Pumilio-2 Function in the Mouse Nervous System

Coordinated mRNA translation at the synapse is increasingly recognized as a critical mechanism for neuronal regulation. Pumilio, a translational regulator, is known to be involved in neuronal homeostasis and memory formation in Drosophila. Most recently, the mammalian Pumilio homolog Pumilio-2 (Pum2) has been found to play a role in the mammalian nervous system, in particular in regulating morphology, arborization and excitability of neuronal dendrites, in vitro. However, the role of Pum2 in vivo remains unclear. Here, we report our investigation of the functional and molecular consequences of Pum2 disruption in vivo using an array of neurophysiology, behavioral and gene expression profiling techniques. We used Pum2-deficient mice to monitor in vivo brain activity using EEG and to study behavior traits, including memory, locomotor activity and nesting capacities. Because of the suspected role of Pum2 in neuronal excitability, we also examined the susceptibility to seizure induction. Finally, we used a quantitative gene expression profiling assay to identify key molecular partners of Pum2. We found that Pum2-deficient mice have abnormal behavioral strategies in spatial and object memory test. Additionally, Pum2 deficiency is associated with increased locomotor activity and decreased body weight. We also observed environmentally-induced impairment in nesting behavior. Most importantly, Pum2-deficient mice showed spontaneous EEG abnormalities and had lower seizure thresholds using a convulsing dosage of pentylenetetrazole. Finally, some genes, including neuronal ion channels, were differentially expressed in the hippocampus of Pum2-deficient mice. These findings demonstrate that Pum2 serves key functions in the adult mammalian central nervous system encompassing neuronal excitability and behavioral response to environmental challenges

SEEV4City INTERIM 'Summary of the State of the Art' report

This report summarizes the state-of-the-art on plug-in and full battery electric vehicles (EVs), smart charging and vehicle to grid (V2G) charging. This is in relation to the technology development, the role of EVs in CO2 reduction, their impact on the energy system as a whole, plus potential business models, services and policies to further promote the use of EV smart charging and V2G, relevant to the SEEV4-City project

State-of-the-Art Assessment of Smart Charging and Vehicle 2 Grid services

Electro-mobility – especially when coupled smartly with a decarbonised grid and also renewable distributed local energy generation, has an imperative role to play in reducing CO2 emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change. In parallel, the regulatory framework continues to set new and challenging targets for greenhouse gas emissions and urban air pollution. • EVs can help to achieve environmental targets because they are beneficial in terms of reduced GHG emissions although the magnitude of emission reduction really depends on the carbon intensity of the national energy mix, zero air pollution, reduced noise, higher energy efficiency and capable of integration with the electric grid, as discussed in Chapter 1. • Scenarios to limit global warming have been developed based on the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and these set the EV deployment targets or ambitions mentioned in Chapter 2. • Currently there is a considerable surge in electric cars purchasing with countries such as China, the USA, Norway, The Netherlands, France, the UK and Sweden leading the way with an EV market share over 1%. • To enable the achievement of these targets, charging infrastructures need to be deployed in parallel: there are four modes according to IEC 61851, as presented in Chapter 2.1.4. • The targets for SEEV4City project are as follow: o Increase energy autonomy in SEEV4-City sites by 25%, as compared to the baseline case. o Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 150 Tonnes annually and change to zero emission kilometres in the SEEV4-City Operational Pilots. o Avoid grid related investments (100 million Euros in 10 years) by introducing large scale adoption of smart charging and storage services and make existing electrical grids compatible with an increase in electro mobility and local renewable energy production. • The afore-mentioned objectives are achieved by applying Smart Charging (SC) and Vehicle to Grid (V2G) technologies within Operational Pilots at different levels: o Household. o Street. o Neighbourhood. o City. • SEEV4City aims to develop the concept of 'Vehicle4Energy Services' into a number of sustainable business models to integrate electric vehicles and renewable energy within a Sustainable Urban Mobility and Energy Plan (SUMEP), as introduced in Chapter 1. With this aim in mind, this project fills the gaps left by previous or currently running projects, as reviewed in Chapter 6. • The business models will be developed according to the boundaries of the six Operational Pilots, which involve a disparate number of stakeholders which will be considered within them. • Within every scale, the relevant project objectives need to be satisfied and a study is made on the Public, Social and Private Economics of Smart Charging and V2G. • In order to accomplish this work, a variety of aspects need to be investigated: o Chapter 3 provides details about revenue streams and costs for business models and Economics of Smart Charging and V2G. o Chapter 4 focuses on the definition of Energy Autonomy, the variables and the economy behind it; o Chapter 5 talks about the impacts of EV charging on the grid, how to mitigate them and offers solutions to defer grid investments; o Chapter 7 introduces a number of relevant business models and considers the Economics of Smart Charging and V2G; o Chapter 8 discusses policy frameworks, and gives insight into CO2 emissions and air pollution; o Chapter 9 defines the Data Collection approach that will be interfaced with the models; o Chapter 10 discusses the Energy model and the simulation platforms that may be used for project implementation

Prospectus, April 21, 1975

ORGANIZED STRUGGLE,\u27 DAVIS; Bomb Scare????; StuGo: Wegner Made Secretary Get Budget; Hot Meals; Albin, Barnes, Hood Win Trustee Election; StuGo Elections May 7-8; editorials; letters; The Short Circuit; The Kaleidoscope; Special Feature: Women In Art; Women Work Of Art; Who\u27s Afraid Of ERA??; The Poison Pen Tongue; Chess Talk; EIU At PC; Photography 35; L.T.D.s Corner: Pure Music: by Chase; Skylines; This And That; Sports Views; Cobras Drop Twin Bill; E. St. Louis Track Meet; Bio-Field Course; Walk For The Bald Eagles Week; Track To Kansas; Classified Ads; Moon Lake; Cat Ballou; L.R.C. Hires New Staff Member; Parkland Events; Suggestion Box; New PC Staffhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1975/1012/thumbnail.jp

Status of the European Green Crab, Carcinus maenas, in Oregon and Washington coastal estuaries in 2019

The European green crab (Carcinus maenas) has persisted in Oregon and Washington coastal estuaries since the late 1990s. After the arrival of a strong year class in 1998, significant recruitment to the populations occurred only in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. Warm winter water temperatures, high Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and Multivariate ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) Indices, and a high abundance of southern copepods are all correlated with strong year classes and vice versa (Behrens Yamada, Peterson and Kosro 2015; Behrens Yamada, Fisher and Kosro 2020 in review). Prior to 2015, green crabs were too rare (<0.2 per trap) to exert measurable effects on the native benthic community and on shellfish culture in Oregon and Washington. But after the 2015-2016 El Niño, we document the arrival of five strong year classes. Average catches steadily increased from 0.5 crabs per trap, in 2015 to around 3 crabs per trap in 2017 to 2019. The catches in the last 3 years are much higher than in any of the previous years, including 1998. Catches in some hot spots exceed 10 crabs per trap, a level at which measurable ecological impact can be expected (Grosholz et al. 2011). Since green crabs live for 6 years, these five consecutive year classes can produce larvae until 2025. A switch to cooler ocean conditions in the coming years will result in poor recruitment, but a return to high PDO and strong El Niño patterns would signal good recruitment and higher green crab densities. For example, green crabs were first documented in New England in 1817, but it took warm ocean conditions during the 1950s for their numbers to build to a level at which they decimated the soft-shelled clam industry in Maine (Welch 1968). With the recent warm trend on the East Coast, green crabs are again abundant. Not only are they preying on shellfish, they are also damaging valuable eelgrass habitat by ripping up the plants in their search for food (Neckles 2015). Even though green crab abundance in Oregon and Washington is still low when compared to Europe, eastern North America, Tasmania, California and the west coast of Vancouver Island, it is imperative to continue monitoring efforts for two reasons: 1) to elucidate the process of range expansion and population persistence of this model non-indigenous marine species with planktonic larvae, and 2) to predict the arrival of strong year classes from ocean conditions and alert managers and shellfish growers of possible increases in predation pressure from this invader

Who Benefits Most from a University Degree?: A Cross-National Comparison of Selection and Wage Returns in the US, UK, and Germany

Recent research on economic returns to higher education in the United States suggests that those with the highest wage returns to a college degree are least likely to obtain one. We extend the study of heterogeneous returns to tertiary education across multiple institutional contexts, investigating how the relationship between wage returns and the propensity to complete a degree varies by the level of expansion, differentiation, and cost of higher education. Drawing on panel data and matching techniques, we compare findings from the US with selection into degree completion in Germany and the UK. Contrary to previous studies, we find little evidence for population level heterogeneity in economic returns to higher education

Pancreatic Mesenchyme Regulates Epithelial Organogenesis throughout Development

Genetic disruption of the pancreatic mesenchyme reveals that it is critical for the expansion of epithelial progenitors and for the proliferation of insulin-producing beta cells