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Two experiments examined some relationships between feeding schedule and two psychoactive drugs on the mouse-killing response in rats. Experiment 1 showed that the combination of a high dose of d-amphetamine (2.00 mg/kg) and food satiation effectively suppresses killing while either factor alone does not. Experiment 2 showed that the combination of a high dose of pilocarpine (30 mg/kg) and food deprivation induces a considerable percentage of Sprague-Dawley rats to kill mice while either variable alone does not.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a computer-administered test on test anxiety and performance. The sample comprised twenty-six male and fourteen female college students enrolled in a developmental reading course at a private university. Subjects were randomly assigned to either a computerized or to a pencil-and-paper testing situation. Both groups were administered a revised version of the Test Anxiety Scale (TAS-R) and a sample of items from the California Short-Form Test of Mental Maturity (CMM). Mean differences between groups on the TAS-R and the CMM were tested for significance using t-tests. The results indicated significant differences in anxiety level, t(38) = −1.87, p < .05, and test performance, t(38) = 2.68, p < .01. It was concluded that computer-administered testing can potentially increase test anxiety and depress test performance for examinees who are relatively unfamiliar with computers.

In mathematics and other scientific disciplines a common practice is to name a theory, an equation, and other discoveries in honor of the scientist who pioneered the investigation. Some examples of such expressions are Galois theory, Fahrenheit scale, Freudian psychoanalysis, pasteurization, Zorn's lemma, Planck's constant, Linnaean system of botanical classification, Hilbert space, Darwin's theory of evolution, Halley's comet, Keynesian economic theory, Mendelian genetics, and so on.

Because of limitations in simple gain scores, psychometrists have proposed alternate methods for measuring change, two of which are the residualized difference and the base-free change. The purpose of the present investigation was to provide large sample empirical estimates of the reliability of these change measures, and to check theoretical predictions derived from inequalities involving all three change measures. Although the theoretical predictions were supported, all of the gain score reliabilities were rather low. In order for gain scores to be reliable it is necessary for the intervention between the two testing occasions to be relatively potent and for the instrumentation to be specially designed to be sensitive enough to detect changes attributable to the intervention.

The ButaNexT project aims to demonstrate the techno-economic feasibility of the conversion of two sustainable lignocellulosic feedstocks (wheat straw and miscanthus) available at EU level, into biobutanol through the integration of different technology developments. The project has ended recently and the main achievements of the consortium have been the following: (1) design, construction and operation of a micronizing pilot prototype for controlled biomass particle size production up to 0.5 mm with a more reduced energy consumption and able to be scalable to industrial size; (2) development of a flexible and easy to adapt two-step fractionation process based on the combination of the micronizing prototype with a continuous thermochemical pretreatment; (3) development of tailored enzyme cocktails (MetZyme® SUNO™) that address harsh process-specific conditions and facilitate improved hydrolysis of pretreated biomass to monosaccharides; (4) development of a Clostridial strain able to ferment cellulosic sugars effectively (target butanol yield > 0.25 g/g pure sugar) and having 20% higher butanol tolerance than baseline strain; (5) development of a patent-pending “In situ product recovery process” based on improved pervaporation fluxes obtained during fermentation that allows continuous operation; (6) validation of the technical performance of the individual stages cited above in a pilot facility using wheat straw as feedstock from handling to product recovery in a 100 L bioreactor; (7) testing of properties and performance of butanol as a blend component in both diesel and gasoline fuels and (8) calculation of GHG emissions of biobutanol in a number of different scenarios based on the use of wheat straw and miscanthus as feedstocks and for the provision of heat, electricity and waste water treatment.

Background The centromere is the specialized locus required for correct chromosome segregation during cell division. The DNA of most eukaryotic centromeres is composed of extended arrays of tandem repeats (satellite DNA). In the horse, we previously showed that, although the centromere of chromosome 11 is completely devoid of tandem repeat arrays, all other centromeres are characterized by the presence of satellite DNA. We isolated three horse satellite DNA sequences (37cen, 2P1 and EC137) and described their chromosomal localization in four species of the genus Equus. Results In the work presented here, using the ChIP-seq methodology, we showed that, in the horse, the 37cen satellite binds CENP-A, the centromere-specific histone-H3 variant. The 37cen sequence bound by CENP-A is GC-rich with 221 bp units organized in a head-to-tail fashion. The physical interaction of CENP-A with 37cen was confirmed through slot blot experiments. Immuno-FISH on stretched chromosomes and chromatin fibres demonstrated that the extension of satellite DNA stretches is variable and is not related to the organization of CENP-A binding domains. Finally, we proved that the centromeric satellite 37cen is transcriptionally active. Conclusions Our data offer new insights into the organization of horse centromeres. Although three different satellite DNA families are cytogenetically located at centromeres, only the 37cen family is associated to the centromeric function. Moreover, similarly to other species, CENP-A binding domains are variable in size. The transcriptional competence of the 37cen satellite that we observed adds new evidence to the hypothesis that centromeric transcripts may be required for centromere function. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13039-016-0242-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The ButaNexT project aims to demonstrate the techno-economic feasibility of the conversion of two sustainable lignocellulosic feedstocks (wheat straw and miscanthus) available at EU level, into biobutanol through the integration of different technology developments. The project has ended recently and the main achievements of the consortium have been the following: (1) design, construction and operation of a micronizing pilot prototype for controlled biomass particle size production up to 0.5 mm with a more reduced energy consumption and able to be scalable to industrial size; (2) development of a flexible and easy to adapt two-step fractionation process based on the combination of the micronizing prototype with a continuous thermochemical pretreatment; (3) development of tailored enzyme cocktails (MetZyme® SUNO™) that address harsh process-specific conditions and facilitate improved hydrolysis of pretreated biomass to monosaccharides; (4) development of a Clostridial strain able to ferment cellulosic sugars effectively (target butanol yield > 0.25 g/g pure sugar) and having 20% higher butanol tolerance than baseline strain; (5) development of a patent-pending “In situ product recovery process” based on improved pervaporation fluxes obtained during fermentation that allows continuous operation; (6) validation of the technical performance of the individual stages cited above in a pilot facility using wheat straw as feedstock from handling to product recovery in a 100 L bioreactor; (7) testing of properties and performance of butanol as a blend component in both diesel and gasoline fuels and (8) calculation of GHG emissions of biobutanol in a number of different scenarios based on the use of wheat straw and miscanthus as feedstocks and for the provision of heat, electricity and waste water treatment.

Se l’opinione comune secondo la quale i medici non debbano commettere errori è ormai consolidata, non si deve però dimenticare che l’incertezza è profondamente connaturata nella pratica stessa della medicina e che nessun atto terapeutico è esente dalla possibilità di errore. Gli errori in radiologia non sono i più frequenti, ma sono tra quelli che comportano i rischi più alti. Spiacevoli sequele di accuse o rimpianti, equamente divisi tra coloro che ricevono il trattamento e coloro che lo erogano, mostrano chiaramente che quando le cose non vanno, ci sono spesso due vittime: il paziente e chi ha prestato le cure. Ciò che importa adesso non è tanto di capire chi ha fatto un errore, ma quali sono state le condizioni che l’hanno reso possibile e cosa si può fare per impedire riaccada di nuovo.

Errors in mitosis can generate micronuclei that entrap mis-segregated chromosomes, which are susceptible to catastrophic fragmentation through a process termed chromothripsis. The reassembly of fragmented chromosomes by error-prone DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair generates a spectrum of simple and complex genomic rearrangements that are associated with human cancers and disorders. How specific DSB repair pathways recognize and process these lesions remains poorly understood. Here we used CRISPR/Cas9 to systematically inactivate distinct DSB processing or repair pathways and interrogated the rearrangement landscape of fragmented chromosomes from micronuclei. Deletion of canonical non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) components, including DNA-PKcs, LIG4, and XLF, substantially reduced the formation of complex rearrangements and shifted the rearrangement landscape toward simple alterations without the characteristic patterns of cancer-associated chromothripsis. Following reincorporation into the nucleus, fragmented chromosomes localize within micronuclei bodies (MN bodies) and undergo successful ligation by NHEJ within a single cell cycle. In the absence of NHEJ, chromosome fragments were rarely engaged by polymerase theta-mediated alternative end-joining or recombination-based mechanisms, resulting in delayed repair kinetics and persistent 53BP1-labeled MN bodies in the interphase nucleus. Prolonged DNA damage signaling from unrepaired fragments ultimately triggered cell cycle arrest. Thus, we provide evidence supporting NHEJ as the exclusive DSB repair pathway generating complex rearrangements following chromothripsis from mitotic errors., Competing Interests: STATEMENT OF COMPETING INTERESTS All authors have no competing interests to declare.