Pasteurella multocida Expresses Two Lipopolysaccharide Glycoforms Simultaneously, but Only a Single Form Is Required for Virulence: Identification of Two Acceptor-Specific Heptosyl I Transferases

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a critical virulence determinant in Pasteurella multocida and a major antigen responsible for host protective immunity. In other mucosal pathogens, variation in LPS or lipooligosaccharide structure typically occurs in the outer core oligosaccharide regions due to phase variation. P. multocida elaborates a conserved oligosaccharide extension attached to two different, simultaneously expressed inner core structures, one containing a single phosphorylated 3-deoxy-D-manno-octulosonic acid (Kdo) residue and the other containing two Kdo residues. We demonstrate that two heptosyltransferases, HptA and HptB, add the first heptose molecule to the Kdo1 residue and that each exclusively recognizes different acceptor molecules. HptA is specific for the glycoform containing a single, phosphorylated Kdo residue (glycoform A), while HptB is specific for the glycoform containing two Kdo residues (glycoform B). In addition, KdkA was identified as a Kdo kinase, required for phosphorylation of the first Kdo molecule. Importantly, virulence data obtained from infected chickens showed that while wild-type P. multocida expresses both LPS glycoforms in vivo, bacterial mutants that produced only glycoform B were fully virulent, demonstrating for the first time that expression of a single LPS form is sufficient for P. multocida survival in vivo. We conclude that the ability of P. multocida to elaborate alternative inner core LPS structures is due to the simultaneous expression of two different heptosyltransferases that add the first heptose residue to the nascent LPS molecule and to the expression of both a bifunctional Kdo transferase and a Kdo kinase, which results in the initial assembly of two inner core structures.

GABAB Receptor antagonist CGP46381 inhibits form-deprivation myopia development in guinea pigs

The aim was to investigate the effects of the GABAB receptor antagonist, CGP46381, on form-deprivation myopia (FDM) in guinea pigs. Twenty-four guinea pigs had monocular visual deprivation induced using a diffuser for 11 days (day 14 to 25). The deprived eyes were treated with daily subconjunctival injections (100 μl) of either 2% CGP46381, 0.2% CGP46381, or saline or received no injection. The fellow eyes were left untreated. Another six animals received no treatment. At the start and end of the treatment period, ocular refractions were measured using retinoscopy and vitreous chamber depth (VCD) and axial length (AL) using A-scan ultrasound. All of the deprived eyes developed relative myopia (treated versus untreated eyes, P < 0.05). The amount of myopia was significantly affected by the drug treatment (one-way ANOVA, P < 0.0001). The highest dose tested, 2% CGP46381, significantly inhibited myopia development compared to saline (2% CGP46381: -1.08 ± 0.40 D, saline: -4.33 ± 0.67 D, P < 0.01). The majority of these effects were due to less AL (2% CGP46381: 0.03 ± 0.01 mm, saline: 0.13 ± 0.02 mm, P < 0.01) and VCD (2% CGP46381: 0.02 ± 0.01 mm, saline: 0.08 ± 0.01 mm, P < 0.01) elongation. The lower dose tested, 0.2% CGP46381, did not significantly inhibit FDM (P > 0.05). Subconjunctival injections of CGP46381 inhibit FDM development in guinea pigs in a dose-dependent manner.

"Det utspridda kärret; överallt och växande form" : Eva Wichmans novell "Kärret" som en prosamodernistisk berättelse om kvinnligt skapande

I min avhandling diskuterar jag om och hur man kan läsa Eva Wichmans novell "Kärret" (ur Molnet såg mig, 1942) som en prosamodernistisk berättelse om ett kvinnligt subjekt, och om kvinnligtskapande. Jag vill mot en prosamodernistisk bakgrund visa min tolkning med en stilistisk och entematisk analys. I min inledning markerar jag att forskare har haft svårt att avgöra vad Eva Wichman egentligen vill säga med "Kärret". De flesta definierar "Kärret" som en fabel, en moralisk berättelse. I min tolkning betonar jag att novellen kan läsas som en prosamodernistisk fabel om det kvinnliga skapandet. Eva Wichman har i många av sina verk beskrivit en kvinnlig konstnärs svårigheter i massamhället och den manliga världen. Jag anser därför att denna tolkning inte är långsökt då det gäller en naturallegori som "Kärret". Jag redovisar kort för bakgrunden till prosamodernismen; definierar stilistiska grundbegrepp i lyrikoch prosa samt diskuterar med hjälp av Peter Luthersson och Gunilla Domellöf hur den modernistiska individualiteten konstituerar sig i förhållande till samhället ochmoderniseringsprocessen. Jag tar fasta på den kvinnliga författarens skapandeprocess och poängterar, med hjälp av bl.a. Dominique Head och Domellöf, att det kvinnliga skapandet ofta är svårt att erhålla i ett traditionellt manligt samhälle. Head, Domellöf och Rachel Blau DuPlessis menar att det modernistiska skapandet hos kvinnor i stor grad sker med hjälp av stilistiska brott och luckor. I synnerhet förhållandet mellan metafor och metonymi utgör en viktig metod för den kvinnliga modernisten. I mitt tredje kapitel analyserar jag "Kärret" stilistiskt. Modernismen i "Kärret" går ut sammanställa motsatser och sinnesanalogier. Jag tar upp det lyriska och metaforiska i "Kärret"; upprepningar,parallellismer, rytm och dynamik, samt förhållandet mellan metaforer och metonymier utgående från en artikel av David Lodge. Jag demonstrerar i stilanalysen hur Eva Wichman bygger upp ett cykliskt mytiskt berättande. Detta cirkelberättande kan, enligt Domellöf, ses som en kvinnlig utmaning mot det traditionella manliga berättandet. Förhållandet mellan metaforer och metonymier spelar en stor roll också i min tematiska analys. Jag läser kärret i novellen som en symbol för ett kvinnlig subjekt. Kärret är uppbyggt av motsatser. Dessamotsatser kan ses som metaforer i min tolkning av kärret som kvinnligt subjekt. Motsatsparen yta/djup läser jag som den medvetna respektive undermedvetna nivån i det kvinnliga subjektet. Djupet, den undermedvetna nivån, analyserar jag delvis med hjälp av Julia Kristevas begrepp abjektet. Metaforerna spegel/öga ser jag som subjekt/objekt och manligt/kvinnligt i förhållande till det kvinnliga subjektet. Med hjälp av abjektet, omnipotens/känslighet, rörelse/statis samt liv/död visar jag hur Eva Wichman beskriver det konstnärliga skapandet, och den konstnärliga alieneringen i kontrast till det förtryckandet massamhället. Här baserar jag mig på Lutherssons resonemang om den modernistiska individualiteten. På så sätt drar jag slutsatsen att kärret som kvinnligt subjekt kan läsas som ett kvinnligt författarjag. "Kärret" är en berättelse om kvinnlig skaparkraft, om ett kvinnligt subjekt som skapar och verkar isamhället. Eva Wichman gestaltar det kvinnliga berättandet både tematiskt och språkligt. Därför är "Kärret" enligt mig inte en pessimistisk berättelse om ett "säkert nederlag" som många påstår, utan en storslagen fabel om ett modernistiskt subjekt i process. Nyckelord: Eva Wichman, Molnet såg mig, prosamodernism, kvinnligt subjekt, abjekt, metafor, metonymi

Quantitative assessment of total phenol contents of European oak (Quercus petraea and Quercus robur) by diffuse reflectance NIR spectroscopy on solid wood surfaces

Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) combined with multivariate analysis techniques was applied to assess phenol content of European oak. NIRS data were firstly collected directly from solid heartwood surfaces: in doing so, the spectra were recorded separately from the longitudinal radial and the transverse section surfaces by diffuse reflectance. The spectral data were then pretreated by several pre-processing procedures, such as multiplicative scatter correction, first derivative, second derivative and standard normal variate. The tannin contents of sawmill collected from the longitudinal radial and transverse section surfaces were determined by quantitative extraction with water/methanol (1:4, by vol). Then, total phenol contents in tannin extracts were measured by the Folin-Ciocalteu method. The NIR data were correlated against the Folin-Ciocalteu results. Calibration models built with partial least squares regression displayed strong correlation - as expressed by high determination correlation coefficient (r2) and high ratio of performance to deviation (RPD) - between measured and predicted total phenols content, and weak calibration and prediction errors (RMSEC, RMSEP). The best calibration was provided with second derivative spectra (r2 value of 0.93 for the longitudinal radial plane and of 0.91 for the transverse section plane). This study illustrates that the NIRS technique when used in conjunction with multivariate analysis could provide reliable, quick and non-destructive assessment of European oak heartwood extractives.

Small local variations in B-form DNA lead to a large variety of global geometries which can accommodate most DNA-binding protein motifs

An important question of biological relevance is the polymorphism of the double-helical DNA structure in its free form, and the changes that it undergoes upon protein-binding. We have analysed a database of free DNA crystal structures to assess the inherent variability of the free DNA structure and have compared it with a database of protein-bound DNA crystal structures to ascertain the protein-induced variations.

Mapping of adult plant resistance to net form of net blotch in three Australian barley populations

Net form of net blotch (NFNB), caused by Pyrenophora teres Drechs. f. teres Smedeg., is a serious disease problem for the barley industry in Australia and other parts of the world. Three doubled haploid barley populations, Alexis/Sloop, WI2875-1/Alexis, and Arapiles/Franklin, were used to identify genes conferring adult plant resistance to NFNB in field trials. Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) identified were specific for adult plant resistance because seedlings of the parental lines were susceptible to the NFNB isolates used in this study. QTLs were identified on chromosomes 2H, 3H, 4H, and 7H in both the Alexis/Sloop and WI2875-1/Alexis populations and on chromosomes 1H, 2H, and 7H in the Arapiles/Franklin population. Using QTLNetwork, epistatic interactions were identified between loci on chromosomes 3H and 6H in the Alexis/Sloop population, between 2H and 4H in the WI2875-1/Alexis population, and between 5H and 7H in the Arapiles/Franklin population. Comparisons with earlier studies of NFNB resistance indicate the pathotype-dependent nature of many resistance QTLs and the importance of establishing an international system of pathotype nomenclature and differential testing.

X-ray studies on crystalline complexes involving amino acids and peptides. Part XIV: Closed conformation and head-to-tail arrangement in a new crystal form of L-histidine L-aspartate monohydrate

A new form of L-histidine L-aspartate monohydrate crystallizes in space group P22 witha = 5.131(1),b = 6.881(1),c= 18.277(2) Å,β= 97.26(1)° and Z = 2. The structure has been solved by the direct methods and refined to anR value of 0.044 for 1377 observed reflections. Both the amino acid molecules in the complex assume the energetically least favourable allowed conformation with the side chains staggered between the α-amino and α-scarboxylate groups. This results in characteristic distortions in some bond angles. The unlike molecules aggregate into alternating double layers with water molecules sandwiched between the two layers in the aspartate double layer. The molecules in each layer are arranged in a head-to-tail fashion. The aggregation pattern in the complex is fundamentally similar to that in other binary complexes involving commonly occurring L amino acids, although the molecules aggregate into single layers in them. The distribution of crystallographic (and local) symmetry elements in the old form of the complex is very different from that in the new form. So is the conformation of half the histidine molecules. Yet, the basic features of molecular aggregation, particularly the nature and the orientation of head-to-tail sequences, remain the same in both the forms. This supports the thesis that the characteristic aggregation patterns observed in crystal structures represent an intrinsic property of amino acid aggregation.

Consonance in urban form: The architectural dimension of urban morphology

Consonance in urban form is contingent on the continuity of the fine grain architectural features that are imbued in the commodity of the evolved historic urban fabric. A city's past can be viewed therefore as a repository of urban form characteristics from which concise architectural responses can result in a congruent urban landscape. This thesis proposes new methods to evaluate the interplay of architectural elements that can be traced throughout the lifespan of the particular evolving urban areas under scrutiny, and postulates a theory of how the mapping of historical urban form can correlate with deriving parameters for new buildings.

Improved bounds on the radius and curvature of the K pi scalar form factor and implications to low-energy theorems

We obtain stringent bounds in the < r(2)>(K pi)(S)-c plane where these are the scalar radius and the curvature parameters of the scalar K pi form factor, respectively, using analyticity and dispersion relation constraints, the knowledge of the form factor from the well-known Callan-Treiman point m(K)(2)-m(pi)(2), as well as at m(pi)(2)-m(K)(2), which we call the second Callan-Treiman point. The central values of these parameters from a recent determination are accomodated in the allowed region provided the higher loop corrections to the value of th form factor at the second Callan-Treiman point reduce the one-loop result by about 3% with F-K/F-pi = 1.21. Such a variation in magnitude at the second Callan-Treiman point yields 0.12 fm(2) less than or similar to < r(2)>(K pi)(S) less than or similar to 0.21 fm(2) and 0.56 GeV-4 less than or similar to c less than or similar to 1.47 GeV-4 and a strong correlation between them. A smaller value of F-K/F-pi shifts both bounds to lower values.

New constraints on the pion EM form factor using Pi `(-Q(2))

We study the constraints arising on the expansion parameters c and d of the pion electromagnetic form factor from the inclusion of pure spacelike data and the phase of timelike data along with one spacelike datum, using as input the first derivative of the QCD polarization amplitude Pi'(-Q(2)). These constraints when combined with other analyses, provide a valuable check on a determination of c due to Guo et al. and on our previous work where pionic contribution to the (g - 2) of the muon was used as the input. This work further illustrates the power of analyticity techniques in form factor analysis.

Sequences that adopt non-B-DNA conformation in form V DNA as probed by enzymic methylation

pBR322 form V DNA is a highly torsionally strained molecule with a linking number of zero. We have used sequence- specific DNA methylases as probes for B-DNA in this molecule, exploiting the inability of methylases to methylate single-stranded DNA and Z-DNA, both of which are known to occur in form V DNA. Some sequences in form V DNA were shown to be totally in the B-form, others were totally in an altered, unmethylatable conformation, while still other sites appeared to exist partly in altered and partly in normal B-conformation. Some potential Z-forming sequences (alternating pyrimidine/purine) of less than seven base-pairs were not in the Z conformation in form V DNA, whereas others did adopt an altered structure, indicating a modulating influence of flanking sequences. Furthermore, regions of imperfect alternating pyrimidine/purine structure were sometimes capable of adopting an altered structure. In addition, some regions of altered structure had no apparent Z-forming sequences, nor were they in polypurine stretches, which have also been proposed to form left-handed DNA. These non-B-DNA conformations may represent novel left-handed helical structures or sequences that become single stranded under torsional strain. Long regions of either altered (unmethylatable) DNA or B-DNA were not always observed. In fact, one region showed three transitions between B-like DNA and altered structure within 26 base-pairs.

Safe to crush? A pilot study into solid dosage form modification in aged care

Aims To observe medication solid dosage form modification in aged care facilities (ACFs), and assess staff levels of self-perceived knowledge of medication modification and the types of resources available to them. Method Observation of medication rounds in a convenience sample of Australian Capital Territory ACFs and assessment of staff knowledge of dosage form modification and available resources. Results From 160 observations across six medication rounds, 29 residents had a total of 75 medications modified by the nursing staff prior to administration, with 32% of these instances identified as inappropriate. The methods used for crushing and administration resulted in drug mixing, spillage and incomplete dosing. The staff reported adequate resources; however, a lack of knowledge on how to locate and use these resources was evident. Conclusions Improved staff training on how to use available resources is needed to reduce the observed high incidence of inappropriate medication crushing.

Structure of a new crystal form of 2- ([3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl] amino)benzoic acid (flufenamic acid)

C14Ht0F3NO2, P2.Jc, a = 12.523 (4), b = 7.868(6), c = 12.874 (3)A, fl = 95.2 (2) ° , O,,, = 1.47 (4), D e = 1.47 Mg m -3, Z = 4. Final R = 0.074 for 2255 observed reflections. The carboxyl group and the phenyl ring bearing the carboxyl group are nearly coplanar whereas the two phenyl rings are inclined with respect to each other at 52.8 ° . The difference between the two polymorphs of flufenamic acid lies in the geometrical disposition of the [3-(trifluoromethyl)- phenyl]amino moiety with respect to the benzoic acid moiety. As in other fenamate structures, the carboxyl group and the imino N atom are connected through an intramolecular hydrogen bond; also, pairs of centrosymmetrically related molecules are connected through hydrogen bonds involving carboxyl groups.

Spot Form of Net Blotch Resistance in a Diverse Set of Barley Lines in Australia and Canada.

The responses of 95 barley lines and cultivars to spot form of net blotch (SFNB) caused by Pyrenophora teres f. maculata were analyzed as seedlings and adults in Australia and Canada. Cluster analyses revealed complex reaction responses. Only 2 lines (Esperance Orge 289 and TR3189) were resistant to all isolates at the seedling stage, whereas 15 lines and cultivars (81-82/033, Arimont, BYDV-018, CBSS97M00855T-B2-M1-Y1-M2-Y-1M-0Y, C19776, Keel, Sloop, Torrens, TR326, VB0111, Yarra, VB0229, WI-2477, WI2553, and Wisconsin Pedigree) were resistant toward the two Canadian isolates and mixture of Australian isolates at the adult stages. In Australian field experiments, the effectiveness of SFNB resistance in three barley cultivars (Barque. Cowabbie, and Schooner) and one breeding line (VB9104) with a different source of resistance was tested. Barque, which possessed a resistance gene that provided complete resistance to SFNB, was the most effective and showed no effect on grain yield or quality in the presence of inoculum. Generally, cultivars with seedling or adult resistance had less disease and better grain quality than the susceptible control. Dash, but they were not as effective as Barque. A preliminary differential set of 19 barley lines and cultivars for P teres I. maculata is proposed.

Synthesis of Azo Coupled Crown Ethers Containing Transition Metal and other Chromophoric Environments and Their Ion Complexation Properties

The crown ethers, 2,3-benzo-1,4,7,10,13-pentaoxa-cyclopentadeca-2-ene and 2,3, ll,12-dibenzo-l,4,7,10,13,16-hexaoxscyclooctadeca-2,11-diene are incorporated into H,N'-ethylenebis(acetylacetoneimino) nickel(II) and copper(II), phenol, and β-naphthol by diazo coupling reactions. The selective nature of the coupling reaction has-been demonstrated by the isolation of both asymmetric mono- and symmetric bis(glyoxalarylcrownhydrazoneimino) metal(II) complexes. An interesting binuclear complex containing two intramolecularly rearranged (glyoxal-hydrazonearylimino) metal(II) groups joined by 18-crown-6 result8 when bis(arenediazonium)-18-crown-6 is coupled with the metal(I1) Schiff bases. The substituted ethers form cationic salts with NaClO4, KCNS, NH4CNS, 14g(CNS)2 and Ca(CNS)2. All the synthesised ethers exhibit ion selectivity sequence as K+ > Na+ and Ca2+ > Mg2+.