Dynamics of a double-stranded DNA segment in a shear flow.

We study the dynamics of a double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) segment, as a semiflexible polymer, in a shear flow, the strength of which is customarily expressed in terms of the dimensionless Weissenberg number Wi. Polymer chains in shear flows are well known to undergo tumbling motion. When the chain lengths are much smaller than the persistence length, one expects a (semiflexible) chain to tumble as a rigid rod.

Lifelong challenge of calcium homeostasis in male mice lacking TRPV5 leads to changes in bone and calcium metabolism.

Trpv5 plays an important role in calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis, among others by mediating renal calcium reabsorption. Accordingly, Trpv5 deficiency strongly stresses Ca2+ homeostasis in order to maintain stable serum Ca2+. We addressed the impact of lifelong challenge of calcium homeostasis on the bone phenotype of these mice.

Fish larvae exploit edge vortices along their dorsal and ventral fin folds to propel themselves.

Larvae of bony fish swim in the intermediate Reynolds number (Re) regime, using body- and caudal-fin undulation to propel themselves. They share a median fin fold that transforms into separate median fins as they grow into juveniles. The fin fold was suggested to be an adaption for locomotion in the intermediate Reynolds regime, but its fluid-dynamic role is still enigmatic.

A large light-mass component of cosmic rays at 10(17)-10(17.5) electronvolts from radio observations.

Cosmic rays are the highest-energy particles found in nature. Measurements of the mass composition of cosmic rays with energies of 10(17)-10(18) electronvolts are essential to understanding whether they have galactic or extragalactic sources. It has also been proposed that the astrophysical neutrino signal comes from accelerators capable of producing cosmic rays of these energies.

A repeating fast radio burst.

Fast radio bursts are millisecond-duration astronomical radio pulses of unknown physical origin that appear to come from extragalactic distances. Previous follow-up observations have failed to find additional bursts at the same dispersion measure (that is, the integrated column density of free electrons between source and telescope) and sky position as the original detections. The apparent non-repeating nature of these bursts has led to the suggestion that they originate in cataclysmic events.

Roles of coagulant species and mechanisms on floc characteristics and filterability.

In full scale water treatment operation, the rapid filtration process, as the last step of solid-liquid separation, is largely influenced by floc characteristics. In this study, aluminium sulphate (alum) and nano-Al13 were investigated to understand the influence of coagulant species on the formation and filterability of flocs. At neutral pH, it was found that nano-Al13, a high MW polymer, showed better floc filterability than alum.

Characterization of dissolved organic matter for prediction of trihalomethane formation potential in surface and sub-surface waters.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) in surface waters used for drinking purposes can vary markedly in character dependent on their sources within catchments. The character of DOM further influences the formation of disinfection by products when precursor DOM present in drinking water reacts with chlorine during disinfection. Here we report the development of models that describe the formation potential of trihalomethanes (THMFP) dependent on the character of DOM in waters from discrete catchments with specific land-use and soil textures.

Automated Reconstruction of Three-Dimensional Fish Motion, Forces, and Torques.

Fish can move freely through the water column and make complex three-dimensional motions to explore their environment, escape or feed. Nevertheless, the majority of swimming studies is currently limited to two-dimensional analyses. Accurate experimental quantification of changes in body shape, position and orientation (swimming kinematics) in three dimensions is therefore essential to advance biomechanical research of fish swimming.

Vaginal prolapse repair with or without a midurethral sling in women with genital prolapse and occult stress urinary incontinence: a randomized trial.

Introduction And Hypothesis: We compared pelvic organ prolapse (POP) repair with and without midurethral sling (MUS) in women with occult stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

Methods: This was a randomized trial conducted by a consortium of 13 teaching hospitals assessing a parallel cohort of continent women with symptomatic stage II or greater POP. Women with occult SUI were randomly assigned to vaginal prolapse repair with or without MUS.

THE INFLUENCE OF ULTRAVIOLET-B RADIATION ON THE GROWTH OF MARABOU STORK (LEPTOPTILOS CRUMENIFERUS) NESTLINGS IN RELATION TO PLASMA CALCIUM, PHOSPHORUS, AND VITAMIN D3 CONCENTRATIONS.

In order to prevent metabolic bone disease in growing captive-bred marabou storks (Leptoptilos crumeniferus), three hatchlings were exposed twice a day for 30 min each time to ultraviolet-B (UVB) radiation. During their first 35 days of life, body weights were monitored weekly, and blood was collected to determine total calcium, phosphorus, 25(OH) cholecalciferol, and 1.25(OH)₂cholecalciferol plasma levels.

A new technique using roentgen stereophotogrammetry to measure changes in the spatial conformation of bovine hind claws in response to external loads.

Claw and locomotion problems are widespread in ungulates. Although it is presumed that mechanical overload is an important contributor to claw tissue damage and impaired locomotion, deformation and claw injury as a result of mechanical loading has been poorly quantified and, as a result, practical solutions to reduce such lesions have been established mostly through trial and error. In this study, an experimental technique was developed that allowed the measurement under controlled loading regimes of minute deformations in the lower limbs of dissected specimens from large ungulates.

25-Hydroxyvitamin D and osteoarthritis: A meta-analysis including new data.

Objectives: To study the relationship between 25-hydroxy (OH) vitamin D serum levels and osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee, hip, and hand in a meta-analysis, with updated and expanded results of our previous study.

Methods: Pubmed was searched from February 1975 to December 2014 for articles assessing the relationship between vitamin D levels and OA. In our meta-analysis, 6 cross-sectional and 6 longitudinal studies were included.

Supporting data of spatiotemporal proliferation of human stromal cells adjusts to nutrient availability and leads to stanniocalcin-1 expression in vitro and in vivo.

This data article contains seven figures and two tables supporting the research article entitled: spatiotemporal proliferation of human stromal cells adjusts to nutrient availability and leads to stanniocalcin-1 expression in vitro and in vivo[1]. The data explain the culture of stromal cells in vitro in three culture systems: discs, scaffolds and scaffolds in a perfusion bioreactor system. Also, quantification of extracellular matrix components (ECM) in vitro and staining of ECM components in vivo can be found here.

Treatability of organic matter derived from surface and subsurface waters of drinking water catchments.

The treatability of NOM present in runoff and subsurface waters from discrete zero-order catchments (ZOCs) with three land management practices (Australian native vegetation, pine plantation, grasslands) on varying soil textures of a closed drinking water reservoir-catchment was investigated. Subsurface water samples were collected by lysimeters and shallow piezometers and surface waters by installation of barriers that diverted waters to collection devices. For small sample volumes collected, a 'micro' jar testing procedure was developed to assess the treatability of organics by enhanced coagulation using alum, under standardised conditions.

Improved quantification of livestock associated odorous volatile organic compounds in a standard flow-through system using solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Aerial emissions of odorous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are an important nuisance factor from livestock production systems. Reliable air sampling and analysis methods are needed to develop and test odor mitigation technologies. Quantification of VOCs responsible for livestock odor remains an analytical challenge due to physicochemical properties of VOCs and the requirement for low detection thresholds.

Connectivity Map-based discovery of parbendazole reveals targetable human osteogenic pathway.

Osteoporosis is a common skeletal disorder characterized by low bone mass leading to increased bone fragility and fracture susceptibility. In this study, we have identified pathways that stimulate differentiation of bone forming osteoblasts from human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs). Gene expression profiling was performed in hMSCs differentiated toward osteoblasts (at 6 h).

Adverse Effects of Diabetes Mellitus on the Skeleton of Aging Mice.

In the present study, the possibility that a diabetic (DM) status might worsen age-related bone deterioration was explored in mice. Male CD-1 mice aged 2 (young control group) or 16 months, nondiabetic or made diabetic by streptozotocin injections, were used. DM induced a decrease in bone volume, trabecular number, and eroded surface, and in mineral apposition and bone formation rates, but an increased trabecular separation, in L1-L3 vertebrae of aged mice.

Construction of Multifragment Plasmids by Homologous Recombination in Yeast.

Over the past decade, the focus of cloning has shifted from constructing plasmids that express a single gene of interest to creating multigenic constructs that contain entire pathways or even whole genomes. Traditional cloning methods that rely on restriction digestion and ligation are limited by the number and size of fragments that can efficiently be combined. Here, we focus on the use of homologous-recombination-based DNA manipulation in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae for the construction of plasmids from multiple DNA fragments.

Rapid and Efficient Plasmid Construction by Homologous Recombination in Yeast.

The cloning of DNA fragments is a fundamental aspect of molecular biology. Traditional DNA cloning techniques rely on the ligation of an insert and a linearized plasmid that have been digested with restriction enzymes and the subsequent introduction of the ligated DNA into Escherichia coli for propagation. However, this method is limited by the availability of restriction sites, which often becomes problematic when cloning multiple or large DNA fragments.

How body torque and Strouhal number change with swimming speed and developmental stage in larval zebrafish.

Small undulatory swimmers such as larval zebrafish experience both inertial and viscous forces, the relative importance of which is indicated by the Reynolds number (Re). Re is proportional to swimming speed (vswim) and body length; faster swimming reduces the relative effect of viscous forces. Compared with adults, larval fish experience relatively high (mainly viscous) drag during cyclic swimming.

Calibration and Validation of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference Item Bank in Patients with Chronic Pain.

The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Group translated the adult PROMIS Pain Interference item bank into Dutch-Flemish. The aims of the current study were to calibrate the parameters of these items using an item response theory (IRT) model, to evaluate the cross-cultural validity of the Dutch-Flemish translations compared to the original English items, and to evaluate their reliability and construct validity. The 40 items in the bank were completed by 1085 Dutch chronic pain patients.

Refraction corrected calibration for aquatic locomotion research: application of Snell's law improves spatial accuracy.

Images of underwater objects are distorted by refraction at the water-glass-air interfaces and these distortions can lead to substantial errors when reconstructing the objects' position and shape. So far, aquatic locomotion studies have minimized refraction in their experimental setups and used the direct linear transform algorithm (DLT) to reconstruct position information, which does not model refraction explicitly. Here we present a refraction corrected ray-tracing algorithm (RCRT) that reconstructs position information using Snell's law.

Morphological and Gene Expression Changes in Cattle Embryos from Hatched Blastocyst to Early Gastrulation Stages after Transfer of In Vitro Produced Embryos.

A detailed morphological staging system for cattle embryos at stages following blastocyst hatching and preceding gastrulation is presented here together with spatiotemporal mapping of gene expression for BMP4, BRACHYURY, CERBERUS1 (CER1), CRIPTO, EOMESODERMIN, FURIN and NODAL. Five stages are defined based on distinct developmental events. The first of these is the differentiation of the visceral hypoblast underlying the epiblast, from the parietal hypoblast underlying the mural trophoblast.

Calibration of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Behavior item bank in patients with chronic pain.

Background: The aims of the current study were to calibrate the item parameters of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Behavior item bank using a sample of Dutch patients with chronic pain and to evaluate cross-cultural validity between the Dutch-Flemish and the US PROMIS Pain Behavior item banks. Furthermore, reliability and construct validity of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Behavior item bank were evaluated.

Methods: The 39 items in the bank were completed by 1042 Dutch patients with chronic pain.