Development of a novel DNA microarray to detect bacterial pathogens in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

A novel microarray was constructed with DNA PCR product probes targeting species specific functional genes of nine clinically significant respiratory pathogens, including the Gram-positive organisms (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes), the Gram-negative organisms (Chlamydia pneumoniae, Coxiella burnetii Haemophilus spp., Legionella pneumophila, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa), as well as the atypical bacterium, Mycoplasma pneumoniae. In a "proof-of-concept" evaluation of the developed microarray, the microarray was compared with real-time PCR from 14 sputum specimens from COPD patients. All of the samples positive for bacterial species in real-time PCR were also positive for the same bacterial species using the microarray. This study shows that a microarray using PCR probes is a potentially useful method to monitor the populations of bacteria in respiratory specimens and can be tailored to specific clinical needs such as respiratory infections of particular patient populations, including patients with cystic fibrosis and bronchiectasis. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Films of Joseph H. Lewis

Seven new loci associated with age-related macular degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common cause of blindness in older individuals. To accelerate the understanding of AMD biology and help design new therapies, we executed a collaborative genome-wide association study, including >17,100 advanced AMD cases and >60,000 controls of European and Asian ancestry. We identified 19 loci associated at P <5 × 10(-8). These loci show enrichment for genes involved in the regulation of complement activity, lipid metabolism, extracellular matrix remodeling and angiogenesis. Our results include seven loci with associations reaching P <5 × 10(-8) for the first time, near the genes COL8A1-FILIP1L, IER3-DDR1, SLC16A8, TGFBR1, RAD51B, ADAMTS9 and B3GALTL. A genetic risk score combining SNP genotypes from all loci showed similar ability to distinguish cases and controls in all samples examined. Our findings provide new directions for biological, genetic and therapeutic studies of AMD.

Patrick Moore, Arthur C. Clarke and ‘British Outer Space’ in the mid 20th century

This article seeks to explore a notion of 'British outer space' in the mid 20th century with reference to the British Interplanetary Society and the works of Patrick Moore and Arthur C. Clarke. Geographies of outer space have been examined following early work by Denis Cosgrove on the Apollo space photographs. Cosgrove's work has encouraged a growing body of work that seeks to examine both the 'Earth from space' perspective as well as its reciprocal, 'space from Earth'. This article aligns itself with the latter viewpoint, in attempting to define a national culture of 'British outer space'. This is found to have an important connection with the British Interplanetary Society, founded in 1933 near Liverpool, which went on to influence the works of Patrick Moore, who edited the magazine Spaceflight and presented the television programme The Sky at Night, and Arthur C. Clarke, who became known as a science fiction writer through his early novels in the 1950s. The themes of audience participation and human destiny in outer space are examined in a close reading of these two case studies, and further engagement with cultures of outer space in geography is encouraged. © The Author(s) 2012.

Predictors and dynamics of postpartum relapses in women with multiple sclerosis

Several studies have shown that pregnancy reduces multiple sclerosis (MS) relapses, which increase in the early postpartum period. Postpartum relapse risk has been predicted by pre-pregnancy disease activity in some studies.

"'Nothing but a printer's devil ever drives me into finishing': the Genesis of Thomas Moore's Irish Melodies'

This chapter outlines the working methods of the prolific writer and lyricist Thomas Moore—which were characterized by the unfortunate combination of a perfectionist streak, a tendency to release material to the publishers while still in the creative mode, and a tendency to re-visit previously-published material. The Gibson-Massie Moore collection at Queen's University Belfast teaches us a great deal about Moore’s creative processes, and also records the nineteenth-century publishing industry’s response to one of its most prolific and popular creative artists. This chapter is illustrated by an online Exhibition, the 'Thomas Moore Project', Digital Collections, Special Collections, McClay library (see URL below).

Thomas Moore Music Project:The Genesis of Thomas Moore's Irish Melodies

This is a selection of images from the Gibson-Massie Moore Collection, supplement by a table created by curator Sarah McCleave. The purpose is to identify the numerous creators involved in the Irish Melodies series (music editor, illustrators, engravers, etc.), and to illustrate some characteristics kinds of variants

Wilkinson, Joseph Brooke (1870–1948)

Profile and biographical entry of Joseph Brooke Wilkinson, early film Censor