Mission to a comet - Preliminary scientific objectives and experiments for use in advanced mission studies

Scientific objectives and experiments for comet missio

Porcine Cysticercosis in Southeast Uganda: Seroprevalence in Kamuli and Kaliro Districts

The recent recognition of neurocysticercosis as a major cause of epilepsy in Uganda and changes in pig demography have lead to a need to better understand the basic epidemiology of Taenia solium infections in pigs and humans. Human exposure is a function of the size of the animal reservoir of this zoonosis. This is the first field survey for porcine cysticercosis to investigate the prevalence of antigen-positive pigs across an entire rural district of south-east Uganda. In our field surveys, 8.6% of 480 pigs screened were seropositive for the parasite by B158/B60 Ag-ELISA. In addition, of the 528 homesteads surveyed 138 (26%) did not have pit latrines indicating a high probability of pigs having access to human faeces and thus T. solium eggs. This study thus indicates the need for better data on this neglected zoonotic disease in Uganda, with a particular emphasis on the risk factors for infection in both pigs and humans. In this regard, further surveys of pigs, seroprevalence surveys in humans and an understanding of cysticercosis-related epilepsy are required, together with risk-factor studies for human and porcine infections

Oxidized flavors in strawberry ice cream

At the time this project was initiated only a small amount of material had been published concerning this defect and even that was subject to considerable controversy. That the defect under consideration is important has been emphasized by other workers and needs no reiteration here. It was the opinion of the authors that the study should be made with ice cream manufactured in a commercial manner and from commercial products. This was done wherever possible. The objectives of the project were to attempt to determine which single factor or group of the following possible factors-oxidases in the fruit, copper and iron in the mix, strawberries and types of added solids - was responsible for the occurrence of the defect. It was likewise considered advisable to see whether or not such changes as occur in the fat, if the defect were a fat oxidation, were sufficient to cause detectable variations in the iodine, acetyl and Reichert- Meissl numbers of the fat of the ice cream

The Relationship of Implicit Theories to Elementary Teachers’ Patterns of Engagement in a Mathematics-Focused Professional Development Setting

As elementary teachers aim to deepen their mathematical understandings, they engage in a relearning process that involves not only revisiting but also reconstructing their knowledge. To do so, meaningful engagement in immersion and practice-based experiences is required. This exploratory case study investigated the engagement patterns of two elementary teachers with varying implicit beliefs as they participated in a professional development that focused on relearning mathematics. Data were collected on the two participants in the form of video narratives, observation protocols, and interviews. Attention was given to their patterns of engagement in collaborative group settings as the participants moved through different phases of the professional development lesson. Results indicated that the engagement patterns of the two participants closely aligned with learning behaviors described in the implicit beliefs theory. In this way, the results suggested an extension of the implicit theories model to the relearning context. Additional implications and future questions are provided

Novel translocation responses of cytosolic phospholipase A2α fluorescent proteins

AbstractCytosolic phospholipase A2 (cPLA2)α responds to the rise in cytosolic Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) attending cell stimulation by moving to intracellular membranes, releasing arachidonic acid (AA) from these membranes, and thereby initiating the synthesis of various lipid mediators. Under some conditions, however, cPLA2α translocation occurs without any corresponding changes in [Ca2+]i. The signal for such responses has not been identified. Using confocal microscopy to track fluorescent proteins fused to cPLA2α or cPLA2α's C2 domain, we find that AA mimics Ca2+ ionophores in stimulating cPLA2α translocations to the perinuclear ER and to a novel site, the lipid body. Unlike the ionophores, AA acted independently of [Ca2+]i rises and did not translocate the proteins to the Golgi. AA's action did not involve its metabolism to eicosanoids or acylation into cellular lipids. Receptor agonists also stimulated translocations targeting lipid bodies. We propose that AA is a signal for Ca2+-independent cPLA2α translocation and that lipid bodies are common targets of cPLA2α and contributors to stimulus-induced lipid mediator synthesis

Sensitivity of selected organ dissection to diagnose Taenia solium cysticercosis in pigs from endemic areas

Taenia solium, also known as the pork tapeworm, is a neglected zoonotic parasite which is endemic in many developing countries, including Zambia. The tapeworm causes two disease conditions in humans: (1) taeniosis, which is the intestinal tapeworm infection, obtained after consumtion of raw/undercooked infected pork; and (2) cysticercosis, which is the metacestode larval stage infection, obtained after ingestion of tapeworm eggs. A human tapeworm carrier can excrete high numbers of eggs with the stool (100 000 eggs per day) and is thus an important source of environmental contamination. The transmission of cysticercosis is thus enhanced with poor sanitation and the lack of clean drinking water. After ingestion of the eggs, oncospheres hatch in the intestine and disseminate to several body tissues, including the central nervous system. Infection of the central nervous system with cysticerci is called neurocysticercosis, which is a major cause of acquired epilepsy worldwide

Hospital control and multidrug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis in female patients, Lima, Peru.

We examined the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB), rate of multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB, and characteristics of TB on a female general medicine ward in Peru. Of 250 patients, 40 (16%) were positive by sputum culture and 27 (11%) by smear, and 8 (3%) had MDRTB. Thirteen (33%) of 40 culture-positive patients had not been suspected of having TB on admission. Six (46%) of 13 patients whose TB was unsuspected on admission had MDRTB, compared with 2 (7%) of 27 suspected cases (p = 0.009). Five (63%) of 8 MDRTB patients were smear positive and therefore highly infective. In developing countries, hospital control, a simple method of reducing the spread of MDRTB, is neglected