Advances in Microscale Laser Shock Peening

The response of materials after microscale laser shock peening (μLSP) was experimentally characterized and compared with the theoretical prediction from the finite element method (FEM) analysis in microlength level. X-ray micro-diffraction technique was applied to the post-peened single crystal aluminum of (001) and (110) orientations, and X-ray profile was analyzed by sub-profiling and Fourier analysis method Spatially resolved residual stress and strain deviation was quantified and explained in terms of the heterogeneous dislocation cell structure. In-plane crystal lattice rotation induced by μLSP was measured by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and compared with the FEM simulation. Average mosaic size was evaluated from X-ray profile Fourier analysis and compared with the result from EBSD. Surface strength increase and dislocation cell structure formation were studied. The systematical characterization will lay the ground work for better understanding the effect of μLSP in microlength level and developing more realistic simulations.     

带有REV-LTR片段的MDV野毒株GX0101 BAC克隆的构建及拯救病毒的致病性分析

将整合有禽网状内皮组织增生症病毒(reticuloendotheliosis, REV)长末端重复序列(LTR)的马立克氏病病毒(命名为GX0101)全基因组作为细菌人工染色体(bacterial artificial chromosome, BAC)克隆进大肠杆菌. BAC载体通过同源重组插入MDV基因组的US2区, 含BAC载体的MDV DNA电转化大肠杆菌菌株DH10B, 鉴定含MDV全基因组的BAC克隆(MDV BAC), 提取BAC DNA, 转染原代鸡胚成纤维细胞(CEF), 成功拯救出了重组病毒, 命名为bac-GX0101. 将此病毒腹腔接种1日龄鸡, 在攻毒后62 d开始检测到内脏肿瘤, 动物实验结果表明, bac-GX0101毒株与亲本GX0101毒株对机体的致病性等方面的影响没有差异, bac-GX0101毒株仍然保留着很好的免疫抑制功能及致肿瘤能力. 该感染性克隆bac-GX0101为研究该重组野毒株中REV-LTR插入片段及其他基因的生物学功能提供了有用的技术平台.     

A BAC clone of MDV strain GX0101 with REV-LTR integration retained its pathogenicity

The complete genome of Marek＇s disease virus （MDV） strain GX0101, which was integrated with the LTR sequences of REV, was cloned in Escherichia coli as a bacterial artificial chromosome （BAC）. BAC vector sequences were introduced into the US2 locus of the MDV genome by homologous recombination. The viral DNA containing the BAC vector was used to transform Escherichia coli strain of DH10B. Then the recombinant virus was successfully rescued by transfection of the recombinant BAC DNA into primary chicken embryo fibroblast （CEF）. This BAC viral clone was named bac-GX0101. When the reconstituted virus was inoculated into 1-day-old birds, visceral tumors could be detected as early as 62 d post infection. There was no difference in growth ability and pathogenicity to birds between the BAC derived virus and its parental virus. The BAC derived virus maintained its oncogenicity and immunosuppressive effects. In conclusion, the complete genome of GX0101 strain was successfully cloned into BAC and the infectious clone was rescued. With the powerful BAC manipulation system, the infectious clone will provide a useful tool for further understanding the functional roles of the inserted REV-LTR sequence in the GX0101 strain of MDV,     

Classification and ordination of Coleogyne communities in southern Nevada

Woody plant community composition was analyzed throughout the range of Coleogyne ramosissima in the Spring and Sheep Mountain ranges of southern Nevada. The lower Coleogyne elevational boundary was analyzed in detail in Lucky Strike Canyon, on the eastern edge of the Spring Mountains. TWINSPAN (2-way indicator species analysis) identified 4 primary species and stand groups from the 2 mountain ranges (extensive survey). Analysis of DECORANA (detrended correspondence analysis) results indicated that elevation and soil depth were the environmental factors most significantly associated with distribution of species and stand groups in the extensive survey. Elevation was the only significant physical factor associated with distribution of species and stand groups in the intensive survey. Five vegetation zones form the 2 mountain ranges were identified based on their dominant species in 15 extensive transects. Coleogyne were subdivided into pure stands and upper and lower ecotones for further investigation of species distribution and environmental factors. Selected environmental factors appear to play an important role in structuring the Mojave Desert vegetation zones in southern Nevada.     

The Lost Papers of Robert Boyle

Although the volume of the surviving papers of Robert Boyle is substantial (over 20,000 leaves), a considerable amount of the written material left by Boyle at his death in 1691 has not survived in the Boyle archive. This paper gauges the scale and identity of these losses using the surviving inventories made by the Rev. Henry Miles in the 1740s when he was collecting and sorting Boyle's literary remains in conjunction with Thomas Birch's preparation of his 1744 Life and Works of Boyle. These detailed lists (edited as appendices to this paper), together with other sources, indicate losses due to a variety of reasons, some deliberate, others accidental. The losses involved the disposal of both items judged (in the eighteenth century) to be peripheral to Boyle's archive and, ironically, those in the most finished state from Boyle's hand, which were perhaps abortively destined for the Birch edition. These losses have significantly altered the character of the Boyle Papers, and thus the view of Boyle that is derived from them.     

Tamarix aphylla : a newly invasive tree in southern Nevada

In the southwestern United States, the nonnative athel pine ( Tamarix aphylla ) was presumed to be sterile and therefore not as likely to spread as its widely distributed, nonnative congener, T. ramosissima . However, at Lake Mead National Recreation Area (LMNRA) in southern Nevada, populations of T. aphylla have recently spread beyond their limited pre-1990 distribution and now form extensive monospecific stands. Over a 3-year period, we quantified seed production and germination from 60 T. aphylla trees at LMNRA. The annual mean seed production period was 50.6 days, and the mean potential germination (under laboratory conditions) was 22%, indicating that T. aphylla trees at LMNRA are capable of sexual reproduction in southern Nevada. No seeds germinated in field experiments, apparently because of high soil salt levels. However, seedling regeneration is becoming increasingly common at LMNRA. Tamarix aphylla trees occupied a distinct zone along the shoreline of Lake Mead, above T. ramosissima in elevation and below native Larrea tridentata communities, suggesting either competitive exclusion or differential resource utilization. The T. aphylla zone tended to have the highest mean values for total vegetation cover, leaf litter depth, soil salinity, soil moisture, pH, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and soil organic matter. The capacity for sexual reproduction of this alien plant, combined with a suite of characteristics shared with the invasive T. ramosissima (e.g., drought tolerance and copious saline leaf litter), makes T. aphylla a potentially invasive species along the shores of LMNRA and other mesic areas in the desert Southwest.     

Some relationships between internal parasites and brown trout from Montana streams

Forty - five percent of 306 brown trout from 16 Montana streams were infected with one or more of the nematodes Cystidicoloides salvelini, Bulbodacnitis globosa, Rhabdochona sp., and Eustrongylides sp. The relationships between incidence and intensity of nematode infections and age and sexual maturity of the host fish were studied. Generally, sexually mature female brown trout had a higher rate of infection and had more nematodes per infected fish than immature female brown trout. Higher incidence and intensity of infection in sexually mature fish was attributed to more aggressive feeding behavior leading to more exposure to the intermediate hosts (mayflies) of the nematode parasites.         

Smad4 signalling in T cells is required for suppression of gastrointestinal cancer

SMAD4 (MAD homologue 4 (Drosophila)), also known as DPC4 (deleted in pancreatic cancer), is a tumour suppressor gene that encodes a central mediator of transforming growth factor-beta signalling. Germline mutations in SMAD4 are found in over 50% of patients with familial juvenile polyposis, an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by predisposition to hamartomatous polyps and gastrointestinal cancer. Dense inflammatory cell infiltrates underlay grossly normal appearing, non-polypoid colonic and gastric mucosa of patients with familial juvenile polyposis. This prominent stromal component suggests that loss of SMAD4-dependent signalling in cells within the epithelial microenvironment has an important role in the evolution of intestinal tumorigenesis in this syndrome. Here we show that selective loss of Smad4-dependent signalling in T cells leads to spontaneous epithelial cancers throughout the gastrointestinal tract in mice, whereas epithelial-specific deletion of the Smad4 gene does not. Tumours arising within the colon, rectum, duodenum, stomach and oral cavity are stroma-rich with dense plasma cell infiltrates. Smad4(-/-) T cells produce abundant T(H)2-type cytokines including interleukin (IL)-5, IL-6 and IL-13, known mediators of plasma cell and stromal expansion. The results support the concept that cancer, as an outcome, reflects the loss of the normal communication between the cellular constituents of a given organ, and indicate that Smad4-deficient T cells ultimately send the wrong message to their stromal and epithelial neighbours.