Dedicated to Better and Safer Highways, Iowa State Highway Commission, July 1973

The planning, construction and maintenance of its highways is the state's second highest business, next only to education. Of the nearly 113,090 miles of roads and streets in Iowa, the 10,271 miles in the Interstate and primary system are the direct responsibility of the Highway Commission.From its central headquarters in Ames, the Commission coordinates its statewide activities through facilities located in each of the 99 counties. These include six district offices, 47 resident offices and 165 maintenance garages.

Gene expression profiling of rat spermatogonia and Sertoli cells reveals signaling pathways from stem cells to niche and testicular cancer cells to surrounding stroma.

Background: Stem cells and their niches are studied in many systems, but mammalian germ stem cells (GSC) and their niches are still poorly understood. In rat testis, spermatogonia and undifferentiated Sertoli cells proliferate before puberty, but at puberty most spermatogonia enter spermatogenesis, and Sertoli cells differentiate to support this program. Thus, pre-pubertal spermatogonia might possess GSC potential and pre-pubertal Sertoli cells niche functions. We hypothesized that the different stem cell pools at pre-puberty and maturity provide a model for the identification of stem cell and niche-specific genes. We compared the transcript profiles of spermatogonia and Sertoli cells from pre-pubertal and pubertal rats and examined how these related to genes expressed in testicular cancers, which might originate from inappropriate communication between GSCs and Sertoli cells. Results: The pre-pubertal spermatogonia-specific gene set comprised known stem cell and spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) markers. Similarly, the pre-pubertal Sertoli cell-specific gene set comprised known niche gene transcripts. A large fraction of these specifically enriched transcripts encoded trans-membrane, extra-cellular, and secreted proteins highlighting stem cell to niche communication. Comparing selective gene sets established in this study with published gene expression data of testicular cancers and their stroma, we identified sets expressed genes shared between testicular tumors and pre-pubertal spermatogonia, and tumor stroma and pre-pubertal Sertoli cells with statistic significance. Conclusions: Our data suggest that SSC and their niche specifically express complementary factors for cell communication and that the same factors might be implicated in the communication between tumor cells and their micro-enviroment in testicular cancer.

Accessing Legal Information in Catalonia. Open Acces to Legislation and Case Law

The article outlines free online legal resources to conduct research on Catalan and Spanish legislation and case-law. Most of these resources are primary sources made public by government bodies. The list shows how the Spanish and Catalan governments, in their attempt to promote equal access to legislation and case-law, cover the different jurisdictions. The text also mentions some resources to conduct historical legal research about legislation and case law, and some free legal private websites.

The release of antidiuretic hormone is appropriate in response to hypovolemia and/or sodium administration in children with severe head injury: a trial of lactated Ringer's solution versus hypertonic saline.

We conducted an open, randomized, and prospective study to determine the effect of hypertonic saline on the secretion of antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and aldosterone in children with severe head injury (Glasgow coma scale <8). Thirty-one consecutive patients at a level III pediatric intensive care unit at a children's hospital received either lactated Ringer's solution (Ringer's group, n = 16) or hypertonic saline (Hypertonic Saline group, n = 15) over a 3-day period. Serum ADH levels were significantly larger in the Hypertonic Saline group as compared with the Ringer's group (P = 0.001; analysis of variance) and were correlated to sodium intake (Ringer's group: r = 0.39, R(2) = 0.15, P = 0.02; Hypertonic Saline group: r = 0.42, R(2) = 0.18, P = 0.02) and volume of fluids given IV (Ringer's group: r = 0.38, R(2) = 0.15, P = 0.02; Hypertonic Saline group: r = 0.32, R(2) = 0.1, P = not significant). Correlation of ADH to plasma osmolality was significant if plasma osmolality was >280 mOsm/kg (r = 0.5, R(2) = 0.25, P = 0.06), indicating an osmotic threshold for ADH release. Serum aldosterone levels were larger on the first day than during Days 2 and 3 in both groups and inversely correlated to serum sodium levels only in the Ringer's group (r = -0.55, R(2) = 0.3, P < 0.001). This group received a significantly larger fluid volume on Day 1 (P = 0.05, Mann-Whitney U-test) than did patients in the Hypertonic Saline group, indicating hypovolemia during the first day. Head-injured children have appropriate levels of ADH. They may be hypovolemic during the first day of treatment, especially if they receive lactated Ringer's solution. IMPLICATIONS: In head-injured patients, we recommend fluid restriction to avoid inappropriate secretion of antidiuretic hormone. In a prospective, randomized, and controlled study in 31 children, we were able to show that the antidiuretic hormone levels are appropriate in response to hypovolemia, sodium load, or both.

Pulse oximetry for hypoxemia: a warning to users and manufacturers.

Pulse oximetry represents a major advance in patient monitoring, but measurement below 70 to 80% saturation has important limitations. Several authors have tested pulse oximetry at low saturations with conflicting results. A review of these data indicates that every patient with a pulse oximeter value below 75 to 80% SaO2 should have one or more invasive measurements of the arterial SaO2 in order to avoid undetected severe hypoxemia.

Guide to Scholarships and Grants

2015-16 publication highlighting Iowa Scholarships and Grants administered by the Iowa College Student Aid Commission.

Subjective mental time: the functional architecture of projecting the self to past and future.

Abstract Human experience takes place in the line of mental time (MT) created through 'self-projection' of oneself to different time-points in the past or future. Here we manipulated self-projection in MT not only with respect to one's life events but also with respect to one's faces from different past and future time-points. Behavioural and event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging activity showed three independent effects characterized by (i) similarity between past recollection and future imagination, (ii) facilitation of judgements related to the future as compared with the past, and (iii) facilitation of judgements related to time-points distant from the present. These effects were found with respect to faces and events, and also suggest that brain mechanisms of MT are independent of whether actual life episodes have to be re-experienced or pre-experienced, recruiting a common cerebral network including the anteromedial temporal, posterior parietal, inferior frontal, temporo-parietal and insular cortices. These behavioural and neural data suggest that self-projection in time is a fundamental aspect of MT, relying on neural structures encoding memory, mental imagery and self.

Responses and adaptations of collembolan communities (Hexapoda: Collembola) to flooding and hypoxic conditions

Standard ecological methods (pitfall traps, trunk eclectors and soil cores) were used to evaluate collembolan community responses to different flooding intensities. Three sites of a floodplain habitat near Mainz, Germany, with different flooding regimes were investigated. The structures of collembolan communities are markedly different depending on flooding intensity. Sites more affected by flooding are dominated by hygrophilic and hygrotolerant species, whereas the hardwood floodplain is dominated by mesophilic species. The survival strategies of the hygrophilic and hygrotolerant species include egg diapause and passive drifting. The physiological adaptations to hypoxic conditions of several collembolan species were analyzed using a microcalorimeter. The activities were tested under normoxic and hypoxic/anoxic conditions as well as during post-hypoxic recovery. Lactate was increased after hypoxic intervals in the species studied, suggesting that, in addition to a massive decrease in metabolic rate, a modest glycolytic activity may be involved in the tolerance to hypoxia.

Callings in career: A typological approach to essential and optional components

A sense of calling in career is supposed to have positive implications for individuals and organizations but current theoretical development is plagued with incongruent conceptualizations of what does or does not constitute a calling. The present study used cluster analysis to identify essential and optional components of a presence of calling among 407 German undergraduate students from different majors. Three types of calling merged: "negative career self-centered", "pro-social religious", and "positive varied work orientation". All types could be described as vocational identity achieved (high commitment/high self-exploration), high in career confidence and career engagement. Not defining characteristics were centrality of work or religion, endorsement of specific work values, or positivity of core self-evaluations. The results suggest that callings entail intense self-exploration and might be beneficial because they correspond with identity achievement and promote career confidence and engagement while not necessarily having pro-social orientations. Suggestions for future research, theory and practice are suggested.

Differential pattern of glycogen accumulation after protein phosphatase 1 glycogen-targeting subunit PPP1R6 overexpression, compared to PPP1R3C and PPP1R3A, in skeletal muscle cells

Background PPP1R6 is a protein phosphatase 1 glycogen-targeting subunit (PP1-GTS) abundant in skeletal muscle with an undefined metabolic control role. Here PPP1R6 effects on myotube glycogen metabolism, particle size and subcellular distribution are examined and compared with PPP1R3C/PTG and PPP1R3A/GM. Results PPP1R6 overexpression activates glycogen synthase (GS), reduces its phosphorylation at Ser-641/0 and increases the extracted and cytochemically-stained glycogen content, less than PTG but more than GM. PPP1R6 does not change glycogen phosphorylase activity. All tested PP1-GTS-cells have more glycogen particles than controls as found by electron microscopy of myotube sections. Glycogen particle size is distributed for all cell-types in a continuous range, but PPP1R6 forms smaller particles (mean diameter 14.4 nm) than PTG (36.9 nm) and GM (28.3 nm) or those in control cells (29.2 nm). Both PPP1R6- and GM-derived glycogen particles are in cytosol associated with cellular structures; PTG-derived glycogen is found in membrane- and organelle-devoid cytosolic glycogen-rich areas; and glycogen particles are dispersed in the cytosol in control cells. A tagged PPP1R6 protein at the C-terminus with EGFP shows a diffuse cytosol pattern in glucose-replete and -depleted cells and a punctuate pattern surrounding the nucleus in glucose-depleted cells, which colocates with RFP tagged with the Golgi targeting domain of β-1,4-galactosyltransferase, according to a computational prediction for PPP1R6 Golgi location. Conclusions PPP1R6 exerts a powerful glycogenic effect in cultured muscle cells, more than GM and less than PTG. PPP1R6 protein translocates from a Golgi to cytosolic location in response to glucose. The molecular size and subcellular location of myotube glycogen particles is determined by the PPP1R6, PTG and GM scaffolding.

Circadian glomerular function: from physiology to molecular and therapeutical aspects.

Life on earth is rhythmic by essence due to day/night alternation, and many biological processes are also cyclic. The kidney has a special role in the organism, controlling electrolytes and water balance, blood pressure, elimination of metabolic waste and xenobiotics and the production of several hormones. The kidney is submitted to changes throughout 24 h with periods of intense activity followed by calmer periods. Filtration, reabsorption and secretion are the three components determining renal function. Here, we review circadian changes related to glomerular function and proteinuria and emphasize the role of the clock in these processes.

Body composition phenotypes in pathways to obesity and the metabolic syndrome.

Dynamic changes in body weight have long been recognized as important indicators of risk for debilitating diseases. While weight loss or impaired growth can lead to muscle wastage, as well as to susceptibility to infections and organ dysfunctions, the development of excess fat predisposes to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, with insulin resistance as a central feature of the disease entities of the metabolic syndrome. Although widely used as the phenotypic expression of adiposity in population and gene-search studies, body mass index (BMI), that is, weight/height(2) (H(2)), which was developed as an operational definition for classifying both obesity and malnutrition, has considerable limitations in delineating fat mass (FM) from fat-free mass (FFM), in particular at the individual level. After an examination of these limitations within the constraints of the BMI-FM% relationship, this paper reviews recent advances in concepts about health risks related to body composition phenotypes, which center upon (i) the partitioning of BMI into an FM index (FM/H(2)) and an FFM index (FFM/H(2)), (ii) the partitioning of FFM into organ mass and skeletal muscle mass, (iii) the anatomical partitioning of FM into hazardous fat and protective fat and (iv) the interplay between adipose tissue expandability and ectopic fat deposition within or around organs/tissues that constitute the lean body mass. These concepts about body composition phenotypes and health risks are reviewed in the light of race/ethnic variability in metabolic susceptibility to obesity and the metabolic syndrome.