Assessing pesticide concentrations and fluxes in the stream of a small vineyard catchment. Effect of sampling frequency

This study reports on the occurrence and behaviour of six pesticides and one metabolite in a small stream draining a vineyard catchment. Base flow and flood events were monitored in order to assess the variability of pesticide concentrations according to the season and to evaluate the role of sampling frequency on the evaluation of fluxes estimates. Results showed that dissolved pesticide concentrations displayed a strong temporal and spatial variability. A large mobilisation of pesticides was observed during floods, with total dissolved pesticide fluxes per event ranging from 5.7*10-3 g/Ha to 0.34 g/Ha. These results highlight the major role of floods in the transport of pesticides in this small stream which contributed to more than 89% of the total load of diuron during August 2007. The evaluation of pesticide loads using different sampling strategies and method calculation, showed that grab sampling largely underestimated pesticide concentrations and fluxes transiting through the stream

Design for the Boynton Yards industrial area

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1992.Includes bibliographical references (p. 52-53).Assuming the need to transform industrial culture, one might begin with an attempt to re-value the industrial environment itself. While mistrusting those practices that left behind derelict sites and structures, we inherit these artifacts with the obligation to improvise new forms on the themes they establish. Reoccupation of an abandoned industrial area becomes then, a project of recuperation specific to a particular si te and culture. The area under investigation is known as the Boynton Yards in Somerville Massachusetts. From the early 19th century until recently it had been a vital industrial district. Today, the site is largely abandoned. This project proposes to make a gesture of recognition to those physical and cultural norms that formed the site, with the intention of re-valuing its current status. Its potential to function as a zone of spatial and social orientation is exploited in a design for a series of loading docks at the edge the Yards.by Scott William Rabiet.M.Arch

Asymptotic behavior for multi-scale PDMP's

We study the asymptotic behaviour of a sequence of Piecewise Constant Markov Processes (in short PDMP) in which three different scales are at work: a rapid, a medium and a slow one. At the limit the rapid scale gives rise to a diffusion part (this is a CLT type regime), the medium scale produces a drift part (this is the law of large numbers type regime) and the slaw rate gives a finite variation jump process. So at the limit we obtain a stochastic differential equation which is similar to the P DM P evolution but now, in-between two jumps the equation evolutes as a general diffusion process including a Brownian part and moreover, an infinity of jumps occur in each finite time interval. This type of equations seems to be new in the literature and our first goal is to prove existence and uniqueness of the solution for them. Afterwords we study the regularity of the semigroup and we use it in order to prove the convergence result mentioned in the beginning

An information theoretic necessary condition for perfect reconstruction

This article proposes a new information theoretic necessary condition for reconstructing a discrete random variable $X$ based on the knowledge of a set of discrete functions of $X$. The reconstruction condition is derived from the Shannon's Lattice of Information (LoI) \cite{Shannon53} and two entropic metrics proposed respectively by Shannon and Rajski. This theoretical material being relatively unknown and/or dispersed in different references, we provide a complete and synthetic description of the LoI concepts like the total, common and complementary informations with complete proofs. The two entropic metrics definitions and properties are also fully detailled and showed compatible with the LoI structure. A new geometric interpretation of the Lattice structure is then investigated that leads to a new necessary condition for reconstructing the discrete random variable $X$ given a set $\{ X_0$,...,$X_{n-1} \}$ of elements of the lattice generated by $X$. Finally, this condition is derived in five specific examples of reconstruction of $X$ from a set of deterministic functions of $X$: the reconstruction of a symmetric random variable from the knowledge of its sign and of its absolute value, the reconstruction of a binary word from a set of binary linear combinations, the reconstruction of an integer from its prime signature (Fundamental theorem of arithmetics) and from its reminders modulo a set of coprime integers (Chinese reminder theorem), and the reconstruction of the sorting permutation of a list from a set of 2-by-2 comparisons. In each case, the necessary condition is shown compatible with the corresponding well-known results.Comment: 17 pages, 9 figure

Role of the complement in experimental sepsis

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142122/1/jlb0467.pd

Factor IX San Dimas. Substitution of glutamine for Arg-4 in the propeptide leads to incomplete gamma-carboxylation and altered phospholipid binding properties.

DNA sequence analysis of the Factor IX gene from a hemophilia B patient (98% Factor IX antigen; less than 0.01 unit/ml clotting activity) has identified a point mutation in exon II. A guanine to adenine transition causes the substitution of a glutamine codon for an arginine codon at -4 in the propeptide of Factor IX. This variant, termed Factor IX San Dimas, circulates in the plasma as proFactor IX with a mutant 18-amino acid propeptide still attached. Like Factor IX Cambridge (Arg-1----Ser), Factor IX San Dimas is unable to express metal-induced epitopes recognized by conformation-specific polyclonal antibodies. Amino acid analysis of the alkaline hydrolysate indicates that purified Factor IX San Dimas contains a reduced number of gamma-carboxyglutamyl residues compared to Factor IX. However, this protein undergoes metal-induced quenching of the intrinsic fluorescence. In addition, Factor IX San Dimas is unable to interact with phospholipid vesicles. The absence of coagulant activity in Factor IX San Dimas can be attributed to impaired calcium-induced conformational changes and loss in the ability to bind phospholipid vesicles in the presence of calcium ions

The FPR2-induced rise in cytosolic calcium in human neutrophils relies on an emptying of intracellular calcium stores and is inhibited by a gelsolin-derived PIP2-binding peptide

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The molecular basis for neutrophil recognition of chemotactic peptides is their binding to specific G-protein-coupled cell surface receptors (GPCRs). Human neutrophils express two pattern recognition GPCRs, FPR1 and FPR2, which belong to the family of formyl peptide receptors. The high degree of homology between these two receptors suggests that they share many functional and signal transduction properties, although they exhibit some differences with respect to signaling. The aims of this study were to determine whether FPR2 triggers a unique signal that allows direct influx of extracellular calcium without the emptying of intracellular calcium stores, and whether the gelsolin-derived PIP₂-binding peptide, PBP10, selectively inhibits FPR2-mediated transient rise in intracellular Ca²⁺.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The transient rise in intracellular Ca²⁺induced by agonists for FPR1 or FPR2 in human neutrophils occurred also in the presence of a chelator of Ca²⁺(EGTA). PBP10 inhibited not only FPR2-induced oxidase activity, but also the transient rise in intracellular Ca²⁺.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Ca²⁺signaling mediated <it>via </it>FPR2 follows the same route as FPR1, which involves initial emptying of the intracellular stores. PBP10 inhibits selectively the signals generated by FPR2, both with respect to NADPH-oxidase activity and the transient rise in intracellular Ca²⁺induced by agonist exposure.</p