Cardiac Repair and Regenerative Potential in the Goldfish (Carassius auratus) Heart

The remarkable ability of the heart to regenerate has been demonstrated in the zebrafish and giant danio, two fish members of the cyprinid family. Here we use light and electron microscopy to examine the repair response in the heart of another cyprinid, the goldfish (Carassius auratus), following cautery injury to a small portion of its ventricularmyocardium. We observed a robust inflammatory response in the first two weeks consisting primarily of infiltrating macrophages, heterophils, and melanomacrophages. These inflammatory cells were identified in the lumen of the spongy heart, within the site of the wound, and attached to endocardial cells adjacent to the site of injury. Marked accumulation of collagen fibers and increased connective tissue were also observed during the first and second weeks in a transition zone between healthy and injured myocardium as well as in adjacent sub-epicardial regions. The accumulation of collagen and connective tissue however did not persist. The presence of capillaries was also noted in the injured area during repair. The replacement of the cauterized region of the ventricle by myocardial tissue was achieved in 6 weeks. The presence of ethynyl deoxyuridinepositive cardiac myocytes and partially differentiated cardiac myocytes during repair suggest effective cardiac myocyte driven regeneration mechanisms also operate in the injured goldfish heart, and are similar to those observed in zebrafish and giant danio. Our data suggest the ability for cardiac regeneration may be widely conserved among cyprinids

Phase 2 Outreach Plan: Georgia DOT ITS4US Deployment Project- Safe Trips in a Connected Transportation Network

693JJ32250011The Georgia Department of Transportation ITS4US Deployment project, Safe Trips in a Connected Transportation Network (ST-CTN), is leveraging innovative solutions, existing deployments, and collaboration to make a positive impact using transportation technology to support safety, mobility, sustainability, and accessibility. The ST-CTN concept is comprised of an integrated set of advanced transportation technology solutions (connected vehicle, transit signal priority, machine learning, predictive analytics) to support safe and complete trips, with a focus on accessibility for those with disabilities, older adults, and those with limited English proficiency. This document serves as the Outreach Plan for the deployment project. The Outreach Plan consists of the public relations and media strategy for communicating information about the project. It also defines the Outreach Site Lead for coordinating requests and the Site Outreach Spokesperson who will speak for the project. The Outreach activities described in this plan will be consistent with the Complete Trip Integration Plan being prepared for this project

Sites of Circadian Clock Neuron Plasticity Mediate Sensory Integration and Entrainment

Networks of circadian timekeeping in the brain display marked daily changes in neuronal morphology. In Drosophila melanogaster, the striking daily structural remodeling of the dorsal medial termini of the small ventral lateral neurons has long been hypothesized to mediate endogenous circadian timekeeping. To test this model, we have specifically abrogated these sites of daily neuronal remodeling through the reprogramming of neural development and assessed the effects on circadian timekeeping and clock outputs. Remarkably, the loss of these sites has no measurable effects on endogenous circadian timekeeping or on any of the major output functions of the small ventral lateral neurons. Rather, their loss reduces sites of glutamatergic sensory neurotransmission that normally encodes naturalistic time cues from the environment. These results support an alternative model: structural plasticity in critical clock neurons is the basis for proper integration of light and temperature and gates sensory inputs into circadian clock neuron networks

The use of public participation in the design of effective internet-based advanced traveler information systems

This thesis examines three methods of public participation and their potential application to the design of internet-based Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATISs). ATISs have the ability to reduce congestion by providing their users with real-time traffic information that can affect their travel decisions to avoid areas of high traffic. This study first uses a website evaluation method to determine a baseline of ATIS website quality. It then uses three forms of public participation, a survey, a future's workshop, and a feedback website to determine user preferences for Georgia's traveler information website, NaviGAtor. The results of the participation are then analyzed for their strengths and weaknesses and their applicability to ATIS development. The study concludes that the feedback website is the most applicable form of participation for ATIS design, followed by surveys that should be used periodically, and future's workshops that should be used rarely.MSCommittee Co-Chair: Bruce Stiftel; Committee Co-Chair: Kari Watkins; Committee Co-Chair: Randall Guensle

Ashram Road Corridor Plan

The following report was completed by at Georgia Institute of Technology in Spring 2012. This studio was a collaborative international exchange between Georgia Tech and Center for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) in Ahmedabad India. Eleven students travelled to India in December 2011 to establish a problem statement, learn about the planning process and policy in India, and collect data necessary to proceed through the Spring 2012 semester.Ashram Road is a major regional connection and the principal commercial thoroughfare along the western bank of the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad. The Ashram Road Corridor Study examines the stretch of Ashram Road from the Gandhi Ashram, north of Rishi Dadhichi Bridge, to Ellis Bridge. This heavily traversed corridor carries approximately 12,000 to 15,000 passenger cars during peak rush hours from its intersection with Nava Vadaj Road around Rishi Dadhichi Bridge to its intersection with Netaji and Bhagtacharya Roads around Sardar Bridge (City Development Plan). Commercial land uses south of the Nehru Bridge encourage a high level of activity in this area. Uses at the northern extent are influenced by the Gandhi Ashram and are more residential with some emerging commercial industries. Once a walled city on the eastern bank of the Sabarmati River, Ahmedabad now stands astride the intermittent water body. Recently, the Khari cut canal system was used to dam the river, artificially rendering the river a perennial water body. The Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation was established and tasked with the reinvention and reuse of the land area along the river. The redevelopment of the Sabarmati Riverfront is intended to further increase the activity along this corridor. There have been various plans drafted that involve or relate to the Sabarmati Riverfront, Ashram Road, and the Gandhi Ashram itself. Each of these plans has influenced the direction of the Ashram Road Corridor Study. The plans include: The City Development Plan (CDP) – A comprehensive city plan providing the vision for the City of Ahmedabad; The Riverfront Development Plan – A document detailing the redevelopment of the Sabarmati Riverfront and the direction for future development along the river; The Bus Rapid Transit Plan – A proposal for increasing public transit in the City of Ahmedabad through the bus rapid transit system; The Ashram Redevelopment Plan – A vision for the future development of Gandhi Ashram and the property surrounding the ashram grounds; The Metro Rapid Transit Plan – A proposal for heavy rail metro transit services in the City of Ahmedabad. These plans will be discussed in further detail in following sections. The Ashram Road Corridor Study was defined through careful consideration of these plans and an understanding of the problems resulting from conflicting interests in the project area.Michael Dobbin

NBBS isolated friom Pygeum africanum bark exhibits androgen antagonistic activity, inhibits AR nuclear translocation and prostate cancer cell growth

Extracts from Pygeum africanum are used in the treatment of prostatitis, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer (PCa). The ligand-activated human androgen receptor (AR) is known to control the growth of the prostate gland. Inhibition of human AR is therefore a major goal in treatment of patients. Here, we characterize the compound N-butylbenzene-sulfonamide (NBBS) isolated from P. africanum as a specific AR antagonist. This antihormonal activity inhibits AR- and progesterone receptor- (PR) mediated transactivation, but not the related human glucocorticoid receptor (GR) or the estrogen receptors (ERα or ERβ). Importantly, NBBS inhibits both endogenous PSA expression and growth of human PCa cells. Mechanistically, NBBS binds to AR and inhibits its translocation to the cell nucleus. Furthermore, using a battery of chemically synthesized derivatives of NBBS we revealed important structural aspects for androgen antagonism and have identified more potent AR antagonistic compounds. Our data suggest that NBBS is one of the active compounds of P. africanum bark and may serve as a naturally occurring, novel therapeutic agent for treatment of prostatic diseases. Thus, NBBS and its derivatives may serve as novel chemical platform for treatment prostatitis, BPH and PCa.status: publishe

Mother-child similarity in brain morphology: A comparison of structural characteristics of the brain’s reading network

Background Substantial evidence acknowledges the complex gene-environment interplay impacting brain development and learning. Intergenerational neuroimaging allows the assessment of familial transfer effects on brain structure, function and behavior by investigating neural similarity in caregiver-child dyads. Methods Neural similarity in the human reading network was assessed through well-used measures of brain structure (i.e., surface area (SA), gyrification (lG), sulcal morphology, gray matter volume (GMV) and cortical thickness (CT)) in 69 mother-child dyads (children’s age~11 y). Regions of interest for the reading network included left-hemispheric inferior frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobe and fusiform gyrus. Mother-child similarity was quantified by correlation coefficients and familial specificity was tested by comparison to random adult-child dyads. Sulcal morphology analyses focused on occipitotemporal sulcus interruptions and similarity was assessed by chi-square goodness of fit. Results Significant structural brain similarity was observed for mother-child dyads in the reading network for lG, SA and GMV (r = 0.349/0.534/0.542, respectively), but not CT. Sulcal morphology associations were non-significant. Structural brain similarity in lG, SA and GMV were specific to mother-child pairs. Furthermore, structural brain similarity for SA and GMV was higher compared to CT. Conclusion Intergenerational neuroimaging techniques promise to enhance our knowledge of familial transfer effects on brain development and disorders

COVID-19 Attitudes and Vaccine Hesitancy among an Agricultural Community in Southwest Guatemala: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Despite offering free-of-charge COVID-19 vaccines starting July 2021, Guatemala has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Latin America. From 28 September 2021 to 11 April 2022, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of community members, adapting a CDC questionnaire to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine access and hesitancy. Of 233 participants ≥ 12 years, 127 (55%) received ≥1 dose of COVID-19 and 4 (2%) reported prior COVID-19 illness. Persons ≥ 12 years old who were unvaccinated (n = 106) were more likely to be female (73% vs. 41%, p p n = 127). Among those ≥18 years, the main reported motivation for vaccination among vaccinated participants was to protect the health of family/friends (101/117, 86%); on the other hand, 40 (55%) unvaccinated persons reported little/no confidence in public health institutions recommending COVID-19 vaccination. Community- and/or home-based vaccination programs, including vaccination of families through the workplace, may better reach female homemakers and reduce inequities and hesitancy