bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
BRIGHTON MARINA TO OVINGDEAN GAP COAST‐PROTECTION SCHEME
Authors: Winfield P. G.
Published: July 2007

This paper describes the background to, and the development of, the coastal‐management strategy since the mid‐1980s for the coastal frontage between Brighton Marina and Saltdean. The justification methodology had to develop with the changes in Government policy for coastal‐defence projects. In 1996, the Department for Environment. Food and Rural Affairs required the strategy to be reviewed, ten years after its initial acceptance. Construction work on the third and final scheme commenced in January 2003.
SLUDGE PHYTO‐CONDITIONING: LOW‐TECHNOLOGY ENHANCED TREATMENT
Authors: Taylor T. L.
Published: July 2007

Agricultural recycling of biosolids is coming under increasing regulatory and non‐regulatory pressure. The UK Government and the European Commission are introducing new microbiological standards for (a) sludge, (b) expanded nitrate vulnerable zones, and (c) more stringent maximum potentially toxic element concentrations in soils. Public perception continues to play an important and unpredictable role in the acceptability of biosolids agricultural recycling. Sludge phyto‐conditioning is a low‐technology process, growing grass on sewage sludge to produce a pleasant/low‐odour compost‐like material and reducing bacterial indicators to below detectable levels, whilst retaining the beneficial energy‐recovery aspects of anaerobic digestion.

This paper describes the process stream and discusses the benefits for the operator, including treatment to ‘enhanced’status and reduction in volume. The process is batch in nature and results in a high‐quality soil conditioner.
ADDRESSING SUSTAINABILITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT DURING EMERGENCY DROUGHT RELIEF IN MOYALE, NORTH KENYA
Authors: Trigg M. , Gibson J. , Rowney M.
Published: July 2007

During the period 1999–2000, North Kenya experienced extended drought, which resulted in severe pressure on available water resources and increased mortality of livestock. In response, Action Against Hunger (an international relief agency with project‐specific funding from the EC Humanitarian Aid Office) implemented an emergency water‐resource programme in the Moyale District. This paper examines some of the sustainability issues relating to such implementations and their impact upon the fragile semi‐arid pastoral environment of the region. Specific aspects are drawn from the Moyale programme to illustrate what is often a complex situation. The challenge is how to strike the balance between the short‐term needs of an emergency response and the long‐term aims of sustainable development and use of resources.
POLLUTER PAYS THROUGH LOAD‐BASED LICENSING: THE IMPACT FOR A COASTAL SEWAGE‐TREATMENT WORKS
Authors: Raha D.
Published: July 2007

Implementation of the ‘polluter pays’principle through load‐based licensing encourages the prevention and reduction of pollution through the financial incentive of lower pollutant fees. It encourages fairness and equity in environmental‐protection licence fees among industries, based upon their individual environmental performance in reducing and managing pollution and risks and endeavours, to shift (internalise) external pollution costs from society to the polluter. It takes account of (a) pollutant load, (b) toxicity and (c) sensitivity of the receiving environment to which pollutants are released. This study shows that a coastal sewage‐treatment works of 34 Ml/d average capacity will be better off every subsequent year with the implementation of load‐based licensing ‐ at least for the period 2000–2005.
SLUDGE TREATMENT AND DRYING REED BED SYSTEMS IN DENMARK
Authors: Nielsen Steen , Willoughby Neil
Published: July 2007

Sludge Reed beds have been used for dewatering (draining and evapotranspiration) and mineralisation of sludge in Denmark since 1988 when the first sludge processing system was introduced. Sludge from wastewater treatment plants (2,500‐125,000 pe) is treated in sludge reed bed systems with 1–18 basins with loading rates of 25–2,200 tonnes dry solids/year for ten years. In 2002, approximately 95 systems were in operation. Dimensioning and design of reed bed systems depends on the sludge production rate, sludge type, quality and regional climate.

The maximum sludge loading rate is approximately 50–60 kg DS/m2/year. Loading cycles are related to the sludge type and the age of the sludge reed systems. The sludge residue will, after approximately ten years of operation, reach an approximate height of 1.2–1.5 metres with dry solids content of 30–40%. Experience has shown that the quality of the final product with respect to heavy metals, hazardous organic compounds and pathogen removal after ten years of treatment make it possible to recycle the biosolids to agriculture as an enhanced treated product.
DOMESTIC CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS OF THE LEGITIMACY OF WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT OPTIONS: A CASE STUDY OF THE RIVER NENE CATCHMENT, UK.
Authors: Gearey M. , Jeffrey P.
Published: July 2007

Article 14 of the Water Framework Directive requires member states to demonstrate that they are enabling increased public participation in water governance issues at the river basin level. Yet little research has been conducted to understand in what regard water governance bodies are held by the public. In particular, few studies have concentrated on which water resource management issues concern consumers at the catchment and sub‐catchment scale within England and Wales. A household study was conducted in 2003 along the River Nene catchment in the east of England to understand in more detail the range of these consumer perceptions and attitudes at different spatial scales, focusing on water resource management issues such as flooding, sector performance and policy making. The results of the survey demonstrate that formulating policy at the catchment scale does not always capture the diversity of opinion or the range of legitimacy issues which concern consumers at the sub‐catchment level. The paper concludes that public participation initiatives may be improved by paying closer attention to the various legitimacy concerns at the catchment and sub‐catchment scales.
WATER RE‐USE ‐ CAPTURING A WASTE RESOURCE
Authors: Murrer J. , Macbeth I.
Published: July 2007

The east and south‐east of England has the lowest rainfall in the UK, water resources are limited and under pressure through increased demand and population growth. In the late 1990’s AW Innovation (the AW R&D group) developed a process that could produce high purity water from sewage effluent using membrane technology. In late 1999 Texas Utilities (TXU) signed a contract with Alpheus Environmental for the supply of high purity water for Peterborough Power Station. The novel treatment plant was built in 1999 ‐ 2000 and opened in July 2000 by the Mayor of Peterborough. This paper is a review of the plant design, the technology used for the treatment process and a summary of the first four years of operation.

Changing from potable water to high purity water produced from sewage effluent has brought significant benefits for the power station resulting in higher purity steam generation while reducing chemical, power and effluent discharge costs. In addition Anglian Water is now saving 1,000 m3/day of potable water.
MEASURING FLOW THROUGH SMALL WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS USING MODIFIED DOSING SYPHONS
Authors: Howes T , Talt S J , Saul A J , Skipwoth P J , Fearnside D
Published: July 2007

The Environment Agency have proposed that daily flow volume discharged from small wastewater treatment works should be capable of being measured to an accuracy of ±8%, where the daily totalised flow volume is estimated to be greater than 5m3. It is estimated that every water company in the UK has several hundred small wastewater treatment works that will be required to be equipped with the capability of measuring the released daily totalised flow volume for specified periods. This paper investigates the feasibility of modifying existing dosing syphons, which are present within many of these works, to operate as flow measuring devices. Laboratory testing of a full‐scale syphon demonstrated that by the addition of two water level detectors and a data logger to monitor the filling part of the syphon cycle, it is possible to accurately calculate the daily totalised flow volume within the Environment Agency’s proposed performance criteria.
GULLANE OUTFALLS, SCOTLAND
Authors: Little M. J.
Published: July 2007

This paper describes design and construction of two new sea outfalls discharging from Gullane Waste Water Treatment Works (WwTW) to Aberlady Bay, on the south side of the Forth estuary (Firth of Forth), 25km east of Edinburgh, Scotland. The outfalls were installed by float and lower, using the Flow‐Lay® technique, believed to be a first for steel pipes. The paper also describes air transport, beach movement and soil liquefaction and their effect on pipe stability, material and profile.
Rapid Synthesis and Synaptic Insertion of GluR2 for mGluR-LTD in the Ventral Tegmental Area
Authors: Mameli Manuel , Balland Bénédicte , Luján Rafael , Lüscher Christian
Published: July 2007

The activation of metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) leads to long-term depression (mGluR-LTD) at many synapses of the brain. The induction of mGluR-LTD is well characterized, whereas the mechanisms underlying its expression remain largely elusive. mGluR-LTD in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) efficiently reverses cocaine-induced strengthening of excitatory inputs onto dopamine neurons. We show that mGluR-LTD is expressed by an exchange of GluR2-lacking AMPA receptors for GluR2-containing receptors with a lower single-channel conductance. The synaptic insertion of GluR2 depends on de novo protein synthesis via rapid messenger RNA translation of GluR2. Regulated synthesis of GluR2 in the VTA is therefore required to reverse cocaine-induced synaptic plasticity.
Porous Semiconducting Gels and Aerogels from Chalcogenide Clusters
Authors: Bag Santanu , Trikalitis Pantelis N. , Chupas Peter J. , Armatas Gerasimos S. , Kanatzidis Mercouri G.
Published: July 2007

Inorganic porous materials are being developed for use as molecular sieves, ion exchangers, and catalysts, but most are oxides. We show that various sulfide and selenide clusters, when bound to metal ions, yield gels having porous frameworks. These gels are transformed to aerogels after supercritical drying with carbon dioxide. The aerogels have high internal surface area (up to 327 square meters per gram) and broad pore size distribution, depending on the precursors used. The pores of these sulfide and selenide materials preferentially absorb heavy metals. These materials have narrow energy gaps (between 0.2 and 2.0 electron volts) and low densities, and they may be useful in optoelectronics, as photocatalysts, or in the removal of heavy metals from water.
Candidatus
Chloracidobacterium thermophilum: An Aerobic Phototrophic Acidobacterium
Authors: Bryant Donald A. , Costas Amaya M. Garcia , Maresca Julia A. , Chew Aline Gomez Maqueo , Klatt Christian G. , Bateson Mary M. , Tallon Luke J. , Hostetler Jessica , Nelson William C. , Heidelberg John F. , Ward David M.
Published: July 2007

Only five bacterial phyla with members capable of chlorophyll (Chl)–based phototrophy are presently known. Metagenomic data from the phototrophic microbial mats of alkaline siliceous hot springs in Yellowstone National Park revealed the existence of a distinctive bacteriochlorophyll (BChl)–synthesizing, phototrophic bacterium. A highly enriched culture of this bacterium grew photoheterotrophically, synthesized BChls a and c under oxic conditions, and had chlorosomes and type 1 reaction centers. “
Candidatus
Chloracidobacterium thermophilum” is a BChl-producing member of the poorly characterized phylum
Acidobacteria
.
Stabilization of Labile Carbonyl Addition Intermediates by a Synthetic Receptor
Authors: Iwasawa Tetsuo , Hooley Richard J. , Rebek Julius
Published: July 2007

Products of unfavorable chemical equilibria are not readily observed because their high energy and increased reactivity result in low concentrations. Biological macromolecules use binding forces to access unfavorable equilibria and stabilize reactive intermediates by isolating them from the medium. In a similar vein, we describe here a synthetic receptor that allows direct observation of labile tetrahedral intermediates: hemiaminals formed in the reaction of an aldehyde carbonyl group with amines. The receptor encapsulates alkyl-substituted primary amines, then orients them toward a covalently tethered aldehyde function. The hemiaminal intermediates appear at high concentration, confined from the bulk solution and observable at ambient temperature by conventional nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
Spring-Loaded Mechanism of DNA Unwinding by Hepatitis C Virus NS3 Helicase
Authors: Myong Sua , Bruno Michael M. , Pyle Anna M. , Ha Taekjip
Published: July 2007

NS3, an essential helicase for replication of hepatitis C virus, is a model enzyme for investigating helicase function. Using single-molecule fluorescence analysis, we showed that NS3 unwinds DNA in discrete steps of about three base pairs (bp). Dwell time analysis indicated that about three hidden steps are required before a 3-bp step is taken. Taking into account the available structural data, we propose a spring-loaded mechanism in which several steps of one nucleotide per adenosine triphosphate molecule accumulate tension on the protein-DNA complex, which is relieved periodically via a burst of 3-bp unwinding. NS3 appears to shelter the displaced strand during unwinding, and, upon encountering a barrier or after unwinding >18 bp, it snaps or slips backward rapidly and repeats unwinding many times in succession. Such repetitive unwinding behavior over a short stretch of duplex may help to keep secondary structures resolved during viral genome replication.
Persistence of West Nile Virus-Specific Antibodies in Viremic Blood Donors
Authors: Prince Harry E. , Tobler Leslie H. , Yeh Cindy , Gefter Nelly , Custer Brian , Busch Michael P.
Published: July 2007

We evaluated West Nile virus (WNV) antibody persistence by using follow-up plasma samples from 35 blood donors who made viremic donations in 2005. At 26 to 34 days of follow-up, all of the donors (
n
= 33) were positive for WNV immunoglobulin M (IgM), IgA, and IgG. At 1-year of follow-up, 17% of the donors (
n
= 23) were positive for WNV IgM, 57% were positive for WNV IgA, and 100% were positive for WNV IgG.
Real-Time Reverse Transcription-PCR Assay for Detection of Mumps Virus RNA in Clinical Specimens
Authors: Boddicker Jennifer D. , Rota Paul A. , Kreman Trisha , Wangeman Andrea , Lowe Louis , Hummel Kimberly B. , Thompson Robert , Bellini William J. , Pentella Michael , DesJardin Lucy E.
Published: July 2007

The mumps virus is a negative-strand RNA virus in the family
Paramyxoviridae
. Mumps infection results in an acute illness with symptoms including fever, headache, and myalgia, followed by swelling of the salivary glands. Complications of mumps can include meningitis, deafness, pancreatitis, orchitis, and first-trimester abortion. Laboratory confirmation of mumps infection can be made by the detection of immunoglobulin M-specific antibodies to mumps virus in acute-phase serum samples, the isolation of mumps virus in cell culture, or by detection of the RNA of the mumps virus by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR. We developed and validated a multiplex real-time RT-PCR assay for rapid mumps diagnosis in a clinical setting. This assay used oligonucleotide primers and a TaqMan probe targeting the mumps SH gene, as well as primers and a probe that targeted the human RNase P gene to assess the presence of PCR inhibitors and as a measure of specimen quality. The test was specific, since it did not amplify a product from near-neighbor viruses, as well as sensitive and accurate. Real-time RT-PCR results showed 100% correlation with results from viral culture, the gold standard for mumps diagnostic testing. Assay efficiency was over 90% and displayed good precision after performing inter- and intraassay replicates. Thus, we have developed and validated a molecular method for rapidly diagnosing mumps infection that may be used to complement existing techniques.
Testing of Diagnostic Methods for Detection of Influenza Virus for Optimal Performance in the Context of an Influenza Surveillance Network
Authors: Pérez-Ruiz Mercedes , Yeste Ruth , Ruiz-Pérez María-José , Ruiz-Bravo Alfonso , de la Rosa-Fraile Manuel , Navarro-Marí José María
Published: July 2007

Influenza surveillance networks must detect early the viruses that will cause the forthcoming annual epidemics and isolate the strains for further characterization. We obtained the highest sensitivity (95.4%) with a diagnostic tool that combined a shell-vial assay and reverse transcription-PCR on cell culture supernatants at 48 h, and indeed, recovered the strain.
Sequence Variation in the Outer Membrane Protein-Encoding Gene
cmeC
, Conferring Multidrug Resistance among
Campylobacter jejuni
and
Campylobacter coli
Strains Isolated from Different Hosts
Authors: Fakhr Mohamed K. , Logue Catherine M.
Published: July 2007

A novel PCR primer pair was used to detect the presence of
cmeC
in 131
Campylobacter jejuni
and
C. coli
strains isolated from various hosts (cattle, turkeys, humans, and pigs). DNA sequence analysis revealed a high degree of genetic variation between the two species, while extremely limited genetic variation among isolates of the same species was detected.
A Recombinant Sendai Virus Is Controlled by CD4+Effector T Cells Responding to a Secreted Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Envelope Glycoprotein
Authors: Brown Scott A. , Hurwitz Julia L. , Zirkel Amy , Surman Sherri , Takimoto Toru , Alymova Irina , Coleclough Chris , Portner Allen , Doherty Peter C. , Slobod Karen S.
Published: July 2007

The importance of antigen-specific CD4+helper T cells in virus infections is well recognized, but their possible role as direct mediators of virus clearance is less well characterized. Here we describe a recombinant Sendai virus strategy for probing the effector role(s) of CD4+T cells. Mice were vaccinated with DNA and vaccinia virus recombinant vectors encoding a secreted human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) envelope protein and then challenged with a Sendai virus carrying a homologous HIV-1 envelope gene. The primed mice showed (i) prompt homing of numerous envelope-primed CD4+T cell populations to the virus-infected lung, (ii) substantial production of gamma interferon, and interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-4, and IL-5 in that site, and (iii) significantly reduced pulmonary viral load. The challenge experiments were repeated with immunoglobulin−/−μMT mice in the presence or absence of CD8+and/or CD4+T cells. These selectively immunodeficient mice were protected by primed CD4+T cells in the absence of antibody or CD8+T cells. Together, these results highlight the role of CD4+T cells as direct effectors in vivo and, because this protocol gives such a potent response, identify an outstanding experimental model for further dissecting CD4+T-cell-mediated immunity in the lung.
An Immunogenic and Protective Alphavirus Replicon Particle-Based Dengue Vaccine Overcomes Maternal Antibody Interference in Weanling Mice
Authors: White Laura J. , Parsons Melissa M. , Whitmore Alan C. , Williams Brandon M. , de Silva Aravinda , Johnston Robert E.
Published: July 2007

A candidate pediatric dengue virus (DENV) vaccine based on nonpropagating Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus replicon particles (VRP) was tested for immunogenicity and protective efficacy in weanling mice in the presence and absence of potentially interfering maternal antibodies. A gene cassette encoding envelope proteins prM and E from mouse-adapted DENV type 2 (DENV2) strain NGC was cloned into a VEE replicon vector and packaged into VRP, which programmed proper in vitro expression and processing of DENV2 envelope proteins upon infection of Vero cells. Primary immunization of 3-week-old weanling BALB/c mice in the footpad with DENV2 VRP resulted in high levels of DENV-specific serum immunoglobulin G antibodies and significant titers of neutralizing antibodies in all vaccinates. A booster immunization 12 weeks after the prime immunization resulted in increased neutralizing antibodies that were sustained for at least 30 weeks. Immunization at a range of doses of DENV2 VRP protected mice from an otherwise-lethal intracranial DENV2 challenge. To model vaccination in the presence of maternal antibodies, weanling pups born to DENV2-immune or DENV2-naïve dams were immunized with either DENV2 VRP or live DENV2 given peripherally. The DENV2 VRP vaccine induced neutralizing-antibody responses in young mice regardless of the maternal immune status. In contrast, live-DENV2 vaccination performed poorly in the presence of preexisting anti-DENV2 antibodies. This study demonstrates the feasibility of a VRP vaccine approach as an early-life DENV vaccine in populations with high levels of circulating DENV antibodies and suggests the utility of VRP-based vaccines in other instances where maternal antibodies make early vaccination problematic.
Association of the Astrovirus Structural Protein VP90 with Membranes Plays a Role in Virus Morphogenesis
Authors: Méndez Ernesto , Aguirre-Crespo Gabriela , Zavala Guadalupe , Arias Carlos F.
Published: July 2007

VP90, the capsid polyprotein precursor of human astrovirus Yuc8, is assembled into viral particles, and its processing at the carboxy terminus by cellular caspases, to yield VP70, has been correlated with the cell release of the virus. Here, we characterized the effect of the VP90-VP70 processing on the properties of these proteins, as well as on their intracellular distribution. VP90 was found in membrane-enriched fractions (
m
VP90), as well as in fractions enriched in cytosolic proteins (
c
VP90), while VP70 was found exclusively in the latter fractions. Upon trypsin activation, infectivity was detected in all VP90-containing fractions, confirming that both
m
VP90 and
c
VP90 are able to assemble into particles; however, the two forms of VP90 showed differential sensitivities to trypsin, especially at their carboxy termini, which in the case of
m
VP90 was shown to remain membrane associated after protease digestion. Structural protein oligomers were detected in purified VP70-containing viruses, as well as in membrane-enriched fractions, but they were less evident in cytosolic fractions. Ultrastructural studies of infected cells revealed different types of viral particles, some of which appeared to be associated with membranes. By immunoelectron microscopy, structural proteins were shown to form virus particles in clusters and to associate with the edges of vesicles induced during infection, which also appear to contain subviral particles inside. Nonstructural proteins and viral RNA colocalized with
m
VP90, but not with
c
VP90, suggesting that
m
VP90 might represent the form of the protein that is initially assembled into particles, at the sites where the virus genome is being replicated.
Evidence for Involvement of BH3-Only Proapoptotic Members in Adenovirus-Induced Apoptosis
Authors: Subramanian T. , Vijayalingam S. , Lomonosova Elena , Zhao Ling-jun , Chinnadurai G.
Published: July 2007

Mammalian cells infected with human adenoviruses (Ads) undergo an apoptotic response as a result of expression of the viral E1A proteins, and this process is suppressed by the viral E1B-19K protein. The intermediary steps in the Ad-induced apoptosis pathway are not fully resolved. The apical step in the canonical mammalian apoptosis pathway involves functional activation of one or more of the BH3-only BCL-2 family proapoptotic proteins. Previous reports have suggested that Ad-induced apoptosis may be initiated at checkpoints downstream of the BH3-only proteins. Here, we undertook genetic and biochemical studies to determine the roles of BH3-only proteins in Ad-induced apoptosis. We examined the activities of the cellular antiapoptosis protein BCL-xL and its mutants expressed from the E1B region of the Ad5 genome. Our results showed efficient suppression of Ad-induced apoptosis by a BCL-xL mutant (mt1) deficient in interaction with multidomain proapoptotic proteins BAX and BAK but proficient in interaction with BH3-only proteins, suggesting a role for BH3-only proteins in the initiation of Ad-induced apoptosis. Further, the antiapoptotic activity of BCL-xL mt1 in Ad-infected cells was observed in spite of BAK activation as a consequence of MCL-1 degradation. Analysis of the mRNA levels of various BH3-only members by reverse transcription-PCR revealed prominent activation of the
Bik
gene. Further, the BIK protein was also modified into an apoptotically enhanced phosphorylated form during the viral infection. In addition to BIK, enhanced level of BIM was observed in Ad-infected cells. Between the two major E1A proteins coded by the 12S and 13S mRNAs, the 13S product appeared to contribute to the activation of these BH3-only members and apoptosis during viral infection. Depletion of BIK by the use of small interfering RNA reduced the level of Ad-induced apoptosis. Our results are consistent with a model that activation of the BH3-only members may initiate Ad-induced apoptosis.
Vpr Is Required for Efficient Nef Expression from Unintegrated Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 DNA
Authors: Poon Betty , Chang Michael A. , Chen Irvin S. Y.
Published: July 2007

Unintegrated human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) DNA are viral DNA products formed naturally during HIV replication. While the integrated proviral DNA form is transcriptionally active and results in productive infection, unintegrated DNA is also capable of expression of viral RNA and proteins. Previously, we showed that HIV Vpr enhances expression from integrase-defective HIV. Here we show that Vpr activation of expression is partially dependent upon the presence of a transcriptionally active HIV promoter and results in increased transcription of unspliced
gag
and spliced
nef
viral RNA. While Tat is detectable during infection with integrase-defective HIV, Tat levels are not affected by the presence of Vpr. Mutation studies reveal that Tat is dispensable for the Vpr-mediated enhancement of expression from unintegrated DNA. We find that virion-associated Vpr is sufficient for Nef expression from unintegrated viral DNA, resulting in the efficient downregulation of CD4 from the surface of infected cells. These results provide a mechanism by which Nef expression from unintegrated HIV type 1 DNA expression occurs.
Glycoprotein D-Independent Spread of Pseudorabies Virus Infection in Cultured Peripheral Nervous System Neurons in a Compartmented System
Authors: Ch'ng T. H. , Spear P. G. , Struyf F. , Enquist L. W.
Published: July 2007

The molecular mechanisms underlying the directional neuron-to-epithelial cell transport of herpesvirus particles during infection are poorly understood. To study the role of the viral glycoprotein D (gD) in the directional spread of herpes simplex virus (HSV) and pseudorabies virus (PRV) infection, a culture system consisting of sympathetic neurons or epithelial cells in different compartments was employed. We discovered that PRV infection could spread efficiently from neurons to cells and back to neurons in the absence of gD, the viral ligand required for entry of extracellular particles. Unexpectedly, PRV infection can also spread transneuronally via axo-axonal contacts. We show that this form of interaxonal spread between neurons is gD independent and is not mediated by extracellular virions. We also found that unlike PRV gD, HSV-1 gD is required for neuron-to-cell spread of infection. Neither of the host cell gD receptors (HVEM and nectin-1) is required in target primary fibroblasts for neuron-to-cell spread of HSV-1 or PRV infection.
Effects of Type I Interferons on the Adjuvant Properties of Plasmid Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor In Vivo
Authors: Qin Lizeng , Greenland John R. , Moriya Chikaya , Cayabyab Mark J. , Letvin Norman L.
Published: July 2007

While administration of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) can induce the local recruitment of activated antigen-presenting cells at the site of vaccine inoculation, this cellular recruitment is associated with a paradoxical decrease in local vaccine antigen expression and vaccine-elicited CD8+T-cell responses. To clarify why this cytokine administration does not potentiate immunization, we examined the recruited cells and expressed inflammatory mediators in muscles following intramuscular administration of plasmid GM-CSF in mice. While large numbers of dendritic cells and macrophages were attracted to the site of plasmid GM-CSF inoculation, high concentrations of type I interferons were also detected in the muscles. As type I interferons have been reported to damp foreign gene expression in vivo, we examined the possibility that these local innate mediators might decrease plasmid DNA expression and therefore the immunogenicity of plasmid DNA vaccines. In fact, we found that coadministration of an anti-beta interferon monoclonal antibody with the plasmid DNA immunogen and plasmid GM-CSF restored both the local antigen expression and the CD8+T-cell immunogenicity of the vaccine. These data demonstrate that local innate immune responses can change the ability of vaccines to generate robust adaptive immunity.
Amino Acid Substitutions in the S2 Region Enhance Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Infectivity in Rat Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2-Expressing Cells
Authors: Fukushi Shuetsu , Mizutani Tetsuya , Sakai Kouji , Saijo Masayuki , Taguchi Fumihiro , Yokoyama Masaru , Kurane Ichiro , Morikawa Shigeru
Published: July 2007

To clarify the molecular basis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) adaptation to different host species, we serially passaged SARS-CoV in rat angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)-expressing cells. After 15 passages, the virus (Rat-P15) came to replicate effectively in rat ACE2-expressing cells. Two amino acid substitutions in the S2 region were found on the Rat-P15 S gene. Analyses of the infectivity of the pseudotype-bearing S protein indicated that the two substitutions in the S2 region, especially the S950F substitution, were responsible for efficient infection. Therefore, virus adaptation to different host species can be induced by amino acid substitutions in the S2 region.
A FRAMEWORK FOR STATISTICAL TESTING OF SOFTWARE COMPONENTS
Authors: SHUKLA RAKESH , STROOPER PAUL , CARRINGTON DAVID
Published: July 2007

Statistical testing involves the testing of software by selecting test cases from a probability distribution that is intended to represent the software's operational usage. In this paper, we describe and evaluate a framework for statistical testing of software components that incorporates test case execution and output evaluation. An operational profile and a test oracle are essential for the statistical testing of software components because they are used for test case generation and output evaluation respectively. An operational profile is a set of input events and their associated probabilities of occurrence expected in actual operation. A test oracle is a mechanism that is used to check the results of test cases. We present four types of operational profiles and three types of test oracles, and empirically evaluate them using the framework by applying them to two software components. The results show that while simple operational profiles may be effective for some components, more sophisticated profiles are needed for others. For the components that we tested, the fault-detecting effectiveness of the test oracles was similar.
DISSOCIATION OF PH3 AND AsH3 ON Ge(100)(2x1) SURFACE
Authors: KATIRCIOĞLU ŞENAY
Published: July 2007

The most stable structures for the dissociation of phosphine and arsine on Ge (100)(2x1) surface have been investigated by relative total energy calculations based on Density Functional Theory. It has been found that the thermodynamically preferred structures in the dissociation path of phosphine and arsine are the same; PH 2 and AsH 2 products prefer to be on a single Ge dimer bond, but PH and AsH prefer to be between the adjacent Ge dimers. According to the optimization calculations, the dissociation path started with the adsorption of PH 3( AsH 3) on the electron deficient side of the Ge dimer bond is ended with the formation of P – P ( As – As ) dimers parallel to the dimers of Ge .
CHARACTERISTICS OF HF CVD DIAMOND THIN FILMS ON CEMENTED CARBIDES
Authors: SHA LIU
Published: July 2007

Diamond films were deposited on the WC/Co alloy substrates by a hot-filament chemical vapor deposition (HF CVD) reactor after the substrate surfaces were chemically pretreated with the two-step etching method. Some characteristics as morphology, texture, adhesion, and chemical quality of the diamond coatings on WC/Co alloy substrates were investigated by means of X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), hardness tester, and Raman spectrum. The results indicate that increasing the Co content from 0.12% to 3.22% within the etching depth of 5–10 μm caused a morphology transformation from prism diamond to spherical diamond, and a texture one from a {111} orientation to a {110} orientation. The Raman spectrum shows that the spherical diamond film contains more non-diamond phases (graphite, amorphous carbon, diamond-like carbon, etc.) and has lower chemical quality of diamond films. The diamond coated grain sizes became about four to five times smaller when the deposition temperatures on the substrate surface were reduced from 900°C to 800°C. Compared with the spherical diamond films, the prism diamond films exhibit better adhesion on the WC–Co substrates. It is also observed that the microcrystalline orientation diamond thin films with grain sizes of 1–3 μm on WC–Co substrate were formed under the circumstances of lower deposition temperature and higher gas pressure, and the microcrystalline growth mechanism of diamond thin films with a preferential orientation on WC/Co alloy is discussed.
Mike Coward's early days: the Lewisian, and what he made of it
Authors: Graham Rodney H.
Published: July 2007

Mike Coward began his career working on Lewisian rocks and readdressed the problems they pose several times during his life. His ability to extrapolate ideas from one area of geology to another and to straddle geological time scale enabled him to reappraise the regional Lewisian structure and evolution in the light of ideas evolving elsewhere, whether that was in his own head or in the geology of the wider world. It was done through an understanding of theoretical structural geology and small-scale example, yet at the same time it extrapolated to large scale and was significant not only in terms of the Lewisian and the Precambrian in general, but also in understanding the way in which the Earth's crust deforms. Coward's work rarely stayed within conventional bounds; and when it did, it pushed the limits. Our understanding of the world progresses through that sort of approach. It is seen too rarely nowadays.
A major high-strain zone in the Lewisian Complex in the Loch Torridon area, NW Scotland: insights into deep crustal deformation
Authors: Wheeler John
Published: July 2007

The Lewisian Complex is an Archaean-Proterozoic high-grade gneiss region with widespread amphibolite-facies fabrics. These fabrics have, on the 100 km scale, a subhorizontal enveloping surface and are interpreted as forming in gently dipping crustal-scale shear zones and steeper lateral ramp structures. The Scourie dyke swarm, of Proterozoic age, runs NW-SE subvertically outside such zones, but is transformed into subhorizontal concordant amphibolite sheets within them. The terms ‘Scourian’ and ‘Laxfordian’ are used to describe pre-dyke and post-dyke fabrics and events. In the southern mainland Lewisian at Loch Torridon, unmodified Scourian gneisses in the north pass southwards into lozenges bounded by anastomosing zones of Laxfordian deformation, and eventually to a region consisting entirely of Laxfordian fabrics. This geometry is compatible with a major Laxfordian shear zone that dips northeastwards beneath a Scourian hanging wall. Detailed maps show that structures on the metre to kilometre scale do not relate in a simple way to the crustal shear zone model for four reasons. First, many amphibolite-facies fabrics in the quartzo-feldspathic gneisses predate the dykes (they relate to a late Scourian or ‘Inverian’ event), so the dykes cannot be used to infer overall geometry and movement sense. A few structures along the Loch Roag Line, the most northeasterly high-strain belt in the Loch Torridon inliers, may indicate syntectonic dyke emplacement. Second, local shear with opposing senses is present in both the pre-dyke and post-dyke (Laxfordian) deformation. Third, foliation deflections on a variety of scales relate more to varying shear planes than to the deflection caused by increasing simple shear strain, and cannot be used to infer shear sense. Fourth, there is pure-shear stretching within the gneisses that masks the effects of simple shear. These structures can be incorporated into a crustal-scale shear zone model, but are not diagnostic of it. The scatter of foliation planes with a relatively constant lineation is a feature of other crustal-scale high-strain zones (e.g. Canisp, Nordre Strømfjord), although different explanations are available. Other high-strain zones (e.g. the Laxford Front) show a spatially varying lineation pattern, but this could relate more to a varying shear direction than to deflections of linear features into a single movement direction. The geometry of classic simple shear is not versatile enough to explain the kilometre-scale geometry of such high-strain zone, although it may work well in local subareas.
Inferences from shear zone geometry: an example from the Laxfordian shear zone at Upper Badcall, Lewisian Complex, NW Scotland
Authors: Tatham Daniel J. , Casey Martin
Published: July 2007

This contribution presents a Laxfordian age shear zone near Upper Badcall, NW Scotland, as an example of using field data and theory to assess the kinematics and nature of deformation in a shear zone. The deformation zone includes quartzofeldspathic background gneiss and a dolerite dyke that cuts the gneissic banding at a high angle. A detailed field description of the deformation zone, which is critically discussed in terms of pure and simple shear, is presented. Analysis of gneissic banding and mineral lineation data, together with a consideration of the outcrop pattern, shows that the deformation zone is best described in terms of a simple shear zone with varying finite stretching direction. To analyse this deformation we introduce the concept of local plane strain. Although the deformation of the zone as a whole is 3D, at each point there is a direction in which it does not change its length. This direction is perpendicular to the local shear direction and so varies in orientation across the shear zone. In a reference frame defined at a point, the deformation can thus be understood in terms of conventional simple shear. Details of strain are hence determined according to this conclusion. A stereographic method for the determination of the reorientation of lines is used to calculate shear strain. The shear strain values across the shear zone are then used to restore the sheared dolerite dyke to its undeformed geometry. The success of the restoration provides supports for the strain calculation and also the conclusion of simple shear deformation.
The use of shear zones and related structures as kinematic indicators: a review
Authors: Cosgrove J. W.
Published: July 2007

Shear zones (i.e. locally developed planar zones of ductile deformation that contain a tectonically induced fabric) are one of the most commonly used kinematic indicators (i.e. asymmetric structures that can be used to determine the sense of movement and the orientation of the stress field operating at the time of their formation). This is because of the abundant occurrence of these structures, and the assumption that there is a unique relationship between them and their causative stress field. However, there is a range of structures that, when viewed in two dimensions on an outcrop surface, display the geometry of shear zones but are formed in a variety of different ways and are oriented at various angles to the maximum principal compression. These include shear zones that form at angles between 25° and 45° to σ
1
and that have the same relationship to σ
1
as brittle shear fractures, shear zones linked to the deformation of anisotropic materials that form at angles between 45° and almost 90° to σ
1
, and structures with the geometry of a shear zone that can be inclined at angles between
c.
10° and 80° to σ
1
and that appear on certain sections though folded mineral fabrics. Unless the mechanisms of formation of these structures are understood, there is a strong possibility that their kinematic implications will be misinterpreted.
Strain variations within a major carbonate thrust sheet of the Apennine collisional belt, northern Calabria, southern Italy
Authors: Vitale S. , Iannace A. , Mazzoli S.
Published: July 2007

Mike Coward's seminal work on strain within thrust sheets clearly showed how understanding crustal scale deformation associated with orogenesis requires a knowledge of both: (1) deformation associated with major thrusts and/or high-strain shear zones, and (2) finite strain states within the (usually large) surrounding rock volumes. In this study, the strain variations within a major, far-travelled thrust sheet internally deformed at very low-temperature, sub-metamorphic conditions, are analysed. The studied rocks belong to the thick carbonate succession of the Apennine Platform, which constitutes a major tectonostratigraphic unit of the southern Apennines. Finite strain analysis, besides quantifying the relative importance of different deformation mechanisms and the role of matrix and object strain, points to the existence of both vertical and horizontal strain gradients. These are probably controlled by both heterogeneous shear deformation associated with NE-directed tectonic transport and sedimentary carbonate facies distribution. The relative position with respect to the main overlying tectonic contact and the occurrence of a barrier to fluid flow, represented by siliciclastic beds located at the top of the carbonate succession, are also likely to have played an important role in the development of the observed regional strain gradients. On the metre scale, deformation appears to be partitioned into domains of quasi-coaxial and dominantly non-coaxial strain, controlled by different degrees of strain localization in texturally different stratigraphic layers.
Two-phase exhumation of ultra high-pressure and medium-pressure Indian Plate rocks from the Pakistan Himalaya
Authors: Treloar Peter J. , Vince Kathryn J. , Law Richard D.
Published: July 2007

The Indian Plate rocks of NW Pakistan contain evidence for both Eocene and Miocene phases of post peak metamorphic exhumation. The Eocene phase shortly followed peak synchronous ultra high-pressure (UHP) and Barrovian metamorphism and was driven by the rapid return towards the surface of deeply buried, positively buoyant coesite-bearing UHP rocks, flanked by thrusts below and extensional shears above. Uplift of the UHP rocks contributed to crustal thickening and resulted in internal imbrication of the Barrovian metamorphic rocks onto which they were thrust. The Eocene and Miocene events were separated by a phase of large-amplitude and -wavelength folding. Upright folds related to this event have shallow WNW or ESE plunges. Quartz
c
-axis data suggest that the maximum stretching direction paralleled the fold axes. During the Miocene the Main Mantle Thrust was reactivated as a major top-side-north extensional fault zone. Cascading folds on its hanging wall and cascading folds and a variety of ductile to brittle top-side-north meso- and microstructures on its footwall document significant top-side-north movement. The driving force for Miocene extension is unlikely to be channel flow as suggested for the central Himalaya. Instead, rapid shortening of the overriding plate following Late Oligocene slab break-off could have destabilized the wedge and driven extension in its upper parts.
Geology and tectonics of the South Atlantic Brazilian salt basins
Authors: Davison Ian
Published: July 2007

This paper first reviews the salt basins and depositional ages in the South Atlantic salt province. This comprises a series of salt basins separated by basement highs, deep graben (that never dried up), later volcanic highs and subaerial ocean spreading ridges. Initial halite and anhydrite deposition occurred first in the Sergipe-Alagoas Basin of NE Brazil at
c.
124.8 Ma, and was closely followed by deposition in the Kwanza Basin, Angola between 124.5 and 121 Ma. The later potassium-magnesium-rich salts were deposited in the Sergipe-Alagoas and Gabon-Congo basins before 114.5 Ma. The age of the main Santos-Campos salt is not known precisely, but the latest anhydrites deposited on the southern margin of the Santos Basin post-date volcanic rocks dated at 113.2 Ma. The paper then compares the salt tectonics of the wide Campos-Santos Basin segment with the narrow South Bahia basins segment. Sediment loading in the Santos Basin produced a landward-dipping base salt, which led to the development of counter-regional faults, and inhibited downslope sliding, and enhanced later contractional effects caused by either gravity spreading or regional tectonic compression. Folding occurred in simultaneous pulses across the Santos Basin, suggesting that regional tectonic compression occurred. The narrow salt basins of South Bahia have a steeply dipping base salt horizon (4°) and pronounced folding, which initiates at the oceanward pinch-out of the salt and propagates back up the slope. The topographic highs, above fold anticlines, are rapidly eroded on narrow margin slopes, which allows the folds to grow more easily to large amplitudes at the top salt horizon.