Digital Commons Network^™

Origin And Health Impacts Of Emissions Of Toxic By-Products And Fine Particles From Combustion And Thermal Treatment Of Hazardous Wastes And Materials, Stephania A. Cormier, Slawo Lomnicki, Wayne Backes, Barry Dellinger

Faculty Publications

High-temperature, controlled incineration and thermal treatment of contaminated soils, sediments, and wastes at Superfund sites are often preferred methods of remediation of contaminated sites under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 and related legislation. Although these methods may be executed safely, formation of toxic combustion or reaction by-products is still a cause of concern. Emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHCs), including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans; and toxic metals (e.g., chromium VI) have historically been the focus of combustion and health effects research. However, fine particulate matter (PM) and ultrafine PM, which have been …

Pivotal Advance: Eosinophil Infiltration Of Solid Tumors Is An Early And Persistent Inflammatory Host Response, Stephania A. Cormier, Anna G. Taranova, Carrie Bedient, Thanh Nguyen, Cheryl Protheroe, Ralph Pero, Dawn Dimina, Sergei I. Ochkur, Katie O'Neill, Dana Colbert, Theresa R. Lombari, Stephanie Constant, Michael P. Mcgarry, James J. Lee, Nancy A. Lee

Faculty Publications

Tumor-associated eosinophilia has been observed in numerous human cancers and several tumor models in animals; however, the details surrounding this eosinophilia remain largely undefined and anecdotal. We used a B16-F10 melanoma cell injection model to demonstrate that eosinophil infiltration of tumors occurred from the earliest palpable stages with significant accumulations only in the necrotic and capsule regions. Furthermore, the presence of diffuse extracellular matrix staining for eosinophil major basic protein was restricted to the necrotic areas of tumors, indicating that eosinophil degranulation was limited to this region. Antibody-mediated depletion of CD4+ T cells and adoptive transfer of eosinophils suggested, respectively, …

Positive Selection On Nucleotide Substitutions And Indels In Accessory Gland Proteins Of The Drosophila Pseudoobscura Subgroup, Sheri Dixon Schully, Michael E. Hellberg

Faculty Publications

Genes encoding reproductive proteins often diverge rapidly due to positive selection on nucleotide substitutions. While this general pattern is well established, the extent to which specific reproductive genes experience similar selection in different clades has been little explored, nor have possible targets of positive selection other than nucleotide substitutions, such as indels, received much attention. Here, we inspect for the signature of positive selection in the genes encoding five accessory gland proteins (Acps) (Acp26Aa, Acp32CD, Acp53Ea, Acp62F, and Acp70A) originally described from Drosophila melanogaster but with recognizable orthologues in the D. pseudoobscura subgroup. We compare patterns of selection within the …

Initiation Of Apoptosis And Autophagy By Photodynamic Therapy, David Kessel, M. Graça H. Vicente, John J. Reiners

Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives: This study was designed to examine modes of cell death after photodynamic therapy (PDT). Study Design: Murine leukemia L1210 cells and human prostate Bax-deficient DU145 cells were examined after PDT-induced photodamage to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Phase contrast, fluorescence and electron microscopy were used to identify changes in cellular morphology, chromatin condensation, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, and formation of phagolysosomes. Western blots were used to assess the processing of LC3-I to LC3-II, a marker for autophagy. Inhibitors of apoptosis and/or autophagy were used to delineate the contributions of the two pathways to the effects of PDT. …

Frequency-Dependent Squeeze-Amplitude Attenuation And Squeeze-Angle Rotation By Electromagnetically Induced Transparency For Gravitational-Wave Interferometers, Eugeniy E. Mikhailov, Keisuke Goda, Thomas Corbitt, Nergis Mavalvala

Faculty Publications

We study the effects of frequency-dependent squeeze-amplitude attenuation and squeeze-angle rotation by electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) on gravitational-wave (GW) interferometers. We propose the use of low-pass, bandpass, and high-pass EIT filters, an S-shaped EIT filter, and an intracavity EIT filter to generate frequency-dependent squeezing for injection into the antisymmetric port of GW interferometers. We find that the EIT filters have several advantages over the previous filter designs with regard to optical losses, compactness, and the tunability of the filter linewidth. © 2006 The American Physical Society.

Lipid Trafficking To The Outer Membrane Of Gram-Negative Bacteria, William T. Doerrler

Faculty Publications

The envelope of Gram-negative bacteria is composed of two distinct lipid membranes: an inner membrane and outer membrane. The outer membrane is an asymmetric bilayer with an inner leaflet of phospholipids and an outer leaflet of lipopolysaccharide. Most of the steps of lipid synthesis occur within the cytoplasmic compartment of the cell. Lipids must then be transported across the inner membrane and delivered to the outer membrane. These topological features combined with the ability to apply the tools of biochemistry and genetics make the Gram-negative envelope a fascinating model for the study of lipid trafficking. In addition, as lipopolysaccharide is …

The Shoot-Specific Expression Of Γ-Glutamylcysteine Synthetase Directs The Long-Distance Transport Of Thiol-Peptides To Roots Conferring Tolerance To Mercury And Arsenic, Yujing Li, Om Parkash Dankher, Laura Carreira, Aaron P. Smith, Richard B. Meagher

Faculty Publications

Thiol-peptides synthesized as intermediates in phytochelatin (PC) biosynthesis confer cellular tolerance to toxic elements like arsenic, mercury and cadmium, but little is known about their long-distance transport between plant organs. A modified bacterial γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase (ECS) gene, S1pt::ECS, was expressed in the shoots of the ECS-deficient, heavy-metal-sensitive cad2-1 mutant of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). S1pt::ECS directed strong ECS protein expression in the shoots, but no ECS was detected in the roots of transgenic plant lines. The S1pt::ECS gene restored full mercury tolerance and partial cadmium tolerance to the mutant and enhanced arsenate tolerance significantly beyond wild-type levels. After arsenic treatment, the …

Antagonisms, Mutualisms And Commensalisms Affect Outbreak Dynamics Of The Southern Pine Beetle, Richard W. Hofstetter, James T. Cronin, Kier D. Klepzig, John C. Moser, Matthew P. Ayres

Faculty Publications

Feedback from community interactions involving mutualisms are a rarely explored mechanism for generating complex population dynamics. We examined the effects of two linked mutualisms on the population dynamics of a beetle that exhibits outbreak dynamics. One mutualism involves an obligate association between the bark beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis and two mycangial fungi. The second mutualism involves Tarsonemus mites that are phoretic on D. frontalis ("commensal"), and a blue-staining fungus, Ophiostoma minus. The presence of O. minus reduces beetle larval survival ("antagonistic") by outcompeting beetle-mutualistic fungi within trees yet supports mite populations by acting as a nutritional mutualist. These linked interactions potentially …

S06rs Sgb No. 29 (English Grad), Hattaway

Student Senate Enrolled Legislation

A BILL

To appropriate $2100.00 to the English Graduate Student Association to help defray the costs of sponsoring From Spoken Word to Visual Zines:

Multiple Voices Composing for Community Involvement

Louisiana Agriculture Spring, 2006, Lsu Agcenter

Louisiana Agriculture

No abstract provided.

Louisiana Survey 2006 (Spring), Lsu Reilly Center For Media And Public Affairs

Reilly Center Louisiana Surveys

The first survey conducted in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the spring 2006 Louisiana Survey revealed that the catastrophic effects of the hurricanes in the summer of 2005 wiped out the incremental gains that the Survey had detected in resident optimism for the future of the state. Other aspects measured by the spring 2006 Survey included:

• a perception that all Louisiana residents, regardless of socioeconomic status, were "in the same boat" following the hurricanes
• the emergence of rebuilding as the most prominent problem facing the state, and the subsequent decline of confidence in the future of the state …

Nitrate-Dependent Anaerobic Carbon Monoxide Oxidation By Aerobic Co-Oxidizing Bacteria, G. M. King

Faculty Publications

Two dissimilatory nitrate-reducing (Burkholderia xenovorans LB400 and Xanthobacter sp. str. COX) and two denitrifying isolates (Stappia aggregata IAM 12614 and Bradyrhizobium sp. str. CPP), previously characterized as aerobic CO oxidizers, consumed CO at ecologically relevant levels (<100 >ppm) under anaerobic conditions in the presence, but not absence, of nitrate. None of the isolates were able to grow anaerobically with CO as a carbon or energy source, however, and nitrate-dependent anaerobic CO oxidation was inhibited by headspace concentrations >100-1000 ppm. Surface soils collected from temperate, subtropical and tropical forests also oxidized CO under anaerobic conditions with no lag. The observed activity …

Global Stabilization For Systems Evolving On Manifolds, M. Malisoff, M. Krichman, E. Sontag

Faculty Publications

We show that any globally asymptotically controllable system on any smooth manifold can be globally stabilized by a state feedback. Since we allow discontinuous feedbacks, we interpret the solutions of our systems in the "sample and hold" sense introduced by Clarke, Ledyaev, Sontag, and Subbotin (CLSS). We generalize their theorem which is the special case of our result for systems on Euclidean space. We apply our result to the input-to-state stabilization of systems on manifolds with respect to actuator errors, under small observation noise. © Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2006.

Effect Of Osmotic Immobilization On Refrigerated Storage And Cryopreservation Of Sperm From A Viviparous Fish, The Green Swordtail Xiphophorus Helleri, Huiping Yang, Leona Hazlewood, Ronald B. Walter, Terrence R. Tiersch

Faculty Publications

In this study, refrigerated storage and cryopreservation of sperm from the green swordtail Xiphophorus helleri were investigated. Previous cryopreservation research in this species utilized motile sperm because unlike in most fish species, Xiphophorus sperm can remain continuously motile after collection for a week with refrigerated storage. However, this species reproduces by internal fertilization, and given the significant requirements for motility within the female reproductive tract and potential limitations on sperm energetic capacities, immobilization of sperm prior to insemination could be used to improve fertilization success. Thus, the goal in this study was to use osmotic pressure to inhibit the motility …

Better Health Statistics: The Cuban Experience [9], Mariana Lazo, Manuel Franco, Richard Cooper, Pedro Orduñez

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Fractional Dispersion Model For Overland Solute Transport, Zhi Qiang Deng, João L.M.P. De Lima, M. Isabel P. De Lima, Vijay P. Singh

Faculty Publications

Using the kinematic-wave overland flow equation and a fractional dispersion-advection equation, a process-oriented, physically-based model is developed for overland solute transport. Two scenarios, one consisting of downslope and the other of upslope rainstorm movements, are considered for numerical computations. Under these conditions, the hydrograph displays a long-tailed distribution due to the variation in flow velocity in both time and distance. The solute transport exhibits a complex behavior. Pollutographs are characterized by a steep rising limb, with a peak, and a long, stretched receding limb; whereas the solute concentration distributions feature a rapid receding limb followed by a long stretched rising …

Trehalose Uptake Through P2x7 Purinergic Channels Provides Dehydration Protection, Gloria D. Elliott, Xiang Hong Liu, Jennifer L. Cusick, Michael Menze, Jill Vincent, Trudy Witt, Steve Hand, Mehmet Toner

Faculty Publications

The tetra-anionic form of ATP (ATP4-) is known to induce monovalent and divalent ion fluxes in cells that express purinergic P2X 7 receptors and with sustained application of ATP it has been shown that dyes as large as 831 Da can permeate the cell membrane. The current study explores the kinetics of loading α,α-trehalose (342 Da) into ATP stimulated J774.A1 cells, which are known to express the purinergic P2X 7 receptor. Cells that were incubated at 37°C in a 50 mM phosphate buffer (pH 7.0) containing 225 mM trehalose and 5 mM ATP, were shown to load trehalose linearly over …

The Prp19 U-Box Crystal Structure Suggests A Common Dimeric Architecture For A Class Of Oligomeric E3 Ubiquitin Ligases, Craig W. Vander Kooi, Melanie D. Ohi, Joshua A. Rosenberg, Michael L. Oldham, Marcia E. Newcomer, Kathleen L. Gould, Walter J. Chazin

Faculty Publications

Prp19 is an essential splicing factor and a member of the U-box family of E3 ubiquitin ligases. Prp19 forms a tetramer via a central coiled-coil domain. Here, we show the U-box domain of Prp19 exists as a dimer within the context of the Prp19 tetramer. A high-resolution structure of the homodimeric state of the Prp19 U-box was determined by X-ray crystallography. Mutation of the U-box dimer interface abrogates U-box dimer formation and is lethal in vivo. The structure of the U-box dimer enables construction of a complete model of Prp19 providing insights into how the tetrameric protein functions as an …

Gumbo Yearbook, Class Of 2006, Louisiana State University And Agricultural And Mechanical College

Gumbo Yearbook

The Gumbo yearbook chronicles the entire academic year at LSU. In words and especially photos, the Gumbo shows the people, places, and events that make each year unique. In addition to formal portraits of schools and departments, the book contains hundreds of snapshots of students with their friends and dozens of pages showcasing organizations.

Plasmid-Mediated High-Level Gentamicin Resistance Among Enteric Bacteria Isolated From Pet Turtles In Louisiana, María Alejandra Díaz, Richard Kent Cooper, Axel Cloeckaert, Ronald John Siebeling

Faculty Publications

The sale of small turtles is banned by the Food and Drug Administration from the U.S. market due to concerns about their excretion of Salmonella spp. To produce a safe pet for the export market, the Louisiana pet turtle industry uses gentamicin sulfate baths (1,000 μg/ml) to eradicate Salmonella spp. from turtle eggs. In 1999, we analyzed bacterial samples recovered from turtle farms and found that strains of Salmonella enterica subsp. arizonae and other bacteria, such as Enterobacter cloacae, Citrobacter freundii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, were resistant to high concentrations of gentamicin (>2,000 μg/ml) and to other aminoglycosides. …

Louisiana Agriculture Winter, 2006, Lsu Agcenter

Louisiana Agriculture

No abstract provided.

Action Principle Formulation For Motion Of Extended Bodies In General Relativity, Jeeva Anandan, Naresh Dadhich, Parampreet Singh

Faculty Publications

We present an action principle formulation for the study of motion of an extended body in General Relativity in the limit of weak gravitational field. This gives the classical equations of motion for multipole moments of arbitrary order coupling to the gravitational field. In particular, a new force due to the octupole moment is obtained. The action also yields the gravitationally induced phase shifts in quantum interference experiments due to the coupling of all multipole moments.

Squeezed-State Source Using Radiation-Pressure-Induced Rigidity, Thomas Corbitt, Yanbei Chen, Farid Khalili, David Ottaway, Sergey Vyatchanin, Stan Whitcomb, Nergis Mavalvala

Faculty Publications

We propose an experiment to extract ponderomotive squeezing from an interferometer with high circulating power and low mass mirrors. In this interferometer, optical resonances of the arm cavities are detuned from the laser frequency, creating a mechanical rigidity that dramatically suppresses displacement noises. After taking into account imperfection of optical elements, laser noise, and other technical noise consistent with existing laser and optical technologies and typical laboratory environments, we expect the output light from the interferometer to have measurable squeezing of 5 dB, with a frequency-independent squeeze angle for frequencies below 1 kHz. This squeeze source is well suited for …

Pilibacter Termitis Gen. Nov., Sp. Nov., A Lactic Acid Bacterium From The Hindgut Of The Formosan Subterranean Termite (Coptotermes Formosanus), Dennis T. Higashiguchi, Claudia Husseneder, J. Kenneth Grace, John M. Berestecky

Faculty Publications

A previously undescribed anaerobic, heterofermentative, non-spore-forming, Gram-positive rod was isolated from the hindgut of the Formosan subterranean termite Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki. The DNA G + C content of this bacterium was 37.8 mol%. Sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene revealed that this organism is related to, but distinct from, several genera of lactic acid bacteria, principally several species of the genus Enterococcus. Phenotypic traits that serve to separate this organism from related genera include high levels of the cellular fatty acid C18:1ω9c and the production of ethanol along with lactic acid as fermentation products. Based on the collected phylogenetic …

Introduction: Self-Organization In Nonequilibrium Chemical Systems, Irving R. Epstein, John A. Pojman, Oliver Steinbock

Faculty Publications

The field of self-organization in nonequilibrium chemical systems comprises the study of dynamical phenomena in chemically reacting systems far from equilibrium. Systematic exploration of this area began with investigations of the temporal behavior of the Belousov-Zhabotinsky oscillating reaction, discovered accidentally in the former Soviet Union in the 1950s. The field soon advanced into chemical waves in excitable media and propagating fronts. With the systematic design of oscillating reactions in the 1980s and the discovery of Turing patterns in the 1990s, the scope of these studies expanded dramatically. The articles in this Focus Issue provide an overview of the development and …

Smelfungus's Strumpet Smollett's Iconoclastic Reading Of The Medici Venus In Travels Through France And Italy, William Gibson

1650-1850: Ideas, Aesthetics, and Inquiries in the Early Modern Era

No abstract provided.

The Pilgrim's Progress As World Literature John Bunyan And George Simeon Mwase In Nyasaland, Isabel Hofmeyr

1650-1850: Ideas, Aesthetics, and Inquiries in the Early Modern Era

No abstract provided.

The Pilgrim's Progress Among Aboriginal Canadians Missionary Translations Of Bunyan Into Cree And Inuktitut, Arlette Zinck, Sylvia Brown

1650-1850: Ideas, Aesthetics, and Inquiries in the Early Modern Era

No abstract provided.

Case Study: Cholera, Edward Laws

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Open Systems Viewed Through Their Conservative Extensions, Alexander Figotin, Stephen P. Shipman

Faculty Publications

A typical linear open system is often defined as a component of a larger conservative one. For instance, a dielectric medium, defined by its frequency dependent electric permittivity and magnetic permeability is a part of a conservative system which includes the matter with all its atomic complexity. A finite slab of a lattice array of coupled oscillators modelling a solid is another example. Assuming that such an open system is all one wants to observe, we ask how big a part of the original conservative system (possibly very complex) is relevant to the observations, or, in other words, how big …