Anthropology as a nation-building rhetoric: the shaping of Turkish anthropology (from 1850s to 1940s)

Although the presence of anthropology is strongly felt during the first decades of the Turkish republican history, namely the period between 1923 and 1940, it is striking to see that the discipline was conceived more as a nation-building device than a scientific endeavour. This article traces the formation of Turkish anthropology from the late Ottoman period to the consolidation of the Republican regime, emphasizing the interesting oscillations between physical and social/cultural anthropologies, which are alternately brought to fore according to the requirements the political agenda.     

Conduction in ulnar nerve bundles that innervate the proximal and distal muscles: a clinical trial

Background  

This study aims to investigate and compare the conduction parameters of nerve bundles in the ulnar nerve that innervates the forearm muscles and hand muscles; routine electromyography study merely evaluates the nerve segment of distal (hand) muscles.     

Addressable self-immobilization of lactate dehydrogenase across multiple length scales

Successful nanobiotechnology implementation largely depends on control over the interfaces between inorganic materials and biological molecules. Controlling the orientations of biomolecules and their spatial arrangements on the surface may transform many technologies including sensors, to energy. Here, we demonstrate the self-organization of L -lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), which exhibits enhanced enzymatic activity and stability on a variety of gold surfaces ranging from nanoparticles to electrodes, by incorporating a gold-binding peptide tag (AuBP2) as the fusion partner for Bacillus stearothermophilus LDH (bsLDH). Binding kinetics and enzymatic assays verified orientation control of the enzyme on the gold surface through the genetically incorporated peptide tag. Finally, redox catalysis efficiency of the immobilized enzyme was detected using cyclic voltammetry analysis in enzyme-based biosensors for lactate detection as well as in biofuel cell energy systems as the anodic counterpart. Our results demonstrate that the LDH enzyme can be self-immobilized onto different gold substrates using the short peptide tag under a biologically friendly environment. Depending on the desired inorganic surface, the proposed peptide-mediated path could be extended to any surface to achieve single-step oriented enzyme immobilization for a wide range of applications.     

Effect of hexythiazox and spiromesifen resistance on the life cycle of the predatory mite Neoseiulus californicus (Acari: Phytoseiidae)

Neoseiulus californicus (McGregor) (Acari: Phytoseiidae) is one of the most important and effective predators of Tetranychus spp. (Acari: Tetranychidae). This study analyzed the effects of hexythiazox and spiromesifen resistance on biological characteristics of N. californicus. Pre-oviposition, oviposition, post-oviposition times, adult lifespan, total number of eggs laid per female, net reproductive rate (R₀), intrinsic rate of increase (r_m), doubling time (DT), mean generation time (T) and finite rate of increase (λ) were compared among three populations: 63.9-fold hexythiazox resistant (HEX14), 53.6-fold spiromesifen resistant (SPR13) and a susceptible base population. Pre-oviposition and oviposition times, mean number of eggs/female, adult lifespan, R₀ and r_m values were all significantly higher for the two resistant populations than for the susceptible population. Life tables of HEX14, SPR13 and the susceptible population showed that R₀ was 35.0, 26.5 and 19.4 (females/female generation), r_m was 0.35, 0.32 and 0.30 (females/female/day), DT was 1.92, 2.07 and 2.27 days, T was 9.8, 9.8 and 9.7 days, and λ was 1.43, 1.39 and 1.35 (individuals/female/day), respectively.     

Central epinergic inhibition of corticosterone release in rat

Drugs known to inhibit phenylethanolamine-N-methyltransferase (EC 2.1.1.28), the final enzyme in the epinephrine synthetic pathway were administered to rats and their effects on pituitary-arenal function studied. 2, 3-Dichloro-α-methylbenzylamine (DCMB) produced dose-related increases in plasma corticosterone in basal and stressed rats. Evidence for the central nature of this tonic inhibitory effect of epinephrine was its continued presence in adrenal demedullated rats. 2-chloro-3-trifluoromethyl-α-benzylamine (CTFMB) administration elevated plasma corticosterone and this effect was highly correlated to the decrease in hypothalamic epinephrine concentration in both sham operated and adrenal demedullated rats. These findings argue for tonic epinergic inhibition of pituitary-adrenal function.