1,233 research outputs found
Immunocytochemical studies on the occurence of gamma-aminobutyric acid in the nervous system of the nematodes Panagrellus redivivus, Meloidogyne incognita and Globodera rostochiensis
Un antisérum polyclonal a été utilisé en immunofluorescence indirecte pour démontrer la présence d'acide gamma-aminobutyrique - un inhibiteur possible de la transmission de l'influx nerveux aux muscles - chez #Panagrellus redevivus et chez les juvéniles de deuxième stade (J2) de #Meloidogyne incognita. Chez #P. redivivus, il a été observé une immunoréactivité, présumée GABA, dans la corde nerveuse dorsale, dans la corde ventrale ainsi que dans certaines cellules nerveuses et les commissures qui ceinturent le nématode entre les cordes nerveuses. Une immunoréactivité a été également observée autour du pharynx et dans l'anneau nerveux. Chez les J2 de #M. incognita, on a détecté cette immunoréactivité dans les nerfs et les cellules de la corde nerveuse ventrale. La coloration à l'immunogold après inclusion de J2 de #Globodera rostochiensis$ traités à l'osmium a montré une immunoréactivité, présumée GABA, dans les procès de neurones des cordes nerveuses ventrale et dorsale, et dans le cytoplasme et le noyau de certaines cellules de la corde ventrale. La position de ces neurones dans les cordes nerveuses indique qu'ils sont probablement des neurones moteur inhibiteurs. Dans l'anneau nerveux, l'immunoréactivité a été observée dans les procès neuronaux et dans un corps cellulaire, probablement le neurone moteur de l'anneau ventral. (Résumé d'auteur
Constructive role of dissipation for driven coupled bosonic modes
We describe four cases of childhood B-cell progenitor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (BCP-ALL) and one of T-cell (T-ALL) with unexpected numbers of interphase signals for ETV6 with an ETV6-RUNX1 fusion probe. Three fusion negative cases each had a telomeric part of 12p terminating within intron 2 of ETV6, attached to sequences from 5q, 7p and 7q, respectively. Two fusion positive cases, with partial insertions of ETV6 into chromosome 21, also had a breakpoint in intron 2. Fluorescence in situ hybridisation ( FISH), array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) and Molecular Copy-Number Counting (MCC) results were concordant for the T-cell case. Sequences downstream of TLX3 on chromosome 5 were deleted, leaving the intact gene closely apposed to the first two exons of ETV6 and its upstream promoter. qRT-PCR showed a significant upregulation of TLX3. In this study we provide the first incontrovertible evidence that the upstream promoter of ETV6 attached to the first two exons of the gene was responsible for the ectopic expression of a proto-oncogene that became abnormally close as the result of deletion and translocation. We have also shown breakpoints in intron 2 of ETV6 in two cases of insertion with ETV6-RUNX1 fusion
Predicting hedgehog mortality risks on British roads using habitat suitability modelling
Road vehicle collisions are likely to be an important contributory factor in the decline of the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in Britain. Here, a collaborative roadkill dataset collected from multiple projects across Britain was used to assess when, where and why hedgehog roadkill are more likely to occur. Seasonal trends were assessed using a Generalized Additive Model. There were few casualties in winter—the hibernation season for hedgehogs—with a gradual increase from February that reached a peak in July before declining thereafter. A sequential multi-level Habitat Suitability Modelling (HSM) framework was then used to identify areas showing a high probability of hedgehog roadkill occurrence throughout the entire British road network (∼400,000 km) based on multi-scale environmental determinants. The HSM predicted that grassland and urban habitat coverage were important in predicting the probability of roadkill at a national scale. Probabilities peaked at approximately 50% urban cover at a one km scale and increased linearly with grassland cover (improved and rough grassland). Areas predicted to experience high probabilities of hedgehog roadkill occurrence were therefore in urban and suburban environments, that is, where a mix of urban and grassland habitats occur. These areas covered 9% of the total British road network. In combination with information on the frequency with which particular locations have hedgehog road casualties, the framework can help to identify priority areas for mitigation measures
Modelling the functional connectivity of landscapes for greater horseshoe bats Rhinolophus ferrumequinum at a local scale
Context: The importance of habitat connectivity for
wildlife is widely recognised. However, assessing the
movement of species tends to rely on radio-tracking or
GPS evidence, which is difficult and costly to gather.
Objectives: To examine functional connectivity of
greater horseshoe bats (GHS, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum)
at a local scale using Circuitscape software;
comparing our results against expert opinion ‘fly
ways’.
Methods: Expert opinions were used to rank and
score five environmental layers influencing GHS
movement, generating resistance scores. The slope
and resistance scores of these layers were varied, and
validated against independent ground truthed GHS
activity data, until a unimodal peak in correlation was
identified for each layer. The layers were combined
into a multivariate model and re-evaluated. Radiotracking
studies were used to further validate the
model, and the transferability was tested at other roost
locations.
Results: Functional connectivity models could be
created using bat activity data. Models had the ability
to be transferred between roost locations, although
site-specific validation is strongly recommended. For
all other bat species recorded, markedly more (125%)
bat passes occurred in the top quartile of functional
connectivity compared to any of the lower three
quartiles.
Conclusion: The model predictions identify areas of
key conservation importance to habitat connectivity
for GHS that are not recognised by expert opinion. By
highlighting landscape features that act as barriers to
movement, this approach can be used by decision-makers
as a tool to inform local management
strategies
The Detection of Incipient Caries with Tracer Dyes
The purpose of this study was to determine the increase in color contrast produced by the use of a tracer dye in detection of incipient caries lesions with transillumination. Twenty four caries-free first premolars were immersed in an acid gelatin for production of artificial incipient caries lesions. After the lesions had developed, these teeth were photographed by transillumination. Two photographs were taken of each tooth. The first photograph showed the lesion without dye. A blue tracer dye was then added and absorbed by the lesion, and a second photograph was taken. The data on the color difference were obtained by use of a reflectance colorimeter and showed a four-fold increase between the lesion and surrounding area with the dye. A two-way analysis of variance was used for the statistical interpretation. The color difference between the lesion without the dye and then with the dye was significant. The use of the blue tracer dye, therefore, significantly increased the contrast in the images of the artificial incipient lesions.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68289/2/10.1177_00220345890680021101.pd
Kernel density classification and boosting: an L2 sub analysis
Kernel density estimation is a commonly used approach to classification. However, most of the theoretical results for kernel methods apply to estimation per se and not necessarily to classification. In this paper we show that when estimating the difference between two densities, the optimal smoothing parameters are increasing functions of the sample size of the complementary group, and we provide a small simluation study which examines the relative performance of kernel density methods when the final goal is classification. A relative newcomer to the classification portfolio is “boosting”, and this paper proposes an algorithm for boosting kernel density classifiers. We note that boosting is closely linked to a previously proposed method of bias reduction in kernel density estimation and indicate how it will enjoy similar properties for classification. We show that boosting kernel classifiers reduces the bias whilst only slightly increasing the variance, with an overall reduction in error. Numerical examples and simulations are used to illustrate the findings, and we also suggest further areas of research
Adjustment of the electric current in pulsar magnetospheres and origin of subpulse modulation
The subpulse modulation of pulsar radio emission goes to prove that the
plasma flow in the open field line tube breaks into isolated narrow streams. I
propose a model which attributes formation of streams to the process of the
electric current adjustment in the magnetosphere. A mismatch between the
magnetospheric current distribution and the current injected by the polar cap
accelerator gives rise to reverse plasma flows in the magnetosphere. The
reverse flow shields the electric field in the polar gap and thus shuts up the
plasma production process. I assume that a circulating system of streams is
formed such that the upward streams are produced in narrow gaps separated by
downward streams. The electric drift is small in this model because the
potential drop in narrow gaps is small. The gaps have to drift because by the
time a downward stream reaches the star surface and shields the electric field,
the corresponding gap has to shift. The transverse size of the streams is
determined by the condition that the potential drop in the gaps is sufficient
for the pair production. This yields the radius of the stream roughly 10% of
the polar cap radius, which makes it possible to fit in the observed
morphological features such as the "carousel" with 10-20 subbeams and the
system of the core - two nested cone beams.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figur
Dense, viscous brine behavior in heterogeneous porous medium systems
The behavior of dense, viscous calcium bromide brine solutions used to remediate systems contaminated with dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) is considered in laboratory and field porous medium systems. The density and viscosity of brine solutions are experimentally investigated and functional forms fit over a wide range of mass fractions. A density of 1.7 times, and a corresponding viscosity of 6.3 times, that of water is obtained at a calcium bromide mass fraction of 0.53. A three-dimensional laboratory cell is used to investigate the establishment, persistence, and rate of removal of a stratified dense brine layer in a controlled system. Results from a field-scale experiment performed at the Dover National Test Site are used to investigate the ability to establish and maintain a dense brine layer as a component of a DNAPL recovery strategy, and to recover the brine at sufficiently high mass fractions to support the economical reuse of the brine. The results of both laboratory and field experiments show that a dense brine layer can be established, maintained, and recovered to a significant extent. Regions of unstable density profiles are shown to develop and persist in the field-scale experiment, which we attribute to regions of low hydraulic conductivity. The saturated-unsaturated, variable-density ground-water flow simulation code SUTRA is modified to describe the system of interest, and used to compare simulations to experimental observations and to investigate certain unobserved aspects of these complex systems. The model results show that the standard model formulation is not appropriate for capturing the behavior of sharp density gradients observed during the dense brine experiments
Environmental associations of abundance-weighted functional traits in Australian plant communities
Predictions of how vegetation responds to spatial and temporal differences in climate rely on established links with plant functional traits and vegetation types that can be encoded into Dynamic Global Vegetation Models. Individual traits have been linked to climate at species level and at community level within regions. However, a recent global assessment of aggregated community level traits found unexpectedly weak links with macroclimate, bringing into question broadscale trait–climate associations and implicating local-scale environmental differences in the filtering of communities. To further evaluate patterns in light of these somewhat contradictory results, we quantified the power of macro-environmental variables to explain aggregated plant community traits, taking advantage of new trait data for leaf area, plant height and seed mass combined with a national survey that records cover-abundance using consistent methods for a large number of plots across Australia. In contrast to the global study, we found that abundance-weighted community mean and variance of leaf area and maximum height were correlated with macroclimate. Height and leaf area were highest in wet (especially warm, wet) environments, with actual evapotranspiration explaining 30% of variation in leaf area and 26% in maximum height. Seed mass was weakly related to environment, with no variable explaining more than 5% of variance. Considering all three traits together in a redundancy analysis, the complete set of environmental variables explained 43% of variation in site-mean traits and 29% of within-site trait variance. While significant trait variation remains unexplained, the trait–environment relationships reported here suggest climatically-driven filtering plays a strong role in assembling these vegetation communities. Regional assessments using standardised species abundances can therefore be used to predict aspects of vegetation function. Our quantification of plant community trait patterns along macroclimatic gradients at continental scale thereby contributes a much-needed functional basis for Australian vegetation.Greg R. Guerin, Rachael V. Gallagher, Ian J. Wright, Samuel C. Andrew, Daniel S. Falster, Elizabeth Wenk, Samantha E.M. Munroe, Andrew J. Lowe, Ben Sparro
Precision Measurement of the Proton and Deuteron Spin Structure Functions g2 and Asymmetries A2
We have measured the spin structure functions g2p and g2d and the virtual
photon asymmetries A2p and A2d over the kinematic range 0.02 < x < 0.8 and 0.7
< Q^2 < 20 GeV^2 by scattering 29.1 and 32.3 GeV longitudinally polarized
electrons from transversely polarized NH3 and 6LiD targets. Our measured g2
approximately follows the twist-2 Wandzura-Wilczek calculation. The twist-3
reduced matrix elements d2p and d2n are less than two standard deviations from
zero. The data are inconsistent with the Burkhardt-Cottingham sum rule if there
is no pathological behavior as x->0. The Efremov-Leader-Teryaev integral is
consistent with zero within our measured kinematic range. The absolute value of
A2 is significantly smaller than the sqrt[R(1+A1)/2] limit.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, 2 table
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