Identification and light-dependent translocation of a cone-specific antigen, cone arrestin, recognized by monoclonal antibody 7G6

PURPOSE: To elucidate the antigen recognized by monoclonal antibody (mAb) 7G6, a widely used cone-specific marker. METHODS: 7G6 immunocytochemistry was performed on sections of human, primate, and bovine retina. The antigen was immunoprecipitated from human retinal lysates and purified with protein G. Edman degradation and liquid chromatography of tryptic peptides combined with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) identified the antigen. RESULTS: Sequencing of peptides derived from the immunoprecipitated 7G6 antigen identified it as cone arrestin. The identity was confirmed by Western blot analysis with recombinant human cone arrestin and competition with the antibody in immunocytochemistry. Subcellular localization of cone arrestin in dark-adapted and bleached bovine retinas showed that cone arrestin accumulated in cone outer segments of light-adapted retina but was more concentrated in the inner segments of dark-adapted retina. By expression of truncated human cone arrestin mutants systematically deleting areas divergent from bovine and primate cone arrestins, the epitope of 7G6 was identified as a divergent loop exposed at the surface within the N-domain of cone arrestin. CONCLUSIONS: Several independent methods established that the 7G6 antigen is cone arrestin. The 7G6 epitope is contained in a divergent loop, the sequence of which is conserved in bovine and primates but not other vertebrate species consistent with the specificity of the antibody. The light-dependent translocation of cone arrestin suggests a role in light-dark adaptation of cones. Because of the location of its gene on the X-chromosome, cone arrestin is a candidate gene for X-linked cone dystrophies.Supported by NIH Grant R01EY08123 (WB). Additional support came from the Macular Vision Research Foundation, Research to Prevent Blindness, Inc., and a Center grant from the Foundation Fighting Blindness to the University of Utah. WB is the recipient of a Senior Investigator Award from RPB and a Ralph and Mary Tuck endowment to the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Utah

Exploratory study of graph drawing on a continuum of expertise

Graphs are used in our lives daily to communicate information such as political ads or car sales. In the sciences, understanding graphs is essential to effective communication as graphs are often used to report experimental results or observed trends. However, research suggests that college students are not fluent in this form of scientific communication. Additionally, research has also found that standardized assessments of quantitative literacy fail to be clearly defined at the curricular or institutional levels. This research looks at the differences between the cognitive and metacognitive strategies of how individuals along a continuum of biological expertise visually represent data. As a result, an instrument was created from expert feedback and graphing literature to test if differences exist in how individuals transform graph data and if those differences are a function of scientific expertise. The instrument collected data on graph drawing and cognitive interviews (i.e. think-aloud) from 35 participants with varying biology experience, including 13 non-biology majors, 9 non-senior biology majors, 7 senior biology majors and graduate students, and 6 biology faculty. Rubrics were used to evaluate performance in graph drawing and think-aloud components. Although no statistical differences were identified between groups in graph drawing tasks, analysis of specific graph drawing components (e.g., graph type) did reveal variation as a function of expertise. Significant differences were found between expertise groups in the cognitive and metacognitive strategies discussed in the think-aloud data (e.g., why a graph was drawn in that manner). These findings begin to identify differences between experts and novices in Biology, as well as the lack of alignment in one’s ability to depict graphical data and actual understanding of graphing practices, which may be used to inform instruction to increase graph literacy. Additionally, the instrument designed for this study has high face validity, but future work will be needed to establish reliability as only one researcher was able to score data. Increasing reliability will allow this instrument to be an effective tool for faculty interested in assessing their students’ data display skills

Embodying militarism: exploring the spaces and bodies in-between

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Customer Complaint Management Systems (CCMS) in a food processing industry

Abstract The food processing industry must meet customers’ highest quality expectations at the lowest cost. I partnered with Nestlé’s pizza facility in Little Chute, WI, to improve the current customer complaint approach of the quality department, which aimed to improve product quality. To improve the total quality of the system, this project established a defensive method of addressing customer complaints. Some strategies used to improve the current Customer Complaint Management System (CCMS) include Quality Functional Deployment (QFD), fuzzy logic, Kano’s methods, Voice of the customer (VOC) and Go-See-Think-Do (GSTD). These strategies are all related, but have not previously been used collaboratively. The joined force of these methods will better satisfy the customer, improve quality, and decrease overall error. During the Summer of 2014, a work-study was conducted on the DiGiorno pizza line to identify the areas in need of change. The application of multiple quality strategies was researched throughout the fall of 2014. These strategies were then blended to best suit the DiGiorno pizza line. The result was a customer complaint management system that provided a methodical approach to addressing customers’ complaints and correcting the associated manufacturing component. The new system will be incorporated into the Nestlé plant in the future

The end of the world / Hubert Lamb. Chorus score

Women\u27s chorus (SSAA). Text by Archibald MacLeish.https://repository.wellesley.edu/lamb/1024/thumbnail.jp

The end of the world / Hubert Lamb

Women\u27s chorus (SSAA) with 4-hand piano accompaniment. Text by Archibald MacLeish. Duration: 4 minutes, 30 seconds. Inscription: To A.M.L. At end: Wayland, 7-29-41 (arr. 1-26-44).https://repository.wellesley.edu/lamb/1025/thumbnail.jp

The BRAIN Initiative: developing technology to catalyse neuroscience discovery

The evolution of the field of neuroscience has been propelled by the advent of novel technological capabilities, and the pace at which these capabilities are being developed has accelerated dramatically in the past decade. Capitalizing on this momentum, the United States launched the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative to develop and apply new tools and technologies for revolutionizing our understanding of the brain. In this article, we review the scientific vision for this initiative set forth by the National Institutes of Health and discuss its implications for the future of neuroscience research. Particular emphasis is given to its potential impact on the mapping and study of neural circuits, and how this knowledge will transform our understanding of the complexity of the human brain and its diverse array of behaviours, perceptions, thoughts and emotions

Small bowel obstruction and volvulus secondary to strongyloidiasis

We report the case of a 27-year-old Sudanese man with episodes of small bowel obstruction and volvulus, and significant malnutrition with severe hypoalbuminaemia due to strongyloidiasis. Interestingly, he did not have the common associated eosinophilia or any of the known risk factors of strongyloidiasis. His symptoms improved after treatment with ivermectin and albendazole. Health care providers should be aware of the possible absence of the well-described risk factors and the potential atypical presentation of this disease due to the growing population of migrants from the endemic areas in Australia