Master Coqservationists Presentations - 2007

Before announcing our honorees this evening, I would like to call your attention to results of an independent study done for the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln during the past year. The "At Work for Nebraska" study was done by Battelle, of Columbus, Ohio, which is a nonprofit research and development organization specializing in global science and technology. The independent study found that our Institute provides a 15-to-one return on every tax dollar invested with us. That's 15-to-one conservatively. We all wish we could get that return on all our own investments. I encourage you to browse our At Work for Nebraska Web Site for additional results of the study. You can find out more about this study which relates to our efforts in natural resources and other areas on the web at the address atworkfornebraska.unl.edu. I encourage you to check it out.

2006 Master Conservationist Presentations

Kirk and William Laux (locks) of Bridgeport in the Panhandle will receive the first Master Conservationist recognition in Production Agriculture. Will Kirk and William please come forward? This family limited partnership includes 5,000 acres of rangeland, 160 acres of dryland, 1200 acres of irrigated land, a cow-calf operation, and a feedlot. They began farming in the 1960s and later purchased several "tired" eroded units. These units were improved by “applying" erosion control practices including seeding, cross-fencing, and improved watering.

What Business Reference Librarians Need to Know about Intellectual Property: Presentations sponsored by the Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association (PTDLA) at the American Library Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, June 25, 2006

Presentations sponsored by the Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association (PTDLA) at the American Library Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, June 25, 2006 Speaker #1: Nan Myers Associate Professor; Government Documents, Patents and Trademarks Librarian Wichita State University, Wichita, KS Title: Intellectual Property Roundup: Copyright, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, and Patents Abstract: This presentation provides a capsule overview of the distinctive coverage of the four types of intellectual property – What they are, why they are important, how to get them, what they cost, how long they last. Emphasis will be on what questions patrons ask most, along with the answers! Includes coverage of the mission of Patent & Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) and other sources of business information outside of libraries, such as Small Business Development Centers. Speaker #2: Jan Comfort Government Information Reference Librarian Clemson University, Clemson, SC Title: Patents as a Source of Competitive Intelligence Information Abstract: Large corporations often have R&D departments, or large numbers of staff whose jobs are to monitor the activities of their competitors. This presentation will review strategies that small business owners can employ to do their own competitive intelligence analysis. The focus will be on features of the patent database that is available free of charge on the USPTO website, as well as commercial databases available at many public and academic libraries across the country. Speaker #3: Virginia Baldwin Professor; Engineering Librarian University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE Title: Mining Online Patent Data for Business Information Abstract: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website and websites of international databases contains information about granted patents and patent applications and the technologies they represent. Statistical information about patents, their technologies, geographical information, and patenting entities are compiled and available as reports on the USPTO website. Other valuable information from these websites can be obtained using data mining techniques. This presentation will provide the keys to opening these resources and obtaining valuable data. Speaker #4: Donna Hopkins Engineering Librarian Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY Title: Searching the USPTO Trademark Database for Wordmarks and Logos Abstract: This presentation provides an overview of wordmark searching in www.uspto.gov, followed by a review of the techniques of searching for non-word US trademarks using codes from the Design Search Code Manual. These codes are used in an electronic search, either on the uspto website or on CASSIS DVDs. The search is sometimes supplemented by consulting the Official Gazette. A specific example of using a section of the codes for searching is included. Similar searches on the Madrid Express database of WIPO, using the Vienna Classification, will also be briefly described.

A cyclic bipolar wind in the interacting binary V 393 Scorpii

V393 Scorpii is a double periodic variable characterized by a relatively stable non-orbital photometric cycle of 253 d. Mennickent et al. argue for the presence of a massive optically thick disc around the more massive B-type component and describe the evolutionary stage of the system. In this paper, we analyse the behaviour of the main spectroscopic optical lines during the long non-orbital photometric cycle. We study the radial velocity of the donor determining its orbital elements and find a small but significant orbital eccentricity (e = 0.04). The donor spectral features are modelled and removed from the spectrum at every observing epoch using the light-curve model given by Mennickent et al. We find that the line emission is larger during eclipses and mostly comes from a bipolar wind. We also find that the long cycle is explained in terms of a modulation of the wind strength; the wind has a larger line and continuum emissivity at the high state. We report the discovery of highly variable chromospheric emission in the donor, as revealed by the Doppler maps of the emission lines Mg II 4481 and C I 6588. We discuss notable and some novel spectroscopic features like discrete absorption components, especially visible at blue depressed O I 7773 absorption wings during the second half-cycle, Balmer double emission with V/R curves showing 'Z-type' and 'S-type' excursions around secondary and main eclipses, respectively, and H beta emission wings extending up to +/- 2000 km s(-1). We also discuss possible causes for these phenomena and for their modulations with the long cycle.

Synthesis and properties of cyclic gomesin and analogues

Gomesin (Gm) was the first antimicrobial peptide (AMP) isolated from the hemocytes of a spider, the Brazilian mygalomorph Acanthoscurria gomesiana. We have been studying the properties of this interesting AMP, which also displays anticancer, antimalarial, anticryptococcal and anti-Leishmania activities. In the present study, the total syntheses of backbone-cyclized analogues of Gm (two disulfide bonds), [Cys(Acm)2,15]-Gm (one disulfide bond) and [Thr2,6,11,15,d-Pro9]-Gm (no disulfide bonds) were accomplished, and the impact of cyclization on their properties was examined. The consequence of simultaneous deletion of pGlu1 and Arg16-Glu-Arg18-NH2 on Gm antimicrobial activity and structure was also analyzed. The results obtained showed that the synthetic route that includes peptide backbone cyclization on resin was advantageous and that a combination of 20% DMSO/NMP, EDC/HOBt, 60?degrees C and conventional heating appears to be particularly suitable for backbone cyclization of bioactive peptides. The biological properties of the Gm analogues clearly revealed that the N-terminal amino acid pGlu1 and the amidated C-terminal tripeptide Arg16-Glu-Arg18-NH2 play a major role in the interaction of Gm with the target membranes. Moreover, backbone cyclization practically did not affect the stability of the peptides in human serum; it also did not affect or enhanced hemolytic activity, but induced selectivity and, in some cases, discrete enhancements of antimicrobial activity and salt tolerance. Because of its high therapeutic index, easy synthesis and lower cost, the [Thr2,6,11,15,d-Pro9]-Gm analogue remains the best active Gm-derived AMP developed so far; nevertheless, its elevated instability in human serum may limit its therapeutic potential. Copyright (c) 2012 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

JC virus-associated central nervous system diseases in HIV-infected patients in Brazil: clinical presentations, associated factors with mortality and outcome

Introduction: Several presentations of neurologic complications caused by JC virus (JCV) in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients have been described and need to be distinguished from the "classic" form of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). The objectives of this study were: 1) to describe the spectrum and frequency of presentations of JCV-associated central nervous system (CNS) diseases; 2) identify factors associated with in-hospital mortality of patients with JCV-associated CNS disease; and 3) to estimate the overall mortality of this population. Material and methods: This was a retrospective study of HIV-infected patients admitted consecutively for JCV-associated CNS diseases in a referral teaching center in Sao Paulo, Brazil, from 2002 to 2007. All patients with laboratory confirmed JCV-associated CNS diseases were included using the following criteria: compatible clinical and radiological features associated with the presence of JCV DNA in the cerebrospinal fluid. JCV-associated CNS diseases were classified as follows: 1) classic PML; 2) inflammatory PML; and 3) JC virus granule cell neuronopathy (GCN). Results: We included 47 cases. JCV-associated CNS diseases were classified as follows: 1) classic PML: 42 (89%); 2) inflammatory PML: three (6%); and 3) JC virus GCN: four (9%). Nosocomial pneumonia (p = 0.003), previous diagnosis of HIV infection (p = 0.03), and imaging showing cerebellar and/or brainstem involvement (p = 0.02) were associated with in-hospital mortality. Overall mortality during hospitalization was 34%. Conclusions: Novel presentations of JCV-associated CNS diseases were observed in our setting; nosocomial pneumonia, previous diagnosis of HIV infection, and cerebellar and/or brainstem involvement were associated with in-hospital mortality; and overall mortality was high. (C) 2012 Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Positron scattering from the cyclic ethers oxirane, 1,4-dioxane, and tetrahydropyran

In this paper we report original measurements of total cross sections (TCSs) for positron scattering from the cyclic ethers oxirane (C2H4O), 1,4-dioxane (C4H8O2), and tetrahydropyran (C5H10O). The present experiments focus on the low energy range from similar to 0.2 to 50 eV, with an energy resolution smaller than 300 meV. This study concludes our systematic investigation into TCSs for a class of organic compounds that can be thought of as sub-units or moieties to the nucleotides in living matter, and which as a consequence have become topical for scientists seeking to simulate particle tracks in matter. Note that as TCSs specify the mean free path between collisions in such simulations, they have enjoyed something of a recent renaissance in interest because of that application. For oxirane, we also report original Schwinger multichannel elastic integral cross section (ICS) calculations at the static and static plus polarisation levels, and with and without Born-closure that attempts to account for the permanent dipole moment of C2H4O. Those elastic ICSs are computed for the energy range 0.5-10 eV. To the best of our knowledge, there are no other experimental results or theoretical calculations against which we can compare the present positron TCSs. However, electron TCSs for oxirane (also known as ethylene oxide) and tetrahydropyran do currently exist in the literature and a comparison to them for each species will be presented. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3696378]

The peripheral L-arginine-nitric oxide-cyclic GMP pathway and ATP-sensitive K+ channels are involved in the antinociceptive effect of crotalphine on neuropathic pain in rats

Crotalphine, a 14 amino acid peptide first isolated from the venom of the South American rattlesnake Crotalus durissus terrificus, induces a peripheral long-lasting and opioid receptor-mediated antinociceptive effect in a rat model of neuropathic pain induced by chronic constriction of the sciatic nerve. In the present study, we further characterized the molecular mechanisms involved in this effect, determining the type of opioid receptor responsible for this effect and the involvement of the nitric oxide-cyclic GMP pathway and of K+ channels. Crotalphine (0.2 or 5 mu g/kg, orally; 0.0006 mu g/paw), administered on day 14 after nerve constriction, inhibited mechanical hyperalgesia and low-threshold mechanical allodynia. The effect of the peptide was antagonized by intraplantar administration of naltrindole, an antagonist of delta-opioid receptors, and partially reversed by norbinaltorphimine, an antagonist of kappa-opioid receptors. The effect of crotalphine was also blocked by 7-nitroindazole, an inhibitor of the neuronal nitric oxide synthase; by 1H-(1,2,4) oxadiazolo[4,3-a]quinoxaline-1-one, an inhibitor of guanylate cyclase activation; and by glibenclamide, an ATP-sensitive K+ channel blocker. The results suggest that peripheral delta-opioid and kappa-opioid receptors, the nitric oxide-cyclic GMP pathway, and ATP-sensitive K+ channels are involved in the antinociceptive effect of crotalphine. The present data point to the therapeutic potential of this peptide for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain. Behavioural Pharmacology 23:14-24 (C) 2012 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Kaurenoic Acid from Sphagneticola trilobata Inhibits Inflammatory Pain: Effect on Cytokine Production and Activation of the NO-Cyclic GMP-Protein Kinase G-ATP-Sensitive Potassium Channel Signaling Pathway

Kaurenoic acid [ent-kaur-16-en-19-oic acid (1)] is a diterpene present in several plants including Sphagneticola trilobata. The only documented evidence for its antinociceptive effect is that it inhibits the writhing response induced by acetic acid in mice. Therefore, the analgesic effect of 1 in different models of pain and its mechanisms in mice were investigated further. Intraperitoneal and oral treatment with 1 dose-dependently inhibited inflammatory nociception induced by acetic acid. Oral treatment with 1 also inhibited overt nociception-like behavior induced by phenyl-p-benzoquinone, complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), and both phases of the formalin test. Compound 1 also inhibited acute carrageenin- and PGE(2)-induced and chronic CFA-induced inflammatory mechanical hyperalgesia. Mechanistically, 1 inhibited the production of the hyperalgesic cytokines TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta. Furthermore, the analgesic effect of 1 was inhibited by L-NAME, ODQ, KT5823, and glybenclamide treatment, demonstrating that such activity also depends on activation of the NO-cyclic GMP-protein kinase G-ATP-sensitive potassium channel signaling pathway, respectively. These results demonstrate that 1 exhibits an analgesic effect in a consistent manner and that its mechanisms involve the inhibition of cytokine production and activation of the NO-cyclic GMP-protein lcinase G-ATP-sensitive potassium channel signaling pathway.

Revision of Singlet Quantum Yields in the Catalyzed Decomposition of Cyclic Peroxides

The chemiluminescence of cyclic peroxides activated by oxidizable fluorescent dyes is an example of chemically initiated electron exchange luminescence (CIEEL), which has been used also to explain the efficient bioluminescence of fireflies. Diphenoyl peroxide and dimethyl-1,2-dioxetanone were used as model compounds for the development of this CIEEL mechanism. However, the chemiexcitation efficiency of diphenoyl peroxide was found to be much lower than originally described. In this work, we redetermine the chemiexcitation quantum efficiency of dimethyl-1,2-dioxetanone, a more adequate model for firefly bioluminescence, and found a singlet quantum yield (Phi(s)) of 0.1%, a value at least 2 orders of magnitude lower than previously reported. Furthermore, we synthesized two other 1,2-dioxetanone derivatives and confirm the low chemiexcitation efficiency (Phi(s) < 0.1%) of the intermolecular CIEEL-activated decomposition of this class of cyclic. peroxides. These results are compared with other chemiluminescent reactions, supporting the general trend that intermolecular CIEEL systems are much less efficient in generating singlet excited states than analogous intramolecular processes (Phi(s) approximate to 50%), with the notable exception of the peroxyoxalate reaction (Phi(s) approximate to 60%).

Caffeine Determination at a Carbon Fiber Ultramicroelectrodes by Fast-Scan Cyclic Voltammetry

Caffeine determination using a fast-scan voltammetric procedure at a carbon fiber ultramicroelectrode (CF-UME) is described. The CF-UME was submitted to electrochemical pretreatment. Parameters such as number of acquisition cycles, scan rate, potential window, and the electrochemical surface pretreatment were optimized. Using the optimized conditions, it was possible to achieve a LDR from 10.0 up to 200 mu mol L-1, with a LOD of 3.33 mu mol L-1. The method has been applied in the determination of caffeine in commercial samples, with errors of 1.0-3.5% in relation to the label values and recoveries of 97-114% within the linear range.

Synthesis of Unstable Cyclic Peroxides for Chemiluminescence Studies

Cyclic four-membered ring peroxides are important high-energy intermediates in a variety of chemi and bioluminescence transformations. Specifically, alpha-peroxylactones (1,2-dioxetanones) have been considered as model systems for efficient firefly bioluminescence. However, the preparation of such highly unstable compounds is extremely difficult and, therefore, only few research groups have been able to study the properties of these substances. In this study, the synthesis, purification and characterization of three 1,2-dioxetanones are reported and a detailed procedure for the known synthesis of diphenoyl peroxide, another important model compound for the chemical generation of electronically excited states, is provided. For most of these peroxides, the complete spectroscopic characterization is reported here for the first time.

Behaviour of displacement piles in sand under cyclic axial loading

Field experiments have demonstrated that piles driven into sand can respond to axial cyclic loading in Stable, Unstable or Meta-Stable ways, depending on the combinations of mean and cyclic loads and the number of cycles. An understanding of the three styles of responses is provided by experiments involving a highly instrumented model displacement pile and an array of soil stress sensors installed in fine sand in a pressurised calibration chamber. The different patterns of effective stress developing on and around the shaft are reported, along with the results of static load tests that track the effects on shaft capacity. The interpretation links these observations to the sand's stress strain behaviour. The interface-shear characteristics, the kinematic yielding, the local densification, the growth of a fractured interface-shear zone and the restrained dilatancy at the pile soil interface are all found to be important. The model tests are shown to be compatible with the full-scale behaviour and to provide key information for improving the modelling and the design rules. (C) 2012 The Japanese Geotechnical Society. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Signaling Events During Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate-Regulated Pigment Aggregation in Freshwater Shrimp Chromatophores

Crustacean color change results partly from granule aggregation induced by red pigment concentrating hormone (RPCH). In shrimp chromatophores, both the cyclic GMP (3', 5'-guanosine monophosphate) and Ca2+ cascades mediate pigment aggregation. However, the signaling elements upstream and downstream from cGMP synthesis by GC-S (cytosolic guanylyl cyclase) remain obscure. We investigate post-RPCH binding events in perfused red ovarian chromatophores to disclose the steps modulating cGMP concentration, which regulates granule translocation. The inhibition of calcium/calmodulin complex (Ca2+/CaM) by N-(6-aminohexyl)-5-chloro-1-naphthalenesulphonamide (W7) induces spontaneous aggregation but inhibits RPCH-triggered aggregation, suggesting a role in pigment aggregation and dispersion. Nitric oxide synthase inhibition by N omega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride (L-NAME) strongly diminishes RPCH-induced aggregation; protein kinase G inhibition (by rp-cGMPs-triethylamine) reduces RPCH-triggered aggregation and provokes spontaneous dispersion, disclosing NO/PKG participation in aggregation signaling. Myosin light chain phosphatase inhibition (by cantharidin) accelerates RPCH-triggered aggregation, whereas Rho-associated protein kinase inhibition (by Y-27632, H-11522) reduces RPCH-induced aggregation and accelerates dispersion. MLCP (myosin light chain kinase) and ROCK (Rho-associated protein kinase) may antagonistically regulate myosin light chain (MLC) dephosphorylation/phosphorylation during pigment dispersion/aggregation. We propose the following general hypothesis for the cGMP/Ca2+ cascades that regulate pigment aggregation in crustacean chromatophores: RPCH binding increases Ca2+ (int), activating the Ca2+/CaM complex, releasing NOS-produced nitric oxide, and causing GC-S to synthesize cGMP that activates PKG, which phosphorylates an MLC activation site. Myosin motor activity is initiated by phosphorylation of an MLC regulatory site by ROCK activity and terminated by MLCP-mediated dephosphorylation. Qualitative comparison reveals that this signaling pathway is conserved in vertebrate and invertebrate chromatophores alike.

String Quartet n degrees 02 by Villa-Lobos: a dialogue with the cyclic form of Franck, Debussy and Ravel

This article investigates Villa-Lobos's String Quartet n degrees 02, an early work by this composer, written according cyclic sonata principles, as developed by Cesar Franck and systematized by Vincent d'Indy. Another important source are the string quartets composed by Franck (1889), Debussy (1893) and Ravel (1903), which possibly served as compositional models to Villa-Lobos. In this light, the themes of the Exposition in the first movement were analyzed and this procedure reveals some harmonic and rhythmic aspects throughout all the other movements.