The length of the Y chromosome in Nubian males and its location in metaphase spreads

Summary A total of 242 metaphase plates from the peripheral blood of Nubian males living near Aswan, Egypt were studied with respect to the length of the Y chromosome and its location in metaphase spreads. The length of the Y was similar to that found in American Negroes, and the Y chromosome was peripherally located in 79 of the 242 cells.     

Synthesis of 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-3-O-β-d-mannopyranosyl-d-glucose

Condensation of 4,6-di-O-acetyl-2,3-O-carbonyl-α-d-mannopyranosyl bromide with benzyl 2-acetamido-4,6-O-benzylidene-2-deoxy-α-d-glucopyranoside (2) gave an α-d-linked disaccharide, further transformed by removal of the carbonyl and benzylidene groups and acetylation into the previously reported benzyl 2-acetamido-4,6-O-benzylidene-2-deoxy-3-O-(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-d-mannopyranosyl)-α-d-glucopyranoside. Condensation of 3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-1,2-O-(1-ethoxyethylidene)-α-d-glucopyranose or 2-O-acetyl-3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-α-d-glucopyranosyl bromide with 2 gave benzyl 2-acetamido-3-O-(2-O-acetyl-3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-β-d-glucopyranosyl)-4,6-O-benzylidene-2-deoxy-α-d-glucopyranoside. Removal of the acetyl group at O-2, followed by oxidation with acetic anhydride-dimethyl sulfoxide, gave the β-d-arabino-hexosid-2-ulose 14. Reduction with sodium borohydride, and removal of the protective groups, gave 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-3-O-β-d-mannopyranosyl-d-glucose, which was characterized as the heptaacetate. The anomeric configuration of the glycosidic linkage was ascertained by comparison with the α-d-linked analog.     

Influence of Polymer Aggregation and Liquid Immiscibility on Morphology Tuning by Varying Composition in PffBT4T‐2DT/Nonfullerene Organic Solar Cells

The temperature‐dependent aggregation behavior of PffBT4T polymers used in organic solar cells plays a critical role in the formation of a favorable morphology in fullerene‐based devices. However, there is little investigation into the impact of donor/acceptor ratio on morphology tuning, especially for nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs). Herein, the influence of composition on morphology is reported for blends of PffBT4T‐2DT with two NFAs, O‐IDTBR and O‐IDFBR. The monotectic phase behavior inferred from differential scanning calorimetry provides qualitative insight into the interplay between solid–liquid and liquid–liquid demixing. Transient absorption spectroscopy suggests that geminate recombination dominates charge decay and that the decay rate is insensitive to composition, corroborated by negligible changes in open‐circuit voltage. Exciton lifetimes are also insensitive to composition, which is attributed to the signal being dominated by acceptor excitons which are formed and decay in domains of similar size and purity irrespective of composition. A hierarchical morphology is observed, where the composition dependence of size scales and scattering intensity from resonant soft X‐ray scattering (R‐SoXS) is dominated by variations in volume fractions of polymer/polymer‐rich domains. Results suggest an optimal morphology where polymer crystallite size and connectivity are balanced, ensuring a high probability of hole extraction via such domains.     

Inter-rater reliability of physiotherapists using the Action Research Arm Test in chronic stroke

Objectives:The purpose of this study is to establish whether physiotherapists’ ratings are consistent, when using the Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) to score a chronic stroke patient.Methods:This was part of a large project establishing the reliability in chronic stroke. This study used a correlational design comparing the association between physiotherapist scores of the same patient, to establish the ARAT’s inter-rater reliability. The COSMIN checklist was followed to enhance the methodology of the study.Results:Twenty physiotherapists (8 female and 12 male) aged between 25 and 53 years were selected. There were no participant dropouts or withdrawals. The sample size was normally distributed. The physiotherapists appeared representative of the UK physiotherapy population, with the exception of gender. The distribution of scores showed a normal distribution with standard deviation of score of 1.9. The Kendall’s W test showed 0.711 of agreement between the raters. The scores achieved statistical significance showing consistency between physiotherapists’ scores with chronic stroke. Limitations of the study were the use of a small single center convenience sample that may reduce the generalizability of the findings.Conclusions:The ARAT is consistent when scored by physiotherapists in a chronic stroke population. The inter-rater reliability range was (0.70 to 0.90) which is categorized as good.     

Evidence for Zoonotic Potential of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in Its First Molecular Characterization in Captive Mammals at Bangladesh National Zoo

To determine the occurrence and genotypes of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in captive mammals at Bangladesh National Zoo and to assess their zoonotic significance, 200 fecal samples from 32 mammalian species were examined using a nested PCR and sequencing of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene. Enterocytozoon bieneusi was detected in 16.5% (33/200) of the samples. Seven different ITS genotypes were identified, including two known genotypes (D and J) and five new ones (BAN4 to BAN8). Genotype D was the most common genotype being observed in 19 isolates. In phylogenetic analysis, four genotypes (D, BAN4, BAN5, and BAN6), detected in 30 isolates (90.9%), belonged to Group 1 having zoonotic potential. The sequence of genotype J found in a Malayan pangolin was clustered in so‐called ruminant‐specific Group 2. The other two genotypes BAN7 and BAN8 were clustered in primate‐specific Group 5. To our knowledge, this is the first report of molecular characterization of E. bieneusi in Bangladesh, particularly in captive‐bred wildlife in this country. The potentially zoonotic genotypes of E. bieneusi are maintained in zoo mammals that may transmit among these animals and to the humans through environmental contamination or contact.