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We report the first Chandra detection of emission out to the virial radius in the cluster Abell 1835 at z = 0.253. Our analysis of the soft X-ray surface brightness shows that emission is present out to a radial distance of 10 arcmin or 2.4 Mpc, and the temperature profile has a factor of 10 drop from the peak temperature of 10 keV to the value at the virial radius. We model the Chandra data from the core to the virial radius and show that the steep temperature profile is not compatible with hydrostatic equilibrium of the hot gas, and that the gas is convectively unstable at the outskirts. A possible interpretation of the Chandra data is the presence of a second phase of warm–hot gas near the cluster's virial radius that is not in hydrostatic equilibrium with the cluster's potential. The observations are also consistent with an alternative scenario in which the gas is significantly clumped at large radii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: While the dental hygiene profession has several national documents pertaining to entry-to-practice issues, it lacks a common national standard. The need for such a standard is becoming increasingly important with the divergence of entry-to-practice educational models across Canada, programs being implemented in new jurisdictions, and the entrance of multiple post-secondary organizations into the educational sector. The objective of the study was to articulate the first draft of entry-to-practice competencies that would be used to support dental hygiene education, accreditation, examination and regulation. What are the essential national competencies for entry-to-practice into the Canadian dental hygiene profession? Methods: A 3-day workshop was held in February of 2007 with twenty-two key dental hygiene informants from across Canada. The initial product from the workshop was then refined and shaped through two feedback loops with the participants. Results: The group developed a new framework for dental hygiene competencies based on the literature in interprofessional education. The core abilities focus on dental hygienists as professionals, communicators and collaborators, advocates and managers. The competencies related to the specialized client services focus on dental hygienists as clinical therapists, oral health educators and health promoters. Conclusion: This draft competency profile better aligns the dental hygiene profession within the context of other health professions. However, it is still in an embryonic stage and needs to be validated with a larger group of dental hygienists. It has the potential to be a positive force to support greater consistency of educational, and possibly regulatory, standards across Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the characterisation of Nocardioides sp. SP12, an atrazine-degrading bacteria isolated from atrazine-treated bulk- and maize rhizosphere soil. Based on 16S rDNA alignment, strain SP12 showed close phylogenic relationships with Nocardioides sp. C157 and Nocardioides simplex. Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of strain SP12 were longer than those of other Nocardioides sp. and present Ala- and Ile-tRNA unlike Actinomycetales. Nocardioides sp. SP12 presents a novel atrazine catabolic pathway combining trzN with atzB and atzC. Atrazine biodegradation ends in a metabolite that co-eluted in HPLC with cyanuric acid. This metabolite shows an absorption spectrum identical to that of cyanuric acid with a maximal absorption at 214.6 nm. The mass of the atrazine metabolite is in concordance with that of cyanuric acid according to mass spectrometry analysis. Quantitative PCR revealed that the ITS sequence of Nocardioides sp. SP12 was at a lower number than the one of trzN in atrazine-treated soil samples. It suggests that trzN could also be present in other atrazine degrading bacteria. The numbers of trzN and ITS sequences of Nocardioides sp. SP12 were higher in the maize rhizosphere than in bulk soil. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]