Digital Commons Network^™

Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Protein Ul37 Interacts With Viral Glycoprotein Gk And Membrane Protein Ul20 And Functions In Cytoplasmic Virion Envelopment, Nithya Jambunathan, Dmitry Chouljenko, Prashant Desai, Anu Susan Charles, Ramesh Subramanian, Vladimir N. Chouljenko, Konstantin G. Kousoulas

Faculty Publications

We have shown that glycoprotein K (gK) and its interacting partner, the UL20 protein, play crucial roles in virion envelopment. Specifically, virions lacking either gK or UL20 fail to acquire an envelope, thus causing accumulation of capsids in the cytoplasm of infected cells. The herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) UL37 protein has also been implicated in cytoplasmic virion envelopment. To further investigate the role of UL37 in virion envelopment, the recombinant virus DC480 was constructed by insertion of a 12-amino-acid protein C (protC) epitope tag within the UL37 amino acid sequence immediately after amino acid 480. The DC480 mutant virus …

Enteric Yaiw Is A Surface-Exposed Outer Membrane Lipoprotein That Affects Sensitivity To An Antimicrobial Peptide, Markus F.F. Arnold, Paola Caro-Hernandez, Karen Tan, Giulia Runti, Silvia Wehmeier, Marco Scocchi, William T. Doerrler, Graham C. Walker, Gail P. Ferguson

Faculty Publications

yaiW is a previously uncharacterized gene found in enteric bacteria that is of particular interest because it is located adjacent to the sbmA gene, whose bacA ortholog is required for Sinorhizobium meliloti symbiosis and Brucella abortus pathogenesis. We show that yaiW is cotranscribed with sbmA in Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and Typhimurium strains. We present evidence that the YaiW is a palmitate-modified surface exposed outer membrane lipoprotein. Since BacA function affects the very-long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) modification of S. meliloti and B. abortus lipid A, we tested whether SbmA function might affect either the fatty acid modification …

Adaptation To Ephemeral Habitat May Overcome Natural Barriers And Severe Habitat Fragmentation In A Fire-Dependent Species, The Bachman's Sparrow (Peucaea Aestivalis), Blain Cerame, James A. Cox, Robb T. Brumfield, James W. Tucker, Sabrina S. Taylor

Faculty Publications

Bachman's Sparrow (Peucaea aestivalis) is a fire-dependent species that has undergone range-wide population declines in recent decades. We examined genetic diversity in Bachman's Sparrows to determine whether natural barriers have led to distinct population units and to assess the effect of anthropogenic habitat loss and fragmentation. Genetic diversity was examined across the geographic range by genotyping 226 individuals at 18 microsatellite loci and sequencing 48 individuals at mitochondrial and nuclear genes. Multiple analyses consistently demonstrated little genetic structure and high levels of genetic variation, suggesting that populations are panmictic. Based on these genetic data, separate management units/subspecies designations or translocations …

Flood Money: The Challenge Of U.S. Flood Insurance Reform In A Warming World, Jennifer Wriggins

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Zero Tolerance Policies: Criminalizing Childhood And Disenfranchising The Next Generation Of Citizens, S. David Mitchell

Faculty Publications

A juvenile adjudication of guilt has far more drastic consequences than existed just ten years ago ... Some of these consequences may not be apparent for a number of years, but their possibility should be anticipated, fully considered, and planned for, wherever possible. Under zero tolerance, students are suspended, expelled, or referred to juvenile authorities or some combination thereof for specified offenses. Zero tolerance policies punish students harshly regardless of the severity of the infraction, the existence of mitigating circumstances, or the context in which the conduct occurred. Part II discusses the origin and evolution of zero tolerance policies, as …

Females On The Fringe: Considering Gender In Payday Lending Policy, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

Payday lending may provide a much-needed safety net for some consumers in need of quick cash for emergencies. However, data suggest that most payday loan borrowers become repeat users caught in a cycle of high-cost debt. Furthermore, empirical evidence indicates consistent overrepresentation of women, including many single mothers, among payday loan borrowers. This takes a toll not only on these women and their families, but also on society as a whole. Indeed, context matters in payday lending debates. It is thus time to think creatively and consider contextualized programs that aim to increase women’s and all consumers’ safe borrowing options, …

Secret Consumer Scores And Segmentations: Separating Consumer 'Haves' From 'Have-Nots', Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

“Big Data” is big business. Data brokers profit by tracking consumers’ information and behavior both on- and offline and using this collected data to assign consumers evaluative scores and classify consumers into segments. Companies then use these consumer scores and segmentations for marketing and to determine what deals, offers, and remedies they provide to different individuals. These valuations and classifications are based on not only consumers’ financial histories and relevant interests, but also their race, gender, ZIP Code, social status, education, familial ties, and a wide range of additional data. Nonetheless, consumers are largely unaware of these scores and segmentations, …

Intellectual Property And Public Health - A White Paper, Ryan Vacca

Faculty Publications

On October 26, 2012, The University of Akron School of Law's Center for Intellectual Property and Technology hosted its Sixth Annual IP Scholars Forum. In attendance were thirteen legal scholars with expertise and an interest in IP and public health who met to discuss problems and potential solutions at the intersection of these fields. This report summarizes this discussion by describing the problems raised, areas of agreement and disagreement between the participants, suggestions and solutions made by participants, and the subsequent evaluations of these suggestions and solutions.

Led by the moderator, participants at the Forum focused generally on three broad …

Food For Thought: Genetically Modified Seeds As De Facto Standard-Essential Patents, Ryan Vacca, Benjamin M. Cole, Brent J. Horton

Faculty Publications

For several years, courts have improperly calculated damages in cases involving the unlicensed use of genetically modified (GM) seed technology. In particular, when courts determine patent damages based on the hypothetical negotiation method, they err in exaggerating these damages to a point where no rational negotiator would agree. In response, we propose a limited affirmative defense of an implied license due to the patent's status as a de facto standard-essential patent. To be classified as a de facto standard-essential patent, the farmer must prove three elements that reflect the peculiarities of GM seeds used in farming: (1) dominance, (2) impracticability, …

Common Interest Community Covenants And The Freedom Of Contract Myth, Andrea Boyack

Faculty Publications

Courts take a hands-off approach with respect to the content of common interest community (CIC) covenants, reasoning that freedom of contract mandates their enforcement. But CIC covenants differ from voluntary private contracts in important ways, making deferential enforcement in the name of contract policy unwarranted. Covenants that run with the land are specifically enforceable and bind subsequent owners of the property, potentially in perpetuity. Furthermore, CIC covenants are contracts of adhesion, made up of completely non-negotiable, recorded terms bundled into home acquisition. Developers and lenders generally prescribe the content of such covenants, and they may not reflect community desires or …

Selling Hospice, Sam F. Halabi

Faculty Publications

Americans are increasingly turning to hospice services to provide them with medical care, pain management, and emotional support at the end of life. The increase in the rates of hospice utilization is explained by a number of factors including a “hospice movement” dating to the 1970s which emphasized hospice as a tool to promote dignity for the terminally ill; coverage of hospice services by Medicare beginning in 1983; and, the market for hospice services provision, sustained almost entirely by governmental reimbursement. On the one hand, the growing acceptance of hospice may be seen as a sign of trends giving substance …

Antibiotic Lock Therapy: Review Of Technique And Logistical Challenges, Julie Ann Justo, P Brandon Bookstaver

Faculty Publications

Antibiotic lock therapy (ALT) for the prevention and treatment of catheter-related bloodstream infections is a simple strategy in theory, yet its real-world application may be delayed or avoided due to technical questions and/or logistical challenges. This review focuses on these latter aspects of ALT, including preparation information for a variety of antibiotic lock solutions (ie, aminoglycosides, beta-lactams, fluoroquinolones, folate antagonists, glycopeptides, glycylcyclines, lipopeptides, oxazolidinones, polymyxins, and tetracyclines) and common clinical issues surrounding ALT administration. Detailed data regarding concentrations, additives, stability/compatibility, and dwell times are summarized. Logistical challenges such as lock preparation procedures, use of additives (eg, heparin, citrate, or ethylenediaminetetraacetic …

Taxation Of Same-Sex Couples After United States V. Windsor: Did The Irs Get It Right In Revenue Ruling 2013-17?, Patricia A. Cain

Faculty Publications

The tax world for same-sex couples changed dramatically on June 26, 2013, when the United States Supreme Court handed down its decision in United States v. Windsor. The Court ruled that section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was unconstitutional. As a result the IRS would be required to recognize same-sex spouses as validly married for tax purposes. There were three major issues facing the IRS after Windsor: (1) Which marriages should be recognized for tax purposes? (2) How much retroactive effect should be given to the decision? (3) Should marriage equivalent statuses such as registered domestic partnerships …

A Comparative Study On The Risks Of Radiogenic Second Cancers And Cardiac Mortality In A Set Of Pediatric Medulloblastoma Patients Treated With Photon Or Proton Craniospinal Irradiation, Rui Zhang, Rebecca M. Howell, Phillip J. Taddei, Annelise Giebeler, Anita Mahajan, Wayne D. Newhauser

Faculty Publications

Purpose: To compare the risks of radiogenic second cancers and cardiac mortality in 17 pediatric medulloblastoma patients treated with passively scattered proton or field-in-field photon craniospinal irradiation (CSI). Material/methods: Standard of care photon or proton CSI treatment plans were created for all 17 patients in a commercial treatment planning system (TPS) (Eclipse version 8.9; Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA) and prescription dose was 23.4 or 23.4 Gy (RBE) to the age specific target volume at 1.8 Gy/fraction. The therapeutic doses from proton and photon CSI plans were estimated from TPS. Stray radiation doses were determined from Monte Carlo simulations …

High-Throughput Toroidal Grating Beamline For Photoelectron Spectroscopy At Camd, O. Kizilkaya, R. W. Jiles, M. C. Patterson, C. A. Thibodeaux, E. D. Poliakoff, P. T. Sprunger, R. L. Kurtz, E. Morikawa

Faculty Publications

A 5 meter toroidal grating (5m-TGM) beamline has been commissioned to deliver 28 mrad of bending magnet radiation to an ultrahigh vacuum endstation chamber to facilitate angle resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. The 5m-TGM beamline is equipped with Au-coated gratings with 300, 600 and 1200 lines/mm providing monochromatized synchrotron radiation in the energy ranges 25-70 eV, 50-120 eV and 100-240 eV, respectively. The beamline delivers excellent flux (∼1014-1017 photons/sec/100mA) and a combined energy resolution of 189 meV for the beamline (at 1.0 mm slit opening) and HA-50 hemispherical analyzer was obtained at the Fermi level of polycrystalline gold crystal. Our preliminary photoelectron …

Syntheses And Functionalizations Of Porphyrin Macrocycles, Maria Da G.H. Vicente, Kevin M. Smith

Faculty Publications

Porphyrin macrocycles have been the subject of intense study in the last century because they are widely distributed in nature, usually as metal complexes of either iron or magnesium. As such, they serve as the prosthetic groups in a wide variety of primary metabolites, such as hemoglobins, myoglobins, cytochromes, catalases, peroxidases, chlorophylls, and bacteriochlorophylls; these compounds have multiple applications in materials science, biology and medicine. This article describes current methodology for preparation of simple, symmetrical model porphyrins, as well as more complex protocols for preparation of unsymmetrically substituted porphyrin macrocycles similar to those found in nature. The basic chemical reactivity …

Crystal Structure Of The Histone Lysine Specific Demethylase Lsd1 Complexed With Tetrahydrofolate, Zigmund Luka, Svetlana Pakhomova, Lioudmila V. Loukachevitch, M. Wade Calcutt, Marcia E. Newcomer, Conrad Wagner

Faculty Publications

An important epigenetic modification is the methylation/demethylation of histone lysine residues. The first histone demethylase to be discovered was a lysine-specific demethylase 1, LSD1, a flavin containing enzyme which carries out the demethylation of di- and monomethyllysine 4 in histone H3. The removed methyl groups are oxidized to formaldehyde. This reaction is similar to those performed by dimethylglycine dehydrogenase and sarcosine dehydrogenase, in which protein-bound tetrahydrofolate (THF) was proposed to serve as an acceptor of the generated formaldehyde. We showed earlier that LSD1 binds THF with high affinity which suggests its possible participation in the histone demethylation reaction. In the …

The Carbon Concentrating Mechanism In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii: Finding The Missing Pieces, Nadine Jungnick, Yunbing Ma, Bratati Mukherjee, Julie C. Cronan, Dequantarius J. Speed, Susan M. Laborde, David J. Longstreth, James V. Moroney

Faculty Publications

The photosynthetic, unicellular green alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, lives in environments that often contain low concentrations of CO2 and HCO3-, the utilizable forms of inorganic carbon (Ci). C. reinhardtii possesses a carbon concentrating mechanism (CCM) which can provide suitable amounts of Ci for growth and development. This CCM is induced when the CO2 concentration is at air levels or lower and is comprised of a set of proteins that allow the efficient uptake of Ci into the cell as well as its directed transport to the site where Rubisco fixes CO2 into biomolecules. While several components of the CCM have been …

Myo-Inositol And Phytate Are Toxic To Formosan Subterranean Termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), Lucas Veillon, Jared Bourgeois, Amanda Leblanc, Gregg Henderson, Brian D. Marx, Syed Muniruzzaman, Roger A. Laine

Faculty Publications

© 2014 Entomological Society of America. Several rare and common monosaccharides were screened for toxic effects on the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, with the aim of identifying environmentally friendly termiticides. myo-Inositol and phytic acid, which are nontoxic to mammals, were identified as potential termite control compounds. Feeding bioassays with termite workers, where both compounds were supplied on filter paper in concentrations from 160.2 to 1,281.7μg/mm3, showed concentration-dependent toxicity within 2 wk. Interestingly myo-inositol was nontoxic when administered to termites in agar (40 mg/ml) in the absence of a cellulosic food source, an unexplained phenomenon. In addition, decreased populations …

Specimen Collection: An Essential Tool, L. A. Rocha, A. Aleixo, G. Allen, F. Almeda, C. C. Baldwin, M. V.L. Barclay, J. M. Bates, A. M. Bauer, F. Benzoni, C. M. Berns, M. L. Berumen, D. C. Blackburn, S. Blum, F. Bolaños, R. C.K. Bowie, R. Britz, R. M. Brown, C. D. Cadena, K. Carpenter, L. M. Ceríaco, P. Chakrabarty, G. Chaves, J. H. Choat, K. D. Clements, B. B. Collette, A. Collins, J. Coyne, J. Cracraft, T. Daniel, M. R. De Carvalho, K. De Queiroz, F. Di Dario, R. Drewes

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Hepatitis E Antibodies In Laboratory Rabbits From 2 Us Vendors, Leslie Birke, Stephania A. Cormier, Dahui You, Rhett W. Stout, Christian Clement, Merlin Johnson, Hilary Thompson

Faculty Publications

We tested laboratory rabbits from 2 US vendors for antibodies against hepatitis E virus (HEV); Seroprevalences were 40% and 50%. Retrospective analysis of an ocular herpes simplex 1 experiment demonstrated that HEV seropositivity had no effect on experiment outcome. HEV probably is widespread in research rabbits, but effects on research remain unknown.

Early-Life Exposure To Combustion-Derived Particulate Matter Causes Pulmonary Immunosuppression, J. Saravia, D. You, P. Thevenot, G. I. Lee, B. Shrestha, S. Lomnicki, S. A. Cormier

Faculty Publications

Elevated levels of combustion-derived particulate matter (CDPM) are a risk factor for the development of lung diseases such as asthma. Studies have shown that CDPM exacerbates asthma, inducing acute lung dysfunction and inflammation; however, the impact of CDPM exposure on early immunological responses to allergens remains unclear. To determine the effects of early-lifeCDPMexposure on allergic asthma development in infants, we exposed infant mice to CDPM and then induced a mouse model of asthma using house dust mite (HDM) allergen. Mice exposed to CDPMHDM failed to develop a typical asthma phenotype including airway hyper-responsiveness, T-helper type 2 (Th2) inflammation, Muc5ac expression, …

Copper Binding In Isca Inhibits Iron-Sulphur Cluster Assembly In Escherichia Coli, Guoqiang Tan, Zishuo Cheng, Yilin Pang, Aaron P. Landry, Jianghui Li, Jianxin Lu, Huangen Ding

Faculty Publications

© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Among the iron-sulphur cluster assembly proteins encoded by gene cluster iscSUA-hscBA-fdx in Escherichia coli, IscA has a unique and strong iron binding activity and can provide iron for iron-sulphur cluster assembly in proteins in vitro. Deletion of IscA and its paralogue SufA results in an E. coli mutant that fails to assemble [4Fe-4S] clusters in proteins under aerobic conditions, suggesting that IscA has a crucial role for iron-sulphur cluster biogenesis. Here we report that among the iron-sulphur cluster assembly proteins, IscA also has a strong and specific binding activity for Cu(I) in vivo …

The N-Terminal Domain Of Human Dna Helicase Rtel1 Contains A Redox Active Iron-Sulfur Cluster, Aaron P. Landry, Huangen Ding

Faculty Publications

© 2014 Aaron P. Landry and Huangen Ding. Human telomere length regulator Rtel1 is a superfamily II DNA helicase and is essential for maintaining proper length of telomeres in chromosomes. Here we report that the N-terminal domain of human Rtel1 (RtelN) expressed in Escherichia coli cells produces a protein that contains a redox active iron-sulfur cluster with the redox midpoint potential of -248 ± 10 mV (pH 8.0). The iron-sulfur cluster in RtelN is sensitive to hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide, indicating that reactive oxygen/nitrogen species may modulate the DNA helicase activity of Rtel1 via modification of its iron-sulfur cluster. …

Developing Ethread Pipeline Using Saga-Pilot Abstraction For Large-Scale Structural Bioinformatics, Anjani Ragothaman, Sairam Chowdary Boddu, Nayong Kim, Wei Feinstein, Michal Brylinski, Shantenu Jha, Joohyun Kim

Faculty Publications

While most of computational annotation approaches are sequence-based, threading methods are becoming increasingly attractive because of predicted structural information that could uncover the underlying function. However, threading tools are generally compute-intensive and the number of protein sequences from even small genomes such as prokaryotes is large typically containing many thousands, prohibiting their application as a genome-wide structural systems biology tool. To leverage its utility, we have developed a pipeline for eThread - a meta-threading protein structure modeling tool, that can use computational resources efficiently and effectively. We employ a pilot-based approach that supports seamless data and task-level parallelism and manages …

Weight Gain Reveals Dramatic Increases In Skeletal Muscle Extracellular Matrix Remodeling, Charmaine S. Tam, Jeffrey D. Covington, Sudip Bajpeyi, Yourka Tchoukalova, David Burk, Darcy L. Johannsen, Cristina M. Zingaretti, Saverio Cinti, Eric Ravussin

Faculty Publications

Context: In animal models of obesity, chronic inflammation and dysregulated extracellular matrix remodeling in adipose tissue leads to insulin resistance. Whether similar pathophysiology occurs in humans is not clear. Objective: The aim of this study was to test whether 10% weight gain induced by overfeeding triggers inflammation and extracellular matrix remodeling (gene expression, protein, histology) in skeletal muscleandsc adipose tissue in humans.Wealso investigated whether such remodelingwas associated with an impaired metabolic response (hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp). Design, Setting, Participants, and Intervention: Twenty-nine free-living males were fed 40% over their baseline energy requirements for 8 weeks. Results: Ten percent body weight gain prompted …

Environmental Influences On Maize-Aspergillus Flavus Interactions And Aflatoxin Production, Jake C. Fountain, Brian T. Scully, Xinzhi Ni, Robert C. Kemerait, Robert D. Lee, Zhi Yuan Chen, Baozhu Guo

Faculty Publications

Since the early 1960s, the fungal pathogen Aspergillus flavus (Link ex Fr.) has been the focus of intensive research due to the production of carcinogenic and highly toxic secondary metabolites collectively known as aflatoxins following pre-harvest colonization of crops. Given this recurrent problem and the occurrence of a severe aflatoxin outbreak in maize (Zea mays L.), particularly in the Southeast U.S. in the 1977 growing season, a significant research effort has been put forth to determine the nature of the interaction occurring between aflatoxin production, A. flavus, environment and its various hosts before harvest. Many studies have investigated this interaction …

Vitamin D Levels Are Low In Adult Patients With Sickle Cell Disease In Jamaica And West Africa, Bamidele O. Tayo, Titilola S. Akingbola, Babatunde L. Salako, Colin A. Mckenzie, Marvin Reid, Jennifer Layden, Ifeyinwa Osunkwo, Jacob Plange-Rhule, Amy Luke, Ramon Durazo-Arvizu, Richard S. Cooper

Faculty Publications

Background: Patients with sickle cell disease in the USA have been noted to have lower levels of vitamin D – measured as 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) – compared to controls. Average serum 25(OH)D levels are also substantially lower in African Americans than whites, while population distributions of 25(OH)D among Jamaicans of African descent and West Africans are the same as among USA whites. The purpose of this study was to examine whether adult patients with sickle cell disease living in tropical regions had reduced 25(OH)D relative to the general population. Methods: We analyzed serum 25(OH)D in stored samples collected from studies …

Physical Activity And Pre-Diabetes-An Unacknowledged Mid-Life Crisis: Findings From Nhanes 2003-2006, Kathryn Farni, David A. Shoham, Guichan Cao, Amy H. Luke, Jennifer Layden, Richard S. Cooper, Lara R. Dugas

Faculty Publications

The prevalence of pre-diabetes (PD) among US adults has increased substantially over the past two decades. By current estimates, over 34% of US adults fall in the PD category, 84% of whom meet the American Diabetes Association's criteria for impaired fasting glucose (IFG). Low physical activity (PA) and/or sedentary behavior are key drivers of hyperglycemia. We examined the relationship between PD and objectively measured PA in NHANES 2003-2006 of 20,470 individuals, including 7,501 individuals between 20 and 65 yrs.We excluded all participants without IFG measures or adequate accelerometry data (final N = 1,317). Participants were identified as PD if FPG …

Hypertension Subtypes Among Hypertensive Patients In Ibadan, Abiodun M. Adeoye, Adewole Adebiyi, Bamidele O. Tayo, Babatunde L. Salako, Adesola Ogunniyi, Richard S. Cooper

Faculty Publications

Background. Certain hypertension subtypes have been shown to increase the risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality and may be related to specific underlying genetic determinants. Inappropriate characterization of subtypes of hypertension makes efforts at elucidating the genetic contributions to the etiology of hypertension largely vapid. We report the hypertension subtypes among patients with hypertension from South-Western Nigeria. Methods. A total of 1858 subjects comprising 76% female, hypertensive, aged 18 and above were recruited into the study from two centers in Ibadan, Nigeria. Hypertension was identified using JNCVII definition and was further grouped into four subtypes: controlled hypertension (CH), isolated systolic …