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Background: Originating from Northeast Asia, the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas has been introduced into a large number of countries for aquaculture purpose. Following introduction, the Pacific oyster has turned into an invasive species in an increasing number of coastal areas, notably recently in Northern Europe., Methods: To explore potential adaptation of reproductive traits in populations with different histories, we set up a common garden experiment based on the comparison of progenies from two populations of Pacific oyster sampled in France and Denmark and their hybrids. Sex ratio, condition index and microarray gene expression in gonads, were analyzed in each progeny (n = 60)., Results: A female-biased sex-ratio and a higher condition index were observed in the Danish progeny, possibly reflecting an evolutionary reproductive strategy to increase the potential success of natural recruitment in recently settled population. Using multifarious statistical approaches and accounting for sex differences we identified several transcripts differentially expressed between the Danish and French progenies, for which additive genetic basis is suspected (showing intermediate expression levels in hybrids, and therefore additivity). Candidate transcripts included mRNA coding for sperm quality and insulin metabolism, known to be implicated in coordinated control and success of reproduction., Conclusions: Observed differences suggest that adaptation of invasive populations might have occurred during expansion acting on reproductive traits, and in particular on a female-biased sex-ratio, gamete quality and fertility.

The introduced Asian mud-tidal gastropod Batillaria attramentaria has been reported to quickly dominate its new habitat, Elkhorn Slough, USA, which has a different osmotic condition from its native habitat. This species has also been reported to have a substantial impact on the ecosystem of the new habitat. In this study, we compared the gene expression profiles in response to temporary salinity variation in native (Asian) and introduced (North American) snails and elucidated the genetic mechanism underlying such rapid adaptation of the introduced species. We examined the transcriptomes of four B. attramentaria populations, including three from the native habitats and one from the introduced habitat, in response to salinity variation. We found that 2,353, 2,505, 10,362, and 16,381 genes were differentially expressed due to their lineages (Kuroshio vs. Tsushima), origins (native vs. introduced), locations (Korea, Japan, or the USA), and salinity variations (stressful: 13, 23, and 43 PSU vs. optimal: 33 PSU), respectively. We found that GO-enriched differentially expressed genes involved in the detection of various abiotic and biotic stimuli through sensory perception and genes involved in response to abiotic stimulus and stress were upregulated when exposed to lower-salinity conditions in all locations. The results indicated that B. attramentaria has adapted well to varied salinity conditions and evolved after around 100 years of invasion in Elkhorn Slough. This study provides valuable transcriptomic data on salinity stress response genes in the tidal gastropod and contributes to the research on the adaptive evolution of coastal gastropods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We generalize Bousfield-Friedlander's Theorem and Hirschhorn's Localization Theorem to settings where the hypotheses are not satisfied at the expense of obtaining semimodel categories instead of model categories. We use such results to answer, in the world of semimodel categories, an open problem posed by May-Ponto about the existence of Bousfield localizations for Hurewicz and mixed type model structures (on spaces and chain complexes). We also provide new applications that were not available before, e.g. stabilization of non-cofibrantly generated model structures or applications to mathematical physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ongoing ocean warming due to climate change poses new challenges for marine life and its exploitation. We have used transcriptomics to find genetically based responses to increased temperature in natural populations of the marine clam Ruditapes decussatus, which lives along parallel thermal gradients in southern Europe. Clams of the Atlantic and West Mediterranean races were collected in northern (cool) and a southern (warm) localities. The animals were kept in running seawater in the warm, southern Atlantic locality for a 15-week period. During this period, water temperature was raised to typical southern European summer values. After this period, an expression profile was obtained for a total of 34 clams and 11,025 probes by means of an oligonucleotide microarray. We found distinct transcriptional patterns for each population based on a total of 552 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), indicating innate differences which probably have a genetic basis. Race and latitude contributed significantly to gene expression differences, with very different sets of DEGs. A gene ontology analysis showed that races differed mainly in the genes involved in ribosomal function and protein biosynthesis, while genes related to glutathione metabolism and ATP synthesis in the mitochondria were the most outstanding with respect to north/south transcriptional differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmful algal bloom (HAB) species Alexandrium catenella and Dinophysis acuminata are associated with paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) and diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP) in humans, respectively. While PSP and DSP have been studied extensively, less is known about the effects of these HAB species or their associated toxins on shellfish. This study investigated A. catenella and D. acuminata toxicity in a larval oyster (Crassostrea virginica) bioassay. Larval activity and mortality were examined through 96-h laboratory exposures to live HAB cells (10–1000 cells/mL), cell lysates (1000 cells/mL equivalents), and purified toxins (10,000 cells/mL equivalents). Exposure to 1000 cells/mL live or lysed D. acuminata caused larval mortality (21.9 ± 7.0%, 10.2 ± 4.0%, respectively) while exposure to any tested cell concentration of live A. catenella, but not lysate, caused swimming arrest and/or mortality in >50% of larvae. Exposure to high concentrations of saxitoxin (STX) or okadaic acid (OA), toxins traditionally associated with PSP and DSP, respectively, had no effect on larval activity or mortality. In contrast, pectenotoxin-2 (PTX2) caused rapid larval mortality (49.6 ± 5.8% by 48 h) and completely immobilized larval oysters. The results indicate that the toxic effects of A. catenella and D. acuminata on shellfish are not linked to the primary toxins associated with PSP and DSP in humans, and that PTX2 is acutely toxic to larval oysters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We collect in one place a variety of known and folklore results in enriched model category theory and add a few new twists. The central theme is a general procedure for constructing a Quillen adjunction, often a Quillen equivalence, between a given V-model category and a category of enriched presheaves in V, where V is any good enriching category. For example, we rederive the result of Schwede and Shipley that reasonable stable model categories are Quillen equivalent to presheaf categories of spectra (alias categories of module spectra) under more general hypotheses. The technical improvements and modifications of general model categorical results given here are applied to equivariant contexts in the sequels [13, 14], where we indicate various directions of application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We give a general framework of equivariant model category theory. Our groups G, called Hopf groups, are suitably defined group objects in any well-behaved symmetric monoidal category V . For any V, a discrete group G gives a Hopf group, denoted I[G]. When V is cartesian monoidal, the Hopf groups are just the group objects in V . When V is the category of modules over a commutative ring R, I[G] is the group ring R[G] and the general Hopf groups are the cocommutative Hopf algebras over R. We show how all of the usual constructs of equivariant homotopy theory, both categorical and model theoretic, generalize to Hopf groups for any V . This opens up some quite elementary unexplored mathematical territory, while systematizing more familiar terrain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expanding scale and increasing rate of marine biological invasions have been documented since the early 20th century. Besides their global ecological and economic impacts, nonindigenous species (NIS) also have attracted much attention as opportunities to explore important eco-evolutionary processes such as rapid adaptation, long-distance dispersal and range expansion, and secondary contacts between divergent evolutionary lineages. In this context, genetic tools have been extensively used in the past 20 years. Three important issues appear to have emerged from such studies. First, the study of NIS has revealed unexpected cryptic diversity in what had previously been assumed homogeneous entities. Second, there has been surprisingly little evidence of strong founder events accompanying marine introductions, a pattern possibly driven by large propagule loads. Third, the evolutionary processes leading to successful invasion have been difficult to ascertain due to faint genetic signals. Here we explore the potential of novel tools associated with high-throughput sequencing (HTS) to address these still pressing issues. Dramatic increase in the number of loci accessible via HTS has the potential to radically increase the power of analyses aimed at species delineation, exploring the population genomic consequences of range expansions, and examining evolutionary processes such as admixture, introgression, and adaptation. Nevertheless, the value of this new wealth of genomic data will ultimately depend on the ability to couple it with expanded "traditional" efforts, including exhaustive sampling of marine populations over large geographic scales, integrated taxonomic analyses, and population level exploration of quantitative trait differentiation through common-garden and other laboratory experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the ABA and local bar leaders have taken numerous steps to raise awareness about the need to increase diversity within the legal profession. In order to increase diversity, however, the legal profession must also seek to eliminate unlawful employment discrimination. In most workplaces, an employer's main concern with respect to discrimination is the possibility of a civil suit. In a surprising number of states, however, rules of professional conduct either explicitly prohibit employment discrimination on the part of lawyers or could be easily read to do so. Amending the rules of professional conduct in this manner is unlikely to have much of an impact when addressing employment discrimination and increasing diversity in the legal profession. These kinds of rules may, however, serve additional purposes that make their adoption worth considering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase [MGMT] gene promoter methylation has emerged as a promising marker in determining resistance to temozolomide, used in the treatment of patients with glioblastomas. Aim: To determine the frequency of MGMT promoter methylation among patients with glioblastomas using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) and compare it to the results obtained by bisulfite sequencing of a subset of samples. Materials and Methods: DNA obtained from the frozen tissue of 27 samples of glioblastomas and three other gliomas, were analyzed for MGMT promoter methylation using a nested MSP assay. Sixteen samples were also subjected to bisulfite sequencing to determine the methylation status of 27 CpG sites within the sequenced region of the MGMT promoter. Data with respect to radiation, chemotherapy and survival outcome was also collected. Results: MGMT promoter methylation was seen in 67% of the cases included in the study using frozen tissues by MSP analysis, while 62% were methylated among glioblastomas alone. There was a 100% concordance between the results obtained by MSP analysis and bisulfite sequencing. Clinical outcome was known among 67% of cases and methylation was higher among those patients who had no recurrence, though it was not statistically significant [P=0.44]. Conclusion: The frequency of methylation seen in this study concurs with that reported earlier from the country. MSP was easy to perform and interpret. However, the utility of this testing system in a routine diagnostic setting is still being debated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses North Carolina criminal law for the prosecution of Shaken Baby Syndrome deaths as first-degree murder. Information on the felony murder rule of North Carolina and its codification of the felonious child abuse' crimes is presented, and reflects that felony murder doctrine rule is indefensible in the context of Shaken Baby Syndrome. It suggests for legislative and judicial reform in the criminal law of North Carolina for treatment of Shaken Baby Syndrome cases.

Serological thymidine kinase 1 (STK1) is a reliable proliferation marker for prognosis, monitoring tumour therapy, and relapse. Here we investigated the use of STK1 in health screening for early detection of pre-malignant and malignant diseases. The investigation was based on 35,365 participants in four independent health screening studies in China between 2005-2011. All participants were clinically examined. The concentration of STK1 was determined by a sensitive chemiluminescent dot blot ECL assay. The ROCvalue of the STK1 assay was 0.96. At a cut-off STK1 value of 2.0 pM, the likelihood (+) value was 236.5, and the sensitivity and the specificity were 0.78 and 0.99, respectively. The relative number of city-dwelling people with elevated STK1 values (≥2.0 pM) was 0.8% (198/26,484), while the corresponding value for the group of oil-field workers was 5.8% (514/8,355). The latter group expressed significantly higher frequency of refractory anaemia, fatty liver, and obesity, compared to the city dwellers, but no cases of breast hyperplasia or prostate hyperplasia. Furthermore, people working in oil drilling/oil transportation showed higher STK1 values and higher frequency of pre-malignancies and benign diseases than people working in the oil-field administration. In the STK1 elevated group of the city-dwelling people, a statistically significantly higher number of people were found to have malignancies, pre-malignancies of all types, moderate/severe type of hyperplasia of breast or prostate, or refractory anaemia, or to be at high risk for hepatitis B, compared to people with normal STK1 values (<2.0 pM). No malignancies were found in the normal STK1 group. In the elevated STK1 group 85.4% showed diseases linked to a higher risk for pre-/early cancerous progression, compared to 52.4% of those with normal STK1 values. Among participants with elevated STK1 values, 8.8% developed new malignancies or progress in their pre-malignancies within 5 to 72 months, compared to 0.2% among people with normal STK1 values. People who showed elevated STK1 values were at about three to five times higher risk to develop malignancies compared to a calculated risk based on a cancer incidence rate of 0.2-0.3%. We conclude that serological TK1 protein concentration is a reliable marker for risk assessment of pre/early cancerous progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We verify the existence of left Bousfield localizations and of enriched left Bousfield localizations, and we prove a collection of useful technical results characterizing certain fibrations of (enriched) left Bousfield localizations. We also use such Bousfield localizations to construct a number of new model categories, including models for the homotopy limit of right Quillen presheaves, for Postnikov towers in model categories, and for presheaves valued in a symmetric monoidal model category satisfying a homotopy-coherent descent condition. We then verify the existence of right Bousfield localizations of right model categories, and we apply this to construct a model of the homotopy limit of a left Quillen presheaf as a right model category. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-dose melphalan chemotherapy and autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (HDM/SCT) has been shown to result in a durable hematologic response and prolonged overall survival in systemic amyloid light-chain (AL) amyloidosis as well as multiple myeloma. However, little is known about the myeloma associated with AL amyloidosis (MM/AL). In this retrospective study, we evaluated 87 patients with MM/AL from 1994 to 2007. Sixteen of these patients underwent HDM/SCT at Boston University Medical Center. Three patients (19%) died from treatment-related mortality. The overall median survival for all 87 patients was 22 months by Kaplan-Meier estimates. However, this was improved to 54.5 months for those who received HDM/SCT compared to 21 months for those who did not receive HDM/SCT. A hematologic complete response was achieved by 25% (4/16) of patients at 6 months after HDM/SCT. Hematologic relapses occurred in 60% of patients at a median of 1 year after HDM/SCT. In conclusion, HDM/SCT can prolong overall survival in patients with MM/AL who are eligible to receive it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the category of presheaves of Γ-spaces, or equivalently, of Γ-objects in simplicial presheaves. Our main result is the construction of stable model structures on this category parametrised by local model structures on simplicial presheaves. If a local model structure on simplicial presheaves is monoidal, then the corresponding stable model structure on presheaves of Γ-spaces is monoidal and satisfies the monoid axiom. This allows us to lift the stable model structures to categories of algebras and modules over a monoid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neuropeptides involved in the regulation of reproduction in the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) are quite diverse. To investigate this diversity, a transcriptomic survey of the visceral ganglia (VG) was carried out over an annual reproductive cycle. RNA-seq data from 26 samples corresponding to VG at different stages of reproduction were de novo assembled to generate a specific reference transcriptome of the oyster nervous system and used to identify differentially expressed transcripts. Transcriptome mining led to the identification of novel neuropeptide precursors (NPPs) related to the bilaterian Eclosion Hormone (EH), crustacean female sex hormone/Interleukin 17, Nesfatin, neuroparsin/IGFBP, prokineticins, and urotensin I; to the protostome GNQQN, pleurin, prohormones 3 and 4, prothoracotropic hormones (PTTH), and QSamide/PXXXamide; to the lophotrochozoan CCWamide, CLCCY, HFAamide, and LXRX; and to the mollusk-specific NPPs CCCGS, clionin, FYFY, GNamide, GRWRN, GSWN, GWE, IWMPxxGYxx, LXRYamide, RTLFamide, SLRFamide, and WGAGamide. Among the complete repertoire of NPPs, no sex-biased expression was observed. However, 25 NPPs displayed reproduction stage-specific expression, supporting their involvement in the control of gametogenesis or associated metabolisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

5. Reasonable Accommodation A widespread finding of the cancer studies was that employer accommodation and support was an important factor in continued employment of cancer patients. (224) This finding applied [...]

INTRODUCTION In 1980, Congress passed the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA),(1) which allows courts and agencies to award costs and fees, including attorney's fees, to parties who prevail in [...]

Byline: Gopal. Nehru, Rekha. Pai, Prasanna. Samuel, Ari. Chacko, Geeta. Chacko Background: O [sup]6 -methylguanine DNA methyltransferase [MGMT] gene promoter methylation has emerged as a promising marker in determining resistance [...]