Damage evolution in acetabular replacements under long-term physiological loading conditions

Damage development in cemented acetabular replacements has been studied in bovine pelvic bones under long-term physiological loading conditions, including normal walking, stair climbing and a combined block loading with representative routine activities. The physiological loading conditions were achieved using a specially designed hip simulator for fixation endurance testing. Damage was detected and monitored using micro-CT scanning at regular intervals of the experiments, and verified by microscopic studies post testing. The results show that debonding at the bone–cement interface defined the failure of cement fixation in all cases, and debondings initiated near the dome of the acetabulum in the superior–posterior quadrant, consistent with the high-stress region identified from the finite element analysis of implanted acetabular models Zant, N.P., Heaton-Adegbile, P., Hussell, J.G., Tong, J., 2008b. In-vitro fatigue failure of cemented acetabular replacements—a hip simulator study. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, Transactions of the ASME, 130, 021019-1–9]; [Tong, J., Zant, N.P., Wang, J-Y., Heaton-Adegbile, P., Hussell, J.G., 2008. Fatigue in cemented acetabulum. International Journal of Fatigue, 30(8), 1366–1375].     

Cooperative Learning in Context: An Educational Innovation in Everyday Classrooms

Cooperative Learning in Context: An Educational Innovation in Everyday Classrooms. Evelyn Jacob. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1999. 223 pp.     

Vaxcine(TM): an oil-based adjuvant for influenza vaccines

Vaccination is the method of choice for the prevention of influenza infection. However, the quantity of the antigen available, especially in the case of pandemics, often fails to meet the global demand. However, improved adjuvants can overcome this problem. Preliminary results obtained in this study revealed that one year after a single subcutaneous immunisation with influenza A H3N2 virus in an oil-based carrier, Vaxcine(TM), outbreed mice produced a high immunoglobulin G response that lasted for up to one year and exhibited less variation in titre compared with the response of the control group treated with alum. The haemagglutination-inhibition titres induced by Vaxcine(TM) were also higher than those generated by alum. These data indicate that Vaxcine(TM) is a good adjuvant candidate for seasonal influenza vaccines.     

广西合浦盆地晚白垩世和古新世的介形类化石

本文报道合浦盆地晚白垩世乌家组和古新世上洋组的介形类化石14属23种(描述1新种),可划分两个化石组合:(1)Rhombicypridea quadrata-Heterocypris hepuensis-Limnocythere sinuata组合,属于Talicypridea动物群,产于乌家组,时代为晚白垩世;(2)...     

Retinal ganglion cell topography and visual acuity of the sleepy lizard (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Tiliqua rugosa</Emphasis>)

The spatial distribution of retinal ganglion cells provides valuable insight into the importance species place on observing objects in specific regions of their visual field with higher spatial resolving power. We estimate the total number, distribution and peak density of ganglion cells in retinal wholemounts of the sleepy lizard, Tiliqua rugosa, a scincid lizard endemic to southern Australia. Ganglion cells were readily discernable from amacrine cells by their size and shape, prominent nuclei and the accumulation of Nissl-positive substances in their cytoplasm. A total of 1,654,200 (±59,400) presumed ganglion cells were estimated throughout the retina, distributed irregularly and forming a loose horizontal streak of high cell density peaking at 15,500 cells per mm². With a post nodal distance of 6.25 mm, we calculate an upper limit of visual acuity of 6.8 c/deg.     

Modelling the impact of hen harrier management measures on a red grouse population in the UK

Human‐wildlife conflict is one of the greatest barriers to effective conservation. The recovery of the hen harrier Circus cyaneus in the United Kingdom has been limited due to illegal persecution, a consequence of the raptors’ predation on the economically valuable game‐bird, the red grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus. To improve management of the system it is necessary to understand the interactions between the two species in their broader community context. We therefore developed a multi‐species model in which the life history and interactions of each of the two bird species are described through linked process models. This model was fit to population data using a Bayesian state–space framework and used to investigate the effectiveness of a conflict–mitigation technique known as diversionary feeding, in which harrier nests are provided with food in an attempt to reduce consumption of grouse chicks. To explore the utility of diversionary feeding we specified four scenarios in which 1) harriers were absent from the system, 2) there was no diversionary feeding of harriers, 3) only a portion of the harrier nests were provided with diversionary food and 4) all nests were provided with diversionary food. The results from fitting the model under the different scenarios were used to determine the strength of harriers’ impact on grouse density, as well as the effectiveness of diversionary feeding. Given the lack of information on other grouse predators and only two years of data on supplementary feeding, our results need to be implanted with caution. However, we found theoretical support for the hen harriers’ suppression of grouse cycle amplitude and average density. Furthermore, our results suggest that on grouse estates where diversionary feeding is the only active management, diversionary feeding is only marginally successful and not sufficient to mitigate the consequences of hen harrier predation on red grouse chicks.     

A global view of the OCA2-HERC2 region and pigmentation

Mutations in the gene OCA2 are responsible for oculocutaneous albinism type 2, but polymorphisms in and around OCA2 have also been associated with normal pigment variation. In Europeans, three haplotypes in the region have been shown to be associated with eye pigmentation and a missense SNP (rs1800407) has been associated with green/hazel eyes (Branicki et al. in Ann Hum Genet 73:160-170, 2009). In addition, a missense mutation (rs1800414) is a candidate for light skin pigmentation in East Asia (Yuasa et al. in Biochem Genet 45:535-542, 2007; Anno et al. in Int J Biol Sci 4, 2008). We have genotyped 3,432 individuals from 72 populations for 21 SNPs in the OCA2-HERC2 region including those previously associated with eye or skin pigmentation. We report that the blue-eye associated alleles at all three haplotypes were found at high frequencies in Europe; however, one is restricted to Europe and surrounding regions, while the other two are found at moderate to high frequencies throughout the world. We also observed that the derived allele of rs1800414 is essentially limited to East Asia where it is found at high frequencies. Long-range haplotype tests provide evidence of selection for the blue-eye allele at the three haplotyped systems but not for the green/hazel eye SNP allele. We also saw evidence of selection at the derived allele of rs1800414 in East Asia. Our data suggest that the haplotype restricted to Europe is the strongest marker for blue eyes globally and add further inferential evidence that the derived allele of rs1800414 is an East Asian skin pigmentation allele.     

Biological Control of Crown Gall: Field Measurements and Glasshouse Experiments

S ummary : An ecological study showed that the pathogeniec form of Agrobacterium radiobacter (A.r. var. tumefaciens ), biotype 2 was present in soil near galled almond seedlings, where it formed a significant proportion of the total biotype 2 population; the pathogen was not detected near healthy plants. One nonpathogenic biotype 2 isolate was able, when present in numbers approximately equal to the pathogen, to prevent crown gall induction in tomato and peach seedlings. This isolate gave complete biological control of crown gall in a glasshouse test. Six other nonpathogenic isolates did not significantly inhibit gall induction by equal numbers of the pathogen. In the field, gall induction probably depends on the size of the population of the pathogen (both absolutely and relative to that of the nonpathogen) at a wound site and on the inhibitory efficiency of the nonpathogen.