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Graphic abstract In the age of the Anthropocene, the ocean has typically been viewed as a sink for pollution. Pollution is varied, ranging from human-made plastics and pharmaceutical compounds, to human-altered abiotic factors, such as sediment and nutrient runoff. As global population, wealth and resource consumption continue to grow, so too does the amount of potential pollution produced. This presents us with a grand challenge which requires interdisciplinary knowledge to solve. There is sufficient data on the human health, social, economic, and environmental risks of marine pollution, resulting in increased awareness and motivation to address this global challenge, however a significant lag exists when implementing strategies to address this issue. This review draws upon the expertise of 17 experts from the fields of social sciences, marine science, visual arts, and Traditional and First Nations Knowledge Holders to present two futures; the Business-As-Usual, based on current trends and observations of growing marine pollution, and a More Sustainable Future, which imagines what our ocean could look like if we implemented current knowledge and technologies. We identify priority actions that governments, industry and consumers can implement at pollution sources, vectors and sinks, over the next decade to reduce marine pollution and steer us towards the More Sustainable Future. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11160-021-09674-8.

Background Previous work has demonstrated racial/ethnic differences in emergency department (ED) utilization, but less is known about racial/ethnic differences in the experience of care received during an ED visit. Objective To examine differences in self-reported healthcare utilization and experiences with ED care by patients’ race/ethnicity. Design Adult ED patients discharged to community (DTC) were surveyed (response rate: 20.25%) using the Emergency Department Patient Experience of Care (EDPEC) DTC Survey. Linear regression was used to estimate case-mix-adjusted differences in patient experience between racial/ethnic groups. Participants 3122 survey respondents who were discharged from the EDs of 50 hospitals nationwide January–March 2016. Main Measures Six measures: getting timely care, doctor and nurse communication, communication about medications, receipt of sufficient information about test results, whether hospital staff discussed the patient’s ability to receive follow-up care, and willingness to recommend the ED. Key Results Black and Hispanic patients were significantly more likely than White patients to report visiting the ED for an ongoing health condition (40% Black, 30% Hispanic, 28% White, p

Knowledge of ecological interactions is integral for informed management, especially in the rapidly changing Antarctic marine ecosystem. Nonetheless, even basic ecological relationships are unknown for most benthic species, including conspicuous predatory species such as sea anemones. The aim of this study is to understand the ecology of sea anemones in the Terre Adelie region. Using video footage collected by remote operated vehicle (ROV), we examined sea anemone distribution and abundance in relation to predator and prey abundance, presence of other taxa and habitat structure. The ROV was deployed over ten diferent transects with depths ranging from 32 to 251 m. A total of 332 sea anemones were observed across 6.6 km2 of seabed surveyed. We compared sea anemone abundance with habitat type and substrate attachment. Multivariate analysis in PRIMER was used to examine community composition. Sea anemone density was not signifcantly associated with habitat types. However, sea anemones were associated with the biogenic substrates, ascidians and bryozoans. This association suggests a potential future vulnerability for Antarctic sea anemones if bryozoan and ascidian distributions are impacted by climate change-associated ecosystem disturbances.

A Free Ocean Carbon Enrichment experiment that manipulates seawater pH on a coral reef flat shows that the level of ocean acidification at which net dissolution of corals occurs may arrive much sooner than expected.

Deleterious germline variants in CDKN2A account for around 40% of familial melanoma cases1, while rare variants in CDK4, BRCA2, BAP1, and the promoter of TERT, have also been linked to the disease2-5. Here we set out to identify novel high-penetrance susceptibility genes in unexplained cases by sequencing 184 melanoma patients from 105 pedigrees recruited in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Australia that were negative for variants in known predisposition genes. We identify families where melanoma co-segregates with loss-of-function variants in the protection of telomeres 1 (POT1) gene, a proportion of members presenting with an early age of onset and multiple primaries. We show that these variants either affect POT1 mRNA splicing or alter key residues in the highly conserved oligonucleotide-/oligosaccharide-binding (OB) domains of POT1, disrupting protein-telomere binding, leading to increased telomere length. Thus, POT1 variants predispose to melanoma formation via a direct effect on telomeres.

Comprehensive ecological research is still lacking for many of the species that dominate the Antarctic benthos, preventing an adequate understanding of their potential response to environmental change. Here, population dynamics were explored in one of the most ubiquitous nearshore Antarctic benthic amphipods, Orchomenella franklini. Sex, reproductive status and body length were recorded for over 6,000 individuals, sampled from a variety of locations and times at Casey station in East Antarctica. Several life history traits were revealed for O. franklini that exemplify adaptations predicted for a polar environment. These include delayed reproduction, extended brood incubation, low fecundity, longevity and seasonal breeding linked to the summer phytoplankton bloom. There was also preliminary evidence of inter-annual and spatial fluctuations in population structure, potentially reflecting local environmental heterogeneity such as sea-ice duration. The influence of both large scale and local environmental conditions on the ecology of O. franklini provides insight into the vulnerability of this species to environmental change.

Regional food web studies that fail to account for small-scale isotopic variability can lead to a mismatch between an organism’s inferred and true trophic position. Misinterpretation of trophic status may result, substantially limiting spatial and temporal comparability of food web studies. We sampled several carbon sources and consumers in a nested design to assess the variability of food web members across small spatial scales (100 s of m to several km) in regions around the Windmill Islands and Vestfold Hills in East Antarctica. For carbon sources, δ13C in sea ice POM was particularly variable between locations (km apart) and between sites (100 s of m apart) with replicate samples varying by up to 16‰. Macroalgae δ13C was less variable (replicate samples ranging up to 6.9‰ for the red alga Iridaea cordata), yet still differed between locations. Sediment POM and pelagic POM were the least variable, displaying minimal differences between locations or sites for δ13C and δ15N. Three out of eight consumers were significantly different between locations for δ13C, and five out of eight for δ15N, with the fish Trematomus bernacchii the most variable for both δ13C and δ15N. At smaller scales, the amphipod Paramorea walkeri showed significant variation between sites in δ13C but not in δ15N. We attribute small-scale variability to the dynamic physical environment for carbon sources in coastal systems and a close coupling of diet to habitat for consumers. We highlight the need to account for small-scale spatial variation in sampling designs for regional food web studies.

Transient white and grey mats were observed in depressions and enclosed basins in marine sediment in the Windmill Islands, East Antarctica. These patches have not been described in the Antarctic marine environment previously although a similar phenomenon has been described in the Arctic. Our aim was to describe the sediment geochemical and biological properties inside the patches and to determine their similarity to each other. We compared the benthic infaunal communities and the chemical properties of the sediment in the white patches to nearby sediment without white mats. We observed differences in sediment pH, Eh and elemental concentrations inside and outside patches. The benthic infaunal communities inside the patches were significantly different, lower in abundance and diversity, compared to outside the patches. The structure of the microbial communities within the mats was described by constructing clone libraries from four different patches. These clone libraries were dominated by bacteria from the bacteroidetes phylum. Clones closely related to sulphur-oxidising bacteria from the gammaproteobacteria and/or the epsilonproteobacteria were present in all libraries. This is the first detailed description of these patches in the Antarctic and demonstrates the link between physico-chemical factors and microbial and infaunal community structure. It appears that this phenomenon may be driven by the formation and persistence of sea-ice, and as both the spatial extent of sea-ice and its persistence in polar regions are likely to change under predicted climate change scenarios, we suggest this is a previously undocumented mechanism for climate change to impact polar ecosystems.

Much of the macroalgal zonation on Antarctic coasts is thought to be maintained by ice scour. The frequency and severity of ice scour typically decrease with depth, which is hypothesized to drive the zonation of two canopy-forming macroalgae, Desmarestia menziesii and Himantothallus grandifolius. If true, understorey communities should share the same history of ice scour as their respective canopies, and their composition should vary accordingly. To evaluate this prediction we collected boulders from under each canopy species at two depths, 6 and 12 m, at two sites on the coast of East Antarctica. We examined the hard-substrate communities growing on boulders and tested for differences in community composition with respect to canopy species, surface orientation, and depth. Communities under the different canopies showed some variation consistent with the hypothesized difference in disturbance history. Those under H. grandifolius accommodated a greater abundance and diversity of sponges, which is usually characteristic of older, later successional communities. Differences were subtle, however, suggesting that canopies might be maintained by ice disturbance over large temporal scale relative to those at which understorey communities develop, and/or that canopies themselves influence understorey composition. This study describes patterns associated with one of the most prominent examples of bathymetric zonation in shallow Antarctic benthos, and experimental work is now needed to partition the processes at work.

Bei Grosschadensereignissen mit Hunderten von Verletzten funktionieren die existierenden Konzepte zur medizinischen Versorgung nur unzureichend, da diese nur fur 50 bis maximal 300 Verletzte ausgelegt sind. Am Schadensort treten beim Massenanfall von Verletzten immer wieder die gleichen Probleme auf, die sich durch die Uberlastung der Kliniken fortsetzen [1]. Mit Hilfe eines neuen Konzepts soll dies geandert werden, insbesondere um den schwerverletzten Patienten der Sichtungskategorie I eine moglichst rasche Behandlung in entsprechend ausgerusteten und ausgewahlten Krankenhausern zu ermoglichen.

The goal is to describe the structure of administration for the control of infectious diseases in the German states. Internationally there is an increasing risk of potentially global transmission of infectious diseases and therefore increasing need for improved control mechanisms which are viable locally, regionally and internationally. The international public health community must ensure that responses to infectious disease with a potential impact on more than one county entail concerted action, clear communication and decision making by diverse administration agencies. Given Germany's federal structure, the 16 states have differing protocols delineating responsibilities for infection control systems. This paper provides an overview, going into detail only with regard to the administration structure in Hesse. In 2001, the German law governing infectious disease control was amended and significantly expanded. With regard to protection of humans from infectious disease, each state must define its schedule of responsibilities on the resulting scope of duties. Each state in Germany has entrusted the local public health service at the county level with the responsibility for infection prevention and control. As a rule, at the state level both an expert agency and one or more district administration agencies have been installed; these work directly with the Ministry of Health at the state level. In addition to this, Hesse has established a "centre of competence for highly contagious diseases." In the event of an infectious emergency, this network provides special treatment of highly infectious patients and expertise for public health services and the Ministry of Health on a 24-h shift basis. In times of ongoing structural transformation, it is important to emphasize that expertise at the state level is not an alternative to maintaining enough specialised personnel in the public health services themselves. Specialized practitioners are needed to ensure professional and fast-acting responses, both for the prevention and control of infectious diseases.

A residence time of approximately 60 s for lubricant in the piston ring pack of a gasoline engine, running at 1500 rpm, 50% throttle, has been measured by adding a hydrocarbon marker to the oil in the sump and monitoring its build up in oil extracted from the top ring groove. Comparison of the rate of increase of oxidised products in the sump with the level of oxidation in the ring pack allows a rate of flow of oil entering the ring pack from the sump to be calculated as approximately 0.4 cm3 min−1 cylinder−1, with at least 88% returning to the sump and the remainder lost into the combustion chamber. The volume of oil in the ring pack was determined as approximately 0.4 cm3 cylinder−1, approximately one quarter of the free volume available between the top of the oil control ring and the top piston ring.

In contrast to cutaneous melanoma, there is no evidence that BRAF mutations are involved in the activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway in uveal melanoma, although there is increasing evidence that this pathway is activated frequently in the latter tumours. In this study, we performed mutation analysis of the RAS and BRAF genes in a panel of 11 uveal melanoma cell lines and 19 primary uveal melanoma tumours. In addition, Western blot and immunohistochemical analyses were performed on downstream members of the MAPK pathway in order to assess the contribution of each of these components. No mutations were found in any of the three RAS gene family members and only one cell line carried a BRAF mutation (V599E). Despite this, mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase (MEK), ERK and ELK were constitutively activated in all samples. These data suggest that activation of the MAPK pathway is commonly involved in the development of uveal melanoma, but occurs through a mechanism different to that of cutaneous melanoma.

Since 1956, Southern Giant Petrels on the Frazier Islands, East Antarctica, have been counted with different census techniques, sometimes varying within seasons and among islands, which hindered analysis of the data. Protective measures for the islands from 1986 onwards have increased the need for reliable long-term census data, but reduced the ways to collect these data. Published and unpublished data were re-examined, and population trends were reconstructed based on two relatively standardised techniques: the number of active chicks (AC) and the number of apparently occupied nests (AON) around hatching. AC-values from Nelly Island from 1959 to 1998 indicate substantial periodic fluctuations, but no consistent long-term change. Since the late 1970s, AC-values on the other two islands and AON-values suggest that the breeding population may have grown by 35%. This recent growth, however, is within the extent of periodic fluctuations observed in Southern Giant Petrel population that is stable over the long term.

Forty-four chairpersons of departments judged by academic vice presidents at randomly selected institutions to be engaged in especially effective curriculum planning were interviewed about their roles. The interviews suggest 7 leadership roles used in the curriculum development process. The roles varied by institutional type, department size, and personal choice. This article reviews the conceptual framework that guided the study, describes the interview population and sample, illustrates the leadership roles with quotations, relates the roles to curriculum planning and organizational contexts, and develops implications for researchers.

This study tests the curriculum leadership framework that Stark and Lattuca adapted from Quinn's model of management styles. Chairpersons of departments nominated as effective in curriculum planning answered a survey about their leadership activities and styles. Factor analysis partially supported the model. Activities that chairs reported did not correspond well, however, with leadership styles they chose as most effective.

Course planning is an important faculty role requiring expertise and effective decision-making. Despite the centrality of planning activities in the teaching-learning process, relatively little research has explored the process by which instructors in higher education plan their classes. Thus, the author and colleagues pursued a three-year series of studies of college instructors in the US who were teaching introductory classes. The study explored faculty members' underlying assumptions about planning and their decision-making processes. This chapter summarizes these empirical studies that inform us about the general and discipline-specific purposes faculty express for their classes, the contextual influences that modify their intentions, and the way they arrange discipline content for teaching. A key finding was that differences in course planning reflect varied assumptions about students and about their discipline that faculty in different fields bring to the planning process and which strongly influence them.

The DNA sequences of two wild-type and eleven mutant alleles of the developmental regulator gene brlA from Aspergillus nidulans, which encodes a zinc-finger protein, were characterized. Variant sites were located on rescued plasmids or PCR products based either on their meiotic map position or the use of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis. Mutations in three null mutants, one of which is partially suppressible, encode premature stop codons. Two environmentally sensitive mutants were characterised by substitution of leucines required for stabilisation of alpha-helices in each of the two putative zinc-finger domains. A third zinc-finger substitution is predicted to disrupt recognition of a guanine residue in the DNA target. The mutations in four other leaky mutants map C-terminal to the zinc fingers; one minimally leaky mutant has a premature stop codon, which results in the removal of the last 38 residues of the protein product.

In Frankfurt/Main und Offenbach wurden im Rahmen eines Schutzkonzepts zur WM 2006 an 6 Schwerpunktkrankenhausern vorgeschaltete Klinikbehandlungseinheiten errichtet. Dieses Konzept blieb auch nach der WM bestehen. Jeder Patient wird zuerst in dieser Einheit gesichtet und durch externe Arzte erstbehandelt und anschliesend erst der Klinik zugefuhrt. Sind die Akutkapazitaten der Klinik beispielsweise im OP erschopft, erfolgt die Gesamtversorgung weiterer Patienten komplett in der externen Behandlungseinheit (ruckwartiger Puffer). Sowohl die Behandlungseinheit als auch die Klinik stellen jeweils einen „Sichter“, die gemeinsam die Versorgung koordinieren. Ein schneller Aufbau (Funktionsfahigkeit) einer solchen Einheit, vor allem bei Mitbeteiligung externer Krafte, ist nur durch kontinuierliche Ubungen moglich.

Assemblages of marine benthic invertebrates have been shown to differ in areas with or without contamination by heavy metals. In this study, soft sediment assemblages were exposed to sediments and water treated with copper (in the form of Cu EDTA) in a laboratory experiment to test the hypothesis that copper could create differences in infaunal assemblages. The patterns of survival of all taxa were monitored and compared to the controls. Copper was found to reduce the abundance of most taxa, but the size of the response varied between taxa. Crustaceans were particularly sensitive to both the laboratory conditions and copper and were the most severely affected. Polychaetes were more resilient, surviving well in the controls and being reduced in abundance in polluted treatments, but with some families persisting in even the severely polluted treatment until the end of the experiment. Bivalves and gastropods were also reduced in number in the polluted treatments and unaffected in the controls. Oligochaetes and nemerteans did not respond in any particular pattern to any treatment or control. The results are discussed in relation to extrapolating results from ecotoxicological studies to predictions of ecosystem response to heavy metal pollution and pollution in general. It is concluded that laboratory ecotoxicological studies provide excellent evidence for potential effects. If used in collaboration with surveys and manipulative experiments in the field they can demonstrate causal links between pollutants and environmental impacts.

This study explored faculty views about curriculum planning in academic programs. Using a semistructured format, researchers interviewed 59 faculty members at two very different campuses about their assumptions and the influences upon them as they work with colleagues in planning program curriculum. Although many of the same factors influence course and program planning, we observed that, compared to course planning, program planning is irregular (even infrequent), typically responds to a specific catalyst, and is more dependent upon a supportive institutional climate and leadership. We consider ways that institutional researchers can help provide a supportive climate for responsive and regular planning that will link planning and assessment more closely.

Background Smchd1 is an epigenetic modifier essential for X chromosome inactivation: female embryos lacking Smchd1 fail during midgestational development. Male mice are less affected by Smchd1-loss, with some (but not all) surviving to become fertile adults on the FVB/n genetic background. On other genetic backgrounds, all males lacking Smchd1 die perinatally. This suggests that, in addition to being critical for X inactivation, Smchd1 functions to control the expression of essential autosomal genes. Results Using genome-wide microarray expression profiling and RNA-seq, we have identified additional genes that fail X inactivation in female Smchd1 mutants and have identified autosomal genes in male mice where the normal expression pattern depends upon Smchd1. A subset of genes in the Snrpn imprinted gene cluster show an epigenetic signature and biallelic expression consistent with loss of imprinting in the absence of Smchd1. In addition, single nucleotide polymorphism analysis of expressed genes in the placenta shows that the Igf2r imprinted gene cluster is also disrupted, with Slc22a3 showing biallelic expression in the absence of Smchd1. In both cases, the disruption was not due to loss of the differential methylation that marks the imprint control region, but affected genes remote from this primary imprint controlling element. The clustered protocadherins (Pcdhα, Pcdhβ, and Pcdhγ) also show altered expression levels, suggesting that their unique pattern of random combinatorial monoallelic expression might also be disrupted. Conclusions Smchd1 has a role in the expression of several autosomal gene clusters that are subject to monoallelic expression, rather than being restricted to functioning uniquely in X inactivation. Our findings, combined with the recent report implicating heterozygous mutations of SMCHD1 as a causal factor in the digenically inherited muscular weakness syndrome facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy-2, highlight the potential importance of Smchd1 in the etiology of diverse human diseases.

Because of the consequent lack of photopigment chromophore, carotenoid/ retinoid (vitamin A) deprivation during the larval period of Drosophila leads to decreased rhodopsin in adult photoreceptors. Decreased density of P-face particles in photoreceptor membrane (rhabdomeric microvilli) is a prominent ultrastructural feature of this rhodopsin deficiency. When adults are fed carotenoid, the rhabdomeric P-face particle density-which reflects the concentration of rhodopsin-increases halfway to the replete control level during the first 12 hours, and is fully restored by 2 days. Based on freeze-fracture replicas, there is a continuity of membrane between rhabdomeric microvilli and the parent retinula cell. That confluence is relevant to turnover of photoreceptive membrane. Microvillar and retinula cell P-face particle densities covary. The relevance of the demonstration of rapid recovery from chromophore depletion is discussed in relation to hypotheses that the chromophore and/or related retinoids regulate opsin gene transcription, and/or post-translational processing and deployment from the endoplasmic reticulum to the rhabdomere.

Family and twin studies indicate that melanoma susceptibility has a strong genetic component. Very rarely, melanoma runs in families in which there is an inherited mutation in a single ‘high penetrance’ gene, but in the general population melanoma susceptibility is thought to be governed by variation in a series of ‘low penetrance’ genes. We sought to identify new melanoma risk genes of both classes by conducting an Australian genome-wide association study (GWAS) of ~2200 melanoma cases and ~4300 matched controls (from the AMFS and Q-MEGA studies), in parallel with whole-genome sequencing of cases from densely affected melanoma families with follow up genotyping of interesting variants in the GWAS sample and other highly case-loaded melanoma families. Genotyping of the GWAS sample was carried out using Illumina Hap610K or OMNI 1M arrays. All 25 SNPs that reached genome-wide statistical significance (i.e. p

Volatile anaesthetics are known as immunomodulatory substances in inflammatory as well as in ischemia/reperfusion processes [1,2]. We investigated in a model of acute pulmonary inflammation whether these immunomodulatory effects arise from the ether basic structure or from characteristics in their halogenation.

CA 125 is an antigenic determinant associated with epithelial ovarian carcinomas, which is recognized by a monoclonal antibody, OC 125. The biochemical structure, the immunological characteristics and the physiological function of CA 125 are unknown, principally because the molecule expressing it has not been purified to homogeneity. In the present study, we developed a single, one-step method for purifying CA 125 by column affinity chromatography, using the OC 125 antibody as immobilized ligand. The column proved to be highly specific for the purification of CA 125 from human ascites (HA). The antigen that eluted from the column has a specific activity of 6,240 +/- 120 U of CA 125/mg protein, the specific activity in the initial HA samples being 100 +/- 12 U/mg protein. The purified, immunoreactive CA 125 (IR-CA 125) was shown to be proteinaceous in nature. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and gel filtration characterization showed that the purified antigen exists as a high molecular weight (MW) complex, of up to 1.5 million daltons, which could be dissociated under strong denaturing conditions, giving rise to moieties with an apparent MW of 205 and 55 kD. IR-CA 125 was also associated with a lower MW protein, with an apparent MW of 10-15 kD. The 205-kD MW protein was immunoreactive CA 125, as measured by immunoradiometric assay after being electroeluted from the polyacrylamide gel. Furthermore, when the affinity-purified antigen was subjected to SDS-PAGE, followed by immunoblotting, the lane which was reactive with the iodinated OC 125 antibody gave rise to a band with a molecular mass of 205 kD. Our results suggest that, on an analytical scale, the affinity column is useful for the purification of CA 125. The purified antigen is being used to investigate the possible role of CA 125 in the growth, development and physiological characteristics of human ovarian carcinomas in in vitro studies.

We have constructed an intragenic map for the Aspergillus nidulans brlA gene, mutants in which are distinguishable by visual criteria only. Most of the leaky phenotype mutants map near the right (3') end. The gene shows distinct recombinational polarity consistent with recombination initiation at the promoter (centromere-proximal) end of the gene. brlA12 and brlA20 mutants gave abnormal DNA restriction patterns consistent with the III; VIII and VI; VIII translocations, respectively, determined by haploidization.

Electron microscopy was used to investigate membrane turnover in the photoreceptors of Drosophila. Coated pits and vesicles, multivesicular bodies, primary lysosomes, multilamellate bodies, residual bodies and Golgi complexes are present throughout a light/dark cycle. Serial sections reveal that the membrane bounding of multivesicular bodies is only seen at an optimal plane of section. The temperature-sensitive shibire (shi(ts)) mutant has a defect in conversion of coated pits into vesicles which may also affect visual receptors. We used monoclonal antibodies to Rh1 in R1-6 receptors in the compound eye (also to Rh2 in ocellar receptors in the simple eyes) ro relate turnover processes at the visual pigment compared with membrane levels. Compound eye rhabdomeres but not rhabdomere caps stained selectively. Immunogold labelling was equivocal in multivesicular bodies. Further, early in the process of carotenoid replacement therapy, labelling is high in the rough endoplasmic reticulum, demonstrating de novo opsin synthesis.

Using data from a nationally representative survey of faculty teaching introductory college courses, this exploratory study compares course planning procedures of full-time and part-time faculty teaching courses in eight academic fields. The choice of variables examined was guided by a general model of course design developed from earlier studies of course planning. To control for discipline-related differences in faculty planning assumptions, separate analyses were conducted for the eight fields. No key differences were found between full-time and part-time faculty on the primary factors under investigation: substantive content-related influences on courses, strength of influence within the instructional environment, and planning steps and content arrangements faculty preferred.

To evaluate the timing of mutations in BRAF (v-raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1) during melanocytic neoplasia, we carried out mutation analysis on microdissected melanoma and nevi samples. We observed mutations resulting in the V599E amino-acid substitution in 41 of 60 (68%) melanoma metastases, 4 of 5 (80%) primary melanomas and, unexpectedly, in 63 of 77 (82%) nevi. These data suggest that mutational activation of the RAS/RAF/MAPK pathway in nevi is a critical step in the initiation of melanocytic neoplasia but alone is insufficient for melanoma tumorigenesis.

Drosophila rearing media had only β-carotene, zeaxanthin or lutein as precursors for photopigment chromophores. Zeaxanthin and lutein are potentially optimum sources of the 3-hydroxylated retinoids of visual and accessory photopigments. Mutants made the electroretinogram in white (w) eyes selective for compound eye photoreceptors R1–6, R7 and R8: R1–6 domiantes w's electroretinogram; R7/8 generates w;ora's (ora = outer rhabdomeres absent); R8 generates w sev;- ora's (sev = sevenless). Microspectrophotometry revealed R1-6's visual pigment. In w, all 3 carotenoids yielded monotonic dose-responses for sensitivity (Fig. 4) or visual pigment (Fig. 7). An ultraviolet sensitivity peak from R1-6's sensitizing pigment was present at high but not low doses (Fig. 1). In w;ora, all 3 carotenoids gave similar spectra dominated by R7's high ultraviolet sensitivity (Fig. 2). For w sev;ora, all spectra were the shape expected for R8, peaking around 510 nm (Fig. 3). The sensitivity dose-response was at its ceiling except for low doses in w;ora (Fig. 5) and zero supplementation in w sev;ora (Fig. 6). Hence, without R1-6, most of our dose range mediated maximal visual pigment formation. In Drosophila, β-carotene, zeaxanthin and lutein mediate the formation of all major photopigments in R1-6, R7 and R8.

Teaching faculty in ten entry-level professional fields reported varying amounts of time devoted to teaching, research, consulting, and professional practice but did not differ in time devoted to administration. The faculty member's own role view was most closely related to time use, but for time spent in teaching and research, faculty age and institutional type (but not gender) were also significant predictors. Even after several general demographic characteristics and environmental variables that potentially differentiate professional from discipline-based faculty are taken into account, different professional fields may be characterized by group climates which influence or reinforce certain faculty roles.

Drosophila have 3 types of retinal receptors, R1–6, R7 and R8. Using visual mutant strains lacking function in one or two receptor types, spectral preference in walking fast (30 s) phototaxis was measured. High correlations for intensity-response functions were obtained (Fig. 2 and 5). With a 467 nm choice standard, which could saturate R1–6, white-eyed strains with only R8 or with R1–6 plus R8 functional exhibited similar spectral sensitivities with a broad peak at visible wavelengths (Fig. 3) not unlike the electrophysiological characterization of R8 (Fig. 1). Strains with R7 plus R8 or with all receptors intact exhibited similar functions with a high ultraviolet (UV) peak (Fig. 4), like the electrophysiological characterization of R7 plus R8. The presence of R1–6 did not alter the profiles mediated by R8 alone or by R7 plus R8.

Chromatic adaptation and receptor-deficient mutants have been used to systematically eliminate specific receptor function to provide the first complete spectral sensitivity and photopigment characteristic data of all three receptor types (R1-6, R7 and R8) in Drosophila compound eyes. Different fly genera have different adaptation responses which allow characterization of photopigment spectra. Drosophila mutants with anomalous excitation also reveal mechanisms coupling photopigment activation with receptor excitation.

We used microspectrophotometry, together with some associated electrophysiological measurements, to characterize the photopigments of R1–6 receptors in living, white-eyedDrosophila. Measurements were from the deep pseudopupil, an optical visualization of photopigment-containing rhabdomeres. Transmission changes associated with photointerconversion of rhodopsin (R480) and its stable metarhodopsin (M570) are easily seen (Fig. 1). Such transmission changes were measured to produce a difference specrum (Fig. 2); the isosbestic wavelength is about 502 nm. A photoequilibrium spectrum (Fig. 3), analyzed together with sensitivity data (Fig. 4a), was used to determine the fraction of M570 in photoequilibria established with various monochromatic wavelengths. From this, the quantum efficiency for M570 to R480 conversion relative to R480 to M570 efficiency was determined to be about 0.71. No dark regeneration of M570 to R480 occurred within a period of 60min (Fig. 4a, b).

The panelists indicated that considerable progress is being made by such organizations as ACT and NCHEMS in identifying the domains of quality to be measured and particularly in devising unidimensional indicators of student progress. Few were able to cite comparable advancements in the development of multivariate techniques to assess the relation of student growth to other variables. Notable progress in achieving consensus on appropriate standards for measuring quality institutions or curricular programs within comparable institutions remains as a future task.

Drosophila have three types of photoreceptors in their compound eyes: R1–6, R7, and R8. In addition they have simple eyes, ocelli, with another type of photoreceptor. The role of each type of receptor and the possible interaction of their inputs were examined in an innate visual preference task, fast walking phototaxis. Flies were found to be attracted to light, i.e., positively phototactic. We compared the strength of the photopositive response and the spectral preference of normal fly strains and mutant fly strains lacking functional ocelli, R1–6, or R7, singly or in combination. Electroretinographic measures were used to confirm the specificity of deficits in visual mutant strains and the normal functioning of intact receptors. The strength of the photopositive response was strong, as indicated by the high correlation between increases in the intensity of the variable stimulus and increasing numbers of flies attracted toward it. Nearly all strains with or without intact receptor types showed high correlations whether the constant intensity stimulus offered as the alternative choice was bright 467 nm light (Figs. 1 and 2) or dim 572 nm light (Figs. 3 and 4). These constant stimuli were selected so that data in relevant intensity ranges of receptor function would be obtained. An important exception to the high correlations in the intensityresponse functions occurred with flies lacking function in all receptor types except R8; their positive phototaxis was extremely weak in dim light (Fig. 3). Analyses of the phototactic spectral sensitivities (Figs. 5 and 6), as well as comparisons with known electrophysiological spectral sensitivities, were used to determine the inputs from compound eye receptors and to demonstrate central interaction of these inputs with ocellar input. Several experiments with converging evidence suggest that R7 (when present) and R8 dominate fast phototaxis in the conditions of our experiment. R1–6 is the predominant compound eye receptor type in ERG measures; however, its behavioral input is clearly demonstrated only as enhancing R8 dominance of phototaxis in experiments using a dim constant stimulus and as enhancing R7 dominance of phototaxis in experiments using a bright constant stimulus. Similarly, the presence of ocellar receptors also facilitates R8 input in dim light and R7 input in bright light. The data substantiating these respective conclusions are: (1) a lack of dim light phototaxis in a mutant strain with only R8 functional (Fig. 3); and (2) a lack of an ultraviolet (UV) maximum from R7 in bright light phototaxis in a mutant strain with only R7 and R8 functional (Fig. 5c). Generally, absence of the ocelli and R1–6 had remarkably little effect on fast phototactic behavior except for the interaction with R7 and R8 inputs. This interaction is consistent with a theory that ocelli serve to modulate compound eye sensitivity.

Low vitamin A rearing decreases sensitivity and eliminates the ultraviolet but not the blue sensitivity maximum in R1-6 inDrosophila, Calliphora andMusca (Figs. 2–4). Spectral adaptation functions for control and vitamin A deprived flies yielded derived stable metarhodopsin absorption spectra from spectral sensitivity. Metarhodopsin has a long wavelength maximum and also has an ultraviolet maximum especially in the normal vitamin A condition (Figs. 2–4). M-potentials (fast early-receptor-like potentials) were obtained (Fig. 1) from all three genera in normal vitamin A rearing and were used for spectral adaptation studies (Figs. 2–3); the latter data are approximate inverses of sensitivity based spectral adaptation data. Thus, sensitivity must reflect proportion of rhodopsin, with metarhodopsin being inert in receptor potential generation. Vitamin A effects on spectral functions were further investigated inDrosophila. Ultraviolet (370 nm) and visible (470 nm) sensitivities varied approximately linearly with dietary vitamin A dose (Fig. 5); 370 nm sensitivity decreased more than 470 nm sensitivity at lower doses. Increasing adaptation intensities of 370 and 470 nm caused parallel decreases in spectral sensitivity assayed at 370 and 470 nm in normal vitamin A flies (Fig. 6); the adapting intensities were sufficient to convert photopigment. These and previous results suggest that the two R1-6 spectral peaks are ultimately mediated by one rhodopsin. R1-6 rhabdomeres were structurally similar in high and low vitamin A flies but emitted a long wavelength fluorescence to ultraviolet excitation in high vitamin A flies only (Fig. 7). These results suggest some form of energy transfer; i.e., a carotenoid may capture ultraviolet quanta and transfer energy to rhodopsin via inductive resonance. Spectral adaptation data are consistent with a calculated high rhabdomeric optical density of ECL=0.26 (i.e., 45% of incident light is absorbed) derived from presently available data onDrosophila. Calculations show electro-retinographic sensitivity to be extremely high, perhaps measurable at less than one absorbed quantum per rhabdomere.

Ultraviolet light excites a red fluorescence fromDrosophila R1–6 rhabdomeres which is superimposed on a blue background emission. Metarhodopsin (M570) pigment generates some or all of the vitamin A dependent red emission. However, the excitation spectrum for red emission peaks in the UV. This suggests that the pigment which sensitizes R1–6's visual pigment to UV light (sensitizing pigment) absorbs the UV light, sensitizing metarhodopsin's fluorescence by energy transfer. Blue emission is neither from sensitizing pigment nor from visual pigment as shown by vitamin A deprivation studies. Very intense UV or blue stimulation causes these changes: (1) conversion of visual pigment into a fluorescent product; (2) destruction of this fluorescent product; (3) a decrease in the blue background fluorescence (even in vitamin A deprived flies); and (4) a permanent destruction of visual pigment and retinal degeneration. The first effect requires intensities 3 log units brighter than needed to interconvert rhodopsin and metarhodopsin 1/2 way to photoequilibrium. UV light is about 5 times as effective as blue light for the conversion of visual pigment into fluorescent product.

Recent studies have indicated that intense short wavelength stimulation in flies converts rhodopsin to a longlived metarhodopsin while decreasing visual sensitivity and electroretinographic (ERG) responsivity. Long wavelength stimulation reverses both visual pigment and ERG alterations. In this study of ERG's in white-eyedDrosophila, spectral sensitivities were obtained following intense visible and ultraviolet short wavelength stimuli. Both stimuli decreased sensitivity to all wavelengths while ultraviolet light also selectively decreased ultraviolet sensitivity (Fig. 1). These results isolated three sensitivity components contributing to the ERG in flies: (1) the dark adapted sensitivity (Fig. 1); (2) the residual sensitivity remaining subsequent to intense ultraviolet stimulation (Fig. 1); and (3) the ultraviolet sensitivity specifically abolished by intense ultraviolet stimulation (Fig. 2). Further evidence shows that the three components are probably receptor-specific; the first two resemble recent fly receptor spectral sensitivity data (e.g. Eckert, 1971) while the third represents a separate ultraviolet receptor. Linear reciprocity of time and intensity to alter the ERG responsivity was found over considerable ranges for long wavelength (Fig. 3) and short wavelength (Fig. 4) induced responsivity alterations. ERG action spectra were obtained for altering responsivity (Fig. 5). The action spectrum for decreasing responsivity was roughly parallel with the dark adapted spectral sensitivity for wavelengths below 500 nm. The action spectrum for reestablishing responsivity had a peak near 570 nm and agreed with previous determinations of spectral characteristics of fly metarhodopsin. The action spectra determined were probably based on photopigment interconversions in the 1–6 receptor system. Long wavelength reconversion of metarhodopsin to rhodopsin may explain the high ultraviolet and low red sensitivities and the functional significance of red eye color pigments in flies.

Patterns of doctoral study and subsequent career progress were compared for 756 men and women doctoral graduates in education at a research university from two six-year periods, one before and one after a rapid nation-wide increase in the percentage of women doctorates. Despite advantages relative to men in admission, financial support and full-time study, women doctorates of both periods had achieved less career progress than men but held similarly positive perceptions concerning career impact of the degree. Work experience prior to doctoral study strongly predicted career progress for both genders. Thus, affirmative action may have positively affected the careers of recent women doctorates who were younger and who began study with less established careers than women doctorates prior to 1970.

Educational attitudes of entering students (N=236) and full-time faculty (N = 48) at a liberal-arts college for women were measured by the Student Orientations Survey (SOS) and the Faculty Orientations Survey (FOS). Attitudes of students who transferred from the college prior to the sophomore year were similar to those who remained on dimensions of educational purpose, peer relationships, and public position. Attitudes of transfers differed significantly from those of remaining students on dimensions concerned with the process of education and faculty-student power relationships. The absolute disparity between faculty and student attitudes on these same dimensions of process and power was greater for students who transferred than for students who remained.

Visual receptor maintenance in Drosophila involves turnover of membrane. Coated pits derived from rhabdomere and plasmalemma, coated vesicles and multivesicular bodies (MVBs) of about 0.5 micron diameter characterize the early autophagic steps. Smaller electron dense bodies (0.15 micron) merge with MVBs. These are likely to be primary lysosomes as suggested by histochemistry for acid phosphatase in normal flies and an acid phosphatase deficient mutant. Aggregates of extracellular membranes confirm an earlier report that exocytotic shedding may also be employed in the fly with its open rhabdomeres. Microspectrophotometry was used to determine aspects of cycling of visual pigment to begin to correlate with what is known about membrane cycling at the ultrastructural level. Visual pigment decreases to about half 3 h after dawn then builds back gradually to maximum before dawn. Our fixations of tissue have been at the post-dawn period when autophagy may be high as inferred from visual pigment levels. In attempts to optimize our visualization of the constructive phase of the turnover process, we developed the paradigm of carotenoid 'replacement therapy'. Carotenoid replaced flies show an increase in visual pigment possibly associated with a streaming of membrane into the rhabdomere. Aged flies, studied to determine how effective maintenance is, have a unique accumulation of extracellular debris, and a small fraction of the receptors eventually degenerate.

Drosophila have 3 simple eyes, ocelli, located on the vertex of the head, in addition to 2 compound eyes. We determined ocellar function using the electroretinogram (ERG) and vision mutants. The ERG waveform in response to a 1 s stimulus was a slow negative (receptor depolarizing) potential followed by a return to baseline at light-off (Fig. 1). During long stimuli there was an exponential decay to baseline after the initial negative deflection. At light-off there was a positive overshoot and return to baseline (Fig. 2). During a long stimulus the ERG reflected stepwise changes in intensity, with a negative response to an increase in intensity and positive polarization to a decrease (Fig. 3). The ERG thus reflects extraction of intensity change information. The ocellar ERG waveforms (Fig. 4) and intensity-response functions (Fig. 5) were similar across wavelengths ranging from 370 to 520 nm. The ocellar spectral sensitivity peaks around 350–370 nm (ultraviolet) and 445 nm (blue) (Fig. 6). Chromatic adaptation with intense 370 or 445 nm did not selectively reduce 370 or 445 nm peak sensitivities (Fig. 7). These findings offer no support for more than one ocellar receptor type. In additional experiments, bright 570 nm adaptation was found to increase responsivity relative to bright short wavelength adaptation. These wavelength-specific effects were elicited even during anoxia suggesting wavelength-dependent photopigment interconversions (Fig. 8). Spectral adaptation data were obtained suggesting that ocelli have a stable (non-bleaching) metarhodopsin. Spectral adaptation and sensitivity data allowed an approximation of the metarhodopsin spectrum which has long wavelength and ultraviolet maxima (Fig. 7). Comparisons between the ERG waveforms and spectral sensitivities of normal and visual mutantDrosophila suggest that the absence of compound eye receptor types has no effect on the ocellar ERG. Also, strains with or without screening pigments do not show significant differences. However, 2 mutants with abnormal compound eye receptor potentials had ocellar abnormalities.

Intense short wavelength adaptation converts rhodopsin to a long wavelength absorbing stable metarhodopsin and inactivates R1–6 photoreceptors inDrosophila. In addition to decreasing sensitivity, vitamin A deprivation eliminates this short wavelength induced R1–6 inactivation. A model (Fig. 4) explains this adaptational difference of vitamin A deprivedDrosophila (from normally-reared or high vitamin A supplemented flies) in terms of decreasing photopigment quantity without decreasing membrane adaptation mediating channels. The data and model suggest that 1) photopigment and membrane processes are separate; 2) transduction and adaptational mechanisms are different; and 3) maximal adaptation establishes a steadystate wavelength-specific rhodopsin to metarhodopsin ratio. Sensitivity as a function of wavelength for maximal adapting stimuli was obtained from vitamin A deprivedDrosophila (Fig. 3). These data reflect relative rhodopsin levels. They were used to derive a measure related to spectral sensitivity ofin vivo metarhodopsin spectral absorption characteristics (Fig. 5). The presently reported metarhodopsin spectral function has certain advantages over previously reported electrophysiologically-based functions. It differs fromin vitro data by having an ultraviolet maximum and a shorter wavelength visible maximum. This finding is consistent with current theory on fly vision. The data obtained from vitamin A deprivedDrosophila are similar to data fromCalliphora andMusca; possible adaptational differences among different fly species may be explained by the model which explains differences betweenDrosophila in the vitamin A deprived vs. enriched conditions.

Receptor deficient mutants and chromatic adaptation were used to isolate the contribution of R7 to the electroretinogram (ERG) ofDrosophila. R7 was found to be a single-peaked ultraviolet (UV) receptor (Fig. 1). Photoconversion of the UV absorbing rhodopsin (R) to its stable 470–495 nm metarhodopsin (M) was shown to elicit a long-lived negative (depolarizing) afterpotential (Fig. 3) while inactivating R7. Photoreconversion ofM toR reactivates R7 (Fig. 2) and repolarizes the ERG (Fig. 3). The intensities of light needed to elicit afterpotentials by photointerconverting R7 photopigment were found to be about 2 log units greater than for R1-6 photopigment (Fig. 4). Vitamin A deprivation decreases R7 (as well as R8) sensitivity by about 2 log units (through decreased photopigment levels) without changing spectral sensitivity shape (Fig. 5). Vitamin A deprivation further eliminates the light-induced inactivation of R7 allowing experiments designed to characterize the in vivo spectral absorption of R7M. R7M was found to have UV and 495 nm maxima (Fig. 6). No polarization sensitivity was detected in the R7 ERG component. The adaptational properties of R7 are similar to the properties previously established for R1-6 but different from the properties of R8.

Administrators in professional programs perceive influences on the program from within the university as stronger than do faculty but the two groups do not perceive the strength of societal influences, professional community influences, or internal levels of curriculum debate differently. After controlling for program and institutional sizes and institutional types, these differences between faculty and administrator views regarding relationships between the program and the university appear characteristic of certain professional fields. The analysis was based on subsamples drawn from a data base of survey responses from 873 administrators and 849 faculty members in ten professional fields representing 732 programs in 346 colleges and universities.

In the AAC report, Integrity in the College Curriculum: A Report to the Academic Community (1985), four terms are used frequently to convey a sense of desired excellence in postsecondary education. The terms are curricular coherence, curricular integration, curricular rigor and, lending the report its title, curricular integrity. Although the report's language implies meanings of these terms, its imprecision may lead to multiple interpretation by readers. Faculty who desire to implement curricular changes based on the AAC report, as well as institutional researchers who desire to assess such changes, will need to define these terms more precisely. It is my intent in this brief article to propose some useful definitions and to encourage others to disagree or to expand on these suggestions. My argument begins with the useful notion that a curriculum is an academic plan. Both the AAC report and the earlier NIE report Involvement in Learning (1984) imply that curriculum may mean either a collection of course descriptions or, ex post facto, the intended or serendipitous experiences that students have while in college. Rather, in my judgment, curriculum is an academic plan, constructed by the faculty and possibly other knowledgeable individuals. The curriculum resembles a "trip tik" designed to lead to a desired destination. Like the planned trip itinerary, the curriculum or academic plan contains a number of elements appropriate to the outcomes to be achieved. Such elements include objectives specifying concepts, behaviors, skills, and attitudes to be learned, an explicit connection of the objectives to the needs of society and of individual learners, some evidence that the plan anticipates the prior experiences and knowledge of the students, a set of instructional techniques and learning aids believed to help learners achieve the objectives, and a specification of roles and obligations for the teacher and the learner. Thus the itinerary may vary as a function of different sets of students and teachers, although all are headed for a similar destination. Most importantly (but currently lacking in some Research

Faculty members' beliefs about educational purpose and the nature of their academic fields strongly influence how they plan introductory courses. Interviews with 89 faculty members teaching in diverse colleges and representing eight fields also identified faculty attention to student preparation, available textbooks, and locally important factors, but little attention to alternative instructional strategies during course planning. Based on the findings, the authors have developed a tentative general model of course design and related questions to guide future study.