Communicating the risks and hazards of methylmercury to the Ojibwe population

Fatal poisonings due to the consumption of fish containing high concentrations of methylmercury have been well documented, and demonstrate that the consumption of mercury-contaminated fish and other organisms can contribute to adverse human health effects. Native Americans of the Great Lakes region are one of the populations potentially subjected to greater concentrations of methylmercury than the general population because fishery is an integral part of their culture. The purpose of this study is to investigate the Ojibwe of the Great Lakes region\u27s understanding of the risks and hazards associated with the consumption of fish contaminated with methylmercury and increase their awareness, thus allowing them to make independent science-based decisions

Detection of Physiological and Affective Desensitization to Violent Video Games Using Facial Electromyography

Some evidence, using the framework of the General Aggression Model (GAM), suggests that exposure to violent video games decreases physiological arousal and blunts affective responses (i.e., produces desensitization) to subsequent exposure to violent or negative stimuli (Bartholow, Bushman, & Sestir, 2006; Carnagey, Anderson, & Bushman, 2007b). The current experimental study examined physiological and affective desensitization to violent video game play through the GAM. Participants played a violent or non-violent game. Afterwards, they were exposed to pleasant, neutral, and aggressive images. Facial EMG was used to assess participants’ reactions by measuring intensity of negative affect indicated by movements of the brow muscle region (i.e., corrugator supercilii; CS). Heart rate (HR) and self-reported affective valence were also gathered. It was hypothesized that participants who played the violent game would demonstrate less negative affect as measured by reactivity in the CS region and less HR reactivity to violent images than participants who played the nonviolent game. It was also expected that participants who played the violent game would differ from those who played the nonviolent game in their ratings of aggressive images. None of the hypotheses were supported. Results indicated the violent video game did not produce physiological and affective desensitization

Heterodimeric DNA methyltransferases as a platform for creating designer zinc finger methyltransferases for targeted DNA methylation in cells

The ability to target methylation to specific genomic sites would further the study of DNA methylation’s biological role and potentially offer a tool for silencing gene expression and for treating diseases involving abnormal hypomethylation. The end-to-end fusion of DNA methyltransferases to zinc fingers has been shown to bias methylation to desired regions. However, the strategy is inherently limited because the methyltransferase domain remains active regardless of whether the zinc finger domain is bound at its cognate site and can methylate non-target sites. We demonstrate an alternative strategy in which fragments of a DNA methyltransferase, compromised in their ability to methylate DNA, are fused to two zinc fingers designed to bind 9 bp sites flanking a methylation target site. Using the naturally heterodimeric DNA methyltransferase M.EcoHK31I, which methylates the inner cytosine of 5′-YGGCCR-3′, we demonstrate that this strategy can yield a methyltransferase capable of significant levels of methylation at the target site with undetectable levels of methylation at non-target sites in Escherichia coli. However, some non-target methylation could be detected at higher expression levels of the zinc finger methyltransferase indicating that further improvements will be necessary to attain the desired exclusive target specificity

The Effects of In-Stream Video Advertising on Ad Information Encoding: A Neurophysiological Study

Although in-stream video advertising is common, its effects on advertisement (ad) information encoding remain unclear. We investigated the effects of in-stream video advertising by comparing two groups: those watching mid-roll (between the program) ads and those watching pre- and post-roll (before and after the program, respectively) ads. To elucidate how advertising content is encoded in the context of in-stream video advertising, we integrated two theoretical frameworks: the negative emotion-memory model (NEMM) and the limited capacity model of motivated-mediated message processing (LC4MP). We used electroencephalography (EEG) to assess negative emotions and bottom-up attention during advertisement viewing. The findings indicate that the first mid-roll ad induced negative emotions, but these feelings were attenuated during subsequent mid-rolls. In addition, negative emotions induced by mid-roll ads attenuated the role of bottom-up attention in the information encoding process. However, the pre- and post-roll ads were not accompanied by negative emotions; thus, bottom-up attention played a major role in the information encoding of these ads. The results also suggest that despite the negative emotions experienced during mid-rolls, such transient negative reactions did not affect purchase intention for the advertised products

Women’s issues: Upward mobility through adult education

This paper addresses the issue of access and opportunity for women to advance both educationally and economically in work and profession settings through non-formal education exemplified by mentorships and non credit programming, and through formal education as exemplified by non-traditional students in higher education. The approaches to these issues will be through three separate theoretical perspectives. One perspective derives from Darkenwald, Scanlan, Valentine and Hayes who studied deterrents to participation. Another perspective derives from Rice’s work on the access of welfare women to higher education. A final perspective comes from Riley and Wrench who assert that women, in general, are denied the opportunity for mentoring relationships so often given to men in the workplace. Hence the papers address the upward mobility of women in the workplace, in rural communities and in higher education

Lotus japonicus alters in planta fitness of Mesorhizobium loti dependent on symbiotic nitrogen fixation.

Rhizobial bacteria are known for their capacity to fix nitrogen for legume hosts. However ineffective rhizobial genotypes exist and can trigger the formation of nodules but fix little if any nitrogen for hosts. Legumes must employ mechanisms to minimize exploitation by the ineffective rhizobial genotypes to limit fitness costs and stabilize the symbiosis. Here we address two key questions about these host mechanisms. What stages of the interaction are controlled by the host, and can hosts detect subtle differences in nitrogen fixation? We provide the first explicit evidence for adaptive host control in the interaction between Lotus japonicus and Mesorhizobium loti. In both single inoculation and co-inoculation experiments, less effective rhizobial strains exhibited reduced in planta fitness relative to the wildtype M. loti. We uncovered evidence of host control during nodule formation and during post-infection proliferation of symbionts within nodules. We found a linear relationship between rhizobial fitness and symbiotic effectiveness. Our results suggest that L. japonicus can adaptively modulate the fitness of symbionts as a continuous response to symbiotic nitrogen fixation

Lotus japonicus alters in planta fitness of Mesorhizobium loti dependent on symbiotic nitrogen fixation.

Rhizobial bacteria are known for their capacity to fix nitrogen for legume hosts. However ineffective rhizobial genotypes exist and can trigger the formation of nodules but fix little if any nitrogen for hosts. Legumes must employ mechanisms to minimize exploitation by the ineffective rhizobial genotypes to limit fitness costs and stabilize the symbiosis. Here we address two key questions about these host mechanisms. What stages of the interaction are controlled by the host, and can hosts detect subtle differences in nitrogen fixation? We provide the first explicit evidence for adaptive host control in the interaction between Lotus japonicus and Mesorhizobium loti. In both single inoculation and co-inoculation experiments, less effective rhizobial strains exhibited reduced in planta fitness relative to the wildtype M. loti. We uncovered evidence of host control during nodule formation and during post-infection proliferation of symbionts within nodules. We found a linear relationship between rhizobial fitness and symbiotic effectiveness. Our results suggest that L. japonicus can adaptively modulate the fitness of symbionts as a continuous response to symbiotic nitrogen fixation

Host control phenotypes when inoculated with two symbionts.

<p>Host control phenotypes when inoculated with two symbionts.</p