An image processing approach to computing distances between RNA secondary structures dot plots

Background  

Computing the distance between two RNA secondary structures can contribute in understanding the functional relationship between them. When used repeatedly, such a procedure may lead to finding a query RNA structure of interest in a database of structures. Several methods are available for computing distances between RNAs represented as strings or graphs, but none utilize the RNA representation with dot plots. Since dot plots are essentially digital images, there is a clear motivation to devise an algorithm for computing the distance between dot plots based on image processing methods.     

Calcium control of waveform in isolated flagellar axonemes of chlamydomonas

The effect of Ca(++) on the waveform of reactivated, isolated axonemes of chlamydomonas flagella was investigated. Flagella were detached and isolated by the dibucaine procedure and demembranated by treatment with the detergent Nonidet; the resulting axomenes lack the flagellar membrane and basal bodies. In Ca(++)-buffered reactivation solutions containing 10(-6) M or less free Ca(++), the axonemes beat with a highly asymmetrical, predominantly planar waveform that closely resembled that of in situ flagella of forward swimming cells. In solutions containing 10(-4) M Ca(++), the axonemes beat with a symmetrical waveform that was very similar to that of in situ flagella during backward swimming. In 10(-5) M Ca(++), the axonemes were predominantly quiescent, a state that appears to be closely associated with changes in axomenal waveform or direction of beat in many organisms. Experiments in which the concentrations of free Ca(++), not CaATP(--) complex were independently varied suggested that free Ca(++), not CaATP(--), was responsible for the observed changes. Analysis of the flagellar ATPases associated with the isolated axonemes and the nonidet- soluble membrane-matrix fraction obtained during preparation of the axonemes showed that the axonemes lacked the 3.0S Ca(++)-activated ATPase, almost all of which was recovered in the membrane-matrix fraction. These results indicate that free Ca(++) binds directly to an axonemal component to alter flagellar waveform, and that neither the 3.0S CaATPase nor the basal bodies are directly involved in this change.     

Histiostoma papillata sp. n. (Acari: Histiostomatidae), a mite attacking fish in Australia

Histiostoma papillata sp. n. (Acari: Histiostomatidae) is described from Victoria, Australia. It was found in the fins and gills of juvenile Murray cod, Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell), where it appeared to inflict injuries thought to be responsible for the mortality of fish in a diet trial.     

Expectant Israeli Fathers and the Medicalized Pregnancy: Ambivalent Compliance and Critical Pragmatism

This article addresses the medicalization of pregnancy in Israel and its effects on the experiences of Jewish-Israeli men who participated in various stages of their female partners' prenatal care. The highly medicalized arena of Israeli prenatal care, with its strong emphasis on prenatal diagnostic testing, provided the context in which the men's accounts of their interactions with reproductive biomedical authority, practitioners and knowledge were understood. It is suggested that the anthropological scholarship on reproduction assumes that men benefit from the medicalization of pregnancy and birth and comply with medicalization. Women, on the other hand, are often depicted as being subjected to harmful medical surveillance and responding to it in degrees, ranging from compliance to resistance, and mediated by pragmatism. Data derived from participant observation in multiple arenas and from 16 in-depth interviews with Israeli men whose female partners were pregnant or had recently given birth suggest that although some Israeli men regard the biomedicalization of pregnancy positively, most tend toward varying degrees of criticism. It is suggested that men's responses to reproductive biomedicine are far more complex than portrayed to date in the existing scholarship and that men's responses to biomedicalization reveal complex power negotiations.     

Dynamics of hemispheric specialization and integration in the context of motor control

Behavioural and neurophysiological evidence convincingly establish that the left hemisphere is dominant for motor skills that are carried out with either hand or those that require bimanual coordination. As well as this prioritization, we argue that specialized functions of the right hemisphere are also indispensable for the realization of goal-directed behaviour. As such, lateralization of motor function is a dynamic and multifaceted process that emerges across different timescales and is contingent on task- and performer-related determinants.     

Is the cerebellum involved in learning and cognition?

Current studies are examining whether the cerebellum has a functional role in non-motor tasks using both behavioral and physiological methods with animals, and computer simulations of a classical conditioning task. Cerebellar involvement in cognition has been assessed in studies with healthy and neurologically impaired humans. The results have led to new hypotheses that are providing testable predictions about the role of the cerebellum in perception, attention, and other cognitive functions.     

The representation of temporal information in perception and motor control

The representation of temporal information can be examined from both a neurological and a computational perspective. Recent evidence suggests that two subcortical structures, the cerebellum and basal ganglia, play a critical role in the timing of both movement and perception. At a computational level, models of an internal clock have been developed in which timing is based on either endogeneous oscillatory processes or distributed interval-based representations derived from relatively slow physiological processes.     

Potentialities of fluorescent carbon nanomaterials as sensor for food analysis

Food safety and quality are among the most significant and prevalent research areas worldwide. The fabrication of appropriate technical procedures or devices for the recognition of hazardous features in foods is essential to safeguard food materials. In the recent era, developing high-performance sensors based on carbon nanomaterial for food safety investigation has made noteworthy progress. Hence this review briefly highlights the different detection approaches (colorimetric sensor, fluorescence sensor, surface-enhanced Raman scattering, surface plasmon resonance, chemiluminescence, and electroluminescence), functional carbon nanomaterials with various dimensions (quantum dots, graphene quantum dots) and detection mechanisms. Further, this review emphasizes the assimilation of carbon nanomaterials with optical sensors to identify multiple contaminants in food products. The insights of carbon-based nanomaterials optical sensors for pesticides and insecticides, toxic metals, antibiotics, microorganisms, and mycotoxins detection are described in detail. Finally, the opportunities and future perspectives of nanomaterials-based optical analytical approaches for detecting various food contaminants are discussed.