Oxidative Stress and Longevity in Okinawa: An Investigation of Blood Lipid Peroxidation and Tocopherol in Okinawan Centenarians

Background. The Free Radical Theory of Aging mechanistically links oxidative stress to aging. Okinawa has among the world's longest-lived populations but oxidative stress in this population has not been well characterized. Methods. We compared plasma lipid peroxide (LPO) and vitamin E—plasma and intracellular tocopherol levels (total α, β, and γ), in centenarians with younger controls. Results. Both LPO and vitamin E tocopherols were lower in centenarians, with the exception of intracellular β-tocopherol, which was significantly higher in centenarians versus younger controls. There were no significant differences between age groups for tocopherol: cholesterol and tocopherol: LPO ratios. Correlations were found between α-Tocopherol and LPO in septuagenarians but not in centenarians. Conclusions. The low plasma level of LPO in Okinawan centenarians, compared to younger controls, argues for protection against oxidative stress in the centenarian population and is consistent with the predictions of the Free Radical Theory of Aging. However, the present work does not strongly support a role for vitamin E in this phenomenon. The role of intracellular β-tocopherol deserves additional study. More research is needed on the contribution of oxidative stress and antioxidants to human longevity

Multifidelity approaches for optimization under uncertainty

It is important to design robust and reliable systems by accounting for uncertainty and variability in the design process. However, performing optimization in this setting can be computationally expensive, requiring many evaluations of the numerical model to compute statistics of the system performance at every optimization iteration. This paper proposes a multifidelity approach to optimization under uncertainty that makes use of inexpensive, low-fidelity models to provide approximate information about the expensive, high-fidelity model. The multifidelity estimator is developed based on the control variate method to reduce the computational cost of achieving a specified mean square error in the statistic estimate. The method optimally allocates the computational load between the two models based on their relative evaluation cost and the strength of the correlation between them. This paper also develops an information reuse estimator that exploits the autocorrelation structure of the high-fidelity model in the design space to reduce the cost of repeatedly estimating statistics during the course of optimization. Finally, a combined estimator incorporates the features of both the multifidelity estimator and the information reuse estimator. The methods demonstrate 90% computational savings in an acoustic horn robust optimization example and practical design turnaround time in a robust wing optimization problem.United States. Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (Uncertainty Quantification Grant FA9550-09-0613

The principal soil areas of Iowa

All the soils of Iowa without exception are, in respect to their origin, referable to one or the other of four easily distinguishable classes, which, are to be found in plainly marked areas. These are: 1. Geest, or soils resulting from the secular decay of indurated rocks. 2. Soils Of Fluviatile Origin, or stream made soils (alluvium). 3. Soils Of Aeolian Origin, or wind made soils (loess). 4. Soils Of Glacial Origin, or ice made soils (till)

The principal soil areas of Iowa

All the soils of Iowa without exception are, in respect to their origin, referable to one or the other of four easily distinguishable classes, which, are to be found in plainly marked areas. These are: 1. Geest, or soils resulting from the secular decay of indurated rocks. 2. Soils Of Fluviatile Origin, or stream made soils (alluvium). 3. Soils Of Aeolian Origin, or wind made soils (loess). 4. Soils Of Glacial Origin, or ice made soils (till)

In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation of Novel Ciprofloxacin-Releasing Silicone Hydrogel Contact Lenses

Hui, A., Willcox, M., & Jones, L. (2014). In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation of Novel Ciprofloxacin-Releasing Silicone Hydrogel Contact Lenses. Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science, 55(8), 4896. https://doi.org/10.1167/iovs.14-14855Purpose.: The purpose of this study was to evaluate ciprofloxacin-releasing silicone hydrogel contact lens materials in vitro and in vivo for the treatment of microbial keratitis. Methods.: Model silicone hydrogel contact lens materials were manufactured using a molecular imprinting technique to modify ciprofloxacin release kinetics. Various contact lens properties, including light transmission and surface wettability, were determined, and the in vitro ciprofloxacin release kinetics elucidated using fluorescence spectrophotometry. The materials then were evaluated for their ability to inhibit Pseudomonas aeruginosa growth in vitro and in an in vivo rabbit model of microbial keratitis. Results.: Synthesized lenses had similar material properties to commercial contact lens materials. There was a decrease in light transmission in the shorter wavelengths due to incorporation of the antibiotic, but over 80% light transmission between 400 and 700 nm. Modified materials released for more than 8 hours, significantly longer than unmodified controls (P 0.05), which is significantly less than corneas treated with unmodified control lenses or those that received no treatment at all (P < 0.05). Conclusions.: These novel contact lenses designed for the extended release of ciprofloxacin may be beneficial to supplement or augment future treatments of sight-threatening microbial keratitis.Supported by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)20/20 Network for the Development of Advanced Ophthalmic Materialsand by an NSERC Alexander Graham Bell Doctoral Scholarshipthe Ezell Fellowship from the American Optometric Foundationand the Endeavour Research Grant from the Australian Government (AH)

Selectivity of Wohl-Ziegler Brominations of Cyclohexene and trans-2-Hexene

https://openriver.winona.edu/urc2018/1131/thumbnail.jp