Electronic circuitry used to automate paper chromatography

Electronic circuit is used in a paper chromatograph instrument that has excellent sensitivity and furnishes a printed record of each test. The circuit measures and records changes in conductivity in a strip of chromatographic paper as different solutions are placed on it

Structural lineaments of Gaspe from ERTS imagery

A test study was conducted to assess the value of ERTS images for mapping geologic features of the Gaspe Peninsula, Quebec. The specific objectives of the study were: 1) to ascertain the best procedure to follow in order to obtain valuable geologic data as a result of interpretation; and 2) to indicate in which way these data could relate to mineral exploration. Of the four spectral bands of the Multispectral scanner, the band from 700 to 800 nanometers, which seems to possess the best informational content for geologic study, was selected for analysis. The original ERTS image at a scale of 1:3,700,000 was enlarged about 15 times and reproduced on film. Geologically meaningful lines, called structural lineaments, were outlined and classified according to five categories: morpho-lithologic boundaries, morpho-lithologic lineaments, fault traces, fracture zones and undefined lineaments. Comparison with the geologic map of Gaspe shows that morpho-lithologic boundaries correspond to contacts between regional stratigraphic units. Morpholithologic lineaments follow bedding trends, whereas fracture traces appear as sets of parallel lineaments, intersecting at high angles the previous category of lineaments. Fault traces mark more precisely the location of faults already mapped and spot the presence of presumable faults, not indicated on the geologic map

Cholesterol-sensing liver X receptors stimulate Th2-driven allergic eosinophilic asthma in mice

Introduction: Liver X receptors (LXRs) are nuclear receptors that function as cholesterol sensors and regulate cholesterol homeostasis. High cholesterol has been recognized as a risk factor in asthma; however, the mechanism of this linkage is not known. Methods: To explore the importance of cholesterol homeostasis for asthma, we investigated the contribution of LXR activity in an ovalbumin- and a house dust mite-driven eosinophilic asthma mouse model. Results: In both models, airway inflammation, airway hyper-reactivity, and goblet cell hyperplasia were reduced in mice deficient for both LXR and LXR isoforms (LXR-/--/-) as compared to wild-type mice. Inversely, treatment with the LXR agonist GW3965 showed increased eosinophilic airway inflammation. LXR activity contributed to airway inflammation through promotion of type 2 cytokine production as LXR-/--/- mice showed strongly reduced protein levels of IL-5 and IL-13 in the lungs as well as reduced expression of these cytokines by CD4(+) lung cells and lung-draining lymph node cells. In line herewith, LXR activation resulted in increased type 2 cytokine production by the lung-draining lymph node cells. Conclusions: In conclusion, our study demonstrates that the cholesterol regulator LXR acts as a positive regulator of eosinophilic asthma in mice, contributing to airway inflammation through regulation of type 2 cytokine production

Greenland ice core “signal” characteristics: An expanded view of climate change

The last millenium of Earth history is of particular interest because it documents the environmental complexities of both natural variability and anthropogenic activity. We have analyzed the major ions contained in the Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2 (GISP 2) ice core from the present to ∼674 A.D. to yield an environmental reconstruction for this period that includes a description of nitrogen and sulfur cycling, volcanic emissions, sea salt and terrestrial influences. We have adapted and extended mathematical procedures for extracting sporadic (e.g., volcanic) events, secular trends, and periodicities found in the data sets. Finally, by not assuming that periodic components (signals) were “stationary” and by utilizing evolutionary spectral analysis, we were able to reveal periodic processes in the climate system which change in frequency, “turn on,” and “turn off” with other climate transitions such as\u27that between the little ice age and the medieval warm period

Reversed halo sign on CT as a presentation of lymphocytic interstitial pneumonia.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked Files. This article is open access.A 52 year-old African American female with a past medical history of symptomatic uterine fibroids and increasing abdominal circumference underwent abdominal computed tomography (CT) as part of her workup. Because of an abnormality in the left lower lobe, CT of the chest was subsequently performed and showed a focal region of discontinuous crescentic consolidation with central ground glass opacification in the right lower lobe, suggestive of the reversed halo sign. The patient underwent percutaneous CT-guided core biopsy of the lesion, which demonstrated lymphocytic interstitial pneumonia, a benign lymphoproliferative disease characterized histologically by small lymphocytes and plasma cells. This case report describes the first histologically confirmed presentation of lymphocytic interstitial pneumonia with the reversed halo sign on CT

Anatomy of a Dansgaard-Oeschger warming transition: High-resolution analysis of the North Greenland Ice Core Project ice core

Large and abrupt temperature oscillations during the last glacial period, known as Dansgaard‐Oeschger (DO) events, are clearly observed in the Greenland ice core record. Here we present a new high‐resolution chemical (2 mm) and stable isotope (20 mm) record from the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NGRIP) ice core at the onset of one of the most prominent DO events of the last glacial, DO‐8, observed ∼38,000 years ago. The unique, subannual‐resolution NGRIP record provides a true sequence of change during a DO warming with detailed annual layer counting of very high depth resolution geochemical measurements used to determine the exact duration of the transition. The continental ions, indicative of long‐range atmospheric loading and dustiness from East Asia, are the first to change, followed by the snow accumulation, the moisture source conditions, and finally the atmospheric temperature in Greenland. The sequence of events shows that atmospheric and oceanic source and circulation changes preceded the DO warming by several years

Anti-inflammatory nuclear receptor superfamily in multiple sclerosis patients from Sardinia and Sweden

Several nuclear hormone receptors have been associated with inflammatory reactions. Particularly, liver X receptors (LXRs) have recently been identified as key transcriptional regulators of genes involved in lipid homeostasis and inflammation. LXRs are negative regulators of macrophage inflammatory gene expression. Multiple sclerosis (MS), a demyelinating disease of the central nervous system of unknown cause, is characterized by recurrent inflammation involving macrophages and their inflammatory mediators. Sweden belongs to the countries with a high MS incidence. In Italy, the MS incidence is lower, except on the island of Sardinia where the incidence is even higher than in Sweden. Subjects from Sardinia are ethnically more homogeneous, and differ from Swedes also regarding genetic background and environment. We studied mRNA expression of several nuclear hormone receptors in blood mononuclear cells (MNC) from female patients with untreated relapsing-remitting MS from Sassari, Sardinia, and Stockholm, Sweden. Sex- and age-matched healthy controls (HC) were from both areas. mRNA expression was evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR. We found altered mRNA expression of LXRs, estrogen receptors (ERs), and androgen receptor (AR) in MS. mRNA expression of both LXRα and LXRβ is lower in MS from Stockholm but not from Sassari. In particular, LXRα mRNA expression was significantly lower in MS from Stockholm as compared with all groups in the study including MS from Sassari. Low levels of ERα mRNA are seen in MS from both Stockholm and Sassari. The splice variant ERβcx showed significantly higher mRNA expression in MS from Sassari and Stockholm as compared with corresponding HC. In particular, ERβcx mRNA in MS from Sassari was remarkably higher as compared with all other groups in the study. Higher levels of AR mRNA are present in HC from Sassari. The findings indicate that the expression levels of anti-inflammatory nuclear receptor superfamily genes in MS appear to reflect both ethnic and environmental influences