Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Bisphenol A On In-Vitro Cell Viability Of Mammalian Cell Line By Neutral Red Assay, Aidan J. Mcglinchey

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Bisphenol-A (BPA), a known oestrogenic endocrine disruptor, has many effects in-vivo. However, most studies on its effects concentrate on this oestrogenic property and not on direct cytotoxicity. An in-vitro approach was taken here, showing that BPA has a dose-dependent effect on the viability of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1) cells. Concentrations at which BPA directly generates cytotoxic effects were investigated by exposing CHO-K1 to BPA for 48 hours at 37oC and their viability assessed by their ability to take up and retain the neutral red staining agent. Cells were exposed to tenfold dilutions of BPA from 1x10-4M to 1x10-9M and viability …

Meadow Brown (Maniola Jurtina) And Marbled White (Melanargia Galathea) Butterfly Populations On Two Managed Grasslands In Devon, Uk: Implications For Conservation, Paul G. Winney

The Plymouth Student Scientist

This paper reports on the effects of a management regime on two grassland sites in an agricultural landscape by using butterflies as indicators over a six-year period. This paper investigates what effects the management has had on two groups of phytophagous butterflies; habitat generalists (polyphagous) and habitat specialists (oligophagous). It identifies two species to study, the meadow brown Maniola jurtina and marbled white Melanargia galathea. The study was conducted in Devon, UK in 2007. Butterfly and plant communities were studied by transect counts on two differently managed grassland sites (Site A: 8 ha and Site B: 4.04 ha). A total …

The Importance Of Being Creative And Innovative In Science Research, Wendy Purcell

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Guest editorial from the Vice Chancellor (University of Plymouth)

Influences On The Cleaning Activity And Distribution Of Cleaner Fish, Katherine Gray

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Cleaning interactions involve the removal of ectoparasites, mucus and dead tissue, by a cleaner from the skin of a cooperating fish – the client. These interactions generally benefit both the cleaner and the client, although this balance can shift if either party cheats, leading to antagonistic or exploitative behaviour. The activity of cleaner fish is affected by a variety of both physical and ecological factors. Ectoparasites make up a large portion of the diet of cleaner fish, thus ectoparasite availability is the major influence on cleaner activity, and so variations in ectoparasite densities tend to lead to variations in cleaner …

Coupling Between The Voltage-Sensing And Phosphatase Domains Of Ci-Vsp, Carlos A. Villalba-Galea, Francesco Miceli, Maurizio Taglialatela, Francisco Bezanilla

School of Pharmacy Faculty Articles

The Ciona intestinalis voltage sensor-containing phosphatase (Ci-VSP) shares high homology with the phosphatidylinositol phosphatase enzyme known as PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10). We have taken advantage of the similarity between these proteins to inquire about the coupling between the voltage sensing and the phosphatase domains in Ci-VSP. Recently, it was shown that four basic residues (R11, K13, R14, and R15) in PTEN are critical for its binding onto the membrane, required for its catalytic activity. Ci-VSP has three of the basic residues of PTEN. Here, we show that when R253 and R254 (which are the homologues …

Foreword, Kimberly D. Krawiec

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Trafficking In Human Blood: Titmuss (1970) And Products Liability, Clark C. Havighurst

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Gender And The Value Of Bodily Goods: Commodification In Egg And Sperm Donation, Rene Almeling

Law and Contemporary Problems

Listing a child for sale in the local paper's classified section is unthinkable, and it is illegal for donors to sell organs in the US. Yet fertility programs routinely recruit young women and men to "donate" eggs and sperm in return for financial compensation. Payments to women vary substantially, both within particular agencies and in different regions of the US, but the national average is around $4,200. Here, Almeling constructs a theoretical framework analyzing the social process of assigning value to the human body. He further describes the historical emergence of the market in eggs and sperm before turning to …

Surrogacy And The Politics Of Commodification, Elizabeth S. Scott

Law and Contemporary Problems

Scott explores the history of surrogacy over the past twenty years. She also offers a historical account of the legal and social issues surrounding surrogacy over the past twenty years. She seeks to explain how and why the social and political meanings of surrogacy have changed over the past decade. Furthermore, she examines how surrogacy was framed as commodification in the Baby M context.

The Debt Financing Of Parenthood, Melissa B. Jacoby

Law and Contemporary Problems

Jacoby discusses the significant role of lenders in the parenthood market and how they might facilitate access and shape this industry in more profound ways. Second, she introduces the issue of financing assisted reproduction and adoption. Third, she reviews specialty loans for assisted reproduction and adoption, reflecting traditional research in case law and legal and nonlegal scholarly literature, as well as results from a review of news media and Web sites of prominent intermediaries and service suppliers. Lastly, she presents a sampling of political-economy implications relevant to assisted reproduction, leaving other issues for future investigation.

Excluding Unfit Workers: Social Control Versus Social Justice In The Age Of Economic Reform, David E. Bernstein, Thomas C. Leonard

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Soluble Adenylyl Cyclase-Dependent Microtubule Disassembly Reveals A Novel Mechanism Of Endothelial Cell Retraction, Nutan Prasain, Mikhail Alexeyev, Ron Balczon, Troy Stevens

University Faculty and Staff Publications

Soluble adenylyl cyclase toxins, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa exoY, generate a cAMP pool that retracts cell borders. However, the cytoskeletal basis by which this cAMP signal retracts cell borders is not known. We sought to determine whether activation of chimeric, soluble adenylyl cyclase I/II (sACI/II) reorganizes either microtubules or peripheral actin. Endothelial cells were stably transfected with either green fluorescent protein-labeled alpha-tubulin or beta-actin, and then infected with adenovirus to express sACI/II. Forskolin, which stimulates both the endogenously expressed transmembrane adenylyl cyclases and sACI/II, induced cell retraction accompanied by the reorganization of peripheral microtubules. However, cortical filamentous-actin (f-actin) did not …

Utep Magazine: The University Of Texas At El Paso, Utep University Communications

UTEP Magazine

Summer 2009

The Arts Issue

Field Evidence Of A Negative Correlation Between Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity And Soil Carbon In A Sandy Soil, Tiejun Wang, David A. Wedin, Vitaly A. Zlotnik

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Soil organic matter (SOM) is generally assumed to be positively correlated with saturated hydraulic conductivity (KS). However, recent studies of pedotransfer functions suggest a possible negative KS-SOM relationship that still needs independent verification. Our field KS study of sandy soils in a semiarid region provides such in situ evidence of a negative KS-SOM relationship, which is nonlinear and is strongest at the lowest levels of soil carbon (<0.1%). A regression analysis also shows that soil carbon is an important factor for explaining KS in those soils. The likely reason for the observed negative KS-SOM relationship is a reduced wettability caused by SOM, which is believed to outweigh the impacts of any increase in KS caused by soil aggregation. The low SOM content and large particle size of sand may explain the limited effect of SOM on soil aggregation processes in the examined soils.

Native Cellular Architecture Of Treponema Denticola Revealed By Cryo-Electron Tomography, Jacques Izard, Chyong-Ere Hsieh, Ronald J. Limberger, Carmen A. Mannella, Michael Marko

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Using cryo-electron tomography, we are developing a refined description of native cellular structures in the pathogenic spirochete Treponema denticola. Tightly organized bundles of periplasmic flagella were readily observed in intact plunge-frozen cells. The periplasmic space was measured in both wild-type and aflagellate strains, and found to widen by less than the diameter of flagella when the latter are present. This suggests that a structural change occurs in the peptidoglycan layer to accommodate the presence of the flagella. In dividing cells, the flagellar filaments were found to bridge the cytoplasmic cylinder constriction site. Cytoplasmic filaments, adjacent to the inner membrane, …

An Icosahedral Algal Virus Has A Complex Unique Vertex Decorated By A Spike, Mickaël V. Cherrier, Victor A. Kostyuchenko, Chuan Xiao, Valorie D. Bowman, Anthony J. Battisti, Xiaodong Yan, Paul R. Chipman, Timothy S. Baker, James L. Van Etten, Michael G. Rossmann

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Paramecium bursaria Chlorella virus-1 is an icosahedrally shaped, 1,900-Å-diameter virus that infects unicellular eukaryotic green algae. A 5-fold symmetric, 3D reconstruction using cryoelectron microscopy images has now shown that the quasiicosahedral virus has a unique vertex, with a pocket on the inside and a spike structure on the outside of the capsid. The pocket might contain enzymes for use in the initial stages of infection. The unique vertex consists of virally coded proteins, some of which have been identified. Comparison of shape, size, and location of the spike with similar features in bacteriophages T4 and P22 suggests that the spike …

Functional Characterization Of The Arabidopsis Β-Ketoacyl-Coenzyme A Reductase Candidates Of The Fatty Acid Elongase, Frédéric Beaudoin, Xianzhong Wu, Fengling Li, Richard P. Haslam, Jennifer E. Markham, Huanquan Zheng, Johnathan A. Napier, Ljerka Kunst

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

In plants, very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs; >18 carbon) are precursors of sphingolipids, triacylglycerols, cuticular waxes, and suberin. VLCFAs are synthesized by a multiprotein membrane-bound fatty acid elongation system that catalyzes four successive enzymatic reactions: condensation, reduction, dehydration, and a second reduction. A bioinformatics survey of the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) genome has revealed two sequences homologous to YBR159w encoding a Saccharomyces cerevisiae β-ketoacyl reductase (KCR), which catalyzes the first reduction during VLCFA elongation. Expression analyses showed that both AtKCR1 and AtKCR2 genes were transcribed in siliques, flowers, inflorescence stems, leaves, as well as developing embryos, but only AtKCR1 …

Swine Influenza H1n1. Is Your Laboratory Prepared?, Sameera Aljohani

Saudi Medical Journal

No abstract provided.

Islam And End-Of-Life Organ Donation. Asking The Right Questions, Mohamed Y. Rady, Joseph L. Verheijde

Saudi Medical Journal

Organ transplantation has become an established treatment option for end-stage organ disease. Both living and end-of-life (so called deceased) organ donation narrow the gap between supply and demand for transplantable organs. Advances in human biology prove that death occurs as a gradual process over time and not as a single discrete event. Declaring death with either neurological criteria (heart-beating organ donation) or circulatory criteria (non-heart-beating organ donation) enables the procurement of transplantable organs before human death is complete, namely, from the incipiently dying donor. Thus, surgical procurement of organs from the incipiently dying donor is the proximate cause of death, …

The Reproduction Accuracy For Stereolithographic Model Of The Thyroid Gland Derived From The Visible Human Dataset, Samet Kapakin, Deniz Demiryurek

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To investigate reproduction accuracy of the rapid prototyping technique by comparing 3-dimensional computer-aided design (CAD) (virtual) model with stereolithographic (solid) replica of the thyroid gland. METHODS: The Visible Human Dataset was used as the input imaging data. The Surfdriver software package was applied on these images to reconstruct the thyroid gland as 3-dimensional Data Exchange File (DXF) models. These models were post-processed in Cinema 4D and 3D-Doctor software for Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) and Standard Triangulation Language (STL) formats. Stereolithographic replica was manufactured in the rapid prototyping machine using STL format. This study was conducted between June 1-30, …

The Effect Of Dietary Supplementation Of Nigella Sativa L. On Serum Lipid Profile In Rats, Yukse Kocyigit, Yildiz Atamer, Ersin Uysal

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of oral treatment of Wistar albino rats with different doses of Nigella sativa L. (NS) powdered seeds on the levels of serum lipids. METHODS: This study was performed in the Medical Science Application and Research Center of Dicle University, Diyarbakir, Turkey, from February 2003 to December 2008. A total of 75 Wistar albino male rats, 60 of them with NS supplementation and 15 animals acting as controls, were included in the study. The NS groups were divided into 4 main groups of 15 each. Four doses of NS were used (100, 200, 400, and 600mg/kg/day). …

Evaluation Of The Relationship Between Type 2 Diabetes And Periodontal Disease, Fatin A. Awartani

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between glycemic control of type 2 diabetes mellitus (type 2 DM) and severity of periodontal disease (PD). METHODS: One hundred and twenty-six Saudi diabetic females, aged 35-70 years, attending the Diabetic Center of King Abdul-Aziz Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia were included in the study. In Group I (better control with hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) <9%) we assigned 74 subjects and in Group II (poor control with HbA1c >9%) 52 subjects. The periodontal parameters recorded were plaque index, bleeding index, presence of calculus, pocket depth measurement, and clinical attachment level. These parameters were evaluated in a randomized half mouth examination. RESULTS: Age, duration of diabetes, percentage of plaque index and …

Association Between Thyroid Hormones, Insulin Resistance, And Metabolic Syndrome, Hari K. Kumar, Raj K. Yadav, Jayaram Prajapati, Challa V Reddy, Manchala Raghunath, Kirtikumar D. Modi

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between thyroid hormones, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome in euthyroid women. METHODS: Forty-five women with no past medical history were studied in this cross-sectional study at the Department of Endocrinology, Medwin Hospitals, Hyderabad, India, from August 2008 to September 2008. The body fat was estimated using bio-impedance method, and fasting blood sample was analyzed for total triiodothyronine (T3), total thyroxine (T4), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free triiodothyronine (FT3), lipid profile, insulin, and glucose. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 32.6 +/= 9.6 years with a body mass index (BMI) of 29.9 +/= 3.8 kg/m2. …

The Contour Of Cementless Femoral Stem Has Minor Effect On Initial Periprosthetic Von Mises Stress Distribution. A 3-Dimensional Finite Element Analysis, Kong-Zu Hu, Xian-Long Zhang, Cheng-Tao Wang, Wen-Ting Ji

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate periprosthetic von Mises stress distribution with cementless femoral stems of various contours. METHODS: The study was carried out at the Department of Orthopaedics, Shanghai 6th Hospital, Shanghai, China between May 2008 and February 2009. Finite element models of proximal femoral replacement with 4 cementless stems (Alloclassic, Ribbed Anatomic, VerSys, and Securi-fit) of various contours were set up. Under the loading conditions of walking and stair climbing, 3-dimensional periprosthetic von Mises stresses were calculated, and the stress distribution patterns were compared. RESULTS: Periprosthetic stresses were increased in level 1, 2, and 3 under the 2 loading conditions, and …

The Relationship Between The Type Of Mutation In The Globin Gene And The Type And Severity Of Sickle/Beta-Thalassemia Disease In Jordanian Patients, Zeyad J. El-Akawi, Hala S. Al-Remawi, Khadijeh J. Al-Namarneh

Saudi Medical Journal

No abstract provided.

Preface To The 18th Annual Asha-Nih Research Symposium: Neurobiological Determinants Of Communication Development, Steven M. Barlow, Jordan R. Green

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

Neurobiological studies of the mammalian brain in health and disease have contributed greatly towards an improved understanding of the maturation-dependent vulnerability of the late preterm brain, the plasticity of the immature nervous system, and the evolution of specialized mechanisms for a communication or ‘language-ready’ neural substrate. Advances in developmental neurobiology have important implications for speech-language pathologists and audiologists working with neonates who, by virtue of their prematurity, are at risk for developmental disabilities. The extra-uterine environment during this critical period (24–40 weeks gestation) in brain development has a profound and long lasting impact on the premature infant. Prior barriers to …

Processing Of The Phalloidin Proprotein By Prolyl Oligopeptidase From The Mushroom Conocybe Albipes, Hong Luo, Heather E. Hallen-Adams, Jonathan D. Walton

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The peptide toxins of poisonous Amanita mushrooms are bicyclic octapeptides (amatoxins) or heptapeptides (phallotoxins). In Amanita bisporigera, α-amanitin and phallacidin are synthesized as 35- and 34-amino acid proproteins, respectively, in which the amino acid sequences found in the mature toxins are flanked by conserved amino acid sequences. The presence of invariant Pro residues immediately upstream of the toxin regions and as the last predicted amino acid in the toxin regions themselves suggests that a Pro-specific peptidase is responsible for the initial post-translational processing of the Amanita toxin proproteins. We purified an enzyme from the phalloidin-producing mushroom Conocybe albipes that …

Celebrating Critical Race Theory At 20, Angela Onwuachi-Willig

Faculty Scholarship

The year 2009 marks the twentieth anniversary of the first Critical Race Theory (CRT) workshop. On July 8, 1989, more than twenty scholars "who were interested in defining and elaborating on the lived reality of race, and who were open to the aspiration of developing theory" gathered together at a workshop in Madison, Wisconsin. 1 The 1989 workshop, which was spearheaded by Kimberle Crenshaw and organized by her, Neil Gotanda, and Stephanie Phillips, also included as its participants Anita Allen, Taunya Banks, Derrick Bell, Kevin Brown, Paulette Caldwell, John Calmore, Harlon Dalton, Richard Delgado, Linda Greene, Trina Grillo, Isabelle Gunning, …

Pandemic Preparedness: A Return To The Rule Of Law, Wendy K. Mariner, George J. Annas, Wendy E. Parmet

Faculty Scholarship

Current discussions of pandemic influenza and emergency preparedness would do well to heed the lessons of US Airways flight 1549, which landed in the Hudson River in January 2009. This article examines what past emergencies teach us about how to prevent or control epidemics and argues that it is time for a return to the rule of law in pandemic preparedness. The most important resource in emergency preparedness is a healthy, resilient population, which depends importantly on sustainable systems of medical care and public health. Preparedness thus requires more money than law. After September 11, 2001, however, federal emergency preparedness …

Recognition Of Human Activities And Expressions In Video Sequences Using Shape Context Descriptor, Natasha Prashant Kholgade

Theses

The recognition of objects and classes of objects is of importance in the field of computer vision due to its applicability in areas such as video surveillance, medical imaging and retrieval of images and videos from large databases on the Internet. Effective recognition of object classes is still a challenge in vision; hence, there is much interest to improve the rate of recognition in order to keep up with the rising demands of the fields where these techniques are being applied. This thesis investigates the recognition of activities and expressions in video sequences using a new descriptor called the spatiotemporal …