More Than Cows & Cooking: Newest Research Shows the Impact of 4-H

This article reports on a statewide survey of students\u27 use of out-of-school time conducted in 21 Montana counties. Only 17% of youth reported that they are not involved in out-of-school activities. Active students are more likely to lead healthier and happier lives than non-active youth. 4-H participants are less likely to shoplift or steal, smoke cigarettes, ride in a car with someone who has been drinking, or damage property for the fun of it. These participants are also more likely to develop self-confidence, social competence, and practical skills; to take on community leadership roles; and to feel more accepted and listened to by adults

A study of the origin and development of the English baronial boroughs

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of ArtsText from page 1: "Much has been written concerning specific baronial boroughs but with the exception of the work of Miss Mary Bateson, no general treatment of these boroughs as a class has been undertaken. The writer hopes, therefore, in the following pages, to do some justice to this portion of English institutional history. The origins of the baronial boroughs and the different classes into which they may be arranged will be first taken up."Includes bibliographical reference

Basal ganglia glucose utilization after recent precentral ablation in the monkey

In the macaque monkey, unilateral ablation of areas 4 and 6 of Brodmann result initially in a signficant decrease of glucose metabolic activity in the ipsilateral caudate nucleus, putamen, globus pallidus, substantia nigra, and subthalamic nucleus. The contralateral hemisphere shows nonsignificant but consistently decreased activity in the caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus. Cerebral blood flow is decreased in the same pattern as the glucose metabolic activity. The change in glucose metabolic activity result from loss of neurons known to project directly from the cerebral cortex to the basal ganglia and also from indirect effect(diaschisis) in basal ganglia structures that do not receive connections from the cerebral cortex.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/50310/1/410170503_ftp.pd

A densitometer for quantitative autoradiography

A low cost spot densitometer system is described. This system is useful for quantitative autoradiography of local cerebral glucose utilization, blood flow, receptor binding and other applications requiring densitometry on films. The densitometer can be used alone or interfaced to a microcomputer.The densitometer consists of a photographic enlarger, a digital multimeter, and the densitometer electronics. We have described how to construct, test and use the densitometer and how to interface the densitometer to a microcomputer.The advantages of this system are: (1) the ability to enlarge the image for accurate measurements from `small' areas; (2) a completely unobscured image during measurement; (3) low cost and (4) ease of use.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/25072/1/0000503.pd

The XUV environments of exoplanets from Jupiter-size to super-Earth

Planets that reside close-in to their host star are subject to intense high-energy irradiation. Extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) and X-ray radiation (together, XUV) is thought to drive mass-loss from planets with volatile envelopes. We present XMM–Newton observations of six nearby stars hosting transiting planets in tight orbits (with orbital period, Porb < 10 d), wherein we characterize the XUV emission from the stars and subsequent irradiation levels at the planets. In order to reconstruct the unobservable EUV emission, we derive a new set of relations from Solar TIMED/SEE data that are applicable to the standard bands of the current generation of X-ray instruments. From our sample, WASP-80b and HD 149026b experience the highest irradiation level, but HAT-P-11b is probably the best candidate for Ly α evaporation investigations because of the system’s proximity to the Solar system. The four smallest planets have likely lost a greater percentage of their mass over their lives than their larger counterparts. We also detect the transit of WASP-80b in the near-ultraviolet with the optical monitor on XMM–Newton

Occasional Publications of the Bounds Law Library, Number Five: Commonplace Books of Law: A Selection of Law-Related Notebooks

Occasional Publications of the Bounds Law Library, Number Five contains the transcriptions of five notebooks, one ledger, and one diary as well as critical introductions to each piece and an essay on notebooks in legal culture. Primary sources include: a seventeenth century notebook authored by multiple anonymous persons likely to have been students in the Inns of Courts, Alexander Dorcas\u27 ledger used from 1785 to 1817, George Josiah Sturges Walker\u27s 1826 Litchfield Law School notebook, Thomas K. Jackson\u27s 1871 diary, James Thomas Kirk\u27s notebook used from 1891 to 1916, Jerome T. Fuller\u27s notebook used from 1925 to 1935, and Hugo L. Black\u27s notebook used from 1938 to 1940.https://scholarship.law.ua.edu/occasional_publications/1004/thumbnail.jp

Evaluation of different decellularization protocols on the generation of pancreas-derived hydrogels

Different approaches have investigated the effects of different extracellular matrices (ECMs) and three-dimensional (3D) culture on islet function, showing encouraging results. Ideally, the proper scaffold should mimic the biochemical composition of the native tissue as it drives numerous signaling pathways involved in tissue homeostasis and functionality. Tissue-derived decellularized biomaterials can preserve the ECM composition of the native tissue making it an ideal scaffold for 3D tissue engineering applications. However, the decellularization process may affect the retention of specific components, and the choice of a proper detergent is fundamental in preserving the native ECM composition. In this study, we evaluated the effect of different decellularization protocols on the mechanical properties and biochemical composition of pancreatic ECM (pECM) hydrogels. Fresh porcine pancreas tissue was harvested, cut into small pieces, rinsed in water, and treated with two different detergents (sodium dodecyl sulfate [SDS] or Triton X-100) for 1 day followed by 3 days in water. Effective decellularization was confirmed by PicoGreen assay, Hoescht, and H&amp;E staining, showing no differences among groups. Use of a protease inhibitor (PI) was also evaluated. Effective decellularization was confirmed by PicoGreen assay and hematoxylin and eosin (H&amp;E) staining, showing no differences among groups. Triton-treated samples were able to form a firm hydrogel under appropriate conditions, while the use of SDS had detrimental effects on the gelation properties of the hydrogels. ECM biochemical composition was characterized both in the fresh porcine pancreas and all decellularized pECM hydrogels by quantitative mass spectrometry analysis. Fibrillar collagen was the major ECM component in all groups, with all generated hydrogels having a higher amount compared with fresh pancreas. This effect was more pronounced in the SDS-treated hydrogels when compared with the Triton groups, showing very little retention of other ECM molecules. Conversely, basement membrane and matricellular proteins were better retained when the tissue was pretreated with a PI and decellularized in Triton X-100, making the hydrogel more similar to the native tissue. In conclusion, we showed that all the protocols evaluated in the study showed effective tissue decellularization, but only when the tissue was pretreated with a PI and decellularized in Triton detergent, the biochemical composition of the hydrogel was closer to the native tissue ECM. The article compares different methodologies for the generation of a pancreas-derived hydrogel for tissue engineering applications. The biochemical characterization of the newly generated hydrogel shows that the material retains all the extracellular molecules of the native tissue and is capable of sustaining functionality of the encapsulated beta-cells

Role of Exonic Variation in Chemokine Receptor Genes on AIDS: CCRL2 F167Y Association with Pneumocystis Pneumonia

Chromosome 3p21–22 harbors two clusters of chemokine receptor genes, several of which serve as major or minor coreceptors of HIV-1. Although the genetic association of CCR5 andCCR2 variants with HIV-1 pathogenesis is well known, the role of variation in other nearby chemokine receptor genes remain unresolved. We genotyped exonic single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in chemokine receptor genes: CCR3, CCRL2, and CXCR6 (at 3p21) and CCR8 and CX3CR1 (at 3p22), the majority of which were non-synonymous. The individual SNPs were tested for their effects on disease progression and outcomes in five treatment-naïve HIV-1/AIDS natural history cohorts. In addition to the known CCR5 and CCR2associations, significant associations were identified for CCR3, CCR8, and CCRL2 on progression to AIDS. A multivariate survival analysis pointed to a previously undetected association of a non-conservative amino acid change F167Y in CCRL2 with AIDS progression: 167F is associated with accelerated progression to AIDS (RH = 1.90, P = 0.002, corrected). Further analysis indicated that CCRL2-167F was specifically associated with more rapid development of pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) (RH = 2.84, 95% CI 1.28–6.31) among four major AIDS–defining conditions. Considering the newly defined role of CCRL2 in lung dendritic cell trafficking, this atypical chemokine receptor may affect PCP through immune regulation and inducing inflammation