Executive Power and Regional Climate Change Agreements

This Article explores the potential for such agreements to address climate change on a regional level by analyzing the parallels between the agreements, the nature and limits of the executive power used to create them, and the scope of enforcement available under them. Section II briefly examines the present state of climate warming and its attendant impacts, while Section III highlights the relative failure of current national and international approaches to mitigating climate change. Section IV focuses on the recent rise of environmental regional agreements in the United States, specifically those agreements to which the State of New York has been integral. Section V then explores how the use of executive authority by the Governor of New York has engendered limited success—primarily through the greenhouse gas reductions committed to and realized—in these agreements. The Article concludes by considering the way these achievements can serve as examples for the creation of a federal or, ideally, international agreement to combat climate change

Growth and survival of salmonella and campylobacter in chicken nuggets as a function of temperature

The effect of freezing, refrigeration, and temperature abuse on growth and survival of Salmonella and Campylobacter in chicken nuggets was studied. Storage temperature effects on aerobic plate counts, psychrotrophic plate counts and coliforms were also observed. Salmonella and Campylobacter were able to survive freezing at -18C over a 6 week storage period, however, significant decreases (P\u3c0.05) were observed for all strains, especially S. infantis. Enrichment techniques aided in recovering cells that otherwise would have gone undetected. Storage at 4C for 6 days was not as detrimental to Salmonella and Campylobacter as was -18C. Survival was observed for both pathogens. Samples inoculated with 1 x 105 salmonellae/g showed better survival than did 3 samples inoculated with 1 x 103 or 1 x 10 salmonellae/g. Campylobacter survival was advantageous at 4C. Survival of Salmonella and Campylobacter was also observed at 21C for 24 hours. Growth of Salmonella was observed in nuggets inoculated with 1 x 10 salmonellae/g (especially S. blockley). Aerobic plate counts increased significantly (P\u3e0.05) when nuggets were stored at 21C for 24 hours. It was concluded that storage of chicken nuggets at -18C and 4C offered little risk to humans from the pathogens Salmonella and Campylobacter. It is advised that chicken nuggets stored at 21C for an extended period of time not be consumed due to the possibility that if a pathogen were present, that it may grow if conditions are favorable

EPA Regulation of Mining Wastes Under RCRA and CERCLA

9 pages

EPA Regulation of Mining Wastes Under RCRA and CERCLA

9 pages

Early activation of peripheral monocytes with hallmarks of M1 and M2 monocytic cells in excessive alcohol drinkers: a pilot study

Excessive drinking can lead to the development of immune dysfunction. Our aim is to investigate the effect of alcohol on immune activation from circulating peripheral blood monocytes in excessive drinkers (EDs). Twenty-two EDs and healthy controls were enrolled. Time line follow-back was used to quantify the amount of alcohol consumed in the past 30 days before enrollment. Peripheral blood-derived CD14+ monocytes were isolated for gene expression analyses. Serum interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 and lipopolysaccharides (LPS) were also measured. We found that serum LPS concentrations were significantly higher in EDs compared with controls (P<0.05). While no differences in the levels of circulating IL-6 and IL-10 were observed, the relative levels of gene transcripts (RQ) for Il6 (an M1-polarizing cytokine) and Il10 (an M2-polarizing cytokine) were significantly higher in peripheral blood-derived monocytes from EDs compared with controls (Il6: P<0.01. Il10: P<0.05). EDs exhibit early immune activation of peripheral blood monocyte mRNA transcripts, notably Il6 and Il10 Future studies are needed to explore the clinical implications of our findings and determine whether the levels of Il6 and Il10 mRNA expression can be used to identify those with excessive drinking and to monitor for alcohol abstinence

High-Risk Human Papillomavirus in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

High-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV)-driven carcinogenesis is the predominant etiologic factor in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). Most HPV-positive OPSCCs respond well to therapy, prompting interest in reducing treatment intensities, but approximately 20% fail to respond to therapy and recur for unknown reasons. The prognostic value of HPV in OPSCC warrants a universal standard for hrHPV assessment, and evaluation of factors that may differentiate responsive from non-responsive tumors is needed to determine the optimal treatment for patients. We compared hrHPV detection by PCR-MassArray, p16INK4a immunohistochemistry, and HPV in situ hybridization in oropharynx, nasopharynx, and oral cavity tumors to determine the optimal assessment of hrHPV. HPV copy number, viral oncogene expression, integration sites, and integration transcripts were examined in seven HPV-positive HNSCC cell lines from patients who progressed, plus five responsive and five recurrent OPSCC tumors. Using combined PCR-MA with L1 consensus PCR and sequencing for resolving discordant results, we found PCR-MA to have the greatest sensitivity and specificity of the methods evaluated, making it optimal for HPV detection in combination with p16 for correlative viral activity. Of 338 tumors, 183/212 (86%) of oropharynx, 9/18 (50%) of nasopharynx and 28/108 (26%) of oral cavity tumors were positive for hrHPV. All of the HPV-positive cell lines and tumors evaluated expressed HPV E6 and E7 oncogenes and exhibited alternate splicing, indicating active viral oncogenesis. Each of the HPV-positive cell lines, which came from non-responsive outlier tumors, and the five recurrent tumors exhibited HPV integration into cancer–associated cellular genes. Each of the responsive tumors demonstrated viral integration into non-genic chromosome regions, with only one integration into a cancer-related gene. Integration transcript analysis revealed HPV-cellular fusion transcripts, intact cellular transcripts, and several genomic rearrangements, indicating genomic instability in the cell. We propose that viral integration is an early carcinogenic event, associated with disruption of the E1/E2 region and alternate E6*I transcription, leading to increased viral oncogene expression as the carcinogenic driver in responsive tumors. Further, we hypothesize that HPV integration into cellular genes may result in secondary alterations in cellular gene expression or dysfunction, resulting in a more aggressive malignant phenotype resistant to current therapy.PHDCancer BiologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/102428/1/hwalline_1.pd

The development of an index for the proximal upper extremity

Analysis techniques specific to the proximal upper extremity have historically been overlooked in the field of ergonomics. This research effort provides a methodology that will allow the ergonomics practitioner to analyze a job and predict whether or not that job exposes workers to increased risk of proximal upper extremity disorders. Literature from the fields of physiology, biomechanics, and epidemiology was assimilated in order to understand the theories of pathogenesis of disorders in the rotator cuff and to identify the risk factors associated with proximal upper extremity disorders. A retrospective epidemiological study was conducted to identify job task variables that may contribute to the occurrence of proximal upper extremity disorders. Two proximal upper extremity constructs were proposed: a fatigue-based model and a compressive load-based model. The constructs incorporated lessons learned from the literature and results from the epidemiological study. Validation of the models was performed using data from the epidemiological study. It was determined that the fatigue-based model was a good predictor of proximal upper extremity disorders

Early Activation of Peripheral Monocytes with Hallmarks of M1 and M2 Monocytic Cells in Excessive Alcohol Drinkers: A Pilot Study

Excessive drinking can lead to the development of immune dysfunction. Our aim is to investigate the effect of alcohol on immune activation from circulating peripheral blood monocytes in excessive drinkers (EDs). Twenty-two EDs and healthy controls were enrolled. Time line follow-back was used to quantify the amount of alcohol consumed in the past 30 days before enrollment. Peripheral blood-derived CD14+ monocytes were isolated for gene expression analyses. Serum interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 and lipopolysaccharides (LPS) were also measured. We found that serum LPS concentrations were significantly higher in EDs compared with controls (P&lt;0.05). While no differences in the levels of circulating IL-6 and IL-10 were observed, the relative levels of gene transcripts (RQ) for Il6 (an M1-polarizing cytokine) and Il10 (an M2-polarizing cytokine) were significantly higher in peripheral blood-derived monocytes from EDs compared with controls (Il6: P&lt;0.01. Il10: P&lt;0.05). EDs exhibit early immune activation of peripheral blood monocyte mRNA transcripts, notably Il6 and Il10. Future studies are needed to explore the clinical implications of our findings and determine whether the levels of Il6 and Il10 mRNA expression can be used to identify those with excessive drinking and to monitor for alcohol abstinence

DNA concentration from self samples for HPV testing

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146640/1/ijc31666_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146640/2/ijc31666.pd

Efficacy of a gas permeable contact lens to induce peripheral myopic defocus

Purpose. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the potential of a novel custom-designed rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lens to modify the relative peripheral refractive error in a sample of myopic patients. Methods. Fifty-two right eyes of 52 myopic patients (mean [TSD] age, 21 [T2] years) with spherical refractive errors ranging from j0.75 to j8.00 diopters (D) and refractive astigmatism of 1.00 D or less were fitted with a novel experimental RGP (ExpRGP) lens designed to create myopic defocus in the peripheral retina. A standard RGP (StdRGP) lens was used as a control in the same eye. The relative peripheral refractive error was measured without the lens and with each of two lenses (StdRGP and ExpRGP) using an open-field autorefractometer from 30 degrees nasal to 30 degrees temporal, in 5-degree steps. The effectiveness of the lens design was evaluated as the amount of relative peripheral refractive error difference induced by the ExpRGP compared with no lens and with StdRGP conditions at 30 degrees in the nasal and temporal (averaged) peripheral visual fields. Results. Experimental RGP lens induced a significant change in relative peripheral refractive error compared with the nolens condition (baseline), beyond the 10 degrees of eccentricity to the nasal and temporal side of the visual field (p G 0.05). The maximum effect was achieved at 30 degrees. Wearing the ExpRGP lens, 60% of the eyes had peripheral myopia exceeding j1.00 D, whereas none of the eyes presented with this feature at baseline. There was no significant correlation (r = 0.04; p = 0.756) between the degree of myopia induced at 30 degrees of eccentricity of the visual field with the ExpRGP lens and the baseline refractive error. Conclusions. Custom-designed RGP contact lenses can generate a significant degree of relative peripheral myopia in myopic patients regardless of their baselin spherical equivalent refractive error.Jaume Paune´ has proprietary and financial interests in the manufacturing and distribution of lenses evaluated in this study. The remaining authors declare that they do not have any proprietary or financial interest in any of the materials mentioned in this article. This work was partially funded by Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal, Projects: PTDC/SAU-BEB/ 098392/2008 and PTDC/SAU-BEB/098391/200