Acanthocephalan infection and sparganosis in a green tree snake (Dendrelaphis punctulata)

Acanthocephalan and spargana parasites were identified within a body wall mass during exploratory surgery in a wild green tree snake. Acanthocephalan parasites have not previously been reported in this species. Surgical excision, the treatment of choice, could not be achieved because of the extensive infiltration of the coelomic cavity.     

Multiple striate keratotomy: a treatment for corneal erosions caused by epithelial basement membrane disease

Objective To study the efficacy of multiple striate keratotomy for the treatment of persistent corneal erosions suspected to be caused by primary corneal epithelial basement membrane disease.
Design A retrospective study.
Animals 16 dogs, three cats and one Australian dingo.
Procedure A technique called multiple striate keratotomy was used to treat twenty animals suffering from persistent corneal erosions.
Results All persistent corneal erosions healed with only one treatment. Most cases healed within 2 weeks. One case developed a second erosion in the same eye but in a different position to the original erosion.
Conclusions Multiple striate keratotomy is a safe, effective and well tolerated technique for the treatment of persistent corneal erosions thought to be caused by corneal epithelial basement membrane disease.     

Drosophila CENH3 is sufficient for centromere formation

CENH3 is a centromere-specific histone H3 variant essential for kinetochore assembly. Despite its central role in centromere function, there has been no conclusive evidence supporting CENH3 as sufficient to determine centromere identity. To address this question, we artificially targeted Drosophila CENH3 (CENP-A/CID) as a CID-GFP-LacI fusion protein to stably integrated lac operator (lacO) arrays. This ectopic CID focus assembles a functional kinetochore and directs incorporation of CID molecules without the LacI-anchor, providing evidence for the self-propagation of the epigenetic mark. CID-GFP-LacI-bound extrachromosomal lacO plasmids can assemble kinetochore proteins and bind microtubules, resulting in their stable transmission for several cell generations even after eliminating CID-GFP-LacI. We conclude that CID is both necessary and sufficient to serve as an epigenetic centromere mark and nucleate heritable centromere function.     

Ground-Sensor Soil Reflectance as Related to Soil Properties and Crop Response in a Cotton Field

Bare soil reflectance from airborne imagery or laboratory spectrometers has been used to infer soil properties such as soil texture, organic matter, water content, salinity and crop residue cover. However, the relation of soil properties to reflectance data often varies with soil type and conditions and surface reflectance may not be representative of the conditions in the root zone. The objectives of this study were to assess the soil reflectance data obtained by ground-based sensors and to model soil properties in the root zone as a function of surface soil reflectance and plant response. Ground-based sensors were used to simultaneously monitor soil and canopy reflectance in the visible and near-infrared (VNIR) along six rows and in two growth stages in a 7 ha cotton field. The reflectance data were compared to soil properties, leaf nutrients and biomass measured at 33 sampling positions along the rows. Brightness values of the blue and green bands of soil reflectance were better correlated to soil water content, particulate organic matter and extractable potassium and phosphorus, while those in the red and NIR bands were correlated to soil carbonate content, total nitrogen, electrical conductivity and foliar nutrients. The correlation of red soil reflectance with canopy reflectance was significant and indicated an indirect inverse relationship between soil fertility and plant stress. The integration of surface soil reflectance and plant response variables in a multiple regression model did not substantially improve the prediction of soil properties in the root zone. However, crop nutrient status explained a significant portion of the spatial variability of soil properties related to nitrification processes when soil reflectance did not. The implication of these findings to agricultural management is discussed.     

Vacuum Squeezing of Solids: Macroscopic Quantum States Driven by Light Pulses

Femtosecond laser pulses and coherent two-phonon Raman scattering were used to excite KTaO3 into a squeezed state, nearly periodic in time, in which the variance of the atomic displacements dips below the standard quantum limit for half of a cycle. This nonclassical state involves a continuum of transverse acoustic modes that leads to oscillations in the refractive index associated with the frequency of a van Hove singularity in the phonon density of states.     

Excitation Gap in the Normal State of Underdoped Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta

Angle-resolved photoemission experiments reveal evidence of an energy gap in the normal state excitation spectrum of the cuprate superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta. This gap exists only in underdoped samples and closes around the doping level at which the superconducting transition temperature Tc is a maximum. The momentum dependence and magnitude of the gap closely resemble those of the dx2-y2 gap observed in the superconducting state. This observation is consistent with results from several other experimental techniques, which also indicate the presence of a gap in the normal state. Some possible theoretical explanations for this effect are reviewed.