Prediction of nitrogen excretion from data on dairy cows fed a wide range of diets compiled in an intercontinental database: A meta-analysis.

Manure nitrogen (N) from cattle contributes to nitrous oxide and ammonia emissions and nitrate leaching. Measurement of manure N outputs on dairy farms is laborious, expensive, and impractical at large scales; therefore, models are needed to predict N excreted in urine and feces. Building robust prediction models requires extensive data from animals under different management systems worldwide.

Physical Chemistry of Epigenetics: Single-Molecule Investigations.

The nucleosome is the fundamental building block of the eukaryotic genome, composed of an ∼147 base-pair DNA fragment wrapping around an octameric histone protein core. DNA and histone proteins are targets of enzymatic chemical modifications that serve as signals for gene regulation. These modifications are often referred to as epigenetic modifications that govern gene activities without altering the DNA sequence.

Development of an indirect ELISA for bovine mastitis using Sip protein of Streptococcus agalactiae.

The sip gene encoding for a conserved highly immunogenic surface protein of Streptococcus agalactiae was amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and subcloned into prokaryotic expression vector pET32a (+) and expressed as a recombinant protein in E. coli BL21 (DE3). An indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed using the purified Sip protein as a coating antigen, which could identify S.

Passive stability and active control in a rhythmic task.

Rhythmically bouncing a ball with a racket is a task that affords passively stable solutions as demonstrated by stability analyses of a mathematical model of the task. Passive stability implies that no active control is needed as errors die out without requiring corrective actions. Empirical results from human performance demonstrated that actors indeed exploit this passive dynamics in steady-state performance, thereby reducing computational demands of the task.

Current and future challenges in school-based prevention: the researcher perspective.

During the next decade we will see broad dissemination of a growing number of empirically validated school-based prevention programs. The processes of effectiveness research, broad program diffusion, and program integration at the school and community level will become a central focus of research activity. The paper presents six future directions for research in the field of school-based prevention and health promotion.

Implementing speech supplementation strategies: effects on intelligibility and speech rate of individuals with chronic severe dysarthria.

A growing body of experimental research suggests that speech supplementation strategies can markedly increase speech intelligibility for individuals with dysarthria (D. Beukelman & K. Yorkston, 1977; E.

Listener comprehension of severely dysarthric speech: effects of linguistic cues and stimulus cohesion.

This study is the second in a two-part series examining the effects of linguistic variables on listener processing of dysarthric speech. The first study (see K. C.

Frontal lobe contributions to hypnotic susceptibility: a neuropsychological screening of executive functioning.

Current theory on the cognitive mechanisms of hypnotic experience suggests that hypnosis is mediated by a dissociation between contention-scheduling mechanisms and a supervisory attention system. This theory is based on neuropsychological research with frontal lobe dysfunction patients, who show performance deficits similar in executive functioning to hypnotized individuals. To test an extension of this theory, high hypnotically susceptible (n = 9) and low hypnotically susceptible (n = 7) participants were given four tests of executive functioning.

Effects of linguistic cues and stimulus cohesion on intelligibility of severely dysarthric speech.

This study examined the effects of supplemental cues on the intelligibility of unrelated sentences and related sentences (narratives) produced by 4 women with severe dysarthria secondary to cerebral palsy. Visual images containing alphabet, topic, combined (alphabet and topic together), and no cues were imposed in real time on audio speech samples and presented to 72 nondisabled listeners. Statistical results showed that cue conditions had similar effects on unrelated and on related sentence intelligibility.

Prenatal care among Puerto Ricans on the United States mainland.

Recent public health initiatives in the USA identify the improvement of maternal and infant health outcomes among ethnic minorities as a national priority. Prenatal care is emphasized in these initiatives as a crucial intervention for reducing the risks of adverse outcomes. We investigate the barriers to prenatal care and the adequacy of prenatal care among mainland Puerto Ricans using data from a follow-back survey of a representative sample of mothers.

Culture-specific models of men's sexual aggression: intra- and interpersonal determinants.

The role of intra- and interpersonal variables was examined in samples of Asian American (N = 91) and European American (N = 377) men. A path model for Asian American men suggested 2 interpersonal paths and 1 intrapersonal path to sexual aggression. For Asian Americans, concern about social standing is a risk factor among those who hold misogynous beliefs and who use alcohol before sex.

Dimer dissociation and thermosensitivity kinetics of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae and human TATA binding proteins.

A kinetic analysis of dimer dissociation, TATA DNA binding, and thermal inactivation of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and human TATA binding proteins (TBP) was conducted. We find that yeast TBP dimers, like human TBP dimers, are slow to dissociate in vitro (t(1/2) approximately 20 min). Mild mutations in the crystallographic dimer interface accelerate the rate of dimer dissociation, whereas severe mutations prevent dimerization.

Evaluating a measure of everyday problem solving for use in African Americans.

Results from previous research on everyday problem solving involving Caucasians suggests that it may be a useful concept in studying cognitive aging in African Americans. The purpose of this investigation was to examine: (1) the factor structure of an everyday problem solving in a sample of African Americans, (2) the internal consistency of everyday-problem solving in a sample of African Americans, and (3) the relationship of problem solving to demographic factors, physical functioning, and measures of fluid ability. The sample included subjects recruited from Baltimore, MD.

Evolution of the arthropod prophenoloxidase/hexamerin protein family.

Phylogenetic analysis of the prophenoloxidase/hexamerin family of arthropods revealed four well supported subfamilies: (1) the arylphorin subfamily, including arylphorins, storage proteins, and other proteins of uncertain function from insects; (2) the hemocyanins of branchiopod crustaceans, which are copper-binding proteins involved in oxygen transport; (3) the hemocyanins of chelicerates; and (4) the prophenoloxidases (proPO) of both insects and branchiopods, which are copper-binding molecules that play a role in sclerotization of cuticle and encapsulation of foreign particles. The phylogeny indicated that insect and branchiopod proPO constitute a monophyletic group but that branchiopod and chelicerate hemocyanins do not constitute a monophyletic group. Branchiopod hemocyanin and proPO diverged from each other prior to the divergence of insects from branchiopods and probably prior to the divergence of chelicerates from the insect-branchiopod lineage.

Phylogenetic tests of the hypothesis of block duplication of homologous genes on human chromosomes 6, 9, and 1.

There are 10 gene families that have members on both human chromosome 6 (6p21.3, the location of the human major histocompatibility complex [MHC]) and human chromosome 9 (mostly 9q33-34). Six of these families also have members on mouse chromosome 17 (the mouse MHC chromosome) and mouse chromosome 2.

Varying degradation rates of total nonstructural carbohydrates: effects on nutrient uptake and utilization by the mammary gland in high producing Holstein cows.

Six ruminally cannulated Holstein cows at 56 to 77 d of lactation were fed three total mixed rations that varied in ruminal degradation rates of total nonstructural carbohydrates (6.04, 6.98, and 7.

Changes in iron status during weight loss with very-low-energy diets.

For several decades, very-low-energy diets (VLEDs) have been used by obese individuals to achieve weight loss. During the weight loss, patients often have dramatic drops in circulating thyroid hormone concentrations and experience cold intolerance. Because poor iron status is known to alter thermogenesis, we investigated the possibility that iron intake interacts with energy intake during weight loss in obese individuals.

Injuries in indoor soccer. The Lake Placid Dawn to Dark Soccer Tournament.

We conducted a prospective study of soccer injuries during the Soccer America Dawn to Dark Indoor Soccer Tournament, which was organized by the Lake Placid Soccer Center, Lake Placid, New York, 1993. Eight hundred twenty-four players competed in open men's, open women's, over-30 men's, and mixed divisions. The overall rate of injury per 100 player hours was 4.

Foot function in diabetic patients after partial amputation.

The function of partially amputated feet in 10 patients with diabetes mellitus was studied. First-step bilateral barefoot plantar pressure distribution and three-dimensional kinematic data were collected using a Novel EMED platform and three video cameras. Analysis of the plantar pressure data revealed a significantly greater mean peak plantar pressure in the feet with transmetatarsal amputation (TMA) than in the intact feet of the same patients.

Noncontact knee dislocation in a female basketball player: a case report.

Knee ligamentous injuries occur during sport, and when there is extensive injury, they can be associated with subluxation or dislocation. We present the case of a female basketball player who sustained a knee dislocation during noncontact play. An immediate angiogram confirmed vascular integrity, and surgical treatment with ligamentous reconstruction was performed.

Characterization of a cDNA encoding a manganese peroxidase from Phanerochaete chrysosporium: genomic organization of lignin and manganese peroxidase-encoding genes.

Two heme proteins, manganese peroxidase (MnP) and lignin peroxidase (LiP), play key roles in the fungal depolymerization of lignin. Many cDNA and genomic clones encoding these peroxidases have been published. We report here on the cDNA lambda MP-2 encoding the MnP isozyme H3 from Phanerochaete chrysosporium strain BKM-F-1767.

A continuous visible spectrophotometric assay for aspartate transcarbamylase.

A continuous spectrophotometric method for assaying ATCase activity has been devised that couples the production of inorganic phosphate from the ATCase-catalyzed reaction to the phosphorolysis reaction catalyzed by purine nucleoside phosphorylase, using a chromophoric nucleotide analogue, methylthioguanosine (MESG). This latter reaction results in a change in extinction coefficient of 11,000 M-1 cm-1 at 360 nm, providing a means for continuous assay of ATCase activity by spectrophotometry in the visible light region. This delta epsilon 360 is sufficiently large to allow continuous determination of reaction rates with micromolar levels of carbamyl-phosphate, a feature not offered by other currently used assay methods.