The investigation of present aggregate gradation control practices and the development of short-cut or alternative test methods /

Mode of access: Internet.

Annual conference report on cotton-insect research and control.

Mode of access: Internet.

Mollusca Non-Grata: The influence of top-down control and residence time on the abundance, distribution, and behavior of non-native marine snails in Washington State

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-06

Traffic control: p120-catenin acts as a gatekeeper to control the fate of classical cadherins in mammalian cells

Proteins of the p120 family have been implicated in the regulation of cadherin-based cell adhesion, but their relative importance in this process and their mechanism of action have remained less clear. Three papers in this issue suggest that p120 plays a key role in maintaining normal levels of cadherin in mammalian cells, and that it may do so by regulating cadherin trafficking.

Multiple tissue-specific promoters control expression of the murine tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase gene

Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) is highly expressed in osteoclasts and in a subset of tissue macrophages and dendritic cells. It is expressed at lower levels in the parenchymal cells of the liver, glomerular mesangial cells of the kidney and pancreatic acinar cells. We have identified novel TRAP mRNAs that differ in their 5-untranslated region (5'-UTR) sequence, but align with the known murine TRAP mRNA from the first base of Exon 2. The novel 5'-UTRs represent alternative first exons located upstream of the known 5'-UTR. A similar genomic structure exists for the human TRAP gene with partial conservation of the exon and promoter sequences. Expression of the most distal 5'-UTR (Exon 1A) is restricted to adult bone and spleen tissue. Exon 1B is expressed primarily in tissues containing TRAP-positive nonhaematopoietic cells. The known TRAP 5'-UTR (Exon 1) is expressed in tissues characteristic of myeloid cell expression. In addition the Exon 1C promoter sequence is shown to comprise distinct transcription start regions, with an osteoclast-specific transcription initiation site identified downstream of a TATA-like element. Macrophages are shown to initiate transcription of the Exon 1C transcript from a purine-rich region located upstream of the osteoclast-specific transcription start point. The distinct expression patterns for each of the TRAP 5'-UTRs suggest that TRAP mRNA expression is regulated by the use of four alternative tissue- and cell-restricted promoters. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

The ins and outs of transcriptional control: nucleocytoplasmic shuttling in development and disease

Recent findings relating to SOX transcription factors indicate that defects in organogenesis can be caused not only by impairment of the biochemical properties of transcription factors but also, in some cases, by deficient nuclear import. In addition, experimentally interfering with the nuclear export signals of some SOX factors has now been found to cause developmental defects. Controlling the balance of nuclear import and export might be a common means by which transcription factor activity can be regulated during development, and defects in these processes might underlie a broader spectrum of inherited developmental disorders.

Familial aggregation of human infection with Schistosoma japonicum in the Poyang Lake region, China

Despite the success of extensive control measures that have been implemented in China for over 50 years, the number of individuals infected with Schistosoma japonicum remains high in the existing endemic areas. A variance components analysis was undertaken to estimate the heritable and environmental components that contribute to S. japonicum infection in the Poyang Lake region of Jiangxi Province, PR China. The total target population was 3148 from four separate administrative villages. Two thousand seven hundred and five of these comprised 400 families ranging in size from 3 to 188. After adjustments were made for gender, water contact and past history of having had schistosomiasis, the heritable component was estimated to account for as much as 58% of the phenotype variation under the polygenic model. Household was not shown to be an important environmental factor. Incorporating village effects indicated that the results were valid for the total population. We conclude that genetic heritability in this region is high and plays an important role in determining risk of infection with S. japonicum. (c) 2005 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interocular masking and summation indicate two stages of divisive contrast gain control

Our understanding of early spatial vision owes much to contrast masking and summation paradigms. In particular, the deep region of facilitation at low mask contrasts is thought to indicate a rapidly accelerating contrast transducer (eg a square-law or greater). In experiment 1, we tapped an early stage of this process by measuring monocular and binocular thresholds for patches of 1 cycle deg-1 sine-wave grating. Threshold ratios were around 1.7, implying a nearly linear transducer with an exponent around 1.3. With this form of transducer, two previous models (Legge, 1984 Vision Research 24 385 - 394; Meese et al, 2004 Perception 33 Supplement, 41) failed to fit the monocular, binocular, and dichoptic masking functions measured in experiment 2. However, a new model with two-stages of divisive gain control fits the data very well. Stage 1 incorporates nearly linear monocular transducers (to account for the high level of binocular summation and slight dichoptic facilitation), and monocular and interocular suppression (to fit the profound 42 Oral presentations: Spatial vision Thursday dichoptic masking). Stage 2 incorporates steeply accelerating transduction (to fit the deep regions of monocular and binocular facilitation), and binocular summation and suppression (to fit the monocular and binocular masking). With all model parameters fixed from the discrimination thresholds, we examined the slopes of the psychometric functions. The monocular and binocular slopes were steep (Weibull ߘ3-4) at very low mask contrasts and shallow (ߘ1.2) at all higher contrasts, as predicted by all three models. The dichoptic slopes were steep (ߘ3-4) at very low contrasts, and very steep (ß>5.5) at high contrasts (confirming Meese et al, loco cit.). A crucial new result was that intermediate dichoptic mask contrasts produced shallow slopes (ߘ2). Only the two-stage model predicted the observed pattern of slope variation, so providing good empirical support for a two-stage process of binocular contrast transduction. [Supported by EPSRC GR/S74515/01]

Studies on the behaviour of Reticulitermes santonensis (Feytaud) in laboratory colonies and its implications for some methods of termite control

An investigation of behavioural patterns that form a basis for termite control in the Australasian region was undertaken using laboratory colonies of the subterranean termite Reticulitermes santonensis (Feytaud). The study attempted to build a picture of the behavioural elements of individuals in a colony and based on this, trophallaxis, aggression and cannibalism were investigated in detail. Preliminary study of food transmission showed that 'workers' played a major role in the distribution of food. It was found, that among factors responsible for release of trophallactic behaviour the presence of 'right odour' between participants was important. It also appeared that the role taken by individuals depended on whether they were hungry or fully fed. Antennal palpation was shown by donors and acceptors alike and this seemed to be excitatory in function. Introduction of aliens into nests elicited aggression and these aliens were often killed. Factors eliciting aggression were investigated and colony odour was found to be important. Further investigations revealed that development of colony odour was governed by genetical and environmental mechanisms. Termite response to injury and death was also governed by odour. In the case of injury either the fresh haemolymph from the wound or some component of the haemolymph evoked cannibalism. Necrophagic behaviour was found to be released by fatty acids found in the corpses. Finally, the response of colonies to nestmates carrying arsenic trioxide was investigated. It was found that living and freshly dead arsenic-carrying nestmates were treated like normal nestmates, resulting in high initial mortality. However, poisoned cadavers soon became repellant and were buried thus preventing further spread of the poison to the rest of the colony. This suggested that complete control of subterranean termites by arsenic trioxide is unlikely to be fully effective, especially in those species which are capable of developing secondary reproductives from survivors and thus rebuilding the community.

Perception of global image contrast is predicted by the same spatial integration model of gain control as detection and discrimination

How are the image statistics of global image contrast computed? We answered this by using a contrast-matching task for checkerboard configurations of ‘battenberg’ micro-patterns where the contrasts and spatial spreads of interdigitated pairs of micro-patterns were adjusted independently. Test stimuli were 20 × 20 arrays with various sized cluster widths, matched to standard patterns of uniform contrast. When one of the test patterns contained a pattern with much higher contrast than the other, that determined global pattern contrast, as in a max() operation. Crucially, however, the full matching functions had a curious intermediate region where low contrast additions for one pattern to intermediate contrasts of the other caused a paradoxical reduction in perceived global contrast. None of the following models predicted this: RMS, energy, linear sum, max, Legge and Foley. However, a gain control model incorporating wide-field integration and suppression of nonlinear contrast responses predicted the results with no free parameters. This model was derived from experiments on summation of contrast at threshold, and masking and summation effects in dipper functions. Those experiments were also inconsistent with the failed models above. Thus, we conclude that our contrast gain control model (Meese & Summers, 2007) describes a fundamental operation in human contrast vision.

Representation, control, or reasoning? Distinct functions for theory of mind within the medial prefrontal cortex

The medial pFC (mPFC) is frequently reported to play a central role in Theory of Mind (ToM). However, the contribution of this large cortical region in ToM is not well understood. Combining a novel behavioral task with fMRI, we sought to demonstrate functional divisions between dorsal and rostral mPFC. All conditions of the task required the representation of mental states (beliefs and desires). The level of demands on cognitive control (high vs. low) and the nature of the demands on reasoning (deductive vs. abductive) were varied orthogonally between conditions. Activation in dorsal mPFC was modulated by the need for control, whereas rostral mPFC was modulated by reasoning demands. These findings fit with previously suggested domain-general functions for different parts of mPFC and suggest that these functions are recruited selectively in the service of ToM.

The Role of the Everglades Mangrove Ecotone Region (EMER) in Regulating Nutrient Cycling and Wetland Productivity in South Florida

The authors summarize the main findings of the Florida Coastal Everglades Long-Term Ecological Research (FCE-LTER) program in the EMER, within the context of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), to understand how regional processes, mediated by water flow, control population and ecosystem dynamics across the EMER landscape. Tree canopies with maximum height <3 m cover 49% of the EMER, particularly in the SE region. These scrub/dwarf mangroves are the result of a combination of low soil phosphorus (P < 59 μg P g dw−1) in the calcareous marl substrate and long hydroperiod. Phosphorus limits the EMER and its freshwater watersheds due to the lack of terrigenous sediment input and the phosphorus-limited nature of the freshwater Everglades. Reduced freshwater delivery over the past 50 years, combined with Everglades compartmentalization and a 10 cm rise in coastal sea level, has led to the landward transgression (1.5 km in 54 years) of the mangrove ecotone. Seasonal variation in freshwater input strongly controls the temporal variation of nitrogen and P exports (99%) from the Everglades to Florida Bay. Rapid changes in nutrient availability and vegetation distribution during the last 50 years show that future ecosystem restoration actions and land use decisions can exert a major influence, similar to sea level rise over the short term, on nutrient cycling and wetland productivity in the EMER.