design: Clinical, prospective, nonrandomized, preimplementation, and postimplementation study. Participants: Amblyopic children aged 3 to 6 years who started occlusion therapy. Methods: Preimplementation, children received standard orthoptic care. Postimplementation, children starting occlusion therapy received the cartoon in addition. At implementation, treating orthoptists followed a course on compliance. In low SES areas, compliance was measured electronically during 1 week. Main Outcome Measures: The clinical effects of the cartoon-electronically measured compliance, outpatient attendance rate, and speed of reduction in interocular-acuity difference (SRIAD)-averaged over 15 months of observation. Results: In low SES areas, 114 children were included preimplementation versus 65 children postimplementation; elsewhere in the Netherlands, 335 versus 249 children were included. In low SES areas, mean electronically measured compliance was 52.0% preimplementation versus 62.3% postimplementation (P=0.146); 41.8% versus 21.6% (P=0.043) of children occluded less than 30% of prescribed occlusion time. Attendance rates in low SES areas were 60.3% preimplementation versus 76.0% postimplementation (P Conclusions: After implementation of the cartoon, electronically measured compliance improved, attendance improved, acuity increased more rapidly, and treatment was shorter. This may be due, in part, to additional measures such as the course on compliance. However, that these advantages were especially pronounced in children in low SES areas with a large proportion of immigrants who spoke Dutch poorly supports its use in such areas. Financial Disclosure(s): The author(s) have no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article. Ophthalmology 2012;119:2393-2401 (C) 2012 by the American Academy of Ophthalmology