Method for repair of thin glass coatings

A method of repairing cracks or damaged areas in glass, in particular, glass coatings provided on tile. The method includes removing the damaged area using a high speed diamond burr drilling out a cavity that extends slightly into the base material of the tile. All loose material is then cleaned from the drilled out cavity and the cavity is filled adjacent the upper surface of the coating with a filler material including chopped silica fibers mixed with a binder. The filler material is packed into the cavity and a repair coating is applied by means of a brush or sprayed thereover. The repair includes borosilicate suspended in solution. Heat is applied at approximately 2100 F. for approximately five minutes for curing the coating, causing boron silicide particles of the coating to oxidize forming a very fluid boron-oxide rich glass which reacts with the other frits to form an impervious, highly refractory layer

Ab initio synthesis of the ozone ultraviolet continuum

Potential energy surfaces for the ground and excited electronic states responsible for the Hartley continuum of ozone are used to obtain quadratic, cubic, and quartic force constants. Vibrational dependence of rotational constants to sixth order is calculated by perturbation theory. The spectroscopic constants enable computation of rovibronic energy levels. Overlap of ground state and excited state perturbed vibrational wave functions yield Franck–Condon factors. Electric dipole allowed rovibronic transitions are generated under the Ir representation. The entire set of results generate the ultraviolet absorption spectrum. It is shown that inclusion of anharmonic terms in the vibrational Hamiltonian has a small effect upon the final spectrum, whereas rotational broadening plays a greater role in achieving agreement with experiment.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69598/2/JCPSA6-86-10-5329-1.pd

MR imaging findings in Xp21.2 duplication syndrome

Xp21.2 duplication syndrome is a rare genetic disorder of undetermined prevalence and clinical relevance. As the use of chromosomal microarray has become first line for the work-up of childhood developmental delay, more gene deletions and duplications have been recognized. To the best of our knowledge, the imaging findings of Xp21.2 duplication syndrome have not been reported. We report a case of a 33 month-old male referred for developmental delay that was found to have an Xp21.2 duplication containing IL1RAPL1 and multiple midline brain malformations

Molecular Alterations in Pediatric Sarcomas: Potential Targets for Immunotherapy

Purpose/results/discussion. Recurrent chromosomal translocations are common features of many human malignancies. While such translocations often serve as diagnostic markers, molecular analysis of these breakpoint regions and the characterization of the affected genes is leading to a greater understanding of the causal role such translocations play in malignant transformation. A common theme that is emerging from the study of tumor-associated translocations is the generation of chimeric genes that, when expressed, frequently retain many of the functional properties of the wild-type genes from which they originated. Sarcomas, in particular, harbor chimeric genes that are often derived from transcription factors, suggesting that the resulting chimeric transcription factors contribute to tumorigenesis. The tumor-specific expression of the fusion proteins make them likely candidates for tumor-associated antigens (TAA) and are thus of interest in the development of new therapies. The focus of this review will be on the translocation events associated with Ewing's sarcomas/PNETs (ES), alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS), malignant melanoma of soft parts (MMSP) (clear cell sarcoma), desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT), synovial sarcoma (SS), and liposarcoma (LS), and the potential for targeting the resulting chimeric proteins in novel immunotherapies

Geochemical cycling of silver in marine sediments along an offshore transect

Author Posting. © Elsevier B.V., 2008. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Marine Chemistry 110 (2008): 77-88, doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2008.02.008.Although there have been many surface water and water column silver (Ag) analyses in the ocean, the absence of high resolution pore water and solid phase Ag profiles has hampered our understanding of its oceanic geochemical cycling. This manuscript presents pore water and solid phase profiles of Ag along an offshore transect in the northeast Pacific off the coasts of Washington/Oregon states, U.S.A.. Pore water Ag concentrations are uniformly low (< 0.3 nmol kg-1) in profiles from sediments that have low bottom water oxygen concentrations, have shallow oxygen penetration depths (O2,pen < 1 cm) and underlie short water columns (< 500 m water depth). The solid phase Ag concentrations at these sites are also low (< 1 μmol kg-1). This is in contrast to sediments from intermediate water depths (~2000 m) that have similar oxygen penetration depths (O2,pen < 1 cm), but have elevated pore water Ag concentrations (0.7 nmol kg-1) at the sediment–water interface and higher solid phase Ag concentrations (4– 8 μmol kg-1). At sites from ~3000–4000 m water depth, where O2,pen > 1 cm, pore water Ag concentrations reach extremely high concentrations in the top 5 cm (8–24 nmol kg-1). High concentrations in pore waters provide evidence for a flux of Ag from ocean sediments, but the more oxidizing nature of these sediments precludes appreciable solid phase Ag accumulation in the top 30 cm (< 2 μmol kg-1). The accumulation of Ag in sediments is not simply dependent on redox conditions; more oxidizing sediments do not accumulate solid phase Ag, and neither do more reducing sediments from shallow water depths. Only a sufficiently long water column will result in additional delivery of Ag to sediments by scavenging onto settling particles, and result in Ag accumulation in sediments where O2,pen < 1 cm. Although upward Ag fluxes from sediments underlying shorter water columns are small (0.02–0.07 nmol cm-2 y-1), calculated fluxes increase for sediments underlying longer water columns and are largest for the more oxidizing sediments (2–5 nmol cm-2 y- 1). Calculated fluxes of pore water Ag to the solid phase at these more oxidizing stations are inconsistent with measured solid phase Ag concentrations and suggest that the pore water profiles represent non–steady state conditions. Clearly, the early diagenesis of Ag is a highly dynamic process and more research is required to fully understand Ag cycling in sediments in continental margin locations.Funding for this work was provided to JLM and F&M students by Research Corporation and the Hackman Summer Research Program at Franklin & Marshall College. Financial support to JLM and LHK was also provided by the National Science Foundation (OCE–0220892). LHK received additional support from a Hackett Scholarship from the University of Western Australia and the WHOI Academic Programs Office

Somatic retrotransposition in human cancer revealed by whole-genome and exome sequencing

Retrotransposons constitute a major source of genetic variation, and somatic retrotransposon insertions have been reported in cancer. Here, we applied TranspoSeq, a computational framework that identifies retrotransposon insertions from sequencing data, to whole genomes from 200 tumor/normal pairs across 11 tumor types as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Pan-Cancer Project. In addition to novel germline polymorphisms, we find 810 somatic retrotransposon insertions primarily in lung squamous, head and neck, colorectal, and endometrial carcinomas. Many somatic retrotransposon insertions occur in known cancer genes. We find that high somatic retrotransposition rates in tumors are associated with high rates of genomic rearrangement and somatic mutation. Finally, we developed TranspoSeq-Exome to interrogate an additional 767 tumor samples with hybrid-capture exome data and discovered 35 novel somatic retrotransposon insertions into exonic regions, including an insertion into an exon of the PTEN tumor suppressor gene. The results of this large-scale, comprehensive analysis of retrotransposon movement across tumor types suggest that somatic retrotransposon insertions may represent an important class of structural variation in cancer.National Cancer Institute (U.S.) (grant U24CA143867)National Cancer Institute (U.S.) (grant U24CA126546

Autocrine Transforming Growth Factor-β Growth Pathway in Murine Osteosarcoma Cell Lines Associated with Inability to Affect Phosphorylation of Retinoblastoma Protein

Purpose. Production of active transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β ) by human osteosarcoma may contribute to malignant progression through mechanisms that include induction of angiogenesis, immune suppression and autocrine growth stimulation of tumor cell growth.To study events associated with induction of cell proliferation by TGF-β , we have evaluated the TGF-β pathway in two murine osteosarcoma cell lines, K7 and K12

Elevated plasma and urinary concentration of green tea catechins associated with improved plasma lipid profile in healthy Japanese women

This study investigated green tea catechins in plasma and urine and chronic disease biomarkers. We hypothesized that plasma and urinary concentration of green tea catechins are associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes biomarkers. First void urine and fasting plasma samples were collected from 57 generally healthy females aged 38 to 73 years (mean, 52 ± 8 years) recruited in Himeji, Japan. The concentrations of plasma and urinary green tea catechins were determined by liquid chromatography coupled with mass tandem spectrometer. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglyceride, glucose, insulin, glycated hemoglobin, and C-reactive protein in plasma/serum samples were analyzed by a commercial diagnostic laboratory. Statistical associations were assessed using Spearman correlation coefficients. The results showed weak associations between plasma total catechin and triglyceride (r = -0.30) and LDL cholesterol (r = -0.28), whereas plasma (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate, (-)-epigallocatechin, (-)-epicatechin-3-gallate, and (-)-epicatechin exhibited weak to moderate associations with triglyceride or LDL cholesterol, but little associations with HDL cholesterol, body fat, and body mass index were evident. Urinary total catechin was weakly associated with triglyceride (r = -0.19) and LDL cholesterol (r = -0.15), whereas urinary (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (r = -0.33), (-)-epigallocatechin (r = -0.23), and (-)-epicatechin-3-gallate (r = -0.33) had weak to moderate correlations with triglyceride and similarly with body fat and body mass index. Both plasma (r = -0.24) and urinary (r = -0.24) total catechin, as well as individual catechins, were weakly associated with glycated hemoglobin. Plasma total and individual catechins were weakly to moderately associated with C-reactive protein, but not the case for urinary catechins. In conclusion, we found weak to moderate associations between plasma and urinary green tea catechin concentrations and plasma biomarkers of cardiovascular disease and diabetes

High Adenylyl Cyclase Activity and \u3cem\u3eIn Vivo\u3c/em\u3e cAMP Fluctuations in Corals Suggest Central Physiological Role

Corals are an ecologically and evolutionarily significant group, providing the framework for coral reef biodiversity while representing one of the most basal of metazoan phyla. However, little is known about fundamental signaling pathways in corals. Here we investigate the dynamics of cAMP, a conserved signaling molecule that can regulate virtually every physiological process. Bioinformatics revealed corals have both transmembrane and soluble adenylyl cyclases (AC). Endogenous cAMP levels in live corals followed a potential diel cycle, as they were higher during the day compared to the middle of the night. Coral homogenates exhibited some of the highest cAMP production rates ever to be recorded in any organism; this activity was inhibited by calcium ions and stimulated by bicarbonate. In contrast, zooxanthellae or mucus had \u3e1000-fold lower AC activity. These results suggest that cAMP is an important regulator of coral physiology, especially in response to light, acid/base disturbances and inorganic carbon levels