Kiwi Forego Vision in the Guidance of Their Nocturnal Activities

BACKGROUND: In vision, there is a trade-off between sensitivity and resolution, and any eye which maximises information gain at low light levels needs to be large. This imposes exacting constraints upon vision in nocturnal flying birds. Eyes are essentially heavy, fluid-filled chambers, and in flying birds their increased size is countered by selection for both reduced body mass and the distribution of mass towards the body core. Freed from these mass constraints, it would be predicted that in flightless birds nocturnality should favour the evolution of large eyes and reliance upon visual cues for the guidance of activity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We show that in Kiwi (Apterygidae), flightlessness and nocturnality have, in fact, resulted in the opposite outcome. Kiwi show minimal reliance upon vision indicated by eye structure, visual field topography, and brain structures, and increased reliance upon tactile and olfactory information. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This lack of reliance upon vision and increased reliance upon tactile and olfactory information in Kiwi is markedly similar to the situation in nocturnal mammals that exploit the forest floor. That Kiwi and mammals evolved to exploit these habitats quite independently provides evidence for convergent evolution in their sensory capacities that are tuned to a common set of perceptual challenges found in forest floor habitats at night and which cannot be met by the vertebrate visual system. We propose that the Kiwi visual system has undergone adaptive regressive evolution driven by the trade-off between the relatively low rate of gain of visual information that is possible at low light levels, and the metabolic costs of extracting that information

Site-specific protein photochemical covalent attachment to carbon nanotube side walls and its electronic impact on single molecule function

Functional integration of proteins with carbon-based nanomaterials such as nanotubes holds great promise in emerging electronic and optoelectronic applications. Control over protein attachment poses a major challenge for consistent and useful device fabrication, especially when utilizing single/few molecule properties. Here, we exploit genetically encoded phenyl azide photochemistry to define the direct covalent attachment of four different proteins, including the fluorescent protein GFP and a β-lactamase binding protein (BBP), to carbon nanotube side walls. AFM showed that on attachment BBP could still recognize and bind additional protein components. Single molecule fluorescence revealed that on attachment to SWCNTs function was retained and there was feedback to GFP in terms of fluorescence intensity and improved resistance to photobleaching; GFP is fluorescent for much longer on attachment. The site of attachment proved important in terms of electronic impact on GFP function, with the attachment site furthest from the chromophore having the larger effect on fluorescence. Our approach provides a versatile and general method for generating intimate protein–CNT hybrid bioconjugates. It can be potentially applied to any protein of choice; the attachment position and thus interface characteristics with the CNT can easily be changed by simply placing the phenyl azide chemistry at different residues by gene mutagenesis. Thus, our approach will allow consistent construction and modulate functional coupling through changing the protein attachment position

Why Are Outcomes Different for Registry Patients Enrolled Prospectively and Retrospectively? Insights from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF).

Background: Retrospective and prospective observational studies are designed to reflect real-world evidence on clinical practice, but can yield conflicting results. The GARFIELD-AF Registry includes both methods of enrolment and allows analysis of differences in patient characteristics and outcomes that may result. Methods and Results: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and ≥1 risk factor for stroke at diagnosis of AF were recruited either retrospectively (n = 5069) or prospectively (n = 5501) from 19 countries and then followed prospectively. The retrospectively enrolled cohort comprised patients with established AF (for a least 6, and up to 24 months before enrolment), who were identified retrospectively (and baseline and partial follow-up data were collected from the emedical records) and then followed prospectively between 0-18 months (such that the total time of follow-up was 24 months; data collection Dec-2009 and Oct-2010). In the prospectively enrolled cohort, patients with newly diagnosed AF (≤6 weeks after diagnosis) were recruited between Mar-2010 and Oct-2011 and were followed for 24 months after enrolment. Differences between the cohorts were observed in clinical characteristics, including type of AF, stroke prevention strategies, and event rates. More patients in the retrospectively identified cohort received vitamin K antagonists (62.1% vs. 53.2%) and fewer received non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (1.8% vs . 4.2%). All-cause mortality rates per 100 person-years during the prospective follow-up (starting the first study visit up to 1 year) were significantly lower in the retrospective than prospectively identified cohort (3.04 [95% CI 2.51 to 3.67] vs . 4.05 [95% CI 3.53 to 4.63]; p = 0.016). Conclusions: Interpretations of data from registries that aim to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with AF must take account of differences in registry design and the impact of recall bias and survivorship bias that is incurred with retrospective enrolment. Clinical Trial Registration: - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362)

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Randolph W. Thrower as Commissioner of Internal Revenue-A Personal Tribute

I first came to know Randolph Thrower when I returned as a student to the Emory University School of Law after World War II and enrolled my senior year in an advanced Tax Problems course Randolph taught as a part-time adjunct professor. Instead of studying court opinions on particular legal issues¿which had been the traditional method of teaching law since its introduction at Harvard in the nineteenth century¿Randy gave us, each time we met, a set of questions raised by a theoretical client on which we were to identify potential tax problems and advise the client what he should do. This, of course, is just what tax lawyers are called to do in real life, and I have always thought that this was the best course I ever had in law school

Randolph W. Thrower as Commissioner of Internal Revenue-A Personal Tribute

I first came to know Randolph Thrower when I returned as a student to the Emory University School of Law after World War II and enrolled my senior year in an advanced Tax Problems course Randolph taught as a part-time adjunct professor. Instead of studying court opinions on particular legal issues¿which had been the traditional method of teaching law since its introduction at Harvard in the nineteenth century¿Randy gave us, each time we met, a set of questions raised by a theoretical client on which we were to identify potential tax problems and advise the client what he should do. This, of course, is just what tax lawyers are called to do in real life, and I have always thought that this was the best course I ever had in law school