Unexpected evolutionary proximity of eukaryotic and cyanobacterial enzymes responsible for biosynthesis of retinoic acid and its oxidation

Biosynthesis of retinoic acid from retinaldehyde (retinal) is catalysed by an aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) and its oxidation by cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs). Herein we show by phylogenetic analysis that the ALDHs and CYPs in the retinoic acid pathway in animals are much closer in evolutionary terms to cyanobacterial orthologs than would be expected from the standard models of evolution

Using the Man9(GlcNAc)2 – DC-SIGN pairing to probe specificity in photochemical immobilization

We demonstrate the expected preference of an immobilised oligosaccharide Man(9)(GlcNAc)(2) upon a 96-well photochemical array, for its known receptor, the cell-surface lectin Dendritic Cell-Specific ICAM3 Grabbing Nonintegrin (DC-SIGN) when compared to immobilised competing monosaccharides

Sleepy Head

This thesis submission contains four chapters of a novel that is set in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and that takes place over the course of one day in the summer of 2001. The story is narrated from a close third-person perspective that details the thoughts and perceptions of the novel's two main characters--Godwin and Sarah--who begin the day as strangers but eventually end up meeting when their friends take them out to a cowboy-themed bar called the Sleepy Saloon

Nondoxastic Attitudes and Religious Propositions

Doxastic (from the Greek work doxa, meaning belief) attitudes are those propositional attitudes that are equivalent to, or entail, belief. Discussions of faith, particularly its rationality, generally presume that it is doxastic. There are, however, numerous nondoxastic attitudes; why presume that faith is doxastic? Instead of belief, can faith be analyzed in terms of nondoxastic attitudes? Does faith that God exists always entail a belief that God exists? Hope is one example of a nondoxastic attitude. If one has hope that God exists, does that mean that one has faith that God exists? Acceptance is another nondoxastic attitude. Is accepting the tenets of a religion sufficient to make one a person of faith? It has also been suggested that the attitude of faith is a distinct, irreducible, nondoxastic attitude. What implications does this approach to faith have for the evaluation of faith? In what follows, it will be argued that faith can be analyzed in terms of nondoxastic attitudes; faith that God exists need not entail a belief that God exists. All three of the aforementioned nondoxastic attitudes (acceptance, hope, and faith) are viable approaches to faith. Furthermore, it will be argued that a distinct nondoxastic approach to faith (fiducial faith) is preferable for its benefits. These include, an important volitional component, important differences in its grounds for rationality, and recognition of an attitudinal component in faith

Topology of Function Spaces

This dissertation is a study of the relationship between a topological space X and varioushigher-order objects that we can associate with X. In particular the focus is on C(X), the setof all continuous real-valued functions on X endowed with the topology of pointwise convergence,the compact-open topology and an admissible topology. The topological propertiesof continuous function universals and zero set universals are also examined. The topologicalproperties studied can be divided into three types (i) compactness type properties, (ii) chainconditions and (iii) sequential type properties.The dissertation begins with some general results on universals describing methods ofconstructing universals. The compactness type properties of universals are investigatedand it is shown that the class of metric spaces can be characterised as those with a zeroset universal parametrised by a sigma-compact space. It is shown that for a space to have aLindelof-Sigma zero set universal the space must have a sigma-disjoint basis.A study of chain conditions in Ck(X) and Cp(X) is undertaken, giving necessary andsufficient conditions on a space X such that Cp(X) has calibre (kappa,lambda,mu), with a similar resultobtained for the Ck(X) case. Extending known results on compact spaces it is shown that if aspace X is omega-bounded and Ck(X) has the countable chain condition then X must be metric.The classic problem of the productivity of the countable chain condition is investigated inthe Ck setting and it is demonstrated that this property is productive if the underlying spaceis zero-dimensional. Sufficient conditions are given for a space to have a continuous functionuniversal parametrised by a separable space, ccc space or space with calibre omega1.An investigation of the sequential separability of function spaces and products is undertaken. The main results include a complete characterisation of those spaces such that Cp(X)is sequentially separable and a characterisation of those spaces such that Cp(X) is stronglysequentially separable

Quintessence in a quandary: prior dependence in dark energy models

The archetypal theory of dark energy is quintessence: a minimally coupled scalar field with a canonical kinetic energy and potential. By studying random potentials we show that quintessence imposes a restricted set of priors on the equation of state of dark energy. Focusing on the commonly-used parametrisation, $w(a)\approx w_0+w_a(1-a)$, we show that there is a natural scale and direction in the $(w_0, w_a)$ plane that distinguishes quintessence as a general framework. We calculate the expected information gain for a given survey and show that, because of the non-trivial prior information, it is a function of more than just the figure of merit. This allows us to make a quantitative case for novel survey strategies. We show that the scale of the prior sets target observational requirements for gaining significant information. This corresponds to a figure of merit FOM$\gtrsim 200$, a requirement that future galaxy redshift surveys will meet.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. For the busy reader, Fig. 1 is the money plot. v2: Minor changes, matches published version. Code open source at gitorious.org/random-quintessenc

Towards dynamic real-time daylight simulation

Real-time visual feedback can greatly assist the process of identifying and understanding complex cause and effect relationships. Whilst not all physical processes in the performance analysis of buildings can be simulated in real-time, some can. This paper introduces a web-based daylight simulation tool that uses variants of the daylight coefficients and split-flux methods implemented on the GPU to calculate the spatial distribution of daylight factors across a simple rectangular room. By combining real-time simulation with modern games technology, it is possible to create a highly visual and interactive design environment that allows all the governing parameters of internal daylighting - including room geometry - to be manipulated by the user in realtime, with detailed contextual results updating dynamically with each interactive change. The purpose of this tool is primarily educational, allowing users to gain a comprehensive understanding of the relationships between room dimensions, window placement and daylight distribution through a process of deliberate investigative play. A detailed parametric comparison with Radiance simulations resulted in a small modifier to the implemented method that produces a robust correlation which the authors argue makes this tool a valuable educational resource with potential applications in early design decision-making

Personalized medicine : the impact on chemistry

An effective strategy for personalized medicine requires a major conceptual change in the development and application of therapeutics. In this article, we argue that further advances in this field should be made with reference to another conceptual shift, that of network pharmacology. We examine the intersection of personalized medicine and network pharmacology to identify strategies for the development of personalized therapies that are fully informed by network pharmacology concepts. This provides a framework for discussion of the impact personalized medicine will have on chemistry in terms of drug discovery, formulation and delivery, the adaptations and changes in ideology required and the contribution chemistry is already making. New ways of conceptualizing chemistry’s relationship with medicine will lead to new approaches to drug discovery and hold promise of delivering safer and more effective therapies

Looking forward to making predictions

As described in the preceding pages, since the BGS was established in 1835, the British population has coped with many challenges. These have ranged from finding resources to fuel the Industrial Revolution, understanding and combating water-borne diseases such as typhoid, the threat of invasion and aerial bombardment, through to modern-day environmental problems and climate change. To help deal with these problems, decisionmakers from governments and other organisations have required our help and advice