Comparative support for the expensive tissue hypothesis: Big brains are correlated with smaller gut and greater parental investment in Lake Tanganyika cichlids

This is the final version of the article. Available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.The brain is one of the most energetically expensive organs in the vertebrate body. Consequently, the energetic requirements of encephalization are suggested to impose considerable constraints on brain size evolution. Three main hypotheses concerning how energetic constraints might affect brain evolution predict covariation between brain investment and (1) investment into other costly tissues, (2) overall metabolic rate, and (3) reproductive investment. To date, these hypotheses have mainly been tested in homeothermic animals and the existing data are inconclusive. However, there are good reasons to believe that energetic limitations might play a role in large-scale patterns of brain size evolution also in ectothermic vertebrates. Here, we test these hypotheses in a group of ectothermic vertebrates, the Lake Tanganyika cichlid fishes. After controlling for the effect of shared ancestry and confounding ecological variables, we find a negative association between brain size and gut size. Furthermore, we find that the evolution of a larger brain is accompanied by increased reproductive investment into egg size and parental care. Our results indicate that the energetic costs of encephalization may be an important general factor involved in the evolution of brain size also in ectothermic vertebrates.The authors thank the staff of the Department of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives at Mpulungu, Zambia, for their cooperation during fieldwork, especially for collecting fishes from the deeper levels. They also thank H. Tanaka for collecting fish samples for us. This study was funded through the student exchange support program (scholarship for long-term study abroad) from the Japanese Student Services Organization (JASSO) to MT, the Zoologiska foundation to MT and AK, a Davis Expedition Fund grant, Helge Axelsson Johnson grant, and a Stiftelsen Hierta-Retzius stipendiefond grant to AH, the Austrian Science Fund (J 3304-B24) to AK, and a Swedish Research Council grant to NK. The authors have no conflict of interest to declare

Maximizing Green Infrastructure in a Philadelphia Neighborhood

While the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) is counting on Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GI) as a key component of its long-term plan for reducing combined sewer overflows, many community stakeholders are also hoping that investment in greening can help meet other ancillary goals, collectively referred to as sustainable redevelopment. This study investigates the challenges associated with implementation of GI in Point Breeze, a residential neighborhood of South Philadelphia. The project team performed a detailed study of physical, social, legal, and economic conditions in the pilot neighborhood over the course of several years, culminating in the development of an agent-based model simulation of GI implementation. The model evaluates a) whether PWD’s GI goals can be met in a timely manner, b) what kinds of assumptions regarding participation would be needed under different theoretical GI policies, and c) the extent to which GI could promote sustainable redevelopment. The model outcomes underscore the importance of private land in helping PWD achieve its GI goals in Point Breeze. Achieving a meaningful density of GI in the neighborhoods most in need of sustainable redevelopment may require new and creative strategies for GI implementation tailored for the types of land present in those particular communities

Perspectives and limitations of gene expression profiling in rheumatology: new molecular strategies

The deciphering of the sequence of the human genome has raised the expectation of unravelling the specific role of each gene in physiology and pathology. High-throughput technologies for gene expression profiling provide the first practical basis for applying this information. In rheumatology, with its many diseases of unknown pathogenesis and puzzling inflammatory aspects, these advances appear to promise a significant advance towards the identification of leading mechanisms of pathology. Expression patterns reflect the complexity of the molecular processes and are expected to provide the molecular basis for specific diagnosis, therapeutic stratification, long-term monitoring and prognostic evaluation. Identification of the molecular networks will help in the discovery of appropriate drug targets, and permit focusing on the most effective and least toxic compounds. Current limitations in screening technologies, experimental strategies and bioinformatic interpretation will shortly be overcome by the rapid development in this field. However, gene expression profiling, by its nature, will not provide biochemical information on functional activities of proteins and might only in part reflect underlying genetic dysfunction. Genomic and proteomic technologies will therefore be complementary in their scientific and clinical application

In-beam internal conversion electron spectroscopy with the SPICE detector

The SPectrometer for Internal Conversion Electrons (SPICE) has been commissioned for use in conjunction with the TIGRESS $\gamma$-ray spectrometer at TRIUMF's ISAC-II facility. SPICE features a permanent rare-earth magnetic lens to collect and direct internal conversion electrons emitted from nuclear reactions to a thick, highly segmented, lithium-drifted silicon detector. This arrangement, combined with TIGRESS, enables in-beam $\gamma$-ray and internal conversion electron spectroscopy to be performed with stable and radioactive ion beams. Technical aspects of the device, capabilities, and initial performance are presented

Half-lives of neutron-rich Cd 128-130

R. Dunlop et al. ; 6 págs.; 7 figs.; 1 tab. ; Rapid CommunicationsThe β-decay half-lives of Cd128-130 have been measured with the newly commissioned GRIFFIN γ-ray spectrometer at the TRIUMF-ISAC facility. The time structures of the most intense γ rays emitted following the β decay were used to determine the half-lives of Cd128 and Cd130 to be T1/2=246.2(21) ms and T1/2=126(4) ms, respectively. The half-lives of the 3/2+ and 11/2- states of Cd129 were measured to be T1/2(3/2+)=157(8) ms and T1/2(11/2-)=147(3) ms. The half-lives of the Cd isotopes around the N=82 shell closure are an important ingredient in astrophysical simulations to derive the magnitude of the second r-process abundance peak in the A∼130 region. Our new results are compared with recent literature values and theoretical calculations. ©2016 American Physical SocietyThis work has been partially supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Canada Research Chairs Program. I.D. and R.C.-F. are supported by NSERC Discovery Grants SAPIN-2014-00028 and RGPAS 462257-2014. A.J. acknowledges financial support by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación under contract FPA2011-29854-C04 and the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad under contract FPA2014- 57196-C5-4-P. S.L.T acknowledges financial support from the U.S. National Science Foundation under contract NSF- 14-01574. E.P.-R. acknowledges financial support from the DGAPA-UNAM under the PASPA program. The GRIFFIN spectrometer was funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, TRIUMF, and the University of Guelph. TRIUMF receives federal funding via a contribution agreement with the National Research Council of Canada.Peer Reviewe

Coupling of conductive, convective and radiative heat transfer in Czochralski crystal growth process

Abstract This paper studies the conjugate problems of fluid flow and energy transport (involving conduction, convection and radiation heat transfer) within a material changing its phase. The analysis focuses on the Czochralski crystal growth process. The solidifying material is treated as a pure substance with constant material properties. The solution of the resulting 3-D, axisymmetric, non-linear problem is obtained iteratively using the commercial CFD package Fluent. The algorithm employed here treats each subdomain of the system separately, i.e. the liquid and solid phases of the solidified material, as well as the inertial gas surrounding both phases. Results of a test case shows the velocity field and temperature distribution within a simple system employed for the growth of a single silicon crystal

Differential expression of microRNAs and other small RNAs in muscle tissue of patients with ALS and healthy age-matched controls

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a late-onset disorder primarily affecting motor neurons and leading to progressive and lethal skeletal muscle atrophy. Small RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs), can serve as important regulators of gene expression and can act both globally and in a tissue-/cell-type-specific manner. In muscle, miRNAs called myomiRs govern important processes and are deregulated in various disorders. Several myomiRs have shown promise for therapeutic use in cellular and animal models of ALS; however, the exact miRNA species differentially expressed in muscle tissue of ALS patients remain unknown. Following small RNA-Seq, we compared the expression of small RNAs in muscle tissue of ALS patients and healthy age-matched controls. The identified snoRNAs, mtRNAs and other small RNAs provide possible molecular links between insulin signaling and ALS. Furthermore, the identified miRNAs are predicted to target proteins that are involved in both normal processes and various muscle disorders and indicate muscle tissue is undergoing active reinnervation/compensatory attempts thus providing targets for further research and therapy development in ALS

Second generation 4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzo[d]thiazoles as novel DNA gyrase inhibitors

Aim: DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV are essential bacterial enzymes, and in the fight against bacterial resistance, they are important targets for the development of novel antibacterial drugs. Results: Building from our first generation of 4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzo[d]thiazole-based DNA gyrase inhibitors, we designed and prepared an optimized series of analogs that show improved inhibition of DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV from Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, with IC50 values in the nanomolar range. Importantly, these inhibitors also show improved antibacterial activity against Gram-positive strains. Conclusion: The most promising inhibitor, 29, is active against Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium and S. aureus wild-type and resistant strains, with minimum inhibitory concentrations between 4 and 8 mu g/ml, which represents good starting point for development of novel antibacterials. Graphical abstractPeer reviewe