Reference gene selection and RNA preservation protocol in the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis, for gene expression studies

This work was supported by a Knowledge Transfer Network BBSRC Industrial Case (#414 BB/L502467/1) studentship in association Zoetis Inc.Peer reviewedPostprin

Age-Related Changes in the Epithelial and Stromal Compartments of the Mammary Gland in Normocalcemic Mice Lacking the Vitamin D3 Receptor

The vitamin D3 receptor (VDR) serves as a negative growth regulator during mammary gland development via suppression of branching morphogenesis during puberty and modulation of differentiation and apoptosis during pregnancy, lactation and involution. To assess the role of the VDR in the aging mammary gland, we utilized 12, 14, and 16 month old VDR knockout (KO) and wild type (WT) mice for assessment of integrity of the epithelial and stromal compartments, steroid hormone levels and signaling pathways. Our data indicate that VDR ablation is associated with ductal ectasia of the primary mammary ducts, loss of secondary and tertiary ductal branches and atrophy of the mammary fat pad. In association with loss of the white adipose tissue compartment, smooth muscle actin staining is increased in glands from VDR KO mice, suggesting a change in the stromal microenviroment. Activation of caspase-3 and increased Bax expression in mammary tissue of VDR KO mice suggests that enhanced apoptosis may contribute to loss of ductal branching. These morphological changes in the glands of VDR KO mice are associated with ovarian failure and reduced serum 17β-estradiol. VDR KO mice also exhibit progressive loss of adipose tissue stores, hypoleptinemia and increased metabolic rate with age. These developmental studies indicate that, under normocalcemic conditions, loss of VDR signaling is associated with age-related estrogen deficiency, disruption of epithelial ductal branching, abnormal energy expenditure and atrophy of the mammary adipose compartment

Momentum Distributions of Particles from Three--Body Halo Fragmentation: Final State Interactions

Momentum distributions of particles from nuclear break-up of fast three-body halos are calculated consistently, and applied to $^{11}$Li. The same two-body interactions between the three particles are used to calculate the ground state structure and the final state of the reaction processes. We reproduce the available momentum distributions from $^{11}$Li fragmentation, together with the size and energy of $^{11}$Li, with a neutron-core relative state containing a $p$-state admixture of 20\%-30\%. The available fragmentation data strongly suggest an $s$-state in $^{10}$Li at about 50 keV, and indicate a $p$-state around 500 keV.Comment: 11 pages (RevTeX), 3 Postscript figures (uuencoded postscript file attached at the end of the LaTeX file). To be published in Phys. Rev.

Culture change in elite sport performance teams: Examining and advancing effectiveness in the new era

Reflecting the importance of optimizing culture for elite teams, Fletcher and Arnold (2011) recently suggested the need for expertise in culture change. Acknowledging the dearth of literature on the specific process, however, the potential effectiveness of practitioners in this area is unknown. The present paper examines the activity's precise demands and the validity of understanding in sport psychology and organizational research to support its delivery. Recognizing that sport psychologists are being increasingly utilized by elite team management, initial evidence-based guidelines are presented. Finally, to stimulate the development of ecologically valid, practically meaningful knowledge, the paper identifies a number of future research directions

Dose-dependent T-cell Dynamics and Cytokine Cascade Following rVSV-ZEBOV Immunization.

BACKGROUND: The recent West African Ebola epidemic led to accelerated efforts to test Ebola vaccine candidates. As part of the World Health Organisation-led VSV Ebola Consortium (VEBCON), we performed a phase I clinical trial investigating rVSV-ZEBOV (a recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus-vectored Ebola vaccine), which has recently demonstrated protection from Ebola virus disease (EVD) in phase III clinical trials and is currently in advanced stages of licensing. So far, correlates of immune protection are incompletely understood and the role of cell-mediated immune responses has not been comprehensively investigated to date. METHODS: We recruited 30 healthy subjects aged 18-55 into an open-label, dose-escalation phase I trial testing three doses of rVSV-ZEBOV (3×105 plaque-forming units (PFU), 3×106 PFU, 2×107 PFU) (ClinicalTrials.gov; NCT02283099). Main study objectives were safety and immunogenicity, while exploratory objectives included lymphocyte dynamics, cell-mediated immunity and cytokine networks, which were assessed using flow cytometry, ELISpot and LUMINEX assay. FINDINGS: Immunization with rVSV-ZEBOV was well tolerated without serious vaccine-related adverse events. Ebola virus-specific neutralizing antibodies were induced in nearly all individuals. Additionally, vaccinees, particularly within the highest dose cohort, generated Ebola glycoprotein (GP)-specific T cells and initiated a cascade of signaling molecules following stimulation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells with Ebola GP peptides. INTERPRETATION: In addition to a benign safety and robust humoral immunogenicity profile, subjects immunized with 2×107 PFU elicited higher cellular immune responses and stronger interlocked cytokine networks compared to lower dose groups. To our knowledge these data represent the first detailed cell-mediated immuneprofile of a clinical trial testing rVSV-ZEBOV, which is of particular interest in light of its potential upcoming licensure as the first Ebola vaccine. VEBCON trial Hamburg, Germany (NCT02283099)

RNA interference in the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis : Approaches for sustained gene knockdown and evidence of involvement of Dicer-2 and Argonaute2

This work was supported by a Knowledge Transfer Network BBSRC Industrial Case (# BB/L502467/1) studentship in association with Zoetis Inc. We acknowledge the expert help provided by Nikki Kernell (Zoetis Inc., Kalamazoo) during the feeding trials. Declarations of interest: none.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Synthesis and reactivity of [Au(NHC)(Bpin)] complexes

The authors gratefully acknowledge the Royal Society (University Research Fellowship to C.S.J.C.), AstraZeneca (Studenship to C.M.Z) and VLAIO (CO2PERATE) for support of this work. We thank King Saud University (DSF Program) and KAUST (Award No.OSR-2015-CCF-1974-03) for support.A new class of [Au(NHC)(Bpin)] complexes has been synthesized and their unusual reactivity was investigated using computational and experimental methods. The gold-boryl complexes exhibit unexpected high stability and reactivity.PostprintPeer reviewe

Breakup Reactions of 11Li within a Three-Body Model

We use a three-body model to investigate breakup reactions of 11Li (n+n+9Li) on a light target. The interaction parameters are constrained by known properties of the two-body subsystems, the 11Li binding energy and fragmentation data. The remaining degrees of freedom are discussed. The projectile-target interactions are described by phenomenological optical potentials. The model predicts dependence on beam energy and target, differences between longitudinal and transverse momentum distributions and provides absolute values for all computed differential cross sections. We give an almost complete series of observables and compare with corresponding measurements. Remarkably good agreement is obtained. The relative neutron-9Li p-wave content is about 40%. A p-resonance, consistent with measurements at about 0.5 MeV of width about 0.4 MeV, seems to be necessary. The widths of the momentum distributions are insensitive to target and beam energy with a tendency to increase towards lower energies. The transverse momentum distributions are broader than the longitudinal due to the diffraction process. The absolute values of the cross sections follow the neutron-target cross sections and increase strongly for beam energies decreasing below 100 MeV/u.Comment: 19 pages, 14 figures, RevTeX, psfig.st