Digital Commons Network^™

Detection Of Cardiac Myosin Heavy Chain-Α-Specific Cd4 Cells By Using Mhc Class Ii/IaK Tetramers In A/J Mice, Chandirasegara Massilamany, Arunakumar Gangaplara, Nora M. Chapman, Noel Rose, Jay Reddy

Jay Reddy Publications

A/J mice bearing the H-2 allele IAk are highly susceptible to autoimmune myocarditis induced with cardiac myosin heavy chain (Myhc)-α 334–352, whereas B10.A mice carrying a similar allele IAk are relatively resistant, suggesting that the generation of Myhc-α-reactive T cell repertoires is influenced by genetic background. To enumerate the precursor frequencies of Myhc-α-specific CD4 T cells, we sought to create IAk tetramers for Myhc-α 334–352. Tetramers were created using approaches that involve covalent tethering of individual peptide sequences or exogenous loading of peptides into empty IAk molecules by peptide-exchange reaction. Using ribonuclease 43– 56 tetramers as controls, we demonstrated that …

Selected Approaches To Estimate Water-Budget Components Of The High Plains, 1940 Through 1949 And 2000 Through 2009, Jennifer S. Stanton, Sharon L. Qi, Derek W. Ryter, Sarah E. Falk, Natalie A. Houston, Steven M. Peterson, Stephen M. Westenbroek, Scott C. Christenson

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

The High Plains aquifer, underlying almost 112 million acres in the central United States, is one of the largest aquifers in the Nation. It is the primary water supply for drinking water, irrigation, animal production, and industry in the region. Expansion of irrigated agriculture throughout the past 60 years has helped make the High Plains one of the most productive agricultural regions in the Nation. Extensive withdrawals of groundwater for irrigation have caused water-level declines in many parts of the aquifer and increased concerns about the long-term sustainability of the aquifer.

Quantification of water-budget components is a prerequisite for effective …

The Role Of Demographic Compensation Theory In Incidental Take Assessments For Endangered Species, Conor P. Mcgowan, Mark R. Ryan, Michael C. Runge, Joshua J. Millspaugh, Jean Fitts Cochrane

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Many endangered species laws provide exceptions to legislated prohibitions through incidental take provisions as long as take is the result of unintended consequences of an otherwise legal activity. These allowances presumably invoke the theory of demographic compensation, commonly applied to harvested species, by allowing limited harm as long as the probability of the species’ survival or recovery is not reduced appreciably. Demographic compensation requires some density-dependent limits on survival or reproduction in a species’ annual cycle that can be alleviated through incidental take. Using a population model for piping plovers in the Great Plains, we found that when the population …

Selenium In Birds, Harry M. Ohlendorf, Gary H. Heinz

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Selenium (Se) is a metalloid trace element that birds and other wildlife need in small amounts for good health. The main purpose of this chapter is to interpret tissue concentrations of Se. However, because food is the main source of Se accumulation for birds and other wildlife, and because dietary concentrations for effects on bird reproduction have been reported, we also provide interpretive information on Se in the diet.

Se deficiencies in domestic poultry and livestock occur in some parts of the world and must be corrected by additions of Se to the diet. However, the range of dietary concentrations …

History Of Wildlife Toxicology And The Interpretation Of Contaminant Concentrations In Tissues, Barnett A. Rattner, Anton M. Scheuhammer, John E. Ellott

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The detection and interpretation of contaminants in tissues of wildlife belongs to the field of toxicology, a scientific discipline with a long, intriguing, and illustrious history (reviewed by Hayes 1991, Gallo 2001, Gilbert and Hayes 2006, Wax 2006). We review its history briefly, to provide a context for understanding the use of tissue residues in toxicology, and to explain how their use has developed over time. Because so much work has been conducted on mercury, and dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), separate case histories are included that describe the evolution of the use of tissue concentrations to assess exposure and …

Associations Among Types Of Impulsivity, Substance Use Problems And Neurexin-3 Polymorphisms, Scott F. Stoltenberg, Melissa K. Lehmann, Christa C. Christ, Samantha L. Hersrud, Gareth E. Davies

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Background—Some of the genetic vulnerability for addiction may be mediated by impulsivity. This study investigated relationships among impulsivity, substance use problems and six neurexin-3 (NRXN3) polymorphisms. Neurexins (NRXNs) are presynaptic transmembrane proteins that play a role in the development and function of synapses.

Methods—Impulsivity was assessed with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11), the Boredom Proneness Scale (BPS) and the TIME paradigm; alcohol problems with the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST); drug problems with the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-20); and regular tobacco use with a single question. Participants (N = 439 Caucasians, 64.7% female) donated buccal cells for …

Analysis Of The Evolutionary Forces Shaping Mitochondrial Genomes Of A Neotropical Malaria Vector Complex, Jaroslaw Krzywinski, Cong Li, Marion Morris, Jan E. Conn, José B. Lima, Marinete M. Povoa

United States Army: Publications

Many vectors of human malaria belong to complexes of morphologically indistinguishable cryptic species. Here we report the analysis of the newly sequenced complete mitochondrial DNA molecules from six recognized or putative species of one such group, the Neotropical Anopheles albitarsis complex. The molecular evolution of these genomes had been driven by purifying selection, particularly strongly acting on the RNA genes. Directional mutation pressure associated with the strand-asynchronous asymmetric mtDNA replication mechanism may have shaped a pronounced DNA strand asymmetry in the nucleotide composition in these and other Anopheles species. The distribution of sequence polymorphism, coupled with the conflicting phylogenetic trees …

What Leaders Should Know About Courage, Paul B. Lester, Cynthia Pury

United States Army: Publications

On the morning of March 16, 1968, Warrant Officer One Hugh Thompson JI. flew above the hamlet of Son My, near the village of My Lai in the Republic of Vietnam, in support of U.S. Army ground operations. His mission was dangerous but routine-provide reconnaissance for a battalion task force searching for enemy forces. What he saw and did that day, however, would irrevocably change his life.

The My Lai massacre is a well-documented stain on American military history: An infantry company led by Captain Ernest Medina, Lieutenant William Calley, and others entered Son My and systematically murdered hundreds of …

Moral Maturation And Moral Conation: A Capacity Approach To Explaining Moral Thought And Action, Sean Timothy Hannah, Bruce J. Avolio, Douglas R. May

United States Army: Publications

We set out to address a gap in the management literature by proposing a framework specifying the component capacities organizational actors require to think and act morally. We examine how moral maturation (i.e., moral identity, complexity, and metacognitive ability) and moral conation (i.e., moral courage, efficacy, and owner- ship) enhance an individual's moral cognition and propensity to take ethical action. We offer propositions to guide future research and discuss the implications of the proposed model for management theory and

Investigating Rfid For Linear Asset Management, Judy A. Perkins Ph.D., P.E., Erick C. Jones Ph.D., P.E., Cssbb, Judith L. Mwakalonge Ph.D., E.I.T

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

A linear asset is defined as an asset whose length plays a critical role in its maintenance. Examples of such assets include roads, pipelines, and railroad tracks. Major features of a roadway asset include traffic lights, number of lanes, speed limits, guardrails, and highway billboards. Linear assets, along with their features, are hard to physically access; therefore, previously captured inventory information files may be inaccurate. To address this problem, some of the transportation agencies are investigating technologies that will assist in solving this asset inventory problem. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a technology that uses communication via radio waves to …

2011 Nebraska Water Monitoring Programs Report, Marty Link

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is charged with monitoring, assessing, and to the extent possible, managing the state’s water resources. The purpose of this work is to protect and maintain good quality water and encourage or execute activities to improve poor water quality. Monitoring is done on the over 18,000 miles of flowing rivers and streams, our greater than 280,000 acres of surface water in lakes and reservoirs, and the vast storage of groundwater in Nebraska’s aquifers.

Prevalence, Knowledge, And Concern About Bed Bugs, Mary Beth Kaylor

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

Recent research suggests that the United States and the world are on the verge of a bed bug pandemic. Assumptions have been made that socioeconomic status is not an indicator and that bed bugs are not competent disease vectors. However, little information is available at the local level about the prevalence of bed bugs in private homes. This study aimed to identify prevalence, knowledge, and concern about bed bugs in one village in Ohio. Responses from 96 individuals who completed the Prevalence, Knowledge, and Concern about Bed Bugs (PK CABB) survey were utilized for data analysis. The majority of the …

Invasive Species In Europe: Ecology, Status And Policy, Reuben P. Keller, Juergen Geist, Johnathan M. Jeschke, Ingolf Kuhn

School of Environmental Sustainability: Faculty Publications and Other Works

We tested the accuracy of an invasive aquatic plant risk assessment system in the United States that we modified from a system originally developed by New Zealand’s Biosecurity Program. The US system is comprised of 38 questions that address biological, historical, and environmental tolerance traits. Values associated with each response are summed to produce a total score for each species that indicates its risk of invasion. To calibrate and test this risk assessment, we identified 39 aquatic plant species that are major invaders in the continental US, 31 species that have naturalized but have no documented impacts (minor invaders), and …

The Impact Of The Biosimilars Provision Of The Health Care Reform Bill On Innovation Investments, 10 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 553 (2011), Katherine N. Addison

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 provides an abbreviated FDA approval pathway for biosimilars. The passage of this biosimilar legislation is a positive step toward retaining a robust biotechnology industry in the United States while also protecting innovators. The Act’s increased FDA exclusivity is welcome, but FDA exclusivity alone is insufficient to encourage and protect innovation and investment in biosimilars. Instead, the exclusivity provided by a patent term, together with the ability to adjust this term to compensate an applicant for U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and FDA delays, is necessary to ensure development of highly specialized …

Nature Or Nurture: Is There A Case Basis For A Judicially Created ‘Product Of Nature’ Exclusion? Are Genes Somehow Different?, 11 J Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 318 (2011), W. Lesser

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

The Myriad Genetics decision has rekindled the product of nature debate. This article analyzes legal decisions spanning the past century for products ranging from plants to man-made elements, which in sum provide guidance to the patentability of genes. The product of nature argument it is concluded confuses rather than clarifies patentability considerations. Patentability in the evaluated cases as well as for genes can be resolved more precisely under the utility, non-obviousness, disclosure, and enablement patentability requirements without a need for any additional judicially-created stipulation. As regards genes, there is an additional dimension for consideration which in the case law and …

Bats Of Kansas, Dale W. Sparks, Curtis J. Schmidt, Jerry R. Choate

Sternberg Museum of Natural History Faculty Publications

In memory of Curtis J. Schmidt (1977-2022)

Invariably, our most feared neighbors on planet earth are the animals that we know the least about. Almost as frequently, when people are exposed to these animals, the fear turns quickly to fascination. Unfortunately, many of these animals are accessible only to the professional scientist. Though science has made great strides in understanding the basic biology and behaviors of many of our least-known animals, this information is generally kept locked away from the general public by the dry, technical language of science. In this publication, it is our hope to open your eyes …

Efficacy Of Gnrh Immunocontraception Of Wild White-Tailed Deer In New Jersey, James P. Gionfriddo, Anthony J. Denicola, Lowell A. Miller, Kathleen A. Fagerstone

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Safe and effective contraceptive agents are needed to manage overabundant populations of cervids in settings where traditional management methods such as hunting are prohibited or impractical. We used GonaCon™ Immunocontraceptive Vaccine to reduce reproduction in individual white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on a fully fenced corporate-office campus in suburban New Jersey, USA. In July– August 2005, we captured, marked, injected, and released 47 adult females and then monitored their reproductive performance for 2 years. Thirty-two of these females each received a 1.0-mL injection of GonaCon vaccine, and 15 control females were given sham injections. Field observations of udder condition …

"Healing Power Of Horses", Brittany Schweik

ESSAI

No abstract provided.

Student Handbook 2011-12, Dmacc

Student Handbooks

No abstract provided.

Darkness At Noon: Judicial Interpretation May Have Made Things Worse For Benefit Plan Participants Under Erisa Than Had The Statute Never Been Enacted, Andrew Stumpff

St. Thomas Law Review

Courts have constricted the rights of employee benefit plan participants under ERISA in a number of ways, the most prominent of which are catalogued in Part III below. The cumulative effect of these decisions, however, can only be appreciated by taking them together - by considering the overall position of a plan participant under ERISA, as interpreted, relative to the participant's position had ERISA not been enacted. That task is undertaken in Parts IV and later parts of the article. The review of ERISA case law in this article is intended only as a survey: Much more has been written …

Principled Legal Pragmatism: Reconciling Posner And Dewey On Law And Democracy, Kory Spencer Sorrell

St. Thomas Law Review

The pressing practical question is how to cultivate democratic reconstruction? And here again, Posner's insights are both helpful and continuous with the pragmatism of James and Dewey. Both James and Dewey sought reform not primarily through deliberation, but through institutional reform. As Posner insists, "[w]e must accept the irreducible plurality of goals and preferences within a morally heterogeneous society such as that of the United States, and proceed from there." And proceeding from there-successfully, not just aspirationally-means discarding idealistic notions of democracy in favor of institutional and social arrangements that support a morally diverse community, the members of which are …

Will Climate Change Alter Wildfire Behavior And Effects In Seasonally-Dry Wetlands?, Leda Kobziar Dr., Adam Watta Dr., J. Michael Camp Mr., Marissa Streiffel Ms., Alex Kattan Mr.

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

The effects of edge on ecosystems is well documented on animal and plant species, as well as a number of ecosystem attributes. A substantial determinant of ecological edge effects is the effect of edge on microclimate parameters such as temperature and humidity. These effects have been described in detail in upland communities, but not in wetland forests. Of particular interest is whether hydrologic influence trumps edge effect; in other words, does the influence of inundation create a hydrologic “switch” that overwhelms edge effect? In a landscape with numerous wetland forest patches subject to seasonal hydrologic fluctuations, I measured microclimate in …

The Influence Of Prescribed Fire And Understory Fuels Mastication On Soil Carbon Respiration Rates In Flatwoods Forests, Leda Kobziar, David Godwin, Michael Camp, Dawn Mckinstry, Marissa Steifel, Alex Kattan, Daniel Godwin

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

Soil CO2 efflux (Rs) is a significant flux of carbon dioxide from ecosystem soils to the atmosphere and is a critical component of the total ecosystem carbon budget. Rs fluxes are comprised of autotrophic (Ra) sources of CO2 produced by plant roots and associated rhizosphere fungi and heterotrophic (Rh) sources of CO2 produced by aerobic soil microbes. A variety of forest management activities, including prescribed fire and mechanical fuels mastication treatments have been shown to significantly influence Rs rates in forests of the Western United States (US), yet these relationships are not well known for southeastern US forests. Prescribed fire …

A Regional Experiment To Evaluate Effects Of Fire And Fire Surrogate Treatments In The Sagebrush Biome, James Mclver, Dave Pyke, Hugh Barrett, Mark Brunson, Steve Bunting, Jeanne C. Chambers, Carla D'Antonio, Paul Doescher, Dale Johnson, Sherm Karl, Steve Knick, Rick Miller, Mike Pellant, Fred Pierson, Kim Rollins, Bruce Roundy, Gene Schupp, Robin Tausch, David Turner, Mike Wisdom

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

SageSTEP is a comprehensive regional experiment that provides critical information to managers faced with a sagebrush steppe ecosystem that is increasingly at risk from wildfire, invasive plants, and climate change. The experiment provides managers with information that can be used to restore ecological communities across the 100+ million acres of the sagebrush biome. It is designed to match the temporal and spatial scales at which managers operate, is intended to reduce management risk and uncertainty of catastrophic wildfire to the greatest degree possible, and provides managers with information that allows them to better understand tradeoffs inherent in the choice of …

Equipment And Strategies To Enhance The Post-Wildfire Establishment And Persistence Of Great Basin Native Plants, Nancy Shaw, Beth Newingham, Amy C. Ganguli, Ann L. Hild, Robert D. Cox, Jim Truax, Mike Pellant, David Pyke, Dan Ogle, Loren St. John

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

Annual grass invasion in the Great Basin has increased fire size, frequency and severity. Post-fire restoration to provide functional native plant communities is critical to improve resistance to weed invasion. Our ability to successfully re-establish mixtures of native grasses, forbs and shrubs, however, is limited. We examined the effects of the standard rangeland drill and a minimum-till drill, seeding strategies for small-seeded species, and Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt. spp. wyomingensis Beetle & Young) seeding rates on seeding success in burned shrub communities at four sites in the northern Great Basin. Seeded and recovering vegetation, as well as soil …

Fire Ecology And Management Of Non-Forested Ecosystems In Western North America. Final Report: Description Of Organizational Meetings And Development Of A Publication Plan, Matt Brooks

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

It has been almost 30 years since the last major book on the ecology and management of fire was published that contained extensive information from non-forested ecosystems across western North America (Wright and Bailey 1982). During subsequent years there have been notable books that have focused largely on forested ecosystems (e.g. Agee 1993), and there was one very recent book that addressed many important grassland, shrubland, woodland, and forest areas, but its geographic extent was confined to California (Sugihara et al. 2006). No single book has since matched the geographic scope associated with non-forested ecosystems in western North America as …

Laboratory Of Tree-Ring Research And School Of Natural Resources And The Environment, Thomas W. Swetnam, Donald Falk, Elaine K. Sutherland, Peter M. Brown, Timothy J. Brown

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

Understanding the role of climate variation in governing fire regimes remains one of the central needs in contemporary fire science and management. Ideally, this understanding should encompass both historical and current fire-climatology, and inform both basic science and ecosystem management. In this project, Fire and Climate Synthesis (FACS) we undertook a detailed synthesis of both paleofire and modern fire based on compilations of existing data sets. We also analyzed three major thematic pathways by which climate has impacted fire policy, including direct and indirect climate effects on fire policy. Paleofire. We assembled the largest and most comprehensive data set of …

A Content Analysis Of Indirect, Verbal, And Physical Aggression In Television Programs Popular Among School-Aged Girls, Jennifer Ruh Linder, Kelsey Ann Lyle

Faculty Publications

A content analysis of indirect, verbal, and physical aggression was conducted of 77 hours of television programming popular among fifth grade girls. Eighty-eight percent of programs contained aggression. Physical aggression occurred at a rate of 9.6 acts per hour, whereas indirect and verbal aggression occurred at a rate of 3.7 and 2.8 acts per hour, respectively. Rates of aggression varied by gender, age, and attractiveness of perpetrators, as well as by relationship between perpetrator and victim. Additionally, motivation and consequences of aggressive acts varied by form of aggression. Implications of the findings are discussed in light of current research and …

Suffolk University Newsletter (Sun), Vol. 37, No. 1, 2011, Suffolk University Office Of Public Affairs

Suffolk University Newsletter (SUN)

No abstract provided.

Panting In The Dark: The Ambivalence Of Air In Cinema, Kevin L. Ferguson

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.