Phylogeny of Southern African and Australasian Wahlenbergioids (Campanulaceae) based on ITS and trnL-F sequence data: implications for a reclassification

The Campanulaceae: Wahlenbergioideae currently comprises 15 genera, one of which, Wahlenbergia, is widespread over the southern continents. Southern Africa is the region with maximum wahlenbergioid diversity with 12 genera and approximately 252 species. A second center is Australasia with 38 Wahlenbergia species. This study used a broad sample of wahlenbergioid diversity from South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand to reconstruct a phylogeny based on chloroplast trnL-F and nuclear ITS sequences. Data were analyzed separately and in combination using parsimony and Bayesian methods. The results suggest that for the wahlenbergioids to be monophyletic Wahlenbergia hederacea has to be excluded and that none of the South African, Australian or New Zealand lineages are strictly monophyletic. There are five species assemblages that are in some disagreement with current classification in the family. Wahlenbergia, Prismatocarpus and Roella are shown to be non-monophyletic and implications for a reclassification are presented. Careful consideration of morphological characters is suggested before the adjustment of generic circumscriptions can be accomplished.Web of Scienc

Prospectus, August 30, 1983

NEW PARK-LAND APARTMENTS FILL EMPTY FIELD SOUTH OF PARKLAND; Survival hints for Parkland; News Digest; President Staerkel welcomes new students to Parkland; September 1983 Parkland College Calendar; Is your class cancelled?; Bookstore supplies more than books; Everyone is welcome to enjoy Fall-In \u2783; StuGo welcomes all; New addition takes care of classroom needs; Choose your movies; Lindstrand awards six films as best summer flics; Chase has bad vacation--produces funny flic; Keaton and Garr star in Mr. Mom ; Greatest Show returns to Assembly Hall; New Doctor Who to be televised; Reviewing summer\u27s top music hits; Skylines; Parkland employees honored; Neal retires; Classified; Guard goes north for summer camp; Police fingerprint children; Beginning Again program for bereaved; Improve bowling skills--join Bowling Club; Woods Words: Stadium to celebrate its 60th yearhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1983/1013/thumbnail.jp

Detecting and preventing adverse drug interactions: The potential contribution of computers in pharmacies

For patients taking two or more medications concurrently, interactions among the drugs can cause undesirable effects or negate desired responses. In modern pharmacy practice, an important role of the pharmacist is to detect potentially harmful interactions and take appropriate action to prevent their occurrence. Pharmacy computer systems offer potential for improving pharmacists' effectiveness in the detection and followup of drug interactions.Based on a survey of southern Michigan pharmacists, relationships between computer use and pharmacists' attitudes and activities in drug interaction monitoring were investigated. Respondents included users of two major computer systems as well as pharmacists who do not use computers. Results suggest that general statements cannot be made about the effect of computer use on drug interaction detection. Users of one of the two computer systems detected and followed up on interactions more frequently and were more likely to report improved knowledge of drug interactions than non-users. Frequencies of drug interaction detection and other related measures reported by users of the second computer system were similar to those for pharmacists not using computers. Computer system characteristics which might lead to these differences are discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/26310/1/0000395.pd

A Novel Approach of Identifying Immunodominant Self and Viral Antigen Cross-Reactive T Cells and Defining the Epitopes They Recognize

Infection and vaccination can lead to activation of autoreactive T cells, including the activation of cross-reactive T cells. However, detecting these cross-reactive T cells and identifying the non-self and self-antigen epitopes is difficult. The current study demonstrates the utility of a novel approach that effectively accomplishes both. We utilized surface expression of CD38 on newly activated CD4 memory T cells as a strategy to identify type 1 diabetes associated autoreactive T cells activated by influenza vaccination in healthy subjects. We identified an influenza A matrix protein (MP) specific CD4+ T cell clone that cross-recognizes an immunodominant epitope from Glutamic Acid Decarboxylase 65 (GAD65) protein. The sequences of the MP and GAD65 peptides are rather distinct, with only 2 identical amino acids within the HLA-DR binding region. This result suggests that activation of autoreactive T cells by microbial infection under certain physiological conditions can occur amongst peptides with minimum amino acid sequence homology. This novel strategy also provides a new research pathway in which to examine activation of autoreactive CD4+ T cells after vaccination or natural infection

The Intersection of Massage Practice and Research: Community Massage Therapists as Research Personnel on an NIH-funded Effectiveness Study

Introduction: Few NIH funded studies give community massage therapists the opportunity to become study personnel. A recent NIH/NCCAMfunded study investigating chronic low back pain (CLBP) recruited, trained, and utilized community massage practitioners (CMPs) as study personnel. This study’s aim was to determine whether health-related outcomes for CLBP improve when patients are referred from primary care to select CAM modalities including massage therapy (MT). The purpose of this paper is to report the results of the study’s three massage practice-driven study objectives which were to: 1) identify challenges and solutions to recruiting and retaining ample CMPs, 2) develop a practice-informed protocol reflecting real-world MT, and 3) determine the extent to which CMPs comply with rigorous research methodology in their clinical practices as study personnel.Methods: Eligible CMPs in urban and rural Kentucky counties were identified through licensure board records, professional organizations, and personal contact opportunities. Interested CMPs completed 6 CE hours of research and Human Subjects Protection training and agreed to comply with a study protocol reflecting MT as practiced. Once trained, study CMPs were matched with study participants to provide and document up to 10 MT sessions per participant.Results: Utilizing prominent MT community members proved invaluable to CMP recruitment and protocol development. CMP recruitment challenges included mixed interest, low number of available rural CMPs, busy clinic schedules, and compensation. Ethics CE credits were offered to encourage CMP interest. A total of 28 Kentucky licensed massage therapists with 5–32 years of experience completed study training. A total of 127 CLBP patients consented to participate (n = 104 for MT). Twenty-five CMPs were assigned CLBP patients and provided 1–10 treatments for 94 study participants. Treatment documentation was provided by CMPs for 97% of treatments provided.Conclusions: When recruitment, retention, and protocol compliance challenges are met, CMPs are valuable study personnel for practice-based research reflecting real-world MT practice

Clinical features, proximate causes, and consequences of active convulsive epilepsy in Africa

Purpose: Epilepsy is common in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), but the clinical features and consequences are poorly characterized. Most studies are hospital-based, and few studies have compared different ecological sites in SSA. We described active convulsive epilepsy (ACE) identified in cross-sectional community-based surveys in SSA, to understand the proximate causes, features, and consequences. Methods: We performed a detailed clinical and neurophysiologic description of ACE cases identified from a community survey of 584,586 people using medical history, neurologic examination, and electroencephalography (EEG) data from five sites in Africa: South Africa; Tanzania; Uganda; Kenya; and Ghana. The cases were examined by clinicians to discover risk factors, clinical features, and consequences of epilepsy. We used logistic regression to determine the epilepsy factors associated with medical comorbidities. Key Findings: Half (51%) of the 2,170 people with ACE were children and 69% of seizures began in childhood. Focal features (EEG, seizure types, and neurologic deficits) were present in 58% of ACE cases, and these varied significantly with site. Status epilepticus occurred in 25% of people with ACE. Only 36% received antiepileptic drugs (phenobarbital was the most common drug [95%]), and the proportion varied significantly with the site. Proximate causes of ACE were adverse perinatal events (11%) for onset of seizures before 18 years; and acute encephalopathy (10%) and head injury prior to seizure onset (3%). Important comorbidities were malnutrition (15%), cognitive impairment (23%), and neurologic deficits (15%). The consequences of ACE were burns (16%), head injuries (postseizure) (1%), lack of education (43%), and being unmarried (67%) or unemployed (57%) in adults, all significantly more common than in those without epilepsy. Significance: There were significant differences in the comorbidities across sites. Focal features are common in ACE, suggesting identifiable and preventable causes. Malnutrition and cognitive and neurologic deficits are common in people with ACE and should be integrated into the management of epilepsy in this region. Consequences of epilepsy such as burns, lack of education, poor marriage prospects, and unemployment need to be addressed

Two novel human cytomegalovirus NK cell evasion functions target MICA for lysosomal degradation

NKG2D plays a major role in controlling immune responses through the regulation of natural killer (NK) cells, αβ and γδ T-cell function. This activating receptor recognizes eight distinct ligands (the MHC Class I polypeptide-related sequences (MIC) A andB, and UL16-binding proteins (ULBP)1–6) induced by cellular stress to promote recognition cells perturbed by malignant transformation or microbial infection. Studies into human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) have aided both the identification and characterization of NKG2D ligands (NKG2DLs). HCMV immediate early (IE) gene up regulates NKGDLs, and we now describe the differential activation of ULBP2 and MICA/B by IE1 and IE2 respectively. Despite activation by IE functions, HCMV effectively suppressed cell surface expression of NKGDLs through both the early and late phases of infection. The immune evasion functions UL16, UL142, and microRNA(miR)-UL112 are known to target NKG2DLs. While infection with a UL16 deletion mutant caused the expected increase in MICB and ULBP2 cell surface expression, deletion of UL142 did not have a similar impact on its target, MICA. We therefore performed a systematic screen of the viral genome to search of addition functions that targeted MICA. US18 and US20 were identified as novel NK cell evasion functions capable of acting independently to promote MICA degradation by lysosomal degradation. The most dramatic effect on MICA expression was achieved when US18 and US20 acted in concert. US18 and US20 are the first members of the US12 gene family to have been assigned a function. The US12 family has 10 members encoded sequentially through US12–US21; a genetic arrangement, which is suggestive of an ‘accordion’ expansion of an ancestral gene in response to a selective pressure. This expansion must have be an ancient event as the whole family is conserved across simian cytomegaloviruses from old world monkeys. The evolutionary benefit bestowed by the combinatorial effect of US18 and US20 on MICA may have contributed to sustaining the US12 gene family

A threatened ecological community: Research advances and priorities for Banksia woodlands

The rapid expansion of urban areas worldwide is leading to native habitat loss and ecosystem fragmentation and degradation. Although the study of urbanisation\u27s impact on biodiversity is gaining increasing interest globally, there is still a disconnect between research recommendations and urbanisation strategies. Expansion of the Perth metropolitan area on the Swan Coastal Plain in south-western Australia, one of the world\u27s thirty-six biodiversity hotspots, continues to affect the Banksia Woodlands (BWs) ecosystem, a federally listed Threatened Ecological Community (TEC). Here, we utilise the framework of a 1989 review of the state of knowledge of BWs ecology and conservation to examine scientific advances made in understanding the composition, processes and functions of BWs and BWs\u27 species over the last 30 years. We highlight key advances in our understanding of the ecological function and role of mechanisms in BWs that are critical to the management of this ecosystem. The most encouraging change since 1989 is the integration of research between historically disparate ecological disciplines. We outline remaining ecological knowledge gaps and identify key research priorities to improve conservation efforts for this TEC. We promote a holistic consideration of BWs with our review providing a comprehensive document that researchers, planners and managers may reference. To effectively conserve ecosystems threatened by urban expansion, a range of stakeholders must be involved in the development and implementation of best practices to conserve and maintain both biodiversity and human wellbeing

Peptide-MHC Cellular Microarray with Innovative Data Analysis System for Simultaneously Detecting Multiple CD4 T-Cell Responses

Peptide:MHC cellular microarrays have been proposed to simultaneously characterize multiple Ag-specific populations of T cells. The practice of studying immune responses to complicated pathogens with this tool demands extensive knowledge of T cell epitopes and the availability of peptide:MHC complexes for array fabrication as well as a specialized data analysis approach for result interpretation. T cell cultures. A novel statistical methodology was also developed to facilitate batch processing of raw array-like data into standardized endpoint scores, which linearly correlated with total Ag-specific T cell inputs. Applying these methods to analyze Influenza A viral antigen-specific T cell responses, we not only revealed the most prominent viral epitopes, but also demonstrated the heterogeneity of anti-viral cellular responses in healthy individuals. Applying these methods to examine the insulin producing beta-cell autoantigen specific T cell responses, we observed little difference between autoimmune diabetic patients and healthy individuals, suggesting a more subtle association between diabetes status and peripheral autoreactive T cells.The data analysis system is reliable for T cell specificity and functional testing. Peptide:MHC cellular microarrays can be used to obtain multi-parametric results using limited blood samples in a variety of translational settings