Shared and organ-specific gene-expression programs during the development of the cochlea and the superior olivary complex.

The peripheral and central auditory subsystems together form a complex sensory network that allows an organism to hear. The genetic programs of the two subsystems must therefore be tightly coordinated during development. Yet, their interactions and common expression pathways have never been systematically explored.

mutation causes human otosclerosis and a similar phenotype in mice.

Background: Otosclerosis is a common cause of adult-onset progressive hearing loss, affecting 0.3%-0.4% of the population.

Repair of noise-induced damage to stereocilia F-actin cores is facilitated by XIRP2 and its novel mechanosensor domain.

Prolonged exposure to loud noise has been shown to affect inner ear sensory hair cells in a variety of deleterious manners, including damaging the stereocilia core. The damaged sites can be visualized as 'gaps' in phalloidin staining of F-actin, and the enrichment of monomeric actin at these sites, along with an actin nucleator and crosslinker, suggests that localized remodeling occurs to repair the broken filaments. Herein, we show that gaps in mouse auditory hair cells are largely repaired within 1 week of traumatic noise exposure through the incorporation of newly synthesized actin.

High-throughput analysis of the transcriptional patterns of sexual genes in malaria.

Background: Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) is the leading protozoan causing malaria, the most devastating parasitic disease. To ensure transmission, a small subset of Pf parasites differentiate into the sexual forms (gametocytes). Since the abundance of these essential parasitic forms is extremely low within the human host, little is currently known about the molecular regulation of their sexual differentiation, highlighting the need to develop tools to investigate Pf gene expression during this fundamental mechanism.

The long and short: Non-coding RNAs in the mammalian inner ear.

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) play a critical role in the entire body, and their mis-regulation is often associated with disease. In parallel with the advances in high-throughput sequencing technologies, there is a great deal of focus on this broad class of RNAs. Although these molecules are not translated into proteins, they are now well established as significant regulatory components in many biological pathways and pathological conditions.

The noncoding genome and hearing loss.

The age of sequencing has provided unprecedented insights into the human genome. The coding region of the genome comprises nearly 20,000 genes, of which approximately 4000 are associated with human disease. Beyond the protein-coding genome, which accounts for only 3% of the genome, lies a vast pool of regulatory elements in the form of promoters, enhancers, RNA species, and other intricate elements.

DNA methylation dynamics during embryonic development and postnatal maturation of the mouse auditory sensory epithelium.

The inner ear is a complex structure responsible for hearing and balance, and organ pathology is associated with deafness and balance disorders. To evaluate the role of epigenomic dynamics, we performed whole genome bisulfite sequencing at key time points during the development and maturation of the mouse inner ear sensory epithelium (SE). Our single-nucleotide resolution maps revealed variations in both general characteristics and dynamics of DNA methylation over time.

The direct cost burden of 13years of disabling workplace injuries in the U.S. (1998-2010): Findings from the Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index.

Introduction: Although occupational injuries are among the leading causes of death and disability around the world, the burden due to occupational injuries has historically been under-recognized, obscuring the need to address a major public health problem.

Methods: We established the Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index (LMWSI) to provide a reliable annual metric of the leading causes of the most serious workplace injuries in the United States based on direct workers compensation (WC) costs.

Results: More than $600 billion in direct WC costs were spent on the most disabling compensable non-fatal injuries and illnesses in the United States from 1998 to 2010.

Editorial: emerging issues in sociotechnical systems thinking and workplace safety.

Unlabelled: The burden of on-the-job accidents and fatalities and the harm of associated human suffering continue to present an important challenge for safety researchers and practitioners. While significant improvements have been achieved in recent decades, the workplace accident rate remains unacceptably high. This has spurred interest in the development of novel research approaches, with particular interest in the systemic influences of social/organisational and technological factors.

Sociotechnical approaches to workplace safety: Research needs and opportunities.

Unlabelled: The sociotechnical systems perspective offers intriguing and potentially valuable insights into problems associated with workplace safety. While formal sociotechnical systems thinking originated in the 1950s, its application to the analysis and design of sustainable, safe working environments has not been fully developed. To that end, a Hopkinton Conference was organised to review and summarise the state of knowledge in the area and to identify research priorities.

On-board safety monitoring systems for driving: review, knowledge gaps, and framework.

Introduction: Fatal highway incidents remain the leading type of fatal work-related event, carrying tremendous personal, social, and economic costs. While employers with a fixed worksite can observe and interact directly with workers in an effort to promote safety and reduce risk, employers with workers who operate a motor vehicle as part of their job have fewer options. New technologies such as on-board safety monitoring systems offer the potential to further improve safety.

Research needs and opportunities for reducing the adverse safety consequences of fatigue.

Although there has been a significant amount of research on fatigue globally, it remains a major contributor to workplace and highway mortality and morbidity. Given its importance, a Hopkinton Conference was organized to review and discuss the state of knowledge in the area and to define future directions for research aimed at preventing or mitigating the consequences of fatigue. In all, five groups of international contributors produced six articles for this special issue, comprising state of the art reviews, along with a discussion of knowledge gaps and future research needs.

Future directions in fatigue and safety research.

Fatigue is regarded as a major contributor to workplace and highway morbidity and mortality. While the scientific literature is replete with studies that can be traced back more than a hundred years, much remains to be done to improve our knowledge of and ability to alleviate the consequences of fatigue. Moreover, given the dramatic transformation of modern work systems due to a global and 24/7 economy, there is increasing urgency in improving our understanding of fatigue as a safety risk factor, its etiology and management.

An on-road assessment of cognitive distraction: impacts on drivers' visual behavior and braking performance.

In this on-road experiment, drivers performed demanding cognitive tasks while driving in city traffic. All task interactions were carried out in hands-free mode so that the 21 drivers were not required to take their visual attention away from the road or to manually interact with a device inside the vehicle. Visual behavior and vehicle control were assessed while they drove an 8 km city route under three conditions: no additional task, easy cognitive task and difficult cognitive task.

Effects of voice technology on test track driving performance: implications for driver distraction.

This work compares the degradation in driving performance associated with secondary tasks performed with voice-based and visual/manual interfaces, including radio tuning, phone dialing, and more complex tasks involving a sequence of interactions with an in-vehicle computer system. Twenty-one participants drove an instrumented vehicle while performing a combination of car-following, peripheral target detection, and secondary tasks on a closed test track. Drivers compensated for increased task demands associated with secondary tasks by increasing their following distance.

Direct determination of optimal amino acid intake for maintenance and growth in broilers.

This study has used a direct approach to calculate the optimal dietary supply of amino acids for maintenance and growth in broiler chicks. Amino acid intake and accretion in the carcass in Ross 308 chicks was measured following the feeding of different experimental diets with controlled feed intake from hatching through 42 d. Increasing crude protein levels at constant amino acid:protein ratio improved growth and reducing the crude protein levels at constant amino acid:protein ratios depressed performance.

Catabolism and deposition of amino acids in growing chicks: effect of dietary supply.

Amino acid (AA) deposition and catabolism were examined in broilers by determining intake and carcass deposition of AA, while defining catabolism as the difference between intake and deposition. The first trial examined the effects of increasing concentrations of a single limiting AA, lysine, on carcass deposition and catabolism. Carcass deposition of all AA increased to a plateau.

Task interruptability and duration as measures of visual distraction.

Tasks that are easily interrupted under intermittent viewing conditions may be less distracting while driving because they allow drivers greater control over task sharing decisions. This paper investigates the reliability and sensitivity of the occlusion paradigm as a potential means of measuring task interruptability and distraction. Twenty-four participants, between the ages of 21 and 34, completed two separate experimental sessions.

Functional development and intestinal absorption in the young poult.

1. Absorption, secretion of digestive enzymes and intestinal morphology were determined in poults from hatching to 19 d. 2.

Crude protein and essential amino acid requirements in chicks during the first week posthatch.

1. This study examined optimal lysine and sulphur amino acid supply in the first week posthatch in broilers and the relationship between essential amino acids and dietary crude protein during the first week posthatch on performance at 7 d and through marketing. 2.

Usability issues concerning child restraint system harness design.

A study was conducted to assess usability issues relating to child restraint system (CRS) harness design. Four convertible child restraint systems representing a wide variety of design features were used. Forty-two participants installed two child test dummies in both forward- and rear-facing configurations either inside or outside a test vehicle.

Nutrient use in chicks during the first week posthatch.

We examined effects of feeding chicks differing levels of macronutrients on performance during the first 7 d posthatch in this study. Four experiments were conducted using male Ross x Ross broiler chicks. The first experiment examined, in a 3 x 3 factorial design, the effect of feeding fat at 3, 7, and 11% and protein at 18, 23, and 28%.

Yolk and exogenous feed utilization in the posthatch chick.

This study examined in posthatch chicks the partition of yolk utilization between transport to the circulation and secretion to the intestine and determined absorption and plasma concentrations of some metabolites. The presence of feed in the gastrointestinal tract enhanced yolk secretion to the small intestines. Absorption of glucose, methionine, and oleic acid was determined in vivo close to hatch using 141Ce as a nonabsorbed reference substance.

The effect of early feeding on growth and small intestinal development in the posthatch poult.

Poults with early access to feed in the hatchery or turkey house grew more than those reared under standard commercial practice. During 48 h posthatch, fed poults utilized yolk and exogenous feed to increase BW by 11 g. The small intestine increased from 3.

Hydrolysis and absorption in the small intestines of posthatch chicks.

In the immediate posthatch period, chicks must transfer from metabolic dependence on yolk to utilization of exogenous feed. This study describes changes in intestinal luminal pancreatic enzyme activity and mucosal uptake posthatch as influenced by feed and Na intake. Chicks with access to feed increased in BW and small intestinal weight in the 48-h posthatch, whereas chicks without access to feed decreased in BW; however, small intestinal weight increased during this period.