Investment intermediaries in economic development: Linking public pension funds to urban revitalization

It is difficult for large investors, such as pension funds, to make investments in EDMs because they must make very large investments. The investments in communities of need, however, are usually small. The most successful strategy to overcome these two problems is for investors to work in concert with intermediaries that can aggregate the investments and community partners that understand both the need of communities and know how to tell “the story” to investors.

Descriptive analysis of seizures and comorbidities associated with fragile X syndrome

Background Fragile X syndrome is characterized by a myriad of physical features, behavioral features, and medical problems. Commonly found behavioral features are hyperactivity, anxiety, socialization difficulties, and ASD. There is also a higher incidence than in the general population of strabismus, otitis media, and mitral valve prolapse. In addition, one of the most common medical problems associated with FXS is an increased risk of seizures. A subset of individuals carrying the full mutation of the FMR1 gene and diagnosed with fragile X syndrome (FXS) are reported to experience seizures, mostly during the first 10 years of their life span. Methods As part of a larger project to identify genetic variants that modify the risk of seizures, we collected clinical information from 49 carriers with FXS who experienced seizures and 46 without seizures. We compared seizure type and comorbid conditions based on the source of data as well as family history of seizures. Results We found that the concordance of seizure types observed by parents and medical specialists varied by type of seizure. The most common comorbid condition among those with seizures was autism spectrum disorder (47% per medical records vs. 33% per parent report compared with 19% among those without seizures per parent report); the frequency of other comorbid conditions did not differ among groups. We found a slightly higher frequency of family members who experienced seizures among the seizure group compared with the nonseizure group. Conclusion This study confirms previously reported features of seizures in FXS, supports additional genetic factors, and highlights the importance of information sources, altogether contributing to a better understanding of seizures in FXS

Clinical assessment of DSM-IV anxiety disorders in fragile X syndrome: prevalence and characterization

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability (ID). Anxiety and social withdrawal are considered core features of the FXS phenotype, yet there is limited diagnostic evidence of the prevalence of formal anxiety disorders in FXS. This study assessed the prevalence of anxiety disorders in a sample of 58 males and 39 females with FXS (ages 5.0–33.3 years). Participants’ parents completed the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule (ADIS-IV), a clinical interview based on DSM-IV criteria, and the Anxiety Depression and Mood Scale (ADAMS), a psychiatric disorders screening instrument normed in ID. We conducted cognitive (IQ) and autism (AUT) assessments and surveyed medication use. Despite a high rate of psychopharmacological treatment, 86.2% of males and 76.9% of females met criteria for an anxiety disorder, with social phobia and specific phobia the most commonly diagnosed. Proband status, gender, and IQ were not significantly related to any anxiety disorders, however significantly higher rates of a few anxiety disorders were found in older age and AUT groups. Significant correlations between ADIS diagnoses and ADAMS scores provided cross-validation of instruments, indicating that the ADIS is suitable for use in FXS. A greater percentage of our sample met criteria for most anxiety disorders than has been reported in other ID groups or the general population. The rate of anxiety compared to general ID suggests that the FMR1 full mutation confers an especially high risk for these disorders, regardless of factors commonly associated with FXS clinical involvement. A thorough clinical assessment and treatment of anxiety should be included in the FXS standard of care

Investment intermediaries in economic development: linking public pension funds to urban revitalization

nvesting in America’s inner cities is an innovative practice in which large institutional investors, such as public pension funds, can enjoy financial and social returns while spurring economic growth in underserved emerging domestic markets (EDMs). These investments are made through traditional assets (fixed income) and alternative assets (equity real estate and private equity). Contrary to market perception, targeted investments can produce competitive risk-adjusted returns along with secondary social benefits, such as jobs, workforce housing, and an increased tax base. Pension funds with targeted investment policies have been explicit and public about their desire to find investment opportunities in the underserved markets. Hebb (005) highlights the California Public Employees ’ Retirement System’s (CalPERS) targeted investment policy language referring to the “California Emerging Market Investments ” in which “underserved markets would include urban and rural areas undergoing or in need of revitalization where there are assets (e.g., an available labor pool, underused infrastructure) conducive to business development ” (CalPERS 005). New York City Employees Retirement System’s (NYCERS) economically targeted investment policy (adopted 198) and MassPRIM’s policy (adopte

Mule Deer Do More with Less: Comparing Their Nutritional Requirements and Tolerances with White-Tailed Deer

Congeneric species often share ecological niche space resulting in competitive interactions that either limit co-occurrence or lead to niche partitioning. Differences in fundamental nutritional niches mediated through character displacement or isolation during evolution are potential mechanisms that could explain overlapping distribution patterns of congenerics. We directly compared nutritional requirements and tolerances that influence the fundamental niche of mule (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus), which occur in allopatry and sympatry in similar realized ecological niches across their ranges in North America. Digestible energy and protein requirements and tolerances for plant fiber and plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) of both deer species were quantified using in vivo digestion and intake tolerance trials with six diets ranging in content of fiber, protein, and PSMs using tractable deer raised under identical conditions in captivity. We found that compared with white-tailed deer, mule deer required 54% less digestible protein and 21% less digestible energy intake per day to maintain body mass and nitrogen balance. In addition, they had higher fiber, energy, and dry matter digestibility and produced glucuronic acid (a byproduct of PSM detoxification) at a slower rate when consuming the monoterpene α-pinene. The mule deers’ enhanced physiological abilities to cope with low-quality, chemically defended forages relative to white-tailed deer might minimize potential competitive interactions in shared landscapes and provide a modest advantage to mule deer in habitats dominated by low-quality forages

Descriptive analysis of seizures and comorbidities associated with fragile X syndrome.

BackgroundFragile X syndrome is characterized by a myriad of physical features, behavioral features, and medical problems. Commonly found behavioral features are hyperactivity, anxiety, socialization difficulties, and ASD. There is also a higher incidence than in the general population of strabismus, otitis media, and mitral valve prolapse. In addition, one of the most common medical problems associated with FXS is an increased risk of seizures. A subset of individuals carrying the full mutation of the FMR1 gene and diagnosed with fragile X syndrome (FXS) are reported to experience seizures, mostly during the first 10 years of their life span.MethodsAs part of a larger project to identify genetic variants that modify the risk of seizures, we collected clinical information from 49 carriers with FXS who experienced seizures and 46 without seizures. We compared seizure type and comorbid conditions based on the source of data as well as family history of seizures.ResultsWe found that the concordance of seizure types observed by parents and medical specialists varied by type of seizure. The most common comorbid condition among those with seizures was autism spectrum disorder (47% per medical records vs. 33% per parent report compared with 19% among those without seizures per parent report); the frequency of other comorbid conditions did not differ among groups. We found a slightly higher frequency of family members who experienced seizures among the seizure group compared with the nonseizure group.ConclusionThis study confirms previously reported features of seizures in FXS, supports additional genetic factors, and highlights the importance of information sources, altogether contributing to a better understanding of seizures in FXS

Effects of Denaturants on the Dynamics of Loop Formation in Polypeptides

Quenching of the triplet state of tryptophan by close contact with cysteine has been used to measure the reaction-limited and diffusion-limited rates of loop formation in disordered polypeptides having the sequence cys-(ala-gly-gln)(j)-trp (j = 1–9). The decrease in the length-dependence of the reaction-limited rate for short chains in aqueous buffer, previously attributed to chain stiffness, is not observed at high concentrations of chemical denaturant (6 M GdmCl and 8 M urea), showing that denaturants increase chain flexibility. For long chains, both reaction-limited and diffusion-limited rates are significantly smaller in denaturant and exhibit a steeper length dependence. The results can be explained using end-to-end distributions from a wormlike chain model in which excluded volume interactions are incorporated by associating a 0.4–0.5 nm diameter hard sphere with the end of each virtual peptide bond. Fitting the data with this model shows that the denaturants reduce the persistence length from ∼0.6 nm to ∼0.4 nm, only slightly greater than the length of a peptide bond. The same model also describes the reported length dependence for the radii of gyration of chemically denatured proteins containing 50–400 residues. The end-to-end diffusion coefficients obtained from the diffusion-limited rates are smaller than the sum of the monomer diffusion coefficients and exhibit significant temperature dependence, suggesting that diffusion is slowed by internal friction arising from barriers to backbone conformational changes