The imprinted domain in mouse distal Chromosome 7: reagents for mutagenesis and sequencing

BACKGROUND: Right lower quadrant abdominal pain may pose a diagnostic problem in patients with cystic fibrosis. Abdominal ultrasound examination, used commonly in the diagnostic work-up, may reveal abnormalities of the appendix. However, interpretation of such findings is problematic, because the appearance of the gastrointestinal system during routine examination has not been documented in patients with cystic fibrosis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the findings during routine abdominal ultrasound scans in our cohort of patients with cystic fibrosis and in control subjects. METHODS: Abdominal ultrasound scans were performed prospectively during routine clinic visits in a cohort of patients with cystic fibrosis. RESULTS: Fifty patients aged 10+/-6 years, (range, 0.5-28 years) were examined; 45 had pancreatic insufficiency. Four patients (3 with pancreatic insufficiency) reported right lower quadrant pain at the time of the scan. According to standard ultrasound criteria, the appearance of the appendix was abnormal in 8 patients (16%), 6 had a mucoid appendix, and 2 had a pathologically thickened appendiceal wall. Only 1 of these 8 patients mentioned abdominal pain at the time of the study. Other incidental findings included gallstones (3 patients), intussusception (2 patients), and pancreatic cyst (1 patient). CONCLUSIONS: Abnormalities can be observed during routine abdominal ultrasonographic studies in cystic fibrosis. These findings may not be associated with abdominal pain; their clinical relevance needs further investigation.     

Remote,condition-based maintenance for web-enabled robotic system

The current trends in industry include an integration of information and knowledge-base network with a manufacturing system, which coined a new term, e-manufacturing. From the perspective of e-manufacturing any production equipment and its control functions do not exist alone, instead becoming a part of the holistic operation system with distant monitoring, remote quality control, and fault diagnostic capabilities. The key to this new paradigm is the accessibility to a remotely located system and having the means of responding to a changing environment, which is better suited for today's rapidly changing environment. Within the framework of the web-enabled robotic system, this paper focuses on the remote maintenance schemes with an emphasis on condition-based maintenance strategies. Real-time monitoring of robot harmonic drive systems and operational status have been attained over the Web. A mathematical modeling of system availability has been derived in order to account for other failures that might occur in the subsystems of the robot. Compared to the schedule-based maintenance strategies, the proposed approach shows great potential for improving overall production efficiency, while reducing the cost of maintenance.     

Prediction of plasticizer solvency using hansen solubility parameters

The solvating strength of a plasticizer for poly(vinyl chloride) resin is a measure of the interactive forces between these two materials. Hansen's three-dimensional solubility parameters provide a quantitative measure of these interactive forces. By using CO-ACT^SM service, a computer program designed for solvent systems with various resins, plasticizers were found to lie near the edge of the solvency “sphere” of PVC. The relative positions of various plasticizer structures are in the expected order, while known solvents show strong association and lubricating additives fall outside the solvency sphere of PVC.     

Risk aversion in rats (Rattus norvegicus) under varying levels of resource availability.

Five male Wistar rats chose between a certain prospect and an uncertain prospect having equal expected value under varying levels of resource (water) availability. In contrast to results found with granivorous birds and common shrews (Sorex araneus), the rats did not switch from risk aversion (choosing the certain prospect) to risk preference (choosing the uncertain prospect) as resource availability varied from surplus to deficit, even though deficits were maintained for extended periods of time. Rather, Ss displayed an approximately constant level of risk aversion throughout. Explanations for these differences are offered in terms of procedural differences between this and earlier studies and in terms of differential behavioral patterns of relatively large organisms with large internal resource stores relative to their daily resource requirements. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Taxometrics of Marriage: Is Marital Discord Categorical?

This study used taxometric methods to investigate the latent structure of the construct of marital adjustment as indexed by the Marital Adjustment Test (MAT; H. J. Locke & K. M. Wallace, 1959). That is, the authors examined whether marital adjustment is best thought of as a "dimension" of adjustment only or whether there also are categorical differences between "discordant" and "nondiscordant" couples. Analyses of data provided by 447 couples married for approximately 2 years provided converging evidence for a latent category of marital discord, suggesting that marital discord can be viewed as a qualitatively distinct state experienced by approximately 20% of the couples in the current sample. Implications for marital assessment are outlined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editor’s and president’s column.

After 10 years as editor of the Consulting Psychology Bulletin cum Consulting Psychology Journal, the time has come to pass the baton to the new editor, Dick Diedrich. This will be my last editor's column. Without getting maudlin, it has been a memorable 10 years for me and, I hope, the journal. Taking over a well-edited divisional newsletter from Paul Lloyd, I shared my vision of creating a journal devoted to consultation with the divisional leadership after several years on the job. They were enthusiastic and very supportive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Erythema migrans-like rash illness at a camp in North Carolina: a new tick-borne disease?

BACKGROUND: Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, has never been isolated from a patient thought to have acquired Lyme disease in any southeastern state. OBJECTIVE: To investigate 14 cases of an erythema migrans (EM)-like rash illness that occurred during 2 summers at an outdoor camp in central North Carolina in an effort to determine the etiologic, epidemiological, and clinical aspects of this illness. METHODS: Using active surveillance, we identified cases of clinically diagnosed EM in residents and staff of the camp. We collected clinical and demographic information; history of exposure to ticks; acute and convalescent serum antibodies to B. burgdorferi, Rickettsia rickettsii, and Ehrlichia chaffeensis; and cultures for spirochetes from biopsy specimens of skin lesions. Serum samples from a group of residents and staff who did not develop rashes were tested for the same antibodies. We speciated ticks removed from people and collected from vegetation. RESULTS: We identified 14 cases of EM-like rash illness during the 2 summers. Of the 14 case-patients, 10 had associated mild systemic symptoms and 1 had documented fever. All 14 case-patients had removed attached ticks, and 8 remembered having removed a tick from the site where the rash developed a median of 12 days earlier (range, 2-21 days). One tick removed from the site where a rash later developed was identified as Amblyomma americanum, the Lone Star tick; 97% of ticks collected from vegetation and 95% of ticks removed from people were A. americanum. No spirochetes were isolated from skin biopsy specimens. Paired serum samples from 13 case-patients did not show diagnostic antibody responses to B. burgdorferi or other tick-borne pathogens. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation suggests the existence of a new tick-associated rash illness. We suspect that the disease agent is carried by A. americanum ticks. In the southern United States, EM-like rash illness should no longer be considered definitive evidence of early Lyme disease.     

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts in human placenta and modulation by CYP1A1 induction and genotype

This study investigated the relationship in human placenta between polycyclic aromatic hydrocabon (PAH)-DNA adduct levels and two biomarkers of cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1): gene induction evidenced by CYP1A1 mRNA, and a genetic polymorphism, the CYP1A1 MspI RFLP. CYP1A1 codes for an inducible enzyme system that catalyzes the bioactivation of PAHs. Prior research found a high correlation in human lung tissue between CYP1A1 activity and DNA damage from PAHs. The CYP1A1 Mspi RFLP has been linked in some studies to risk of lung cancer. The relationships in human placenta between DNA damage, CYP1A1 activity and genotype have not been well characterized and may be relevant to risks from transplacental PAH exposure. The study cohort consisted of 70 newborns from Krakow, Poland, a city with elevated air pollution, and 90 newborns from nearby Limanowa, an area with lower air pollution but greater indoor coal use. Contrary to results seen previously in lung tissue, CYP1A1 mRNA was not significantly correlated with PAH-DNA adduct levels in the placenta. Smoking (self-reported maternal and infant plasma cotinine) was significantly associated with CYP1A1 mRNA levels (P < 0.01), but not with PAH-DNA adduct levels. Placental PAH-DNA adduct levels were significantly higher in infants with the CYP1A1 MspI restriction site compared with infants without the restriction site (P < 0.01), implicating a genetic factor in inter-individual variation in DNA damage in human placenta. Further studies are needed to determine the relevance of this finding to risk of transplacental carcinogenesis.