Sustaining energetic communities: energy citizenship and participation in an age of upheaval and transition.

The human use of energy is inherently understood and experienced through socially constructed frameworks. However, the degree of engagement with this topic on the part of humanities and the social sciences has until recently been uneven at best. This seems strange given current upheavals experienced in Europe and across the globe as the climate and biodiversity crises deepen.

Effects of metal ions and hydrogen peroxide on the phenotype of yeast hom6Δ mutant.

Unlabelled: HOM6 is a major gene in the aspartate pathway which leads to biosynthesis of threonine and methionine. The phenotypes of the gene deletion mutant (hom6∆) in a variety of cultural conditions have previously provided meaningful insights into the biological roles of HOM6 and its upstream intermediate metabolites. Here, we conducted a survey on a spectrum of metal ions for their effect on the aspartate pathway and broader sulphur metabolism.

Effect of motion on the ADC quantification accuracy of whole-body DWIBS.

Background And Methods: Diffusion-weighted whole-body imaging with background body signal subtraction was introduced as a qualitative approach to detecting metastases in the body. A liver-mimicking phantom with embedded tumours that could be moved to replicate respiratory motion was developed to assess its ability to accurately quantify ADC values.

Results: Mean tumour ADC values were unaltered by the motion; however, a significant (p < 0.

Design and evaluation of an optically-tracked single-CCD laser range scanner.

Purpose: Acquisition of laser range scans of an organ surface has the potential to efficiently provide measurements of geometric changes to soft tissue during a surgical procedure. A laser range scanner design is reported here which has been developed to drive intraoperative updates to conventional image-guided neurosurgery systems.

Methods: The scanner is optically-tracked in the operating room with a multiface passive target.

Comparison and evaluation of methods for liver segmentation from CT datasets.

This paper presents a comparison study between 10 automatic and six interactive methods for liver segmentation from contrast-enhanced CT images. It is based on results from the "MICCAI 2007 Grand Challenge" workshop, where 16 teams evaluated their algorithms on a common database. A collection of 20 clinical images with reference segmentations was provided to train and tune algorithms in advance.

Susceptibility of pregnant women to toxoplasma infection--potential benefits for newborn screening.

Congenital toxoplasmosis (CT) arises as a result of new acquisition of Toxoplasma infection by a susceptible woman during pregnancy. Early detection of CT through neonatal screening programmes could optimize management and improve infant outcome. This study sought to estimate the prevalence of Toxoplasma susceptibility in pregnant women.

Screening for Chlamydia trachomatis in asymptomatic women attending outpatient clinics in a large maternity hospital in Dublin, Ireland.

Background: Chlamydia trachomatis can cause a sexually transmitted infection, which, untreated, may result in considerable morbidity.

Methods: A prevalence study was conducted for C trachomatis using nucleic acid amplification technology in asymptomatic women, and certain risk factors that may be used to direct future screening strategies were assessed.

Results: The study population comprised 945 asymptomatic women, of whom 783 were attending antenatal clinics, 91 were attending infertility clinics and 71 were attending family planning clinics.

Structural perturbations in the Ala --> Val polymorphism of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase: how binding of folates may protect against inactivation.

In human methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) the Ala222Val (677C-->T) polymorphism encodes a heat-labile gene product that is associated with elevated levels of homocysteine and possibly with risk for cardiovascular disease. Generation of the equivalent Ala to Val mutation in Escherichia coli MTHFR, which is 30% identical to the catalytic domain of the human enzyme, creates a protein with enhanced thermolability. In both human and E.

Penicillin susceptibility and epidemiological typing of invasive pneumococcal isolates in the Republic of Ireland.

A national study was undertaken to investigate the incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease in the Republic of Ireland and to examine the associated isolates. In 1999, 144 S. pneumoniae isolates, all recovered from cases of invasive disease, were received from 12 microbiology laboratories.

Domain alternation switches B(12)-dependent methionine synthase to the activation conformation.

B(12)-dependent methionine synthase (MetH) from Escherichia coli is a large modular protein that uses bound cobalamin as an intermediate methyl carrier. Major domain rearrangements have been postulated to explain how cobalamin reacts with three different substrates: homocysteine, methyltetrahydrofolate and S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet). Here we describe the 3.

Design of a novel mammalian screening system for the detection of bioavailable, non-cytotoxic streptogramin antibiotics.

Screening and development of new antibiotic activities to counteract the increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) human pathogenic bacteria has once again become a priority in human chemotherapy. Here we describe a novel mammalian cell culture-based screening platform for the detection of streptogramin antibiotics. Quinupristin-dalfopristin (Synercid), a synthetically modified streptogramin, is presently the sole effective agent in the treatment of some MDR nosocomial infections.

Thioredoxin reductase two modes of catalysis have evolved.

Thioredoxin reductase (EC 1.6.4.

Twists in catalysis: alternating conformations of Escherichia coli thioredoxin reductase.

In thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) from Escherichia coli, cycles of reduction and reoxidation of the flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) cofactor depend on rate-limiting rearrangements of the FAD and NADPH (reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate) domains. We describe the structure of the flavin-reducing conformation of E. coli TrxR at a resolution of 3.

Crystal structure of reduced thioredoxin reductase from Escherichia coli: structural flexibility in the isoalloxazine ring of the flavin adenine dinucleotide cofactor.

Catalysis by thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) from Escherichia coli requires alternation between two domain arrangements. One of these conformations has been observed by X-ray crystallography (Waksman G, Krishna TSR, Williams CH Jr, Kuriyan J, 1994, J Mol Biol 236:800-816). This form of TrxR, denoted FO, permits the reaction of enzyme-bound reduced FAD with a redox-active disulfide on TrxR.

Community study of toxoplasma antibodies in urban and rural schoolchildren aged 4 to 18 years.

To estimate the prevalence of toxoplasma antibodies in schoolchildren and their association with clinical and environmental data, antibody titres were measured in 1276 children aged 4 to 18 years attending primary and secondary schools. Environmental and clinical data were obtained by questionnaire. Altogether 12.

Reductive half-reaction of thioredoxin reductase from Escherichia coli.

Thioredoxin reductase is a homodimeric flavoenzyme containing a flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and a redox-active disulfide in each subunit. Structural work on the enzyme from Escherichia coli suggests that thioredoxin reductase exists in two conformations, both of which are necessary for catalysis [Waksman, G., Krishna, T.

Processing of semen in an antibiotic-rich culture medium to minimize microbial presence during in vitro fertilization.

Objective: To identify and determine the prevalence of microorganisms in preprocessed and postprocessed semen in an IVF-ET program.

Design: Prospective study.

Setting: University Teaching Hospital.

Microbial contamination in an in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer system.

Objective: To determine sources and transmission of microorganisms in IVF-ET and efficacy of in-place controlling systems.

Design: Prospective study.

Setting: In Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer Unit at a university teaching hospital.

Enzyme-monitored turnover of Escherichia coli thioredoxin reductase: insights for catalysis.

Thioredoxin reductase from Escherichia coli is a member of the pyridine nucleotide-disulfide oxidoreductase family, and contains one FAD and one redox-active disulfide per subunit. It is known that two other well-studied members of this family, lipoamide dehydrogenase and glutathione reductase, cycle between the two electron-reduced and fully oxidized forms in catalysis. Enzyme-monitored turnover shows that the spectrum of thioredoxin reductase during turnover represents fully reduced flavin with NADP(H) bound.

Menstrual cycle symptom reporting in three British ethnic groups.

Three different British ethnic groups were targeted to assess the influence of learned or culturally prescribed symptom reporting behaviour across different phases of the menstrual cycle. Forty-eight Afro-Caribbean, 73 Caucasian and 32 Oriental subjects completed a Positive/Negative Affectivity scale, a Retrospective assessment of premenstrual symptoms and daily symptom reports for 35 days. The results showed a significantly elevated level of symptomatology premenstrually and menstrually in the Caucasian group compared to both others.

Effect of pyridine nucleotide on the oxidative half-reaction of Escherichia coli thioredoxin reductase.

The kinetics of the oxidative half-reaction between reduced thioredoxin reductase and oxidized thioredoxin measured in the presence and absence of pyridine nucleotide show a significant difference in the rates of the main phase of oxidation. When 1 equiv of NADPH is used to partially reduce the enzyme at pH 7.0 or 7.

Effects of subunit cross-linking on the properties of crotoxin.

Crotoxin was cross-linked using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride. Cross-linked crotoxin had the expected amino-terminal amino acids, amino acid composition, behavior on SDS-PAGE and an 80% reduction of reactable lysine residues. It was also non-toxic, had reduced immunological cross-reactivity toward both poly- and monoclonal antibodies raised to the basic subunit of crotoxin and had lost greater than 95% of its phospholipase activity.

Isolation of a crotoxin-like protein from the venom of a South American rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus collilineatus).

1. A crotoxin-like protein was isolated from the venom of a South American rattlesnake Crotalus durissus collilineatus. 2.