Agreed upon procedures report on the Lee County Narcotics Task Force for the period July 1, 2010 through May 31, 2012

Agreed upon procedures report on the Lee County Narcotics Task Force for the period July 1, 2010 through May 31, 2012

Unconventional magnetic behavior of iron-oxide nanoparticles in polymeric matrices

We report the results of magnetization and 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements performed in the temperature range 5-300 K on composites containing iron¿oxide nanoparticles encased in polystyrene type resins. After carrying out a suitable field treatment in order to decouple the particles from the matrix, a fraction of the particles freely rotate in response to an applied magnetic field

The long-term culture of porcine urothelial cells and induction of urothelial stratification.

OBJECTIVE: To assess porcine urothelial cell cultures and the in vitro induction of urothelial stratification in long-term cultures, to study their morphological, functional and genetic behaviour, and thus provide potential autologous urothelium for tissue-engineered substitutes for demucosalized gastric or colonic tissue. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Primary cultures of porcine urothelium were established and the cells passaged thereafter. Cell specificity was confirmed by cytokeratin analysis, cell membrane stability assessed using lactate dehydrogenase leakage, cell de-differentiation by gamma-glutamyl transferase activity and genomic stability by karyotype investigations. Histology and scanning electron microscopy were performed to study the cultured cells and the stratified constructs. Furthermore, collagen matrices were tested as cell scaffolds. RESULTS: The cells were cultured for 180 days; 10 subcultures were established during this period. Stratification was induced in a culture flask and on a collagen matrix. Cytokeratins 7, 8, 17 and 18 were expressed in all cultures, and cell membranes were stable, with no evident de-differentiation. The cultures were stable in their genotype and no chromosomal aberrations were found. The histology and immunohistochemistry of the stratified porcine constructs, and cell membrane stability and cell de-differentiation, were compared with those in the human system. CONCLUSION: Pig and human urothelial cells can be cultured over a long period with no signs of senescence. Urothelial stratification can be induced in vitro. The collagen matrix seems to be an excellent scaffold, allowing cell adherence and growth.

Special investigation of the City of Scarville for the period January 1, 2006 through March 31, 2011

Special investigation of the City of Scarville for the period January 1, 2006 through March 31, 2011

Report on applying agreed-upon procedures of Kossuth Connections, Algona, Iowa, and the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Services within the Iowa Department of Economic Development, now known as the Iowa Economic Development Authority, for the period October 2010 through June 2011

Report on applying agreed-upon procedures of Kossuth Connections, Algona, Iowa, and the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Services within the Iowa Department of Economic Development, now known as the Iowa Economic Development Authority, for the period October 2010 through June 2011

Report on the Chariton Valley Planning & Development Council of Governments for the period July 1, 2007 through August 31, 2010

Report on the Chariton Valley Planning & Development Council of Governments for the period July 1, 2007 through August 31, 2010

Report on a special investigation of the City of Bloomfield Volunteer Fire Department for the period July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2010

Report on a special investigation of the City of Bloomfield Volunteer Fire Department for the period July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2010

Report on a special investigation of the Mills County Treasurer’s Office for the period January 1, 2005 through March 31, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the Mills County Treasurer’s Office for the period January 1, 2005 through March 31, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the City of Davis City for the period October 1, 2006 through November 26, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the City of Davis City for the period October 1, 2006 through November 26, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the Amana Colonies Land Use District for the period May 21, 2007 through March 31, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the Amana Colonies Land Use District for the period May 21, 2007 through March 31, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the City of Callender for the period January 1, 2009 through January 3, 2012

Report on a special investigation of the City of Callender for the period January 1, 2009 through January 3, 2012

Industrial agglomerations and wage gradients: the Spanish economy in the interwar period

This paper gives new evidence on the relationship between integration and industrial agglomeration in the presence of scale economies, by testing directly one of the predictions that can be derived from Krugman (1991), that is, the existence of regional nominal wage gradients and its transformation following changes in trade regimes. Our case study analyzes the effects of the substitution of an open economy by a closed economy regime, exactly the opposite process studied by Hanson (1996, 1997). In Spain, during the interwar period, protectionist policies would have favored the loss of centrality of the coastal location (Barcelona) and the relative rise of central locations (such as Madrid). Our results indicate the existence of a wage gradient centered in Barcelona during the interwar period (1914-1930) and its weakening after 1925.

Report on a special investigation of the Benton County Conservation Department for the period June 1, 2010 through November 7, 2011

Report on a special investigation of the Benton County Conservation Department for the period June 1, 2010 through November 7, 2011

Circadian clock-coordinated 12 Hr period rhythmic activation of the IRE1alpha pathway controls lipid metabolism in mouse liver.

The mammalian circadian clock plays a fundamental role in the liver by regulating fatty acid, glucose, and xenobiotic metabolism. Impairment of this rhythm has been shown to lead to diverse pathologies, including metabolic syndrome. Currently, it is supposed that the circadian clock regulates metabolism mostly by regulating expression of liver enzymes at the transcriptional level. Here, we show that the circadian clock also controls hepatic metabolism by synchronizing a secondary 12 hr period rhythm characterized by rhythmic activation of the IRE1alpha pathway in the endoplasmic reticulum. The absence of circadian clock perturbs this secondary clock and provokes deregulation of endoplasmic reticulum-localized enzymes. This leads to impaired lipid metabolism, resulting in aberrant activation of the sterol-regulated SREBP transcription factors. The resulting aberrant circadian lipid metabolism in mice devoid of the circadian clock could be involved in the appearance of the associated metabolic syndrome.

Molecular signaling in zebrafish development and the vertebrate phylotypic period

During development vertebrate embryos pass through a stage where their morphology is most conserved between species, the phylotypic period (approximately the pharyngula). To explain the resistance to evolutionary changes of this period, one hypothesis suggests that it is characterized by a high level of interactions. Based on this hypothesis, we examined protein-protein interactions, signal transduction cascades and miRNAs over the course of zebrafish development, and the conservation of expression of these genes in mouse development. We also investigated the characteristics of genes highly expressed before or during the presumed phylotypic period. We show that while there is a high diversity of interactions during the phylotypic period (protein-DNA, RNA-RNA, cell-cell, and between tissues), which is well conserved with mouse, there is no clear difference with later, more morphologically divergent, stages. We propose that the phylotypic period may rather be the expression at the morphological level of strong conservation of molecular processes earlier in development.