Views from the coalface: chemo-sensors, sensor networks and the semantic sensor web

Currently millions of sensors are being deployed in sensor networks across the world. These networks generate vast quantities of heterogeneous data across various levels of spatial and temporal granularity. Sensors range from single-point in situ sensors to remote satellite sensors which can cover the globe. The semantic sensor web in principle should allow for the unification of the web with the real-word. In this position paper, we discuss the major challenges to this unification from the perspective of sensor developers (especially chemo-sensors) and integrating sensors data in real-world deployments. These challenges include: (1) identifying the quality of the data; (2) heterogeneity of data sources and data transport methods; (3) integrating data streams from different sources and modalities (esp. contextual information), and (4) pushing intelligence to the sensor level

Cerebroretinal Vasculopathies

Cerebroretinal vasculopathy (CRV) and the related diseases hereditary endotheliopathy with retinopathy, neuropathy, and stroke (HERNS), hereditary vascular retinopathy (HVR) and hereditary systemic angiopathy (HSA) [subsequently combined as retinovasculopathy and cerebral leukodystrophy (RVCL)] are devastating autosomal-dominant disorders of early to middle-age onset presenting with a core constellation of neurologic and ophthalmologic findings. This family of diseases is linked by specific mutations targeting a core region of a gene. Frameshift mutations in the carboxyl-terminus of three prime exonuclease-1 (TREX1), the major mammalian 3' to 5' DNA exonuclease on chromosome 3p21.1-p21.3, result in a systemic vasculopathy that follows an approximately 5-year course leading to death secondary to progressive neurologic decline, with sometimes a more protracted course in HERNS. Neuropathological features include a fibrinoid vascular necrosis or thickened hyalinized vessels associated with white matter ischemia, necrosis and often striking dystrophic calcifications. Ultrastructural studies of the vessel walls often demonstrate unusual multilaminated basement membranes

Cytokinins in Tobacco and Wheat Chloroplasts. Occurrence and Changes Due to Light/Dark Treatment

Although cytokinins (CKs) affect a number of processes connected with chloroplasts, it has never been rigorously proven that chloroplasts contain CKs. We isolated intact chloroplasts from tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv SR1) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv Ritmo) leaves and determined their CKs by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectroscopy. Chloroplasts from both species contained a whole spectrum of CKs, including free bases (zeatin and isopentenyladenine), ribosides (zeatin riboside, and isopentenyladenosine), ribotides (isopentenyladenosine-5′-monophosphate, zeatin riboside-5′-monophosphate, and dihydrozeatin riboside-5′-monophosphate), and N-glucosides (zeatin-N(9)-glucoside, dihydrozeatin-N(9)-glucoside, zeatin-N(7)-glucoside, and isopentenyladenine-N-glucosides). In chloroplasts there was a moderately higher relative amount of bases, ribosides, and ribotides than in leaves, and a significantly increased level of N(9)-glucosides of zeatin and dihydrozeatin. Tobacco and wheat chloroplasts were prepared from leaves at the end of either a dark or light period. After a dark period, chloroplasts accumulated more CKs than after a light period. The differences were moderate for free bases and ribosides, but highly significant for glucosides. Tobacco chloroplasts from dark-treated leaves contained zeatin riboside-O-glucoside and dihydrozeatin riboside-O-glucoside, as well as a relatively high CK oxidase activity. These data show that chloroplasts contain a whole spectrum of CKs and the enzymatic activity necessary for their metabolism