An Investigation of Thermal Comfort at High Humidities

Climate chamber experiments were performed to investigate thermal comfort at high humidities. Subjective reports were recorded for a total of 411 subjects at frequent intervals during the three-hour experiments with 65 selected subjects equipped with instrumentation to record skin wettedness and skin temperature. The exposures ranged from 20°C (68°F)/60% RH to 26°C (78.8°F)/90% RH with two clothing levels, 0.5 and 0.9 clo, and three levels of metabolic activity, 1.2, 1.6, and 4 met. Clear differences in humidity response were not found for sedentary subjects; however, non-sedentary activities produced differences on several subjective scales. These differences, though, are dictated via heat balance and thermoregulation and cannot be separated from humidity-related effects. For metabolic rates 1.6 met and above, these data suggest that no practical limit on humidity will lower the percent dissatisfied below 25%

Listing candidate diagnostic markers and transcriptomic exploration of the molecular basis of a type of male infertility (Non-Obstructive Azoospermia), via next generation sequencing methods

ABSTRACTStudying the molecular basis of Non-Obstructive Azoospermia (NOA), a type of male infertility with failed spermatogenesis at various stages, can also help in exploring molecular basis of human spermatogenesis and possibly pave way to identify new targets for male contraceptive development. Hence, we initiated a functional genomics study by applying RNA-seq. Testicular biopsies collected from donors with Non-Obstructive Azoospermia (NOA), Obstructive Azoospermia (OA), Congenital Bilateral Absence of the Vas Deferens (CBAVD), and Varicocele (VA) conditions. Strong association of 100+ genes with human spermatogenesis and NOA has been detected via NGS-based transcriptomic analysis. In addition, 20 RNA molecules have been short-listed for potential diagnostic applications (non-obstructive azoospermia vs. obstructive azoospermia, varicocele or normal). A hierarchical list of several genes and alternatively spliced mRNAs, transcribed differentially in NOA, is reported - based on a ‘strength of association’. Such association with NOA, spermatogenesis or both is a new finding for many genes as revealed by a comparison with a newly prepared comprehensive list of genes having such association with human spermatogenesis/NOA. Many top-ranking genes involved in viral gene expression were up-regulated in testes from NOA-patients, while those associated with an antiviral mechanism were down-regulated. A tangential finding: while most well-established control mRNAs did not qualify, two new ones worked best in RT-qPCR experiments. Needle-aspiration of testicular biopsies, followed by the use of short-listed promising candidate biomarkers (i.e., 16 mRNA &amp; 4 chimeric transcripts) and control mRNAs in RT-qPCR-based diagnostic assays, may help to avoid open surgeries in future.</jats:p

A Brassica napus mRNA expressed specifically in developing microspores

The I3 cDNA isolated from a library made from 2–4 mm (immature) anthers of Brassica napus shows microspore-specific expression. Homologous transcripts are detected in buds and anthers of male-fertile plants, but not in green tissues, roots, or in cytoplasmic male-sterile buds. High expression of the transcript is limited to microspores entering and undergoing mitosis. The predicted peptide sequence of the cDNA shows an unusual repeated alanine/proline motif at the C-terminus, which may be of importance in the native protein structure