Economic Attainment By Religion

Religion is an important determinant of the socioeconomic behavior of individuals. This thesis is an attempt to describe how various religious denominations in the United States have differing levels of education, different patterns in college degree attainment, and different household incomes even when certain demographic factors are controlled. This thesis describes differences in economic outcomes among religions and uses regression models of college attainment and average years of education with demographic controls including race, gender, region, and parents\u27 educational attainment from the early 1980s through 2012. The results suggest that differences in economic attainment between American religious denominations in terms of income and education are significant and stable

Molekylære studier av globingener hos Atlantisk torsk (Gadus morhua) – funksjonelle effekter av hemoglobin-polymorfier og deres geografiske utbredelse

The phenotypic variation among Atlantic cod hemoglobins and their physiological properties has been of great interest to researchers for several decades, and many cod stocks have been “genotyped” according to the HbI nomenclature established by Knud Sick in 1961, stating that the HbI-1 and HbI-2 variants are related to warm and cold waters, respectively. Paper I unambiguously connects the HbI phenotypes to the two haplotypic variants Met55-Lys62 and Val55-Ala62 of the polymorphic β1-globin gene. From three dimensional (3D) modeling of tetrameric α1β1α1β1 hemoglobin, we proposed that the polymorphisms at β1-55 and β1-62 are related to variable O2 affinity and variation in temperature sensitivity, respectively. To haplotype these loci efficiently, a High Resolution Melting (HRM) assay was developed (Paper IV). Multiple variants, including recombinations between the β1-55 and β1-62 loci, were identified in trans-Atlantic populations. The intergenic promoter of the head-to-head organized α1-β1 genes were shown to display an indel polymorphism of 73 bp strongly linked to the β1-55 and β1-62 polymorphisms (Paper III). Comparison of transcriptional activity revealed that the longer β1-Val55-Ala62- linked promoter, mostly found in colder waters, generated twice the activity of the short one at temperatures of 15 and 20 °C. The increased activity at elevated temperatures is suggested to be a compensatory mechanism to counterbalance the low O2 affinity at high temperatures of the β1-Val55-Ala62 haplotype by increasing the Hb-β1 concentration in erythrocytes. Studies of the draft genome sequence of Atlantic cod showed that it harbors two unlinked globin clusters which host β5-α1-β1-α4 and β3-β4-α2-α3-β2, respectively (Paper II). Expression analyses confirmed that several of the genes are mainly expressed during embryo development, putatively serving immunological functions, whilst α1, α2, β1 and β2 contributed polypeptides constituting the adult hemoglobins. The clusters are flanked by genes conserved in other genome-sequenced teleosts, and some flanking genes are also found in extant urochordate and cephalochordate species, linked or not to globins, leading to speculations about the origin of the ancestral vertebrate globin cluster.Fenotypisk variasjon mellom hemoglobin (Hb) varianter hos Atlantisk torsk og deres fysiologiske egenskaper, har vært av stor interesse for mange forskere i flere tiår, og mange torskestammer er ”genotypet” i henhold til HbI nomenklaturen som ble etablert av Knud Sick i 1961, og som stadfester at HbI-1 og HbI-2 variantene henholdsvis er assosiert med varmt og kaldt vann. Artikkel I relaterer HbI fenotypene direkte til de to haplotypene Met55Val og Lys62Ala i det polymorfe β1-globingenet. Basert på tredimensjonal (3D) modellering av hemoglobin α1β1α1β1 tetramerer foreslo vi at polymorfiene ved β1-55 og β1-62 er forbundet med henholdsvis økt O2 affinitet og redusert temperatursensitivitet. For å kunne genotype disse to loci effektivt, ble det utviklet et ”High Resolution Melting” (HRM) assay (Artikkel IV). Multiple varianter, inkludert rekombinanter mellom β1-55 og β1-62, ble avdekket i trans-Atlantiske populasjoner. Det ble identifisert en 73 bp stor indel polymorfi i den intergeniske promoteren til de hode-mot- hode (5’-5’) organiserte α1-β1 genene, som er sterkt koblet til β1-55 og β1-62 polymorfiene (Artikkel III). Sammenligning av transkripsjonsaktiviteten viste at den lange promotoren, assosiert til β1-Val55-Ala62 allelet og kalde omgivelser, hadde mer enn dobbelt sa høy aktivitet som den korte ved temperaturer på 15 and 20 °C. Den økte aktiviteten ved høye temperaturer antas å kunne være mekanisme som utligner og kompenserer for at β1-Val55-Ala62 allelet har dårlig O2 affinitet ved høye temperaturer, ved å øke konsentrasjonen av Hb-β1 i erytrocyttene. Studier av foreløpig genomsekvens fra Atlantisk torsk viste at genomet har to ikke-koblede globin-clustere som henholdsvis inneholder β5-α1-β1-α4 og β3-β4-α2-α3-β2 (Artikkel II). Ekspresjonsanalyser viste at flere av globinene hovedsakelig uttrykkes under embryogenesen kanskje som et bidrag til immunforsvaret, mens α1, α2, β1 og β2 genene bidro med globin peptider til hemoglobin hos voksen fisk. Clusterne er flankert av gener som er konservert i andre genomsekvenserte teleoster, og noen flankerende gener er også påvist i nålevende urochordat- og cephalochordatarter, både koblet og ikke koblet til globiner, som legger grunnlag for spekulasjoner omkring dannelsen av det opprinnelige vertebrat globin clusteret

Cryopreservation of winter-dormant apple: III Bud water status and survival after cooling to -30°c and during recovery from cryopreservation

Abstract In a continuing study to improve the efficiency of dormant bud cryopreservation for tissues hardened in maritime climates, the water status of dormant buds was monitored between -4°C and recovery from liquid nitrogen (LN). Measurement of water content, simple thermal analysis and differential scanning calorimetry were employed. Buds did not lose water during cooling to, or holding at -30°C indicating that cryodehydration and/or other adaptive responses contributed during this essential step. A bud exotherm that was an artefact of warming was detected due to necessary handling at -4°C before cooling to -30°C. There were no significant differences between cultivars with respect to water status at -30°C or immediately upon rewarming from LN despite significant differences in post-LN survival. Buds rehydrated in 5 days, but up to 14 days may be needed for recovery for some cultivars. In some instances buds could be grafted without rehydration, taking up water across the early graft union

Allusions to the royal family in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer

Since Chaucer was interested in the people from all walks of life, my study is confined to the subject of the royal family; the characters discussed within were either members of the royal family or directly connected to them by marrage or parenthood

A heterologous expression system for bovine lens transmembrane main intrinsic protein (MIP) in Nicotiana tabacum plants

We have developed a heterologous expression system for transmembrane lens main intrinsic protein (MIP) in Nicotiana tabacum plant tissue. A native bovine MIP26 amplicon was subcloned into an expression cassette under the control of a constitutive Cauliflower Mosaic Virus promoter, also containing a neomycin phosphotransferase operon. This cassette was transformed into Agrobacterium tumefaciens by triparental mating and used to infect plant tissue grown in culture. Recombinant plants were selected by their ability to grow and root on kanamycin-containing media. The presence of MIP in the plant tissues was confirmed by PCR, RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry. A number of benefits of this system for the study of MIP will be discussed, and also its application as a tool for the study of heterologously expressed proteins in general

Molecular evidence of Cacao swollen shoot virus acquisition and retention by Planococcus citri (Risso) and Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni-Tozzetti) and Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret) Mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae)

Cacao swollen shoot virus (CSSV) remains a significant viral pathogen endemic in West African cacao-growing countries. Eradication of affected trees (complete removal) and resistance breeding in existing cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) germplasm have not yielded the expected results in terms of controlling the spread of CSSV. CSSV is reported to be vectored by at least 16 species of mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), but there have been no molecular evidences to validate these reports. Inconsistent reports exit on CSSV transmission which were based on visual assessments of CSSV infection which are highly subjective, especially on asymptomatic cacao. The validation of the transmission efficiency of CSSV by mealybugs are arguable. In this study, the presence of CSSV in three mealybug species, Planococcus citri (Risso), Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni Tozzetti) and Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret), was monitored via PCR after a 72-h virus acquisition access period (AAP) on symptomatic T. cacao (var. Amelonado) seedlings ‘infected’ with New Juaben, a severe strain of CSSV. Solanum tuberosum sprouts were then fed to the mealybugs over a sixday period. Sequenced PCR products of the destructively sampled and CSSV-screened individual mealybug species provided a molecular evidence of CSSV acquisition. qPCR results gave another evidence that CSSV retention is highly variable between and within mealybug species. This is the first molecular evidence highlighting a non-West African mealybug species, Ps. viburni, as a capable CSSV vector. Apparently, these results could validate the efficacy of non-malvaceous species as barrier crops and in screening for resistance to CSSV vectors in T. cacao

Electropenetrography application and molecular-based virus detection in mealybug (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) vectors of Cacao swollen shoot virus on Theobroma cacao L.

© 2018 Cacao swollen shoot virus (CSSV) is a peril exclusive to the West African cacao-growing countries; causing the Cacao swollen shoot virus disease. This study was set out (1) to analyse the feeding behaviour of two West African and one non-West African mealybug species, Planococcus citri (Risso) and Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni Tozzetti) and Ps. viburni (Signoret) respectively on CSSV-free cacao. and (2) to provide molecular-based information on the ability of these mealybugs to acquire and transmit the ‘New Juaben’ CSSV strain from CSSV-infected cacao. Electrical penetration graph (EPG) analysis established that these three mealybug species performed both extracellular (C, E1e, F, G and Np waveforms) and intracellular (E1 and E2 waveforms) feeding activities on cacao which were typical of stylet-possessing, phloem-feeding, virus transmitting hemipterans. Waveform F reported in this study is the first for Pl. citri, Ps. longispinus and Ps. viburni feeding on cacao. The competitive feeding efficiency of Ps. viburni on cacao highlights its potential as a ‘new’ vector of CSSV. PCR-based results show that Pl. citri, Ps. longispinus and Ps. viburni can acquire CSSV after a 72-h access acquisition period (AAP). DNA sequences of CSSV were detected in leaf tissues of the test plants after a 30-day post 72-h inoculation access period (IAP) by the viruliferous mealybug individuals. It is the first report, with molecular evidence, of T. cacao serving as an acceptable host to Ps. viburni